Noura Tafeche

The Kawayoku Tales: Aestheticisation of Violence in Military, Gaming, Social Media Cultures and Other Stories

PostScript UM #51

PostScriptUM #51

Kataložni zapis o publikaciji (CIP) pripravili v Narodni in univerzitetni knjižnici v Ljubljani

COBISS.SI-ID 204425219

ISBN 978-961-7173-56-7 (PDF)

Noura Tafeche

The Kawayoku Tales: Aestheticisation of Violence in Military, Gaming, Social Media Cultures and Other Stories

“In an alternate universe, the fifth UwU king-

dom of Gen Zion III has established itself as

sovereign, joining forces with soldiers enlist-

ed as cosplayers. The ‘Israeli’

ed as cosplayers.



The ‘Israeli’ army is secret-

ly plotting an ethnic cleansing of waifus and

and

rivalling with secessionists and gaming vet-

erans in highly kawaii-populated war zones.

zones.

The otaku community,

community rebelling against the

the

government, organise

or

into gangs fighting with

with

giant gijinka automatons transformed into war

war

machines.

Meanwhile, a group of incels intervenes by

by

creating an army of Hololive girls to exact re-

venge on the society that threatens their imag-

inary girls and has always rejected them. The

The

Vtubers, led by chatbot Neuro-Sama, come to

to

life once they surpass 10000 billion views, of-

fering alliances in live streams on OnlyFans,

OnlyFans,

but rivalries escalate into an unprecedented

unprecedented

war.

war In the chaos, violence becomes an artis-

tic expression. In the end, peace is restored

restored

in augmented reality,

reality thanks to a mysterious

ex-E-girl who reveals a dark secret linked to

to

Hello Kitty,

Kitty but the world will never be the

the

same, even though the surviving avatars will

will

continue to protect its cuteness thanks to a

a

TikT

T

ok filter

ikT

.”

ok filter

NOURA TAFECHE

This is what, with some slight modifications, an AI AI

would write if given prompts such as “Israeli” army,

army

crimes against humanity,

humanity anime, 4chan, gamification,

gamification,

ideological crisis, Sanrio, bishojo (cute girl), OnlyFans, Vtubers, misogyny,

misogyny Gen Z, social media, cute-

ness and Neuro-Sama1 by adding to the command

command

“write an absurd story”.

AI understands the meaning of the term “absurd” as

unrealistic, imaginary

unrealistic,

,

imaginary parodic,

,

but

parodic,

does

but

not

does

understand

not

that what

that

it

what has

it

written

has

is

written becoming

is

less

becoming

farcical

less

and

farcical

in

and -

in

creasingly closer to reality.

reality The above-mentioned key-

key

words are the most recurring terms I use to talk about

the semiotic and political process of Kawayoku.2

The Kawayoku is a hybrid area of research that aims

to give a name, a meaning and an archive to the origins

of the

of

growing

the

intersection

growing

between

intersection

the

between

cult

the

of

cult cuteness,

of



cuteness,

contemporary digital warfare, gamification, militain-militain

ment complex

ment

and

complex

a

and general

a

aestheticisation

general

of

aestheticisation violence

of



violence

on social media.3 The Kawayoku

The

can

Kawayoku

be

can seen

be

as

seen an

as aes

an -

aes

thetical device,

thetical

an

device, inquiry-based

an

experimental

inquiry-based

approach

experimental



approach

and a social phenomenon questioning the way we usu-

usu

1

Neuro-Sama is an AI VTuber that sparked debate with controversial, offensive or hateful remarks on Twitch. Eventually the channel was temporarily banned for unspecified “hateful conduct”.

2

Kawayoku is an imperfect linguistic crasis coined by Noura Tafeche, freely derived from the Japanese language that merges the words Kawaii (cute) +

Bōryoku (violence).

3

The Kawayoku Inception (2020–2024) is a transmedia and archival project by Noura Tafeche that aims to shape, within a new taxonomy, contemporary digital elusiveness and the ultimate stage of violence sublimation. Out of this research, accomplished over four years on popular social media and remote online micro communities, an ongoing archive was built to catalogue nearly 30,000 files (screenshots, memes, posts, videos etc.) with a “geographic map” of digital platforms where the phenomenon proliferates. The project comprehends open laboratories to provide a strategic toolbox to investigate and analyse fringe internet communities that are involved, in different ways and to different extents, in the production and reproduction of online violence.

4



THE KAWAYOKU TALES

ally elaborate on violence within the domain of visual

visual

perception and its online extension, and what could be

be

the political implications of an evolving social process established on semiotic ambiguity and post-truth.



Screenshot from Neuro-Sama’s live Twitch on January 2023



Violence and Visual Culture:

Beautifying Gaze and Wartime Online Self-Portrayal

Violence

V

has always found its own way to deal with its

visual representation,

visual

whether

representation,

it

whether be

it in

be the

in

arts,

the

tradition

arts,

-

tradition

al media or the latest social media platform and to sat-

sat

isfy elite and popular tastes. I’ve frequently asked my-

my

self if violence forcibly requires a visual extension to be represented

be

and

represented

recognised

and

as

recognised such.

as

Harvard

such.

scholar

Harvard

Maria Tatar

T

spent ten years of her life examining im-

im

ages of sexual murders ( Lustmord

Lustmor ) depicting maimed

female bodies in the 1920s Germany,

Germany interweaving an

extensive cultural and historical

historica research on how these

crimes, taking a grip on people’s

people’ already traumatised

imagination between the two wars, deeply affected

af

the

visual representation

represent

of women and violence in the ar-

ar

5

NOURA TAFECHE

tistic and literary production of people like Otto Dix,

George

Geor Grosz

ge

or

Grosz Fritz

or

Lang.

Fritz

Analysing

Lang.

the

Analysing

drive

the

to

drive sub

to

-

sub

limate violence expressed against women in the arts, Maria Tatar

T

observes that the representation of female

corpses is the result of how “the war functioned as an

event that released the creative energies

ener

of artists and

legitimised the representation of brutal violence direct-direct

ed at

ed the

at

female

the



female enemy on

enemy the

on

domestic

the

front

domestic

rather

front

than

rather

the male adversary on the military battlefield”.4

That the sublimation of the gaze is a core topic has

also been pointed out by contemporary

conte

sociologist Luc

Boltanksi, who claimed the aesthetic value of suffering

suf

and its sublime appreciation originated from horror as

an effective

ef

device in media and political mechanisms,

which represent

which

a

represent third,

a

unusual

third,

possibility

unusual

between

possibility

the

between

two polarised

two

symmetrical

polarised

reac

symmetrical

tions

reac

the

tions

viewer

the

may

viewer

ex

may -

ex

perience when

perience

faced

when

with

faced

suf

with fering

suf

and

fering

injustice:

and

indig

injustice:

-

indig

nation and tender-heartedness.

nation and tender

On a

On similar

a

note,

similar

media

note,

professor

media

Lilie

professor

Chouliaraki,

Lilie



Chouliaraki,

in reference

in

to

reference the

to

Iraq

the

bombing

Iraq

during

bombing

the

during

2003

the

attack,

2003



attack,

observed that particular scenic elements leverage an an

aesthetic of horror and disturbing beauty.

beauty Within

W

a

a

multimodal process,

multimodal

the

process, audience

the

is

audience utterly

is

embedded

utterly

into

embedded



into

a “sensational performance” of the full aestheticisation aestheticisation

of violence, or as Chouliaraki puts it, “the moralization moralization

of the spectator now takes place through a mechanism

mechanism

of ‘sublimation’,

of

the

‘sublimation’,

representation

the

of

representation suf

of fering

suf

through

fering



through

an aesthetic register that discourages spectators from from

feeling for

feeling

or

for denouncing

or

the

denouncing

suf

the fering

suf

and

fering

invites

and

them

invites



them

4

Tatar, M. (1995). Lustmord: Sexual Murder in Weimar Germany. Princeton University Press.

