Hangry & Angry: Anime, Comics and More at NYComicCon

I went to New York Comic Con and New York Anime Festival recently specifically to see the Japanese anime characters Hangry & Angry. I didn’t find out until later that the event is the East Coast’s largest pop culture convention. Along the way I also discovered a new-to-me comic strip, Soul Exodus.

Hangry & Angry, an offshoot of the Japanese design company h. Naoto, blends cartoon characters (created by illustrator Gashakon, shown at right in the photo above) with a girl rock band of the same name (created to promote the cartoons) and a fashion clothing line (which serves as the rockers’ outfits and also is sold retail) and with Hangry & Angry music videos.

To me, the Hangry & Angry kitties (shown above) look like “Hello Kitty” gone bad. But Gashakon said she wasn’t thinking of or inspired by the popular Japanese cartoon cat when creating her characters. The Hangry & Angry band has a top song, “Kiss Me, Kill Me" and wears Japanese inspired Goth and Lolita outfits. The characters, band and anime are very much in the present.


In contrast, the comic Soul Exodus is based in the Armageddon so looks to the future. Both Soul Exodus and Hangry & Angry were among hundreds of exhibitors at NYComicCon, which showcased the latest in video games, comics, anime, manga, graphic novels and related toys. In most cases, illustrators manned the booths and talked with attendees, many who dressed up as their favorite anime, comic strip and video game characters, including Lara Croft, the Incredible Hulk, and Neytiri, the Amazon character from the movie “Avatar.”


For more info on Hangry & Angry and Japanese fashions, see the Japan Fashion Now exhibit at the Museum at  FIT in New York.