Bringing you yesterday's news from Japan and Asia, today.
Japan (Page 1272)
We first discovered KBG84, Japan’s elderly idol unit, earlier this year and were impressed with their energy, particularly their live performances. The group has had a few months to get their name out there, and they even released a music video for their song “Come On and Dance Kohamajima” in July. But it wasn’t until this month that they released their first single, available now for your listening pleasure!
As the man with the sword told us repeatedly, “Winter is coming.” And while some of us are happy to play in the snow, not everyone is so excited about the chilly weather. Some of us, in fact, would much prefer to stay inside and sleep in the kotatsu.
Or, if you happen to be an adorable kitten, you might prefer to just to hang out inside your human’s foot-warming heated carpet.
One of the things Japan is known for is good design. You’ll see it in electronics, cars, home appliances, and home furnishings. There is a simple elegance to Japanese products that makes you break out into a little smile when you use them.
Looking at a pair of chopsticks, it doesn’t seem like there are any changes that need to made. They might be a little tricky to get the hang of, but they are mostly just two finger-held poles. That’s where this brilliant innovation comes in, though.
When you want to put your chopsticks down, you need to put them down on a rest so that you don’t get anything dirty. But what if they designed a chopstick that doesn’t need a rest?
It’s time for another fun survey from anime informational website Charapedia!
The site recently asked 10,000 of its users to share their top picks for the top 20 manga/anime series that they would like to show to their children. If you think that the results are full of fluff and potty humor, you may be surprised at some of the more thought-provoking choices on the list.
The Limited Express Rapi:t that shuttles passengers back and forth between Kansai Airport and Namba Station in Osaka has been offering some fun rides lately. The train’s distinctive deep blue exterior was given a red makeover last year in a Mobile Suit Gundam Unicorn promotion and it even received its own superhero earlier this year.
Now passengers are in for another treat with news of the train’s next big adventure: as a jet-black ambassador for the Star Wars: The Force Awakens enterprise. With awesome interior and exterior details, including a wrap that features all the new characters from the upcoming movie, this is bound to be a welcome sight for visitors landing at the airport from November this year.
More than once, I’ve been baffled by characters in Japanese dramas getting excited at the thought of having a kansetsu kisu, or “indirect kiss.” Apparently, the thought of drinking out of the same cup or using the same straw as the object of your affection is akin to kissing them indirectly.
With the release of a new romance simulation mobile game, you too can experience the thrill of a young Japanese schoolboy about to have a kansetsu kisu with the girl of your dreams–but only after you get your hands on the recorder she uses in music class!
In just about every major train station in Japan, you’ll find a stand selling boxed lunches called ekiben. A combination of the words eki (“station”) and bento (“boxed lunch”), ekiben serve as a tasty, convenient meal for travelers to dine on as they watch the scenery slip by outside their window.
Given that trains are terrestrial transportation, and that Japan is an island nation, until now you’ve generally had to come to Japan in order to get your hands on authentic station bento. That’s changing soon, though, with the opening of an ekiben stand in a rail station in Paris.
A demure schoolgirl peeks out from behind a tree as the classmate she has a crush on walks over to the drinking fountain. As soon as he’s done wetting his whistle and walks off, she runs over to take a swallow from the same tap. Overcome with the intimacy of the moment, she raises her hands to her cheeks, which are flushed with ecstasy
The first half of the story sounds like a scene from a sweet anime romance, while the second sounds like an excerpt from a much pervier series. It’s neither, though, but actually an advertisement reminding people about the importance of public utilities.
The votes are in! Approximately 4,500 night-view enthusiasts submitted their votes for what they think are the best areas to take in Japan’s sprawling, twinkling cityscapes after dark, and the results were revealed at the Night View Summit 2015, held on October 9 in Kobe.
Which cities do you think made it to the top three? Click to find out, and enjoy some of the stunning photographs that prove each city’s worthiness of the honor!
Shoko Hamada is a seven-year veteran of Japan’s gurabia industry, the subsection of the modeling world focused on women in swimwear and other skimpy outfits. In youth-obsessed Japan, she’s at an age where it wouldn’t be at all odd for her to be retiring from her line of work, but last month the 29-year-old Hamada was announced as the central figure in newly minted gurabia unit gra-DOLL.
But with so many gurabia idols filling the Japanese media landscape, Hamada and her cohorts needed to do something special to stand out and get the attention any new endeavor needs. Dressing up in Sailor Moon lingerie should do the trick.
