Tokyo Times

Photographs from a small group of islands

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Akihabara angst?

From its early beginnings as a black market, Tokyo’s Akihabara district gradually transformed into ‘Electric Town’, touting more technology and TV games than people could ever know what to do with, let alone need.

However, in the last few years, due to the clever marketing of a movement of sorts, the area has morphed once again, this time into a tourist-friendly trap that has more to do with maids, moe and mass appeal than it’s previous mainstay of the maladjusted.

Yet that said, despite its ongoing overhaul, Akihabara would still seem to be something of an oasis for the old-school ostracised otaku.

Japanese otaku

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Japanese manga manes

The staggering amount of barbers and beauty salons in the Japanese capital attest to the tremendous attention Tokyoites pay to their tresses, with even facial fashion faring fairly well these days, even if it is fake.

Japanese facial fashion

However, while hairstyles may vary from the sensible to the silly, when it comes to a dash of colour, nothing but a manga-inspired mane will do — all the way from grey to somewhat gaudy gold.

Japanese fashion

Although for those a little bashful about their bouffant, ‘clear brown’ is a suitably conservative start.

Japanese fashion

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Japanese whale whoppers

In the last few months, Japan has come under ever increasing criticism over its ‘scientific’ whale hunts, with Australia in particular condemning the culls. However, while it is difficult to condone the killing of such incredible cetaceans, it simply cannot be said that the Japanese don’t take their research seriously, with very little of the mammals left untast untested.

Japanese whale

And while critics claim that the results from non-lethal techniques could prove to be equally as productive, proponents opine they would be far less palatable.

Japanese whale

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Japanese peekaboo pants

The traditional loincloth (fundoshi) may — or indeed may not — be the samurai soul of Japan.

Japanese loincloth

However, while its place in the nation’s psyche is somewhat suspect, what’s not is the relative freedom of movement it gives a man in the, erm, member department. Trouble is, for the suited salary man, all that cotton could be a little cumbersome, which is perhaps why these more practical pants have been produced, allowing the wearer to waft their wares about in a slightly more conventional way — a sort of tentative attempt at going commando for those a little timid about their testicles if you will.

Japanese underwear

Clicking on the image will produce the pants in all their purple glory, although while not showing any naughty bits, they are certainly suggestive, meaning it could well be a bit embarrassing to be caught browsing them by your boss — or indeed anybody else for that matter.