
Anime and game themed tattoos seem to increasing in popularity, and here you can see numerous examples of such.
Unlike their Japanese counterparts, non-Japanese otaku seem ready to embrace the prospect of indelibly emblazoning the likeness of their favourite character onto their skin in an “ita-tattoo”, in much the same way as a monk might embrace his vow to celibacy, and with much the same effect.
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2channers are currently amusing themselves at the expense of the rest of the world by looking at what sort of manga they are buying.
Even if we restrain ourselves from making national characterisations on the basis of the manga being bought, as is rather tempting in the case of Germany, the results are interesting:
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Tentacular assault oppai manga To Love-Ru looks to be posing a problem to puritanical foreign markets, as its much vaunted ecchiness results in the Hong Kong edition being relegated to 18+ ero-manga status, and the Singapore version sold as the censored serialised version used as a mere preview in Japan.
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A Vipper has returned from his visit to popular German anime event Connichi 2008, and was kind enough to share copious photos of his trip, focusing on cosplay.
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There is a very interesting and detailed article on the figure and otaku scene in China (specifically Shanghai), as well as how Japanese companies operate there, over at Nikkei (onerous registration required to read it all), brought to my attention via foo-bar-baz. The interview with Alter’s China office is especially interesting. Surprisingly, it is not a market completely awash with fakes, and seems to be growing healthily. I provide a summary translation below for your information and enjoyment.
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