Boy cafes, sexy comics feed Japan's girl geek boom

[Davey]

An interesting article I found regarding cuteness, and the love for boys high schools. It also gives a nice introduction about the "female" otaku's in Japan.

TOKYO (Reuters) - At Edelstein boarding school, the schoolboys wear lip-gloss, the headmistress has a weakness for homoerotic comic books, and there is only one subject: how to serve female visitors.

Welcome to Tokyo's first schoolboy cafe, the latest in a flurry of eateries in Japan where customers and waiters role play themes from manga comics.

In keeping with the schoolboy theme, waiters with manicured hands and soft voices pretend to be teenage students, chatting and flirting with well-dressed Japanese women playing the roles of benefactresses visiting the school.

On a Saturday in January, the cafe, which opened late last year, was packed with giggling customers.

"Most of our customers are office ladies in their twenties and thirties, women who are fashionable but normal," said Emiko Sakamaki, Edelstein's 27-year-old manager, herself dressed in a loose mini-dress over skinny jeans and knee-high boots.

Read the whole article here

 

[Goldiegirl]

I don't get it and probably never will. Why is there so much role playing? Is regular life in Japan so dull? I just can't imagine that it is.........................................................

 

[epigene]

I don't get it and probably never will. Why is there so much role playing? Is regular life in Japan so dull? I just can't imagine that it is.........................................................

Not to worry, Goldiegirl! I've lived in Japan most of my life and still don't understand what's so great about that!

I may be overextending in making this association, but it may be connected with the love for Takarazuka (all-female theatrical troupe where girls play macho roles) that many girls used to have? (This one I never liked either... )

Maybe it developed in this direction because girls no longer need to be embarrassed by what they like? (Just my imagination...)

 

[Goldiegirl]

epigene your post made me smile! I asked my husband what he thought about role playing etc. and he said the same thing as you. He just doesn't get it.

I suppose girls/women are staying single longer and working they do have more freedom and power so maybe you are on to something.

Personally I find Japan a very exiting place. When we go back to Wisconsin, life seems so dull!

 

[pipokun]

Yaoi-Con and BL, No Longer "Niche"
By Ed Chavez -- Publishers Weekly, 10/30/2007 2:59:00 AM
This weekend's Yaoi-Con in San Mateo, Calif., drew more than 1,500 fans and showed that the "boys' love" genre is still in growth mode, as publishers announced a shower of new books.
/404

Even in the PRC where you cannot expect the similar freedom of assembly like the chaotic Japan, anime/manga/cosplay-related events are supported by many official organisations there now.

 

[dreamer]

Well...I have not yet been in Japan but I believe this role playing trend is mainly due to two factors:
-Extreme stress omnipresent in the Japanese society
-Rules, rules and more rules

One of the most interressant fields of study for psychology is the mechanisms used by humans in order to cope/escape stress. However, sometimes the organism is not able to deal with that stress anymore and that's when some unusual behaviors are observed. By unusual, I do not mean any kind of mental disorder related behavior, but more likely something that might appear weird viewed under a normal perspective.

This trend might also be related to what is called "role identification and identity conflict", and viewed like this, doesn't it seem natural to take on a role that one feels valorizing and closer to what we would like to be?

Anyway it's not like I'm cosplaying or whatever but in my opinion, it's just a way to cope with stress, and oh well... as long as no harm's done I guess it can't be bad...

 

[kireikoori]

Nice to see there's now a female version of the maid cafes.

For a country that produces more animation and comics than the rest of the world, they sure do fling around the word otaku like it's nothing. Is the population in Japan that do not enjoy either one really so big?

Going to a butler cafe or maid cafe or boy cafe or whatever doesn't make one especially socially awkward or utterly obsessed. A cafe is a cafe. The average person likes to eat out all sorts of places.

 

[merevindur]

I would absolutely love to see that happen here in the UK!
Maid cafes sound like a great idea. I suppose in my own personal view it would be something new and interesting. Fun, something that people would want to do during a lunch break or break from work.

Plus there is nothing bad about admiring handsome young men.

Dreamer, I find what you said very interesting as I do know about a certain disorder in Japan that is growing due to girls or boys withdrawing from society.
Like for conventions, some folk just like to dress-up and have a good time. Some can get a bit too obsessed, but there will always be those who will do that to be honest.
Though for the most part, having fun is where it's at.

 

[partyny]

I haven't been in Japan but I have to say that some japan girls are very sexy....I love there faces. I would love to find some girls like them in some escort agencies....

 

[ODANOBUNAGA]

those 20 to 30 year old female japanese office workers must be very lonely. time to visit japan!!!!! I'm going to rescue them