We know it’s supposedly the reign of Dae Jung Guem, Song Kae-kyo and Mr. washboard stomach himself, Rain. But we just have “a feeling”—maybe from those Chivas parties (or drinking too much Chivas)—that the popularity of Japanese culture may be on the rise again. Even if this is not the case, Japan has never ceased to be a source of fascination and inspiration.

After all, the Korean wave has a short history when compared with our love of things from the Land of the Rising Sun—and we don’t see kimji replacing sushi or ramen on our lists of favorite foods anytime soon. Though we don’t exactly have fond memories of the entire time, Thai-Japan relations are 600 years old. Now there are an estimated 90,000 Japanese living in Bangkok, one of the largest concentrations of Japanese outside of Nihon.

And it’s not just flyovers we have the Japanese to thank for. We like their style: fashion, music, art, food and all the cute stuff that they make. It may not be the flavor of the day, but there are still many hardcore fans of Japanese culture here, both young and adult.

Only those whip-smart trendwatchers can truly say when the next Japanese wave will come, but when it does, you’ll want to be ready.

Ready to Play?

Though most of us tend to focus more on Paris or Milan, J-fashion continues to be popular in Bangkok. It’s just that we’ve adopted and adapted so much from Tokyo that we consider it ours. But that’s the mainstream.

One of the hottest—and maybe weirdest—trends for Thais (but not Japanese expats) is cosplay. Short for “costume play” and pronounced “kosupure” by Nihon-jin, the cosplay look is mostly inspired by comics but sometimes also by movies, video games and music. Manga (comics) fanatics, for example, will dress head to toe exactly like their favorite character, from studly anime robot Gundam to doe-eyed Sailor Moon. A hugely popular look is “gothic Lolita,” a mixture of French maid, Alice in Wonderland and Victorian doll. Most Lolitas opt for black, but white is acceptable, too. Headgear is a must, whether it’s ribbon, lace, a bow or tiara.

In Thailand, there are people who love to cosplay—and it’s not only crazy youngsters, either; your boss could be one of them. The communities of cosplayers are mostly on the Internet but they have get-togethers from time to time, where they show off their fantasy outfits—and of course take lots of photos. Say cheesu!

The best way to get started is to check out some of the webboards on cosplay sites. Even though you are 100% Thai, you’ll need a Japanese name before you start chatting and posting. www.cosplaybox.com is a cute website with webboard, event notification and post-event pictures—go there to be inspired. www.ezra.ai-scream.net is a place for fans of Ezra, a Thai band a la L’Arc-en-Ciel. When Ezra perform at concerts, die-hard fans come in costume, most of them as L’Arc-en-Ciel. http://board.thaimisc.com/cosplay is a webboard where you can buy or sell second-hand cosplay clothing, ask and answer questions from cosplayers and get updates on events.

Cosplaying can get expensive, so most people make their clothes themselves. Some say D-I-Y outfits are also more meaningful. Check out Lucifer’s post at http://board.thaimisc.com/cosplay for a discussion on the charm of wearing an outfit of your own making.

Ready to play? Vivi (352 Siam Square, under Siam Theater, Rama 1, 01-722-5608) has many regular customers who love their over-the-top Japanese clothes. Super Funk by Chic Clothing (at Chatuchak project 16, Soi 6 and project 15, Soi 1, 01-672-6617, 06-946-3766) sells funky Japanese costumes and also makes clothing to order.

Other Looks

Among certain groups of girls (and a growing number of boys), tanned skin is hot in Japan. The look is called ganguro, literally blackface, and it includes colorful mini-skirts, blonde hair, sunglasses, thick black or white eyeliner and loads of accessories. Also, if you’re a real ganguro, your mobile must be covered with purikura (“print club”) stickers. For inspiration, see Peach Girl, a popular Japanese comic, at www.tokyopop.com/manga. Ganguro males are few, but increasing. As for the fellas, dress yourself in beachwear—vest and gang gaeng lae, beach-bag—and grow a goatee. Dreadlocks are good, as well.
You don’t actually have to sit in the sun. There are all kinds of tanning lotions and powers on the market. Visit a M.A.C. cosmetics counter (Try 2/F, Siam Discovery Center, 02-658-0282) and pick up some of their newly-introduced Platinum Bronze SPF 27/PA+ (B1,150), which comes in both bronze and gorgeous gold colors.

