Ladybaby - cute girls and a beardy wrestler

Another novelty band you may think but actually so were Babymetal but they did pretty well right? I came across this time a Japanese trio called Ladybaby -formed with two young Japanese girls - Rie Kaneko, 17; Rei Kuromiya, 14 who are accompanied by Australian Wrestler, 32, Ladybeard. They are described on their facebook as to "Destroy dancing and singing all of the border , a new sense idle group of Japan souvenir". 

So this Ladybeard is a Cosplayer, pin-up model (witch his own book may I add), established wrestler in Asia, and a heavy metal singer. Oh, and sometimes, a movie reviewer. the irony is as much as th pin up aspect freaks you out (but you cant help but look closer) one of the girls was also a puin up...in her younger years...moving along swiftly.

The bearded idol has been perfecting this look for years now, starting to wrestle in dresses from 2009 and wearing a dress at the age of 14 at a costume party. Since then, he's enjoyed wearing women's clothing to the max and boy does he own the style.

While Ladybeard might seem gimmicky to most like Conchita (Eurovision contest) there's a bit more going on than just a bearded guy in a dress: his vocals aren't too shabby and he manages to incorperate otaku motifs in his performances and style.

It was Ladybeard who formed the band and coined the genre of his music as ‘Kawaiicore’ – death metal covers of J-pop songs. The unlikely pop group's first music video featuring a track called ‘Nippon Manju’ (Japanese Bun), a song covering all the things they love about Japan hit 1million views after being uploaded.

The video shows Ladybeard singing with his band while dressed in a French Maid's outfit or Little Bo Peep, while his two little scantily clad co-singers dance alongside him through the streets of Tokyo, one day I would like to see this in person.

Watch their video here.

For more news on Japanese culture, anime, cosplay, gaming and events follow me on Facebook and Twitter ^_^ Aisha Anime

Ladybeard cosplayed as Chun Li at Comicket 2015  in Japan

Jamie Lee Curtis and family cosplayed as 'Street Fighter' characters to sneak into EVO

Jamie Lee Curtis a professed Street Fighter Fan

Famed Horror Actress from Halloween series, Jamie Lee Curtis, and her family cosplayed as characters from the popular fighting games Street Fighter and Tekken. This was so she and  her son could attend Evolution Championship Series (EVO) currently happening now  in USA. Evo is the the world's largest fighting-game tournament held annually in Las Vegas, this weekend. Curtis chose masked fighter Vega — the perfect way to stay incognito and not get recognised by fans.

People only realised she was in anttendance after she revealed all on her twitter account about how much fun she had whilst tagging the EVO event account. Curtis has declared her love for Street Fighter in the past, saying she picked it up because of her son and even refers to planing to take her son  to EVO this year ina recent interview as his graduation present.

Curtis adds that her favorite character in Street Fighter is tough military chick Cammy, who appears in the upcoming Street Fighter V game.

For more news on anime, cosplay, games and Japanese culture follow me on Twitter and Facebook.

Aisha Anime ^_^

Corpse Party: Blood Drive on Vita in EU for Halloween

Marvelous Europe announced today that ‘Corpse Party: Blood Drive’ for PlayStation Vita will release digitally and physically this Halloween and is available NOW to pre-order from the Marvelous Europe Store. Corpse Party features two physical editions priced at £44.99 & £29.99 and standard digital download from the PS Vita Store for £29.99.

 Pre order from www.corpseparty.eu

As people may have heard from my podcast Otaku Nation UK me and, Harriet and Alex had mixed opinions on the anime. The anime grossed out most people but I thought it was an exemplary for a shirt 13 series where the audeince is gripped and given a satisfactory ending. Nothing felt rushed in this anime where school kids open a dimensional portal in their schools past where they are sucked into torture and murder. The 13 episodes explained the schools grotesque past and characters given and spirits to the interesting connections. I didn't think twice to try out the remastered version on the game on PSP. It had the charm of old classic 2D RPG's but great story.

