| The Leader | |
|---|---|
&sq=Qlik&lang=&file=File:The_Leader_anime.jpg) Promotional poster | |
| Genre | |
| Written by | Zhong Jun |
| Country of origin | China |
| Original language | Chinese |
| No. of seasons | 1 |
| No. of episodes | 7 |
| Production | |
| Running time | 25 minutes[2] |
| Production company | Wawayu |
| Original release | |
| Network | Bilibili |
| Release | January 28 – March 4, 2019 |
| Infobox instructions (only shown in preview) | |
The Leader (Chinese: 领风者; pinyin: Lǐng fēng zhě) is a 2019 Chinese animated web series based on the life of German philosopher Karl Marx. Commissioned by the Chinese Communist Party, a production team was formed in 2016 which included propaganda departments, scholars of Marxism, and the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences. The series was announced in 2018 by the streaming service Bilibili as part of the celebration of the 200th anniversary of Marx's birth. The seven-episode series was created to attract young people to Marxism, and it was streamed weekly on Bilibili between January 28, and March 4, 2019. A webcomic version was produced by Zhong Jun, the series' chief scriptwriter.
The series' announcement attracted international interest, and its promotional video had over 200,000 views on its release day. It was primarily considered propaganda by the Western media, while Chinese viewers commented on Marx's good looks. The series had a mixed response; the first episode had over 2.8 million views in one day, and the series as a whole had at least 5.5 million views. Although it was criticized for poor animation, propagandism, and its depiction of Marx, it has sparked a discussion on Marxism and labor rights in China.
- ^ a b Zhou, Viola (January 29, 2019). "China's dreamy Karl Marx anime is a hit". Inkstone News. Archived from the original on October 2, 2019. Retrieved October 10, 2019.
- ^ Gao, Dan (January 17, 2019). "国漫《领风者》：没想到有一天我会追马克思的番" [National manga: I didn't expect that one day I would chase Marx's fan]. The Paper (in Chinese). Archived from the original on April 21, 2019. Retrieved November 21, 2019.