If you look at this picture, you're going to hell.

I’m not usually one to call moe fans “creepy” or “sexist.” However, while browsing Twitter earlier today, I came across this little gem.

Moe girls are like the template of the perfect female. If a 3D girl is not similar enough to a moe girl than that means she is bad news.

I won’t dignify the person who wrote this with a link to their profile. Suffice to say, they’re one of the ‘moe cultists’ I mentioned in passing at the end of my “Type A vs. Type B” post. For brevity’s sake, I will refer to this person as Anonymous Moe Cultist, or AMC, as he’s the textbook example of the fandom’s extremist fringe. He has an innate hatred of critics and intellectuals (especially those who criticize “his shows”), and frequently targets reviewers from this very website for ridicule. His views on women are similarly unpalatable.

Moe girls are ideas. Aoi Sakuraba is the moefication of Yamato Nadeshiko. Critics get upset and angry at these ideas rather than the content

Ergo, in AMC’s view, real women should learn to be more like their sexualized and submissive moe counterparts. They should smile, giggle, wait hand-and-foot on their man, and never talk back. And he wonders why people like me get upset at these archaic, sexist declarations?

This raises an interesting question. If moe produces this kind of blatantly sexist fan, does that make the genre itself sexist? I mean, it IS centered around the objectification of women, often with gratuitous fanservice. A quick look at Sankaku Complex makes it apparent that these prepubescant girls are seen as objects of sexual worship, not people. Should we shun moe shows for something more politically correct?

The answer is NO. Despite initial appearances, moe is NOT sexist. Find out why after the break.

What are YOU looking at, punk?

Let’s begin by examining the most extreme aspects of the moe fandom. Collete Bennett of Japanator once described moe as “A fear of adult women and adult relationships.” This description is far more profound than I had originally realized. We’ve all seen the pictures of the basement-dwelling otaku who obsess over their waifus. Unlike real women, these young beauties don’t talk back. They don’t judge you based on your looks, worry about how much money you have, or constantly demand gifts and pampering. They provide a form of female companionship that requires little or no commitment on your part.

“Okay, I’ll admit those fans exist,” you retort, “but I’m not like that! I have a real-life girlfriend and still enjoy moe!”

Sure, and that’s more common than you think. Most moe fans I’ve met are relatively well-adjusted people without these isolationist tendencies. Despite this, they still sexualize moe girls. They watch Strike Witches, drool over fanservice, buy wall scrolls of their favorite character, and set their iPhone wallpaper to a picture of Francesca Lucchini. Obviously these people are just as perverted and sexist as the basement-dwelling otaku, right?

Wrong.

The key difference here is fantasy versus reality. Moe girls are fantasies, and fans know this. Does anybody honestly expect to run across a Haruhi, Kirino or Rikku in real life? Aside from a few fringe extremists like AMC, most moe fans know how to keep their 2D and 3D separate. More often than not, it’s the anti-moe moralists who let fantasy invade their reality, as they vehemently try to protect the rights of fictional girls or insist that every moe fan is a potential pedophile.

You're doing it wrong!

“But Jon,” you exclaim, “these girls are underage! Fraternizing with junior high school girls is illegal!”

So? Shooting people is illegal too, yet we do it all the time in video games. Violence and gore are glorified in God of War and Grand Theft Auto. Yet, despite the Jack Thompsons of the world arguing that these evil games lead to violence in those who play them, there’s been no evidence to support that claim. Do you honestly expect an FPS gamer to suddenly go on a murdering spree? Well, I don’t think a moe fan is going to start raping children either.

“True,” you admit, “but I”m still not comfortable sexualizing teenage girls.”

Oh really? Let’s examine two of anime’s most prolific sex symbols: the girls of Sailor Moon and Evangelion. The Sailor Senshi are famous for their short skirts, and the show took advantage of this with gratuitous pantyshots. Also, according to the narrative, the Senshi were all aged 13 or 14 during the first season. Whoops! Guess we’re not allowed to fawn over Sailor Mars anymore! As for the Eva girls… well, what young guy hasn’t fantasied about Rei’s naked body or Asuka’s skintight plugsuit? These girls have been called anime’s most ubiquitous sex symbols, and with good reason. By the way, they’re also 14 years old. Time to burn those Evangelion DVDs!

Maybe when you're older, kid.

Tell me, how is this any different from ogling Princess Leia in a slave bikini? Or drooling at Seven of Nine’s massive “character development“? Or admiring Angelina Jolie’s naked body and prehensile lizard tail? These girls are unattainable fantasies, just like moeblobs. In fact, the only real difference is that one comes from live action and the other from a cartoon. So why is fantasizing about one sexist and wrong, whereas the other is just fine?

What’s my point? Simple. Anime is FICTION. It features giant robots, powerful starships, interdimensional monsters and precocious teenage girls with killer bodies and a sparkling smile. Most people are capable of enjoying a fantastic yarn without letting it color their perception of reality. A few, such as AMC, become obsessed and maladjusted. But why let these fringe idiots ruin the fun for the rest of us?