Corpse Party: Blood Drive is the final instalment of the Horror Adventure story that began with Corpse Party on PSP I played in 2010, followed by Corpse Party: Book of Shadows in 2013. Corpse Party: Blood Drive allows players to control both individuals and groups of characters as they explore the Heavenly Host Elementary school as well as other notable locations. The game features a top-down 3D perspective and tasks players with dodging, disarming, running, solving and interacting with the larger world in order to advance the plot and discover what lies at the core of the events happening at Heavenly Host Elementary.

Corpse Party: Blood Drive features a thrilling narrative and deep characters that the player must work with in order to survive the many trials and tribulations of Heavenly Host Elementary. Story points throughout the game are presented in graphic visual novel-style cutscenes, and the game features many endings based upon the tasks completed throughout the campaign.

"To be able to work with the developers of Corpse Party: Blood Drive and deliver something unique to the European market, while simultaneously expanding our portfolio is something that we are incredibly grateful for" commented Michael Fisher, Community Manager at Marvelous Europe. “We hope that people will find much to love in Corpse Party: Blood Drive whether it be the deep, rich narrative experience or nerve-racking gameplay that they face as they explore its dark world.”

Experience the world of Corpse Party in full 3D for the first time ever. All environments from the previous series entries have been meticulously re-created for this brand new instalment, and can be fully explored with an in-game flashlight precariously lighting the way.

Corpse Party: Blood Drive features far more ways for characters to fight back against the darkness inside Heavenly Host - Sprint in short bursts, disarm traps, hide and more in order to thwart your pursuers from reaching their goal.

3D binaural audio for simulated surround sound and screen-altering visual effects make their return for Corpse Party: Blood Drive, along with a whole host of extra unlockables such as Voice Actor Interviews, Art Stills, Music Tracks and more!

With 11 huge story chapters and 8 supplemental “Extra Chapters” there is plenty to explore in Corpse Party: Blood Drive, its story providing shocking twists and unbelievable turns as you unravel the mystery at the heart of it all.

Marvelous Europe also announced that they will be bringing Corpse Party: Blood Drive to their booth at Gamescom 2015, where you can have a hands on experience with the title contact, Sam at Decibel for an appointment.

For more news on anime, cosplay, games and Japanese culture follow me on Twitter and Facebook.

Aisha Anime ^_^

Nintendo's CEO Satoru Iwata dies at 55

Satoru Iwata underwent surgery last year for his cancer and had resumed his duties after a brief period of recovery. Iwata was a highly revered figure in the Japanese gaming scene, he was considered the leading figure behind some of Nintendo's most popular devices since he joined the company in 2000. Most recently, he led Nintendo into the rapidly growing mobile gaming sector.

Iwata's main focus was marketing consoles to a non gamer audience and successfully launched the Nintendo DS and two years later the Wii which was branded with "Even your Grandma can play this." He was known for being a gamer first and CEO second.

Mr Iwata started out as a programmer in a Nintendo subsidiary in the 1980s and became president of Nintendo in 2002.

For more news on gaming, anime, cosplay and Japanese culture follow me on Twitter and Facebook. 

Aisha Anime ^_^

Sir Christopher Lee dies at 93

This year has seen a lot of influential and screen legends pass away today was the end of an era as horror icon Sir Christopher Lee dies at 93. Sir Christopher Lee, the screen legend whose career took him from Hammer horror movies to Sci Fi cult classic Star Wars, book to blockbuster trilogy Lord of the Rings and a role as one of the great Bond villains.

The actor died at 8.30am on Sunday at London’s Chelsea and Westminster Hospital in company of his family, suffering with respiratory problems and heart failure over three weeks.

The actor first achieved fame as a Hammer Horror star in the 1950s then soared up from his role in Dracula Has Risen From The Grave, but his fame really kicked in the last 15 years of his career with mainstream blockbusters where he was introduced to a new generation of fans. This included Tim Burton films including Alice in Wonderland and Sleepy Hollow.

