Japanese Artists Reimagine Countries And Their Flags As Anime Characters For 2020 Tokyo Olympics (30 Pics)
While Tokyo is busy preparing for the 2020 Olympic Games, people are already psyched for it. A few Japanese artists have come together to create an unofficial promotion campaign for the Tokyo Olympics, drawing inspiration from a subject they're incredibly passionate about. Anime. They have been reimagining the participating countries as badass anime characters who are ready to go into combat, and the designs are very Japanese. In the best way. Each os the Olympic sports competitor is created with the culture, history, and national identity of the corresponding country in mind, offering a pretty visual harmonious diversity. Which is what the Olympics is all about.
Now, character drawings and concepts are always 'love it or hate it,' but we think that the artists behind these awesome anime drawings did an amazing job. All you have to do is scroll down below and check their drawing ideas out for yourself!
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Mexico
"There are six people working on the project, but more creators will join soon," World Flags told Bored Panda. "We've been doing it for about a year now." And even though the crew haven't done every participating country yet, they said the won't stop until everyone who is participating in the 2020 Tokyo Olympics gets their own character.
Philippines
"We feel so much respect for all of the countries around the world. They and their symbols (flags) are very important to us," the artists said. "We know we can't treat any of them in a way that would disrespect them and that's what we're constantly trying to do."
UK
Not everyone in Britain walks around dressed as a Lord Admiral, we only do it three or four days a week at most
"We started this project after recognizing the diversity between all of the people in the world. Also, we believe that illustration is the perfect tool to highlight this. Our motto is 'The whole world is cool!'"
"Japan and Tokyo have already started promoting the Olympics and they're doing a good job. We want to remind that World Flags is not a part of the Olympics. We just wanted to contribute. We believe that art -- and anime in particular -- can truly do wonders when it comes to both celebrating the bond between the Japanese culture and the rest of the world and acknowledging their differences."
Venesuela
South Korea
Japan
China
South Africa
Italy
Not certain on the strong influence of samurai on Roman culture but nice pic...
Sweden
Canada
Spain
France
I love this one even though I live in another country it truly reflects my French heritage and pride😁
Germany
I like it but a sword would have been better that a katana. ;)
Switzerland
Singapore
Norway
Indonesia
Brazil
Netherlands
India
🔥 aaawesome... but is he some wrestler samurai or what...they gave him no weapon.
Russia
Denmark
Sorry, but nothing that reminds me here of denmark. The white towel should be the cross from the flag? The swiss version looks more like denmark.
USA
Come on! He's got the boots for cryin' out loud!
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Tbh it makes sense that he looks younger considering how young America is compared to other countries
It's very young America is 245 the USA was taken in 1776 and the others are 200,000,000 to 600,000,000
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Agreed!!! Let's be more positive ppl! The artist is amazing and did a wonderful job on all of these!
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We don't see ourselves as others see us. Thank you very much for the honest portrayal of us. It's nice to see how others see us. Ya did good. Thank you.
its sad when you realize this is a pretty tame version of what the world thinks of your country.
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And beer, I forgot beer. As well as an Eagle and maybe dead kids in the background.
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The drawing is pretty spot on for the us,.cant tell if it is a man or woman..a he/ she/they/ non binary/ cis/ lesbian
It's a young male kid obviously. Young country, young character.
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I think the two things that make this feel shockingly unlike what Americans expected is 1) The face is far too delicate for an American, youth or not and 2) The clothing reeks of monarchy
too delicate for an American?? Lmaooo what does that every mean???? Hahaha
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I was expecting much worse. Where's the soda & gun. (I was born in USA. These are legit observations.)
VAQUERO culture and fashion belong to northern Mexican people. Americans appropriated that lifestyle, but vaquero life is part of Mexican culture.
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Quit whining and appreciate the design. I love America btw, from Philippines.
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Stars. Check. Stripes. Check. Cowboy boots. Check. Looks pretty legit to me.
I would have loved to have seen a bit of a hat tip to our Native American origins. (Which I almost never see in these things) you know like black straight hair, feathers, beads, a tomahawk, ect. The possibilities are endless.
