My all-time favorite magazine Men’s Knuckle sent an intrepid team of stylists to Kabuki-chō to perform makeovers on young men they thought could use some help achieving that irresistible host club look. Look & learn at the feet of the masters!
Let’s face it – this guy looked hopelessly normal before the stylists pointed him in the right direction. In fact, he might just have been some hapless lost tourist before they pulled him aside. But once they showed him how replacing that tiresome hoodie with a black shirt open to the navel and wrapping his head with a skull-patterned do-rag could infinitely increase his allure, he probably marched right into the nearest club and applied for a job.
This dude’s weakness was admitting he was cold. Hosts NEVER get cold, especially when on “catching” duty on a chilly/rainy/snowy night when there are potential customers to be had. Unbuttoning that coat, replacing the practical t-shirt with an unbuttoned white silk shirt, and accessorizing with a cravat makes all the difference. Oh, and be sure you never show the girls both of your eyes at once.
This guy nearly had it right. Waxed, teased and sprayed hair: check! V-neck t-shirt framing silver and leather jewelry: check! Narrow, extra-long crumpled jeans: check! The only things he was missing were the essential fake fur clothing item (subtly deployed here as an underjacket) and hostly boots trimmed with silver studs and fur. Oh, and wearing a muffler around your neck is SO salaryman. It’s a dead giveaway that you noticed it’s winter.
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Jonelle Patrick writes novels set in Japan, produces the monthly e-magazine Japanagram, and blogs at Only In Japan and The Tokyo Guide I Wish I’d Had
Only In Japan 
I don’t know which I love more: the makeovers or the name of the magazine. Men’s Knuckle. Really?
Yeah, I’ve puzzled over that piece of naming creativity myself. This issue featured a double page mosaic of hostly types all punching their fists toward the cameraman as a sort of new year’s greeting, adding to the mystery.