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Philip Kendall

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Hailing from Liverpool in the UK, Philip Kendall made Japan his second home in the summer of 2006 after dolefully abandoning his childhood dream of becoming a ghost buster. Setting up camp in beautiful Fukushima prefecture, he brought joy to literally hundreds of junior high school children as ‘that tall, handsome teacher’ or more often ‘the one with the big nose,’ before relocating to Tokyo at the end of 2011.

Writer, foodie, gamer and eternal student of the Japanese language, Philip now works as a freelance writer and translator, submitting to Tokyo Weekender magazine and website and Learn Japanese Pod, as well as co-running Suds, Grub & Joe- a website dedicated to all things beer, food and coffee-related in Tokyo. Follow his ramblings on his personal blog or on twitter.

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Posted by Philip Kendall (Page 24)

Pikachu kisses his audience in Pokémon XY anime opening, gives glimpse of another dimension

In case you’ve been trapped under a giant boulder for the last few weeks, Japan – nay, the world – is currently once again gripped by Pokémon fever. Along with the new Pokémon X & Y titles for Nintendo 3DS, the new animated TV series is currently being lapped up by fans.

But one eagle-eyed viewer in Japan has spotted something both cute and a little odd in the show’s opening credits. In typically adorable fashion, a few seconds after the show’s opening song begins, everyone’s favourite pocket monster, Pikachu, gives the camera a friendly little kiss. But what on earth is going on inside his mouth!?

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Japanese company unveils “Nyan Nyan Nouveau” red wine for cats

Cats have been working on us humans for years now, using the internet to their advantage and doing whatever it takes to look adorable. And now it seems they’ve taken a significant step towards their ultimate goal of world domination: a Japanese company has manufactured wine especially for felines. 

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Previously unseen CCTV footage of March 2011 tsunami is intense 【Video】

Earlier this year, we brought you videos shot by those who fled the wall of water that the March 11, 2011 earthquake brought to Northeastern Japan. As shocking as they were, most – thankfully – were taken from relatively far away by the towns’ residents once they had reached comparative safety. The following footage taken in Iwate Prefecture, however, was recorded right where the tsunami hit by security and roadside cameras.

The footage shows the awesome, raw power of the tsunami, and gets much more up close and personal than anyone would every hope to. We should warn you that some readers may find the following images disturbing.

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Goodnight, sweet prince: Polish artist’s chainsaw sculpture depicts the death of Super Mario

Even the greatest of heroes meet their end eventually, whether they be staff-wielding wizards or portly plumbers. With this incredible sculpture, Polish artist Kordian Lewandowski presents the demise of none other than our favourite 8-bit champion, Super Mario. And as sad as it is, it’s really quite breathtaking.

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Potato stew-flavoured popsicles, anyone? Japan goes wild as photo of new Garigari-kun emerges

In the wake of its limited edition corn soup-flavoured brethren, a new Garigari-kun popsicle is rumoured to be hitting Japan’s freezers any day now. There has yet to be any official announcement from the famous popsicles’ maker Akagi, but one netizen recently spotted what looks like an ad for, of all things, a potato stew-flavoured ice cream. More details after the jump!

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Ninja life skills: The most hardcore way to get infinite 1-Ups in Super Mario Bros. 【Video】

You can’t keep a good plumber down, and Super Mario Bros. is still going strong decades after it first launched. Veteran players will no doubt already know the locations of every hidden block, the route to every warp zone, and how to score easy extra lives by bouncing Koopa Trooper shells off staircases, but this last trick for unlimited 1-Ups isn’t so easy. Yup, it turns out that sometimes if you want infinite lives you actually have to work for them.

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Japan’s coolest capsule hotel to close: Last chance to experience sleeping in the future!

Capsule hotels, the uniquely Japanese accommodation solution no doubt on every Japanophile’s to-do list, have never really caught on outside of their homeland. Whether it’s down to individuals’ ideas of what constitutes comfort and privacy, or simply the fact that so many Westerners freak out at the very thought of climbing into a space resembling something between a spaceship escape pod and a coffin, most capsule startups outside of Japan have failed. While these unique hotels continue to serve those who are on a budget or simply too intoxicated to make it home safely, and show no signs of disappearing from Japan’s cityscapes any time soon, it is with deep regret that we bring you news today that Kyoto’s Nine Hours, arguably the coolest and most modern capsule hotel in the country, is to close.

Tourists, late-night drinkers and those who have always fantasised about waking up in an Aperture Science test chamber have only until October 31 to check out the hotel and experience space-age comfort, so we’re here to show you exactly why you should head over to Nine Hours’ website right now and make a reservation.

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Emoti-pup! Twitter users’ hearts melt at photo of puppy with natural “frowny face” markings

Twitter exploded in a mess of coos and smiles last night when a single photo of a puppy whose markings look almost exactly like the classic Japanese “frowny face” emoticon (>_<) was shared by user panda_tamio. Puppies rarely have to try especially hard to be adorable, but this one may just be the cutest thing we’ve seen all week.

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Japanese Ministry of Defense’s official visitor safety illustrations are surreal, hilarious

Living in an age where people threaten legal action the moment they trip over a pebble on a public beach, it’s little wonder that companies and organisations should take extra precautions when allowing everyday folks to wander around their facilities during open days, taking great pains to highlight every possible risk beforehand so that they don’t get sued when someone gets savaged by a radioactive monkey.

