Japan. There is so much beauty that can be found here in the ‘Land of the Rising Sun’. From its pop culture to its amazing dishes (some of which were inspired by other countries) Japan has so much to offer to tourists of various ethnic backgrounds. If you’ve never had the the pleasure of visiting this wonderful place, save up your money (or go in with a friend) and make that incredible journey.

Although there’s a lot to do in Japan; such as visit places like Tokyo and Shibuya, there are some things that foreigners (like ourselves) should not do, or even avoid doing all together. Some of the most common things that we do in the west might be deemed offensive in Japan due to our cultural differences, laws, and way of life. So to help you out we’re gonna give you our top five things that you should never do while visiting Japan. (Though there are many others.)

#1 – Don’t wear shoes in the House

Our mothers and fathers would argue that this should be a rule in everybody’s household, not just in Japan. (Especially if you’ve just shampooed the carpets.) This is a hygienically good reason why Japanese people don’t want to track any dirt or mud into their homes. Before entering the house the shoes are placed on a genkan, as guest slippers may be provided for you upon entering into the house. You’re not allowed to wear slippers in the tatami room, so make sure you have some good clean socks on before entering, and also make sure that you don’t have foot odor. Yuck! >.<

#2 – Don’t Walk/Drive on the Right Side of the Street

On the west side of town (America) we’re used to driving on the right side of the street; where the cars on the left would travel northbound, and the cars on the right would travel southbound (or something to that effect). In Japan however it’s the other way around, so that means that you have to drive on the left side of the street and not the right. Driving on the right side may result in a crash, fine, death, or time in jail, so make sure to take that into consideration before driving out on the roads of Japan. Don’t be surprised if you happen to run into characters from a certain racing game series from a well-known franchise. 😉

#3 – Don’t Talk, Text, or Smoke on Japanese Public Transport

This one’s a bit of a doozy for many (if not all) of us, because we do this on a regular basis everyday while riding public transport. In Japan it’s impolite to talk and text on the bus because its serves as a distraction to the other passengers. This may be a deal-breaker for some of us who would like to visit Japan in the near future, but you have to remember, rules and regulations over there are different than in North America. You can however ask for help in case of an emergency.

#4 – Don’t forget to say “Thank You” and Bow in Respect

Whenever your waiter/waitress serves you your meal, or if you happen to meet a Japanese elder, make sure that you bow and say “thank you”. (If you do it in Japanese it might score you a few brownie points.) It shows them that you’re a respectful and gracious individual, and that you know how to express your gratitude. Don’t forget to also bow whenever you make a mistake too.

And #5 – Don’t Be Shy

Never be afraid to ask questions if you don’t know what to do while visiting Japan. The Japanese are very friendly and polite, and will not hesitate to help you if you’re unsure about something. If you forget something or leave something of value in a public place; such as in a bus, a public park, or any other various places, it will be right where you left (forgot) it and you won’t have to worry about it being stolen.

There are a lot of other things that you should also avoid doing while visiting Japan, but these five are the ones that we wanted to share with you. Japan is a beautiful place and has so much to offer in terms of cuisine, pop culture, fashion, and entertainment. It is also a country where the locals are reserved, friendly, and polite. Wouldn’t it be awesome if we can give back the same respect and gratitude that they have shown us as tourists and travelers? Education is one of the most important fundamentals of everyday life, and if we take the time to learn the standard etiquette of the many countries we visit (like Japan), we’ll always feel welcome no matter how far we travel.

There are a lot of debatable topics in the anime community, but this one in particular is probably the most debatable. Before we start this filler post we want each and every one of our fans to know; we’re not for nor against this particular topic, we’re middle men. That simply means that the final decision for what side fans are on regarding this particular topic, is going to be up to them.

Fan Service can be described as material that the fans would want to see; such as a ‘fourth wall break’ moment where the main character talks directly to the audience, or possibly a cameo appearance from the author/creator of the series, a celebrity, or a character (or characters) from another series. The most common form of fan service in modern times (as we all know) is gratuitous sexual titillation; basically panty shots, shower scenes, girls in bikinis, you name it! This kind of fan service is hardly nothing new, in fact you can trace it as far back as the 50’s, when halftime football shows had cheerleaders to keep the audience entertained through exciting cheers and dances.

