Otaku Wonderland part 5 – A Fashion Doll for Everyone
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- Written by Elena Tessari
The beginning of the adult fashion dolls trend in Japan can be traced back to Barbie, the quintessential doll, and its Japanese counterparts Licca-chan and Jenny. But it's with the new millennium that fashion dolls have become a trendy item for adult collectors, with a parallel rise in average price tags. Producers and brands are countless, but here we will focus on three lines: Momoko, Blythe and Pullip.
The Letter - Higashino Keigo
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- Written by Claudia Catalano
Higashino Keigo, born in Ōsaka in 1958, is well known in Japan and overseas for his mystery novels, which earned him prestigious prizes such as the Edogawa Rampo award. Tegami does indeed deal with an unfortunate event but, unlike Higashino's other novels, does not develop into a sleuthing hunt for the culprit.
Otaku Wonderland Part 4: Where Angels Tread
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- Written by Elena Tessari
In past articles we discussed some of the otaku world's most relevant marketing and collecting phenomena, especially in relation to anime, manga, video games and figure. From now on we will focus on a particular sector dominated by women collectors, little known but still multi-faceted and fascinating: dolls collecting.
Art therapy: rediscovering mandala
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- Written by Claudia Badesso
Lately, did any of you chance upon a book like this one? Art Therapy books have become a staple in bookstores all over the globe. These publications, featuring intricate drawings for the ‘reader’ to color, might seem at first nothing more than child’s play. Yet, they squarely target adults: the craft helps reduce stress and improve quality of life amidst our frantic daily routine.
Brand New Merchandise for Sailor Moon!
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- Written by Enrica Fiacchi
While awaiting springtime for the new season of Sailor Moon Crystal, in which Sailor Uranus, Neptune and Saturn will make their appearance, the series’ 20th anniversary web site is showcasing the brand new merchandise available in Japan - from clothing to glasses, through handbags, keyholders and figures.
Radio Imagination: leggere sospesi tra i rami
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- Written by Luca B. Fornaroli
Disorientante. Non riesci a capire se stai leggendo un esercizio da laboratorio di scrittura o un racconto geniale. E rimani con questo dubbio fino alla fine. Anche dopo settimane dall'averlo letto. Eppure qualcosa ti rimane: il ritmo di una voce metafisica che sembra stia parlando proprio a te, con quella cadenza da disc jockey, quel riempire il silenzio con il vuoto delle parole tipico degli intrattenitori radiofonici.
Otaku Wonderland part 3 – And figures for (almost) all
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- Written by Elena Tessari
In our survey of otaku collecting we talked about marketing and figures. This time, we'll explore how figures represent male and female characters; and, as a consequence, the differences in targeting and marketing between men and women.
Otaku Wonderland Part 2: figures, PVC Dreams
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- Written by Elena Tessari
In the first part of our journey through otaku collecting we gave a brief overview of the most relevant types of merchandise tied toanime, manga and video games, focusing on the most commercially widespread examples. This time around we will talk about a more niche, yet very otaku kind of merchandise: figures.
Tanaka Tatsuya's Miniature World
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- Written by Filippo Gabrielli
It was four years ago when photographer and art director Tanaka Tatsuya began work on his Miniature Calendar project, where he creates daily dioramas by using commonly found household objects: in his wildly popular miniatures pasta becomes a playground item and a bush of broccoli a tree, thanks to Tanaka’s skillful use of lighting and perspective.
Guess the videogame!
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- Written by Filippo Gabrielli
Know Your Game is graphic designer and illustrator Aymeric Bernard’s nod to the world of video games: an aesthetically minimalistic series, where famous landmarks from gaming titles are reproduced with as few elements as possible. How many can you recognize?