Star Wars fans in Japan have to be the luckiest group of Padawans on the planet. From samurai figurines to cup clingers to ukiyo-e woodblock-style covers, limited-edition releases in the Land of the Rising Sun are blessed with extraordinary details that can’t be found anywhere else in the galaxy.
Now it’s time for Japanese confectionery chain Ginza Cozy Corner to weigh in on the celebrations, with a stunning lineup of cakes, tarts and limited edition tins that feature some of the cutest characters from the movie alongside some edible dark foes. We’ll need to summon up every ounce of the force within to bite into these because these are the most amazing sweets we’ve ever seen!
It’s been 20 years since the critically acclaimed Evangelion series first came to life on the small screen, and to this day it remains one of the most successful animated series to ever come out of Japan.
With such a dedicated legion of fans, the merchandising has been off the hook, with everything from burgers to lingerie and even a bullet train getting the Eva treatment. But amongst all this, there’s one special limited-edition range that’s really striking a chord with Japanese fans, as it takes the tough, sexy heroines of the series out of their futuristic battle cockpits and re-imagines them as katana sword-wielding ladies in kimono.
The somewhat euphemistically named process of “denailing” has remained a popular torture method since medieval times and, according to the sort of creepily detailed Wikipedia page for the method, it remains in use today.
There are a few good reasons for that. It apparently leaves no permanent marks or injury – after the nail grows back, of course – and requires only the most basic of tools to pull off. It also objectively hurts like hell and there’s something about the tips of the toes and fingers being manipulated that leaves a person feeling unbearably vulnerable.
All of which has us wondering why anyone would voluntarily use this tool, which is clearly just a re-purposed torture device, to fix their ingrown toenails, regardless of how amazingly well it supposedly works.
Here in Japan, Halloween may be a relatively new tradition, and we haven’t gotten to the point of dressing in costume at school or work (at least not at normal jobs), but there’s no denying we’re quickly embracing the seasonal event, especially with special sweets and beverages. With Halloween-themed parades and parties becoming more and more common, finding an attractive and appropriately playful costume is something an increasing number of people are thinking about this time of year.
Well, if you want something original and eye-catching, then how about renting a Japanese kimono as a Halloween costume? Of corse, you won’t be wearing it like a regular kimono, though!
Convenience stores around the world are known for stocking everyday items like toiletries, magazines, snacks and soft drinks.
But in Japan, the konbini is also a place to send and receive deliveries, buy movie and theatre tickets, and pick up a life-sized Eva doll and Evangelion SIM-free smartphone.
Adapting anime to live-action is an extremely difficult venture. It’s not impossible, though, and one of the few icons of Japanese animation to make the transition smoothly is Himura Kenshin, hero of samurai saga Rurouni Kenshin.
The swordsman with the scarred face and soul has three successful live-action films under his belt, and this winter Japan’s all-female Takarazuka stage troupe will be raising the curtain on its own Rurouni Kenshin musical. Opening night is still a ways off, but the first photos of the cast in costume have been revealed, and gender-flipped or not, it’s hard to imagine a closer likeness for Kenshin himself than Takarazuka’s.
One of the most talked about collections at Tokyo Fashion Week was the YOSHIKIMONO First Collection, a range of rock star kimonos created by a Japanese rock star so famous he goes merely by his first name, Yoshiki.
As a musician, composer, songwriter, and record producer, Yoshiki has a wide variety of creative interests and now he’s stepping out into the world of fashion with a collection of edgy kimonos featuring unorthodox prints and unusual obi wraps.
During his show at fashion week, the audience was blown away by Yoshiki’s artistic vision as his kimono-clad models walked around him on the runway while he provided the soundtrack to it all with a classical piano recital.
Winter is undoubtedly the worst season to be alone in Japan. Soon singles will be starting the annual desperate search for the special someone to spend Christmas with and it’s not hard to see why. Having someone to cuddle up to during the upcoming cold, long months is far preferable to fighting off the chill by yourself.
Of course, not everyone wants to jump into a relationship just for a little extra body heat, and now thanks to one Japanese electronics maker and their kotatsu for one, singles just might be in for the warmest winter yet.
Let’s face it, something needs to be done about track and field. Although it could be considered human athleticism in its purest form, surely the art of running in a straight line is nearing our maximum potential as a species.