Brazil, Mexico, Venezuela, & Argentina were also too non-Native...
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They are both brilliant, but as a Canadian, I must ask - what do you mean? Have you forgotten your history? The War of 1812, for example?
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I think the esteemed artists missed the ball with America. Yes, we're young, but this kid is about one month old. What are we, South Sudan?? And the boots are more Clint Eastwood than warrior class? We're supposed to frighten our enemies in battle, not take them to Disneyland. Blond and blue-eyed, whose America?
That just how japanese see westerners, blonde hair and blue eyes.
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Sadly, I think this is the way the World viewed the USA during the Trump Presidency. The perspective is improving, but under Trump, you were ridiculed far and wide. For all of our sakes, please pay attention to how you vote in your next election.
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Alas without the mandatory Eagle of Freedom I cannot condone this Murcia anime person
These anime characters are fantastic! I give them all my approval! 👍🏼
The Philippines look more like what the USA should be. Can't tell if this is a young Boy or young Girl.
Not all of us. Rap culture loves bling, not everyone loves rap culture.
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We are a young country relatively speaking ... And we have a childish president.
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As an American, I love this I love how they incorporate the stripes into armor and the stars the clothing.
Dude this is insulting, our country's samurai looks like a 5 year old with freckles like the armor is great but the character is a fail.
I drew a character to represent Nigeria, and I want to know how to get it across to the people who drew the ones here
dang.. why all the other countries look better than ours... this embarrassing to the us
This does not represent us very well except for the cow boy boots and how much we love wearing our flag Also we wouldn't have a sword we would have a gun
More Native American please like give him a bow and buffalo skin... also I think a cowboy hat would be cool also he should be taller. Not angry enough, we Americans are deathly patriotic doesn’t really show that.
It needs to look More Native American as well give him a bow and a buffalo skin or something... also cowboy hat please.
I think they could have just used Miss USA 2013 MissUSA-5f...58c4da.jpg 
sort of reminds me of america... in a way... pretty cool drawing though! :)
Why does Canada look vicious and America looks innocent? Should be switched
I was legit expecting a dude eating a big cheeseburger while firing a machinegun
I do like it, but it's the stereotypical blue-eyed, blonde-haired American. Not exactly American if you ask me, sorry.
First off, America is #30, that sucks! Then he looks rather pompous/bourgeois. LOL
This is a not-so-subtle jab, and yet a polite way of putting it. Well done! Love the boots!
I don't know why but I was expecting a really beafy fellow xD kinda like Kenpachi, but hey at least we made the first list
Shocked he doesn't have a fire lance or handgonne instead of a sword.
We look like a young spoiled prince....it's a mood ha ha no lies there
The baby face XD Also can we agree do not turn this into Hetalia 2.0 with shipping nations with each other ok?
Too skinny, not angry enough, to dumb to even use a sword coupled with the obsession many Americans have with guns. Anything for America to be pride of has long since been lost, nothing noble about America right now. With a history of oppression, exploitation, capitalism and consumerism on the backs of every day citizens. Especially after the debacle of our last president, his narcissism and immaturity, in trying and failing to rig the election in his favor. Where the only accurate details is perhaps America looking young and naïve. At least if representing everyday Americans who don't realize how badly they are being manipulated, deceived, and controlled by their government, politicians, and corporations.
Why are we made to look like an English colonial era soldier who is also royalty? This is the opposite of who we are. Grotesque.
Somehow I knew it would be made ugly. What is up with the gaudy plating? Is that really how you see us? Pale blonde hair blue eyes might not be the best selection either. We're a melting pot. Better to make it more ethnically neutral.
Clearly above and beyond representing america truly what an american should look like. :) happy +
Ha! This is funny...they're trolling the right-wingers. They made the American samurai a non-binary.
Ha...This is funny. They're trolling the right-wingers. They made the American samurai a non-binary.
