Category Archives: Interview

Otaku2 Interview: Kageyama Hironobu

A swarthy Osakan with a gravelly baritone voice, Kageyama Hironobu (影山ヒロノブ) has been called many things. Prince of Anime and Tokusatsu Songs. Mr. DBZ (after “Dragon Ball Z”). The God of Anisongs. Born in 1961 and a sensation in the 1980s and 1990s, he continues to rock as the current leader of the popular vocal group JAM Project, and to spread his legacy around the globe. We sat down with Aniki (“Big Bro”) to chat about what motivates him.

PG: What are your hobbies?
KH: Riding my bike and collecting acoustic guitars. I love acoustic guitars, and when I

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Mospeada Complete Art Works Book Review

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The Mospeada Complete Art Works book just hit bookstores in Japan this past Saturday August 8th. It’s the eighth volume in the Entertainment Archive anime book series published by Shinkigensha Co.,Ltd. Over the past seven months fans thought the book was going to be canceled since the original street date of February 2008 was pushed to March then to April and so on. Many fans of Mospeada outside Japan know of the show’s existence mainly because it was the third and final installment of the original Robotech television show. Fans speculate the shows popularity here in Japan as being bigger

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Anno Haruna : Otaku2 Interview

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Anno Haruna (杏野はるな): In 2008 at the age of 20, Anno Haruna became widely known as the Queen of Retro Game Idols. She is undefeated in Street Fighter 2, spends her free time training and her income contributing to her private software collection, among the largest repositories for retro games in Japan. Born in rural Kumamoto and raised in the 64-bit console generation, her wholesome character, interest in the nostalgic 8-bit hits of the past and
incredible gaming skills have uniquely positioned her the charismatic new face of the gaming industry.

PG: You have been an idol since … Read the rest

Okada Toshio : Otaku2 Interview

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Okada Toshio, the “otaking” and seminal Gainax producer who popularized otaku culture with “Otaku no Video” (1991) and his “otaku studies” academic lectures and books, recently commented that otaku are dead. We caught up with the enigmatic man at a lecture at Loft Plus One in Shinjuku to get to the bottom of his mysterious, and influential, prescence.*

You have changed your look and lost a lot of weight, and also changed your opinion on some things. Can you describe what is happening with you right now?

Okada Toshio: Well, I am a man who changes my hobbies and interests

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Author’s Profile: Patrick W. Galbraith

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Patrick W. Galbraith is a Ph.D. candidate in the Graduate School of Interdisciplinary Information Studies at the University of Tokyo. His research focus is the impact of material conditions on fantasy, specifically how shifts in modes of capitalism and consumption impact otaku culture in Japan. His primary ethnographic field site is Akihabara in eastern Tokyo. He has worked as a freelance journalist specializing in Japanese popular culture since 2004, which culminated in writing “The Otaku Encyclopedia” and co-founding Otaku2.com. His work has appeared in to “Metropolis,” “Otaku USA” and on CNN Go.

ガルバレス・パトリック・ウィリアム：1982年アメリカ・アラスカ州生まれ。2004年、モンタナ大学時代に交換留学生として初来日。その後日本の大学院に入学し、学業の傍ら、2007年から秋葉原ツアーを主催。2009年に著書「The Otaku Encyclopedia」を出版。記者業もこなしつつ、東京大学大学院情報学環学際情報学府博士課程に在籍し、「オタク」研究を行っている。

Resume (履歴書)

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