By A. David Cooper > Images by Jeff Laitila
April 2004

As America's number one publisher of record asserts, Japan is, without question, today's capitol of cool. From video gaming, to manga, to anime (animation), to fashion, to architecture, to independent cult films and a long list of unique social trends, Japan is the planet's ever-changing peek into the future.

By planting its first Asia superstore in Tokyo's high-end Ginza district, Apple has confirmed for most the vital importance of being on the scene in Japan. But why has Apple gone through such expense to set up shop on the other side of the world? For that matter, why has much of the Western world become entranced with all things Japanese over the last few years? Is it a mere coincidence that America's hippest film releases in 2003 were Lost In Translation, Kill Bill, and The Last Samurai? Not at all. Hollywood knows, just as Steve Jobs does, that Japan is HOT.

But again, the question is, why? Let's start with some common misconceptions. First off, many Westerners who only take a passing interest in Japan are under the impression that the Japanese are mere imitators. But the reality is far more subtle and complex. From its multi-tiered writing system, to it eclectic cuisine, Japan and its culture are in the business of assimilation and mutation. Non-Japanese things come into Japan one way (language, cars, music, fashion, etc.), are fully integrated into Japanese society, and then are re-imagined and utilized by the Japanese in forms and with utilities that no Western mind could have fathomed.

Detroit's long running automotive empire became Japan's compact car reinvention and subsequent dominance. The Western world's cell phone industries, once far ahead of Asia, now regularly play catch-up with the near-monthly innovations of Docomo NTT in Tokyo. The robotics of Germany and the eggheads at M.I.T. seem to pale in the face of Sony's anthropomorphic Honda Asimo and QrioÑthe first robots to independently walk up stairs, run, play soccer, deliver a baseball pitch, and respond accurately to a number of human commands. Disney's world of animation wonder is slowly succumbing to the more complex plots and characters of Japan's anime industry. And while director Quentin Tarantino paints cartoonish plots based on his childhood Asian cinema obsession, Japan's Takeshi Miike boggles the minds of cinema viewers with sometimes over-the-top (Ichi The Killer), sometimes cult classic odyssey (Visitor Q), and other times incredibly sensitive (Bird Men Of China) films that both explain the Japanese mind, and simultaneously defy many of the conservative conventions buttressing Japanese tradition.

Even as Japan suffers under the strain of a decade long recession, the rest of the world continues to marvel at the country's ability to innovate its way into nearly every industry it targets. For every McDonald's in Tokyo, there are several Yoshinoya's. For every 7-Eleven, there are several Lawson's "combinis" (convenience stores). And now, just before Wal-Mart managed to wiggle its way into Japan, the country's recession has given rise to the 99 Yen Shop, an unaffiliated chain of shops peppering the cities of Japan that stock every product you could ever need, all for 99 yen (around $1.20 US). Not even the Wal-Mart/K-mart mafia has deals that good.