No bald eagle?? Lol All of the portraits are amazing! 💕💕 You can tell that a lot of thought and care went into each
Lmao I saw posts about the characters for the UK, Mexico, and Latvia and a few others and when I imagined how they did the US I thought of a tan-ish man with blond hair and a rifle butttt I guess this makes sense cuz we're a new-ish nation
Of course he's young. America is a toddler of a country compared to most on this list
UGH. Although given our piece of c**p government, I guess we deserve an ugly a*s one.
Seems like a take on George Washington to me. https://www.vosegalleries.com/articles/washington-must-stay-here
You'd think Jamaica wasn't one of the main attractions at the Olympics...
I was picturing a small whining child w tangerine hair and a bad comb over sucking his thumb.
This anime is missing a lot of stuff the apple, microsoft, google, marvel, dc, facebook, IG, youtube and etc lmao. Or maybe this is the end result of everything lol.
I would have used a calvary saber. Also the US has invented some unique guns.
Great idea! I'm very surprised the Phillipines flag character is wielding a firearm but our American one isn't. A rifle with a bayonet would have been very fitting.
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I didn't know you're a professional artist yourself. *sigh* Why people like you appreciate and give respect to those who made this wonderful art.
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anyone else see an androgynous male that appears pampered and unready for the olympic battle , compared to many of the others?
hmmm, blonde, blue-eyed, young white boy - the very definition of WHITE PRIVILEGE!
Debi, for chrissakes, the artists are all JAPANESE, they’re doing anime style, they haven’t even gotten to the African countries yet, and have probably never even heard of white privilege. Aren’t there other people who deserve your ire much more?
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Maybe Cowboy Samurai with 2 rifles and cross ammo over his chest...
Level one - agitated Level two - YOU WILL PAY Level three - TANKS AND CANNONS Level 4 - 'MURICA! This is like level three. I had thought it would be more 'MURICA
Super lame. seriously, you could have done so much better then this.
All the people that are angry about SJW’s make me kinda sad.. this is literally a country founded on shockingly liberal ideas (for the time) and also a country of immigrants.. like, there’s a reason the US was thought of as forward-thinking. Anyway, I think the young face is really cool, especially because that combined with the torso area & cape (not sure what it’s called but y’all get the gist) sorta makes a picture of that idealistic revolutionary, and yeah I may be thinking personally here, but that seems to be the good heart of America. Also, the boots? appropriation (what we did to mexico when we were manifesting our destiny? ouch), check. ‘murica, check. Kinda out-of-place, kinda flashy, and that’s a pretty accurate bit of us right there. Also, I was both bracing for and looking forward to this and although it wasn’t what I expected, I really like this picture of us. It’s less political than I thought, and it just strikes me as really sweet. The artist here did really well. 💛
Cultural appropriation is not a legitimate thing. Cultures share and spread, no one owns culture.
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Not accurate at all. No cheeseburgers, double gulp, or truck to carry his obese a*s everywhere. Also needs to look way more like a douchebag
Or they could make the character Asian American, where he would be portrayed as drinking boba and smarter than Europeans lol lol
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I was thinking something more like Light Yagami. He thinks he is doing good killing off evil people but end up doing more harm than good and becomes a bad guy himself. Put Light's head on this body and you've got it.
What more harm have we done that wasn't brought on by someone else? go ahead ill wait.
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Note: this post originally had 32 images. It’s been shortened to the top 30 images based on user votes.
These are all really good, but honestly, I'd prefer their outfits were inspired by the respective country's traditional clothing. Would make it more interesting. Regardless of politics.
I agree, this way you could show more countries that did not make the list.
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They said they haven't done every participating country yet and will continue their work until Tokyo Olympic 2020. It's on the paragraph under the 1st picture (currently SA) :)
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These are amazing! Do away with the standard cutesy Olympic mascots and use these! To those asking "Why is there not ___ represented?": This is a work in progress, and the site lists all of the countries participating, even if they haven't finalized the character for them yet. This is in preparation for the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, so you are seeing just the beginning of the series!
The website has profiles for over 80 countries so far. If someone is wondering where their country is, they should check it out there. They have full character bios, a manga and a YouTube introduction video. https://world-flags.org/
Load More Replies... VAQUERO culture and fashion belong to northern Mexican people. Americans appropriated that lifestyle, but vaquero life is part of Mexican culture.
