Me, this manga and my friend

[Goldenhope]

I have recently discovered a new mangaka called Tsutomu Nihei - and I absolutely fell in love his art style charachter design and grim cyberpunk setting.
I started reading his most successful work so far, called Blame, that is also about to receive a Netflix adaptation, and enjoyed all of its ten volumes.
But a problem has risen.
I had adviced a friend of mine to read it too, and after more or less a week, he claimed the manga has anti-christian symbols. I was baffled by this claim - the manga has no reference to magic, religion or supernatural of any kind. He stated the main antagonists - the defensive “Safeguards” - all bear the inverted cross on their brow, and to reinforce these claims he said that the main charachter has a halo at a certain point and the prequel (called NoiSe) has a satanic cult.
I tried to tell him that the symbology is most likely “faux” and coincidental and while indeed there is an occultish cult with robes and masks they use eldritch technology, not magic - but he is adamant on these claims.
So I wanted to ask around for curiosity - what is your take on this?
I link the images related
The safeguard symbol(multiple instances):* darkp2t.deviantart.com/art/Safeguard-Fabric-painting-141640652 ; animenewsnetwork.com/images/cms/house-of-1000-manga/65962/blame-00004.jpg ; wpshrine.com/uploads/suba/wpshrine_BLAME_290_1600x1200.jpg
The halo (present for a couple chapters, then disappears): hobbyfanatics.com/index.php?/topic/13042-a-level-nine-safeguard-unit-is-manifesting-in-cibos-body/
The cultists(I link the entire first chapter): m.mangafox.me/roll_manga/noise/v01/c001/1.html
*

 

[Allegra]

Is it really a problem if your friend doesn’t approve of what you read?

 

[midori]

When I took a Japanese language course, my native Japanese teacher (at a university with “Christian” in its name, although it was pretty secular) was quick to reassure us that she believed in Jesus, but that only, like, 1% of Japanese people were Christian. I think that still holds true. In general, the Japanese usually live Shinto, and die Buddhist, so they don’t really approach religion in the same mindset as Westerners, where if you’re going to be this, you live it and you die it, and if you’re going to be this, it means that you believe 100% in this and not anything else.

So Christianity is often portrayed as a mysterious or exotic religion, and they generally get a lot of the details really mangled. It doesn’t really try to present Christianity as Christianity, just like how you have your Mysterious Evil Taoist Sorcerer stereotype that doesn’t really present Taoism in a serious way.

So, for example, a lot of the Catholic-versus-Protestant stuff in Hellsing is very silly to our eyes. And in Maria-sama ga Miteru, you sort of get that it’s a Catholic private school, and they’ve got rosaries and statues, but it’s all just setting and window-dressing. And if you run into priests or nuns, well, they certainly don’t look like the people we run into at the 9 am Mass. And I think I read, like, 15 volumes of Angel Sanctuary before I gave up on trying to make any of it relate to any version of Christianity that I knew.

So, yeah. I think there’s a lot of ignorance-- not in a condescending way, but just in a “Hey, this idea is cool, let me put this into my story” sort of way, without really understanding what it is they’re appropriating, and whether it’s being used appropriately, or in a non-warped sort of way.

 

[ProdglArchitect]

So, for example, a lot of the Catholic-versus-Protestant stuff in Hellsing is very silly to our eyes. And in Maria-sama ga Miteru, you sort of get that it’s a Catholic private school, and they’ve got rosaries and statues, but it’s all just setting and window-dressing. And if you run into priests or nuns, well, they certainly don’t look like the people we run into at the 9 am Mass. And I think I read, like, 15 volumes of Angel Sanctuary before I gave up on trying to make any of it relate to any version of Christianity that I knew.

You actually read Angel Sanctuary? I gave the anime a shot and it… hurt… not because of how badly it misrepresented Christianity. It was… just… awful…

Hellsing is a guilty pleasure of mine, despite how badly it mangles… well… just about everything Christian, and especially Catholicism. That said, Anderson is one of the coolest character in that series/manga.

