Nakama Britannica

Last weekend I was invited to attend the ninth Japan Expo at the Parc d’Expositions de Paris-Nord Villepinte. When I first read the names of the mangaka and anime artists who were appearing at Japan Expo this year, I had to pinch myself. Because the team who organize Japan Expo had accumulated a wealth of expertise and cultivated their links with mangaka and anime production companies in Japan to produce a starry line-up. I was lucky enough to be introduced to Thomas Sirdey, the Vice President of Japan Expo, the one responsible for organizing this impressive event. When I told him how amazed we were by the big names he had attracted to participate in signings and interviews, he said that it was largely because he and the team had visited Japan two or three times a year over some time, establishing good relationships and thus convincing the Japanese of the seriousness of their interest in the visual media.

For anime buffs, there were panels (conferences) with: Go Nagai (‘Goldorak’, ‘Mazinger’ and ‘Cutey Honey’); Toshihiro Kawamoto (Character designer for ‘Cowboy Bebop’, ‘Wolf’s Rain’) and Munehisa Sakai (‘Streetfighter II’ and the TV series of ‘One Piece’).

For manga fans, visiting mangaka included shonen luminaries: Takeshi Obata (‘Death Note’ and ‘Hikaru no Go’), Yoshiyuki Sadamoto (‘Neon Genesis Evangelion’) Kazuo Koike (manga author of ‘Lone Wold and Cub’ and ‘Crying Freeman’) and shojo stars: Junko Kawakami (‘Galaxy Girl, Panda Boy’) and my own personal favourite, Setona Mizushiro(‘Afterschool Nightmare’).

For gaming enthusiasts, big names and launches included: Oh! Great (‘Air Gear’) and Yutaka Izubuchi (‘Rahxephon’) talking about ‘Soul Calibur 4’ (Ubisoft) and Hironori Ishigami, Shinichiro Tomie et Kunimi Kawamura (Pokemon Mysterious Dungeon’).

On the music front, bands performing included schoolgirl group SCANDAL, CATSUOMATIC DEATH, BETTA FLASH, Ra:IN, and Video-X Japan.

Previews included the World Premiere Preview of the anime LINEBARRELS OF IRON from Gonzo and previews of new French subbed/dubbed series such as ‘Innocent Venus’, ‘Udon’ and ‘Eve no Jikan’.

Running as part of Japan Expo, were AziKulte, Kultigame and Kultima. Displays of martial arts from aikido to kendo, were on offer, as well as ‘go’, chess, and mah jong tournaments. RPGs were also well represented, as were card games as well. There were plenty of consoles too where keen players could to try out the latest games. And Kultima itself included many bandes dessinées artists, fantasy and science fiction authors with Editions Bragelonne and a big ‘Conan the Barbarian’ event. Azikulte explored many aspects of Japanese life, but also included work by artists from other Asian countries. And as for merchandise, to mention just one of the many promotions, new company WE PROD was launching its first three titles in its new label WE ANIME: ‘Himawari’, ‘Windy Tales’ and ‘Moonlight Mile’. In French, naturellement.

Then there’s the cosplay, which ranged from the usual maids, schoolgirls and Naruto look-alikes, to the most amazing and imaginative professional constructions. I was utterly amazed by the sudden appearance of an angel with magnificent wings that must have been twenty feet high (no photo, alas).

One of my favourite exhibits was the tribute to forty years of Shonen Jump which displayed pages of original artwork by artists such as Akira Toriyama (‘Dragonball Z’), Eiichiro Oda (‘One Piece’), Hiroyuki Takei (‘Shaman King’), and Takeshi Konomi (‘Prince of Tennis’) many of them in full colour. It was really inspiring to see the finished panels up close.

The most striking thing about being at Japan Expo was – in spite of the vast numbers of attendees, many in full cosplay mode – the excellent and good-natured atmosphere. Although just because it’s in France, don’t imagine that you’ll escape the written requests for ‘Free Hugs’, though; glomping was alive and well in Japan Expo. But plenty of free stuff was available too, although you had to jump high and catch as well as a manga sports star to get hold of any of the T shirts being thrown to the eager crowds.

So have I whetted any appetites? This astonishing assembly of the talents of Japanese Visual Culture takes place only just across the channel. So brush up your French (all the panels etc. are conducted in Japanese and French, natch) and book your tickets for next year! But if you can’t wait till then, there will be a mini Japan Expo in the autumn called ‘Chibi Japan Expo’ which will happen between October 31st and November 2nd .

http://www.chibi-japan-expo.com/