Japan’s infatuation with Natalia Poklonskaya, Crimea’s newly appointed and unusually photogenic attorney general, is still going strong. In the week since we first reported on it, fan art based on Eastern Europe’s comeliest stateswoman has continued to proliferate.
But how do Poklonskaya, and for that matter her anime-loving daughter, feel about the unique sort of attention she’s been getting?
In some ways, it isn’t so shocking that anime-style artists have made the 33-year-old Poklonskaya their muse. After all, Japanese society prizes earnestness, and whether you’re talking about school and work uniforms or personal clothing, Japan always likes a snappy dresser.
So perhaps this bout of artistic expression was inevitable. Still, it’s got to be a little unusual for Poklonskaya. After all, does she even know what anime is, let alone like it?
Apparently the press was just as curious as we were, as the following question came up in an interview Poklonskaya gave.
The divorcee replied that while she doesn’t watch Japanese animation herself, her nine-year-old daughter does, and couldn’t be happier that the same country that makes the cartoons she enjoys is now enshrining her mother in the medium’s style.
“My daughter looks at these pictures every day,” Poklonskaya explained in comments given at another time than shown in the video above. “She happily tells me, ‘Mom, you’re becoming an anime heroine in Japan,’ which of course is very exciting for her. As for myself, though, I’m too busy to really pay much attention to the drawings.”
The attorney general also answered a reporter’s question as to whether she’s met with any of the Japanese artists who have made her their subject, replying good naturedly that she had not, and indeed most fan art depicts her right side, much like her most-viewed video appearances.
Despite her lack of personal interest, though, Poklonskaya doesn’t mind being the subject of so many sketches. “Public figures and people in the government are often drawn, and this cannot be avoided,” she said matter-of-factly.
It’s good to know she’s OK with it, since it doesn’t look like the anime Poklonskaya trend is going to be slowing down anytime soon.
Sources: Russia no Koe
Top image: YouTube, Wikipedia (modified by RocketNews24)
Insert images: Wikipedia, YouTube
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