Nowadays fan service can pretty much be found anywhere, including in most modern anime titles. (But you already knew that, right?) Although gratuitous sexual titillation is basically the norm for all anime fan service, there are some anime titles that use it in a comical way. If you don’t believe us, then watch the first episode of Chivalry of a Failed Knight. Or Shimoneta if you prefer.

Fan service can go both ways with guys and girls; with Shonen titles aimed at the guys, and Shoujo aimed at the girls. Depending on the title you watch Ecchi and Harem-based anime use fan service as the vocal point of the whole series. Are there pros and cons to using too much fan service in certain anime titles? Yes, but again, it depends on what side of the tracks you’re on.

So now comes the one million dollar question, “Is fan service in anime a beautiful blessing, or a horrible curse?” The answer to that question will depend on the viewpoint of the fans themselves. Some people have even argued that the presence of fan service in anime and manga in general, indicates the low-leveled maturity of the fandom itself. Sometimes fan service may enhance the overall experience of certain anime titles depending on how it’s used, how it’s balanced within the story line, and which characters are involved. This goes back to a recent filler post that we did in regards to what we want to see from anime creators in Japan.

Keep in mind that fan service can be seen by many as either helping or hurting the quality of anime in the industry, however it all depends of what side of the debate you’re on. 😉

Cosplay is indeed fun and exciting. It allows you to transform yourself into the character from your favorite anime series, video game, or superhero comic. Cosplay is also the cornerstone of every anime, video game, and superhero convention in the world. (Even third world countries are getting into the cosplay spirit!) Although this is a fun alternative to escaping from the various challenges of the real world, there are some ground rules that you have to follow when it comes to cosplay, especially in public!

Although we’re passionate about the culture that’s centered around otaku fandom (conventions, cosplay, etc.), we have to know that we’re normal people just like everyone else. The last thing you wanna do is cause irreparable damage to the reputation of a fandom/community that a percentage of the world already finds weird. So to that we’re gonna give you the five Golden Rules of what to do, and what not to do when cosplaying in public. Remember, cosplay is not consent!

The Golden Rule of Humility: Humble Yourself

When cosplaying in public, you’re probably going to get asked this question numerous times, “Are you in a play?”. To that we say humble yourself and be polite to people who are a just little bit curious about your costume, because the only time most people ever see cosplayers in public is during conventions, never ‘in the wild’.

The Golden Rule of Self-Awareness: Know Where You Are

Depending on the type of venue that you plan to attend, it may not be a good idea to wear any cosplay that may have controversial themes, or may be offensive/scary to small children. Any characters you decide to cosplay as that have on masks or wear something mask-like (like Tokyo Ghoul) might not be okay for places like malls, banks, or venues of that nature.

The Golden Rule of Honor and Courtesy: Respecting One’s Space

If you’re going to do a public cosplay photoshoot, make sure you do it in a space where it’s not going to interfere with traffic of any kind. Be respectful, be courteous, and most of all, don’t invade other people’s personal space.

The Golden Rule of Role-Play: No Killjoys

We’re not sure how much this needs to be stressed, but we’ve heard enough stories about these incidents all among the web. If you’re going to RP (Role-Play) while in cosplay, don’t drag complete strangers into the act who have no idea what’s going on, or what you’re doing. It’s bad enough a percentage of the world thinks cosplayers are weird, so don’t add fuel to the fire by doing something that you and the rest of the anime community might regret down the line.

The Golden Rule of Leadership: Stand Your Ground

When you cosplay in public, you must remember that you’re representing that fandom as a whole. You have been entrusted with the responsibility of carrying your fandom or community’s good name. If you do or say anything that your mother, grandmother, former kindergarten teacher, peers or pastor might find offensive while in cosplay form, that fandom’s image and reputation (or the thought and idea of cosplaying in public) will fall faster than a house of cards. A wise man once said, “With great power comes great responsibility!”.

