Harajuku is famous for its fashion. Stylish young Japanese women flock to its boutiques, snapping up the latest trendy threads. But now, a new crowd is coming: The anime nerds.
Today, a Neon Genesis Evangelion themed shop, dubbed Evangelion Store Tokyo-01, opened up in Harajuku.
Neon Genesis Evangelion is an iconic Japanese manga and anime that launched in the mid-1990s.
On hand for a Nov. 21 event was actress and cosplay dork Natsuki Kato. Dressed as the character Misato, Kato said, "When you say 'otaku hotspots', the standard places are Nakano and Akihabara, right? I think this place will go on to be the third otaku hotspot."
Kato, who also works as a fashion model, is famous for her love of anime, video games, and cosplay. She also likes flash games with lady slapping.
Also on hand were "race queens" (think cheerleaders for race car teams). In recent years, Evangelion launched its own racing teams (both car and motorbike).
The first floor is clothing and other apparel, much of it appearing to be Eva themed. The second floor is filled with various Eva goods. The above photos, courtesy of IT Media, should give you a good idea what to expect.
For those keen to journey out of Tokyo nerdom (read: Akihabara and Nakano Broadway), here is a map to the Eva store.
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(Top photo: 山本恵太 | IT Media)
You can contact Brian Ashcraft, the author of this post, at bashcraft@kotaku.com. You can also find him on Twitter, Facebook, and lurking around our #tips page.