Wapanese~

I seriously don't understand the nerdy Japan fixation. So this is just a thread for you to talk about it and express your take and perhaps explanation, serious or otherwise.

Something that really perplexes me is when people talk about saving up to go to Japan and spending all their spare time learning the language, and they'll be a famous manga artist or work for a game company or something, and they talk as if in Japan EVERYTHING WILL BE OKAY AND MAGICAL AND LOVELY -when from what I've heard the Japanese are actually quite closed-minded about other nations. It makes me a little bit sad.

It's an exotic foreign country where people don't know much about the realities of it. I equate it to a medical infomercial in the United States where they say, "The secret medicine that the Dutch have known about for years!" People's ignorance blinds them to the realities of the situation.

Japan has a lot of fun stuff, but just like any other country it has its down sides too.

I think the language is nice-sounding, of the asian languages anyway, and the culture is interesting.

Wouldn't want to live there though. Or even visit more than once.

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Originally Posted by Flying Mullet

"The secret medicine that the Dutch have known about for years!"

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You mean our cure for cancer?

:shifty:

I think there's a difference between a keen interest and an obsession, but yeah, people hardcore bent on Japan confuse me, like thinking the yakuza is better than normal gangs. xD That's just rose-colored glasses.

I like watching Japanese television (I'm not really heavy in anime - I only like a few of them, but I do like Japanese game shows), but then again, I like pretty much any kind of foreign television or film. I like to see other cultures. I'm having a french movie binge right now.

In regards to books, on one hand, I absolutely adore the writing of Haruki Murakami and the author of Battle Royale who I'm too lazy to look up at the moment, but on the other hand, I've read books from other Japanese authors and felt confusion, and in some cases, disgust, which I don't feel often. So it's like any other country there, again.

As for the language, I'm taking Japanese right now in college, and I really do enjoy it. I guess that makes me wapanese in this case, but it really is a lot more fun than studying other languages that I've studied before. I have a lot of fun learning and reading hiragana, and right now I am doing the best I've done studying any foreign language. xD

I could see myself moving to Japan, but I could also see myself moving to Italy, just to throw myself in to a completely different culture. So again, like any other country! =O

Read Gajin Smash by Azreal, it's really good in explaining the appeal, but how it's really just like any other country. And it's a hilarious blog too.

This post is rambling too much, ttfn~ :flounder:

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Originally Posted by Rye

Read Gajin Smash by Azreal, it's really good in explaining the appeal, but how it's really just like any other country. And it's a hilarious blog too.

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Actually seconded x) it's pretty great.

I adore anime, manga, and doujinshi (especially doujin shmups!). I also enjoy some Japanese pop music (especially Rie Tanaka). I use anime characters in my sets because I find them to be very cute and endearing. If that makes me a wapanese, so be it.

I'm also teaching myself Japanese, since my college doesn't offer any classes on it. Then again, I'm learning Spanish as well.

I'd like to visit Japan someday, or maybe even vacation there a few times. I'm not very sure if I would want to live there though-- I did some reading and it's extremely expensive to do so!

It really irritates me when people take it way too far though. I don't run around injecting BAKANEKOKAWAIIDESUDESUDESUDESUNE? in my sentences or my typing, unless I'm being incredibly sarcastic.

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Originally Posted by scrumpleberry

I seriously don't understand the nerdy Japan fixation. So this is just a thread for you to talk about it and express your take and perhaps explanation, serious or otherwise.

Something that really perplexes me is when people talk about saving up to go to Japan and spending all their spare time learning the language, and they'll be a famous manga artist or work for a game company or something, and they talk as if in Japan EVERYTHING WILL BE OKAY AND MAGICAL AND LOVELY -when from what I've heard the Japanese are actually quite closed-minded about other nations. It makes me a little bit sad.

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Then again, you can hear people from foreign countries putting America in the same light.

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Originally Posted by Momiji

I adore anime, manga, and doujinshi (especially doujin shmups!). I also enjoy some Japanese pop music (especially Rie Tanaka). I use anime characters in my sets because I find them to be very cute and endearing. If that makes me a wapanese, so be it.