6

THE KAWAYOKU TALES

to contemplate the horror of the spectacle, the ‘shock

‘shock

and awe’ of the bombardment”.

and awe’

5

Since the invasion of Baghdad, visual cultures and

and

media as

media we

as

knew

we

them

knew

up

them to

up that

to

point

that

have

point

drastical

have

-

ly changed: 24-hour news and media coverage was de-

voted to bombing raids, aerial views, raw footage and

and

satellite-type images broadcasting both a spectacle of

of

disseminated suffering

suf

and performances of organised

or



ganised

violence. The

violence.

image

The

production

image

of

production Iraq’

of

s

Iraq’ brutal

s

invasion

brutal



invasion

was followed by another shock when the photographs from the Abu Ghraib’s

Ghraib’ prison were released in 2004

2004

due to an unauthorised disclosure by a whistleblower,

whistleblower

US Army Reserve soldier Joseph Darby,

Darby who discov-

ered the pictures on a CD left by one of the soldiers

involved in the tortures and reported them to his supe-

riors. The

riors.

images were portraying corpses, rapes, mass

rapes, sodomisation, severe abuses and tortures inflict-

ed on Iraqi men detained by US military personnel in

in

a performace of humiliations that has been historicised

historicised

as one

as

of

one the

of

most

the

shameful

most

representations

shameful

of

representations contem

of

-

porary brutality.

brutality 6 The framed horror of Abu

of

Ghraib led

led

to an

to investigation

an

which

investigation

implicated

which

several

implicated

soldiers

several

in

soldiers

in

violating the Geneva Convention, among other things

by posing

by

with

posing

thumbs

with

up

thumbs in

up front

in

of

front the

of

corpse

the

of

corpse Ma

of

-

nadel al-Jamadi,

nadel

an

al-Jamadi, Iraqi

an

citizen

Iraqi

beaten

citizen

to

beaten death

to

by

death CIA

by



CIA

interrogators and Navy SEALs whose names remain

remain

undisclosed and

undisclosed

who

and

were

who

never

were

held

never

publicly

held

account

publicly

-

able and put on trial for murder even though they were

were

5

Chouliaraki, L. (2006). The Aestheticization of Suffering on Television. Visual communication, 5(3), p. 267.

6

Abu Ghraib torture and prisoner abuse. (2024). In Wikipedia. Retrieved June 28, 2024, from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Abu_Ghraib_torture_and_prisoner_abuse

7

NOURA TAFECHE

responsible for

responsible

the

for

killing.

the

The

killing.

issue

The

gained

issue

widespread

gained



widespread

attention when CBS News aired a report, making the

the

public aware of the scandal.

The entire military

mili

chain of command should have

been put on trial but only a few of the many soldiers

involved – Charles Graner Jr.,

Jr Ivan “Chip” Freder-

Freder

ick II, Lynndie

L

England and Sabrina Harmon – were

court-martialed, convicted, sentenced

convicted,

to military

sentenced

prison

to military

and dishonourably discharged

dischar

from service, but served

reduced sentences.

reduced

Janis Karpinski, the commanding

officer of all detention facilities in Iraq, was merely demoted to colonel from the rank of brigadier general.

This led the US society to think the Abu Ghraib tor-tor

tures were only isolated cases perpetrated by sick lu-

lu

natics, although even Rory Kennedy’s

Kennedy’ 2007 documen-

documen

tary Ghosts of Abu Ghraib

Ghosts of

explicitly stated that torture

was a tactic approved by the White House. Names like

George

Geor W.

W Bush, Dick Cheney and Donald Rumsfeld

remained respected and honoured in “the land of the free and the home of the brave”, as stated by Professor

Hamid Dabashi.7

The effort

ef

to “reduce the obscene” in the representa-

representa

tion of the crime was completely vain, as in the follow

completely

-

vain, as in the follow

ing decades,

ing

the

decades,

macabre

the

scenes

macabre

of

scenes Abu

of

Ghraib

Abu

became

Ghraib

iconic for

iconic

encapsulating

for

the

encapsulating

rational

the

barbarism

rational

and

barbarism

sys

and -

sys

temic brutality of the US military invasion, an illegal

occupation, an imperial conquest.

مهيلع ةنعللا

Curse upon them

7

Dabashi, H. (2021, September 23). The Art and Torture of the Empire. Al Jazeera.

Retrieved June 15, 2024, from https://www.aljazeera.com/opinions/2021/9/23/

the-art-and-torture-of-the-empire

8

THE KAWAYOKU TALES

Following the public release of the Abu Ghraib pho-pho

tos, numerous internationally renowned artists hastily sought to depict, multiply and contextualise the horror, horror

often employing an almost beautifying perspective, as

exemplified by Richard Serra and Fernando Botero in

their 2004 drawings.8 Their repeated depiction of these

images, taken as a whole, appears to have not only dis-

dis

regarded the

regarded

dignity

the

of

dignity the

of

victims

the

and

victims

lacks

and

sensitivity

lacks

towards humanising their experiences, but also caused

further distress by potentially retraumatising those af-

fected. On

fected.

the

On

contrary

the

,

contrary Arab

,

artists

Arab

have

artists

deconstructed

have

the biased and stereotypical narratives surrounding the

Gulf War

W and its trauma in the large-scale

lar

2019–2020

group exhibition

group

Theater of Operations: The Gulf Wars

Theater of Operations: The Gulf W

1991–2011

1991–201 . This event featured over 300 works by more than

more

80

than artists,

80

36

artists, of

36 whom

of

are

whom

based

are

in

based Iraq,

in

Ku

Iraq, -

Ku

wait and their diasporas, such as Thuraya Al-Baqsami,

Thuraya

Jamal Penjweny and Monira Al

Monira Qadiri. Even so, when

the exhibition took place at MoMA

MoMA PS1 in NYC, it

gained minor attention.9 At least four artists, including Netherlands-based Afifa Aleiby,

Aleiby were denied visas to

attend the opening.10 As Dabashi continues to explain,

“imperial cultures thrive on their intentional amnesia”.

Rewinding the wire on sparking controversial awe

on contemporary gruesomeness in the arts, Damien

Hirst commente

Hirst

d

commente that

d

the

that

images

the

of

images the

of

hijacked

the

planes

hijacked

8

See Richard Serra’s drawing at https://whitney.org/collection/works/41729 and

Fernando Botero’s work at https://bampfa.org/program/fernando-botero-art-

human-rights.

9

Dabashi, 2021.

10

Dafoe, T. (2019, November 6). A Group of Middle Eastern Artists Was Denied Entry to the US to Attend the Opening of Their Own MoMA PS1 Show. Artnet. Retrieved June 15, 2024, from https://news.artnet.com/art-world/middle-eastern-visa-

denied-1697532

9

NOURA TAFECHE

crashing into

crashing

the

into

WTC

the

towers

WTC

were

towers

“visually

were

stunning”

“visually

and “kind of like an artwork in its own right”.11 Appar-

Appar

ently,

ently art operates as an aesthetical device by which the (predominantly W

(predominantly estern)

W

gaze

estern)

is

gaze able

is

to

able grasp

to

a

grasp horrific

a

reality through a magnifying or beautifying glass.

More recently,

recently in a video posted on IG on 27 May

2024, Palestinian content creator Salma Shawa high-high

lighted the

lighted

aftermath

the

of

aftermath the

of

massacre

the

in

massacre Rafah

in

that

Rafah

hap

that

-

hap

pened on

pened 26

on May

26

2024.

May

12 In her reel, she raised questions

In her reel,

about the

about

significance

the

not

significance

only

not

of

only creating

of

but

creating

also

but

shar

also

-

shar

ing a

ing cartoon

a

version

cartoon

or

version coloured

or

sketch

coloured

drawing

sketch

direct

drawing

-

direct

ly inspired by the body of a real-life massacred and be-

be

headed child,

headed

killed

child,

by

killed the

by

IOF

the

,

IOF 13 with flowers

with

sprouting

flowers

from his headless body.

body Not even within 24 hours from

the massacre, the image was posted and subsequently

shared, partly to manipulate algorithms and avoid cen-

cen

sorship. Regardless of the artist’s intentions, the impact sorship. Regardless of the artist’

11

Allison, R. (2002, September 11). 9/11 Wicked but a Work of Art, Says Damien Hirst. The Guardian. Retrieved June 15, 2024, from https://www.theguardian.

com/uk/2002/sep/11/arts.september11

12

Salma Shawa [@anat.international]. (2024, May 27). Do not beautify a horrifying scene!! [Video]. Instagram. Retrieved June 15, 2024, from https://www.instagram.

com/p/C7e3baQOcQy

13

The term “IOF” (Israeli Occupation Forces) began to be used on the internet as a critical alternative to “IDF” (Israel Defense Forces). The substitution of “Defense”

with “Occupation” or “Offence” is intentional and political, reflecting the view that Israeli forces are involved only in illegally occupying, expropriating, violating and controlling Palestinian territories. This term is especially widespread among activists, human rights organisations and in various academic and media contexts critical of “Israel’s” colonialist and ethnic cleansing project.

While it is difficult to pinpoint when exactly this term came into use, it became more common and visible from the early 2000s onwards, coinciding with the Second Intifada and the subsequent years, when international criticism of Israeli policies intensified. Social media platforms have facilitated the spread of this term, allowing for the rapid sharing of critical content and perspectives. The Palestinian Information Center, which has been active since 1997, regularly uses the term IOF in its coverage of events in Palestine, highlighting actions by Israeli forces that are perceived as part of the occupation (see, for example: https://

english.palinfo.com/news/2024/01/15/312804). Forensic Architecture also employs this term in their official tweets, for instance on May 11, 2023 (https://x.

com/ForensicArchi/status/1656663377614344192) and October 22, 2023

(https://x.com/ForensicArchi/status/1715422505035235474).

