Welcome to Maid Spin, the personal website of iklone. I write about about otaku culture as well as history, philosophy and mythology.
My interests range from anime & programming to mediaevalism & navigation. Hopefully something on this site will interest you.
I'm a devotee of the late '90s / early '00s era of anime, as well as a steadfast lover of maids. My favourite anime is Mahoromatic. I also love the works of Tomino and old Gainax.
To contact me see my contact page.
Depending on how long you've been into otaku hobbies, you will probably have run into many varied types of activity surrounding the subculture. From cosplay to visual novels, there's a lot more to this world than purely anime and manga, in fact you happen to be reading one of those "extracurricular" endeavours right now! I believe that most of you reading, if you haven't already tried, would also enjoy the plethora of other pursuits this subculture has to offer, so I've compiled a list of seven lesser known scenes.
Plamo「プラモ」
Plamo is an abbreviation of "Plastic Modelling": building miniature statues out of premolded plastic sheets. The most famous form of this is Gunpla, the little plastic mechs that have kept the Gundam franchise alive for nearly 50 years. And while the most popular (and cheapest, a basic set costs only 10 pounds) options are usually mechs, if that's not your thing there's so many other options out there. "Garage Kits" are "make your own anime figure" sets, usually consisting of unpainted resin pieces that you'll need to glue together and paint to get the full product, they're a great way to spend a a few days and you'll end up with a one-of-a-kind product that costs five times less than its prepainted scale model counterpart.
Wotagei「ヲタ芸」
Wotagei means "otaku style", and particularly refers to a style of dance that emerged in Akihabara around the turn of the millennium. Even if you don't know it by name I'm certain you will have come across it before, its a staple of otaku-idol culture. Most often seen during live music events, dance is performed holding a glowstick in each hand, with synchronised chanting and extreme movements of the upper body. While it looks unhinged, there are actually strict rules about the particular movements and routines. The moves vary from idol group to idol group and with the various variables of the song like genre or tempo. Some common moves include the "Romance", a left-right swinging of the arms; the "Rosario", an punch in the air while shouting the idol's name; and the "Over Action Dolphin" which involves an over-extended Romance with a clap while chanting "urya oi! urya oi!" If you're interested just search for examples on Youtube, its a beautiful thing to behold. In Akihabara there are a few night clubs dedicated to anison (anime songs) and wotagei, the most infamous of which is Club Mogra, so if your ever lucky enough to visit Tokyo give it a shot.
Tokusatsu「特撮」
This terms means "special effects", meaning the physical special effects seen in pre-CG live-action cinema. Although Western films like Star Wars would fit in this category, in Japan it usually refers one of two genres: kaiju and henshin-hero. Kaiju films feature giant monsters (kaiju) coming to destroy Japan a la Godzilla, with other famous kaiju including the giant turtle Gamera and the giant moth Mothra. Such films are famous for their elaborate kaiju suits and the intricate miniature models of cities they love to detroy for the monsters to destroy. Meanwhile henshin-hero type films involve masked heroes going around saving the day. In Japan the most famous series of this genre by far is Kamen Rider, but in the West we best know the "Super Sentai" series, or "Power Rangers" as it was translated. My favourite of this genre is Ultraman, and I highly recommend looking up clips of the original show, they're really cool.
Itasha「痛車」
Itasha literally means "painful cars": the hobby of covering expensive cars in giant decals of hot anime babes. An odd pastime to be sure, but one that has seen constant growth over the last decade or so with large gatherings of proud itasha drivers across Japan. Often a way to show loyalty to a character or anime, because building your waifu a vehicle with her face plastered over the bonnet is surely the best way to prove your unashamed love. Although not quite itasha, there's an Initial D car that's occasionally seen driving around Nottingham, so keep your eyes out.
Kigurumi「キグルミ」
The word by itself just refers to full body costumes, but usually when mentioned in otaku circles it refers to something more specific: animegao kigurumi. These are full body costumes of anime characters, complete with a plastic head moulded to fit over your face. In my opinion these range from uncanny to downright horrific, but are enjoyed by otaku of many ilks. Some of these are wholly innocent such as the popular (how?) children's actors that wear Precure kigurumi and perform magical-girling feats on stage. But it predictably also includes those who find a more adult satisfaction from their 2D-3D liminal zone. Who am I to judge? While this certainly isn't my cup of tea, I have to give it to the fanatics that the effort put into some of these costumes is downright insane.
Butaitanbou「舞台探訪」
^Taken during my trip to Bibury village for a Kiniro Mosaic pilgrimage
This very Japanese phrase can be translated to something like "stage hunting" and is the hobby of locating the real-life places used as inspiration for the settings of anime. And unlike the previous hobby, this one is right up my street and something I participate in frequently. It usually involves hunting for clues in the show itself and then scouring Google Street View. Some of the detective work I've seen is pretty amazing, with users on Japanese Twitter and 2ch (JP 4chan) posting exact GPS coordinates for anime episodes that are still airing on TV. This hobby also allows another that is much more accessible: anime pilgrimages. Famous anime pilgrimage spots include Washimiya Shrine from Lucky Star, Shirakawa village from Higurashi and the infamous stairs from Your Name.
BJD
BJD stands for "Ball-Jointed Dolls" and is the more hardcore gothic twin sister of plamo. Basically its doll making for otaku, using high quality custom parts for the hair, eyes, clothes, etc. A relatively niche hobby, many of these dolls are pieces of art and the darlings of their owners, most of which not only piece together different parts but design and create their own to get closer to their perfect ideal. There's a huge range of dolls out there covering every aesthetic you could imagine. A subgroup of these creators even incorporate robotics into their dolls to create their own little androids. And with the decreasing costs of robotic parts and the rise of AI we might not be as far off from Chobits as we thought.
So after that canter through the wider world of otaku hobbies I hope you found something of interest, and if so why not try them out? There are English-language groups online for all of the mentioned hobbies, and I know at least a few of them have pre-existing fans in Notts Anisoc already, go hunt them down in Mooch.