Yeah, but with FGO (Fate/Grand Order) taste inside
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A little sad that there is no Czech Republic... With a high sock in the sandals, with the Beer belly and the sword which was made at home from a components from old "Skoda Rapid" car 😂😂😂
Here ya go! https://world-flags.org/oceania/aus.html
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Egypt is not in the list although we are participating in the Olympics2020\2021 my disappointment is immeasurable and my day is ruined
How surprising is the fact that this was made to honor Olympic games, but Greece is not being represented (yet)? Shame...
VAQUERO culture (know as cowboy in usa) is part of northern Mexican people. American appropriated VAQUERO culture. COWBOY culture ain't American.
It's not appropriation, it's PRACTICAL USE. How else they are supposed to herd cattle?! Also, it's originated on the Iberian Peninsula, not Mexico. Spanish equestrian tradition can be traced back to Arabic rule in Spain, horse riding equipment are ultimately Eurasian. And don't get me started on the cattle herding.
Load More Replies... I wish there was room here for ALL the countries' representations. I'd like to see New Zealand's (they'd definitely need to be wearing jandals -- and I mean, perfect, since the term "jandal" came from "Japanese sandals"), and Ireland's, and some of those teeny-tiny countries no one pays much attention to (sadly).
THESE ARE SO COOL. SORRY I'M SHOUTING. JUST VERY EXCITED ABOUT THE CONCEPT.
Now I want all of these anime-flag characters together in an anime sequel!! I would def watch !! That would be so so cool <3
They are beautiful and inspired , but why somes countries missing and especialy Greece where the Olympic Games came from.
They are doing them as they can; they’ll be finished all of them by next year!
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Wow such disrespect to those county which they didn't make for. If you are gonna make should have made for every country. F**k you 🖕🖕
They are so beautiful but I couldn’t find my country... because of sanctions?!! We the people are so lonely and heartbroken here!! We Iranian people love peace and humanity (you shouldn’t judge us by our dictator government) :((
Love it!! These are amazing and so creative. It would have been so cool to have one athlete from each country dress in this costume. Or have them all come out after all the countries under the Olympic flag. haha - anyway - hats off to this creativity.
Human nature is so that someone accidentally reinvents hetalia ever so occasionally
Umm.. usually there isn't Israel.. but this time i really hoped they'll have one :< this kind of art is my favorite :< i guess Finland is similar. Amazing art..
It s reaIly good, I like all pictures, and I would like to see my country (Slovakia).
This whole list is ridiculous. WHITEN every country/ethnicity in the world. And you manga otaku see nothing wrong with it!
With all the negative comments (lack of understanding their directions and objective of their project, and appreciating their initiative and good will, and the difficulties of designing, illustrating and colouring more than 100 of these pictures), I would not be surprised if the artists stopped their project before Olympic even begin.
Venesuela? With and S? No one even cared to look for the right spelling?? Lol
Fantástico el trabajó de los artistas al representar las diversas banderas de los participantes de las olimpiadas
Why do I find these manga characters more attractive than the boys in my class...
Love all of them! Can't wait to see what the Aussie Guy looks like!!
This is literally a ripoff of Hetalia. Like can we not. Thankkksssss UwU
This is literally a ripoff of hetalia. Can we not. Thankkssss. UwU
These are all awesome and I wish I could draw this good but there were countries I kinda wished I could see... like Australia
I love the samurai inspired outfits for each country. It'd be freaking cool if each country could have a cosplayer and wear these during Olympics!!! Hahah!!!
Aren't these just typical anime characters with a flag colour theme? I'm not seeing what's so interesting about these.
As a citizen of Canada, I found Canada looks like an arrogant scoundrel. Also, I don't think Canada is totally White. Should have been mix-race. And as a Vietnamese, I found Vietnam looks nothing Vietnamese. One more thing, this is kinda sexist, don't you think? No female here, all male. Why? Beside from those issues, great arts as usual.
