In to continuation of my recap of 2011's fashion trends, I'll provide some of my thoughts on what should stick around this year. Check out the first part here. There is also a little bit about my own style in the past year.

What should stay
Androgyny - While 2010 saw more crossdressing guys, 2011 was about girls embracing their inner tomboy. I wonder ( Read more... )

2011 was an interesting year for J-fashion. On one hand, the earthquake aftermath brought an interest in minimalism and practicality. Fashion was frivolous and even hazardous, as the Tokyo office ladies who had to walk miles home in high heels would tell you. On other hand, alternative fashion hung onto a quirkiness that could be found in style ( Read more... )

The K-pop invasion continued in 2011, but it could not topple the AKB48's dominance. 2010's artist of the year managed to claim all top 5 slots in the Oricon rankings for best-selling singles. Despite this, the past year brought in some fresh faces as well as familiar ones who have decided to portray themselves in a different light. We also bid ( Read more... )

This past year, I have struggled to keep up with movies. I already don't watch many American ones, and foreign films rarely make it stateside the same year they are released in their home country. Even Bunraku, which starred Hollywood A-listers, hit theaters a year after its debut. Therefore, I'm including movies that were released in Japan in 2010 ( Read more... )

2011 has been an interesting year in anime. We saw more adaptations of American media and more Sengoku Period stories featuring our favorite samurai as pretty boys AND pretty girls. There seemed to be a lot of ginormous breasts. While I know anime always has an unrealistic idea of breast size (and when you combine that with American comic books, ( Read more... )

You can read about the fashion of 2010 here.

Before I get into my thoughts on this past year's trends in J-fashion, I would like to mention how Japan and America are influencing each other more and more each year. Lady Gaga and Lil' Mama have worn Angelic Pretty while Hayley Williams of Paramore has been spotted in Bodyline. Japanese brands are ( Read more... )

I've decided to divide up my report on 2010 J-fashion trends into two parts. The first is a list of my observations while the second focuses on my opinions and own endeavors ( Read more... )

This entry was a tough one to write because I kept changing up the categories.  Now that it's finished, I'm not touching it.  However, I will put some of my reject categories here, as well as explanations as to why each character got their superlative.

Rejected Categories and Their Winners:

• Best confession - Ed's "Equivalent exchange!" to Winry (FMA ( Read more... )

Akemashite omedetou!  Happy New Year!  Slowly but surely I'm uploading my Best of 2010 posts.  Here's the one for music - hibarisensei.wordpress.com/2010/12/31/best-of-2010-music/

I've changed up the categories so it's taking longer than usual (plus I actually had New Year's Eve plans).  Anyway, I hope 2011, the year of the rabbit, will be good for

I was feeling sick the past couple of days so I've fallen behind on my year-end recaps.  The first one is for this year's doramas and movies (I didn't watch any tokusatsu or comedy shows).  Since it took me a while to format it, I'll just provide you the link to my Wordpress: hibarisensei.wordpress.com/2010/12/29/best-of-2010-film-and-tv/

Up next is