2010 Resolutions Fictional “People” Should Make

Obviously, your average anime series or film is full of people with really bad habits. No Face should probably resolve to stop eating people, while Lupin III should do something about his kleptomania. But since Rekuru is a serious forum for social commentary, I wanted to address a very real problem I’ve noticed: the example the older generation is setting for the youth.

Major Misato Katsuragi (Eva): Clean Up Your Act

Living on your own can be tough for a young professional. Speaking from experience, there is that temptation to gradually let things slide: like housekeeping, diet, and sobriety. But when you’re an elite military officer with a teenaged ward, it may be important to, I don’t know, shape the heck up. And not just when the planet is under attack.

Which is to say nothing of the example you set for a whole generation of other young women.

Professor Takamichi K. Takahata (Negima): Quit Smoking

But let’s not pick on the girls too much. While Negima’s dreamboat Takahata-sensei could have started by not leading on Asuna for so long, what really bothers me is his smoking habit. What you do to your health is your own business, but when you’re teaching at a girls’ junior high school, and mentoring an emotionally unstable ten-year-old wizard, maybe it’s time to hit the Nicorette. I don’t think even Great Teacher Onizuka ever lit up on school grounds.

Or maybe cancer isn’t a problem for wizards. It occurred to me recently that St. Mungo’s in Harry Potter is “magical maladies” because they use magic to fix everything else.

Miss Saori Shikijo (Mahoromatic): Give Up Pedophilia

Teasing your ward with suggestive pictures, or pretending to be oblivious to a student’s crush, is one thing. Actively trying to rape one of your male students is quite another. Of course, there are real-life cases of this sort, and older men often wonder “what the big deal is;” but a lot of guys want their first experience to be something special, too. Pedophilia=not cool.