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Anime about nasty contract surprises gets real-life credit card with nasty...
Life imitates art with the Puella Magi Madoka Magica credit card, which grants great (purchasing) power, but at what cost? Apologies in advance for mildly spoiling a mid-series twist for a 10-year-old...
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Anime tie-up with Japanese onsen town causes public outcry, officials...
Backlash against Onsen Musume Project prompts a slinging match between feminists and otaku. In Japan, a lot of real-world objects and places have been anthropomorphised into anime characters, creating...
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Japanese custom PC shop builds the ultimate Hatsune Miku PC【Video】
A veritable shrine to the virtual idol. There’s a lot of crossover between computer enthusiasts and fans of Hatsune Miku. Miku is, after all, the world’s first successful virtual idol, whose songs and...
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Eringi mushrooms can be an unexpected source of otaku loneliness, Twitter learns
”Lousy eringi, making me feel miserable.” Japan loves mushrooms. The country is blessed with a wide variety of edible fungi, and foodies love eating them raw, grilled, or as ingredients in hot pots or...
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Lawson convenience store sets up shop in Japan’s Parareal Akihabara metaverse
Those stores really are everywhere. To call the convenience store business in Japan “competitive” is an understatement. This battlefield is home to a wide range of chains dominated by the big three:...
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Tokyo’s gigantic new anime store will be among largest in the world, and it...
Specialty shop Animate stays true to its roots as it gets ready to celebrate a big milestone with a big store. When people think of anime shops and events in Tokyo, Akihabara is the first neighborhood...
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“Cinderella fit” otaku goods from 100-yen store are god items for anime and...
Japanese otaku know where to shop for the best display goods. Recently, our Japanese-language reporter Saya Togashi attended the Kimetsu no Yaiba Gotoge Koyoharu Exhibition, which is being held from...
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A lesson in doujinshi convention manners from our resident doujin artist
How much chitchat is OK with an artist who doesn’t know you? Our Japanese-language reporter Udonko wears many hats. She’s a writer, kimono lover, outdoorswoman, and Kyoto candy connoisseur. Oh, and...
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Nearly half of Japanese women in survey have an idol singer or anime crush
And the vast majority want to look good when they go to see them. Like all languages, Japanese is constantly evolving, and one word that’s taken on a new meaning in recent years is oshi. Originally...
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With Comiket returning, so is its anime-posters-for-otaku-blood blood drive
Donors get three posters this year, which helps us estimate the value of otaku blood. It’s been two years since the last Comiket, which is ordinarily a twice-a-year-event but has been on hiatus since...
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Some important Christmas shopping advice for parents of otaku and fujoshi kids
Japan’s biggest anime specialty shop chain warns that not following this advice could turn Christmas into a day of tears. With just a couple of days left until December 25, parents are scrambling to...
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Free anti-embarrassment bags to be handed out at Comiket
Hazukashikunaibukuro hope to make the train ride home from Japan’s biggest otaku art gathering a little less awkward. Because of the pandemic, 2020 was the first year since Comiket’s initial 1975...
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Sustainable Otaku Goals: A framework to help you avoid fan burnout
And also to avoid becoming the reason for someone else’s burnout. One of the big differences between being an otaku and just an ordinary fan is that the former implies a significantly higher level of...
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The opening morning of Comiket looked very different this year, and so did...
Running of the Otaku and tetsuyagumi don’t fit with the first pandemic-era Comiket. On December 30, Comiket finally made its long-awaited return. Ordinarily taking place twice a year, Japan’s largest...
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English for otaku – New book provides fans with skills to internationalize...
Because the Japanese school system isn’t going to teach them how to say “The set list is lit!” If you’re learning a foreign language, pretty much any entry-level class or textbook will teach you the...
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Japanese hot spring charges almost 35 bucks for bucket of uncooked carrots,...
Virtual YouTuber cross-promotion gives fans a real-world memento. The main reason to go to a Japanese hot spring or public bath is, of course, to take a bath, but it’s not like guests scrub themselves...
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Japanese karaoke rooms become live concert venues for otaku and oshikatsu
A place where you can dance with your idol like no one is watching. Our Japanese-language reporter Ninoude Punico is a proud otaku who enjoys oshikatsu, which translates to “oshi activities“, where...
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For the working otaku – Convertible bags you can take to work and anime/idol...
Clever design lets you transform from serious professional to hardcore fan in seconds flat. The vast majority of people in Japan commute by train, so if you’re heading to work, you’re going to need a...
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Japan’s Flat Gasha Pon takes gacha capsule toy machines to a whole new level
A fun way to buy otaku goods. Bandai is one of the country’s premier purveyors of anime and manga related goods, and for 45 years, they’ve been selling random small toys in capsules through their...
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Oshi kamidana – Literal altars you can build to enshrine your favorite anime...
Design includes feature to hook up altars for members you’d wish would hook up as well. It’s not at all unusual for hardcore anime or idol fans to have a corner of their room that they’ve set up as a...
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