Another great example of this phenomenon is Chrono Crusade, where nuns fight devils with tommy guns and enchanted bullets XD (It’s actually a pretty neat show. Though, it does have a story about a demon seeking redemption that, while being technically inaccurate, it pretty touching.)

Let’s also not forget Evangelion’s forays into “Christian symbols and themes”… because… wow…

Let’s see… there’s the dude in Trigun who carries around a giant cross filled with machine guns…

To the OP, If it causes you problems then I’d stop watching it. Other than that, I agree with Midori. Christianity just isn’t a big part of Japanese culture, and most manga artists and writers have next to zero knowledge about it. It’s just something “foreign” they can use to make their manga seem exotic and interesting.

 

[Goldenhope]

I appeeciate the feedback and all but…I was asking for something different
Mine was curiosity. I do not want to force anything on my friend - everyone’s entitled on their opinion - but instead, since I never claim to know anything for sure, I wanted you guys, given what I told and linked here, if you think wheter what he’s saying is right or not.

It’s not like I’ll rub the thread in his face - I just wanted, without judging anybody, to know what was your opinion on the matter.

 

[Reepicheep]

Yep, that’s an inverted cross on their foreheads. That’s a halo too.

But I think Midori has the right of it. They may use symbols they associate with Christianity the way we might use Taoist or Buddhist symbols, or the way some people confuse ‘Samurai’ with ‘Ninja’ and think Japanese martial arts make you a super-warrior.

 

[ProdglArchitect]

I appeeciate the feedback and all but…I was asking for something different
Mine was curiosity. I do not want to force anything on my friend - everyone’s entitled on their opinion - but instead, since I never claim to know anything for sure, I wanted you guys, given what I told and linked here, if you think wheter what he’s saying is right or not.

It’s not like I’ll rub the thread in his face - I just wanted, without judging anybody, to know what was your opinion on the matter.

Well, that’s why I said it depends on if it’s causing you problems. There’s no real connection to Christianity, only the use of Christian symbols. It’s not ideal, but I wouldn’t say it’s inherently troublesome.

 

[midori]

You actually read Angel Sanctuary? I gave the anime a shot and it… hurt… not because of how badly it misrepresented Christianity. It was… just… awful…

Yeah. I kept waiting for it to make sense, and I kept waiting to figure out what all the hype was. I never did figure out the appeal… I know the art was above average for its time, but that really didn’t make up for the total lack of everything else.

 

[Goldenhope]

Well, that’s why I said it depends on if it’s causing you problems. There’s no real connection to Christianity, only the use of Christian symbols. It’s not ideal, but I wouldn’t say it’s inherently troublesome.

Well…not really causing me problems…so it’s no big deal
Point is, though, are they Christian symbols for real - or do they just happen to look like it?
Like, do you think that image on the forehead is really an inverted cross or just happens to look like it?

 

[Goldenhope]

Yeah but I doubt that, in case they are really inverted crosses, the author meant for them to be a papal homage…

 

[ProdglArchitect]

Well…not really causing me problems…so it’s no big deal
Point is, though, are they Christian symbols for real - or do they just happen to look like it?
Like, do you think that image on the forehead is really an inverted cross or just happens to look like it?

Looking at the symbol, I don’t think it’s intended to be an inverted cross. If it was, the lower lines would be connected to the central line. The proportions would also be a bit different. To me, it honestly looks like an artists symmetry guideline that they decided to leave in because they thought it looks neat.

 

[Goldenhope]

Looking at the symbol, I don’t think it’s intended to be an inverted cross. If it was, the lower lines would be connected to the central line. The proportions would also be a bit different. To me, it honestly looks like an artists symmetry guideline that they decided to leave in because they thought it looks neat.

Interesting
That would be really neat , from an artistical standpoint as well