If you are a nerd, be proud. But also beware that some people in Japan might not be totally cool with your otaku (geek) lifestyle — even fellow geeks.
There are otaku belongings, let’s call them lifestyle products, that make some recoil. Everyone has his or her own boundaries!
Japanese website Sugoren ran a list of nine otaku items that females (even female nerds) were supposedly not cool with. Even though this is a female list, I would also imagine that finding these things in their girlfriend’s or boyfriend’s room would likewise put off non-otaku men.
Not all ladies (or men, for that matter) are bothered by these items. Some are. Some aren’t. However, let’s have a look at what does cause a group of them to pull away:
• Hug pillows with moé characters on them:
Well, yeah.
• Female cosplay costumes:
Even those polled that cosplayed weren’t exactly thrilled about dudes owning female cosplay outfits. The question becomes whom the costume is for. Is it for girls? Is it for the man who owns it? Some many questions.
• Moé anime posters:
Some don’t like with their significant other gazing up at anime characters.
• Idol badges:
The feeling is that if one has idol goods like badges pinned on their shirt, then the idol is more important than their companion.
• Collectible female figures that show off panties:
As popular as this plastic fanservice is, some simply do not like girly figurines and find them embarrassing, especially when they have people visiting and have to hide the figurines before hand.
• Itasha:
Itasha are those anime decal covered cars. Some might not like the looks from fellow motorists, and it might even be necessary to rent a car if a weekend drive in your partner’s moémobile bothers you so.
Other things that go the no go were anime character key holders (oh come one!), anime character wigs (who wears it?), and large amounts of plush toys (they do collect dust).
Look, whomever you are with should like you for whom you are. It doesn’t matter if you are a geek or if they are a geek, if they can’t get past the small stuff, they won’t able to handle the big stuff, when times are tough or just plain geeky.
Leave a Reply