Otaku & Anime

Anime-Themed Hotel in China

A Japanese TV news program reports on a new hotel that has opened in Chinese province of Anhui. It’s trying to appeal to young people who like Japanese culture:

Many of the rooms have anime characters painted on their walls. There is also a Hayao Miyazaki-themed room, with artwork that sort of resembles characters from Howl’s Moving Castle. The narrator comments on how the hotel doesn’t seem worried about getting permission from copyright holders.

There is also a room that appears to be based on a Chinese person’s image of traditional Japanese inns. There is a big painting of Mount Fuji, tatami floors, and futons. The futons don’t really seem like ryokan futons and there is a weird tatami table that can come out of the floor. The reporter compares it to a single man’s apartment.

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Thermae Romae: Live-Action Movie

Here’s the teaser for the upcoming live-action adaptation of the popular Japanese comic series Thermae Romae:

The story is a comedy about Lucius, an architect of public bath houses in ancient Rome. During the manga, he time-travels to various modern-day baths in Japan. Through manga and essay passages, the author explores the two cultures in the world “that have loved baths the most: the Japanese and the Romans”.

There aren’t any well-known Italian actors who speaks fluent Japanese, so it looks like Fuji TV decided to select Hiroshi Abe for the role of Lucius. He sort of looks Italian…maybe? The movie probably isn’t meant to be taken very seriously, so I doubt many people will care that they’ve cast a Japanese guy as an ancient Roman.

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Jean Reno As Doraemon (Toyota Commercial)

Toyota has hired French actor Jean Reno to star as Doraemon in a new series of silly commercials:

Reno’s debut ad shows a live-action story about the characters from the children’s cartoon. Nobita is now 30-years-old. Unfortunately, he has no car, so he can’t drive Shizuka to her violin lesson. Instead, Suneo takes her away in his cool Toyota automobile. Nobita begs Doraemon (Jean Reno) for a car, but why give a car to somebody who has no driver’s license?

Toyota has also paid for billboard advertisements of the Jean Reno Doraemon. The image at the top of this post can currently be seen on a big billboard over Tokyo’s Shibuya station.

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• Dannychoo.com – Your portal to Japan (Subscribe)

Danish Otaku vs. Japanese Female Announcer

One of the most viewed clips on YouTube Japan today shows a Japanese announcer interviewing a Danish guy on the street in Akihabara:

He tells her that he is studying Japanese so he can better understand anime and manga. His favorite anime is “Ore no Imōto ga Konna ni Kawaii Wake ga Nai” (My Little Sister Can’t Be This Cute). She asks him what would give him a “moe” feeling, so he asks her to please call him “onii-chan” (big brother).

She does it, and he gives an appropriate “moe” reaction. He says it warms his heart.

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• Dannychoo.com – Your portal to Japan (Subscribe)

Life-Sized Gundam Parts in Tokyo

Parts of the 1:1 scale Gundam mobile suit are back on display in the Odaiba area of Tokyo:

According to Akihabara News, the Gundam will be on display until August 21st. (Open: 10am to 6pm / Admission Fee: 500 Yen)

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• Dannychoo.com – Your portal to Japan (Subscribe)

City Will Change Pikachu Look-Alike

Here’s an update on Ecoha, the Ube city mascot that was criticized for looking like a copy of Pikachu:

• When shown photos of the Ecoha suit, everybody seems to think it’s Pikachu.
• The city has received 96 comments from citizens. 82 of the comments could be categorized as complaints about how Ecoha looks too much like Pikachu.
• After consulting with the Pokémon Company, Ube city has decided to ditch the current version of its Ecoha suit, and make a new one that looks more like the actual 2D character and less like a copy of Pikachu.

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• Dannychoo.com – Your portal to Japan (Subscribe)