Today, I would like to introduce you about Japanese sub cultures (Otaku, Anime and Manga). Nowadays, Anime and Manga became very popular not only in Japan but various parts of the world. So many foreigners visit Otaku related Shops, restaurants, etc… Akihabara and Ikebukuro, where are the two major areas with many Otaku related shops (kind of sacred places for Otaku people), are very popular for foreigners.
There are many Otaku shops in Japan. I introduce some of the major franchise shops.
1. Animate (http://www.animate.co.jp/)
Animate is the biggest Otaku shop in Japan. They have about 140 Shops in the country and
23 shops are in Tokyo. Also, there are some shops in Asia and the USA. Animate makes and sells their original Anime, Manga and other related goods.
2. Toranoana (http://www.toranoana.jp/)
Toranoana is also well known Otaku shop. They have 25 Shops in Japan. Toranomon is smaller than Animate but they sell many Doujinshi (privately printed books (?). I suppose foreign Otaku people know these words definitions much clearer and more accurate than me).
3. Melon books (https://www.melonbooks.co.jp/)
Melon books has 25 shops in Japan. Melon books and Toranoana are quite similar shops, I heard. The feature of Melon books is that it has more common manga (Toranoana has more Doujinshi).
There is a major Otaku event called “Comic Market (Comike http://www.comiket.co.jp/index_e.html)” opens twice in a year in Tokyo. This year, it will be held between 14 – 16th of August and December at Tokyo Big Sight. There were 560,000 people visited to the Comike, which was held in the last December.
To be frank, I am not very Otaku person, so I do not visit these shops but there are some Animes I used to watch. Now, I recommend you one anime which has very good story and is probably quite useful for people who visit Kyoto.
The Anime is called “Uchouten Kazoku (The Eccentric Family)” (http://www.uchoten-anime.com/). This anime is not made from Manga but from a novel written by Tomihiko Morimi. Tomihiko Morimi is my favourite novelist and I read many of his books.
The one of the best things for foreigners about this Anime is that they can learn many cultural things about Japanese people (daily lives, Family connection, etc…). Also, the video is so much elaborated that people can imagine what town of Kyoto look like. You can see various famous Kyoto places in the Anime. Morimi is from Kyoto and the anime maker is based in Kyoto as well.
Finally, if you are interested in Otaku Culture and want some Otaku goods, Manga, Anime, etc… You can buy them through the internet. I have got a friend who is running Internet Otaku Shop. The shop is called “Sakura-books” and the URL is http://sakura-books.com/ .
You can find various goods of Shingeki no kyojin (Attack on Titan), One Piece, Naruto, Hatsune Miku, Pokemon and more… in the shop. If you cannot find the products you want or if you have any questions, you can leave messages to consult about them with the owner. I suppose the owner is the “Black belt” Otaku, so I’m very sure that you can get very useful information.
That’s all about it for today. Should you have any questions, requests or comments, please leave a message. I am very happy if you could give me some advices to improve this blog so more people can visit here and get information on what they need.
Bye!
Hi Manga Freak, Thanks for your post, and yes, Otaku is not the "sub"-culture anymore. I think I can write something about manga if you have any requests. I, myself is not very manga otaku but I used to read some very popular ones in Japan when I was a teenager. Feel free to send me a request. That helps me to write a new article of this blog, too.
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