Alex continues her review of Mystrade in this mashup of Titanic and BBC’s Sherlock. For those who are not familiar with Mystrade fanfiction, the story concerns a yaoi pairing between Mycroft Holmes and Gregory Lestrade. The original fanfiction is written by somebodyswatson. You can read it here. Starting off, you immediately share in Mycroft’s displeasure…
Year: 2016
1800s Japanese Photography: Windows to the Past
Photographs are everywhere. Every cell phone has a camera stuffed into it. Selfies and photos in general are so ubiquitous that they often lack impact. Even the most stunning photos make us shrug and click on to the next website. But if we stop and consider photos, they are a marvel. Photography captures a moment…
Japanese Love for Vending Machines: A Brief History
You probably expect me to talk about Japan’s infamous panty vending machines. Alright, alright. I will, but there is more to the story. Did you know vending machines were once considered a threat to Japanese tradition? Do you know why Japan historically has the densest concentration of vending machines in the world? Beyond panties and…
Influenced By – I: Daoism and Onmyōdō
This was written by the guest writer, Jasmin Influenced by: Daoism and Onmyōdō With this post, I’d like to start a new series in which I want to consider the use of religious tropes and images in either well-known or current Anime. Since I am a self-confessed lover of monsters and magic, this first blog…
Oshibori: More than a Hand Towel
Japan has a long history of puppets. In the last 70 years, a new type of puppet has appeared, made from chopsticks and oshibori. Oshibori are damp hand towels given to guests at restaurants. The towels are used to clean hands and in Kitakyushu, entertain businessmen. Going out for drinks after work with colleagues is a part…
A Carp Teaches Perseverance to a Painter
Between the years 1750 and 1760 there lived in Kyoto a great painter named Okyo-Maruyama Okyo. His paintings were such as to fetch high prices even in those days. Okyo had not only many admirers in consequence, but had also many pupils who strove to copy his style; among them was one named Rosetsu, who…