Taiwan's Search for Identity Through Local Manga History

TaiwanPlus News

Taiwanese comics might not be as well known as those from Japan or South Korea but their history reveals a complex search for identity spanning Taiwan's time as a Japanese colony, the Nationalists' one-party rule and the country's road to democracy.    Reporter: Ting Yeh  Videographer: Andy Hsueh  Video Editor: Alison Nguyen   #TaiwanPlusNews #Taiwan #Comics #MangaCulture

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00:00Illustrated prints have been around in Taiwan from as early as the 19th century,

00:04but it wasn't until Japanese colonial rule that comics began to take shape,

00:09spreading through magazines and newspapers.

00:11That was until 1945, when the Chinese Nationalist Party, or KMT,

00:16fled to Taiwan and worked to remove Japanese influence under martial law.

00:21Strict censorship required every comic strip to undergo review,

00:25and the industry nearly died.

00:30But, the KMT also used comics for anti-communist propaganda,

00:37sparking a wave of publications, and a new generation of comic artists

00:57trying to differentiate themselves from the Japanese style,

01:01some by blending traditional Chinese elements into original comics.

01:16After martial law ended, Taiwanese comics regained their freedom.

01:20Stories are now rooted in Taiwan, its people, its land, and its identity.

01:24And the launch of the Creative Comic Collection, or CCC, gave the movement new momentum.

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