5 Reasons Why ‘Your Name’ is Better Than ‘Weathering With You’

Tenki No Ko: Weathering With You is the latest film from Japan's acclaimed director Makoto Shinkai. Hailed as the next Hayao Miyazaki, Shinkai rose to international stardom with his smash-hit film Kimi No Na Wa (Your Name). Because of this international blockbuster, anime fans everywhere have been hotly anticipating the release of Weathering With You which is scheduled … Continue reading 5 Reasons Why ‘Your Name’ is Better Than ‘Weathering With You’

Will Square Enix’s Dragon Quest Walk have Microtransactions?

No mobile game has garnered an international player base as large as Niantic’s smash-hit Pokémon Go which allows players to walk around the real world and catch pokémon with the swipe of a finger. But what franchise has been alive and kicking even longer than Pokémon? You guessed it: Dragon Quest. Renamed as Dragon Warrior for the … Continue reading Will Square Enix’s Dragon Quest Walk have Microtransactions?

Films in Japan: Detective Pikachu Review (GaijinPot)

Pokémon: Detective Pikachu is the film adaptation that I — and many other Pokémon fans — have been waiting for. The film is based on the Nintendo 3DS video game Detective Pikachu,which received generally positive reviews and an 8.2/10 rating on IGN. In true Pokémon Company fashion, the film is just as polished and well-produced as their countless video … Continue reading Films in Japan: Detective Pikachu Review (GaijinPot)

Japanese Visual Novels: What They Are, Plus 5 Reading Recommendations (GaijinPot)

Japan is a country with a high demand for visual novel games that’s unparalleled anywhere else in the world. As a result, they make up a huge part of the video game market in Japan. Often some of the most popular anime and manga, like Steins; Gate or Fate/stay night, are adapted from visual novels and vice versa. But … Continue reading Japanese Visual Novels: What They Are, Plus 5 Reading Recommendations (GaijinPot)

6 Hollywood Ripoffs of Japanese Anime and Manga (published on Gaijinpot)

With superhero film series like Spider Man and Batman done and redone to death, it’s become a cliche to say that Hollywood has run out of ideas. So what do you do when you run out of ideas? Get them from someone — or in Hollywood’s case — somewhere else. For many years now, Hollywood has been trying and mostly failing … Continue reading 6 Hollywood Ripoffs of Japanese Anime and Manga (published on Gaijinpot)