So after the crowds at Katsucon I’d call Anime Banzai a smaller con, of about 2-3000 people. The content is pretty solid though to be honest I did leave a few talks due to poor quality of the presenter. Solid content, bad presentation. I know that sounds rude, but I speak publicly fairly often, and have been a technical trainer for years so it is almost physically painful for me to watch someone who is clearly uncomfortable, unprepared, or lacks the basic social abilities to speak to a crowd.

The photo above is of the registration area on Friday morning. Registration wasn’t horrible but could definitely be sped up by not printing names of con attendees on badges. Since you could just have them print a nickname on your badge this isn’t much of a theft deterrent. A line for cash and a line for credit, hand over the cash, get a badge. It’s a much easier way to get registration done and doesn’t leave attendees in line for over an hour wishing they were watching content instead of just hearing it from the room next door.

It probably sounds like I’m picking on the con, but I don’t mean to. It was fun and I’ll be back next year, just a few tweaks would make it stellar.

This is the merchant room. A great place to stop and grab Hi-chew, Pocky, Ramune and other assorted Japanese snacks and drinks, and at a good price too. There were also plenty of vendors selling figures, cosplay supplies, bags, t-shirts, DVD’s, and stuffed animals. Prices were a little higher than online but pretty standard for con vendors. I tried to talk a guy down for a figure he wanted $50 for, but he wouldn’t have it, so I kept my money in my pocket and ordered it online later. :)

This is my only shot of the video game room and it makes it look pretty lame although it wasn’t bad. The room was well used and had quite a few games in it. My bad for not getting better shots.

And onto the cosplayers!!

One of the guests this year was Chuck Huber who has voiced Shou Tucker from Fullmetal Alchemist, Hiro Nohara from Crayon Shin-chan, and Kululu from Sgt Frog, as well as many others. I really enjoyed his panels. This guy was likeable from the start and had a great sense of humor. He’s definitely one of my favorite guests I’ve had the opportunity to see, of any con.

Chuck Huber also used part of his panel to teach attendees about voice acting and gave some of them a chance to try it out. Epic lulz.

What’s up C.C.?

Great Ryuk and Rem costumes. I like the attention to detail on the Rem costume, right down to the feet.

These girls were throwing down the Hare Hare Yukai outside in the hotel courtyard. It drew a crowd.

Probably because of this girl, who in my opinion was the cutest girl walking around the con. I photoshopped the name off her badge to keep her from being Facebook stalked. :D

A huge stack of Ramune and Pocky. This was back in the staff room and I noticed it while getting ready to do my panel and I had to get a shot.

I’m sure this photo will pop up somewhere else on this site in the future.

No Face seems like an easy character to pull off as far as cosplay goes, I’m just sayin’.

Random shot of the hotel lobby with some people hanging out. Nothing to see here, move along.

This is a better shot because you can see the shenanigans in the courtyard out the window. There was always something going on out there.

This Ryuk costume is the best I’ve ever seen. The guy was on stilts and when he talked a hinge in the jaw allowed the mouth to move. It was epic.

Chuck Huber and Michelle Ruff signing autographs.

I saw quite a few Alice in Wonderland themed costumes this year. Classic, and awesome.

And some Vampire Knight cosplay to wrap things up. This girl is pretty cute too and her costume is nice. The dude cosplaying as Zero put his tattoo on the wrong side of his neck. Attention to detail brother! Attention to detail!

I did an individual badge scan for the Katsucon post, but the artwork didn’t change for Anime Banzai, just the color of the badge so I scanned a few of them as one large image. If that sounds lazy I’m sorry, I just didn’t want to clutter the page.

So all in all I had a good time at Anime Banzai. Like I mentioned earlier, I did a panel. It was called The Tokyo Otaku, and I just spent an hour talking about Tokyo, fun otaku like things to see and do there, and dispelled some myths about visiting Japan. It was fun and the room was full despite being scheduled opposite the Cosplay Contest. The staff that were in there told me they really enjoyed it so maybe I’ll update it and do it again next year. Hopefully in a bigger room with a better time slot. :D

If you happen to be reading this and attended Anime Banzai, tell us what you thought in the comments, I’d like to hear about other experiences. The more the better.

In the year 1701, by the Western calendar, several daimyo, or feudal lords, were asked to take part in a reception for the Emperor in Edo. One of these daimyo was Asano Takumi-no-Kami Naganori, the young leader of a branch of the powerful Asano family.

On April 14th, 1701, while Lord Asano was preparing for the event, he found himself out of favor with the master of protocol, Kira Kozuke-no-Suke Yoshinaka. Kira decided to publicly embarrass Lord Asano, something Asano took great exception to. Asano, in anger, drew his sword and struck Kira, but only wounded him.

