A scandal has erupted in South Korea after some of the country’s top K-pop idols promoted a controversial Japanese anime series about child torture and abuse.
The series, titled Made In Abyss, first premiered in 2017 but is now receiving widespread attention and condemnation in both Korea and abroad due to its disturbing content.
A number of top K-pop idols, including members of the successful boy bands SEVENTEEN and TXT, have publicly praised the series, sparking outrage from countless K-pop fans around the world.
Made In Abyss tells the story of a 12-year-old orphan named Riko, who befriends a part-robot boy named Reg.
Together they descend into a mysterious abyss that leads to the center of the earth in a search for Riko’s mother, where they are subjected to various horrors.
A scandal has erupted in South Korea after some of the country’s top K-pop idols promoted a Japanese anime series Made in Abyss (pictured), which features child torture
A number of K-pop idols, including a member of the successful boy band TXT (pictured), have praised the series, sparking outrage from K-pop fans around the world.
According to IMDBthe series features some questionable scenes involving the young characters, from implied nudity to disturbing violence.
In one scene, Riko is tied up naked in bondage-style ropes and hung from a ceiling, while another scene depicts an excruciating five-minute amputation of a limb.
“The second season is extremely violent, with harrowing murder scenes,” one user wrote on IMDB’s Parent’s Guide.
‘The carnage is taken to another level in the second season. It’s very disturbing.’
Another warning reads: “In the second season, some monsters lure a girl into a dark alley, where they begin to fondle her under her clothes and undress her.”
The series contains some questionable scenes involving the young characters, from implied nudity to disturbing violence
In one scene, the show’s two young characters are shown taking a bath together (pictured)
Since the scenes came to light, many K-pop fans in South Korea have condemned local K-pop idols for watching and promoting the series.
“This is truly despicable…” one fan wrote in a comment, translated by Pann Choa.
“Do they seriously consider this a harmless recommendation? The content of that anime makes me want to throw up,” wrote another.
The scandal has spread to the international K-pop community on social media, where many have condemned the series while others have defended it as art.
“This Made in Abyss thing is so sickening… I don’t even know what to say about it, I’m so disgusted,” someone posted on X.
Another wrote: ‘Anyone who fetishizes children and all those horrible themes deserves to rot in hell. Oh, I’m actually sick.’
Many K-pop fans have condemned K-pop idols for watching and promoting the series
Despite the backlash, many anime fans in the West have defended the series and pointed to its mainstream popularity.
“K-pop idols are currently canceled from watching/reading Made in Abyss. And non-anime fans think it’s some child torture movie,” one wrote.
“It’s a dark adventure story about two kids exploring a deep abyss full of creatures and treasure, like Monster Hunter s**t.”
Another wrote: ‘I’m sorry but let me get this straight. People are mad at this guy for seeing Made in Abyss. That is it. One of the most popular and widely appreciated anime of 2017.”
Despite the backlash, many anime fans in the West have defended the series and pointed to its mainstream popularity
Made in Abyss is indeed extremely popular and has conquered mainstream audiences around the world.
It has been critically praised by websites such as Forbes and IGN, and has won numerous awards.
Last year, a Made in Abyss video game was released on PlayStation and Nintendo Switch, and Sony’s Columbia Pictures is currently developing a live-action Hollywood film based on the series.
Made in Abyss is one of the most popular anime shows of the past five years, spawning a video game and an upcoming Hollywood film adaptation