Otaku Spotlight: What's in a Fetish?

Otaku Spotlight: What’s in a Fetish?

So, what is a fetish? (Not to be confused for moe.)

I think the cleanest definition would be: a fixation on a particular object. A fixation. On a particular object. What can be so fascinating that I be especially fixated on a particular object when I watch anime? Granted, these things really do exist in the real world so everything that is so glorified on the anime screen does translate into pragmatic worshiping, if you will. But hey, I’m not just some sick guy with a taste for something stimulating. I didn’t invent this stuff, but I can share what gets me the most.

This is a little think-out-loud for perverts, casual anime fans and anyone else interested in what I got to say. Just be warned though, it is about a particular fetish.

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Let me get this clear: I’m not the kind of pervert you think I am. Okay, so I wrote up some stuff earlier that sounded like I was boasting my prowess and I do kinda, sorta keep up with some guilty pleasures. I find that to be completely healthy in my anime needs, however diminished they’ve been. (I still keep my eye on them at the very least!) While I’m no longer such a youngster, I don’t see myself being at Master Roshi level quite yet. In fact, I have quite a ways to go to catch up to the great Turtle Hermit.

If you’ve been following any of my posts, whether they be anime reviews or other previous spotlights (or the sort), then I made it no secret that I have this glorified love for a girl’s nape. Why the nape? I could have chosen the obvious ones — the eyes, of course — but I think it’s just so overplayed and outdone. Sometimes, they’re just too big and heavily emphasized (still speaking eyes here) that they lose their bounce, er, uh, color. I mean, not to get into practicality, but Japanese girls have something better to hide. I would prefer the mystery that is waiting to be shown, and that is her nape.

Again, I beg the question, why the nape? To be honest, it’s both a funny and stimulating word, and the word hasn’t been in my radar until as of late. It’s not something I say every day because for me, what attracted me to girls were the other obvious features, like her eyes. I am still big on something as transitory as hair, but if I had to choose between a ponytail and a twin tail set, I’d always choose the former because the latter only has negative connotations in society. Or I’d be charged with pedophilia because the running joke with a particular friend is that only young girls have twin tails and he’d say to me in a half-joking manner, “She’s too young for you.” With a bleak smile, I had to nod in agreement but keep an eye out for those elusive twin tails in complete secrecy.

And besides, ponytails are simple, old-school and still sexy. Just saying.

Back to napes — again, again, again, what about them? For me, I hate it when it’s automatically revealed because it ruins the surprise. The nape is always hidden, and when I mean always, I mean always. Luckily in anime, there are obscure angles that are put into use to show interesting point of views, and most fortunately for me, we can see a girl from behind her head.

But I keep avoiding the question: What is it about napes that gets me so fixated, so interested, so attracted?

A girl’s nape, to me especially, is a sign of her beauty. It’s always partially shown but never fully exposed because it makes her either indecent or too straightforward. It’s a sign of her maturity when she is able to show it. If I may go a step further, it is a showcase of her sexuality. Can’t see her breasts? Then I think her neck, shoulder and back are plenty enough to be stimulating. It’s teasing and tickling, and it invokes curiosity. The best part is, it doesn’t even have to be in a dirty manner even if it implies it.

So I have a nape fetish. It applies to real life as well as anime life — the land of the 2D. I see a certain female character’s hair go up whether in a bun or a high ponytail and I know something’s up. Maybe she’s going to a festival and wants to impress a guy she likes, or maybe she just wants a passport photo with a mature aura. Sometimes, all it really takes is for her to expose that nape and that explosive nature suddenly has some sensuality behind it. It’s charming and seductive and doesn’t need to be censored. Yet, it hides behind her hair or partially under the collar of her shirt and it’s just enough not to go overboard. It’s subtle, and that’s exactly to my tastes.

Of course, I do keep an open mind to other fixations. I know for a time, I had an obsession with high socks and glasses, the latter now making me realize that nerdy is my type. Throw in a skirt (school uniform or casual) and a fun personality and you get a character like Rise from Persona 4. I mean, talk about making her the complete set, including the nape. Somehow, I still can’t myself to like her all that much, but she’s the best example that comes to mind when it comes to having all of my fetishes in one shot. Yes, that includes those ever dangerous twin tails. Make them fly in the wind and you can pretty much imagine me with a nosebleed. (Kidding, duh.)

What’s in a fetish? For me, a fetish doesn’t have to be dirty. It’s interpreted to be something of a taboo for those innocent enough to believe that desires cannot be had or uncontrolled. But I’ve been around the block in anime, and since girls are always so damn perfect, I can’t help but pick and choose everything I like. My top choice is the nape for all the reasons above. If I was any more poetic and could craft my words better, I’d write an essay and find better images and even locate some of the older blog posts from elsewhere that I’ve read. I remember reading about ankles and that got me started. I read obvious ones like eyes and skirts and all that jazz, but it didn’t strike me as hard as it did when I discovered this fascination over a girl’s nape. For the sake and purposes of this spotlight, I put some weight on anime girls.

Really, aren’t they just perfect little creations?

A girl’s nape, quietly put on display to be seen and hidden. I got a fetish fever and it’s all on the nape.