Well, Malaysia has certainly come through leaps and bounds in all these years, bringing us to where we are today. However some leaps have certainly turned heads of disgust and bewilderment of the society, and with the latest issue of an edition of an Ultraman manga being banned in this country, it has certainly invited much attention with many ridiculing at the idea posed, causing yet another social backlash on the acts of the Malaysian Home Ministry.
Ultraman, a Japanese superhero, in fact a childhood hero of ours; taking on huge giant monsters (kaiju in Japanese) and saving the Earth from their wrath. With their ability to transform between colours (applies to the more modern types of Ultraman) and their ever changing designs; Ultraman has never failed to grasp onto the heart of many, be it children or even adults all these years. Ultraman is seen as a savior, a protector to mankind, carrying out his duties with his bravery, wits and certainly magical powers of his own.
Then came the news 'According to a report by national news agency Bernama today, the ministry issued a ban on the publication of the Bahasa Malaysia edition of the comic book, “Ultraman the Ultra Power”, for allegedly containing elements detrimental to public order'. I mean, what the hell and how does a Japanese manga hero pose a threat to the public? With so many movies on war and destruction playing on the screens of cinemas every single day in Malaysia, why does it have to be Ultraman? Seriously, its preposterous and many do not see the logic behind this.
Could it be this incident that caused the ban??
This news is trending as we speak, and might prove to be a match beater for the 'Listen, listen, listen' and the more recent 'Kangkung' agonies. Many have been taken aback by the released statement and has caused social media lampoon towards the seemingly unpredictable acts from yet another governmental body. It would seem that Ultraman issues have been given a huge stride in priority instead of the more important matters of the country that the government has to attend to.
The more recent 'Kangkung' trend has found it match?
The Ministry has yet to explain of what aspect of the comic prompted this ban of a worldwide popular Japanese superhero, and with the media swarming around, it would be interesting to find out the reason behind such preposterousy. Such is the trend these days in Malaysia. After all these years, with monsters of all shapes and sizes, powers and all, it just took one ban statement from the Malaysian Home Ministry to defeat the almighty Ultraman!
Signing off,
Nickel Low CJ
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