When Mel Ushikubo, 35, saw the name of her future husband, Kohei, on the Internet, she immediately wanted to see him in person, as that was the name of a character in one of her favorite anime.
"I was an anime freak, and saw about 100 anime, including 'Naruto,' 'One Piece' and 'Orange Road' in Canada."
The couple met in Vancouver in September 2006, first getting in touch with each other through the website of Vancouver Japanese Language Meetup, a group that arranges exchange programs between Japanese and Canadians.