Become an expert on cultural details commonly seen in Japanese animation, movies, comics and TV shows.

Naofumi Iwatani, an uncharismatic Otaku who spends his days on games and manga, suddenly finds himself summoned to a parallel universe! He discovers he is one of four heroes equipped with legendary weapons and tasked with saving the world from its prophesied destruction. As the Shield Hero, the weakest of the heroes, all is not as it seems. Naofumi is soon alone, penniless, and betrayed. With no one to turn to, and nowhere to run, he is left with only his shield. Now, Naofumi must rise to become the legendary Shield Hero and save the world!

The prequel to the incredibly successful Anime Companion.

This Companion provides a comprehensive overview of the influences that have shaped modern-day Japan. Spanning one and a half centuries from the Meiji Restoration in 1868 to the beginning of the twenty-first century, this volume covers topics such as technology, food, nationalism and rise of anime and manga in the visual arts. The Cambridge Companion to Modern Japanese Culture traces the cultural transformation that took place over the course of the twentieth century, and paints a picture of a nation rich in cultural diversity. With contributions from some of the most prominent scholars in the field, The Cambridge Companion to Modern Japanese Culture is an authoritative introduction to this subject.

Entries covers Japanese life and culture with specific references to the subject in anime and manga.

Belladonna of Sadness, the final film in the adult-oriented Animeramatrilogy, is one of the great forgotten masterpieces of Japanese anime. Loosely inspired by La Sorci�re, Jules Michelet’s 1862 history of witchcraft and the occult, Belladonna of Sadnesstells the story of a young woman who makes a pact with the devil to exact revenge after being raped and driven from her home. This brief synopsis, however, does no justice to the visual spectacle of the film, which proceeds as a series of still images flashing onscreen. Spectacular watercolor paintings by Kuni Fukai marry the art nouveau artifice of artists like Aubrey Beardsley to ’60s psychedelia; the film’s North American distributor, Cinelicious Pics, describes it as “equal parts J.R.R. Tolkien and gorgeous, explicit Gustav Klimt-influenced eroticism.” A legendary cult classic, Belladonna of Sadnesshas never been officially released in the United States—until now. This publication accompanies the restored film’s North American release. Beautifully produced in a colorful, large-format edition, this volume provides an indispensable companion to this incredible animated masterpiece, including script outtakes, stills and other ephemera from the film, a text about the film’s painstaking restoration and interviews conducted with the film’s illustrator, composer, and director Eiichi Yamamoto. The first printing of the book will include a Blu-ray disc of the 4k restored version of the feature film, with bonus features including interviews with the director, composer and illustrator of the film, original trailer and more. Once the first printing of the book is sold out, the Blu-ray will not be included with any future printings.

"If you refuse to fight, I'll have to kill you all." Naofumi and his friends meet Fitoria, the queen of the filolials. But in order to fulfill her own objectives, Fitoria challenges Filo to battle! What's more, the Spear Hero, Motoyasu, utters something absolutely shocking. In the midst of despair, when all seems lost, what will Naofumi do?