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Master Blaster

Writer / Translator

Master Blaster is the two-man translating team of Canada’s Steven Le Blanc and Japan’s Masami M, a pair who in addition to writing work are in English education and created the StudyNow app for Japanese students of English.

Together they have written somewhere around 1,500 articles for RocketNews24 covering such diverse topics as Chinese men selling sanitary napkins to each other and a Japanese guy dragging an ear of corn around the Tokyo train system. A few of these were actually good, but don’t take our word for it! Here’s what our beloved readers had to say:

“One isn't always in the mood for bold tastes. But when I'm in the mood for bold flavor I turn to you.”
“Stupid article. Who cares what the Japanese think it's cool. You don't call a monkey, "gorilla".”
“You know, this is about the most cogent explanation of how a turbocharger works that I have ever seen in the non-motorsports world.”
“Thanks for the article peter!”
“It's people like you who make exploitation possible.”
“It looks yummy and the story was great. Thank you for the smile.”

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Posted by Master Blaster (Page 158)

19 movie posters seen through the eyes of Japan, from “Malkovich’s Hole” to “Captain Supermarket”

As we’ve seen before, with many international releases the names of films can sometimes be vastly different from the original. The changes are made for a variety of reasons due to language, culture, or style. This begs the question: How much of an impact do these title changes make on the people who see them?

Just for fun, we took 19 movies from other countries that have had their names changed for Japanese audiences, translated them back to English and put them in their original posters.

So join us after the jump for such gems as Academy Award-nominated Nairobi Bees, Love is Deja Vu with Bill Murray, and cult classic Captain Supermarket. What, never heard of them!?

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Every year on 15 March in Komaki City, Aichi the Honen Matsuri (Harvest Festival) is held. Unlike other harvest festivals this one is to celebrate all forms bounty from crops to cash to family.

Also unlike other harvest festivals, this one has a 2.5m wooden phallus that gets paraded through the city during the afternoon. It’s called “Ooowasegata” (lit. big guy stem figure) and this year it drew a crowd of 190,000 spectators according to a Tagata Shrine announcement.

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Who wouldn’t want to be a game show host? It’s a relatively easy gig, making money while making other people happy with fabulous cash and prizes. But with only a few shows to go around it can be a highly coveted job.

Perhaps that’s why some people decide to start their own game on the streets. However, without all the slick production value of a major studio backer you’re bound to look like some kind of wack-job. Sure enough, that’s what happened to one young man who’s now gotten the attention of Hokkaido law enforcement.

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Yahoo! Japan donates 5x projected amount to Tohoku after unexpected number of people participate

In tribute of the third anniversary of the Tohoku Earthquake on 11 March, Yahoo! Japan held a charity drive pledging 10 yen (US$0.10) for every person who entered “3.11” into their search engine.

Relying on the data that Japan’s most used search engine was privy to, they hypothesized that a maximum of 5 million yen ($48,000) from 500,000 unique IP addresses would be generated and set a limit at that amount. Boy, were they wrong.

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Man arrested on suspicion of destroying copies of The Diary of Anne Frank in Tokyo libraries

Since mid-January this year, bizarre incidents of vandalism have been occurring in libraries and bookstores in Tokyo. A handful of texts were targeted, but hundreds of copies of The Diary of Anne Frank, which chronicles Jewish persecution during World War II, were found with pages slashed and torn out, leading some to suspect that the acts were part of some political statement.

On 12 March it was revealed the Tokyo Metropolitan Police have arrested a man for the destruction of Jewish themed books in a major book store in Toshima, Tokyo. Authorities also feel there is a strong possibility he is involved in the other 310 books that have been destroyed.

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Jackie Chan produced K-pop group set to debut this month

Earlier this year international action star Jackie Chan had been making some unusual appearances in the South Korean media. First, on the red carpet for Police Story 2013 he blurted out “I’m half Korean!” Although it was later revealed to be a metaphorical sentiment lost in translation, the statement ruffled some feathers back in China.

Later that month, Chan appeared on a South Korean variety show where he confessed to having a love affair with a Korean woman for eight years in his younger days of working as a stuntman. So why is Jackie Chan showing so much love for Korea these days?

Let’s just say if I asked you to name five things that aren’t Jackie Chan and you said K-pop, you’d be wrong.

