• Start Here
  • About Me
  • Books
  • Courses
    • Geek Blogger’s Guide to Your First $1000
    • Niche Reviewer Crash Course
    • Niche Journalism Workbook
  • Journalism
  • Web Design
  • Contact

The Otaku Holiday Shopping Guide

November 18, 201315 commentsLauren Orsini

The otaku in your life already knows where to buy anime. S/he probably already has that Attack on Titan hoodie that every otaku shop is selling right now. Otaku are famous for our geeky shopping sprees. So if you’re looking for something to buy them—that they haven’t already bought for themselves—what do you get?

Here are some fun, functional, and maybe even stylish gifts that that your special otaku might be putting on his or her wish list. As always, links from Amazon are affiliate links.

holiday_guide1

  1. Pisces Tee. Support a small business while showing your interest in anime with one of Boomslank’s original designs. $30, boomslank.com.

  1. Bento Box. Get healthy in distinctly Japanophile style with this BPA free lunch box. Comes in every color of the rainbow! $38, us.monbento.com.

  1. Rei Ayanami USB. Save your Evangelion fan fiction for posterity on this 4 GB memory stick. Works for both Mac and PC. $59, geekstuff4u.com.

  1. A year of Otaku USA. Twelve months, 6 issues, twenty bucks. $19.99, amazon.com.

  1. Hanafuda Cards. The game at the center of Summer Wars is actually pretty fun, and easy to learn, too. $17.50, amazon.com.

holiday_guide2

  1. Kimono Journal. This handmade journal wrapped in Japanese fabric wants to be your offline anime review blog. $18.01, byjanis on Etsy.

  1. Ebi (Shrimp) Pillow. Squid Girl not included. $45, StoneWoodShop on Etsy.

  1. iPhone Case with a Cause. One hundred percent of the proceeds go toward victims of the 2011 earthquake and tsunami in Japan. $19.99, crunchyroll.com.

  1. Akira: 25th Anniversary Edition. Newly remastered, it’s a 1988 classic every anime fan should see. $29, amazon.com.

  2. A year of Crunchyroll. No link yet, but keep an eye out for “Today’s Deal” on Black Friday. Likely the best value of the year. $50, crunchyroll.com.

Thanks to everyone on Twitter who helped me brainstorm ideas!


See also:

  • Even more gift ideas for anime fans, 2016
  • Christmas gifts for anime fans, 2015 edition
  • Christmas presents for anime fans 2014

15 comments. Leave new

Kristina Pino
November 18, 2013 9:06 am

Fantastic list, Lauren. I love that you incorporated a pillow either way, and a far less shocking one. :)

Charles
November 18, 2013 9:57 am

This is terrific!

Chris Bachmann
November 18, 2013 2:12 pm

A year of Shonen Jump? $26/year. Sometimes a special for $20/year.

Lauren Orsini
November 18, 2013 8:04 pm

Thanks Chris! Also a good idea. Which reminds me, I miss Shoujo Beat =(

Zoe Le Loir
November 18, 2013 2:43 pm

Nice list!

The Paper
November 18, 2013 7:39 pm

No imouto pantsu. DISAPPOINT.

Lauren Orsini
November 18, 2013 8:04 pm

This is supposed to be a general otaku holiday list, not The Paper’s Personal Imouto List!

Zarf
November 19, 2013 4:58 pm

I agree with both of you! Great list, Lauren! And how about a more “interesting” list from The Paper, as a follow-up posting!!!

The Paper
November 19, 2013 9:30 pm

My list is just pantsu oriented. Someone else, ahem, added the imouto.

The sushi pillow is pretty…tasty.

It would be cool if every visitor left one item as a comment. Could balloon into an ultimate list.

I am sticking with http://www.fandompost.com/2013/11/06/official-chihayafuru-karuta-cards-introduced/

Zarf
November 19, 2013 11:34 pm

I’d recommend a set of Moekana and Moekanji cards — a fun way to learn (or brush up on) your Japanese syllabaries! and

Zarf
November 19, 2013 11:35 pm

I’d recommend a set of Moekana and Moekanji cards — a fun way to learn (or brush up on) your Japanese syllabaries! http://www.dannychoo.com/en/post/26495/Moekana.html and http://www.dannychoo.com/en/post/26524/Moekanji.html

Serdar (GenjiPress)
November 14, 2014 10:56 am

If you have $250 to blow, the Macross Plus Blu-ray Disc set from Japan, which not only includes English subtitles but English audio. http://www.blu-ray.com/movies/Macross-Plus-Blu-ray/63609/

Christmas present ideas for anime fans | Otaku Journalist
November 17, 2014 8:00 am

[…] so much anime merchandise is the same wherever I go online. So I set a precedent with last year’s Otaku Holiday Shopping Guide to showcase something other than endless Zazzle shirts featuring […]

Otaku Links: Number four will shock you!
November 20, 2015 8:00 am

[…] full of great ideas for somebody who loves all things anime. Also, I checked the Otaku Journalist 2013 and 2014 holiday gift guides, and most of the links still […]

Christmas gifts for anime fans, 2015 edition
December 7, 2015 8:02 am

[…] see what you’re looking for? Be sure to check out my gift guides for anime fans for 2014 and 2013, […]



I write about

Anime

Fandom

Careers

Things for you







My other blogs