Letters from the New York Otaku (3 ページ目) | アニメ!アニメ!

Letters from the New York Otaku (3 ページ目)

Skullgirls, the American “Anime Game” 画像
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Skullgirls, the American “Anime Game”

American fighting game players very widely use the term “anime game”. It's all but official terminology! When we do so, we're talking about a very particular sort of game in the genre: games descended from Darkstalkers (Vampire),

The Masquerade 画像
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The Masquerade

Let's talk about one more event that leads to lines around the convention center. There's the rave, there's the concert,

The American Otaku and Japan-- with Peepo Choo 画像
ニュース

The American Otaku and Japan-- with Peepo Choo

I noticed Felipe Smith's Peepo Choo on the front page of animeanime back when I started with this column, and I was curious what a Japanese audience would think of a comic that takes so much

The American Anime Fan Lexicon - “Weeaboo” 画像
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The American Anime Fan Lexicon - “Weeaboo”

A friend of mine doesn't like to talk about it, but he singlehandedly put the word “weeaboo” into regular usage among American anime fans.

Japanese Video Prices: “I'm Sorry, Great Five!” 画像
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Japanese Video Prices: “I'm Sorry, Great Five!”

A friend of mine-- I'll withhold his name to protect his identity-- has an otaku secret that he doesn't want his buddies to know about.

Trading Tapes In A Dark Room 画像
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Trading Tapes In A Dark Room

The earliest American anime fans were people at science fiction conventions watching tapes untranslated: if they were lucky there was a translated script in their hands, or

American Anime Fans and “100% Authenticity” 画像
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American Anime Fans and “100% Authenticity”

Years ago I briefly dated a Japanese-American otaku girl who very sincerely asked me, “Dave, am I Japanese enough for you?” The question was

“Dude, The Cops Raided Anime Boston” – Enter The Anime Rave 画像
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“Dude, The Cops Raided Anime Boston” – Enter The Anime Rave

And so it was that at two in the morning during a round of Dodonpachi with a friend, I found out that Anime Boston had been shut down by the police.

Cowboy Bebop and The Phrase “Why Don't They Make More Like...” 画像
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Cowboy Bebop and The Phrase “Why Don't They Make More Like...”

Shinichiro Watanabe's new anime Kids on the Slope just premiered, and it made me think about American online fan reaction to the show even

Just Get To The Fighting Robots - Escaflowne on Fox Kids 画像
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Just Get To The Fighting Robots - Escaflowne on Fox Kids

there are many cases of censorship in older American broadcasts of anime/manga. A brushed-out splash of blood here, bare breasts painted over with a “swimsuit” there.

He's Gone To the Next Dimension: Censorship in Kids' Anime in America 画像
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He's Gone To the Next Dimension: Censorship in Kids' Anime in America

I have mentioned in passing that nearly every anime that aired on American television was somehow altered for US audiences.

In America, Gundam is really Gundam Wing 画像
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In America, Gundam is really Gundam Wing

I thought right away of Gundam in America. It's a very strange story, and Gundam fans in Japan might be a little mortified to hear it.

The Toonami April Fool's “Joke” That Everybody Wanted To Be Real 画像
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The Toonami April Fool's “Joke” That Everybody Wanted To Be Real

At midnight on April Fool's Day this year, Cartoon Network changed its usual late-night programming to “Toonami”, the fondly remembered programming block from the late 90s.

We Play Japanese Mahjong in New York Too 画像
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We Play Japanese Mahjong in New York Too

I won't exactly call it a trend-- it's much too small for that-- but in the last few years a lot of English-speakers have suddenly been taking up Japanese-style mahjong.

The “Free Hugs” sign 画像
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The “Free Hugs” sign

If you give American anime fans a few square feet of free space, they'll do one of two things: pull out a stereo and start a dance circle

The Japanese Adventure Game That Japan Didn't Make 画像
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The Japanese Adventure Game That Japan Didn't Make

Speaking of moe outside Japan, here's one you might not have heard. Years ago, the Japanese artist Raita drew some pictures in a doujinshi

My Little Pony and “the American moe”? 画像
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My Little Pony and “the American moe”?

"Letters from the New York Otaku"

Samurai Pizza Cats: “As soon as someone finds the script, we might begin the show!” 画像
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Samurai Pizza Cats: “As soon as someone finds the script, we might begin the show!”

The US anime market is a funny thing. Just a few weeks ago, Discotek-- a small distributor that specializes in old titles with

NYC Otaku Shopping - Book-Off 画像
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NYC Otaku Shopping - Book-Off

I talked about how there's no Akiba in the States, but that doesn't mean that there isn't anywhere to go. A big city like ours will inevitably have small pockets of otaku interest.

Pocky Is A Big Deal 画像
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Pocky Is A Big Deal

If you ever find yourself making jokes about stereotypical American anime otaku for some reason, and you really want your joke to be authentic, say

Introduction To the American Anime Convention – Dealer's Room 画像
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Introduction To the American Anime Convention – Dealer's Room

"Letters from the New York Otaku"

Takashi Murakami and “there is no Cool Japan” 画像
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Takashi Murakami and “there is no Cool Japan”

I want to take a minute from the convention talk while this interview with Takashi Murakami is still recent.

Introduction to the American Anime Convention – Fan Panels 画像
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Introduction to the American Anime Convention – Fan Panels

You know what otaku like to do, anywhere in the world? They like to share information. Think of the 20,000 brains walking around in those big conventions,

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