He married his wife, Birgit, known as Gitte, in 1961 and they had a daughter, Christina. They were married for 50 years, Lady Lee delayed news of his death so all close family could be informed.

For more news on Japanese culture, anime, games, geeky stuff follow me on Twitter and Facebook.

^_^ Aisha Anime

PLAYTONIC GAMES who brought us Banjo-Kazooie break records with new Kickstarter Game

PLAYTONIC GAMES, a new development studio formed by the creative talent behind renowned adventure series such as Banjo-Kazooie and Donkey Kong Country, is delighted to announce that its Kickstarter campaign for YOOKA-LAYLEE, the spiritual successor to Banjo-Kazooie, is now the Most Funded UK campaign ever for a video game, overtaking Frontier Developments’ Elite: Dangerous.

YOOKA-LAYLEE reached its £175,000 goal within 40 minutes of the campaign launching but also YOOKA-LAYLEE was the fastest game project in the world to reach a $1,000,000 equivalent. According to data supplied by Kickstarter, the YOOKA-LAYLEE campaign reached the figure in just 5 hours and 41 minutes - pretty impressive.

“The response to YOOKA-LAYLEE has been incredible and from all of us here at PLAYTONIC, we really want to say a huge, warm ‘thank you’ to everyone who has helped us exceed our goal,” said Gavin Price, Creative Lead at PLAYTONIC. “The enthusiasm and support from the community has been truly humbling. We’re now in a fantastic position to make YOOKA-LAYLEE at the level and scope that the fans have demanded.”

PLAYTONIC is still accepting pledges for YOOKA-LAYLEE until 12AM BST on Wednesday 17th June as it pushes towards the £2,000,000 stretch goal, which will reward backers with free additional game content, which will be planned, created and released after the final game is finished. The additional funding will also help PLAYTONIC to continue to polish the game to the Nth degree!

Who are the PLAYTONIC Team?

Founded in 2014, PLAYTONIC GAMES is an independent developer based in Derby, UK, comprised of:

Chris Sutherland (Project director): 25 years at Rare. Chris was the lead engineer on many of Rare’s classic IPs including Donkey Kong Country and Banjo Kazooie, and was Producer on Viva Piñata, Rare’s Avatars for Xbox and Kinect Sports.

Gavin Price (Creative lead): 15 years at Rare. Gavin joined Rare during the N64 era and moved up the design ranks at all levels working on the Banjo Kazooie series, Grabbed by the Ghoulies, Viva Piñata & the Kinect Sports franchise.

Steve Mayles (Character art): 22 years at Rare. Steve is responsible for creating the modern looking Kong family through his work on the Donkey Kong Country series, creating Banjo Kazooie and leading character art through Grabbed by the Ghoulies, Viva Piñata & the Kinect Sports franchise.

Steven Hurst (Environment art): 18 years at Rare. Steve began creating backgrounds for the DKC
series, before leading background art for the Banjo Kazooie series, Grabbed by The Ghoulies, Viva Piñata & the Kinect Sports franchise.

Mark Stevenson (Technical art): 20 years at Rare. Mark became lead artist working on the Donkey Kong Country series, continuing in this role for DK64 and Kameo, before eventually becoming a lead designer on the Kinect Sports franchise.

Jens Restemeier (Technical director): 8 years at Rare. Jens joined Rare in 1999 and helped recreate Rare’s best known IPs on Nintendo’s handheld consoles before helping Rare develop its own internal technology and ship Perfect Dark Zero for the Xbox 360 launch.

Andy Robinson (Writer): The only member of the team who wasn’t employed at Rare. Andy was a journalist for ten years, editing famous games publication CVG and contributing to Edge and The Sunday Mirror. He’s now a writer at Playtonic.

Plus: Legendary music composers David Wise (Donkey Kong Country), Grant Kirkhope (Banjo-Kazooie) and Steve Burke (Kameo: Elements of Power) will create the score for YOOKA-LAYLEE.

