
Japan’s Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications is considering implementing a system whereby visitors to a list of government proscribed sites would have their access restricted to a warning message, in much the same way as with China and elsewhere.
Their ostensible aim is a crackdown on sites serving pornography featuring underage participants.
Read the rest of this entry »

Obama is looking to cash in on having the same name as Obama, we hear.
Read the rest of this entry »

The Okayama prefectural government has been drastically tightening restrictions on the sale of manga it has designated “harmful”, with a great many such titles being “ladies’ comics”, essentially erotic shoujo manga, usually targeting a slightly older demographic.
Read the rest of this entry »

Otaku have petitioned the government for the right to marry 2D characters.
Read the rest of this entry »

The recycled petition for an adult game and anime ban prepared for the Diet’s attention recently seems to be not the only such petition readied; unusually, we hear of another petition demanding action on loli porn, but this one is in support of freedom of expression, seeking full legal recognition rather than a ban.
Read the rest of this entry »

Another petition has been put before the Diet, once again demanding a ban on the sale and production of “bishoujo adult anime magazines and adult simulation games”, or ero-anime, ero-manga and eroge in normal language, this time with 10,000 signatures.
Read the rest of this entry »

A character “closely resembling” the Prime Minister of Japan, Taro Aso, a man noted for his otaku proclivities, is set to appear in an upcoming “weapon girl love adventure game”, or eroge to the rest of us. It’s not clear just how “active” his role is to be.
Read the rest of this entry »

The Japanese arm of moral crusader group UNICEF is pushing for a ban on all depictions of minors in “sexual” poses, with swimwear in anime mentioned specifically, a move which would have devastating effects on the world of anime, manga and games.
Read the rest of this entry »

Lolicon continue to exert themselves in defiance of government efforts to criminalise their harmless activities, and seem to have had some success, gathering more than 20,000 signatures on the petition which was held over C74, with a great many significant figures in the industry and beyond voicing their support for the efforts. They vow to continue the struggle.
Read the rest of this entry »

Prime Ministerial hopeful Taro Aso, or “Rozen Aso”, hugely popular with the otaku constituency for his carefully cultivated Rozen Maiden obsession, was lent some unconventional “support” at a recent rally, by the cosplayer pictured above. His sign says “Cosplay Squad”.
Read the rest of this entry »

Politician 藤川優里 / Yuri Fujikawa (27), known for her most comely visage, as well as her youthful political success, has evoked a storm of criticism from her own supporters after it emerged she decided to pursue the release of her own image DVD and even a gravure photo album, adding insult to injury by not bothering to consult her support group, which has disowned her.
Read the rest of this entry »

A city library has faced harsh criticism for being packed with boys love/yaoi novels and manga, with the complainant demanding to know just how much the library has spent on its collection of homosexually themed erotica.
The library for its part reports nearly six thousand BL books, having spent nearly $40,000 amassing them.
Read the rest of this entry »