re: #179 Dr Lizardo

It’s the cult of kawaii. To me, it’s sort of weird…..I admit, I really don’t understand it.

There’s a lot about pop culture in Tokyo and Japan in general I don’t get, but still find endlessly fascinating. It’s Japan’s “soft power,” because cosplay is now an international thing, and the kawaii fashion sense is slowly spreading outside Tokyo. A few of my Chinese students are into it, but don’t generally wear it in public. That’s why the student in an Alice dress last week was so remarkable.

I’ve gotten curious about manga and hentai, but visiting a manga shop in Tokyo was like trying to get a drink from a firehose. Absolutely bewildering. I had no idea where to begin, and ended up buying nothing.