For more news on gaming, anime, events and cosplay follow me on Facebook and Twitter

^_^ Aisha Anime

The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt Rage & Steel Trailer

 After attending the Bandai namco Level Up event in March i was stunned by the latest installment of The Witcher 3. Garnering over 200 prestigious awards before launch. Set within a truly open world, the game puts you in the role of a seasoned wandering bounty hunter and monster slayer, Geralt of Rivia. In The Witcher, you take on the greatest contract of your life - tracking down the Child of Prophecy, a living weapon that can alter the shape of the world.

The game is out May 19th, 2015, on Xbox One, Windows PC, and PlayStation®4. As a noob to the series I am actually really looking forward to being a bad ass mo fo in this game.

Visit www.thewitcher.com for more information about the game and pre-order availability worldwide.

May the 4th be with you

So new trailer for a new generation of Star Wars movies with Disney not George Lucas. We have seen Harrison Ford reprising his role of Han Solo, a forever young Chewbacca and many more cameos. May the 4th be with you :-)

Monster Hunter Offline x Nintendo Spot: the 4 Quarters

Not shortly after the first Monster Hunter Offline event 2015, Angela and Izzy find a new base in the South East for regular meetups hidden in Peckham. Living in that side of the river I can relate to wanting some where local to met up and not threatening over getting the last train and being stranded.

Dan from Nintendo Spot planned the event in conjunction with Mon Hun Offline and and discovered the Venue. The bar itself was located near Peckham Rye station hidden amongst the butchers. As soon as you walked in you were greeted by retro arcade machines. The staff reserved a whole floor for us hunters to get comfy in and get on with some serious missions. We had a mix of 'fresh meat' and seasoned hunters engaging and of course being sociable.

Currently Monster Hunter Offline will be packing up their rations and touring the Uk for lots of meets to get everyone involved !

All photos belong to lipiddroplets

For more information on Monster Hunter Offline caravan tour and meets near you follow the Facebook page.

For more news from The Nintendo Spot.

To keep up with the latest events whether it be Gaming/Anime/Cosplay/Otaku/Japanese culture related or Geeky interviews follow me on Facebook and Twitter ^_^ Aisha Anime

All photos belong to lipiddroplets

Happy Kawaii Easter ^_^

Me and my school chum Caroline got bored and took photos a while back and I decided to get an Easter themed shot and they turned out great, even though I don't suit the 'cute' fashion trend I made it work SOMEHOW! Check out her cosplay and wedding photos here.

Outfit Info:

Bunny Ears - Pixie Bunny Shop
Kanzashi (hair ornament) - Kikuya Kanzashi
Necklace/Ring - Di Depux

I also collaborated with Cherry Jenkins (who currently has no DA or FB page) and she used her plain line Pokemon drawings for a base to make an Easter design for me: Chancey cosplaying a Rabbit and me looking suspicious because like I said I don't do cute often and I loved the final outcome  - I only expected a line drawing she even coloured it in. So i thought I'd share the love and posted it to some important people in my life, followers and new friends.Snail Mail ftw ^_^

If you want to hear the latest gaming, anime, cosplay and convention news follow me on Twitter and Facebook.

Tekken's new Pinoy character - Josie

Breaking news from CNN Philippines is addition of new female Pinoy character Josie to the Tekken 7!

After much from Lucky Chloe it is great to see more female characters. Though I must say her head is a little small compared to the rest of her body or is it just me?! Designed by Bayonetta’s Mari Shimazaki. Harada even revealed some trivia on her character:

• Her name is inspired by the Philippines’ national hero: Jose Rizal.
• Her fighting style is a mix of eskrima and kickboxing.
• The initial feedback about her has been largely positive. Her name was even trending on Twitter.
• She has a sad background. She’s “a crybaby, but strong.” That’s why she cries of joy when she wins.

Have a look at other new characters in Tekken 7 here.

For more news on games, anime, events and cosplay follow Aisha Anime on Facebook and twitter ^_^

Shaun the Sheep Visits China Town!