I'm also teaching myself Japanese, since my college doesn't offer any classes on it. Then again, I'm learning Spanish as well.

I'd like to visit Japan someday, or maybe even vacation there a few times. I'm not very sure if I would want to live there though-- I did some reading and it's extremely expensive to do so!

It really irritates me when people take it way too far though. I don't run around injecting BAKANEKOKAWAIIDESUDESUDESUDESUNE? in my sentences or my typing, unless I'm being incredibly sarcastic.

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Now I don't usually bash on weeabooism, but if YOU don't take it too far then I'm terrified to find out what taking it too far is :p

Anyway yeah my answer is two words: Toshirō Mifune.

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Originally Posted by Sagensyg

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Originally Posted by scrumpleberry

I seriously don't understand the nerdy Japan fixation. So this is just a thread for you to talk about it and express your take and perhaps explanation, serious or otherwise.

Something that really perplexes me is when people talk about saving up to go to Japan and spending all their spare time learning the language, and they'll be a famous manga artist or work for a game company or something, and they talk as if in Japan EVERYTHING WILL BE OKAY AND MAGICAL AND LOVELY -when from what I've heard the Japanese are actually quite closed-minded about other nations. It makes me a little bit sad.

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Then again, you can hear people from foreign countries putting America in the same light.

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But the difference is United States is all rainbows and cupcakes.

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Originally Posted by I'm my own MILF

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Originally Posted by Momiji

I adore anime, manga, and doujinshi (especially doujin shmups!). I also enjoy some Japanese pop music (especially Rie Tanaka). I use anime characters in my sets because I find them to be very cute and endearing. If that makes me a wapanese, so be it.

I'm also teaching myself Japanese, since my college doesn't offer any classes on it. Then again, I'm learning Spanish as well.

I'd like to visit Japan someday, or maybe even vacation there a few times. I'm not very sure if I would want to live there though-- I did some reading and it's extremely expensive to do so!

It really irritates me when people take it way too far though. I don't run around injecting BAKANEKOKAWAIIDESUDESUDESUDESUNE? in my sentences or my typing, unless I'm being incredibly sarcastic.

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Now I don't usually bash on weeabooism, but if YOU don't take it too far then I'm terrified to find out what taking it too far is :p

Anyway yeah my answer is two words: Toshirō Mifune.

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Look up 'wapanese' on Encyclopedia Dramatica. (Link edited out due to sightings of animated breasts.) THAT is taking it too far.

I consider myself to be quite normal, thank you. It's nothing more than a favorite hobby really. :D

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Originally Posted by I'm my own MILF

Anyway yeah my answer is two words: Toshirō Mifune.

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amen sister.



that japan fetish is really quite sad. there was a girl in my class, ironically named Erika (no, not me :p) who would go so far as to wear a naruto headband and scroll pouch to school. rofl. she was also in rotc and msgt ruiz told her to take it off and she told him it was her familys tribal symbol. of course when i printed out pics of said headband and pouch on amazon and circulated them around the corps,..... lol... she hasnt worn them since. she hates me and brittani now for it lulz

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Originally Posted by Flying Mullet

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Originally Posted by Sagensyg

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Originally Posted by scrumpleberry

I seriously don't understand the nerdy Japan fixation. So this is just a thread for you to talk about it and express your take and perhaps explanation, serious or otherwise.

Something that really perplexes me is when people talk about saving up to go to Japan and spending all their spare time learning the language, and they'll be a famous manga artist or work for a game company or something, and they talk as if in Japan EVERYTHING WILL BE OKAY AND MAGICAL AND LOVELY -when from what I've heard the Japanese are actually quite closed-minded about other nations. It makes me a little bit sad.

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Then again, you can hear people from foreign countries putting America in the same light.

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But the difference is United States is all rainbows and cupspacecakes.

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Fixed.

I plan to major in Japanese in college, but I am in no way Wapanese. I picked Japanese because the college offers that and Spanish as majors, and Japanese seemed more interesting.

Luckily, my dream job has no official majors to study in college. :p

I like Japanese things because they are neat. :greenie:

I really like the language (but I like Latin and Korean and Russian, too), and a lot of the music (but I like various international artists), and I like the movies (but I like lots of foreign movies) ... so I don't consider myself a japanophile or whatever you want to call it.

