Excellent ideas…I especially like your second point – it’s certainly inspired my way of looking at the subject. Never thought of it like that actually. Thanks for the input =)

2. The importance of nonverbal communication in Japan. I’m not sure whether this is the situation right now in Japan, but apparently ‘public displays of emotion and affection are considered inappropriate’.
One implication is that, Japanese people tend to conform to something that has been mass publicized, rather than speaking out about their individual opinions. Thus more ‘obsession’ with fandom.
Secondly, the ‘nonverbal communication’ means pictures, emotions, body language, and music – softer and less personalized ‘voices’ ie, anime, fictional characters, etc. In addition to their tendency to conform, fandom could be perceived as a method of nonverbally displaying their opinions/preferences/what they like.

3. You said, “anime is an escapist medium that really emphasizes its fans getting deeply involved with its stories and characters”. But what are they escaping from? Perhaps the ‘silent society’ I mentioned above? Repeat : fandom is a ‘softer’ way of telling other people what you like, and thus an escape from that pressure to be silent about yourself.

For example, a single episode of a kid’s anime usually sells for a few thousands dollar. While a US or European cartoon would sell for $10-20k per episode! Because the Japanese sellers are hoping they’ll make more though merchandise sales, while US and European sellers mostly make money and profits on their cartoons through sales of broadcasting rights.

As for merchantdise in general. Its been pretty much stated by other already. Plus, I also think americans would much rather spend their money on other things than merchantdice from their favorite TV show. Like music CDs from different artists, DVDs from a variety of movies/Tv, useless gadgets and of course, you have to take into account the gas prices, and America is much bigger in size than japan, so people depend on their cars more…

Zeroblade and DrmChsr0 have generally got it figured out. Since the old days of mecha anime, anime has been about merchandising. However, since anime is generally part of the mainstream in Japan (unlike here, where most cartoons are relegated to “kids” status), that merchandising focus must not come from anime itself, but from the Japanese economy.

As such, Japanese entertainment companies have figured out the number one way to continue to make money from their franchises: merchandising. By creating more and more items for fans to buy, the companies can bring in money long after a show or movie has been released. Just look at Getter Robo toys and models, which still sell to this day. This ideal applies to any entertainment property with a financial value. Disney movies? If it makes money, MAKE MERCHANDISE!

The strangest creature of all is the American otaku. He has taken the idea of the Japanese otaku – the “superconsumer” – crafted by Japanese entertainment companies, and made it his own. However, this American superconsumer lives in a world where those accelerated consumer ideals do not exist. He lives to buy more and more items related to his fandom, even though that fandom is only being brought over to the United States in small quantities.

A fish out of water, if I may.