'Demon Slayer' merchandise featuring Rising Sun flag design sparks controversy in Korea
Published: 16 Sep. 2025, 11:33
![Merchandise for the manga series "Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba" featuring the Rising Sun flag are sold on Korean online marketplaces as seen in this photo provided by Seo Kyoung-duk, a professor at Sungshin Women’s University. [SEO KYOUNG-DUK]](https://koreaseafood.online/data/photo/2025/09/16/d483eb34-c4b8-4632-bd27-ee55c48cbdbd.jpg)
Merchandise for the manga series "Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba" featuring the Rising Sun flag are sold on Korean online marketplaces as seen in this photo provided by Seo Kyoung-duk, a professor at Sungshin Women’s University. [SEO KYOUNG-DUK]
Merchandise featuring the Rising Sun flag design from the popular Japanese animated film "Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba – The Movie: Infinity Castle" is being sold on major Korean online shopping platforms, sparking controversy.
"Key chains and earrings modeled after the main character’s Rising Sun flag-patterned earrings are openly being sold [...] despite similar concerns being raised during the release of 'Mugen Train,'" Seo Kyoung-duk, a professor at Sungshin Women’s University, said in a press release Tuesday.
"Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba – The Movie: Mugen Train," released in 2020, was the first film adaptation of the manga series.
Seo argued that “even if the platform claims it is merely facilitating overseas direct purchases, it cannot escape responsibility for verifying historically sensitive symbols.”
He warned that selling such products in Korea “only gives Japan a pretext to justify using the Rising Sun flag.”
He added that “the Rising Sun flag is a symbol of militarism, and Korean companies should act cautiously and swiftly to address the issue. Even if profit-making is legitimate, companies must take into account the history and public sentiment of the country where they sell their products.”
The Rising Sun flag was used during Japan’s imperial era and World War II and is widely associated in Korea, a former Japanese colony, with imperialism, militarism and war crimes. The original pattern in the animated series of "Demon Slayer" has been shown in an altered horizontal pattern on Netflix for the Korean audience.
This article was originally written in Korean and translated by a bilingual reporter with the help of generative AI tools. It was then edited by a native English-speaking editor. All AI-assisted translations are reviewed and refined by our newsroom.
BY KIM JI-HYE [[email protected]]
with the Korea JoongAng Daily
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