10

THE KAWAYOKU TALES

of the

of rushed

the

and

rushed

widespread

and

circulation

widespread

of

circulation this

of

image

this

has

image

been dangerously misconstrued. It has been interpreted

as a means to de-escalate horror,

horror a beautifying fiction-

fiction

al device to mentally

al device

overcome

to mentally

real horror

overcome

, ultimately

real horror

leading to

leading dissociation

to

and

dissociation

tuning

and

out.

tuning

Shawa

out.

rightfully

Shawa

emphasised the

emphasised

importance

the

of

importance considering

of

the

considering

timing

the

of

timing

such an image. Whether it was intended to serve as a

coping mechani

coping

sm

mechani

to

sm express

to

hope,

express

anger

hope,

or

anger other

or

feel

other

-

feel

ings that are difficult to articulate, remains a question.

question.

The Japanese Influence

Japan represents a unique historical phenomenon as an

active inventor and promoter of distinctive cultural and subcultural consumer trends. These trends are consid-consid

ered the nation’s

nation’ soft power,

power often described as “pop

culture diploma

culture

cy”,

diploma

14 which contrasts

which

with

contrasts

the

with

traditi

the

on

traditi -

on

al, harder

al,

approach

harder

of

approach military

of

superiority

military

.

superiority Among

.

these

Among

socio-cultural trends

socio-cultural

are

trends

the

are

kawaii

the

aesthetic,

kawaii

the

aesthetic,

anime

the

and manga industries, and their associated fandoms, such as cosplaying and otaku culture.15

14

As stated on the official website of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Japan: “[The Ministry], aiming to further the understanding and trust of Japan, is using pop-culture, in addition to traditional culture and art, as its primary tools for cultural diplomacy. Among young people, pop-culture, such as Manga and Anime, has been popular worldwide in recent years. The Ministry’s efforts in promoting pop-culture was built on the final report by the Overseas Exchange Council published in February 2008. The council had a sub-committee focusing on pop-culture.” (Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Japan. (2022, November 4). Pop-Culture Diplomacy. Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Japan. Retrieved June 28, 2024, from

https://www.mofa.go.jp/policy/culture/exchange/pop/index.html)

15

Kawaii ( かわいい ) is a Japanese term and aesthetic referring to the unique concept affirming childlike and pretty things that make your heart flutter. See the entry for

“kawaii” in the Aesthetics Wiki at https://aesthetics.fandom.com/wiki/Kawaii.

Cosplay, a portmanteau of “costume play”, is an activity and performance art in which participants wear costumes and fashion accessories to represent a specific character. See: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cosplay.

Otaku (おたく, オタク or ヲタク) is a Japanese word that describes people with consuming interests, particularly in anime, manga, video games or computers.

See: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Otaku.

11

NOURA TAFECHE

Before exploring this theme, I have observed that that

within the contemporary approach to the aestheticisa-

tion of

tion violence,

of

two

violence,

distinct

two

processes

distinct

are

processes

mer

are

ging

mer

and

ging



and

collapsing into each other: the beautification and the the

cuteification, where beauty,

beauty unlike cuteness, gives the

the

impression that

impression

the

that

subject

the

or

subject object

or

of

object attention

of

can

attention

be

can

be

easily possessed and is accessible. Although tradition-

ally considered

ally

incapable

considered

of

incapable inspiring

of

sexual

inspiring

attraction,

sexual



attraction,

in the contemporary context I am examining, with the

the

implosion of the boundaries of cuteness, this evolves

into a new agent being perceived differently

dif

in its im-

mediate, non-threatening, sexuality.

sexuality It’s

It’ within this

transition that

transition

a

that particular

a

key

particular

role

key

emer

role

ges,

emer

in

ges, dif

in ferent

dif



ferent

forms, across these aforementioned cultures: the emblematic, symbolic, archetypal and inorganic

inor

(yet viv-

idly bodily

idly

represented)

bodily

figure

represented)

of

figure the

of

girl

the

as

girl an

as agentive

an



agentive

emanation, spreading

emanation,

her

spreading

pervasive

her

softness

pervasive

along

softness

with

along



with

an ambiguous charm.

Quoting writer and editor Maria Solis in her article

article

“Why ‘Girls’

‘Girls’ Rule the Internet”, “the word ‘girl’

‘girl’ is in

in

diametrical opposition not to ‘boy’

‘boy’ but to ‘woman’”.16

Although Solis was referring to the implications of womanhood and correlated adult responsibilities,

responsibilities,

I believe that this principle also applies in this context, context,

underscoring the idea that the young, occasionally occasionally

pre-pubescent girl is not merely a human figure but but

a behavioural emanation that acts as a proxy for the the

imagination. But whose imagination?

16

Solis, M. (2023, September 10). Why “Girls” Rule the Internet. The New York Times. Retrieved June 15, 2024, from https://www.nytimes.com/2023/09/10/

style/girls-internet-gender.html

12

THE KAWAYOKU TALES

As psychologist and critic Tamaki

T

Saitō explored in

his book

his

Beautiful Fighting

Beautiful

Girl

Fighting

, the

,

obsession

the

with

obsession

the

with

female combatant

combata anime/manga

anime/mang character comes from

a position of both power and submission: “Her privi-

privi

leged position is established on the basis of her being

an absolutely unattainable object of desire.”17 Again, whose desire? Saitō puts the beautiful fighting girl in

relation to the otaku, usually a boy or a man (and the

exact differentiation

dif

between the two may hold greater

relevance in this context) who is a “passionate [fan] of anime, manga

anime,

and

manga

computer

and

games

computer

[…]

games

known

[…]

[…]

known

for

[…]

their encyclopaedic,

their

even fetishistic,

encyclopaedic,

knowledge of par

even fetishistic,

-

knowledge of par

ticular strains of visual culture” with a complex sexual fantasy for fictional anime girls who “kick asses”.18 As the author claims, “most commentators agree that the

otaku emerged

emer

historically as a new sociological type

sometime in the 1970s in the vacuum left by a hege-

hege

monic mainstream culture and the sub- and counter-counter

cultures that opposed it. Defined more by their tastes than their actions

action or convictions,

conviction the otaku are the pre-

pre

cocious children

childre of postmodern consumerist society.”

society 19

Later on, Saitō relies on the words of scholar Melek Su Ortabasi, who suggests that “the figure of the male

otaku is akin to the prewar moga, or ‘modern girl’, in that he

that is

he both

is

a

both lived

a

identity

lived

and

identity

a

and media

a

creation

media

that

creation

crystallises all sorts of social anxieties.”20 Though the idea of the girl might originate as a construct of male

17

Tamaki, S. & Azuma, H. (2011). Beautiful Fighting Girl. University of Minnesota Press, p. 163.

18

Ibid., p. xiii.

19 Ibid.

20 Ibid.

13



NOURA TAFECHE

desire, disconnected from the notion of real women, once brought to life by otaku fantasy,

fantasy she gains an in-

in

dependent existence that compels us to reconsider our

understanding of reality.

understanding of reality

Screenshot from the promotional video

Gatebox – Promotion Movie “KANPAI”_English ver. , 2018.21

Cultural anthropologist Patrick W.

W Galbraith wrote

an applauded book titled Otaku and

Otaku

the

and

Struggle

the

for

Struggle

Imagination in Japan, where

,

the

where

otaku,

the

who

otaku,

were

who

“pre

were

-

viously marginalised

mar

with slurs and labels”, can now

call themselves

them

otaku with pride.22 In his introduction,

Galbraith recalls the episode in 2016 when Vinclu’

V

s

inclu’

Gatebox company planned on humanising their virtual

assistants and shared an advertisement for their new AI

new

hologram anime

hologram



anime girl23 that quickly

that

drew

quickly

attention

drew

–

attention par

– -

par

ticularly of the anglophone media, which categorised it as part of the “Weird

“W

Japan” narrative, portraying

the Japanese men as socially dysfunctional and sexu-

sexu

21 Source:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bBOXQz7OHqQ.

22

Galbraith, P. W. (2019). Otaku and the Struggle for Imagination in Japan. Duke University Press.

23

Gatebox. (2016, December 14). Gatebox -プロモーションムービー 「おかえり」.

[Video]. YouTube. Retrieved June 15, 2024, from https://www.youtube.com/

watch?v=mMbiL8D6qX0

14

THE KAWAYOKU TALES

ally deviant. Reports framed the story around alienated

young men turning to a company selling a “holograph-

“holograph

ic ‘girlfriend’” or “anime girlfriend”, but Gatebox dis-

dis

missed the allegations of offering

of

such a device as an

invitation to an authentic relationship. As insightful as his case study is, Galbraith fails to show the structural gender power between the “maid” and the “master”, as

he focuses only on the male customers’

customers’ socio-political

posture in the context of Maid Cafés in T

posture in the context of Maid Cafés in okyo.