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Originally Posted by I'm my own MILF

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Originally Posted by Momiji

I adore anime, manga, and doujinshi (especially doujin shmups!). I also enjoy some Japanese pop music (especially Rie Tanaka). I use anime characters in my sets because I find them to be very cute and endearing. If that makes me a wapanese, so be it.

I'm also teaching myself Japanese, since my college doesn't offer any classes on it. Then again, I'm learning Spanish as well.

I'd like to visit Japan someday, or maybe even vacation there a few times. I'm not very sure if I would want to live there though-- I did some reading and it's extremely expensive to do so!

It really irritates me when people take it way too far though. I don't run around injecting BAKANEKOKAWAIIDESUDESUDESUDESUNE? in my sentences or my typing, unless I'm being incredibly sarcastic.

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Now I don't usually bash on weeabooism, but if YOU don't take it too far then I'm terrified to find out what taking it too far is :p

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He's definitely borderline. xP

Goddamn Japanophiles, though. Need to stfu. >_>

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Originally Posted by I'm my own MILF

Now I don't usually bash on weeabooism, but if YOU don't take it too far then I'm terrified to find out what taking it too far is :p

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/b/

I like Japanese TV. Hello, Writer's Strike.

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Originally Posted by Roto13

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Originally Posted by I'm my own MILF

Now I don't usually bash on weeabooism, but if YOU don't take it too far then I'm terrified to find out what taking it too far is :p

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He's definitely borderline. xP

Goddamn Japanophiles, though. Need to stfu. >_>

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Oh fine, borderline maybe, but you'd never be able to tell if you looked at me or talked to me in person. Maybe once you get to know me, but I really don't talk about anime and stuff to people who I know won't care or don't share the same interest.

Yankophiles piss me off. :mad2:

I'm actually living in Japan right now. One year and four months to be exact. And like what most have already said, it is pretty much like every other country with it's ups and downs. Tokyo is much like any other big city, comparable to New York or Paris where all cultures mesh together, it's exciting and I recommend everybody should visit once before they die.

When I was younger I was pretty into the whole "JAPANESE SUPER AWESOME!!" but after living here for more than a year the whole thing just settles into you and it becomes routine like everything else in your life. Then again I've always wanted to see the world and like to travel and hate having to stay in one place for too long. I guess being military folk kind of does that to you.

So if you guys have any questions about the land of the rising sun, feel free to ask.

Fun fact!: Contrary to popular belief, there are no cute effeminate half-demon boys that you can conveniently fall in love with and save the world together here. However there are ninjas. Everywhere.

lol. im taking mandarin chinese, and plan to take japanese before i graduate college. does that count :p but mines because im a techy major, and might had need of traveling to asian countries. plus it looks better on a resume if you speak chinese and such, just for business trips ^_^

Japan gave us Square, Sqaure gave us FF, this is a site about FF. This site is indirectly Japanese.

I also find Pocky somewhat delicous.

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Originally Posted by Exdeath

Japan gave us Square, Sqaure gave us FF, this is a site about FF. This site is indirectly Japanese.

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That's like saying sites about astronomy are indirectly alien. xP

I hate Japan purely because of japanofags. It's all your fault, guys.

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Originally Posted by Sagensyg

Then again, you can hear people from foreign countries putting America in the same light.

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Hahaha

oh yea, i hate norway cuz of your sadistic language!!! ((jkiwannagotheretostalkstianthoresen<3))

Otaku=Sadness

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Originally Posted by NeoTifa

oh yea, i hate norway cuz of your sadistic language!!! ((jkiwannagotheretostalkstianthoresen<3))

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Old Manus won't be too happy to hear this

People think of Japan, like they think of Hawaii or Australia or even Israel. All places that have been stereotyped over the years. I guess, Japan pretty much brings out the coolest on this planet, especially in the gaming department, so who wouldn't want to go in this era? If only to visit.

