News

Tokyo Big Sight Dōjinshi Event Bars Kuroko's Basketball

The organizers of the Comic City dōjinshi events announced on Friday that they are barring circles from selling Kuroko's Basketball (KuroBasu) items at March 17's Haru Comic City 18 event. The organizers said that they received a request to bar Kuroko's Basketball from the management of the Tokyo Big Sight event complex, in light of the recent spate of threat letters it received.

The same organizers had barred Kuroko's Basketball from the Comic City Osaka 92 event on January 6, and then cancelled February 10's Double Clutch event outright. However, they held the Comic City Tokyo 131 event at Tokyo Big Sight and insisted on allowing Kuroko's Basketball circles. Comic City Tokyo 131 proceeded without incident on January 27.

Tokyo Big Sight is the home of Haru Comic City 18, Comic City Tokyo 131, Comic Market (Comiket, the world's largest dōjinshi event), and the cancelled Double Clutch event. Unlike the other three events, Double Clutch would have been dedicated only to Kuroko's Basketball.

The Comic City organizers said it will continue to discuss how to ensure the safety and security of visitors as much as possible with the Tokyo Bay Police and Tokyo Big Sight, but apologized to the Kuroko's Basketball circles for this latest turn of events.

Background

Since October, more than 30 locations linked to Kuroko's Basketball creator Tadatoshi Fujimaki have received threat letters with powdered and liquid substances. A source in the investigation of the threats said there is a high possibility that the liquid sent to Sophia University (Fujimaki's alma mater) on October 12 could emit a lethal dose of hydrogen sulfide if vaporized.

Several Kuroko's Basketball dōjinshi events throughout Japan have been cancelled in the aftermath of the threats. The "Shadow Trickster 3" event did proceed without incident at the Big Sight on October 20, shortly after the center received its first threat. The official "Kuroko no Basuke produced by Namco Namja Town" event in Tokyo ended 19 days early as a result of the threats, and Animate Café Tennoji in Osaka cancelled a planned Kuroko's Basketball collaboration event.

Touhou Kamuisai 7, an event dedicated to the Touhou Project movement that was scheduled for this month in Sapporo, was also cancelled. The organizers later explained that its venue had received a threat letter specifically directed at the event.

Thanks to Raindrops and Daydreams for the news tip.