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K-On!

New survey ranks top ten fan favorites among over 50 Kyoto Animation productions

Did your personal favorite make it into the top ten?

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Online poll ranks Japanese netizens’ favorite series from anime powerhouse studio Kyoto Animation

Kyoto Animation has a library of celebrated classics: which one came out on top?

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Where’d the time go?! Top anime series that finished ten years ago, ranked by Japanese netizens

Seriously, it’s been a long, long time since these series aired, and now we feel really old.

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Kyoto Animation makes over a dozen anime TV series and movies free to watch online

New titles released every day over 16-day period as much of Japan stays home to prevent spread of coronavirus.

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An otaku is born! Japanese Twitter goes gaga over adorable one-year-old baby loving anime【Video】

“Whenever I watch anime, I lose the ability to speak too. It’s quite powerful.”

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Real-world music shop from K-On! anime closes its doors, but the music isn’t ending

If this particular anime pilgrimage spot was on your bucket list, you won’t be able to cross it off anymore (well, at least in its original location).

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One of anime’s most famous opening themes, but like it’s never been heard before.

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Amazing schoolgirl drummer nails anime theme, and her music career is just getting started

Compared to a lot of other anime, the premise of K-On! is decidedly down-to-earth. It’s about a group of high school girls who form an after-school rock/pop band, and none of them are reincarnated princesses or commute to school in a giant transforming robot built by their brilliant but aloof father. They just hang out and play music together.

Still, there’s one big break with reality that comes at the start of each episode, when instruments are obviously played by studio musicians, and not actually a bunch of teenagers, for the theme song. You really can’t fault the producers for this decision, though. After all, where are you supposed to find an actual high school girl to perform the manic drum beats used in the anime’s second opening?

Ah, we see Kawaguchi-san is raising her hand.

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Figure-skating silver medalist Chan prepared by drumming to K-ON!

It’s not just gold medalist Yuzuru Hanyū who has won the hearts of anime fans. 23-year-old Canadian figure skater and Olympic silver medalist Patrick Chan seems to be a K-ON! fan himself. He personally posted a YouTube video of himself preparing for his 2011 trip to Japan — by drumming along to the anime’s opening:

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With an otaku umbrella, you’ll hope for rain every day

What better way to brighten up a rainy day than with a cute girl shielding you from the downpour? And if you can’t find a girl to hold your umbrella, then maybe a girl on your umbrella is the next best thing…

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Rocksmith’s Japanese Commercial Seems to Defy You to Buy It, Employs Aki Toyosaki

After mastering Guitar Hero years back, I was left with an empty feeling.  I had taken my plastic 4-button guitar controller out on the street to perform One by Metallica but no one paid any attention to me.  In fact, passersby seemed to be intentionally avoiding eye contact.

This is why I was excited to find Rocksmith would be released in Japan on October 11.  The game that actually lets you practice a real guitar in a fun way so you can walk away from it a better person with an entertaining skill!

However, my excitement took a bit of a hit when I saw the first Japanese commercial for it.

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Getting Directions Home from High School Girls: K-On! Anime-Themed Car Navigation System Helps Drivers Reach their Destination

Tired of listening to the same, soulless car navigation systems while you drive? Wouldn’t you rather listen to someone a little cuter while you’re trying to track down your nearest Guns ‘n’ Ammo store? Wouldn’t it be fun if your favourite animated high-school girls could be the voice of sense and direction!?

If you’re a K-On! fan, you’re in luck- a new portable car navigation system has just arrived in stores, ready to drive you home and everyone else up the wall. Read More

Eyes on the Prize: A Look at Japanese Pop Culture Trends Through Arcade Prizes 【October 2012】

One fun way to see what anime or game series are currently popular with kids and otaku in Japan is to visit an arcade and take a look at the prizes up for grabs in the crane machines, or UFO catchers, as they’re often called in Japanese.

Unlike North America, arcade culture is still going strong in Japan and UFO catchers are one of the main attractions. Always found on the first floor of arcades, these machines are stocked with the latest limited-edition figurines and plushies of popular characters, many of which can only be acquired as UFO catcher prizes (or on Amazon at obscene prices).

Japanese toy company Banpresto has announced their newest lineup of CRANEKING arcade-exclusive prizes, available this October. Check what toys are hot on the Japanese arcade scene below!

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