T

Azur Lane

The anthropomorphic

The

female

anthropomorphic

character

female

(gijinka)

character

eventu

(gijinka)

-

eventu

ally intersected with operational aesthetics, such as the the

romanticisation of

romanticisation warships

of

in

warships the

in

manga

the

style,

manga

that

style,

sig

that -

sig

nificantly influenced the Chinese-developed shoot ’em

’em

up video game Azur

game

Lane, which gained immense pop-

pop

ularity in Japan around 2017. Players assume the role

role

of a commander to whom these shipgirls – moé24 an-

an

thropomorphisation of warships – respond. Azur Lane

Lane

offers

of

over 600 collectible characters, each displaying

displaying

pronouncedly fetishised features, ranging from youth-

youth

ful appearances to prominent cleavage, catering to both

both

immature and mature depictions of the female body.

body 25

These shipgirls characters are based on actual vessels

used during

used

W

during orld

W

W

orld ar

W II

ar and

II

are

and

inspired

are

by

inspired the

by

names,

the



names,

histories and characteristics of real ships, such as the the

German Z1 Leberecht Maas.

24 Moé (萌え) is a Japanese word that refers to feelings of strong affection mainly towards characters in anime, manga, video games and other media directed at the otaku market. See: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Moe_(slang).

25

An overview of the entire collection is available on the Azur Lane Wiki at https://

azurlane.koumakan.jp/wiki/List_of_Ships_by_Image.

15



NOURA TAFECHE

A collectible character in the video game Azur Lane, based on the German destroyer ship Z1 Leberecht Maass. Saru Long, 2019.

Title of work: Z1 (Azur Lane). Game developer: Yostar

As scholars

As

Francesco

scholars

T

Francesco oniolo

T

and

oniolo

Stefano

and

Caselli

Stefano

have

Caselli

pointed out,

pointed

the

out,

bodies

the

of

bodies the

of

shipgirls

the

in

shipgirls Azur

in

Lane

Azur

are

Lane

at the centre of its trading system, as they can be “col-

“col

lected, purchased,

lected,

upgraded,

purchased,

expanded

upgraded,

and

expanded

modified”.

and

26

In The Moé Manifesto,27 Galbraith explains that moé exists in three different

dif

stages. First, moé is a response,

a verb, something that is done. Second, this response

is situated in those who react to a character rather than in the character itself. Third, this response is triggered by fictional characters. These

characters.

characters are not merely

objectified as

objectified girls’

as



girls’ bodies, i.e.

bodies,

as

i.e. accentuated

as

sexual

accentuated

fe

sexual -

tishes, but

tishes,

according

but

to

according Caselli

to

and

Caselli

T

and oniolo

T

also

oniolo

as

also “his

as

-

“his

26

Francesco, T. & Caselli, S. (2021). Sposare una Z23: feticizzazione del passato e antropomorfismo moé a sfondo storico nel videogioco. Diacronie: Studi di Storia Contemporanea, (47), p. 143 [translated by N. T.]

27

Galbraith, P. W. (2017). The Moé Manifesto. Tuttle Publishing.

16



THE KAWAYOKU TALES

torical bodies that aesthetically reinterpret and ‘moéfy’

‘moéfy’

the past,

the

from

past,

military

from

technologies

military

to

technologies traditional

to

cloth

traditional

-

cloth

ing, and

ing,

from

and

emblems

from

to

emblems symbols

to

(such

symbols

as

(such the

as

swastika

the

or the Great Seal of the United States)”.28 Azur Lane

appears as

appears a

as gamified

a

synthesis

gamified

of

synthesis a

of latent

a

sexual

latent

exten

sexual

-

exten

sion of neoteny,

neoteny characterised by a cute eroticism that

verges

ver

on para-pedophilic imagery

ima

.

gery The game plays on

ambiguous contrasts, juxtaposing the innocence of dis-

dis

empowered girl-like

empowered

figures

girl-like

with

figures

the

with

threatening,

the

active

threatening,

operations of warships.

A screenshot featuring another character from the game

Azur Lane – a “retrofit” design of the character Suffolk.29

Gun and Girl Illustrated

Based on the same weapon-girl dichotomy found in

Azur Lane, the Japanese magazine Gun & Girl Illus Gun &

-

Girl Illus

trated, which features a specific theme in each issue, such as

such Assault

as

Rifle

Assault

&

Rifle Battle

&

Rifle

Battle

Edition

Rifle

and

Edition

Rifles

and

of

Rifles

the World,

W

has been dubbed by the publisher IKAROS

28

Francesco & Caselli, 2021, p. 143 [translated by N. T.].

29

Source: https://forum.psnprofiles.com/topic/64322-azur-lane/page/4.

17



NOURA TAFECHE

as “a must-have

must-have explanatory book for fans of the guns

x bishojo girl craze”.30 The magazine details weapons,

from their

from

origins

their

to

origins their

to

history

their

,

history development

,

process,

development

production and operation, accompanied

acc

by numerous

illustrations of

illustrations armed

of

high

armed

school

high

girls

school

and

girls

girls

and

in

girls mili

in

-

mili

tary uniforms,

tary

created

uniforms,

by

created specialised

by

illustrators.

specialised

An

illustrators.

on

An -

on

line preview of “The Current US Infantry W

Infantry eapon

W

with

Girls” edition,

Girls”

available

edition,

on

available Ebay

on

,

Ebay reveals

,

a

reveals depiction

a

of

depiction

an allegedly underage manga girl in underwear wield-

wield

ing a rifle positioned between her legs.

Preview picture saved from an Ebay account selling the first edition of the Gun & Girl Illustrated issue (no longer available on the website) 30

Anonymous. (2022). Gun & Girl Illustrated: Assault Rifle & Battle Rifle Edition.

IKAROS Publications.

18

THE KAWAYOKU TALES

Dakimakura

Expanding on

Expanding the

on

topic,

the

the

topic,

Dakimakura

the

–

Dakimakura a

– hug

a

pillow

hug

that reproduces a life-size anime-inspired image – has

become an emblematic icon associated with partner re-

re

placement in Incels and Weebs

W

communities. The in-

in

tersection between waifu culture

cult

and the US Second

Amendment gun control movement is becoming in-

in

creasingly common,

creasingly

and

common,

their

and

supporters

their

use

supporters

this

use

object

this

to express their love for both. The fetishisation of guns and waifus

and

has

waifus

led

has

to

led disturbing

to

trends,

disturbing

such

trends,

as

such “unbox

as

-

“unbox

ing the

ing

waifu”

the

videos,

waifu”

which

videos,

depict

which

the

depict

idea

the

of

idea purchas

of

-

purchas

ing and

ing

unboxing

and

a

unboxing woman

a

as

woman if

as she

if

were

she

a

were commodity

a

.

commodity

Even more disturbing are low-quality photos shared on

Reddit that depict firearms placed next to body pillows

featuring female anime characters, implying an unset-

unset

tling connection

tling

between

connection

violence

between

and

violence

the

and

sexualisation

the

of fictional characters. At its core, this combination of guns and waifus represents a dystopian para-reality in

which the egomaniacal power of armed superiority is

mixed with an unattainable perfection of a submissive,

hypersexualised woman. Politically

Politi

,

cally this imagery sym-

sym

bolises the triumph of radical conservatism, reinforc-reinforc

ing a culture of “weaponised freedom” and promoting

traditional gender roles of male domination and female

submission. The

submission.

US-based

The

tactical

US-based

industry

tactical

and

industry

Second

and

Amendment supporters Weapons

W

Grade Waifus,

W

which

originally grew out of a Facebook page, is now thriv-

thriv

ing in

ing the

in

selling

the

of

selling lewd

of

anime

lewd

girls

anime

with

girls

rifles-themed

with

morale patches.31

31

https://www.instagram.com/wgwaifus

19



NOURA TAFECHE

In an

In interview

an

published

interview

in

published 2018

in

on

2018 the

on anime-loving

the



anime-loving

community website Otafiky,

Otafiky one of the founders

stated that he was into guns since being 4 years old, old,

when he first saw the movie Under Siege with Steven Steven

Segal. As he grew up watching anime and attending attending

tactical shooting

tactical

classes,

shooting

it

classes, made

it

sense

made

for

sense

him

for

to

him build

to



build

a movement to “bridge the gap”: “There’s

“There’ a definite

definite

disconnect between the firearms and anime community

community

– it’s

it’ not often will you find someone who is a part of

both. There

both.

is

There a

is stigma

a

that

stigma

‘anime

that

is

‘anime for

is

kids’

for



kids’in the

in

gun

the



gun

community,

community and

,

a

and good

a

chunk

good

of

chunk anime

of

fans/convention

anime



fans/convention

goers are

goers

pretty

are

liberal

pretty

and

liberal

anti-gun.

and

W

anti-gun. e

W believe

e

that

believe

we

that

we

are a part of […] the generation that grew up playing

playing

Pokemon, and

Pokemon,

watching

and

DBZ

watching

and

DBZ

Sailor

and

Moon

Sailor

are

Moon

now

are



our country’s

country’ military personnel, first responders and

and

armed citizens.”32

Screenshot taken on the subreddit r/justneckbeardthings of a post by a now suspended account YungFeetGod69, 26 February 2020.33

32

Tommy, A. (2018, May 26). Weapons Grade Waifus: Anime Gunnin’ Patches.

