15.02.2010 · by Adrian A. Lozano
Akihabara Yamato Expo 2010 Valentine's Day Event & Giveaway!
The Yamato Expo 2010 Valentine Special Event was held over this past weekend at Bellesalle Akihabara building. The event's primary goal was to promote the Yamato 3 Pachinko game but they did manage to sneak in a few interesting elements for a non-Pachinko enthusiast like my self. Fuji also brought back the 2009 Tokyo Anime Fair Yuki Mori booth babes which were going around passing out Valentine's Day chocolates in front of the 1/3 scale bow replica of the Space Battleship with canon firing lights and sound effect. Sugoi!!
There was also a hands on Pachinko section and Yamato 3D theater. Showing was a 3D version of one of the Yamato Pachinko promos which I had seen before on months back, but seeing it projected in 3D was incredible!
FREE STUFF COME AND GET IT!!!
So do we have any readers out there who are die hard Yamato fans and would like to get some free Yamato Expo schwag? Well we have two promo packs to give out to the first two Yamato fans (not located in Japan) who send us a picture of their Yamato collection or links to their fan site or blog. Email me at o2info[at]otaku2.com subject Yamato Expo Goodies.
Tags: Events Akihabara 0 Comments
07.06.2009 · by Patrick W. Galbraith
Akiba Memory photo exhibit
The week before the one-year anniversary of the Akihabara Incident, Art Jeuness unveiled a photo exhibition of the Pedestrian Paradise heyday from 2005 to 2008. The shots are by an Osakan man who is regularly seen on the street. They are all black and white, and range from performers to images of buildings long gone. There is one image of The Liberate Akihabara Demonstration that includes several members of Otaku2, and Danny Choo. The single best image is taken over the shoulder of a man reading a newspaper article about the stabbings last year, even as people in front of him huddling taking pictures of the sleeping cat outside the Electric Town Exit. Another image shows a mother and father posing with their cosplaying daughter, and the next image is a young man being escorting to the police station under the scrutiny of numerous cameras. The exhibit is a fitting tribute to a surreal time.
An interesting addition to the photos is a survey of support for reviving the Pedestrian Paradise. On Sunday, the day before the anniversary of the incident, it was 720 for, 961 and 172 undecided. That is a pretty bad score given that the exhibit was in Akiba and targeting those who love the area. I don't think anti-otaku residents came out just to skew these numbers. Indeed, a look at the wall of comments from exhibit visitors shows that stalwart Akiba goers worry that the use of the Pedestrian Paradise as seen in these photos was a nuisance to residents and even to the otaku shopping in the area. The evening after Jeuness closed on June 8, the survey was 768 for reviving the Pedestrian Paradise, 998 against and 183 undecided.
"Everyone is against reviving the Pedestrian Paradise as it was," said Kobayashi Takaya, speaking for the Chiyoda Ward Council. "Even if it was revived, we would seriously have to consider how it is used. The street is a place for walking, shopping and socializing, not strange performances and play."
Picture taken by Adrian A. Lozano.
Tags: Akihabara Events Otaku 0 Comments
22.03.2009 · by Patrick W. Galbraith
World's Akiba Festival falls flat
Maybe it just wasn't meant to be. The Akiba-kai organizers have the best of intensions, but they told me that no foreign media outlets responded to their call to revive the spirit of the Otaku Mecca. That, in combination with vicious winds and a cold rain, meant the few Japanese, and maybe five foreigners, attended the innagural event March 22, which consisted of free live performances at the Akiba Live Stage on Chuo-dori. Kushida Akira, a personal favorite, even came, but only a hundred or so came out to see him perform hits from "Sun Vulcan," "Gavan" and "Muscle Man." One of the MCs was Matsuda-san from the Akiba Map booth, who once gave me a tour of Akihabara and has since been my tsundere maid goddess.
In truth, the event wasn't even as good as the 6 p.m. to 5 a.m. otagei fest over at Dear Stage the night before. The gods conspired against us all. Here's hoping the next one is better!
