AltJapan

Yokai Karakuri

 

Two great tastes that go great together! Karakuri means "clockwork automaton" and yokai means, well, yokai! But it isn't every day that you get to read about both in the same article.

Every August, the city of Yokkaichi in Mie prefecture holds the Yokkaichi Matsuri festival, in which a massive clockwork rendition of a yokai called the Onyudo is rolled out for the crowds. The six-meter monstrosity, which is operated by a crew of people inside the figure, features swinging arms, tapping feet, and -- best of all -- a snake-like neck that extends the head out another three meters from the body, blinking and sticking out its tongue all the while. It's a Twentieth-century reconstruction of a karakuri that debuted in 1869, according to local sources.

Japan has a long tradition of clockwork automata performing in festivals, but few have survived into the modern era. Yokkaichi Matsuri is one of the few places you can see one today. The festival is held on the first Sunday of every August.

Kappa vs. Toad

A kappa wrestles a toad atop a pumpkin in this netsuke Hiroko and I found several years back. Provenance unknown. The faces look startlingly modern-anime-esque, but then again, Japanese artists have been toying with the building blocks of "kawaii" design for centuries.

Tenguspotting

Mount Takao, an hour west of Tokyo by train, is one of the city's favorite getaways. It also happens to be the stomping grounds of a yokai known as the Tengu -- mountain goblins from folklore. Don't believe me? Look at how many we spotted up there this weekend!

Tengu come in two distinct "species" -- the Karasu-, or Raven-Tengu, and the Hanadaka-, or Longnose Tengu. Check the faces and you'll see what I mean.

Yokai Etiquette

"Applying makeup on the train!? It's enough to scare a yokai!"

Now here's a train-etiquette sign that would only make sense to Japanese commuters (or someone who's read Yokai Attack!) A nopperabo ("faceless one") puts on her makeup as other yokai look on, including a One-Eyed Boy, a Kappa, a Snake-Necked Woman, and a haunted umbrella.

Personally, I've never had a big problem with people (or monsters) applying makeup on the train, but maybe that's because I almost never have to commute during rush hour.

Das Foot

Close encounter of the five-toed kind: an "Ashiarai Yashiki" resin figure, sculpted and cast in holiday hues by my pal Servbot30!

Inspired by Yokai Attack, this has to be the world's first and only "action figure" based on the creature. It's a massive disembodied foot that crashes through ceilings demanding to be washed -- a terror of the Edo period. (Wash it and it leaves; ignore it and it goes on a unipedal rampage through your living room.) 

Serv says he's hard at work on other yokai, so stay tuned...

Reading Rainbow

I am now the master of unlocking. 

This Friday, I'll be appearing on NHK World's show Japan Unlocked to discuss Koji Suzuki's pioneering J-horror book Ring and Japanese ghost stories in general. Thrill to top-notch special effects as hosts Jonathan Scherr, Shelly and I appear in a virtual library set generated by NHK's Master Control Program.

The show will be streamed online here -- check their schedule for broadcast times in your timezone. (Yes, you have to tune in to see it. Sorry.) It's also going to be broadcast worldwide on the NHK World cable channel as well. First airing is 7:30pm on the 14th (EST), followed by an 11:30pm. On the 15th, it'll air at 7:30am, 11:30am, and 3:30pm.  

Death by Kappa

New friends share a quiet moment on the set.

I remember the call like it was yesterday. 

"This is Haraguchi. I'm filming 'Death Kappa' and need an extra gaijin for a few scenes. Can you handle it?"

"I was born to play this role, sir. Literally." 

"Great. And bring Hiroko, too."

Now that the Death Kappa DVD/Bluray is out, the true story can be told. This wasn't our first shot as extras in a monster movie -- that would be our epic, blink-and-you'll-miss-it roles in a crowd of yokai in Takashi Miike's "Yokai Daisenso" -- but this was the first chance we got to actually react. Emote. Method act. Really express the essential humanity of... of... being in a Japanese monster film.

Our role was to occupy the "command center" set up by the military to deal with the giant, nuclear kappa raging through downtown Tokyo.Things started quietly, with us as little more than human backdrops to the action. The extra ranks were filled with pals of the director. Right to left in the photo below, flanking the "real" actor, you can see Kondo Yutaka (illustrator of Ninja Attack!), Hiroko, me, and the Karasawas (creators of the mind-bendingly awesome "King of Pachimono" magazine.) This was a big step up for both of us but Hiroko in particular, who spent most of her time on the Yokai Daisenso set wearing an enormous frog head.

About halfway through the day, Haraguchi had a flash of inspiration. "I need some freaks. Kappa freaks. You!" he said, pointing at me (big surprise), then Kondo, and then Naoki Karasawa. Our job was to react to news of the kappa defeating the human military forces -- and here's the result:

So. Total time spent on set: eight hours. Total screen time: maybe eight seconds. Compensation: a bento lunch. And the experience? Absolutely priceless... Because now I'm one step closer to that elusive goal of becoming a professional kaiju eiga extra. Maybe I'l really luck out and get to actually be stomped by the giant monster next time.

Huh? How's the actual movie? Also priceless. Death Kappa is the Citizen Kane of radioactive yokai movies. Buy it now! Seriously! It's a lot of fun.

Where the Yokai Are

 

When Hiroko and I were writing Yokai Attack, we frequently referred to the International Research Center for Japanese Studies' "Strange Phenomenon and Yokai Legend Database." It's a great resource, but completely text-based. Yesterday, however, they announced the official kick-off of a "Strange Phenomenon and Yokai Legend Image Database"! 

This is big news for yokai lovers. Loaded with close to 2,000 images taken from scrolls, woodblock prints, and other vintage yokai material, this represents the first time so many yokai illustrations have been collected online in one place. Go ahead and give it a try! Kappa! Tengu! Tsukumo-gami! Tesso! A spectacular Nue by Yoshitoshi, who influenced Frank Miller! Even offbeat characters like good ol' Tofu Kozo! The only catch: you need to know at least the hiragana reading of a yokai's name to pull it off. It doesn't accept English-language searches.

Illustrations like this aren't just fun to look at. They are the direct ancestors of manga and anime, the roots of Japan's beloved mascot and kawaii character culture. Believe me, there is a lot of buried treasure slumbering in there. Take the umi-bozu (pictured above) -- sporting a hat made from a "kurobune" (American warship), this is actually a political cartoon of sorts. What else is in there? I don't know... But I'm looking forward to finding out!

Yokai Kicks

I just stumbled on these custom Pro-Keds with a Hyakki Yagyo motif.They're being sold through Zazzle, courtesy of artist Strangeling. Could 2010 be the Year of the Yokai abroad? Here's to hoping we see more mash-ups like this!

Stop Using Cucumbers as a Weapon

"Stop terrorism. Kappa will save the world!" 

(From Sogenji, a.k.a. Kappa Temple, in Asakusa.)