'Painful' graduation

Graduation season is in full swing, and this year, many Chinese students are adding a unique twist to the tradition — drawing inspiration from "ita bag culture", a Japanese trend where fans decorate bags with character merchandise. The term translates literally into Chinese as "pain bag", reflecting the emotional and financial devotion of fans.

Building on this idea, students have created "pain caps" and "pain gowns" by adorning their academic regalia with anime badges, figurines, and other merchandise from their favorite franchises.

The trend has become a hit on social media, with related topics garnering over 4 million views on the Chinese lifestyle-sharing platform Xiaohongshu.

One graduate in Shanghai spent three hours arranging the colors and positioning of each badge on her robe to ensure they were all clearly visible. A PhD graduate in Beijing took it even further, attaching more than 60 badges from The Prince of Tennis, a popular 2001 Japanese anime, to her gown. She brought a doll of her favorite character, Fuji Syusuke, to the ceremony — and even received a surprise when the school principal granted the doll an academic tassel.

For many students, these fandoms go far beyond nostalgia. The characters they grew up with became emotional anchors throughout their academic journey. "Thank you, Fuji Syusuke," the PhD student wrote in her thesis acknowledgment. "When my experiments failed, it was Fuji's line — 'Aim higher' — that gave me strength."