The beloved Kyoto Animation studio — which is behind such anime as The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya, Clannad, and K-ON! — was attacked by arson on July 18, killing 35 employees. Since then many fans and concerned people have been coming out of the woodwork to help, and we have a few …Read more »
The story of the arson attack on Kyoto Animation’s 1st Studio building has rocked the anime community and Japan as a whole. The tragic event left 33 dead and 35 injured, and according to KyoAni president Hideaki Hatta, the amount of monetary damage was also …Read more »
Image via Sankei UPDATE: Since this article was originally written, NHK has confirmed the deaths of at least 33 people. Awful news took over news and social media tonight as Japan’s public broadcaster NHK and other outlets reported on a fire at Kyoto Animation Studio 1, located …Read more »
It seems like just yesterday we were posting about the time MariCar was defeated in court by Nintendo. Now the Japanese Go Kart tour service—which rents Mario Kart-themed cosplay to customers and lets them whizz around the streets of Tokyo in annoying little karts that cause no …Read more »
There are a lot of copies of Gosho Aoyama’s Detective Conan manga floating around, and a 26-year-old man in Mie Prefecture recently made off with 80 in total. Aoi Hattori was arrested for suspected theft after he was caught on camera stealing various volumes of the series, …Read more »
In the Crime Never Pays department, we have another case of a suspect being arrested for illegally distributing anime in Japan. In this case the man in question is a 29-year-old Korean national living in Yokkaichi, Mie who allegedly used BitTorrent to share the World Trigger anime …Read more »
Some players take gacha games way too seriously, especially when they don’t get the items or characters they want. An example of taking it way too far presented itself when a 25-year-old nursing care worker allegedly emailed death threats to Square Enix staff members, threatening …Read more »
A former video game world champion from Japan has turned to burglary. Tomoyuki Inui, 33, better known to the gaming world as Katsuninken, has been arrested for breaking into the residence of a 84-year-old woman and stealing 2.6 million yen, says Tokyo Reporter. Upon questioning, …Read more »
Ufotable, the anime studio behind properties like Fate/stay night and Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba, is being investigated for tax evasion by the Tokyo Regional Taxation Bureau, it was reported today. Investigations are currently underway at Ufotable’s cafes in Koenji and Tokushima in addition to …Read more »
Last weekend, cosplayers from around the world made their way to Malaysia-based event Cosplay Festival 4, but it didn’t end well for everyone involved. The Malaysian Immigration Bureau dropped in and raided the Sunway Putra Hotel in Kuala Lampur on March 23 and made around …Read more »
The following story is either a case of haunted cosplay gear or an alleged criminal trying to pass the blame onto Rei Ayanami’s plugsuit. We’re leaning toward the latter in the case of a 37-year-old man who was recently arrested in Fukuoka. The man allegedly …Read more »
If you know how strict Japan’s illegal drug laws are, you might not be too surprised to learn about the fallout from actor and musician Pierre Taki’s recent arrest. The co-founder of Denki Groove’s latest acting role had him voicing a yakuza in Judgment—AKA Judge …Read more »
Anime pilgrimages are a great opportunity for fans to visit local spots that inspired their favorite TV series and movies. These can quickly turn into a nuisance, however, when the location in question is private property that has nothing to do with anime. That’s what …Read more »
Makaizo is a term that translates to “devil modification,” which is exactly the type of practice that resulted in the arrest of Kyoto Prefecture resident Takuya Matsuda. In this particular case, the modifications in question were an attempt to increase the sex appeal of figures …Read more »
It’s easy to get caught up in games, especially when you’re laser-focused on a particular task. With that in mind, some players take their dedication too far, which is what happened when a Japanese Pokémon Go player allegedly struck a police officer for interrupting his …Read more »
Danica Davidson
Joseph Luster
Matt Schley