I guess it comes down to realizing that places are good and they are bad. We the outsiders only get to see what they (the country) want us to see. The bad and the ugly remains hidden till you get there. It's no reason not to go, not at all.

Exactly, like how Michigan isn't all economically devastated and crime-overwhelmed like Flint. Some of it has large areas of beautiful nature, and many cities are doing just as well as the rest of America (which doesn't say much good).

i like how all the immigrants think theyre gonna be filthy rich, and how they think its beautiful here, and how everyone is happy cheery etc. when america is really one of the worst countries to live in imho. not not saying im not pround to be an american, and i would join the military in a heartbeat if only theyd let me, but they wont, so bah on them!!!

japan just hasn't been as exciting as it was when I first learned about j-rock.

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Originally Posted by NeoTifa

america is really one of the worst countries to live in imho.

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HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA

no

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Originally Posted by Levian

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Originally Posted by NeoTifa

oh yea, i hate norway cuz of your sadistic language!!! ((jkiwannagotheretostalkstianthoresen<3))

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Old Manus won't be too happy to hear this

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Sorry, despite you being on my friends list, I won't be defending your country today. Fight your own battles, viking rat.

I don't like some japan related stuff because it keeps getting shoved down my throat. It's like watching the last 5 minutes of Full House.

I would not consider myself a Japanophile. :/

I like anime, though I recently just came out of a one month hiatus. I also like manga and am in love with CLAMP (though I need to read more of their stuff). I like J-music, most of my favourite singers are part Japanese (e.g. Angela Aki, Stephanie and Utada Hikaru). The culture is very interesting.

As a student my area of studies is religions, though my interest lies more in Japanese religious practises/beliefs. I both studying the language and have taken many classes on Japanese and East Asian culture, I find it interesting. I want to go to Japan some day too.

I really like the Heian Period. It is like <3.

This thread makes me want to go watch Lost in Translation.

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Originally Posted by The Summoner of Leviathan

I really like the Heian Period. It is like <3.

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Wapanese don't know what that means.

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Originally Posted by Roto13

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Originally Posted by The Summoner of Leviathan

I really like the Heian Period. It is like <3.

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Wapanese don't know what that means.

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I guess I'm not wapanese then, since I know about the Heian period.

Therefore, I rest my case. :p

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Originally Posted by Yaridovich

This thread makes me want to go watch Lost in Translation.

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I don't like that one. They always mix up the languages in the subtitles.

I don't mind people being enthusiastic about a culture or a country, so long as they don't go from mere enthusiasm into irrational mania. After all, I'm a big fan of medieval China, though you'd never know it to look at me and I don't spend hours gushing about it.

The weeaboos who really annoy me aren't the ones who insist that Japan is teh best countray EVAR - though they're bad enough. No, the really irksome ones are the kind who insist that everywhere else, especially the west, is teh total sux0r in comparison.

A pet peeve example would be "knight versus samurai" threads that crop up now and then. I've studied and trained western martial arts, and have a reasonable understanding of feudal martial culture in all its forms. So it really bugs me when a clueless Japanophile starts frothing about how knights were stupid filthy Christians who had no training and no skill and just wore armour and bashed at their enemies widly until they died - while Samurai were all unsurpassed warriors who trained for decades and had unbeatable sword skills and KATANAS THAT CAN CUT STEEL. Ugh.
Being ignorant is one thing.
Condemning something because you're ignorant of it is something else entirely.

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Originally Posted by Ko Ko

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Originally Posted by NeoTifa

i like how all the immigrants think theyre gonna be filthy rich, and how they think its beautiful here, and how everyone is happy cheery etc. when america is really one of the worst countries to live in imho. not not saying im not pround to be an american, and i would join the military in a heartbeat if only theyd let me, but they wont, so bah on them!!!

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I have lived on 3 continent and I can tell you America is the best country to live in regarding rights, safety, and general happiness.

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Two, and I've visited 3, and I agree 100%, despite not living in USA

My family was planning a 4 day trip to Tokyo, Japan, and I constantly attempted to veto the idea from the start. Eventually they figured it wouldn't be cost effective. I was elated and told everybody.

