As we previously reported, a new animated commercial for Toyo Suisan's "Maruchan" cup noodles has been causing a stir across Japanese social media. The controversy ignited when some netizens slammed the ad, which features a woman eating "Maruchan Akai Kitsune Udon" (Red Fox Fried Tofu Udon) in her room, as "too erotic" and even "disgusting," sparking a heated debate between supporters and detractors.
But just when you thought the online drama couldn't get any wilder, the critics who initially labeled the animation as "erotic" astonishingly pivoted their attacks! Their new targets? The animator behind the ad and even the voice actress! This shocking turn of events has only fueled the outrage among even more netizens.
▼ Check out the "Maruchan" cup noodle animated commercial below:
The mastermind behind this animated commercial is animator RIRI Yamashita, who revealed she handled everything from direction and production to character design and animation supervision. Naturally, once the ad blew up online, many eyes turned to her.
However, this attention also drew the ire of the original critics. They argued that RIRI Yamashita, as a female animator, was somehow perpetuating male fantasies about women in her own work. They questioned if she had been "brainwashed" by the male-dominated anime industry, claiming her creations were merely designed to pander to men. Some even resorted to direct personal attacks.
In response, a wave of supporters rallied behind RIRI Yamashita, flooding her posts with messages of encouragement, urging her not to let the online abuse get to her.
And if that wasn't enough, the vitriol then shifted to the voice actress, Kana Ichinose. Critics declared her voice "the most unpleasant," stating, "Most voice actresses aren't beautiful themselves, yet they use an overly cutesy voice that's completely detached from realistic female aesthetics, which feels a bit strange." They continued, "While it might be somewhat acceptable with a 'moe' art style, pairing it with a more realistic, everyday visual style just gives me goosebumps." (This inflammatory post was deleted after backlash, but netizens managed to back it up.)
This, understandably, enraged even more netizens. They couldn't fathom why anyone would resort to such malicious slander, bringing up baseless claims like "most voice actresses aren't pretty" or "their voices are unpleasant."
Simply criticizing her appearance was enough to infuriate Kana Ichinose's fans, who questioned what right or standard these critics had to judge.
While perceptions of an advertisement can certainly vary from person to person, escalating to personal attacks and outright abuse is absolutely beyond the pale.
Even though this ad dropped over two weeks ago, the online firestorm has kept its buzz incredibly high. It's safe to say Toyo Suisan probably never anticipated such a massive controversy when they first launched it!