Day / 2017-10-22

by Ray

Scissors: Free Ramen?

Some free Ramen I found, though the location was questionable.

So, I already have plenty of sources and depth on the subject of my project, but I want to add more. I just don’t know if what I want to add is necessary and relevant or I just want to add it because it’s relevant and I like it.

So the question isn’t does or does it not have a place and function if I had all the time in the world to write this, but because I have limited time, I’m at the does this need to be edited out, something else added in, I forgot this or this whole bit needs to be scraped.

Somethings I want to include are LGBTQIA+ in anime, mainly due to the popularity and positive reception of “Yuri on Ice” and it being a potential landmark/gateway in anime when it come to LGBTQIA+ content and addressing emotional health issues, like anxiety, in an accurate, non-stigmatizing light. It also was not based on a light novel or manga as well.

I also want to address interest in Japanese culture outside of the otaku subculture lens through the YouTube channel Abroad in Japan, whose host is a British English as a second langauge or ESL teacher living in Japan (and misses decent cheese). Mostly I really like that this channel crosses over my love of dry British humour (yes the “u” is there on purpose, I couldn’t resist) and Japanese culture in general.

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by Ray

Paper: Otaku, Fandoms and Humor

Looking into the sources and solutions into otaku stigma alone has been multiple rabbits holes, but one thing I’ve noticed there is the ongoing reclamation of the word otaku stateside. An example of this that also ties into one of the topics covered in class is the, I think incongruity humor, that is a central part of otaku culture as it starts to take pride in the word, rather than shy away from it.

Shirt from the store Hot Topic with the definition of otaku on it.

Covering the different types of humor in class this week, which helped cement my project focus and “home”, which had gotten lost in an increasingly interconnected web of cross cultural currents within just the stateside otaku subculture. Continue reading →

by Ray

Rock: What is a NEET anyways?

So one of the common stereotypes within otaku culture is known as the NEET or Not in Education, Employment or Training. While the term was first used in the United Kingdom and in a similar manner in regards to the word otaku, NEET is a loanword in Japan with a similar meaning.

What I find interesting though is that, while being a NEET, which in the otaku subculture is stigma on top of stigma, there seem to be two types of NEET that recently have been reoccurring.

The first would be the stereotypical NEET, a person who has withdrawn from society, its obligations and does not pursue any productive means to be part of society, which most otaku actually do (hence the extra stigma within an already stigmatized group). This is demonstrated in the web manga via the Comico app and now in a newer slice-of-life comedy anime that airs throughout this fall called, “Recovery of an MMO Junkie”.

Screenshot of the main character Moriko Morioka in “Recovery of an MMO Junkie”.

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