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Tottori Prefecture kicking ass and taking names… with a petition to see a six-month-old movie

As we mentioned before, Japan can be painfully slow when it comes to releasing overseas movies. Disney’s Frozen doesn’t release here until this Friday, and Edgar Wright and Simon Pegg’s The World’s End, released in most countries some nine months ago, won’t arrive until next month.

Another late release is Kiss Ass 2 (Kick Ass: Justice Forever in Japan), which although shown in the West last summer, only made its way to Japanese theatres two weeks ago. And if you happen to live in a more rural part of Japan, forget about it. For example, Tottori Prefecture often has to deal with so-called nationwide releases never showing up in their part of the nation.

Tired of being treated as second-class movie-goers, a movement was started to ask for the showing of the latest Kick Ass movie in their land. And for such a job they called in Tottori’s greatest hero: Negiman (Green Onion Man).

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Several Tokyo train lines were momentarily shut down today in honor of Tohoku Earthquake victims

Tokyu Corporation, which runs train lines in the Tokyo Area, announced earlier that at around 2:44 p.m. today all of its trains would stop as part of a training drill to simulate the emergency situation that occurred three years ago today in much of Eastern Japan. It also announced on Twitter that Tokyo’s subway lines run by Toei and Tokyo Metro would stop at this time out of respect for those who suffered during the Great Tohoku Earthquake of 2011.

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Game Review: New dating sim takes you back to school days of flirting with soft-shelled turtles

In a country overflowing with every dating simulator game both imaginable and unimaginable it can be hard to carve a niche. We’ve seen games in the past where players challenge themselves to score a date with an alpaca, pigeon, or T-Rex, but for those who want to play the field of the entire animal kingdom a new player has emerged.

The game is called Kikenna Kare ni Koishiteru (In Love with a Dangerous Boyfriend) and in it you assume the role of a young girl who enrolls in a school of a variety of animals from soft-shelled turtles to Japanese horseshoe crabs. We took the game for a spin and now humbly present this review for your consideration.

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“RAAA”: The most appropriate name for a habanero pepper-flavored 34 percent alcohol drink

Hombo Shuzo is a prestigious distiller founded in 1872 in Kagoshima Prefecture, the birthplace of one of Japan’s most beloved drinks: shochu. The company had won several medals at last year’s International Wine and Spirit Competition including a gold medal for their exquisitely smooth one-year-old Arawaza Sakurajima.

And to celebrate, this distinguished group has released perhaps their classiest drink to date. It’s an imo shochu (sweet potato shochu) with a thick bouquet of one of the world’s spiciest peppers, the habanero, and it’s name is Satsuma No Haoh RAAA.

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Bring the boiler room of Spirited Away to virtual life with Oculus Rift

The commercial release of the virtual reality headset known as Oculus Rift should be just around the corner, and with the technology looks to be something great allowing you to do everything from being Hatsune Miku to sleeping next to Hatsune Miku, we’re sure that gamers and fans of gadgets alike are positively itching to get hold of it.

Until then, those of us not willing to shell out for a developers’ kit will have to bide our time with YouTube testimonials such as this one done by Cymatic Bruce. In the video Bruce takes us on a virtual tour of none other than the boiler room setting from Miyazaki’s Spirited Away. Even better, the way he presents it allows us all to watch in 3D without the need for an Oculus Rift or any special equipment.

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Japan Railways looking for love in all the weird places again with the Love Love Bench

Last month, the East Japan Railway Company (JR East) installed a single pair of heart-shaped hand straps on one of its lines in hopes of sparking romance among their passengers. However, with Valentine’s Day behind us it seems they aren’t through playing matchmaker.

This time JR Shikoku is strapping on some cupid wings by installing “Love Love Benches” in two of their stations. The seat of the bench slopes inwards so that no matter how two people sit on it they will quickly be brought together thanks the marvel of gravity.

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Japanese 7-Eleven asking public’s help in stopping feline crime

To help combat the steady wave of shoplifting in Japan (360 reported cases a day), authorities remind shop staff to stay vigilant and know that anyone who enters their store – whether a little school girl or her 89-year-old grandfather – is a potential criminal just aching to take your hard-earned merchandise.

Just look at the kitty pictured above. Cute lil’ guy doncha think?

