Sunday 26 February 2012

Hyper Japan Diary: Day 2 *uncut*


Now that I had a mental map of the inner goings on of Hyper Japan, I was ready to hit the games today. Nintendo Unleashed kept me highly entertained looking at the demo of yesterdays released game The Last Story with graphics as beautiful as Final Fantasy and pleasant dubbing; this is a j-rpg lots of people will enjoy. Playable games available to button bash on included Naruto, Tekken, Xenoblade Chronicles and Zelda.

Now to the left I wondered into an unchartered area for myself that was into the world of card games, asked by one of the helpful Konami representatives if I had played the notorious

‘Yu gi Oh’ I was thrown into a crash course on how to play the game. After completion of a basic round i received a free booster pack and a voucher to redeem a free starter pack from any Yu gi Oh stockists, not bad for 20 minutes of my time!


Now all this gaming calls for either Gamer grub at Cyber candy or some hardcore Katsu curry, I opted for chowmein, with chicken goyoza washed down with iced tea, best part was the chef was making the food fresh in front of you I even felt the steam on my face, no beansprouts came flying my way J
Today’s crowd was heaving, getting around the stage was near impossible unless on piggyback managed to get a few shots of the dancing school girls act and a few cosplayers leaving the cat walk to wait for the Cosplay winners later on.

Squeezing through the amazing dressed cosplayers I walked past a great vintage stall called Deerohdeer, the brand founder Charlie explained she and her design partner infused British vintage with the kawaii and have produced a lovely range of Lolita bows, deer ear headbands and quintessential clothing range.

Also if you wanted a little break from all the shopping, stop by the Nail Art stall, for a relaxing nail session on optional nail art stickers or just layering of colours and gel to make super nail candy. Haruka Makino studied makeup and nail for 3 years in Japan and brought her style and talent to Hyper Japan for the 1st time this year.


Now that I had a mental map of the inner goinRoxy Sweetheart a mix of Lolita sweet and punk really got my purse in a twist, with their amazing plastic designs, the lips rings and bird cages caught everyone’s interest. From last year’s popularity Miss Roxy says she will be back with new designs next year at Hyper Japan.


Stopped by a friend of Anime picks, Tucky’s Anime stall, gazed upon the many anime titles, a lot of people simply come to get the newest DVD titles unavailable to UK stores. 

Even Japan Underground noted they sold more CD’s at Hyper than at any other of their events. People who read my blog know I am a fan of Japan Underground, if you like Jpop/Kpop meeting new people, karaoke, bowling, fake eyelashes? Go these are a few of the thing I have seen at there live events !

The Terracotta booth also alerted me to their upcoming film season including the charity benefit for the Japan Tsunami showing the pre release of Mitsuko Deliver organised by Third Window films. Not only do you get to see this movie before the rest of the nation the money goes to a good cause. Also if you have a membership at the Prince Charles cinema off Leicester square you can indulge in the Terracotta movies at a discounted rate too. I have been to PCC so far and have not been dissapointed with the cinema or the Chinese movie itself, it can be hit or miss but you won't know unless you broaden your horizon apart from watching Bollywood movies on channel 4 int he middle of the night :p

Little Miss Man gave me ideas for funk-ing up my own Lolita outfits with different kind of bows and cameos, Little Miss Mann specialised in skeleton designs on her bows and broaches and offers a little twist on a Lolita style. A mix between Gothic and Guro (Guro has the addition of horror accessories, ie. syringes, eye patches, bloodies garments). Check out the differentiation of bows for more details on different types of Lolita.


Officially exhausted now but still wanting to explore some more I literally stumbled upon the ICN gallery showcasing an assortment of J-pop- culture posters to buy. Introducing 20 contemporary Ukiyo-e artists from the world of manga, anime and gaming illustration from Japan (also available to view at ICN gallery near Shoreditch station). The best part is that the 20_20 exhibit is free to go to and you also can buy the original prints

A great end to the day; when you leave with a happy tummy, empty purse and a full memory card of photos.

Short version of this article also featured on animepicks.co.uk

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