Sure, cosplay in general may have its good and bad moments, but those moments depend on the actions of the individual wearing it. There are some cosplay that non-cosplayers and normal people may recognize; such as Marvel and DC characters, while others are a bit curious. Not everybody is comfortable with cosplaying in public unless it’s during a con, but for the percentage of fans who do, just remember these golden rules before making your way out the door in your cosplay.

The greatest Golden Rule of all: Have Fun!! 🙂

Ever since A. Goldman and I started D&A Anime Blog back in the Winter of 2016, I find myself thinking about some of my other talents that I possess in the realm of multimedia. After making the decision to go back to college and shoot for my major, which is Music Production and Audio Engineering, I find myself learning aspects about the music business that I never thought of back when I was in high school. Back then I was a fluffy Afro-American kid (and still am) who loved Dragon Ball Z and Naruto, and still do to this day. I would share my whole life story in this filler post just so I can give a glimpse of who I am to our fans, but I’ll save that for a book I’ll be writing in the future.

Throughout middle and high school I didn’t really have a whole lot of friends growing up. In fact I kind of hated most of the people in my school due to the fact that they were making fun of me because of my plus-size physique. It wasn’t until about 7th grade that I met my D&A partner in crime, Aaron Goldman, thanks to the fact that his mother was my Speech Councilor. Middle school life was a bit of a drag until I got into high school, though my freshman and sophomore years were not as bad, but I still had to deal with my fair share of bullies though.

It wasn’t until my junior year that I started having an interest in producing music. That interest was propelled to the max when my mother bought me my first DAW known as MAGIX Music Maker. I had so much fun producing music using that software, but back then I didn’t know about compression, limiting, mixing or mastering. The thought of being a DJ back then was pretty cool, but it was soon lost after I shifted my passion over to Video Production and Broadcast Graphics in the Fall of 2008.

The last eight years or so have been pretty interesting to say the least. After playing around with MAGIX a bit more, I’ve since gotten better with complex beats and tracks. I’ve since discovered what frequency is and how it can affect your music. I’ve since learned the art of mixing and mastering, so now I can apply those same techniques I’ve learn in school to my original music projects. Of course before I was able to do any of that, I had to learn the fundamentals of music first.

Since 2014 my passion for creating a musical style all my own has skyrocketed. Although most of my music interests consist of Electronic Dance Music (EDM) and Video Game Remixes, taking those classes in college has taught me how to be a bit open-minded when it comes to certain genres of music (like Hip-Hop). Nowadays I see and hear about DJs becoming Producers, and Producers becoming DJs, but as for me and where I see myself in the future, I’m on the path of learning everything there is about being a Music Producer before I become a DJ.

There are so many DJ/Producers out there; such as Skrillex, Porter Robinson, Steve Aoki, Bassnectar, and so on. Those guys are awesome at what they do in spite of the hidden wars and disagreements that go on about real and fake DJing. The last thing I want to do as a future DJ/Producer is get caught up in that BS, because in the end, if you continue to educate yourself on how to become a better DJ and humble yourself on the words ‘Less is More’, then it shouldn’t matter what haters gotta say.

Within the last couple years I’ve noticed that some up and coming DJ/Producers use DJ controllers as opposed to the traditional nightclub setup. (CDJ-2000 Nexus and DJM-2000 Mixer, though the models might’ve upgraded since then.) One reason for this is because the price tag is much lower, and the fact that many of the modern controllers out here now are stand alone mixers. I of course already have my dream DJ setup in the back of my head; a Pioneer DDJ-RX DJ controller, and an RMX-500 Remix Station.

Finally, I thought about where I would play or which venues I would go to, and ultimately I find myself performing at anime and video game conventions, then work my way up to clubs and festivals (hopefully). Eventually I would love to start my own digital music label featuring DJ/Producers who are on the Spectrum (Asperger Syndrome and High-Functioning Autism). I don’t have a name for it yet but I know that it’s gonna be awesome! 🙂