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  • Hi guys!

  • Hi

  • I'm here today in Sharla in Japan's apartment

  • with Sharla-

  • Hi

  • -in Japan

  • Hi

  • And I'm Shine in Japan.

  • And this is Shine from the channel Einshine!

  • Many of you probably know who he is.

  • If not then you should check him out because he's our friend.

  • Yaaay [clapping]

  • Shine is half Japanese. He's lived in both America and Japan.

  • And his channel has a lot focusing on video games or anime or kind of random stuff,

  • so I thought he would be a really good person to ask about this subject today.

  • Yeah!

  • So today I wanted to discuss the differences between otaku culture in America and Japan.

  • We have a lot of viewers who ask "What is it like to be otaku in Japan?"

  • "Is it okay? How are Japanese people going to view me?"

  • and that sort of thing.

  • So-

  • [clapping]

  • Do you think there are any big differences between

  • the culture in America surrounding anime and the culture here?

  • I feel like it's kind of the same, but I feel like it's a little more accepted in Japan

  • because I mean Japan made it, right?

  • In America it's like, "What is this weird thing that you call 'animu'?"

  • "What is this animu? What is this?!"

  • And people kind of make fun of you for it.

  • So I guess at least everyone here is accepting of anime

  • because it's a Japanese thing.

  • Whereas in America-

  • [Here] you're not like a weirdo who likes foreign stuff. Right.

  • In America, too, we don't have many cartoons that are geared toward adults.

  • We do have stuff like Archer that has a little bit older of an audience.

  • Family Guy. I love Archer.

  • Yeah, I love Archer, too. But there's not too much.

  • I was curious, though, because when I went to high school like ten years ago in America,

  • we had a lot of people who were so into anime

  • that they wanted to act like the characters

  • and they would do this thing called "glomping"

  • where you like run at someone and pretty much just leap onto them

  • and give them a hug. And that type of hug is called a glomp.

  • Yeah, they did that at cosplay conventions.

  • Yeah, even to people they didn't know, if they liked that character.

  • Right.

  • I was wondering if that happens in Japan.

  • Wow yeah, I feel like you would never see anyone do that here.

  • Right.

  • I don't think that would happen in Japan. In my school no one did that.

  • Yeah.

  • Rachel told me about it one hour ago and I was like, "WHAT?!"

  • "What the heck is that?! Isn't that just like sexual harassment?"

  • Yeah.

  • I think anime or otaku culture gets a really bad image in America because of that,

  • like people invading other people's personal space,

  • or assaulting people, even.

  • I've never actually been to a convention in America, but I've heard

  • people just come up and touch them...?

  • Yeah, that definitely happens.

  • It's not like it's an accepted thing. People get upset over it,

  • but it does happen a lot.

  • I feel like in Japan just touching people in general is not something you do.

  • Like you don't even hug people you're dating in public, so

  • that's definitely not something people would do to someone they don't know.

  • Yeah, Japanese people can read the situation better, I feel like.

  • Yeah, kuuki wo yomu (read the atmosphere).

  • So I guess like otaku here have a little more social awareness.

  • And fit in a little bit better.

  • Yeah, when I was in school I had a couple people I knew who were otaku.

  • One guy was skinny and he, you know, just fit in.

  • He was quiet and no one cared.

  • And there was another one, he was fat and loud, but everyone liked him.

  • He was like the school clown.

  • Everyone accepted him.

  • He was not awkward, he was not "anime."

  • If I asked him, "Do you like anime?" he'd be like, "Yeah I love anime!"

  • That's it.

  • He wouldn't pretend to be anime or anything.

  • He just said, "I like anime" and acted like himself.

  • So there's a word in Japanese, too. Chuunibyou.

  • I think it translates to like "Middle school sickness" or something.

  • Yeah.

  • Like people who pretend to be or sometimes even think that

  • they're something more than they really are.

  • Yeah.

  • It's not just anime. I knew people in high school who thought they were vampires.

  • I knew someone who thought he was the reincarnation of Jesus.

  • Oh my god.

  • We heard this story earlier.

  • We heard this story, yeah.

  • So yeah, but that's a Japanese word, so that does happen here, too.

  • Yeah but I feel like...

  • When I was younger, I was like that, too.

  • I was like magic.

  • I would get like a book and robe you know,

  • like "I am dark flame master!"

  • But that's normal for kids.

  • Right, for kids yeah.

  • I still do it because it's funny. I do it as a joke.

  • But I don't really think I'm magic or anything.

  • Do you think then that foreigners who are really into anime

  • if they come to Japan, they'll be okay here?

  • Yeah, why not?

  • As long as you're not hurting anyone, I think it's fine.

  • Yeah.

  • I feel like if you're super into anime,

  • don't come to Japan thinking everyone is into anime just because they're Japanese.

  • Because there's definitely that divide of people, just like there is in other parts of the world.

  • People who like anime and people who aren't interested in it.

  • I feel like everyone in Japan likes anime,

  • but they're not like fully into it.