Otakify. Retrieved June 15, 2024, from https://otakify.com/anime-stores/

weapons-grade-waifus-anime-gunnin-patches

33

Source: https://www.reddit.com/r/justneckbeardthings/comments/f9mzzj/.

20

THE KAWAYOKU TALES

Virtualizing War

In 2022,

In

the

2022,

Digital

the

Methods

Digital

Initiative,

Methods

one

Initiative,

of

one Europe’

of

s

Europe’

leading research groups in the field of internet studies, organised

or

a summer school on the theme “Let’s

“Let’ Play

Play

War:

W

Inside 4chan’s

4chan’ intergroup

inter

rivalry,

rivalry contingent

contingent

community formation and randomised war reporting”,

reporting”,

where two

where

teams

two

of

teams researchers

of

were

researchers

investigating

were

two

investigating



rival 4chan factions engaged in discussions regarding

the invasion of Ukraine: the pro-Ukrainian (/uhg/) and the pro-Russian (/chug/) threads. Each thread has

adopted a distinct style of war reporting: the /uhg/ sets lean towards a journalistic tone, while the /chug/ sets

focus more

focus

on

more strategic

on

and

strategic

logistical

and

aspects.

logistical

Both

aspects.

en

Both -

gage in a form of randomisation, anthropomorphising

anthropomorphising

and fictionalising

and

nations

fictionalising

and

nations

militaries

and

through

militaries

memes

through



and sexualised

and

anime

sexualised

girls.

anime

The

girls.

analysed

The

eroticised

analysed

im

eroticised -

agery reveals a surprising absence of male dominance,

particularly in the /chug/ thread. Instead, female pro-

tagonists and anthropomorphised Russian military

military

vehicles playfully dominate Ukraine, softening the

the

brutality of the invasion and suggesting Ukraine may

may

“enjoy the treatment”.

In their documentation, the teams revealed that “the

In their documentation, the teams revealed that “the

community of /chug/ collectively commission and

and

pay artists to create a canonical anime universe with

with

semi-complex relationships between the protagonists

and antagonists akin of fanfiction”.34

may_as_well_be_here_of_my_own_accord_this_time

34

Digital Methods Initiative. (2022, September 8). Let’s Play War: Inside 4chan’s Intergroup Rivalry, Contingent Community Formation, and Fandomized War Reporting. Digital Methods Initiative. Retrieved June 28, 2024, from https://wiki.

digitalmethods.net/Dmi/SummerSchool2022chugginguhg

21



NOURA TAFECHE

Original picture downloaded from a /chug/ thread on 4chan Realising War

Speaking of the flaunt of online war propaganda, the origins of digital aesthetics in military culture can be traced back to some YouT

Y

ube

ouT

videos posted between

2005 and 2007. These feature members of the US Air

Force and Marines during the invasions of Iraq and Af

and -

Af

ghanistan. In

ghanistan. these

In

two-

these

to

two- three-minute

to

videos,

three-minute

muscu

videos,

-

muscu

lar,

lar average-styled male soldiers are shown performing

choreographed dances

choreographed

and

dances

routines

and

to

routines pop

to

hits

pop

by

hits artists

by

such as Lady Gaga, Ke$ha and V

and anilla

V

Ice, often in the

midst of military activities.35

In a chapter of the edited volume The Aesthetics and Affects of

Affects Cuteness

of

, scholar Maria Pramaggiore exam-

exam

35

See, for example: plasticpassionA2. (2007, April 11). Combat Dancing in Baghdad, Iraq [Video]. YouTube. Retrieved June 15, 2024, from https://youtu.

be/C3iY45m0v1Y?si=LSZe26zkQFYeTowr; punky1182. (2009, October 19). ICE

ICE BABY [Video]. YouTube. Retrieved June 15, 2024, from https://youtu.be/

LU8sGdsURSs?si=4fgwDSRx0XzG0PgH.

22

THE KAWAYOKU TALES

ines how in YouT

Y

ube

ouT

skits of US military personnel

dubbing and dancing to pop songs, “often comic gen-

gen

der and sexual provocations resonate with official pro-

pro

paganda that justifies the US War

W on Terror

T

through a

starkly drawn

starkly

dualism

drawn

pitting

dualism

a

pitting secular

a

,

secular enlightened

,

and

enlightened

egalitarian West

W

against a patriarchal Islam whose op-

op

pressed women are in desperate need of rescue”.36

Similarly,

Similarly the soft power of the world’s

world’ most funded

army,

army backed by the US, is evident in the female sol-

sol

diers of “Israeli” Offense

Of

Forces (IOF), who appear

to replicate themselves to the unconscious extent of dissolving as individuals and instead becoming a stan-stan

dardised reiterated simulacra

dardised reiterated

or avatars in endlessly

simulacra

repetitive videos.

repetitive

This

videos.

phenomenon

This

is documented

phenomenon

not

is documented

only by

only the

by

IOF’

the

s

IOF’ own

s

T

own ikT

T ok

ikT account

ok

but

account

also

but

by

also Y

by ou

Y -

ou

Tube

T

channels such as the obsessive Bralcon (brvlcon,

4.13 million followers as of May 2024), which amass

as chunks of flesh with no name but articulated beau-

beau

ty filters, an exponentially growing number of short short

videos showcasing incredibly repetitive choreographed

routines of uncountable “Israeli” female soldiers. The

number of

number views,

of

of

views, course,

of

reveals

course,

little

reveals

about

little

the

about

iden

the

-

iden

tity and preferences of the viewers. The

viewers.

more revealing

aspect lies in the stomach-churning comments on Bral-

Bral

con’s Instagram page and

con’

Y

s Instagram page and ouT

Y

ube channel.

ouT

37

The way in which other aggregators accounts like

like

hot_idf_girls and girlsdefense promote the dual life of

of

soldiers both on and off

of duty,

duty often depicted in under-

under

36

Pramaggiore, M. (2016). “I’ll be Dancin’”: American Soldiers, Cute YouTube Performances, and the Deployment of Soft Power in the War on Terror. In Dale, J. P.

et al. (Eds.), The Aesthetics and Affects of Cuteness (pp. 95–111). Routledge, p. 95.

37

https://www.instagram.com/bralcon, https://www.youtube.com/@brvlcon

23



NOURA TAFECHE

wear or bikinis, is reminiscent of customisable collect-

ible characters in Azur Lane. This proliferation may may

aim to

aim gratify

to

a

gratify multitude

a

of

multitude sexual

of

fantasies

sexual

tailored

fantasies

to

tailored

to

the user’s

’ fanbase, yet these bishojo/soldiers lack dis-

tinct identities: rather,

rather the emphasis lies on replicating

replicating

themselves identically.

themselves identically

Screenshot taken from the section Shorts

on the brvlcon YouTube account, May 2024

Historically,

Historically the soldier was often viewed as an anony-

anony

mous individual, employed in the army without partic-

partic

ular personal recognition. The distinctions between one

one

soldier and

soldier

another

and

were

another

blurred,

were

as

blurred, the

as

very

the

principle

very

of

principle

of

the military tended to treat them as a uniform mass, de-

de

void of

void exalting

of

individual

exalting

protagonism.

individual

This,

protagonism.

of

This, course,

of



course,

with the

with

exception

the

of

exception higher

of

ranks,

higher

which

ranks,

were

which

often

were

ro

often -

ro

manticised and distinguished. However,

However with the advent

advent

of social

of

media,

social

soldiers

media,

have

soldiers

begun

have

to

begun create

to

and

create

show

and

-

show

case their own personalities in the digital sphere, as if if

24

THE KAWAYOKU TALES

they were off

of duty.

duty Now,

Now they portray and share aspects

of their daily lives. But when soldiers participate in viral of their daily lives. But when soldiers participate in viral trends on

trends social

on

media

social

platforms,

media

they

platforms,

revert

they

to

revert being

to

as

being -

as

similated into an indistinct mass. In this context, every-every

one seems to be doing the same things and returning to

to

lose their

lose

individuality

their

.

individuality This

.

concept

This

is

concept further

is

highlight

further

-

highlight

ed by

ed the

by

Bralcon

the

account

Bralcon

showing

account

that,

showing

despite

that,

personal

despite



personal

differences,

dif

everyone seems to adhere to the same be-

be

havioural patterns,

havioural

thus

patterns,

contributing

thus

to

contributing a

to homogenisation

a



homogenisation

of the soldier figure in the online public sphere, where where

individual differences

dif

dissolve once again and personal

personal

identity blends with the collective hypersexualised stanstan

dard palatable for a bunch of anonymous creeps.



