Popular Culture Review Vol. 8, No. 2, August 1997 | Page 48

44 Popular Culture Review work that has been found to be "queasy" even by admirers of Japanese popular culture (Schodt 9). Many Japanese men, however, must have found it quite entertaining; it is so popular that a sixth installment was released in 1995. Rapeman is a Superman/Batman-like crime fighter in modem day Tokyo who uses rape as an instrument of justice. In everyday life, he is a Clark Kent lookalike both in appearance and in mannerisms; in uniform, he is Batmanesque without the cape and the pointed ears. However, unlike his counterparts in Metropolis and .Gotham City, the Tokyo avenger never beats up the villains with knockout punches ~ if they are women. He rapes them. And the show always finds an abundance of female evildoers in the capital of Japan. Having said that, there is also a body of important works in recent years, especially on television, that are inspirational and empowering for women. These shows cast women in refreshingly different roles, shattering the traditional boundaries. Perhaps, this is a sign of changing times. Even in Rapeman, there was a hint of new sensitivity in a recent episode (Rapeman V 1995). Rapeman showed signs of repulsion towards his work. In the closing scene, after dispensing justice in the usual way -- sexually assaulting a serial rapist who had impersonated him - Rapeman looked disgusted and had tears in his eyes. Perhaps, the irony of raping a rapist caused him to reflect on his own actions. Incidentally, the rapist was a woman wearing a dildo. Putting Rapeman and its genre aside, let's look at some of the works that represent the more enlightened side of Japanese popular culture — women's dramas on television. All the teleplays cited here were shown in the 1990s. Women Understand Women The Law Office of Seven Women (original English title) is a long-running television series, as well as the name of the law firm in the show. From the very beginning, this program made it clear that it is a feminist story. The first episode dealt with the founding of the firm, and provided the rationale for having an all-female law office. (Actually, there are two males: the father of the founder, who is a retired lawyer, and a young man, who is the office boy running errands for the lawyers.)