In Thailand, wearing foreign luxury brands is more khun ying and khun pa, but young Japanese are crazy about Gucci, Channel, Tiffany and Louis Vuitton. Start with a bag—LV always works—and then you have a choice of two different directions for the brand name style. One is the head-to-toe mindless fashion victim look; the other is similar to ganguro style—once again the mini-skirt is the answer to everything.

Gothic punk is mostly inspired by rock music—X-Japan or Malice Mizer. This one is easy to pull off: You can have any color you like so long as it’s black: black T-shirt, black jeans or pants, black leather jacket, black boots. (Really dark brown is acceptable for leather goods.) Add chains and thorns to taste. Body piercings and tattoos are a bonus. Unlike those silly ganguro girls, you want your skin to be as white as a baby’s butt. So paint your face pale, then add dark red, black or purple lipstick and heavy, dark-colored eyeliner. Many female goths prefer menswear, with nothing sexy or revealing. Visit Meeh Oan (Fat Bear), (Chatuchak, project 5, Soi 2) or Gorgeous (Siam Square Soi 4, Behind Boots, 09-812-2701).

The Music

You are what you listen to. Cosplayers and gothic punks are mostly J-rock fans, and they often look down on J-pop. Their idols are the legendary X-Japan, L’Arc-en-Ciel and Dir en Gray. Albums by these bands aren’t so easy to come by in Thailand—especially if you must have every special edition record and CD single—but thankfully the internet is just a click away.

More mass market are the fresh-faced boys who belt out pop songs. They have a large following in Thailand, and local labels like Sony, EMI and Universal are now indulging their fans by releasing their CDs here.

Whatever sound suits you, they have it all at I:Shimaru (268, Siam Square Soi 3, 02-658-1886), the center of the universe for the Japan-mad in Bangkok. What they don’t stock they can order for you, and this includes films. Any questions, just talk to Pee Daeng. Here are their five best-sellers:

1. Best of Kat-Tun/Kat-Tun. A compilation of concerts and TV appearances by the hottest pop act at the moment.

2. Faith/Hyde. Solo album by the lead singer from L’Arc-en-Ciel.

3. Thanks/W-inds. Pretty J-pop trio.

4. Ken Hirai 10th Anniversary Complete Single Collection/Ken Hira. King of Japanese R&B.

5. Time/Wat. Cute pop tunes by cute pop duo.

The Books

This is a no-brainer here in Thailand, as we start “reading” manga (comics) even before we learn to read. Even as adults, many Thais prefer Japanese comic books—Conan, Evangelion, Dragon Ball, Hens and Doraemon—to the newspaper. Far from a worthless hobby, you can learn a lot from comic books (really)—vocabulary, culture and history, for example. Many comic books make it to the small and big screens. Nana and Death Note became films and GTO was made into a hugely successful TV series shown on ITV. There are comic book shops near every school, but you’ll be better off shopping at Kumo Comic Books (Under Siam Theater, 01-720-4471) or O-Zone Team (250 Siam Square Soi 2, 02-251-5866, 01-499-4606). Your essential list, courtesy of O-Zone Team.

1. Conan. A high school detective hiding from the mafia is transformed into a kid.

2. Death Note. A teenage boy cleanses the world of evil with the help of his magic notebook.

3. One Piece. The Straw Hat Pirates set sail to find the hidden treasure of the dead pirate king.

4. Berserk. A warrior possessing armor with special powers fights the bad guys.

5. Vagabond. An adaptation of a legendary story about samurai Miyamoto Musashi.

The Talk

Wanna walk the walk? It helps if you can talk the talk. Or at least sing along to Japanese songs. (A tip: This is a great way to hook up with cute Japanese tourists, as often they know very little English.) Try these schools for your first lesson. Kambate!

School of Language and Culture, Technology Promotion Association (5-7 Sukhumvit Soi 29, 02-258-0320, 02-662-1019, www.tpa.or.th, B2,400-3,700 for 60 hours) offers one of the best deals in the city. Despite what you might expect, the courses aren’t budget: The lessons are very systematic and well-organized, albeit a bit old-fashioned.

Mainichi Japanese Language Institute (29/1 Unico Bldg., 1/F, Ploenchit Rd., 02-255-5382/-5, B4,800 for 45 hours) will teach you like a Japanese kid. Japanese teachers speak only in Japanese and you learn “naturally” mainichi (every day).

Waseda Education (195, The Empire Tower, 15/F, South Sathorn Rd., 02-670-3456, www.thaiwaseda.co.th, B6,400 for 33 hours) is relatively more expensive than the others, but the quality of instruction is very high. Waseda University is the number one private university in Japan.