Bringing you yesterday's news from Japan and Asia, today.
Born and raised in Los Angeles, Casey Baseel spent his formative years staring in frustration at un-subtitled Japanese TV programming shown on Southern California’s international channel. Taking matters into his own hands, he moved to Tokyo to study the language, then found work in Yokohama a decade ago teaching, translating, and marketing hotels he can’t afford to stay in. When not participating in the eternal cycle of exercising to burn the calories form his love of Japanese food, Casey scours used comic and game shops for forgotten classics, drags his wife around the country in a quest to visit all its castles, sings karaoke not nearly as well as he thinks he does, and counts the days until the summertime bars open on Enoshima Beach.
Posted by Casey Baseel (Page 531)
As any nutritionist will tell you, fresh produce is important. Whether you’re talking about essential vitamins, minerals, or fiber, fruits and vegetables are filled with all sorts of good things…including adorable cats and dogs, thanks to these eye-catching pet beds.
Getting pounded into the turf by a 40-meter (131-foot) tall martial artist who can shoot beams of energy from his hands can’t be an easy lifestyle. So last year when a restaurant opened in Kawasaki to honor the giant monsters and aliens who so often end up on the losing side of the battles in the Ultraman franchise, we thought it was nice they now had a place to relax, enjoy some tasty food, and knock back a few beers between regularly getting pummeled by the good guys.
Of course, we Earthlings were also welcome at the establishment, called the Kaiju Sakaba (“Monster Pub”). We stopped by shortly after the place opened last year, and all of the Ultraman-themed decorations made us feel like we were little kids again (well, at least until our first round of alcoholic drinks arrived, anyway). And then we felt like little kids again as wept in sadness upon hearing the Kaiju Sakaba was closing last March.
But, just like the ending of each installment of the Ultraman saga gives way to the next chapter, the Kaiju Sakaba is coming back to Kawasaki later this month, and this time it’s here to stay!
It’s one of the all-time classic scene setups of Japanese girls’ comics. Our heroine finds herself in a secluded hallway of her school, alone with a handsome but mysterious male classmate. He turns to her and dramatically pounds the wall behind her, executing a perfect kabe-don before leaning in close to tell her a secret.
So what’s the dramatic line going to be this time? “I love you?” “We actually met years ago and were childhood friends before you lost your memories?” “Don’t hug me, or I’ll transform into a dog?”
How about, “Don’t you know how important protecting your smartphone password is?”
We recently talked about how the opening theme of anime Neon Genesis Evangelion, “A Cruel Angel’s Thesis,” is almost painfully ubiquitous in Japan. Overseas, though, the more famous tune is the series’ ending theme, the English-language jazz standard “Fly Me to the Moon.”
The song’s sweet sentimentalism takes on an ironic atmosphere coming after an episode of Evangelion’s painfully subversive depiction of the horrors that could unfold if 14-year-olds were actually tasked with fighting giant invading aliens. And now, “Fly Me to the Moon” will probably take on even more of a bittersweet tone for Eva fans, as the crowdfunding project to send the anime’s Spear of Longinus to the moon has fallen short of its goal.
Pretty much ever since it was invented, men have been the target market for instant ramen. That’s slowly starting to change, though, as companies are finding out that plenty of women, too, are interested in a hot, tasty meal that only takes three minutes to prepare.
Those three minutes, though, can seem awfully long when you’re sitting by yourself with nothing to do while you wait for your noodles to cook. So, Nissin, to celebrate the start of its new line of healthier, more cosmopolitan instant ramen aimed at women, has set up a special website where a handsome Japanese actor will keep you company while you cook and eat your instant ramen.
Seeing as how 17 years passed between the final TV episode of Sailor Moon and its reboot, Sailor Moon Crystal, it’s no surprise that the latter makes far more use of digital animation production. But while the newer anime’s designs have sharper line work, some traditionalists still prefer the old school look of the original series.
However, if you’d rather have your Sailor Senshi not just rough around the edges, but downright rectangular, merchandiser Bandai is ready to fill that need with this line of Sailor Moon merchandise done in the style of eight-bit pixel art.
Sometimes, Japanese guys can seem illogically hung up on numerical parameters when deciding whether or not they find a woman physically attractive. Be it a maximum age or minimum bust measurement, sometimes the amount of technical data being tossed around almost makes it seem more like they’re talking about machinery than women.
But does it really make sense to get so hung up on numbers when dealing with something as subjective as beauty? We’ve seen before that age isn’t anything but a number, so what about weight? A recent survey set out to find out how Japanese men would answer that question.
Those of you with an interest in the Final Fantasy series, mobile gaming, and/or the male form might remember when we took an early look at Mevius Final Fantasy a few months ago. The most ambitious original mobile title yet from publisher Square Enix, the Mevius development crew is made up of Final Fantasy veterans, and the visuals that have been released are far beyond what you’d ordinarily expect from a smartphone title.