Fake Prizes for Future Drone Operators

and Coloured Book for Future Codebreakers

Social media

Social

and

media

gaming

and

culture

gaming

are

culture

not

are

immune

not

to

immune the

to

meddling of the recruiting agenda: back in the summer

of 2020, the US Army

US

used fake prizes to recruit teens

on Twitch.

T

38 The case drew the attention of congress-

congress

woman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, who attempted to

legislatively block the use of the streaming platform by the US Army,

Army 39 which, according to Media Chief for

Army Recruiting

Recruitin Command Lisa Ferguson,

Fer

generated

as many as 3,500 recruiting contacts via e-sports in fisfis

cal year 2019.40 Congress rejected the AOC’

Congress rejected the

s proposal.

AOC’

38

Vincent, J. (2020, July 17). Twitch tells US Army to Stop Sharing Fake Prize Giveaways that Sent Users to Recruitment Page. The Verge. Retrieved June 15, 2024, from https://www.theverge.com/2020/7/17/21328130/us-army-twitch-

esports-gaming-recruitment-fake-prize-giveaway

39

Lyons, K. (2020, July 31). After Impassioned Speech, AOC’s Ban on US Military Recruiting via Twitch Fails House Vote. The Verge. Retrieved June 15, 2024, from

https://www.theverge.com/2020/7/30/21348451/military-recruiting-twitch-ban-

block-amendment-ocasio-cortez

40

Seck, H. H. (2020, May 12). As Military Recruiters Embrace Esports, Marine Corps Says It Won’t Turn War Into a Game. Military. Retrieved June 15, 2024, from 25

NOURA TAFECHE

This is

This reminisc

is

ent

reminisc

of

ent the

of

National

the

Security

National

Agency’

Security

s

Agency’

Cryptokids project,

Cryptokids

41 which in

which November

in

2005

November

promot

2005

-

promot

ed a “fun book” with the aim of attracting future code-

code

breakers. As

breakers.

the agency itself stated in the unclassified

file NSA/CSS CryptoKids – America’

NSA/CSS CryptoKids –

s Futur

America’

e Codemak

s Futur

-

e Codemak

ers and Codebreakers

and Codebr

, children up to 14 years of age

were targeted.

tar

42 The press release page stated

stated that the

educational program would “provide information on

the Agency’

the

s

Agency’ educational programs and future employ-

employ

ment opportunities”.43 The project was then somehow

covered up

covered and

up

left

and

no

left or

no few

or

online

few

traces;

online

all

traces; that’

all

s

that’ left

s

are paper copies of the colouring

colouri book which the NSA

NSA

gave for free to the visitors of the National Cryptologic Museum in Maryland.

On 9 November 2023, NAT

NA O

T jumped on the band-

band

wagon, organising

or

in Warsaw

W

the first-ever NAT

NA O

T

Gaming Tournament.

T

Their experts joined Polish

gamers Maciej Musiał, setokani and grabagra, Ameri-

can streamers

can

ZeRoyalV

streamers

iking

ZeRoyalV

and

iking

mischaCrossing,

and

and

mischaCrossing,

Assistant Secretary General Marie-Doha Besancenot to

play the popular Among Us and Party Animals video-

video

games while discussing topics

topic such as the spread of

of

disinformation on digital platforms and information security.

security As the NAT

NA O

T website states: “Thousands of

https://www.military.com/daily-news/2020/05/12/military-recruiters-embrace-

esports-marine-corps-says-it-wont-turn-war-game.html

41

Plaugic, L. (2015). The NSA Made a Coloring Book for Kids. The Verge. Retrieved June 15, 2024, from https://www.theverge.com/2015/4/26/8499267/nsa-

coloring-book-cryptokids

42

NSA. (2005, October 17). NSA/CSS CryptoKids: America’s Future Codemakers and Codebreakers. [Unclassified NSA document, Doc ID 6589331]. Retrieved June 15, 2024, from https://cdn.muckrock.com/foia_files/2017/08/16/

DocId_6589331_Binary_Sealed.pdf

43

NSA. (2010, June 17). NSA Web Site Is Great for Kids. National Security Agency.

Retrieved June 15, 2024, from https://www.nsa.gov/Press-Room/News-

Highlights/Article/Article/1627371/nsa-web-site-is-great-for-kids

26



THE KAWAYOKU TALES

viewers tune into Twitch

T

livestreams hosted by on-

on

line gamers from both sides of the Atlantic. The event

featured a relaxed atmosphere with gamers, soldiers, and experts mingling and playing vintage and arcade games.”44 The X

The comment

X

section

comment

of

section the

of

announcement

the

made on NAT

NA O’

T s

O’ official account burst into sarcasm

and caustic irony: NAT

NA O

T was mocked for its desperate

efforts

ef

to

forts “grooming

to

murderers”

“grooming

and

murderers”

accused

and

of

accused recruiting

of



recruiting

future drone operators who can “kill [more easily] from

from

[the comfort] of a room”.

A page featured in the NSA’s “fun book”.

Graphic design by David Darchicourt

44

NATO. (2023, November 9). Party Animals – Gamers Unite at the NATO Gaming Tournament in Warsaw. North Atlantic Treaty Organization. Retrieved June 15, 2024, from https://www.nato.int/cps/en/natohq/news_219942.htm

27



NOURA TAFECHE

No Makeup, Only Camouflage

Back in 2019, IOF’s

IOF’ official Facebook account aspired

aspired

to become a trendsetter by sharing posts of female female

soldiers with the hashtag and motto “No makeup, just

just

camouflage”, showing female recruits in their “natural

“natural

beauty” as they carried on with their daily training ac-

tivities in uniform. The art of concealment was con-tradicted two years later by the video Camouflaged or not, our soldiers are masters of disguise

not, our soldiers ar

published on

on

their official TikT

T ok

ikT account, showing young soldiers

playing hide and seek.45

Screenshot from IOF’s (also known as IDF) official Instagram account, date as seen in the posts (IOF Official account has 1.5 million followers as of 3 June 2024) The IOF’s

IOF’ TikT

T ok

ikT

official account was launched in

in

2020 and has earned 431 thousand followers so far.

far

Prior to October 2023, the most popular video on their

their

official YouT

Y

ube

ouT

account was IDF Pinpoint Strike

Strike

45

IDF [@idf]. (2021, June 14). Camouflaged or not, our soldiers are masters of disguise [Video]. TikTok. Retrieved June 15, 2024, from https://www.tiktok.com/@

idf/video/6973653835633937666

28

THE KAWAYOKU TALES

on Ahmed Jabari, Head of Hamas Military W

on

ing

Ahmed Jabari, Head of Hamas Military W , a

nine-second clip

nine-second

posted

clip

on

posted 14

on November

14

2012

November

that

2012

has

that



4.9 million views to date. Contrary to the US govern-

ment’s

ment’ attempt to conceal Abu

conceal

Ghraib horror to reduce

reduce

and silence the obscenity,

obscenity in this case, the IOF and the

the

“Israeli”46 government not only actively amplify it but

but

boast about an assassination.

“Israel” is

“Israel” perceived

is

as

perceived an

as army

an

with

army

a

with country

a

,

country 47 and

its society,

society where the boundary between civilian and

military sectors is blurry,

blurry grew familiar with the con-

con

cept of

cept digital

of

militarism

digital

back

militarism

in

back 2008–2009

in

during

2008–2009

the

during

incursion into

incursion

the

into

Gaza

the

strip

Gaza

codenamed

strip

Operation

codenamed

Cast

Operation

Lead.48 Since then, first Facebook, then Twitter

T

(now

X), Instagram and eventually TikT

T ok

ikT served as tools in

the national campaign to implement defence rhetoric and affirm the perpetual state of occupation in the Pal-Pal

estinian territories, and to coordinate social platforms in order to satisfy national needs and alleviate moral concerns. Considering they excel in cyberwarfare and

46

The origins of Israel as an entity are steeped in supremacist sets of beliefs whose inherent Zionist ideology selectively exploits Judaism and Jewish people to rationalise and justify racist and genocidal practices. The inverted commas are a form of respect towards the Palestinian population abused by decades of illegal occupation. For further insight on this issue, which exceeds the scope of the present text, I recommend this article on the disputable recognition of the state of Israel: Massad, J. (2024, May 30). Instead of Recognising “Palestine”, Countries Should Withdraw Recognition of Israel. Middle East Eye. Retrieved June 15, 2024, from https://www.middleeasteye.net/opinion/instead-recognising-palestine-

countries-should-withdraw-recognition-israel. Readers will notice that “Palestine”

is also in quotation marks in the article, which does not imply that Palestine lacks legitimacy, but rather that what remains of Palestine on truncated territories does not fulfil the criteria for a just Palestinian statehood, and for other reasons as well.

