Chinese TV Animation Is Starting to Corner the Global Boys Love Market

Thanks to the likes of Mo Dao Zu Shi and Heaven Official’s Blessing, Chinese animation is breaking through in a big way — particularly BL series. Donghua, Chinese animation, has rocketed in popularity in part thanks to the BL series Mo Dao Zu Shi (The Grandmaster of Demonic Cultivation in English). Another series based on novels by author Mo Xiang Tong Xiu, Heaven Official’s Blessing, is also gaining popularity, being the donghua streamed by Funimation. These popular series have opened the world to danmei (Chinese BL) and have become phenomenons on Tumblr and Twitter. Their global popularity seems to have put danmei on the radar — giving Chinese comics and animation a wider platform, similar to the popularity Korean comics (manhwa) have received over the years as well. Continue scrolling to keep reading Click the button below to start this article in quick view. Danmei, similar to Japan’s yaoi genre, is somewhat controversial. Male characters are often put in heteronormative “masculine” and “feminine” roles, perpetuating harmful stereotypes. Danmei is usually made by heterosexual women for the straight female gaze, rather than by LGBTQ creators. However,  the genre is also considered a positive step in representation as it pushes LGBTQ romance…
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