I remember Himaruya saying something like, what he writes is satire, and as people say, there is nothing funny in stuff like the holocaust. Now that sentence is speaking for itself without further explanation. But just to fill in, there where some sad moments in Hetalia too, like when we saw those scars on Toris’s/Lithuania’s back. And that short strip about the Russian revolution. That was the only time ever I felt fear of Hetalia’s Ivan/Russia, but at the same time feeling so sad.
Because the way I see it, the way the characters are portrayed, with all their differences, it is impossible for me to dislike any of them, and it brings a more open and understanding view for different cultures. Noone is completely bad and noone is completely good. We are all human for high heaven!

This will sound incredibly corny, but this is true for me:
Hetalia gave me back something I had previously lost; the will to wish for a more peaceful future.

Secondly, the people I know generally aren’t offended by Hetalia. People find characters like France humorous rather than offensive. I know people from China who’re quite fond of the way their nation is portrayed in the comic, unlike some Koreans, who apparently find their nation-tan insulting. I don’t think there should be as much controversy as there is now, to be honest: Hetalia’s comic, meant to be read and enjoyed. It’s not a history textbook (not that history textbooks can’t be enjoyable). With the countries of the world appearing as cute little chibis half the time, the frivolity here should be dead obvious. XD; It’s clearly not going to be 100% accurate, but (in my case, at least) it’s really increased my interest in world history. I don’t see that as a bad thing.

Another issue here is the fandom, which sort of takes the original webcomic and expands it into a more complex universe. Most people who come across Hetalia will have found it in webcomic form, so they know how to use the Internet…and will eventually stumble across fanfiction. A lot of the fanfic writers have actually gone and done a lot of research into history, leaving some handy little footnotes at the bottom detailing the historical events. They acknowledge that every country has a darker side, fought wars and committed horrible crimes and such. A good deal of the Hetalia fanfiction explores this. Good stuff. (And it’s usually historically accurate.)

Long post is long. ;3; Again, enjoyed reading your post. <3