ABSTRACT
The uniqueness of The Tatami Galaxy is that it condenses the logic of the transmedia movement of the Japanese media mix into a single series. As such it presents attentive viewers with a visual theorization or parable of the function of the "media mix". The media mix, broadly defined, is the popular and industry term used in Japan to denote the multiple media formation developed across a single franchise. A passionate advocate for considering fandom as a positive force within media studies since the 1990s, he has continued this work into the 2000s, using the concept of "convergence culture" to make the case for the significance of fans and fan activity in contemporary media culture. As The Tatami Galaxy beautifully demonstrates, the media mix may work as much through divergence and bifurcation as addition. Each new strand may add to the contours of a given world or place us in a coexisting yet divergent one.
