In a city full of cafes and coffee houses catering to different tastes, a new breed of Tokyo cafe has appeared for people who love to hang out with rabbits.
Ra.a.g.f (pronounced ''raf''), which opened last fall in the fashionable Jiyugaoka area, is usually packed at weekends with customers reveling in the company of its 20 to 30 rabbits.
Customers who want to buy rabbits can do so from the cafe's breeding center, but the cafe's rabbit 'staffers' are not for sale.
Cafe manager Maria Fuwa cautions, however, that the rabbits must have a suitable home to go to and not end up being abandoned later on.
"Usagi Cafe Ohisama" (rabbit cafe, the sun), which was launched by a pet shop operator in Shimokitazawa last year, is also buzzing at weekends, with women making up the majority of its customers.
The cafe has about 30 rabbits. The most popular is a rabbit called "Naito-kun" that lives with cafe manager Asami Yoshimura.
Another rabbit cafe in the same area of Tokyo is "Usagi no Ehon" (rabbit picture books). Given that many live music houses and small theaters are in the vicinity, it's a gathering spot for musicians and actors.
The cafe has seven rabbits, displays pictures books and sells rabbit-themed merchandise.
The cosplay outfit store chain Cospa announced that it will offer denim jeans inspired by the Black Rock Shooter.
A Black Rock Shooter blue star print, original patch, and chain-shaped pocket stitching appear on the back of the jeans.
They also feature star rivets, turquoise blue stitching, and checkerboard fabric inside the front pockets. The blue jeans will be available in six sizes from 26-inch to 36-inch and cost 15,750 yen (about US$205).
Cospa's general sale of the jeans will begin at the end of April, but the Noitamina online shop is now accepting pre-orders for the jeans to ship at the end of March. Cospa is also offering a variety of other Black Rock Shooter apparel and accessory items including a T-shirt, windbreaker, cell phone pouch, and bags.
"Black Rock Shooter The Game" Cover
The Black Rock Shooter television anime premiered in Fuji TV's Noitamina timeslot on February 2.
The Nico Nico Douga video-streaming service's Nico Nico Channel began streaming the series in 17 countries with subtitles in eight languages on February 3.
Crypton Future Media President Hiroyuki Itoh announced on February 7 that one of the snow sculptures of its Vocaloid character Hatsune Miku will be rebuilt at Sapporo, after the sculpture collapsed earlier in the day.
Itoh anticipated that the rebuilding will be completed before daybreak this Saturday, February 11.
The collapse occurred at about 4:30 p.m. at the main area of the Sapporo Snow Festival in Odori Park. A clump of snow struck the back of a 61-year-old female sightseer, who was taken to a hospital. Itoh express his company's regret and sympathies for the incident.