Guess what the average EoFFer had to say about a person saying 'Yay I don't need to go to Japan!!!!111one' ? Yep, what you're thinking of right now even if you've heard me say it before.

I don't like Japan as a country. It is openly Jingoistic, racist, xenophobic, and it completely messed up my sexual preferences thanks to a total lack of .. well let's just move on. The point is that I don't find anything extremely amazing from Japan. If I honestly thought about it, these are my conclusions/opinions; they are backed by and agreed upon several of my more artistic friends who have various levels of {azneeabooism | azn != japanese } --

- Anime is terrible when it comes to actual animation. If you disagree, actually WATCH a typical, new anime and compare it to say, Wall-E. And even if you aren't bothering to do that and are about type, seethingly, something like 'baka PG watashi wa sugoi weeaboo no otaku', I'll just elucidate my point:

Anime doesn't have good animation, despite seemingly based on that term. I think the word Anime just sounds cool and hip/trendy, so people start telling each other it's amazing like how everybody tells Keanu Reeves he can act. If you actually sat down and watched an anime you'll find some 90% of it, no exaggeration is a static panel or a scrolling panel and people animated -- poorly floundering about in the front. Actual combat / action sequences insult the audience by just scrolling the background around (for car animes) furiously while nothing happens on the foreground, or (for the ubiquitous ninja/pirate/karate anime) you see people punching the cameraman if they are attacking, and people blocking ghost arms if they are defending. Really, watch Naruto/One Piece/Dragonball Z/Trigun/Pokemon/Digimon/Ninjaman/Another Shonen anime man and tell me I'm wrong.

So anime isn't very animated. You read volumes and volumes of manga then, right?

- The art style is wholly subjective and not in the 'PG is a nihilist so anything including killing him is only subjectively meaningful' type of way. I mean it seriously when I say that I find French storytelling to be fascinating and I can find just as much entertainment from virtually every country on the planet that isn't Canada, since Canadian media sucks.

- Even if I did manage to pick up enough Japanese to communicate about as well as I would in say, Chinese (a laugh in itself), I would still be shunned by most Japanese people because I'm not Japanese.

I don't particularly feel impressed when Americans (ie Occidental people) are able to speak Japanese or can talk to me in quasi Japanese (watashi wa pg no baka desu; hai; honto? honto -_-') since people from Japan would not be equally impressed as your other Occidental wapanese friends might be.

Sorry, but it's the same as going to France and trying to speak French, and realizing they pretend to be nice only to mess with you, or my half-German friend who visited Germany and realized quickly that they're all meanyfaces there if you aren't from the country.



If there's one reason to go to Japan it's to actually see the high amount of technology there. I also marvel at the slowly obvious fact that eventually Japan will be the technology capital of the world, and perhaps may defeat USA as say, the discoverer of the cure for Cancer or what-have-you. But why spend thousands of dollars to go there when I can see all that in Youtube?

So that's why I'm actually happy that I don't have to visit that country. If you want to go, have at it.

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Originally Posted by scrumpleberry

...in Japan EVERYTHING WILL BE OKAY AND MAGICAL AND LOVELY.

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Snake-oil, good friend. Snake-oil.

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Originally Posted by Big D

Being ignorant is one thing.
Condemning something because you're ignorant of it is something else entirely.

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http://img37.picoodle.com/img/img37/...dm_effe82a.jpg

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Originally Posted by Roto13

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Originally Posted by Exdeath

Japan gave us Square, Sqaure gave us FF, this is a site about FF. This site is indirectly Japanese.

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That's like saying sites about astronomy are indirectly alien. xP

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Exactly. Also, Japan is no better off right now, almost every major country is following our economy's weakening. The great depression caused worldwide pain, and history is repeating itself. Plus, as Ko Ko mentioned, we take many rights for granted in the USA

I've never been all, "omfgJAPAN!!" Partly cause I grew up listening to my Grandpa tell me about the brutal and horrific Japanese occupation of Korea.

I'd love to visit Japan one day, but I probably wouldn't want to live there. Japanese food is wonderful though. I could totally go for some shrimp tempura and udon right now.

If I had to live in Japan I'd probably eat nothing but miso soup and just waste away. Or, you know, eat something that isn't Japanese.

