Get over here, friends! Japan will finally be lifting its restrictions on tourist travel starting October 11, said Prime Minister Fumio Kishida while visiting the UN in New York this week. Visitors from countries that were previously exempted from visas for travel, such as the …Read more »
Sometimes hotels in Japan will theme their rooms to otaku interests, like this Hello Kitty room or this Sasuke Uchiha room. But in Jimbocho, an area in Tokyo famous for its hundred-plus used bookstores, the Book Hotel Jimbocho has unveiled two Manga Art Rooms this …Read more »
Ghibli Park will have its grand opening on November 1, and in the meantime fans are getting little tidbits of news and information. Yesterday more details of the park were unveiled to the press. “There is enough in Ghibli’s Grand Warehouse for people to enjoy …Read more »
Halloween may have originated in the West, but it’s become a big holiday (and season) in Japan. Halloween events, haunted houses and decorations are already rolling out, and that includes Sanrio Puroland, the theme park dedicated to Hello Kitty and her equally adorable friends. Getting …Read more »
The mode of transportation you might most readily associate with Demon Slayer would be a train, but All Nippon Airways (ANA) has been teaming up with the franchise to get their planes all decked out with Tanjiro and his colleagues. ANA’s first plane with Demon …Read more »
Misako Aoki loves lolita and kawaii fashions. In addition to being a professional nurse, she’s a professional in the world of kawaii . . . as the Japanese Foreign Ministry’s Kawaii Ambassador! Aoki keeps up a YouTube channel showing all sorts of cute things, including …Read more »
Mamoru Hosoda’s anime movie BELLE is said to take place in Ochi, a small Japanese town in the Kochi Prefecture. Because of this connection, a monument of the Dragon has been placed in a local museum called the Yokogurayama Natural Forest Museum. The monument is …Read more »
Sometimes anime and manga create their own worlds, and sometimes they hearken back to real things, including those from Japan’s past. The bishonen franchise Touken Ranbu anthropomorphizes famous old Japanese swords as beautiful young men, and this has gotten many fans interested in the original …Read more »
Readers of Otaku USA have probably noticed more articles about popular anime and manga getting turned into stage plays. It’s not your imagination that these plays are increasing. Adapting anime and manga to stage is becoming big business there, and there’s interest in expanding their …Read more »
It’s never fun to hurt your back, and there are plenty of supplies out there meant to help keep your back in good shape during heavy lifting. But how many of those things are also catered to otaku? That’s what makes the A.T. Field Darwing …Read more »
One of the things that COVID has thrown off is an Itasha event Kaiyo Park in Hokkaido, but this year the event is back up and running. If you’re unfamiliar with the term Itasha, San Japan explains: “Itasha is a sub-culture of the car community …Read more »
The popularity of Demon Slayer means lot of Demon Slayer events and merchandise, and TOKYO MYSTERY CIRCUS has announced an upcoming Demon Slayer escape game. Called “Mugen Ressha: Samayou Akumu kara no Dasshutsu” (translated as “Mugen Train: The Escape from The Wandering Nightmare”), you and …Read more »
You might not be able to have your own Sebastian Michaelis, the butler from Black Butler, but Japan is full of butler cafés so that customers can enjoy a little fantasy. But while many otaku are aware of maid cafés and butler cafés, did you …Read more »
The grand opening of Studio Ghibli Park is only a few months away, and it promises to have delicious foods themed after Ghibli movies. Well, they might be interested in hiring a person who goes by Manna-Tanuki online (the Twitter handle is @maaco414). This chef …Read more »
Virtual idol Hatsune Miku has already been in the café business with her limited-time Sakura Miku café at Animate Café in Akihabara and Osaka. Now she’s back with a new café, and you don’t have to live in Akihabara or Osaka to access it. However, …Read more »
Matt Schley
Danica Davidson
