Japan: Day Four – Ikebukuro & Shinjuku

Wandered around East Ikebukuro in the morning and Shinjuku in the afternoon today. Finally got to visit the Kinokuniya main branch.

Although our hotel is located in Ikebukuro, it is on the opposite side of the train station from the major concentration of anime-related shops, so we didn’t take the time to visit there until now. (You know, Akihabara and all…)

Tama-nee compels you to read on.

Although Ikebukuro isn’t exactly Akiba, there are still quite a lot of anime goods to be found here. Lashinbang and K-books are not to be missed if you are looking for hard-to-find anime collectibles. From limited edition phone cards to alarm clocks and pillow covers, these shops buy and resell all kinds of limited edition collectibles. If you look long enough, you might find a good deal, such as a secondhand anime OP single for 200 yen or a Tamaki Kousaka wall scroll for 2000 yen. (I bought the only one by the way…) Here’s a picture of Lashinbang and K-books from my previous visit.

I got this Tamaki mug from Lashinbang for 1000 yen. :3

The prices at secondhand collectibles shops are quite unpredictable. Different traders have different pricing based on product rarity, condition and popularity, so it’s better to look around first before buying. For example, K-books was selling a secondhand copy of Rie Tanaka’s Chara de Rie first print for 4000 yen when I found an unopened copy collecting dust in Yamagiwa Soft for the list price of around 2000 yen. On the other hand, secondhand shops are probably the only way you can find items limited to events or preorders, such as limited goods from the latest Comiket. Just be prepared to pay a lot for those rare goods… (6000 yen for a rare phone card of a popular character is not uncommon)

And right beside Lashinbang is the main branch of Animate. Well, you can find one in Akihabara too, but the it’s still nice to visit the main branch. Animate deals manga, anime and character goods, but not much in the way of doujin unlike Toranoana. A picture of Animate main branch from my last visit. (Yes, I’m lazy to take pictures again)

There used to be a Gamers (Dejiko’s birthplace) near the underpass to Sunshine City in Ikebukuro, but it seems to have closed down… Awww…

Anyway, on to Shinjuku. Gah screw it, I’m too lazy, so just look at the pictures.

Kinokinuya here is huuuuge. The South Shinjuku branch has a whole building for itself beside Takashimaya Times Square. The main branch farther northeast has a whole building and an annex of comics and light novels. Interestingly, the annex for the main branch is named “Forest”. Maybe it’s a wordplay of Kinokuniya…? (木の国？)

On another note, I briefly read through a few World War II-related books in Kinokuniya. It seems to me that Japanese accounts tend to focus on either specific battles and the strategic events in the Pacific or the situation of Japan under American Occupation. Out of the entire shelf on WWII, there were only three books on display on the Nanjing Incident. The first book was supposedly an “unbias” account. The second book claimed to be able to prove that the Nanjing Incident never took place using “newly-uncovered Chinese Communist Party documents from Taiwanese archives” (most impartial source of information ever…). The third book was just spouting nonsense about how the entire thing originated from Communist propagandas. Right beside them is a book about how Japanese nationals “forced to remain in Manchuria due to circumstances” suffered in China before finally returning home after many years. And somehow this book is a lot thicker than the other three.

And yes, I was born in Nanjing.

Anyway, enough with the rant, it’s time for today’s loot!

1. To Heart 2 Tamaki Kousaka coffee cup
2. School Days Official Visual Art Works
3. Gundam SEED DESTINY Lacus Clyne Limited Poster
4. Nanoha Raising Heart from Animate (not for me)
5. School Days Sekai-hen novel
6. Kami-sama Game Vol. 1 & 2
7. Hayate no Gotoku! Vol.1

Anyway, that’s all for today~