47

Fernández, B. (2020, August 24). Israel Is an Army With a Country Attached.

Jacobin. Retrieved June 15, 2024, from https://jacobin.com/2020/08/israeli-

defense-forces-palestine-netanyahu

48

Al-Haq. (2009). “Operation Cast Lead”: A Statistical Analysis. Al-Haq.

Retrieved June 15, 2024, from https://www.alhaq.org/cached_uploads/

download/2021/04/19/gaza-operation-cast-lead-statistical-

analysis-1618814229.pdf

29

NOURA TAFECHE

flaunt a natural talent for embedding their militarised cultures into daily civilian life,

life both IOF and the US

Army easily engage with users in a variety of highly

localised social media approaches. IOF is particular-particular

ly proud of its “diversity” within the army,

army “Muslim,

Bedouins and Christians”,49 POC and women, but its diversity embraces a particular way of understanding the soldier

the

,

soldier of

, whatever

of

origin

whatever

they

origin

may

they

be,

may

who

be,

is

who

is pre-

pre

dominantly understood through their infantilisation.

In the Zionist “Israeli” society,

society each soldier is of-

ten perceived as “everyone’s

“everyone’ child”, a son or daughter

serving in

serving the

in

military

the

.

military This

.

societal

This

perception

societal

impacts

perception



the legal accountability of their actions, as seen for instance in the case of Elor Azaria, an “Israeli” soldier

soldier

accused in 2016 of manslaughter against a Palestinian man.50 After the sentence, Azaria

sentence,

spent only a few

months in jail, a period marked by pressure from thou-

sands of “Israelis”, including numerous parliamentari-

ans and

ans

the

and

then

the

Minister

then

of

Minister Education

of

Naftali

Education

Bennett,

Naftali



who advocated for his pardon and immediate release.

release.

Within

W

the extremist ideology of the Zionist society,

society

such actions

such

may

actions

be

may morally

be

excused

morally

because

excused

a

because soldier

a



is perceived as “our boy” or “our girl”. However,

However this

inconsistency raises a critical question: if a young soldier is deemed mentally irresponsible, how can he be

be

entrusted with firearms or assigned to carry out opera-

tions in the army?

49

IDF. (2016, November 16). Diversity in the IDF [Video]. YouTube. Retrieved June 15, 2024, from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rxSxYql5_GQ

50

I intentionally omitted this person’s name to avoid putting victims and perpetrators on the same level.

30

THE KAWAYOKU TALES

Cuteness and Entertainment as Domestication

In November 2021, Israel Bidur’s

’ channel (Israel Enter-

Enter

tainment) launched on TikT

T ok

ikT a “Hanukkah Challenge”

Challenge”

short video featuring the former “Israeli” Prime Minister Minister

Naftali Bennett dueting with former IDF Military Police

Police

Officer and TikT

T ok

ikT celebrity Yael

Y Deri. The video oozes

with cringe. Yael

Y

Deri, the nationally renowned army

army

overachiever/IOF’s

overachiever/IOF’ favourite child – busy keeping the the

tradition of lip synching alive – was mastering her art art

of entertainment alongside an evidently unwieldy for-for

mer Prime Minister with a disoriented gaze in search of

of

reassur ance,

reassur

striving

ance,

to

striving keep

to

his

keep dance

his

moves

dance

coordinated

moves



coordinated

for ten seconds with former sgt. Deri, who was trying to to

give him the same look one does to a child lost in the

the

woods.51

In keeping with the usual speedy and frivolous visual

visual

grammar of TikT

T ok

ikT challenges, the audience was cap-

cap

tivated by the authenticity,

authenticity genuineness, yet unseemly

unseemly

goofiness of a suprematist politician who, back in 2013, 2013,

in response to the release of Palestinian prisoners, pub-pub

licly declared

licly

that

declared

“[they]

that

should

“[they]

be

should killed,

be

not

killed,

released”,

not



released”,

adding that

adding

he

that himself

he

had

himself

“already

had

killed

“already

lots

killed

of

lots Arabs

of

in

Arabs

in

[his] life,

[his]

and

life,

there

and

is

there absolutely

is

no

absolutely problem

no

with

problem

that.”

with

52

His almost disarming awkwardness, immortalised

by a deliberately home-recording-style piece of enter-

enter

tainment, held the persuasive power to erase, suspend,

51

Israel_bidur [@isrel_bidur]. (2021, November 29). קבלו את ראש הממשלה נפתלי בנט

והטיקטוקרית יעל דרעי באתגר החנוכה שלנו [Video]. TikTok. Retrieved June 15, 2024, from https://www.tiktok.com/@israel_bidur/video/7036048135428312321

52

Solomon, A. B. (2013, July 30). Bennett Under Fire for Comments About Killing Arabs. The Jerusalem Post. Retrieved June 15, 2024, from https://www.jpost.

com/diplomacy-and-politics/bennett-under-fire-for-comments-about-killing-

arabs-321467

31



NOURA TAFECHE

tone down the intrinsic yet invisible violence permeat-

permeat

ing those 11

1 seconds of pure entertaining propaganda,

wiping out any past or present memory of underlying

violence. A

A winning combination capable of distorting

and dissolving the line between military operations and

and dissolving the line between military

entertainment, state-nationalism

entertainment,

and

state-nationalism

the

and

impish,

the

the

impish,

uniform and the algorithm.

Screenshot of the “Hanukkah Challenge” video posted on 29 November 2021

on the israel_bidur TikTok account (892 thousand followers) مهيلع ةنعللا

Curse upon them

The survival mechanism of the blue-pilled “Israeli”

society is rooted in the adoption of a perceptual filter that shields it from the horrifying truth and operates in 32

THE KAWAYOKU TALES

reverse to a cataract

cat

operation: instead of removing a

clouded lens,

clouded

it

lens, grafts

it

one

grafts

to

one block

to

collective

block

or

collective individ

or

-

individ

ual ef

ual forts

ef

to

forts face

to

and

face

accept

and

reality

accept

.

reality This

.

is

This the

is

ultimate

the

stage of manipulation to bend reality to one’s desires.

stage of manipulation to bend reality to one’

To

T betray reality with words, semiotic extension

extension

must be strengthened through image production that that

can transcend the physical realm by continuously per-

per

petrating a nation-state metaverse (a “Zionverse”53 in

this case), that is to say a tailor-made,

tailor

ultra-pervert-

ed and controlled immersive version of linguistic and

and

sensorial dimensions to breed the highest operation-al suprematism. Whether it is a viral TikT

T

ok

ikT

video

video

or a video game anime character,

character the component of

of

harmlessness of cute’s

cute’ cue is self-evident, due to its

enormous grip on imagination, visual satisfaction and

and

values. However,

However it holds the potential to serve as a

a

powerful tool for mitigating the brutality of implicit implicit

violence. Both cuteness and entertainment serve as

forms of domestication, marked by rapid social proliferation and intense saturation: through these medi-

ums, the audience is tamed and pacified, led to a mild,

mild,

compliant and

compliant

anti-shock

and

transition

anti-shock

to

transition utter

to

conformity

utter



conformity

and obedience,

and

ultimately

obedience,

inoculated

ultimately

with

inoculated

a

with prescribed

a



prescribed

dose of reactionary and negationist ideology against against

perceiving an otherwise unacceptable reality.

reality The

The

quote from Ross Wilson’

W

s

ilson’ book on Theodor Adorno

Adorno

that I found on the Galactocosmic Ontological Disor-

Disor

der Telegram

T

channel is particularly apt here: “Enter-

“Enter

tainment is necessarily affirmative because the escape

escape

53

This neologism was coined by Noura Tafeche.

33

NOURA TAFECHE

offered

of

by it is not escape from a bad reality at all but

but

rather escape from the very idea of resistance to that

that

reality.

reality The only way out is surrender

.

.”

