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Japan's AI Affinity
The reasons many Westerners despise AI explain why Japanese don't
Sanae vs. Anime
What does Prime Minister Takaichi’s landslide mean for Japan's pop culture?
Altered States
America's in trouble. Where are the artists?
Sony Goes for Peanuts
Some thoughts on Japan's acquisition of an American icon
A History of the World in Japanese Toys
Can you decipher the 20th century by looking at Japanese toys? I can try!
Boys (and girls), be ambiguous!
When Japanese leaders wade into the culture wars, pop culture suffers.
Super Galapagos
In a world driven mad by tech disruption, Japan’s having fallen behind is a superpower
Why Hollywood stars are saying “F*** anime”
And why they’re right to be scared
Dollars and Demons
Demon Slayer's success shouldn't surprise. We're all otaku now.
Anime activism
Global protest movements are relying on imagery from Japan. Here's why.
Politics, Chaos, and Cup Noodles
The eerie parallels between Japan's Sixties and America today
No Labubus please, we're Japanese
Why a toy craze isn't finding traction in a toy-crazed country
Inside the manga hit machine
How Weekly Shonen Jump became a global cultural juggernaut
Head in the Clouds
A repost from the archives about Nizo Yamamoto, who transformed anime from fantasy into an all-enveloping reality for fans.
Chemtrails over Kyoto
What stops conspiracies from hijacking the conversation in Japan?
Pop and Populism
Japan’s far right won big in yesterday's elections. What's it mean for pop culture?
Japanese TV vs American Reality
America turned itself into a reality show. Why didn’t Japan?
Hell is Other People
The real reason the Japanese government is so obsessed with tourism
America is burning. Why isn’t Japan?
A voice actress has a very bad week.
Empire of Monsters
The rural fantasies of San'in that made Japan a global superstar
Boys vs Girls, Japan vs America
Japan doesn't have a "manosphere." The reasons why might surprise.
Ghibli, glibly
What does Hayao Miyazaki really think about AI?
The revolution will be... illustrated?
What a terrorist incident from 1970's Japan tells us about American politics today
Chinpokomon Diplomacy
In a post-rule of law world, Japan bets on fantasies to see it through
Why didn’t Japan invent generative AI?
Today's "AI arms race" is a sequel. The first played out between the US and Japan. And it isn't over yet.
Japan is not ready for the culture wars
The next four years may be tough for Japanese content in the American marketplace.
The most influential manga in Japan isn’t Japanese
Without Popeye, manga, anime, and video games wouldn’t exist as we know them.
An alleged assassin's Japanese fantasies
The suspect's time in Japan reveals many things about his worldview.
Clash of the Titans
Understanding the Sony-Kadokawa merger
Anime is the Champagne of Japan
Ersatz "anime" abounds. It's time to make "Japanese Anime" a protected designation.
Manga and MAGA
What is the role of Japanese pop culture in the post-liberal era?
Anime's money problem
Anime is blowing up. It's also facing an existential crisis.
Baby, it's hot outside
Japan's never-ending summer continues
Marie Kondon't
Nobody curates clutter like the Japanese. I wrote about it depth for Aeon magazine.
When pop culture meets culture war
Dragon Quest III HD-2D and the pitfalls of producing content in a polarized world
Otaku in Chief
How will Shigeru Ishiba becoming Prime Minister impact Japan’s pop culture?
American Shogun
Does Hollywood finally "get" Japan? Where will Season 2 of Shogun take us? And should we really be idolizing a warlord?
The kids are all right
The world’s falling apart. Can fandom save us?
Anime & NYC
I'll be presenting, talking, and book-signing this week in New York City!
Tokyo disco inferno
The responses to the Juliana's Tokyo lookback were fierce!
Gal Den of Earthly Delights
Juliana’s Tokyo closed 30 years ago this month, but in some ways, the party goes on
I've launched a YouTube Channel
Check out the first of a new series of video supplements to my essays!
Japan, the "most AI friendly country in the world"
The country's leaders are gung ho for AI. But will it kill the golden goose of its content industry?
Goobers, Godzilla, and Governors
Tokyo’s quest to find a new leader grinds to a conclusion
Trolling Tokyo
Making sense of the wildest Governor's race in city history
The United States of Japan
Japan didn't set out to be a pop-culture superpower. It just played out that way.
Age ain't nothing but a number
How is a "hyper-aged" country like Japan also a leader in youth culture?
“Japan Comfort” in a doggy Doge world
The history of modern life is the Internet, the history of the Internet is memes, the history of memes is Japan -- and a certain Shiba Inu symbolizes…
“The first thing we do is, let’s kill all the translators”
Politics, AI and the "last-mile problem" of getting Japanese content to audiences abroad