japanamerica

I'm giving another talk based on Japanamerica--and the whole digital gestalt--in Tokyo this Friday, November 28th, from 3 to 4 p.m., in a big hall at Seikei University. It's open to the public, I'm told, and I've got loads of new stuff to reveal--from Crunchyroll, to Afro Samurai 2 and Astro Boy, and recent encounters with Haruki Murakami, Pete Townshend, Hayao Miyazaki and Ryu Murakami, not to mention the latest tales from anime-land. I've been trekking around with The Who and National Public Radio, hence my recent silence. I will also be showing some new vids, and I hope you'll join us in Kichijoji on Friday, after your Thanksgiving feast in Japan.

Latest musings from my column in the Daily Yomiuri, "Soft Power, Vague Thoughts"--er, Hard Truths : Here . I began following progress on both Afro Samurai and Imagi's CGI Astro Boy years ago, while conducting research for Japanamerica , and I'm relieved to see that both are well on track, whatever the results.

Fell behind amid the worthy distraction of the US election but am gradually recovering. I posted below entries H-N of "The Japanamerican Devil," modeled (very loosely, and with humble apologies) on Ambrose Bierce's "The Devil's Dictionary" of 1911. The idea was cooked up by my editor at Kodansha Box, the estimable Shibayama-san, with illustrations by Taketomi-sensei and translations by Kobayashi-san. The Japanamerican Devil appears in issues of Pandora , whose cover has also been posted. Needless to say, I'm honored to have my work in such a great looking and lovingly produced publication. As part of the re-emergence, my band in Tokyo, ALi-MO, will be taking the stage tomorrow evening in Nishi-Azabu. Details are here . We are debuting our smart, young bassist in a post-election bash/blowout in the heart of the city. Please join us if you're here.