I deleted my recent post about the Dr. STONE fan animation.
On X, people post and delete things all the time, of course… but this time, it honestly felt a bit heartbreaking, and I also felt sorry toward the many fans who enjoyed it, so I wanted to explain.
(Actually, I wrote this right after deleting the post, but afterward Steve and I were hit by huge waves in life, and only now could I finally post this.)
It was such a lovely fan animation, and I was truly grateful to the creator.
I genuinely loved the animation itself as well, which is why I shared it in the first place.
But then I started wondering:
“Could this become a spoiler for people who only watch the Dr STONE tv anime and haven’t read the original manga?”
Normally, I honestly don’t care much about spoilers.
Because in my view, when it comes to manga and anime, manga itself isn’t really a “spoiler.”
The essence of anime is experiencing the manga again—this time with color, animated-movement, voice acting, and give life to characters.
If avoiding spoilers for anime were the priority, then we shouldn’t have serialized the story in Weekly Shōnen Jump, where millions of people read it every week.
Around the world, countless people read Dr. STONE through Jump, volumes, digital platforms, and many other ways before watching the anime.
Dr. STONE has sold 20 million copies in circulation.
So my Dr. STONE-related posts X and Insta are basically written with original manga readers and fans in mind.
There’s already an unspoken understanding of:
“We already know the story.”
That’s why I’ve talked many times before about parts that hadn’t appeared in the anime yet.
After all, some of these chapters were published in Jump over 5 years ago.
And that lovely fan animation was surely also made by someone who loved Dr. STONE manga and its characters deeply.
Both the fan-anime creator and I probably shared the same assumption:
that the “normal way” is to read the manga first and then enjoy the anime adaptation afterward.
So I don’t think anyone did anything wrong.
But this time, the topic itself was specifically about the anime series.
And I began to wonder:
“What if this somehow interferes with the anime experience?”
“What if it affects people who only watch the anime?”
That thought stayed with me, so I decided to delete the post about that precious fan animation.
And to everyone who enjoys only the anime:
I appreciate you too.
Watching only the anime?
There’s absolutely nothing wrong with that.
I’m simply grateful that you love Dr. STONE.
Manga readers and anime fans alike are all precious to me.
That’s why, even though it hurt a little, I chose to remove the post this time.
Steve even suggested reposting it later after the anime episode airs.
Thank you very much!
“The Meaning of Paying for Manga”
There was a time, in the late 1990s, when I believed that all manga should be sold and purchased.
Today, I no longer think that way.
Manga can be distributed in many different ways.
Some manga can be free.
Some can be supported by advertising revenue.
In some cases, the manga and comics themselves may function as promotion or publicity for something else.
However, I still believe that the core of the manga industry must be supported by readers who choose to pay for it.
But that raises an important question: What does the reader gain?
The creators and publishers receive revenue, so it is easy to understand why they benefit.
But what does the person who buys the manga actually receive?
If the answer is simply, "You should pay because the law says so," then people may pay, but something still feels missing, right?
Why does it sometimes feel less satisfying than when people used to read piracy manga for free?
Perhaps because, if payment exists only to gain access to the content itself, then the experience is incomplete.
And I believe this is where the future of manga services must evolve.
First, there is the value of ownership.
When you buy a printed manga tankōbon volume, you gain something physical.
Anyone who has collected books understands the pleasure that comes from that.
The joy of a manga tankōbon volume is not only in the short time spent reading it.
In many ways, it is the years it spends sitting on your bookshelf afterward that matter even more.
For a long time, I believed printed books would eventually disappear.
Now I believe the opposite.
I believe printed books should exist forever.
Because the pleasure of physical ownership is real.
Even in a future centered around digital services, we should continue exploring ways to preserve that sense of ownership and attachment.
Books will remain important, but digital platforms should also think creatively about how physical collections and digital experiences can support each other.
There is another point that deserves attention.
Human beings often enjoy spending money on things they truly love.
When we share a meal with someone we care about, we often want to pay.
When we love a pet, we want to buy things for that pet.
The idea that "everyone prefers everything to be free" is not only simplistic—it misunderstands human nature.
When people spend money on a manga they love, the happiness does not come only from reading it.
There is also joy in the act of supporting it.
The moment of purchase itself can be meaningful.
In some ways, it is similar to buying a car.
The excitement is not only in driving it later—the moment of purchase is often one of the happiest moments.
Of course, it would be naïve to assume that people will happily pay simply because spending money feels good.
That would be no different from assuming that everyone automatically prefers things to be free.
If readers are paying, the industry must provide real value of service in return.
Platforms that are funded by consumers have the ability—and the responsibility—to do that.
After all, if consumers are paying the bills, then consumers should matter more than advertisers.
And I believe we can imagine services that are much better than the ones that currently exist.
This is the central point I want to make.
Paying for manga is about more than buying a book.
It is about more than receiving a service.
When you pay for manga, you are helping to build and sustain a system.
That is my core argument.
But what kind of system?
A system called manga culture.
When readers support manga, they help create a world where manga culture can flourish within their own country.
And what does that mean?
It means manga conventions, cosplay events, dōjinshi culture, and independent manga and comic creators.
It means communities of readers, critics, journalists, and commentators.
It means a healthy relationship between creators and audiences(readers and fans), where readers are not merely spectators but participants whose voices matter.
It means districts and cultural spaces that become gathering places for fans.
It means the growth of related industries—animation, games, merchandise, film, and many others—that enrich the manga experience and create opportunities for new creators.
It means living in a society where loving manga is respected rather than dismissed.
It means seeing your country's creators recognized around the world.
It means feeling proud when works born from your own culture reach global audiences.
These are the things that readers ultimately receive.
They may not arrive immediately.
But when someone chooses to save some lunch money and buy a manga volume instead of spending it elsewhere, they are contributing to something much larger than a single purchase.
They are helping build a system.
A MANGA CULTURE!
YOUR OWN MANGA CULTURE!