It was against the law to not only draw your sword within the Shogun’s Palace, but also to strike anyone in anger, a double whammy against Asano. He was forced to commit seppuku, or ritual suicide, dying only with the regret that he hadn’t killed Kira.

With the death of Lord Asano his followers were left without a leader, becoming masterless samurai, or Ronin.

Now this is where things get interesting. Most people believe that bound by the code of bushido, the 47 ronin should have immediately attempted to avenge their master, regardless of the cost, including each of their lives, but they didn’t do this. They waited.

For nearly two years they acted as farmers and merchants and waited for Kira to believe they wouldn’t attempt to avenge their master, increasing their odds of success. And on the night of December 14th, 1702, using armor and weapons they had crafted themselves in order not to arouse suspicion, they attacked.

The 47 men descended on Kira’s mansion and cut down any man that stood in their way; many of Kira’s men lost their lives. As things quieted down Kira was nowhere to be found, and the men spread out to find him. After an exhausting and fruitless search the men found a secret courtyard hidden behind a banner on a wall and in the courtyard they found a man hiding in a coal shed. The man wouldn’t give his name, but the scar on his head told them it was Kira.

Oishi Kuranosuke Yoshio, Lord Asano’s principal counselor, offered Kira the same dagger Asano had used to commit seppuku and told him he would act as his Kaishakunin, or second. Meaning that as Kira committed seppuku, Oishi would sever his head so he wouldn’t have to suffer long. Kira refused to respond and eventually the ronin was forced to behead him.

The ronin carried Kira’s head to Sengakuji temple, the burial site of Lord Asano, washed his head in a well, and presented the head at the grave of their master.

Though the ronin had followed the code of bushido, the shogunate was bound by law to sentence them to death. Each committed seppuku, and were buried alongside their master at Sengakuji Temple.

This story is well known throughout Japan, and all over the world, as an example of loyalty, honor, and self-sacrifice.

The temple grounds are small, and to some, architecturally unimpressive. It’s the history behind this place that make it, in my opinion, a must see for anyone traveling to Tokyo.

A small fountain to honor the 47 ronin with an accompanying layout to show where each man is symbolized.

You can see in this photo that when I was visiting it was raining. I’d arrived early in the morning and was the only one on the grounds besides a gentleman selling incense for placement at the graves, the museum keeper, and the crows. A great atmosphere.

Another small layout of the graves. I try to include things like this so people can read the signs and displays as if they were actually visiting. And to be honest, it gives me something to refer back to later when my memory isn’t so fresh.

These headstones were outside of the main burial area and are of a different style than that of the 47 ronin. I’m not sure who these markers belong to, but if anyone knows please leave the information in the comments.

These are the headstones of the 47 ronin. I love the style of these headstones. The look of the rough cut, like they’ve been torn from the rock, while having the name of the individual carved into a smooth stone surface. Seriously, it’s pretty damn stylish.

You can see that in front of the headstones their is a small area where incense is normally burning. Because there was a constant light rain I wasn’t able to capture the incense burning, but normally this area would be filled with smoke.

Just before reaching the main resting place there was a small shack with a guy selling bundles of incense for placement at the graves. I didn’t buy any on this trip but I’ll have to the next time I’m in town.

This is Oishi’s grave, it is a bit larger I imagine due to his status as the leader of the 47 ronin. As a side note, you can see a small blue-green and white cup in front of the headstone. I bought a set of these cups at a small gift shop just outside the temple grounds. They’re one of my favorite souvenirs from my trips to Japan.

This is the well where the ronin washed the head of Kira before presenting it at Asano’s grave. They’ve put a mesh guard over it to keep people from tossing things into it, which is too bad, I would have liked to get an unobstructed picture. Still, it’s a powerful thing to see the actual well where Kira was washed over 300 years ago.

There’s a small museum on the grounds that has the actual armor worn during the attack, a receipt for the head of Kira when it was collected by two of Kira’s friends, and many other important items from the events, and they can all be seen for just ¥500.

I’m a huge fan of Sengakuji Temple and the story of the 47 ronin. To me it’s the story of ultimate loyalty, and I had to see it when I arrived in Tokyo. I highly recommend stopping by, you’ll only need an hour or so, but it’s an hour you won’t soon forget.

Open: Daily from 7:00AM to 6:00PM (7:00AM to 5:00PM from October to March).
The memorial museum is open from 9:00AM to 4:00PM.
Admission: Free for temple grounds and burial site. ¥500 for the memorial museum.
Phone: 03-3441-5560

Here’s a short video I took while visiting Sengakuji Temple. Sorry about my rambling, I never know what to say to the camera, eventually I learn to just shut up.