But while Square Enix apparently isn’t skimping on the production budget, it was willing to give the game’s male hero a skimpy outfit, as the first promotional images showed the main character dressed in a costume that showed off plenty of his tanned and toned back and buttocks. If that was right up your alley, though, we hope you already got a good eyeful, because Square Enix has since rethought the design and changed it to one that exposes less skin.
As immensely popular as Attack on Titan is, it’s easy to forget that the last new episodes in the series aired on Japanese TV over 18 months ago. Sure, creator Hajime Isayama keeps plugging away at the manga that started the franchise, and there’re also those two movies to look forward to. But for more than a year and a half now, fans have been unable to plop down on the couch and watch a brand-new installment of everyone’s favorite fully-clothed humans vs. naked giants saga.
In August, though, the draught will finally be over, as Attack on Titan is getting a three-part live-action miniseries, with a shift in protagonist and one completely new character.
Seeing as how Japan is the franchise’s home market, and also where corporate parent Nintendo is headquartered, it’s not surprising that Japan gets the lion’s share (or Pyroar’s share), of cool Pokémon stuff. After all, this is the country where people have been able to attend Pikachu parades, dine at Pokémon Cafes, and even purchase business-suited pocket monster plushies.
But one thing Japanese fans haven’t had, though, is a Japanese Facebook page for the Pokémon franchise. At least, not until this week, when Pikachu and pals made their Japanese Facebook debut accompanied by a short but sweet cherry blossom party video.
Spring is the start of both the school year and the business years in Japan. That means that right about now thousands of newcomers are pouring into Tokyo, as they move to the capital to start college or their professional careers.
But the hustle and bustle of Tokyo is on a scale unlike any other town in the nation. Even people who’ve grown up in Japan sometimes stick out like a sore thumb when they first move to the capital, as illustrated in this six-point guide to spotting someone who just moved to Tokyo.
Tekken 7, the latest installment of video game developer Bandai Namco’s popular fighting game series, hit Japanese arcades last month. Even though the game launched with close to two dozen playable characters, the series has always had a tradition of adding new fighters after each game’s debut, and Tekken 7 is no exception.
The newest member of the Tekken cast is also its first to hail from the Philippines. But while more content is almost always a plus, gamers aren’t unanimous in their reactions to Josie Rizal.
The jury is still out on whether or not the Rebuild of Evangelion movie series is a reboot, sequel, or some hybrid of the two. What we do know is that certain things that happened in the original Evangelion TV series and the franchise’s first three movies are repeating themselves. Protagonist Shinji gets press-ganged into piloting a giant robot to fight space monsters. His close friend Kaworu has a mysterious past and tragic fate.
And in the real world, working on the series casts creator and director Hideaki Anno into yet another a state of depression.
For a country that doesn’t have any businesses officially classified as “casinos,” Japan has a ton of places to gamble. By far the most common are pachinko parlors, which you can find within a short walk of just about every major train station in Tokyo and Japan’s other large cities.
But with so many places to gamble, and many of them allowing customers to purchase the balls used to play for as little as one yen (less than a penny) each, it’s easy to get sucked into the siren song of the pachinko parlor. Seeking to help gamblers keep their wagers within their limits, one company is now proposing using facial recognition software to inform you, or your family, when you’re gambling too much.
We’ve talked before about some of the cool extras that’ve come bundled with girls’ manga anthologies in Japan, but they’re not the only publications that dangle the offer of freebies to help drum up sales. In Japan, fashion magazines for adults also occasionally come with promotional items, such as day planners, scrunchies, or other goodies they think their readers might be interested in.
Women’s fashion magazine CanCam recently ran a special feature on Pokémon-related apparel and accessories, so the publishers thought it’d be the perfect opportunity to package the issue with a Pikachu-shaped fuzzy cloth pouch. To make it seem extra special, they decided to pass on his usual vibrant canary yellow and instead produce a chic monochrome version of the series mascot.
But “unique” doesn’t always mean “good,” at least according to one reader who came up with a morbid interpretation of Pikachu’s lack of color.
For anime music fans, the appeal of the songs is more than just their connection to the shows they serve as anthems for. Over the years, anime songs have evolved into a genre in and of themselves, often employing fast, even frantic tempos and an even greater proportion of young female vocalists and electronic sounds than Japanese pop music in general.
So now that there are certain baselines the anime music scene has established for itself, it’s time for the hardware end of the musical experience to catch up, which is the promise made by these new sets of earphones specifically designed for listening to anime songs with.
Upon coming to Japan, a lot of people are surprised to discover just how difficult finding vegetarian food can be. Many people imagine Japan as a country that eats very little meat, and while that’s definitely true in comparison to North America and western Europe, the flipside is that you’ll find at least a little bit of meat in just about all dishes, including salads and vegetable stews with surprising frequency.
Things get trickier still if you’re trying to stick to a vegan diet. Even something as simple as noodles are generally out, since almost all broths are made with meat or fish stock. But if you’ve got an aversion to meat coupled with a craving for soba or udon, you’re in luck, with two new types of vegan instant noodles produced by a Zen Buddhist temple.