*Updated*

First Shaun sighted here !
 http://aishaanime.blogspot.co.uk/2015/04/first-two-shauns-spotted-in-covent.html

To celebrate the start of the Chinese Lunar New Year, which this year falls on the year of the sheep or goat - there will be two Shaun the sheep (adorned in Chinese style art) mascots residing at the entrance of Chinatown.

The best way to describe the patterns on the sheep is “Jingtai” designed by Simon Farrell, is inspired by the ancient Chinese Cloisonné style, seen commonly on ceramics and jewellery from the 14th century in China. Ashley Boddy’s mystical  five-foot “Shanghai-Shaun” was inspired by legendary mythological dragons in Chinese folklore, symbols of power, strength, and luck.

We can’t wait to see these sculptures join our London trail, hitting the capital’s streets on Saturday 28th March until Monday 25th May to raise funds for Wallace & Gromit’s Children’s Charity, supporting children in hospitals across the UK.

From Saturday 28th March, a flock of 50 five-foot tall sculptures of Shaun the Sheep will be dotted around the streets of London for the ‘Shaun in the City’ art trail and Chinatown is delighted to play host to two.

During Shaun's stay in Chinatown visitors are encouraged to share their best photos with him on Twitter with the best photo each week receiving dinner for two!

In total 120 ‘Shauns’ will be sold off at a public auction in October. The money raised will go towards the Wallace & Gromit Children’s Foundation, which supports sick children in hospitals throughout the UK.

Creator of Shaun the Sheep, Nick Park CBE said: “It’s been a busy year for Shaun, he has just launched his first movie and now he has his very own arts trail! Shaun is such a well-loved character with so many fans around the globe, I am sure many will flock to London to be part of the fun.”

More info on the auction is here.

For more news on Japanese culture, anime, games, events and cosplay follow me on Twitter and Facebook ^_^ Aisha Anime

Dead or Alive 5: Final Round DLC features Senran Kagura!

There are no words for what I have come across on the book of face - Tecmo posted photos of their latest DLC - Senran Kagura costumes. I kid you not since the highly popular Japanese game series ported internationally people have had mixed opinions. Marmite - you are either offended by it or lurrrrvvve it.

I am one of the few female gamer who has played every single EU release and stayed entertained by all the ninja jiggles. As ridiculous as the plot is and the mechanics of the Marvelous series is - you get hit you lose clothing and literally stripped to your bra and panties. Tecmo aren't going that extreme but clothing wear and tear has been added to pay homage to the original series.

For more news on games, anime, Japanese culture, cosplay follow me on Twitter and Facebook ^_^

Aisha Anime

Sir Terry Pratchett takes Death’s arm...

“It is said that your life flashes before your eyes just before you die. That is true, it's called Life.”
― Terry Pratchett, The Last Continent

Sir Terry Pratchett, renowned fantasy writer for cult classics such as the Discworld series dies aged 66 on 12th march 2015, eight years after being diagnosed with Alzheimer's disease.

"The world has lost one of its brightest, sharpest minds," said Larry Finlay of his publishers Transworld. The author died at home, surrounded by his family, "with his cat sleeping on his bed", he added.



Fellow author and friend Neil Gaiman was among those paying tribute to Sir Terry: "There was nobody like him. I was fortunate to have written a book with him, when we were younger, which taught me so much."

I found my way into Discworld by playing the Sega Saturn game version in 1995 featuring the famous voice Eric Idle as the protagonist Rincewind the Wizard. This was my first third person point and click game which was odd for a console as it's a bog standard format for the PC. I was charmed by the wit of Rincewind and the concept of Death tagging along with his walking chest with many dolls legs.

The Discworld series - which started in 1983 - was focused around a flat world perched on the backs of four elephants which rested on the back of a giant turtle. If you got to the edge of the world you were simply going to fall off

At the turn of the century, he was Britain's second most-read author, beaten only by JK Rowling.

