tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22588937.post114705566021940539..comments2007-04-28T10:34:26.760+09:00Coalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08789336157232324179noreply@blogger.comBlogger10125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22588937.post-1149041402892370642006-05-31T11:10:00.000+09:002006-05-31T11:10:00.000+09:00I cant watch the whole thing...<BR/>it's embarrassing... <BR/>Thanks god i never do such things in Tokyo.<BR/>Good article.<BR/><BR/>JhonJhonhttp://www.asdf.netnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22588937.post-1147338954028119022006-05-11T18:15:00.000+09:002006-05-11T18:15:00.000+09:00Wow. That was embarrassing. I wasn't able to watch the entire thing.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22588937.post-1147321295492802252006-05-11T13:21:00.000+09:002006-05-11T13:21:00.000+09:00Never mind, I just read 「神酒 Coal」 at the top...<BR/><BR/>-Rick.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22588937.post-1147321200084241782006-05-11T13:20:00.000+09:002006-05-11T13:20:00.000+09:00Cheers! I snuck the credit in at the top of the screen right at the beginning. I figure most people are looking at the bottom of the screen, but it's there if you look for it. :DCoalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08101273937073395521noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22588937.post-1147321045400758892006-05-11T13:17:00.000+09:002006-05-11T13:17:00.000+09:00Fantastic translation, congratulations! (Hey! Did you forget to credit yourself again?)<BR/><BR/>-Rick.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22588937.post-1147200044825387422006-05-10T03:40:00.000+09:002006-05-10T03:40:00.000+09:00fair enough, the quotes around the word "otaku" are a fairly good indication that there's a large dose of irony involved. the phrase "nihon no otaku bunka" still makes me chuckle, though!<BR/><BR/>you make an excellent point that there are two types of "akiba-kei":<BR/><BR/>1) the "anime crowd" (to an extent, i think just about everyone in japan reads manga and watches anime, but there are those who take it to "the next level")/cosplayers/maid lovers/special edition bottle-cap collectors/action figure junkies/(pick your poison, there are many), and<BR/><BR/>2) the technophiles.<BR/><BR/>basically, the two things akihabara is known for. while there is (probably a lot of) overlap between the two, that isn't necessarily the case IMHO.<BR/><BR/>i guess that's the only reason i suggested that "akiba-kei" is more of a look/manner than anything, simply because the reasons behind, and manifestations of, peoples' "akiba-kei"-ness are so varied.<BR/><BR/>in any case, thanks for the fun blog post, i've definitely enjoyed reading & thinking about the issues you raise. perhaps i shall comment more in the future :P<BR/><BR/>-(the superhero known as parentheses man)Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22588937.post-1147146302578977582006-05-09T12:45:00.000+09:002006-05-09T12:45:00.000+09:00I'm leaving my laptop uploading the video to your FTP. Let me know if the file works for you.<BR/><BR/>-Rick.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22588937.post-1147137433016472092006-05-09T10:17:00.000+09:002006-05-09T10:17:00.000+09:00You'll notice onscreen "otaku" is always put in inverted commas. That seems to be a tipoff right there - when they say American "otaku" and "otaku" bunka they're sort of being ironic, that this group of foreigners would call themselves this by choice. It could be argued this is the only reason it made the news at all.<BR/><BR/>Akibakei is a bit more than just a look and manner, but in some cases it's these things too, and people certainly wear it as a badge of pride. It's in that way I think it's much closer in nuance to what Americans would refer to as otaku, though admittedly it's not describing the exact same phenomena (and how could it?!). A lot of computer geeks and audiophiles also refer to themselves as Akibakei. That being said, I certainly wouldn't limit Akibakei to being Japanese only, though people may be surprised that you know the word - nothing new there.Coalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08101273937073395521noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22588937.post-1147131627499317752006-05-09T08:40:00.000+09:002006-05-09T08:40:00.000+09:00i do find it interesting that in the introductory segment, the announcer refers to "otaku bunka". she seems to say it like it's something japanese people are proud of...but i agree, i just don't think that's the case.<BR/><BR/>and "akiba-kei" seems to me to be as much a look and manner as anything else, which pretty much means the term can't apply to anybody who doesn't look and act japanese, IMHO. so we're back to square one, with "otaku bunka".<BR/><BR/>that said, it IS grown, socially disconnected men (mostly) who patronize maid cafes, etc. and the cafes DO make a killing...so i suppose they are simply providing a service to a legitimate subculture, and perhaps it is something worth being proud of? i honestly can't put my finger on it.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22588937.post-1147059347879486022006-05-08T12:35:00.000+09:002006-05-08T12:35:00.000+09:00I might be able to get you a good copy of the video. You got an FTP location, or some other way to share large files?<BR/><BR/>-Rick.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com