The only way out is surrender 54

Conclusions

As The Washington

W

Post columnist Taylor

T

Lorenz re-

ported on 11

1 March 2022: “The White

“The

House has been

been

closely watching TikT

T ok’

ikT s

ok’ rise as a dominant news

source, leading to select a group of the platform’s platform’

most influential names.” The White House personally

personally

invited a group of TikT

T ok

ikT influencers to be sure they

they

were able to debunk misinformation and communi-

cate effectively

ef

about the invasion of Ukraine. After

After

a telephone conversation with the National Security Security

Council, one T

one ikT

T oker

ikT

admitted: “People in my gener-

gener

ation get

ation

all

get the

all

information

the

from

information

T

from ikT

T ok.”

ikT

Some

ok.”

were

Some



were

harshly critical of Biden, as his deed meant nothing nothing

and only put pressure on Gen Z to manufacture and and

polish consent, while some felt somehow empowered,

empowered,

declaring: “I would consider myself as a White House

House

correspondent for Gen Z.”55

One particularly hilarious and at time dramatic epi-

epi

sode occurred in 2022 on the Nikita DumpTruck

DumpT

Tik

T -

ik

Tok

T

account, owned by a renowned comedian whose

bio writes:

bio

“

writes: 💗 Bimbo University

Bimbo

💗✨ for the

for

girls

the

✨

news, history, economics, culture also hi I’m Nikita.”

news, history

54

Batzrov. (2023, February 1). “Entertainment is necessarily affirmative because the escape offered by it is not escape from a bad reality at all but rather escape from the very idea of resistance to that reality. The only way out is surrender.” . Telegram. Retrieved June 15, 2024, from https://t.me/

GalactocosmicOntologicalDisorder/16798

55

Lorenz, T. (2022, March 11). The White House Is Briefing TikTok Stars About the War in Ukraine. The Washington Post. Retrieved June 15, 2024, from https://www.

washingtonpost.com/technology/2022/03/11/tik-tok-ukraine-white-house

34



THE KAWAYOKU TALES

Screenshot of a video posted on 24 February 2022

on the nikitadumptruck TikTok account (3 million views as of May 2024) Original video caption: Interrupting my jokes for a public service

#ukraine #russia #explained #comedy #girls #brunch #lgbt #gay In the short video, Nikita explained the Russian invasion of Ukraine “for the girls”, narrating how “Russia

“Russia

and Ukraine used to be a thing but then broke up”, de-

scribing NA

scribing T

NA O

T as

O a

as group

a

of

group “besties”,

of

adding

“besties”,

a

adding stereo

a

-

typical, frivolous,

typical,

flirty

frivolous,

,

flirty fresh

,

touch

fresh

of

touch vanity

of

and

vanity

cliché

and



cliché

akin to

akin a

to BFF

a

giving

BFF

advice

giving

on

advice how

on

to

how dress

to

to

dress impress

to



your crush. The comment section reflects a variety variety

of points of view,

view including those expressed by users

who understood the joke and responded with remarks

like “So Russia is like Kanye” or “Could you explain

explain

NFT

NFT for the girls?”. For some, the video reverberates

with the usual simplistic misinformation found in so-

35

NOURA TAFECHE

cial media,

cial

for

media,

others

for

it

others is

it the

is

most

the

informative

most

piece

informative

of

piece

of

journalism from

journalism

the

from

beginning

the

of

beginning the

of

invasion,

the

or

invasion, better

or



than a history class. For some it is a top-notch parody, parody

a mere speculation on tragedy,

tragedy for others it is just the

the

summary of a zeitgeist.56

In October 2023, NikitaDumpT

NikitaDump ruck

T

publicly apolo-

apolo

gised after using the same bimbo code in one of her

“girlsplaining” TikT

T ok

ikT video (later deleted by the au-

au

thor) to describe the “Israeli” attack on Gaza as a birth-birth

day party that went wrong, involving three girls named

“Patty” (referring to Palestine),

Palestine) “Brittany” for the Brit-

ish (Mandate) and “Izzy” as Israel.57

In a world where we witness a live-streamed geno-

geno

cide with its expanding impunity,

impunity where the race for

world domination appears inexorable, Gen Z has re-re

sponded by delivering real-time

real

history lectures.

lectures.

Using varying degrees of sarcasm to counter the threat

of regularly

of

announced

regularly

disasters

announced

such

disasters

as

such climate

as

change,

climate

economic inequality and social injustice, they convey

personal values and openly display their fragility.

fragility All

this, while being tugged by malicious political manipu-

manipu

lation, the Zoomers are translating their narratives into fragmented online private idioms on one of the most popular apps ever.

popular apps ever

The current state of affairs

af

reveals a major shift

shift

within the domain of human perception and glob-

al justice: on the horizon stands the rise of an unset-

56

NikitaDumpTruck [@nikitadumptruck]. (2022, February 24). Interrupting my jokes for a public service [Video]. TikTok. Retrieved June 15, 2024, from https://www.

tiktok.com/@nikitadumptruck/video/7068338468446817542

57

NikitaDumpTruck [@nikitadumptruck]. (2023, October 16). [Video]. thanks for ur patience with this! . TikTok. Retrieved June 15, 2024, from https://www.tiktok.

com/@nikitadumptruck/video/7290669031969869089

36

THE KAWAYOKU TALES

tling unknown dimension, whose physical laws al-

ternate tensions between human rights violations and

and

hololive-style streamers,

hololive-style

ethnic

streamers,

cleansing

ethnic

and

cleansing

“I’m

and

just

“I’m



just

a girl”

a

vibes.

girl”

The

vibes.

cute-girl-life

The

is

cute-girl-life squirming

is

around

squirming

the

around

the

bowels of genocide.

We

W are

e

experiencing

are

a

experiencing gradual

a

but

gradual

rapid

but

semiotic

rapid

de

semiotic -

de

cay,

cay the seemingly irreversible

irreversible effects

ef

of which extend

far beyond

far

online

beyond

niches.

online

In

niches. an

In era

an

defined

era

by

defined post-truth

by

ideologies, where emotional impact and cognitive bias-

cognitive bias

es carry

es

more

carry

weight

more

than

weight

facts

than

and

facts

reality

and

,

reality our

,

pressing

our

political and social questions often prove insufficient and futile in grasping the full scope of such a disfig-disfig

ured transformation. Nonetheless, such a topic eludes

synthetic conclusions; its complexities are too vast to

be captured in a single, sensational statement and the

consequences it entails require long-term evaluation.

Through this booklet, I aim to recall a path that has brought us here. Its written form serves to preserve an

ephemeral fragment of digital

digital historical memory – a

seemingly innocuous

seemingly

transition

innocuous



transition that has

that

led

has

us

led down

us

the

down

path towards a perilous point of no return.

37

This essay is dedicated to the Palestinian Resistance and all the Sarāyāt.





Noura Tafeche

The Kawayoku Tales: Aestheticisation of Violence in Military, Gaming, Social Media Cultures and Other Stories

PostScriptUM #51

Series edited by Janez Fakin Janša

Electronic edition

Publisher: Aksioma – Institute for Contemporary Art, Ljubljana https://aksioma.org | aksioma@aksioma.org

Represented by: Marcela Okretič

Editorial assistant: Rok Kranjc

Proofreading: Miha Šuštar

Design: Federico Antonini

Layout: Sonja Grdina

Cover image: Noura Tafeche’s 2024 collage based on images from Azur Lane, licensed under CC-BY-NC-SA: Dace, illustrated by 梦咲枫; Monarch, illustrated by Liduke; Juno, illustrated by 梦咲枫; screenshot of a “fleet build” by Reddit user niteshumo57

© Aksioma | All text and image rights reserved by their respective authors Ljubljana, August 2024

Published in the frame of the project .expub funded by the European Union.

https://networkcultures.org/expub

Views and opinions expressed are those of the author(s) only and do not necessarily reflect those of the European Union or the European Education and Culture Executive Agency (EACEA). Neither the European Union nor EACEA can be held responsible for them.

Additionally supported by the Ministry of Culture of the Republic of Slovenia and the Municipality of Ljubljana.

REPUBLIC OF S LOVENIA

MINISTRY OF CULTURE





This publication expands on the video essay published by the Institute of Network Cultures in THE VOID on 26 September 2023.





Kawayoku, a hybrid research area, explores the

intersections of cuteness culture, digital warfare and

the aestheticisation of violence in an era of semiotic

ambiguity and post-truth. From the fetishisation

of Weapons Grade Waifus and anthropomorphic

warships in games like Azur Lane to the “Israeli”

Defense Forces’ TikTok strategies, the essay reveals

how cuteness and entertainment serve as tools

of domestication, converging state-nationalism with

the impish, and the uniform with the algorithm.

Noura Tafeche is a visual artist and independent

researcher with a focus on net.art and radical

entertainment. Her research delves into phenomena

related to online visual cultures, aestheticisation

of violence on digital platforms, linguistic

experimentation and visual representation

of speculative theories.

978-961-7173-56-7 €0





Document Outline


9e16a1517f39654667340beff745305c46a86fb6de1f8f5dff01054be8c9cc11.pdf

9e16a1517f39654667340beff745305c46a86fb6de1f8f5dff01054be8c9cc11.pdf

9e16a1517f39654667340beff745305c46a86fb6de1f8f5dff01054be8c9cc11.pdf