And the best publication title goes to...

When I first saw this, I had to do a double take to make sure I was reading it correctly. And yes, I did. This is a real title of a real publication.

I found this magazine when Mark and I had dinner at Friday's in Shibuya about a month back. Among the plethora of free publications on the waiting area, this easily stood out among the clutter. After all, the title alone is enough to make you stop, squish your eyes to see if you're reading it correctly, then pick it up if only for the amusement factor.

Creatively, the title is spot on, after all, it is a publication for foreign women living in Japan. The articles talk about being a woman living in Japan as well. Ergo, the title is a play of words. "Being abroad" pertains to living in a foreign country, then if you separate the A from broad, the title now pertains to being a woman. Clever, eh.

Then again, being called "a broad" isn't the most flattering thing. If I remember all the American movies I've seen, being called a "broad" is almost derogatory. It probably goes with the other B words like bimbo and beee-yotch. This makes me wonder if the subscribers and readers are cool with being referred to using that term. Hmmm... I wonder.

When I showed it to my colleagues, they were telling me that it feels like it came straight out one of those "Inggrish" sites. Of course, my reaction was: "This doesn't deserve to be there. This is way, way, WAY above that." This deserves to be right beside my favorite brands and titles such as: "Victor Woodworks", "Anita Bakery", "Where Angels Fear to Thread and Needle Shop", and of course, "Mercy Buko Pie."

Now those are titles really worth remembering.


LU-ANN!!! Why can't we come up with publication titles like this. Harhar.