Otaku: Japan’s Database Animals

Otaku: Japan's Database Animals is explicitly about the phenomenon of moé in anime, but it's effect lies in a far broader sense as an explanation of postmodernism without all the flowery, gracious-sounding fluff that French philosophers love in their works. The idea of our common cultural understanding creates standards by which art is judged rather than fixed standards of virtue or arch-narratives now seems obvious in retrospect--my abbreviation of it doesn't do the entirety of the idea justice. Azuma goes further into history of the shift, from the Japanese media's perspective, from modernism to postmodernism, as well as how that created the condition of the anime industry today.I highly recommend this to any fan of Japanese culture who wants to read an interesting take on today's otaku, and also to anyone who wants a straightforward introduction to postmodernism before wading through the bog of the swamp garden known as Jean Baudrillard--pretty to look at but a chore to traverse, sacrificing clarity for the sake of aesthetics. Otaku: Japan's Database Animals is as clear as it gets, and aptly demonstrates that it can be done.

Although the work of French cultural critics is essential for an understanding of postmodernism their works are notorious for being impenetrable in English translations. Their ideas have been "big in Japan" for a long time, but anglophone readers have only become aware of this because of a handful of books about anime including this and "Beautiful Fighting Girl" by Saito Tamaki.Although this book is mainly about anime and dating simulation video games, the theory behind it applies to media outside Japan such as episodic television, science fiction, the works of J.R.R. Tolkien, and role playing games such as Dungeons and Dragons. A core idea is that consumers of this kind of fiction aren't so much consuming stories but instead consuming the systems that underpin fictional worlds. In fact, the believes that many of the anime that outsiders see as quintessentially Japanese such as Urusei Yatsura are actually more expressive of American culture than Japanese.This is an accessible and essential book for anyone interested in anime, video games, science fiction, fantasy and role playing as well as critical theory, postmodernism and the question of "What changed in our culture after 1968?"

You can find much work on anime, visual novels and the Otaku culture as no more than an idealized reading from the Japan-philic perspective. This book demonstrates the writer's research and objective understanding in this topic. The writer proposes a grand model that explains the Otaku phenomena. Although the validity of this model is debatable, this explanation comes from a unique angle of sound logic and thorough research.

I thoroughly enjoyed this candid look into the world of the Otaku. However, I would also love to see a follow up to this, seeing as how the Otaku world has really come into a new age since it was published. More and more Otaku are leaving the dark recesses of their abodes and bringing their obsessions into the light of day to share with other Otaku.To put it simply ... I recommend the book, and would like to see more from ths author on the subject.

If you love Japanese fan culture, you have to read this book. His database animal theory is really great. Sometimes he just jumps around too much.

A well explained and in-depth look at the Otaku culture that changed my view of media and media consumption.

I mentioned to someone how I was reading this book about how Japanese pop culture fans like to "remix" what they're reading into parodies and spinoffs.My friend said to me, "Oh, you mean like how the Tale of Genji was read in the Edo period?"I wish I could remember which of my friends said this, but they cut right through Azuma's BS for me. Indeed, a well-researched book was just published on the Genji subject:  The Tale of Genji: Translation, Canonization, and World Literature "Otaku" is a pretty interesting book for understanding and interpreting writers like Derrida and Kojéve, but it is not the best book in that category, and Azuma's ideas of what make otaku unique are fairly dubious. It's an entertaining read, but take it with a heap of salt.

Used or new, cant remember, in perfect condition.Only sad that its printed in black and white... so al photos are too. :(Hardbound is soooo expensive, couldnt they have just printed a color version in softbound?

I am an obsessive fan of film, animation, books, comics, manga and video-games. In the western world, people like me who are a little too serious about it are labelled with the terms such as geek/nerd/weirdo, phrases that are cringingly becoming more chic and popular now with the rise of the 'sexy geek' in mass media.In Japan, the same kind of people are called "Otaku"; lovers of Anime, Manga & Games.This book is a hybrid form of writing - part academic and part journalism. It was written with the general public in mind, giving everyone a chance to understand complex social & behavioral theories behind geek/otaku consumerism in the modern era.Hiroki Azuma attempts to explain the needs and interests of different generations of Otaku between the 1970s-late 1990s. The major theory he presents is the "decline of Grand Narratives" and the "rise of database consumption" in fictional works. I believe the phrase 'grand narrative' refers to overarching concepts in a work such as a world view, a personal/spiritual journey, a political ideology, man vs. nature etc.The term 'database' is a trickier concept to grasp. It is basically referring to a cultural database of existing archetypes and stereotypes which form the basis of the appearances and personalities of fictional characters. In geek terms, it is a database of Tropes.Although not explicitly revealed in the text itself, the tone of the book dictates a disapproving and slightly derogatory commentary on the rise of "database consumption" in the modern world. And while the targets for the essay are young Japanese male otaku, Hiroki Azuma suggests that this trend is fast becoming a reality around the world.As a geek/otaku myself, I find this rather insulting and difficult to digest. If what he says is true, why is it that fictional works in my decade of youth (00's) are filled to the brim with "grand narratives", possibly more so than ever before? And why is it that we can have one or the other - "grand narratives" or "the database" and not both?On top of disagreeing with many of the authors theories, I also question his aptitude for true analysis of the subculture. He had clearly researched the fandom to a great degree, but the study was fundamentally written as an outsider looking into a subculture, being essentially one man's perception of it all. These are just (interesting) theories. No subjects in question have been interviewed for ideas and contributions. Therefore, I am skeptical when sweeping generalizations can be said for a subculture that is most probably broken up into many niches in itself.I would most definitely like to see a translation of the sequel to this work. It has been a frustrating but stimulating book to read, and any geek/nerd/weirdo who would like to understand himself and his position in the world a bit better would benefit from reading this.

A brilliant depiction of Japan's Otaku postmodern culture and theory. Reading this masterpiece is a must for everyone attempting to approach Otaku Culture from a sociological perspective.