I help make cosplay costumes. While these would be a challenge, the end results would be AMAZING!! I love the details of history interwoven in the art. Thank you for sharing!
Anime might be Japanese, but you have drawn every country’s rep as Their culture; not our own. There is nothing Japanese about my ancestral culture. — You are a good artist, for how you have shown the way you wish to represent each country. Samurai is very much “your” forte. Unless it is traditional with anime portrayals, perhaps you could balance the size ratios of the feet and heads with the body sizes.
This is a pastiche of mechanically styled illustration and soulless, witless cliches. Far too many people indulge in this stuff, then send it to BoredPanda to be presented with a fill-in-the-blanks title like "I Draw --- as If They Were _____ Today."
I've never really cared much for the Olympics but throw anime into it and I'll like anything lol
Sorry I don't like sports... downvoted for disliking sports ooook
Load More Replies... Or maybe east Asians don't really all look like the stereotype wants them to? True, it's difficult to tell the difference between Caucasians and east Asians in a SIMPLIFIED anime style, but that doesn't make them all "white people".
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1st - they're not white. Those are pallets of combinations of brown, red, yellow and other colours to help you give the impression they're alive and human. 2nd - they are not "skinned", don't be so gore. O_o (I know you meant to make an adjective from "skin", many do so, but see, it sounds very ugly. Sincerely, a linguistics major.) 3rd - in anime there is not an "always" looking this or that way. The industry is too big for only one stereotype. The stereotypes themselves are so numerous they became, ironically, very various, and additionally there are just as many artists with unique styles and amongst these there are artists whose styles get so well accepted they create new stereotypes.
Load More Replies... These are all really good, but honestly, I'd prefer their outfits were inspired by the respective country's traditional clothing. Would make it more interesting. Regardless of politics.
I agree, this way you could show more countries that did not make the list.
Load More Replies... They said they haven't done every participating country yet and will continue their work until Tokyo Olympic 2020. It's on the paragraph under the 1st picture (currently SA) :)
Load More Replies... These are amazing! Do away with the standard cutesy Olympic mascots and use these! To those asking "Why is there not ___ represented?": This is a work in progress, and the site lists all of the countries participating, even if they haven't finalized the character for them yet. This is in preparation for the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, so you are seeing just the beginning of the series!
The website has profiles for over 80 countries so far. If someone is wondering where their country is, they should check it out there. They have full character bios, a manga and a YouTube introduction video. https://world-flags.org/
Load More Replies... VAQUERO culture and fashion belong to northern Mexican people. Americans appropriated that lifestyle, but vaquero life is part of Mexican culture.
Yeah, but with FGO (Fate/Grand Order) taste inside
Load More Replies... A little sad that there is no Czech Republic... With a high sock in the sandals, with the Beer belly and the sword which was made at home from a components from old "Skoda Rapid" car 😂😂😂
Here ya go! https://world-flags.org/oceania/aus.html
Load More Replies... Egypt is not in the list although we are participating in the Olympics2020\2021 my disappointment is immeasurable and my day is ruined
How surprising is the fact that this was made to honor Olympic games, but Greece is not being represented (yet)? Shame...
VAQUERO culture (know as cowboy in usa) is part of northern Mexican people. American appropriated VAQUERO culture. COWBOY culture ain't American.
It's not appropriation, it's PRACTICAL USE. How else they are supposed to herd cattle?! Also, it's originated on the Iberian Peninsula, not Mexico. Spanish equestrian tradition can be traced back to Arabic rule in Spain, horse riding equipment are ultimately Eurasian. And don't get me started on the cattle herding.
Load More Replies... I wish there was room here for ALL the countries' representations. I'd like to see New Zealand's (they'd definitely need to be wearing jandals -- and I mean, perfect, since the term "jandal" came from "Japanese sandals"), and Ireland's, and some of those teeny-tiny countries no one pays much attention to (sadly).
THESE ARE SO COOL. SORRY I'M SHOUTING. JUST VERY EXCITED ABOUT THE CONCEPT.
Now I want all of these anime-flag characters together in an anime sequel!! I would def watch !! That would be so so cool <3
They are beautiful and inspired , but why somes countries missing and especialy Greece where the Olympic Games came from.