My first encounter with Gloomy came a few years ago while wandering the aisles of the Gee Store in Akihabara. A friend pointed him out and said “Check this out, this is Gloomy Bear, he’s really mean to this kid, but the kid just keeps on loving him.” The kid’s name is Pity, and he does love Gloomy Bear and, I have to be honest, so do I.

The story goes that Gloomy Bear was abandoned as a cub and is found and taken in by a boy named Pity. Pity loves him and cares for him, raising him from this point forward. At first Gloomy is cute and cuddly but as he grows his more instinctual side takes over and he does what any adult bear might do to a human, he mauls the freaking crap out of him. And so it goes, Pity loves, Gloomy attacks, over and over again.

So you may be asking yourself, “What sick mind created Gloomy, and Why?!”  Well, Gloomy Bear was created by Mori Chack a graphic designer born in Osaka, Japan. He created Gloomy as the antithesis of the fluffy cuddly characters that are pumped out by companies like Disney and Sanrio. Chack believes that animals are wild by nature and would not mix well with humans the way they are portrayed to in many cartoons and movies, and frankly, he’s right.

But beyond the logic and shock value of Gloomy Bear there’s just something really cool about him. Even if he’s not covered in blood, just the sight of his claws lets you know who’s boss and that has certainly resonated with people. Sales of Gloomy merchandise have been strong in, and out, of Japan for years and continue to be boosted with new types of bears, including robo-gloomy and camouflage-gloomy, and with notebooks, mugs, giant fluffy wearable arms, etc it just keeps going.

Have you got a Gloomy Bear of your own? What are some of the reactions you get when people “meet Gloomy”?

I keep an original pink Gloomy Bear on my desk at work, complete with blood, because he’s cool and because I love the reactions from co-workers when they realize what’s dripping from him. “Hey cute bear you’ve got th…HOLY CRAP! Oh man that’s awesome!” Yeah, it is awesome, and if you don’t think so, well, you can take it up with the bear.

I first learned about this museum from a post by Shane Sakata when she was writing for The Tokyo Traveler. Shane writes at The Nihon Sun now if you want to follow her current adventures. So anyway, Thanks Shane!

Here’s the sign you’re looking for if you’re walking to the museum. I knew the general area of the museum but still got lost on the way there, I happened to look up and there it was.

And here’s the entrance, just another visual reference if you’re trying to find this place.

When you walk into the main exhibit you’re actually situated above the village. You can see there’s a cat on one of the roofs, it’s animatronic, it turns its head and meows occasionally. There are a lot of little details like this that make this exhibit great. At different times you can hear a vendor shouting about his wares through the village, and the sound of birds can be heard as well.

I did some looking around online when I decided to stop by the museum and several travel sites suggest a half hour to an hour for this museum, though I think I was here for about two hours. Also, the village slowly changes from day to night and back again over the course of an hour, with one entire wall showing the sun, moon or the sunset or sunrise, and all the lights dim or brighten as well. Great for atmosphere, a little hard to take photos in. : )

I would recommend bringing a tripod or at least a monopod with you for photos. I ended up wrapping my Gorillapod around the handle of my umbrella as an impromptu monopod for these photos. It worked out pretty well.

Don’t be afraid to kick off your shoes and wander through the houses. I didn’t realize I could do this until after I left the museum and I’m kicking myself for it now. So wear clean socks and get exploring.

This was one of my favorite buildings, the vegetable market. It just had a nice open feel and had plenty of color from the different produce within.

The photos make it look like this place is a ghost town, but there were plenty of people here, including a tour group, I just timed my shots to have no people. Nothing like a guy in a Green Bay Packers jacket in your shot to destroy the feel of old Edo.

Here’s the aforementioned changing wall, currently it’s sunset. At the bottom of the wall is a small water filled area with an old boat in it. The attention to detail in this place is just unreal.

And for the sake of completeness I included a scan of my entrance ticket, front and back. It appears there is a map on the back of the ticket, useful.

So all in all one of the best museum experiences I’ve ever had, and I’ve been to quite a few, I think mostly due to the uniquness of the exhibit, and the immersion you experience. There is a printed guide in English that tells you what you’re looking at, as well as English speaking guides, as in people, inside the exhibit so don’t be discouraged if you don’t speak Japanese. If you’re a history buff or wish you could step onto a Kurosawa set then this is a must see.