There’s a popular Japanese TV show whose protagonist, a wandering gourmet with a healthy appetite, often finds himself looking over a restaurant menu while trying to make an agonizing decision about which of two tempting entrees to order. Often, he resolves the crisis by following the advice encapsulated by his catchphrase, “When you can’t decide which to eat, have both.”
That also seems to be the philosophy behind Nissin Foods’ newest product: instant ramen with fried chicken.
Having lived in Yokohama for the past decade, I try to grab as many assignments as I can that are related to the city, as well as Kanagawa, the prefecture it’s located in. Also, as someone who gets hungry at least three times a day, I try to volunteer for as many RocketNews24 taste tests as my schedule will allow.
However, I graciously let one of my coworkers handle today’s project: heading to a cafe in Yokohama to chow down on a frog burger.
Finnish design brand Iittala partners with Pokémon for a golden first collaborative tableware set
Dorayaki from 89-year-old Japanese confectionery shop is one of the best sweets hidden in Tokyo
Second-generation sumo burger coming to Burger King Japan with return of Baby Body Burger
Japanese sweets souvenirs don’t get more beautiful than this
Starbucks Japan opens new Kyoto store in Place of Scenic Beauty
Here are the top ten foodie factory tours for the fall throughout Japan
What’s the best way to spend 1,000 yen at Denny’s in Japan?
Inakaya Denim jeans are the latest farm-fresh Japanese-inspired fashion item
The etiquette rules for visiting Shinto shrines in Japan
Baby Chanco: The Japanese baby with a full head of thick, lustrous hair
Japan’s 5.3 million beautiful Hitachi Nemophila flowers are now in full bloom[Photos]
New Kyoto Converse sneakers celebrate Japan with traditional kimono fabrics for your feet
Studio Ghibli launches huge new anime movie T-shirt collection with special design details
Tifa’s Final Fantasy VII bar is going to pop up in real-world Tokyo
Brand-new Square Enix Cafe to open in Tokyo…and in Los Angeles too!
Japanese convenience store gives away free ice cream with creative ad at Shinjuku Station
Japan is so hungry for workers it used up its five-year visa quota in record time
Tsujihan sushi bowl restaurant goes viral with foreign tourists, but is it worth the hype?
7-Eleven Japan releases Uji matcha smoothies… but only at select locations
7-Eleven Japan’s cooked-in-store takoyaki is here! How does it fare against the street food king?
Japan reportedly adding Japanese language skill requirement to most common foreigner work visa
Pokémon and Ikea Japan cross over into each other’s worlds with collaboration eventsJapan’s 5.3 million beautiful Hitachi Nemophila flowers are now in full bloom[Photos]
Wisteria season starts early with blooming of Japan’s Great Wisteria in its beautiful garden
Japan’s best conveyor belt sushi restaurant of seven years ago has now, finally, come to Tokyo
Brand-new Pokémon manhole covers coming to help the recovery of a disaster-stricken part of JapanNew Kyoto Converse sneakers celebrate Japan with traditional kimono fabrics for your feet
Japan’s awesomely beautiful Alpen Route snow corridor is now open
Injuries on stairs in Tokyo highlight an overlooked design flaw
Mt. Fuji decorated with a 500,000-flower pink carpet is Japan’s ultimate spring view
Survey asks foreign tourists what bothered them in Japan, more than half gave same answer
Japan’s human washing machines will go on sale to general public, demos to be held in Tokyo
Starbucks Japan releases new drinkware and goods for Valentine’s Day
We deeply regret going into this tunnel on our walk in the mountains of Japan
Starbucks Japan releases new sakura goods and drinkware for cherry blossom season 2026
Japan’s newest Shinkansen has no seats…or passengers [Video]
Major Japanese hotel chain says reservations via overseas booking sites may not be valid
Put sesame oil in your coffee? Japanese maker says it’s the best way to start your day【Taste test】
No more using real katana for tourism activities, Japan’s National Police Agency says
Studio Ghibli releases Kodama forest spirits from Princess Mononoke to light up your home
Here are the top ten foodie factory tours for the fall throughout Japan
What’s the best way to spend 1,000 yen at Denny’s in Japan?
Inakaya Denim jeans are the latest farm-fresh Japanese-inspired fashion item
The etiquette rules for visiting Shinto shrines in Japan
Baby Chanco: The Japanese baby with a full head of thick, lustrous hair
Thailand’s Daiso is so different from Japan’s that they might as well be on different planets
Here it is: The finalized map for Super Nintendo World at Universal Studios Japan (and its food)
What are the worst things about living in the Japanese countryside?[Survey]
Japan’s cooling body wipe sheets want to help you beat the heat, but which work and which don’t?
Japan named most sleep-deprived country for fourth year in a row, according to survey
Studio Ghibli unveils My Neighbour Totoro miniature house model
Skyscraper sized Pokémon cards to appear in Tokyo all year long in Tocho projection mapping event
Studio Ghibli launches huge new anime movie T-shirt collection with special design details
Japanese cheating survey finds high infidelity rate in Kyoto and one of Tokyo’s neighbors