Last month we reported on the announcement of the 10th Otaku Masquerade Ball: Oka’s Bizarre Marriage Hunt where otaku looking for love don masks in search of a future life partner.

It finally went down on 27 October with a total of 17 participants (9 men and 8 women) all wearing mask that cover at least the top part of the face.  According to the sponsor, Washimiya Youth Chamber of Commerce, everything went better than they imagined.  In fact it went better than regular marriage hunting parties or gokons!

I have to admit when writing about this event I was skeptical that otaku dancing and concealing their faces until the very end was fraught with potential pitfalls.  However, judging by photos of the event everything went like a well-oiled machine.

I’m not a very good judge guys but they seem alright and the women appear surprisingly hot for otaku.  Granted what’s behind the masks could be a whole other kettle of fish.  However, considering half of the participants ended up forming 4 couples it looks like many were happy with what the found behind the masks.

When writing the previous article, one of the things that especially worried me about this event was the dancing portion. However, in Japan there aren’t school dances or proms like in western countries.

Over here students must do various folk dances from countries like America, Israel, and Poland.  One such popular dance is the “Oklahoma Mixer” which is basically walking in a circle while holding hands to the tune of Turkey in the Straw.  So in Japan, poindexters needn’t fear dancing like in the west since it’s inherently pretty lame. Take a look!

A 50% coupling rate is exceptionally high for this type of event even without the inclusion of otaku and masks.  It’s so good that the Chamber of Commerce is immediately preparing to hold another event at the end of November.  Here are the details.

■  11th Otaku Marriage Hunting Masquerade Ball: “Face Doesn’t Matter As Long As There’s Love“
Date: Fri. 23 November (public holiday)
Time: 13:00 – 17:00
Location: Washimiya Chamber of Commerce (scheduled)
Attendance: Male 10-20 Female 10-20

Everything having fallen into place like it did, there’s no reason for any otaku in the Washimiya area not try their luck at love this way.  Or maybe other communities will get in on the act and you can have a masquerade ball come to you.

Photos courtesy of Otakon (Washimiya Chamber of Commerce)

▼ Kickass gets the win for best mask.  Hope he could hook up because of it.

▼ Who better to lead this gathering than Friend?


[ Read in Japanese ]