Open: 9:30am – 5:00pm
Closed: The second and fourth Monday of each Month.
Price: Adults: ¥300 – Under 15: ¥50
Location: 15 minutes on foot from Morishita Station on the Shinjuku Line; 3-5 minutes on foot from Kiyosumi-Shirakawa Station on the Oedo Line. Located off Kiyosumi Dori on a street called Fukagawa Shiryokan Dori.
Tel: 03 3630 8625

I made it back this year for another conference that again was timed perfectly to allow me to make it to Katsucon, and this year not only was it in the same city, at the same time, but it was in the same hotel. The gods, they smile upon me. So I flew in to D.C. a few days early and grabbed a badge, here’s my Katsucon experience.

Registration was insane, the line snaked through the hotel, out into the street and down the block. Thankfully my buddy came into town a few hours early and picked my badge up for me. Thanks Louis!

Apparently this is some type of Pokemon costume according to bystanders. I wouldn’t know, I didn’t watch a lot of Pokemon, though I do respect the effort that not only wen into making this costume, but having to wear it as well. Gotta be hot in there.

I think this may be my favorite costume from Katsucon 15 mostly due to the fact that the guy looks so awesome as Afro Samurai. Best match of the con in my opinion.

This guy is a lot of the reason I was looking forward to going to Katsucon again. His name is Roland Kelts and he’s an author, that’s his book there on the table, “Japanamerica: How Japanese Pop Culture Has Invaded the U.S.” It’s a great book and I’ll do a proper review some time. I wanted to get my copy signed, which I did, and I wanted to hear some of his experiences. My only complaint is that his session was only an hour and could have easily been two with all the people and questions they had. Shame on you Katsucon, shame on you.

The hotel was packed with 6000 attendees, spanning 5 floors, many of them cosplaying.

I love this photo because you can see all the way to the “Artists Alley” below, the maid cafe sign, and a girl getting on the escalator carrying a couple of plush tentacles…W..T..F? I love it.

I liked to see that even the smaller Otaku areas had a presence at Katsucon, including Dollers. I could hear them swapping tips and even trading wigs and accessories. Some of these dolls were really well put together, but they were all creepy. : )

Great Steam Punk couple, though this photo doesn’t do them justice.

This was the start of “Iron Art” or “Super Art Fight”. Basically there were four teams of artists that drew on four separate canvases, rotating every 10 minutes, for one hour. They were given different themes and had to continue to draw around, and improve on, what the last team had created. I didn’t know what to expect when I walked in, but I didn’t expect to have such a good time.

Seriously, this is so funny. Another couple dressing up together and having a good time.

Villains of Gotham City, great costumes, and I’m pretty sure I’m in love with Catwoman.

This was the “An American in Tokyo” panel. It was supposed to be about what you can expect if you’re planning to, or thinking about, moving to Tokyo. I had hoped it would be as interesting as the Japanamerica talk, but the speakers didn’t seem to do a lot of preparation, and hadn’t actually lived in Tokyo since the early 90′s. This kept them from answering questions on current costs and living areas. A real disappointment when the room is so packed that staff had to turn people away.

A very pretty girl dressed up for the formal ball on Saturday night. Just classy.

And of course, the Merchant Room. You could get a bunch of Japanese snacks and drinks, Anime, Manga, Figures, and plenty of cosplay props and real world weapons. I didn’t buy much, though I did nab a Saki Kasukabe figure that I’d been wanting for awhile, so I walked away with a smile.

Here’s this years badges. I couldn’t get my hands on a Friday only badge because they were completely sold out of them. They force you to write your name on them so I made sure to get some scans of untarnished ones. Each badge also had some con rules/info and a number on the back that was tied to the holder. The photo below is of the back of my Media badge, though nothing differs between badges other than the number.

So there you have it a few words and a few pictures from Katsucon 15, it was a good con. Anime cons are always fun, the costumes, the panels, and the like-minded people. It’s great to be able to talk about a particular anime, manga, movie, or production house and have others know what you’re talking about. To talk about Japan till the wee hours of the morning and share your passion, or obsession, with others.

It doesn’t look like my schedule is going to mesh for me to make it to Katsucon 16 next year, sometimes even the gods have to stop smiling for a moment, but I’ll be there in spirit.

Why is this cool? Well, just look at the building. Not only is it one of those buildings that you just can’t seem to stop taking pictures of, but you can head inside and go to the top of one of the 48 story towers, for free. You would think that a building that cost about one billion dollars in tax payer money might want to recoup some of that by at least charging tourists to take the elevator, but you’d be wrong. Free.

Before heading to the top you should swing by the tourist information center and pick up the free maps and guides that are available. One of the maps I grabbed here has returned to Tokyo with me more than once.

