On Saturday & Sunday, January 7-8, 2003, I’ll have a dealer table and present two anime panels at the St. Pete Comic Con in downtown St. Petersburg, Florida.
Japanese fantasy light novels typically fall into either the sci-fi or hard fantasy genres. Stories usually revolve around aliens and advanced technology, such as Yoshiki Tanaka’s Legend of
In a society that values politeness above nearly everything else, little white lies are commonplace in Japan. Polite or considerate lies are like the oil that keeps the
The sub-genre of Japanese “isekai” fantasy light novels, stories about characters either transported to alternate worlds or reincarnated in alternate worlds, is so populated with titles and series
Kugayama Reki does a fine job of creating a manga adaptation of author Kurokata’s 2014 light novel The Wrong Way to Use Healing Magic. The story introduces three
The nature of Japanese light novels is to be simple, easy-reading, disposable literary entertainment. By design, light novels are only barely more literary than manga comic books. Moreover,
I’m amused by the degree of satiric, hyperbolic offense that YouTube anime critic Kenny Lauderdale felt about the 1990 OVA Kentoushi. In an ironic way, I’m somewhat grateful
See what new bargains and oddities I picked up in my recent purchase from Mandarake of Japan. The Comic Big Spirits magazine that I thought contained the first
Question: What exactly is it about anime that delves into the mythical that engages viewers on a global scale? Why has this form of storytelling persisted to the
Question: Do you think that the commercialization of anime has hindered its artistic integrity? Answer: The art form now recognized as anime has always been a commercial product.
Contemporary mainstream avant-garde manga creator Usamaru Furuya may be best known to American readers for his off-kilter humorous stores Genkaku Picasso and Lychee Light Club. His two-volume 1999
Hot on the heels of the international premiere of the second season of the Rising of the Shield Hero anime series, One Peace Books will release the official
Question: As they say, “Imitation is the highest level of flattery” so what exactly is it about Japanese culture that compels foreigners to emulate it? What qualities does
