Synopses & Reviews
Synopsis
A fascinating illustrated look at various forms of Japanese popular culture: pop song, jazz, enka (a popular ballad genre of music), karaoke, comics, animated cartoons, video games, television dramas, films and idols -- teenage singers and actors. As pop culture not only entertains but is also a reflection of society, the book is also about Japan itself -- its similarities and differences with the rest of the world, and how Japan is changing. The book features 32 pages of manga plus 50 additional photos, illustrations, and shorter comic samples.
Table of Contents
Can Japanese sing the blues? "Japanese jazz" and the problem of authenticity / E. Taylor Atkins -- The marketing of tears : consuming emotions in Japanese popular song / Christine R. Yano -- Open your file, open your mind : women, English, and changing roles and voices in Japanese pop music / James Stanlaw -- A karaoke perspective on international relations / Hiro R. Shimatachi -- Japanese comic books and religion : Osamu Tezuka's story of the Buddha / Mark Wheeler MacWilliams -- The romantic, passionate Japanese in anime : a look at the hidden Japanese soul / Eri Izawa -- Hadashi no Gen (Barefoot Gen) : volume 8, pages 17-31 / Keiji Nakazawa -- Gender roles and girls' comics in Japan : the girls and guys of Yåukan Club / Maia Tsurumi -- From Sazae-san to Crayon Shin-chan : family anime, social change, and nostalgia in Japan / William Lee -- New role models for men and women? Gender in Japanese TV dramas / Hilaria M. Gèossmann -- A new kind of royalty : the Imperial family and the media in postwar Japan / Jayson Chun -- Into the heartland with Tora-san / Mark Schilling -- Sailor Moon : Japanese superheroes for global girls / Anne Allsion -- Beauty fighter "Sailor Chemist" / Yuka Kawada -- Doraemon goes abroad / Saya S. Shiraishi -- Pop idols and the Asian identity / Hiroshi Aoyagi.