Those of you who are J-pop fans probably mourned a little bit when local FM radio content went from 24/7 to a few hours every week on the K-pop station with DJ Chikapin’s “J-Morning Saturday” (woo-hoo!). I was sad, but I eventually adjusted; K-pop does have its fair share of catchy tunes, after all (and equally weird music videos, too; hello, Orange Caramel). It’s only when I was writing this Halloween edition of the Ota-Cool Incoming calendar that I realized the biggest void KORL 97.1’s conversion from J-pop to hip-hop left on the local radio landscape.
Namely, we aren’t getting Halloween Junky Orchestra’s “Halloween Party” played several times a day, every day, during this month anymore.
But we will soldier on, dear readers. Mostly because in the Year of All the Things, there’s not much time to sit around and mourn — there’s just too much to do. This particular round starts with what I like to call National Cosplay Recognition Day on Saturday, and Halloween Comicfest. Think of it as being exactly like Free Comic Book Day, except with more orange and spooooooky motifs in the promotional logos.
There’s quite a bit of anime/manga-fan-friendly stuff being handed out this time around, including “Birth of Kitaro” from Drawn & Quarterly (hey, more translated GeGeGe no Kitaro is being released! Yay!), Junji Ito’s “Fragments of Horror” from Viz, and a mini Yo-kai Watch comic, also from Viz. Fans of more traditional comics have Archie, Harley Quinn, Doctor Strange, Batman, Spider-man and Avengers stories to look forward to, among others.
Participating stores around the state include:
- Other Realms (The Nimitz Center, 1130 N. Nimitz Highway, suite C-140, Iwilei)
- Gecko Books & Comics (1151 12th Ave., Kaimuki)
- Dragon’s Lair (95-1840 Meheula Parkway, space E-10, Mililani)
- Westside Comics and Games (590 Farrington Highway, #538, Kapolei)
- Maui Comics and Collectibles (333 Dairy Road, #102, Kahului)
Selection will vary depending on what each individual retailer orders, so don’t get too upset if what you’re looking for isn’t available. Make sure to buy something else from the store, too; they may be free to you, but they certainly aren’t free for the people providing them.
In the afternoon, there’s the AMHI Halloween Walk. Anime Matsuri Hawaii and KZOO Radio are co-hosting this stroll through Ala Moana Center. Dress to impress in your finest cosplay or J-fashion coordinates, and you could win an upgrade to a Superpass — the convention’s VIP pass — or a free autograph session with a guest who’d normally have a paid session. The fun starts in front of the KZOO studio in Shirokiya at 2 p.m. Saturday and runs through 4 p.m.
After the walk, you have several options: Stick around to hand out treats in front of the KZOO studio between 5 and 6 p.m. (download the security release form here); position yourself for nighttime Halloween hijinks in Waikiki; or head over to the Blaisdell Concert Hall for the Hawaii Symphony Orchestra’s live performance of the Nightmare Before Christmas soundtrack, starting at 7:30 p.m.
Or if you prefer (or live closer toward west or central Oahu and don’t feel like driving aaaaaaaaall the way into town), you could hop into your vehicle of choice and head on over to attend the Halloween Cosplay Runway at Pearlridge Center. Kawaii Kon and Comic Con Honolulu are hosting this kickoff to Pearlridge Center’s Trick-or-Treat Extravaganza. Talk about your costume, then just work it on stage, baby. That’s taking place at the Pearlridge Uptown Center Court from 5 to 6 p.m.
Have fun and stay safe out there, folks. And don’t eat too much candy. You’ll rot your teeth out.
Elsewhere around town
Anime Matsuri Hawaii: I’ll have a full update on all the upcoming cons in my next post, but for now I should mention that the deadline for online preregistration for AMHI is fast approaching; cutoff time is 11:59 p.m. local time Saturday. So if you’ve been on the fence about attending this convention on Thanksgiving weekend, now’s the time to decide if you’re going to pay $55 for a three-day pass for it (or $20 if there’s a child ages 6-12 involved, or $150 if you’d like to go the VIP Superpass route). Tickets for the Grand Tea Party at the Ala Moana Hotel ($35; Sunday, Nov. 29, noon-3 p.m.) are also running scarce. Guests include voice actors Maile Flanagan, Johnny Yong Bosch and Crispin Freeman; Justin Rojas from Funimation; Masahiko Otsuka, Studio Trigger president; professional cosplayers Vampy, Goldy, Yuegene Fay, Stella Chuu and Reiko; Yui Minakata, fashion model featured in KERA and the Gothic Lolita Bible; and fashion designers Shunsuke Hasegawa (Putumayo) and Chinatsu Taira (Metamorphose). Visit hawaii.animematsuri.com.
The Anthem of the Heart: From the makers of Anohana: The Flower We Saw That Day: The Movie: The One Based on the Anime Series: Which They Also Did comes another tale of emotionally scarred youths which, judging by the official synopsis, seems like it could be another tearjerker:
Jun is a girl whose words have been sealed away. She was once a happy girl, but because of a certain thing she said when she was very young, her family was torn apart. One day, the egg fairy appeared in front of her and sealed away her ability to talk in order to stop her from hurting anybody else. Since this traumatic experience, Jun lives in the shadows away from the limelight. But, one day she is nominated to become an executive member of the “community outreach council.” On top of that, Jun is also appointed to play the main lead in their musical…
Bring your tissues or handkerchiefs to the Consolidated Ward Stadium 16 theaters at 7 p.m. Monday and noon Nov. 7. For more info on the movie, visit anthemoftheheart.com.
Otaku Ohana 
KZOO 1210AM sometimes also plays some J-Pop in the evenings after 6pm. Sometimes they’ll play a whole hour of anime themes with little commercial interruptions. Less if the DJ who I doubt is getting paid is hosting that night.