NTV Booth at TAF–Death Note

I was late for a meeting, but I couldn’t resist shooting a fast video of the NTV booth on the TAF floor…well, just one small side of it, really. The whole booth is pretty large. Get ready for a giant creepy Ryuk, the shinigami from Death Note.

Tokyo Day 1

It’s day one of the Tokyo International Anime Fair! While it’s not as big as, say, Anime Expo, what it lacks in size it more than makes up for in sheer innovation and amount of money poured into the displays. I meet with a lot of companies on the first day, which doesn’t leave me a lot of time to appreciate this anime peacock, but I did catch some gems while running between meeting rooms. Let’s start off with this baby, from the upcoming anime Real Drive, which is being written by Masamune Shirow (creator of Ghost in the Shell) and animated by Production I.G.

Seriously, that thing is practically stuffed with cash. Believe it or not, you can have a Holon of your own. Kokoro (part of Sanrio) is making these as a product tie-in. And while the product sheet listed weight and voltage, it did not mention a price. If you have to ask…

Live from Tokyo!

Welcome to the brand spanking new Anime Insider blog! I (that’s me, Summer, A.I.’s editrix and fervent weiner dog lover) am going to kick this thing off in style by blogging direct from Tokyo on my annual pilgrimage to the Tokyo International Anime Festival. Jet lag or no jet lag, in between mad anime shopping sprees on Nakano Broadway (the new rock under which otaku are hiding) and navigating the flashy floor of TIAF, I’ll be hooking you up with a taste of Tokyo–the unusual, hilarious and downright incomprehensible.

Let’s do this thing. I’ll get you started with a taste of the magic and wonder of pretty much the first thing anyone heads for fresh off the plane–Japanese toilets. You don’t need to read Japanese to get the gist of it, but being able to does let you know that there’s also a seat warmer on this little slice of heaven. Keep in mind that this is one of the simpler (!) models. TOTO, the leading manufacturer of these beauties, actually has a showroom in Tokyo where the public is invited to come…er, try the goods.