The ever increasing mound of free papers on my desk is threatening to either topple over and bury me like the rubble from an earthquake or bend desk irreparably into a weird shape. Solutions available? Well, as Confucius once said, he who tidies his desk will discover wisdom. (Very homocentric guy was Confucius...) But concerning the wisdom bit, he was right on the ball. See, there are wisdoms and wits just waiting to be stirred into brain stimulating activity in my gigantic pile, and despite my love for cleaning out, developed in small spaces in Tokyo where keeping tidy was de riguere, I haven't been able to bring my self to get rid of the legions of magazines in my apartment yet. In fact, I seem to be a bit of a prisoner to them!
My Stockholm syndrome like condition has me nodding in agreement as I read them, and occasionally laughing like a paralytic maniac at three am in Liverpool on Friday night on occasion! What kind of sweet trap have I let myself fall into so willingly? See, I'm a sucker for free things, and when I spotted a rather innocent looking magazine in Size the other day, giving me eyes like a desperate charity fund raiser, I just had to say "Yes! I will help the free magazine community by delving into the new issue of the new magazine Rader! Yay!" Well, I didn't really say that, I just picked it up, raised an eyebrow and slipped in into my bag to be read at a later minute. And, what a read it was. More of a look really, as it was big on imagery and somewhat more minimalistic with the actual words.
But any magazine that recommends you to visit Tokyo by virtue of the fact that there are many virgin otaku guys in Akihabara where fresh blood can be obtained by virtue of their, erm, virtue is definitely a class act! Heck, I'd rather have a blood donation from a mangafied virgin guy than some Shibuya backstreets girl who's had half the Crews in the area already, probably leaving them distinctly browner in the process! Of course, there are other reasons to visit Tokyo besides that, maybe there are some of you who prefer the Shibuya backstreets girls with more fake tan on than Jordan on a bad day to the otaku strewn wastelands of Akihabara. Personally, I'd prefer to go to Harajuku and try on some of the more bizarre items of couture, if I don't have to under go surgery to even be able to consider the putting on of these "kawaii" garments. But, that's just me. Le Monsieur is just of himself, after all.
But, in all seriousness, Rader has the snap, brightness and originality of concept that makes the best magazines what they are. Sure, they could have done with a translator with a bit less American in their brain, but that's forgivable for now. Afterall, it's not often one finds a Japanese free paper in a Liverpool boutique. Curiosity did indeed bite me in the right place, instead the orifice it usually nips into submission.
Le Monsieur
No comments:
Post a Comment