[Coda]

Originally Posted by Azrael

cute kawaii... ~shudder~ I'm sorry but that's overkill by far....

~sigh~ There's a reason I have a difficult time thinking of Kawaii as an actual Japanese word and not something we made up online...

Anyway, I can't wait for silvary's hair myself...

It's an actual Japanese word but it has largely the same meaning we attribute to it here. "Kawaii" is a cultural phenomenon and goes a lot deeper than just "looking cute" and goes into a full set of attitudes and expected behaviors. So don't think that Western otaku gave it the definition it has -- no, Western otaku have simply picked up on the visual part of the real definition.

(Now, the word "otaku" on the other hand is considered fairly offensive in Japan -- similar to the idea of "poopsocking" here. It's not something people willingly apply to themselves there.)