They are doing them as they can; they’ll be finished all of them by next year!
Load More Replies... Wow such disrespect to those county which they didn't make for. If you are gonna make should have made for every country. F**k you 🖕🖕
They are so beautiful but I couldn’t find my country... because of sanctions?!! We the people are so lonely and heartbroken here!! We Iranian people love peace and humanity (you shouldn’t judge us by our dictator government) :((
Love it!! These are amazing and so creative. It would have been so cool to have one athlete from each country dress in this costume. Or have them all come out after all the countries under the Olympic flag. haha - anyway - hats off to this creativity.
Human nature is so that someone accidentally reinvents hetalia ever so occasionally
Umm.. usually there isn't Israel.. but this time i really hoped they'll have one :< this kind of art is my favorite :< i guess Finland is similar. Amazing art..
It s reaIly good, I like all pictures, and I would like to see my country (Slovakia).
This whole list is ridiculous. WHITEN every country/ethnicity in the world. And you manga otaku see nothing wrong with it!
With all the negative comments (lack of understanding their directions and objective of their project, and appreciating their initiative and good will, and the difficulties of designing, illustrating and colouring more than 100 of these pictures), I would not be surprised if the artists stopped their project before Olympic even begin.
Venesuela? With and S? No one even cared to look for the right spelling?? Lol
Fantástico el trabajó de los artistas al representar las diversas banderas de los participantes de las olimpiadas
Why do I find these manga characters more attractive than the boys in my class...
Love all of them! Can't wait to see what the Aussie Guy looks like!!
This is literally a ripoff of Hetalia. Like can we not. Thankkksssss UwU
This is literally a ripoff of hetalia. Can we not. Thankkssss. UwU
These are all awesome and I wish I could draw this good but there were countries I kinda wished I could see... like Australia
I love the samurai inspired outfits for each country. It'd be freaking cool if each country could have a cosplayer and wear these during Olympics!!! Hahah!!!
Aren't these just typical anime characters with a flag colour theme? I'm not seeing what's so interesting about these.
As a citizen of Canada, I found Canada looks like an arrogant scoundrel. Also, I don't think Canada is totally White. Should have been mix-race. And as a Vietnamese, I found Vietnam looks nothing Vietnamese. One more thing, this is kinda sexist, don't you think? No female here, all male. Why? Beside from those issues, great arts as usual.
I help make cosplay costumes. While these would be a challenge, the end results would be AMAZING!! I love the details of history interwoven in the art. Thank you for sharing!
Anime might be Japanese, but you have drawn every country’s rep as Their culture; not our own. There is nothing Japanese about my ancestral culture. — You are a good artist, for how you have shown the way you wish to represent each country. Samurai is very much “your” forte. Unless it is traditional with anime portrayals, perhaps you could balance the size ratios of the feet and heads with the body sizes.
This is a pastiche of mechanically styled illustration and soulless, witless cliches. Far too many people indulge in this stuff, then send it to BoredPanda to be presented with a fill-in-the-blanks title like "I Draw --- as If They Were _____ Today."
I've never really cared much for the Olympics but throw anime into it and I'll like anything lol
Sorry I don't like sports... downvoted for disliking sports ooook
Load More Replies... Or maybe east Asians don't really all look like the stereotype wants them to? True, it's difficult to tell the difference between Caucasians and east Asians in a SIMPLIFIED anime style, but that doesn't make them all "white people".
Load More Replies... 1st - they're not white. Those are pallets of combinations of brown, red, yellow and other colours to help you give the impression they're alive and human. 2nd - they are not "skinned", don't be so gore. O_o (I know you meant to make an adjective from "skin", many do so, but see, it sounds very ugly. Sincerely, a linguistics major.) 3rd - in anime there is not an "always" looking this or that way. The industry is too big for only one stereotype. The stereotypes themselves are so numerous they became, ironically, very various, and additionally there are just as many artists with unique styles and amongst these there are artists whose styles get so well accepted they create new stereotypes.
Load More Replies...