A little trivial thing that vinyl lovers should know...

[Ms. Geek]

Obitsu rhymes with Chobits. Emphasis on the first syllable, final u dropped. Don't ask me where I found this out but it's quite official. And here I was saying Oh-BIT-soo for years. Must respect old man Obitsu...yes, the company is named after its founder, Obitsu Saburo. (Obitsu is the family name, Saburo the given name.)

[Greyhaunt]

Actually, its a yes and a no to this. Technically obitsu would be pronounced oh-bee-tsue if you follow proper Japanese pronunciation (the letter i is pronounced like "ee" not like the i in bit). However, just as speakers of English often drop or slur letters when pronouncing common words (happenin' instead of happening) the Japanese often do not really pronounce the u in the su combination. That's why desu sounds like des, suki sounds like ski, etc...

Unfortunately, the "bi" in Obitsu is definitely pronounced "bee" not like the bi in "bit". I can confirm that because a) I'm studying Japanese, b) I have a japanese co-worker who confirmed that and c) I have a Japanese sister-in-law who can confirm it.

As for rhyming with Chobits - since that's a word that CLAMP made up they can pronounce it any way they want to so I really couldn't say.

Sumimasen

[Iwa_Hoshi]

I tend to pronounce Obitsu as in 'O -bit-soo'(My Japanese sensei is gonna smack me in the head for this) and shorten it to 'Obi' as in Japanese Kimono belt obi

[Kd_Bunchanumbers]

I just assumed the T was silent and called it Oh-by-soo.

<_<;

[Greyhaunt]

Nope, the T is definitely pronounce, it's the Tsu sound which can be really tricky to get right - think of anime characters like Tsuzuki (Descendants of Darkness), Tsubasa (Tsubasa Chronicles)

[cirquemom]

Meh. I just call them "Cheap Ugly Inferior Dolls".*

*for those who don't know me, I'm kidding.

[absynthe1972]

Tsu sound which can be really tricky to get right

I'm totally out of the loop about the anime characters. Hmmm...maybe like the German ts sound...like the end of the word bi*ts*?

[Alopecia No Hime]

Obitsu's are also like Angels from Angelic Layer another CLAMP series. I've seen several BJD references such as customization the joints when you see the first episode. And I noticed they used an almost skeletal design similar to ElfDoll's logo.

Sorry. Angelic Layer is how I found out about BJD's and Obitsu's.

[skookum hime]

Obitsu's are also like Angels from Angelic Layer another CLAMP series. I've seen several BJD references such as customization the joints when you see the first episode. And I noticed they used an almost skeletal design similar to ElfDoll's logo.

Sorry. Angelic Layer is how I found out about BJD's and Obitsu's.

Dontcha just love angelic layer?! Its one of the reasons I got my first doll. And now my boyfriend and I are going to make our own angels XD

[AlmySidaKay]

Angelic Layer! Also the reason I got into BJD's as well! Apparently that show is: part show, part subliminal message. :p