It’s time to take events such as sprinting to the next level. Luckily a small group of sumo wrestlers may have stumbled upon a way to bring another dimension to the sport, and another chin or two as well.
Even as the world of otaku becomes an increasingly co-ed one, many of Japan’s obsessive fans of anime, video games, and other forms of pop culture struggle in finding a romantic partner. That’s where Aeullura, a matchmaking company specializing in konkatsu (marriage-minded dating) events for otaku, comes in.
But conventional speed-dating can be intimidating for even ordinarily outgoing individuals, let alone otaku who might very well spend more of their free time watching fictional characters than interacting with other people. Add in the pressure of a ticking clock, and some might not feel confident in their ability to walk up to an attractive stranger, make a good impression, and then find out more about them.
That’s why Aeullura is flipping that sequence of events for its upcoming otaku matchmaking party by giving the speed daters access to a wealth of information about one another, and even letting them communicate online, before putting them all in the same room together.
The average age of Japan’s hikikomori shut-ins is getting older, survey shows
Studio Ghibli releases crystal glass paperweights featuring Totoro and the Catbus
Japan’s new Pokémon jackets give you the look and powers of the Kanto starter trio
Sega opening 65th anniversary store in downtotn Tokyo with deep-cut game merch
Samurai Coffee: Try Edo period coffee once enjoyed by Japanese warriors
Studio Ghibli releases new anime keychains that are like miniature figurines
Viral tweet suggests Japanese convenience store ripping off customers with donuts, so we investigate
Japan enters Golden Week vacation period, survey shows one in three plan to ride it out at home
Lipton releases… Pudding Milk Tea in Japan?!?
Retro-style Evangelion T-shirts coming to Uniqlo sister brand GU[Photos]Japan enters Golden Week vacation period, survey shows one in three plan to ride it out at homeJapan’s new Pokémon jackets give you the look and powers of the Kanto starter trio
Brand-new Square Enix Cafe to open in Tokyo…and in Los Angeles too!Studio Ghibli releases new anime keychains that are like miniature figurines
New Kyoto Converse sneakers celebrate Japan with traditional kimono fabrics for your feet
Japan’s 5.3 million beautiful Hitachi Nemophila flowers are now in full bloom[Photos]
Hello Kitty is now a transforming truck robot[Photos]
Dorayaki from 89-year-old Japanese confectionery shop is one of the best sweets hidden in Tokyo
What are the worst things about living in the Japanese countryside?[Survey]
Tifa’s Final Fantasy VII bar is going to pop up in real-world Tokyo
Japan reportedly adding Japanese language skill requirement to most common foreigner work visaJapan’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
Pokémon and Ikea Japan cross over into each other’s worlds with collaboration events
Japan’s best conveyor belt sushi restaurant of seven years ago has now, finally, come to TokyoJapan enters Golden Week vacation period, survey shows one in three plan to ride it out at homeNew Kyoto Converse sneakers celebrate Japan with traditional kimono fabrics for your feet
Brand-new Pokémon manhole covers coming to help the recovery of a disaster-stricken part of Japan
Japan’s awesomely beautiful Alpen Route snow corridor is now open
Injuries on stairs in Tokyo highlight an overlooked design flaw
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 saysJapan reportedly adding Japanese language skill requirement to most common foreigner work visa
Studio Ghibli releases new anime keychains that are like miniature figurines
Viral tweet suggests Japanese convenience store ripping off customers with donuts, so we investigate
Japan enters Golden Week vacation period, survey shows one in three plan to ride it out at home
Lipton releases… Pudding Milk Tea in Japan?!?
Retro-style Evangelion T-shirts coming to Uniqlo sister brand GU[Photos]
Dorayaki from 89-year-old Japanese confectionery shop is one of the best sweets hidden in Tokyo
New Kyoto Converse sneakers celebrate Japan with traditional kimono fabrics for your feet
Live-action Ghibli Princess Mononoke stage play tickets are now on sale
Tifa’s Final Fantasy VII bar is going to pop up in real-world Tokyo
Bandai cancels gacha/blind-buy system for anime cosmetics, will let fans choose what they buy
War in Iran threatening Japan’s pudding production
Studio Ghibli releases new My Neighbor Totoro Plate for 2026
Brand-new Square Enix Cafe to open in Tokyo…and in Los Angeles too!
Hello Kitty is now a transforming truck robot[Photos]