Derby #112: Japan
    by: cwarrington @ Thursday, September 10, 2009 10:10:58 AM

Land of the Rising Sun. Playground of the samurai and the ninja. Kabuki crucible of Pocky and Hello Kitty. The nerd's Zion, and the world's baseball champion. Once an isolated island kingdom, now a global economic and cultural powerhouse: few nations boast a character as defined, spectacular, and resonant as Japan's. We're sure you have a thousand ideas already, so read this week's rules below and get to work.

Japanese text only - and our rules about offensive content still apply. That means you should explain what your Japanese characters say, or if you don't know what they say, accept the risk that the design will be rejected. We're also relying on users to tattle on Japanese text that's obscene, racist, or otherwise in violation of our rules.

No video-game references. Get out of that box and earn your votes some other way. This rule applies to all Derbies until further notice.