The Emotion logo was created in 1983 — around the same time moai statues made a surreal appearance as spacefaring, laser-vomiting opponents in shooting game series Gradius. Just why is Japan so moé for moai?
Tag: bubble era
Of Rough-and-Tumble Women and Unfinished Films: Shoji Kawamori’s Maimu
In the years after Macross, Shoji Kawamori and Haruhiko Mikimoto collaborated again on a film about a young girl and her bicycle.
The Book of Otaku Insects: 1980s Fandom Trapped in the Web of Loathing
A tongue-in-cheek taxonomical breakdown of otaku fandom circa 1985 from the pages of Monthly OUT.
Mach Vision: A Bubble Era Arcade Game from Sega, Nissan, and Makoto Kobayashi
In the Japanese economic bubble of the late ‘80s, seemingly anything was possible. That’s why it shouldn’t be surprising to hear that Nissan, Sega, and Makoto Kobayashi collaborated on a massive, event-only arcade game that seemingly defied the technical limitations of the era.
Kaba and the Commercial Art of Katsuhiro Otomo
Renzo revisits the classic Otomo artbook ‘Kaba,’ highlighting the world-renowned director’s work outside of anime and manga.
Neon Never Fades: Thirty Years of Bubblegum Crisis
The “cyberpunk classic” turns thirty this month. Here’s our take on why it has endured.
Akihabara on Video, 1986 – 1998
From post-war black market, to a bustling electronics district, to whatever the hell it is now–Akihabara, like most of Tokyo, has gone through serious changes since the end of World War II. Despite the progress of modernity, looking at footage of Akihabara from 30 years ago it’s still easy to recognize major landmarks.