Wrong! That pilfering feline has stolen hundreds of yen worth of cat food from a helpless major convenience store… possibly to sell on the street for crack-cocaine.

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Taiwanese school boy finds real grenade while playing war, presumably wins

The modern dilemma over whether it’s okay for young boys to play games based on warfare was seemingly put to the test in Taiwan recently as two very young boys happened upon a real and unused grenade near the park they were playing in.

The event, which was reported in Searchina based on New Taipei media, resulted in the military getting called in and opened up a slew of legal and sociological debate.

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New frozen snacks promise to make you come out smelling like a rose

A few weeks ago, Häagen-Dazs began treating Japan to a special edition Rose flavored ice cream. While it was pretty delicious overall, many people felt it tasted too similar to a bathroom air freshener.

This came as a surprise to people from countries more accustomed to rose flavored treats as well as Kracie. This confectionary company had been selling rose flavored candies and rose water mix for years. So, starting 3 March they are releasing their own Fuwarinka Ice which not only tastes like a rose but also empowers your body with its lovely aroma.

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Taste the mad flavas of DJ Misoshiru & MC Gohan’s recipe raps 【Videos】

Recipes are invaluable resources for daily life that with just the right focus can empower even the most kitchenphobic person to slap together semi-decent meal. However, recipe books can be unwieldy and weak to the heat and fluids flying around the cooking space. The advent of the internet has helped, but we’re still left nervously trying to swipe at a touch screen with flour-and-egg-caked fingers.

This is where DJ Misoshiru & MC Gohan (DJ Miso Soup & MC Rice) come in. Their unique brand of recipe rap takes up only the space in your ears and with their nostalgic old-school beats those instructions will be hard to get out of your head afterwards. Come, join us on this Japanese hip-hop gourmet journey.

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New species of mayfly discovered in Fukushima that can never get their prescription glasses

On 2 March this year, a research group from Fukushima University will present the results of their study in which they believe to have found a new species of mayfly. This particular insect was found in a remote swamp near Lake Hibara. This new species is unique in that rather than living from a day to a week like related mayflies, this particular one has a life span of only an hour.

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Massive Warhol exhibit visits Mori Art Museum in Tokyo, over 600 works on display

Even before his first visit in 1956, Andy Warhol had been largely well-received by people in Japan. Pieces like “Campbell’s Soup I” are just as easily recognized here as anywhere along with other pieces of the artist’s highly prolific and vast range of work. But with this massive collection stored far away in The Andy Warhol Museum in America it’s been hard for his Japanese fans to experience it all until now.

The museum is taking its collection on a tour of Asia including a three-month stay at the Mori Art Museum in Roppongi Hills, Tokyo. The exhibit titled Andy Warhol: 15 Minutes Eternal boasts nearly 700 pieces of art and film as well as some other exhibits designed to take visitors deep into his world as it existed decades ago.

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Serious accidents from walking while using smartphone up over 50 percent in Tokyo

It doesn’t matter where you are in the world, you’ve certainly seen it and may have even done it yourself a few times. Walking while staring down at a smartphone has become a troubling pedestrian habit, even in Japan where it’s called aruki-sumaho. As the technology rapidly becomes more widespread, you’d expect people to get a little savvier and a little safer while using it. However, a study by the Tokyo Fire Department revealed that the number of accidents where a victim had to be taken away in an ambulance after walking while using a smartphone last year has increased to 1.5 times the number in 2010.

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70 Japanese students volunteer to help clean Canada’s shores of Tohoku Tsunami debris

On 11 March, 2011 Hiroki Takai was studying at a university in Vancouver. Instead of feeling helpless at the steadily flowing images of destruction in the media following the Tohoku Earthquake and tsunami, he quickly took action and gathered other Japanese students to raise money for their homeland. Thanks to the students’ efforts and the generosity of the people of Vancouver the “Japan Love Project” managed to raise CAN$320,000 (US$288,000) in aid.

Now, with the 3-year anniversary of the Great Tohoku Earthquake approaching, Takai wanted to pay the kindness of the Canadians back. As a part of the International Volunteer University Student Association (IVUSA) he asked for a team to travel to the West coast of Canada to help clean up the still-increasing driftage that is washing up on its shores. Headed by fourth-year Ritsumeikan University student Yusuke Oike, a crew of 70 students answered the call.

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