Hyper Japan, the UK’s biggest J-Culture event held their Spring 2012 show this weekend!
Graduating from Olympia Two to the Brompton Hall at Earls Court, the show was bigger and better than ever before. I was only able to attend the Saturday this time around but still managed to see plenty of great stuff.
After last year’s event, there were a few things I was hoping they’d address to make this time even more awesome, and they absolutely did. The new venue hosted the show across a single floor, making the queues outside and congestion on the stairs a distant memory. A dedicated area for cooking demonstrations plus martial arts demos and lots of new stands meant there was a wealth of great stuff to see! My personal highlights below…
Sake meets Loli fashion show
Sake meets Lolita fashion, a model represented a brewery competing in the Sake Awards, presenting each Sake to the audience, followed by a short presentation from a brewery official. Very proud of my wifey for taking part! (front row, middle in the pic above)
Food
Always a high point for this show, from Sanshoku Dango and Gyoza to Okonomiyaki, a fantastic array of Japanese street foods and sweets were available to sample, yum!
Games
PS Vitas, huge Soul Calibur V play area plus demo pods for the new Armoured Core, Ridge Race and Saint Seiya games to name but a few. I could’ve quite happily spent all day in the gaming area!
Tsugaru Shamisen Live by Hibiki Ichikawa
Accompanied by his students, Ichikawa-San performed a fantastic Shamisen set – a three-stringed, Japanese musical instrument which bears a resemblance to a guitar or banjo.
And so much more…
Martial arts displays, countless stalls selling DVD’s, manga, magazines, clothing, figures and gunpla! Nico Nico Douga live streaming(great for a giggle) plus a super Kawaii performance from Natsuko Aso – and this was all in one day! If you’re a J-Culture enthusiast or even have just a passing interest, Hyper Japan is well worth checking out, and ticket prices are an absolute steal compared to other events out there.
A few more shots from the day below, including my encounter with Komamura Sajin!