The culture is, uhm, pretty. I like it. The language is also pretty and fun to speak, though I certainly don't have the patience to learn it.

I completely forgot how awesome Japanese food is. Funny how I have compartmentalized everything good and bad =)

Traveling has always seemed like a bitch to me. Therefore, I wouldn't want to go too some place were I'd be nothing but the Black Sheep.

I like manga and anime I collect them and also gacha balls. I also think I'm going to work for Square. And then live in a box apartment in Shinjuku and take a train and old lechers will want to pat my bum when it's elbow to elbow inside the train.

I like Japan. Who cares. If you don't want come with me, kfine. Who cares too.

Meh, if somebody really super likes Japan, then let them. Once they've saved up their money to get there, they'll realize whatever they had to.

I like to Japan Japan.

I don't care if someone is really interested in all that stuff. There's definitely overboard, though. Acting like Japan is a magical place of unicorns and chocolate swans is a bit much, especially when they don't even know anything about it other than they like anime and think the language is hella coo'.

I have had Japanophile friends in the past and the worst thing for me was they refused to listen to any kind of music unless it's named something stupid like Shirananki Tokomoto Sagi~ OneTrueHeart(SukiDesuULTRAmix). They would denounce all music from the rest of the planet. That's what I mean when I say overboard. If you want to listen to J-songs that all sound the same in a language you can't even understand that's fine by me, but don't act like all other music in the world is dumber than Carlos Mencia by default.

besides godzilla related attacks and that seizure robots tv show it seems like a cool place to visit. and even the prisons look like a resort. and when you want to leave you just walk through the walls. i watch a lot of simpsons.

japan has a lot of companies coming out with interesting technologies. i think most people go over there thinking theyll be able to pick up a pair of hover shoes and put on some virtual reality helmets and fly around and play video games. aka its all the bright lights and new technologies that people think are so cool they want to see and itll be so much fun.

PG made a lot of valid points that I mostly agree with. Even if comparing Wall-E (a 100 minute big budget feature film) to Naruto (a 6-year-old franchise cash-in) is a little misguided, I won't contest that point.

The whole thing about 'Japan being the center of the technology universe' may be gradually changing though. At least in the video game world, major Japanese game developers are admitting that the Westerners have surpassed them in many ways. As has been mentioned already, Japan in general is pretty closed-minded, and would traditionally refuse influence from external sources--especially international.

Still, they're doing some pretty wicked stuff outside of anime and video games.

I went there in '06, mostly to check out the Tokyo Game Show but also to meet with some colleagues that I was corresponding with at my job at the time. And I had a blast. The most fun I had on the trip was actually getting lost in a suburban area because I had caught the wrong train, and had to walk about 6 miles to get where I wanted to go. I do want to go again for a visit, though I'm not sure I would want to live there for an extended period of time. Fonz talked about being a 'black sheep'... well, I am actually Black and 6'1. I really stood out. Not such a big deal in Tokyo where you would expect to see a bunch of foreigners, but when I was stranded in that suburb I really felt some eyes.

So yes, I guess I am a 'Japanophile', but I certainly don't subscribe to that or the 'otaku' label. I may be pretty deep into the anime and the video games and a bit of the language and culture, probably a lot deeper than most people who would call themselves 'otaku', but it isn't something I take to the ignorant extremes I sometimes see.

I have studied Japanese language and culture. But all those people who say "JAPAN!!" about everything Japanese and spend their lives collecting anime still leave me puzzled.

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Originally Posted by JKTrix

The whole thing about 'Japan being the center of the technology universe' may be gradually changing though. At least in the video game world, major Japanese game developers are admitting that the Westerners have surpassed them in many ways. As has been mentioned already, Japan in general is pretty closed-minded, and would traditionally refuse influence from external sources--especially international.

Still, they're doing some pretty wicked stuff outside of anime and video games.

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Japan always gets the hype for being super technological, but (and I'm kinda biased) I think South Korea outranks them in terms of both robotics and communication technology. South Korea is actually building an entire robotic city starting in 2009 which is kinda nuts. Plus, Korean food > Japanese food. :p