  • As in like reading manga is like reading a comic.

  • Right, it's just normal.

  • They have like one comic, they seriously read it,

  • they're like "What? Is this a thing?"

  • "I just read it because my parents gave it to me and I started reading it."

  • I feel like it's just an everyday thing.

  • Yeah.

  • Not like some obsession, you know.

  • Yeah, okay. So just like any genre has the super hardcore fan.

  • So there are people who like Star Wars and just watch the movies sometimes when they come on tv,

  • and there are people who like Star Wars and have Jedi costumes and can write in Aurebesh

  • and that's TOTALLY NOT ME AT ALL

  • I'm not talking about me.

  • I think we kind of define otaku as

  • someone who's really obsessive and collects a lot of stuff,

  • and they might know a lot of details about it.

  • So otaku is just kind of like fanatic.

  • You can be otaku anything, like "densha otaku" or train otaku.

  • I got it, and weeaboos are people who want to be Japanese, right?

  • ...Yeeahh? [kinda]

  • Okay, now I know the difference.

  • There's a whole range for "weeaboo" now.

  • People who are in the Japanese community or like anime, etc

  • they say a "weeaboo" is someone who is obsessed with Japan,

  • wants to be Japanese, claims they know everything about Japan, doesn't listen to other people,

  • or even sometimes physically harasses other people

  • or gets angry at people who don't like the same things that they do.

  • But then other people take the definition of weeaboo all the way down to the bottom

  • and just say, "If you like Japan, you're a weeaboo period."

  • So there's like a whole range.

  • Honestly the whole thing is just ridiculous. Yeah.

  • Just labels for people in general is ridiculous.

  • Like otaku, weeaboo, who cares.

  • If you're not hurting anyone, who cares what your hobbies are.

  • Right.

  • If you want to put 300 keychains of a character on your bag, go for it.

  • I agree with you. As long as you're not hurting anyone, go for it.

  • Be a weeaboo, whatever.

  • But just don't be that weeaboo who harasses other people for not liking your anime.

  • That's what makes the anime community so bad.

  • That's why people think weeaboos are so bad.

  • It's because of those weeaboos who attack other people.

  • Yeah.

  • Did I just spit? I don't know.

  • Yeah, so like the verbal attacking,

  • getting angry at someone, calling someone names, or even telling people to die

  • or giving them death threats if they don't like the same thing as you.

  • I get that.

  • Agh, really?

  • If I say I don't like an anime, they're like "How dare you?!"

  • How dare you not like my anime?

  • Yeah.

  • Why take it so seriously?

  • Why do you care? People like different things.

  • Why do you care if someone doesn't like the same thing as you?

  • I don't understand that at all.

  • I would never get offended if someone said they didn't like Star Wars.

  • I don't care!

  • I don't like Star Wars.

  • I don't care! That's fine!

  • I like Star Wars! ヽ(° ▽ °)ノ

  • Okay, well, getting back onto subject,

  • there's verbal harassment like that.

  • Actually telling people to go kill themselves, which is not cool.

  • And this happens to every genre where you have really in depth fans.

  • Every community. Kpop fans...

  • Every genre has that extreme end.

  • And then there's like the physical harassing,

  • where you actually go up and touch people you don't know,

  • or you run at and jump on and hug people you don't know...

  • Or even your friends. You just shouldn't do that to people without their permission.

  • I mean I don't know, maybe friends.

  • If they're okay with it.

  • He's okay with it. I'm not okay with it.

  • As long as you're not hurting someone, like what you like.

  • Just don't be upset if other people don't like what you like.

  • If you don't like anime, don't be a jerk to people who like it.

  • Right. Who cares?

  • And understand that you as an anime fan

  • kind of do represent the whole anime fanbase.

  • When you harass other people and get mad,

  • you're pretty much damaging the anime community name.

  • So if I was you, just be nice to everyone

  • and accept people's opinions.

  • Because even if you say "Oh it's just one person"

  • one person can make a big difference.

  • Yeah, it pushes other people away from it, too.

  • There's a huge stigma around being interested in Japan.

  • And everyone who comes to Japan say, "I don't like Japan because of anime."

  • "I like the culture."

  • Yeah, they feel like they have to say that.

  • It's ridiculous. You shouldn't be embarrassed for liking anime.

  • And I know many friends who are like, "I don't want to watch anime."

  • I'm like, "Why?"

  • He's like, "The community is just terrible."

  • "Come on man, just watch it."

  • "No, I don't want to get harassed."

  • And I feel bad.

  • They just don't want to be part of it.

  • My plushy's attacking you in the background.

  • He's glomping you.

  • HARASSMENT HARASSMENT

  • Just don't hurt people.

  • That's the moral of this video.

  • The moral of this video: be good to people.

  • And eat your vitamins.

  • Eat your Flintstone vitamins.

  • Eat your vegetables.

  • Stay in school, kids.

  • Don't do drugs.

  • Anyway, thanks for watching, guys!

  • I'll see you later! Bye!

Hi guys!

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