Hentai

Hentai is a Japanese word that means perverted and refers to anime that has explicit sexual conduct. This word isn't used in Japan however but is used all over the rest of the world. H anime is an artistic expression of pornography in Japan. As opposed to photographic erotica, they allow full use of the imagination as well as scenes that run counter to accepted society and culture. Elements of sexual fantasy are represented in ways that would be impossible to film. Each culture will have a different understanding about the line between pornographic content and mainstream works.

It is important to understand ways that the Japanese line might be different from that in other cultures. Anime can depict nude characters, for example in Sailor Moon it is implied that the girls are nude during their transformation, and in Digimon Frontier are nude during spirit evolution sequences and bio-mergance, respectively. Many artists add nudity as fan service. On the other hand, H material tends to use explicit erotic content. As a form of expressing sexual fantasy, depictions can include those which are unacceptable in society, or run counter to social norms. Such fantasies can be depicted in the extreme, often demonstrating subconscious desires or purely carnal motivations.

This contrast between accepted—and in some cases legal—behavior and primal sexuality is a primary motivation for many works of pornography, and H art is no exception. This form of Japanese culture acquired some popularity in the West, thanks, to a large extent, to the Internet. Although there have been many pornographic comic books and animations produced in the West, they never were as popular as H manga is today. Comic book artists who focus on provocative female figures often use their talent for mainstream comic companies rather than adult works, and may fear ridicule for working on niche adult titles that are not as widespread, compared to Japan where a large group of artistic talent draws pornography.