There's a lot of interesting cultural work going on with the phenomenon of otaku and their relationship to media in Japan, and some of it's inspiring for resear

There's a lot of interesting cultural work going on with the phenomenon of otaku and their relationship to media in Japan, and some of it's inspiring for research in the West too. Patrick Galbraith explores the lolicon phenomenon, for instance. What gets to me most is when people treat them with derision or contempt or buzzwords to dismiss their problems, plight, and twisted as it may seem to us, way of life. I genuinely think that many hikkikomori or otaku have a more refined appreciation of the fictional world than those who must live day to day in the real world.