Japan’s Ministry of Defense is no exception, and in an effort to ensure their safety when touring military vessels, have put together some handy information and rules for the public to abide by while on board. Fortunately for you and me, this is no boring old list of dos and don’ts: this is a list that comes with pictures evidently created by a member of staff with years of experience using Microsoft Windows’ Paint program, resulting something that not only looks like South Park‘s “Terrance and Phillip Show” but even manages to sneak in a little Metal Gear Solid reference for video game fans.

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“Would you rather breathe or play DS?” Mother on trial for suffocating five-year-old son

On September 25 at Tokyo District Court, 42-year-old mother of four Shizu Shigeta took the stand in a packed courtroom, accused of killing her five-year-old son.

Teary-eyed and clinging to a handkerchief as she spoke, the defendant admitted that she had caused the death of her son, Koushi, after sealing him inside two plastic garbage bags and then falling asleep beside him while under the influence of sedatives and alcohol.

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Sony’s new PlayStation Vita Slim ad is awesome, features gaming penguins 【Video】

We fell in love with Sony’s new PlayStation Vita Slim the very first moment we got our sweaty little hands on a demo unit at this year’s Tokyo Game Show, but this new commercial, which features rocking gaming penguins of every colour the new device is available in, made us even more eager to buy one.

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Mysterious meat-faced man shows up amongst Tokyo university beauty pageant entrants

We can’t quite put our finger on it, but there’s something a little bit different about one of this year’s Miss Geidai Contest entrants. No, not the blonde girl on the end or the one who looks a bit like Calista Flockhart; the one from Team D. It could be the hair, it could be the raw meat wrapped around her head, but something about this entrant really catches our eye…

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Surgical mask with your McMuffin, sir? McDonald’s Japan’s bizarre freebies are back!

Cheapskates and junk food lovers rejoice! McDonald’s Japan has recently announced that its bizarre freebies promotion, also known as the Morning Makku Present promo, is set to return!

Every Monday morning between October 7 and November 18, purchasers of a Morning Value Set will receive a free gift, with products ranging from packs of chewing gum and orange juice to surgical face-masks and band-aids.

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Super Mario 3D World’s new Goomba Cat will cute your face off

A tweet from Nintendo writer Chad Concelmo earlier today revealed that the Japanese video game giant will be adding a new bad guy character to its forthcoming Wii U title, Super Mario 3D World, and it is ridiculously cute.

We’ve been squishing walking mushroom Goomba characters for decades now, but this furry little guy is bound to make some gamers pause for thought before hitting the jump button and ending its pudgy little life. Say hello to the Cat Goomba!

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“King of psychics” Ron Bard warns of terrible danger for Japan

US psychic Ron Bard has spoken out once again via his official Twitter account, warning that the world – specifically Japan – is in great peril, prompting chatter online. This new warning comes after Mr. Bard claimed back in mid-July this year to have foreseen a natural disaster that would occur in Japan “in the next two or three months”, urging people in Japan to follow him on Twitter and prepare for difficult times.

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Some of our US-based readers may not be especially familiar with German shaving brand Schick, but here in Japan the company is top dog when it comes to safety razors, and its products can be found in just about any supermarket or pharmacy. Recently, in order to promote its relaxing “dream shave” experience and newest model of disposable razor, the Quattro 5 Titanium, Schick Japan has released the following promotional video, which sees one lucky young man take a zero-gravity flight with two bikini-clad models in order to try the razor out.

Hmmm… Pretty girls tumbling about in slow motion while squirting foam. You think anyone would watch that?

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Korean university’s “lick milk off your girlfriend” event ends with apologies, milk moustaches

University life may not be quite how it appears in the countless teen comedies that Hollywood coughed up during the early noughties, but it can still be a lot of fun. And if these photos taken during an event at Kangwon National University’s recent campus festival are anything to go by, some colleges aren’t afraid to cross a few lines when it comes to having a good time.

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Autumn style: Hair and cargo netting together at last!

Tired of the same old hairstyles? Twin tails just not rocking your socks any more? Well how about hairdo that could also be used as a weapon or a means of catching your next meal?

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Pins ‘n’ peel: This banana art will blow your mind

We don’t know about you guys, but when we were kids our parents always told us not to play with our food. Judging by the number of “banana tattoo” photos doing the rounds on Twitter today however, it looks like there are plenty of people here in Japan prepared to ignore that particular piece of parental advice in the name of art.

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How awesome is the sight of 974 Marios running through the same level at once? (Answer: Very)

It might be nearly 30 years old, but the original Super Mario Bros. remains one of the most beloved and played old-school platformers in the world. There’s something about goomba stomping, block smashing and Bowser boiling that people just can’t seem to get enough of, and modders continue to tinker with the basic gameplay and build original levels to this day.

The following video, apparently taken at Gamescom last month, shows the efforts of 974 players as they sprint through a custom-made level against the clock. Combining their runs into a single video results in what can only be described as an 8-bit river of Marios, cascading over pipes and mushrooms, hell-bent on reaching the princess, and it makes fantastic viewing.

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