It was in August 2007, Sir Terry had suffered a stroke, but the following December he was diagnosed with a very rare form of early-onset Alzheimer's disease which, he said, "lay behind this year's phantom stroke". The writer has wrote more than 70 books during his career and completed his final book last summer.

His daughter Rhianna Pratchett is a video game writer and has worked on acclaimed titles such as Tomb Raider (2013), Heavenly Sword, Overlord, and Mirror's Edge

More cats than tourists on a Japanese island

On a mile-long island of Aoshima an army of feral cats were brought there to deal with mice that infested the fishermen's boats, the cats since have stayed and bred.

The cats survive by curling up in abandoned houses or run around fishing village looking for scraps to eat, the felines outnumbering humans six to one on this remote island in southern Japan,

It's estimated that 120 cats swarm the island with only a handful of humans for company, mostly the elderly who didn't leave the island looking for work after World War Two.

Aoshima, is only a 30-minute ferry ride off the coast of Ehime prefecture, is now visited by tourists from the mainland to see the cats. Residents have found the fascination of tourists visiting the cats weird and irritating to their daily lives. They don't mind them coming, but don't want to be disturbed in process. It is now nicknamed Cat Island.

The Island has no restaurants, cars, shops or vending machines - just cats and no one is complaining! Since the popularity of Hello Kitty, a cartoon character considered the epitome of cuteness - Cat cafe's have popped up in Japan and even in the West  where people with no pets could come enjoy their company without bringing them home.

Harajuku Girls - Theatre production

"I don’t know a girl who hasn’t been groped on a train. There’s always someone trying to cop a feel. Might as well get paid for it."

Harajuku Girls tells the story of three young Japanese women desperate to pursue their dreams, despite the obstacles that society and tradition put in their way. A play about friendship, fantasy, fashion and what it means to be free. Opens at the Finborough Theatre (Earl's Court Area) for a four week limited season on Tuesday, 24 February 2015.

On Jingu Bridge in Tokyo, teenage girls dress in cosplay outfits for fun, fashion, and the fantasy of being someone else, but now their schooldays are over. Mari wants to be an actor but her father has other plans, Keiko's found a harmless moneymaker - a "compensated relationship" with an older man and Yumi hopes she can get married one day and escape the dreary world of work . As the three young women grow up and apart, they tread the fine line between empowerment and victimhood in a desperate search for independence and the freedom to pursue their dreams.

Jude Christian directs the world premier of this provocative and powerful new play by award-winning playwright Francis Turnly which takes us down the neon-lit streets and forbidden passageways of Tokyo where fantasy and reality can often become blurred. Irish-Japanese playwright Francis Turnly's previous plays include Hiding (Watford Palace Theatre), Descent (Jackson’s Lane) and Bogland (Irish tour). He has written several plays for Radio 4, recent work includes Brought to Light, Homestead and Point of Departure as well as the original detective drama, Hinterland. Francis has been a member of the Royal Court’s studio, Unheard Voices and ‘the 50’ writers’ groups.

Director Jude Christian was the 2013 winner of the National Theatre Studio Bursary for Emerging Directors. Direction includes How Do You Eat An Elephant? (National Youth Theatre of Wales), I'd Rather Goya Robbed Me Of My Sleep Than Some Other Arsehole (Gate Theatre London, Boom Arts Portland), Happy and The Mushroom (Pentabus Young Writers Festival) to just name a few.

Buy Tickets Here.

~Aisha Anime~

Already the press has been booming on the show : “A sinewy, masculine text, given a remarkable production” Four Stars, Maddy Costa, The Guardian.

“The strange inner world...is strikingly drawn out by Christian’s production, which has created a captivating visual and aural landscape...this arresting production makes its searching, impotent fury feel uncannily resonant.” Catherine Love, Exeunt Magazine.

“The uncertainty as to whether this trip is about to happen, has happened, or exists only in the man’s whirling imagination is increased in Jude Christian’s inventively bizarre staging” Sarah Hemming, The Financial Times.