When you reach the observatory you’ll find a wide open space with unbelievable views of Tokyo, a cafe, and of course, a souvenir shop. If you come early in the morning on a clear day you can sometimes see Mt Fuji in the distance. I’ve only ever seen the outline, or shadowy shape, of Mt Fuji from here, but I’ll keep trying. If you’ve been lucky enough to get a shot of Mt Fuji from one of the observation decks, please leave a link to your shot in the comments, I’d love to see it.

Another nice thing about the observation decks is that they’re open late, really late, try 11:00PM late, so you can get great shots of Tokyo at night as well. So if you’re putting together an itinerary for your first, or next, trip to Tokyo, make sure you add the Tokyo Metropolitan Government Building, it’s free and it’s worth it.

Open:      9:30AM – 11:00PM (Admission until 30 minutes before closing)
South Observatory opens until 5:30PM (Until 11:00PM if North Observatory is closed)
Closed:    South Observatory: 1st and 3rd Tuesday
North Observatory: 2nd and 4th Monday
Open if the above day falls on a public holiday and closed on the following day.
Closed from December 29 to 31, January 2 and 3, and on TMG Building inspection days.
Observatory Information Desk – 03-5320-7890

Here’s a short video I took from one of the observation decks when I visited with my friends Luke and Travis.

If you happen to be in Shinjuku, and you want some high quality produce to snack on, go check out the fruit stand on the corner, outside the Shinjuku Station East Exit, just to the left of the Alta building and screen.

They sell fruit on a stick for ¥100-¥200 a piece and it’s so good it’s insane. I usually get the pineapple when I drop by and it may be the best pineapple I’ve ever eaten, and I’ve spent some time in Hawaii. Yeah, it’s that good.

While you’re snacking on your cantaloupe, watermelon, honeydew, strawberries, or pineapple you can browse the rest of their offerings. They sell durian fruit which is awesome in my opinion. Durian fruit is apparently an extremely delicious fruit that smells like hot garbage and is actually illegal to carry on public transit in Singapore, I must assume due to the fact you might fall and crack open your nasty smelling treat, but I digress.

This fruit stand also has some of the ridiculously priced melons I’d heard about long before my first trip to Tokyo, though the most expensive cantaloupe is only a little over $50, which seems entirely reasonable, if you play for the NBA. I’ve been told that these melons are as close to perfection as you can get as far as melons go and are normally given as gifts. So apparently at Japanese weddings $50 cantaloupes are the new toaster. I have to admit though, there is a part of me that wants to know what one tastes like. Would you spend the money on one of these melons, even just once, just to see how good it was?

So anyway, when you’re exploring Shinjuku make sure you make a detour to grab some fruit on a stick, I promise you, it’s worth it.

Here’s a short video of me going to and buying some fruit at the stand, the video is actually taken from the year prior to the pictures in this post though it’s still the same.

Image Credit: Personal Collection

Freshness Burger is another one of those Japanese things with a name so great you just have to try it. I still find myself referring to things as “Freshness Burger!” instead of just saying they’re cool. I know, I’m odd, but I like to say it.

I’d seen Freshness Burger on my first trip to Tokyo but never got a chance to go in and regretted it for the full year till my next trip when I made it a point to go in.

So, what are you going to get when you grab an actual freshness burger? A not bad, if not a little small, burger. Trumpets didn’t sound when I ate it, but it did live up to the name. The burger wasn’t greasy and had a nice slice of tomato and plenty of lettuce to go with it. Also it came with an interesting chili-esque sauce on it that was really good. It was a light burger and I really did enjoy it.

I’ve heard that the fish sandwich is really good at Freshness Burger so I’ll have to try that out the next time I’m in town, though to be honest the thought of eating fish from a fast food place in Tokyo, when there’s fish pulled from the ocean mere hours ago cooking somewhere up the street, is hard to justify.

If you’ve eaten at Freshness Burger, what was your experience like? Do you prefer Freshness Burger or Mos Burger? Let us know in the comments.

Image Credit: Personal Collection

That is the Sea Shepherd Conservation Society’s flagship vessel, the Steve Irwin, ramming into one of the three harpooning vessels off the coast of Antarctica. As of Feb. 9th they’ve called off their disruption campaign, but vow to be back next year with a larger, faster, boat.

And here’s a link to the BBC Clip I saw, though the BBC doesn’t allow embedding of their videos, so you’ll have to click to head over and watch it.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ar7x5_sVpUU

How do you feel about the Japanese Whalers? Have you ever eaten the fruits of their “research”?

This video is beautiful in its simplicity and I think does what we all try to do when we have a camera in our hands, capture a moment we experienced so that others may experience it with us. Great stuff.

Many thanks to my buddy Luke for showing this to me.