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German fans dance across Shibuya scramble in post-World Cup match celebration

Michelle Lynn Dinh
Jul 11, 2014
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Following the first semifinal game of the World Cup, German football fans draped in black, red, and gold were seen celebrating in Japan’s busiest intersection, the Shibuya scramble crossing. And they sure had a lot to celebrate about.

The blowout match against Brazil saw seven goals scored by the German team, four of which came within six minutes. Most of the action took place nearest Brazil’s keeper who had to try and fend off the German forwards who were crossing the ball multiple times in front of the net as if the Brazilian defense wasn’t even there. So yes, their team through to the championship match, these German fans had every right to be celebrating and Japanese Twitter users were quick to upload their elated antics.

To say kawaii or not to say kawaii? Almost half of Japanese guys don’t want to be “cute”

Casey Baseel
Jul 11, 2014

It’s no secret that Japan is seriously into cuteness. Accordingly, in most situations, deeming something kawaii, or cute, is seen as high praise.

This is especially true when it comes to women. Whereas in English-speaking countries some may take issue with what they perceive as a diminutive or demeaning connotation to the word “cute,” in Japan, calling a girl kawaii is almost universally considered a compliment. Even actresses and models who would ordinarily be described as “beautiful” by English speakers earn kawaii cred if they have a kind smile, or any other sort of soft warmth to the aura they project.

But while just about any Japanese woman is happy to be called kawaii, things aren’t quite so simple for men.

Create your own Sailor Moon heroines with the awesome Sailor Senshi Maker

Casey Baseel
Jul 11, 2014

With the recent premier of Sailor Moon Crystal, anime’s most famous magical girl is back in action. But while the basic premise is largely the same as it’s always been (klutzy girl and her friends team up to fight evil while wearing pleated skirts), the characters look noticeably different than they did in the previous anime from 1992, as we recently saw in a side-by-side comparison.

The new artwork does look a lot closer to creator Naoko Takeuchi’s original manga, but not everyone is taken with the extremely willowy proportions and super-long shins of Crystal’s character designs. Thankfully, if you’re one of those left cold by the new look, you can always crank out a few Sailor Scouts of your own instead, with the awesome Sailor Senshi Maker.

Beautiful new luxury train for Ishikawa dazzles with gold leaf and lacquer interior

Casey Baseel
Jul 11, 2014

For the past few decades, getting around Japan has been a snap using the extremely efficient rail network that crisscrosses the country. Even better, in just a few years, not only will you be able to go anywhere on the main island of Honshu by train, but you’ll be able to do it in style, thanks to luxurious new trains servicing the Chugoku, Kanto, and Tohoku regions.

Hokuriku, the part of Japan running along the central northern coast of Honshu, isn’t about to be left out though, and its upcoming train may be the most opulent of all, with an interior decorated with traditional lacquer and gold leaf.

Hooked on helping: The man who is running the length of Japan for tsunami relief

Philip Kendall
Jul 10, 2014

Aaron Porter is a man on a mission. Giving up drinking in 1998 and smoking two years later, he took up running. Before he knew it, his new hobby had become his life’s passion, and he began taking part in marathons, half-marathons and ultra-marathons, running thousands of miles in a single year. Running, Aaron notes, was his recovery.

Now, though, he wants to help others recover. With the goal of running the entire length of Japan, from Kyushu to Hokkaido, Aaron is aiming to raise as much money and awareness for tsunami relief as he can. To do this, however, he needs sponsorship. Which is where you come in.

Lovers of Love Live will love this lovely anime smartphone case

Casey Baseel
Jul 10, 2014

Last month a set of futons for smartphones caught our eyes. Considering all the handy gadgets do for us, we agreed it’s only fair we help them get the rest they need. After all, don’t you enjoy a good’s night sleep at the end of a busy day?

Still, you don’t want your smartphone loafing about all day. Sooner or later it’s got to get up and get to work, just like you. Of course, unless you’re a work-from-home nude model, you can’t be running around without any clothes on. Once again, it’s only fair that you apply the same standards and extend the same consideration to your phone by giving it a proper set of clothes, like this school uniform from the hit anime Love Live.

Tokyo’s giant Gundam statue scheduled to get upgrade and start moving in 2019

Casey Baseel
Jul 10, 2014

I love Tokyo’s awesome, full-scale statue of Gundam as much as anybody. I try to at least stop by and say hello to Japan’s most famous giant robot whenever I’m in Odaiba, and when time permits, I’m happy to sip a beer or munch on a pretzel from the adjacent shopping center as I stare up at the 18-meter (59-foot) tall mecha.

As I mentioned before, though, it has always seemed a little ironic that the monument is stationary. After all, the series is called Mobile Suit Gundam. Shouldn’t he be moving?

Actually, in a few years, he just might.

Street Fighter: Assassin’s Fist to get theatrical premiere in Tokyo!

Fran W
Jul 10, 2014

The brainchild of martial arts expert and lifelong Street Fighter devotee Joey Ansah, live-action series Assassin’s Fist was finally released on May 23 this year. Of course, you could stay home and watch the episodes on YouTube via Machinama‘s official channel, but if you happen to be in Tokyo on August 2, you could take in a special screening of the entire series in one night!

Beautiful snow-white doughnuts from Mister Donuts Japan — can you guess what flavors they are?

Kay
Jul 10, 2014

What’s white and sweet and makes you feel happy all over? Well, Mister Donut Japan’s new line of doughnuts that has just been released this week certainly fits that description! While Krispy Kreme Japan may have added a little zing to their doughnuts by combining them with ice cream, Mister Donut has come out with a new series of white doughnuts created in collaboration with Calpis — known as Calpico in some countries, perhaps due to its unfortunate pronunciation — the popular yogurty-tasting white drink loved by people of all ages in Japan.

So, let’s see what delectable milky-white treats Mister Donut has in store for us this summer!

Tottori City’s starving mascot makes waves and suddenly disappears

Master Blaster
Jul 10, 2014

From December of last year until this February, Tottori City held an open call for mascot ideas for a character to represent the Tottori Castle ruins. The ruins were named one of Japan’s 100 notable castles and have enjoyed an influx of tourists.

The mascot idea which came in second place was Katsue-san, the starving farm girl. When the announcement of Kazue hit, the internet lit up with excitement. However, she mysteriously disappeared from the Tottori City website soon after.

Tokyo Gas commercial gets taken off the air for being too cruelly realistic

Krista Rogers
Jul 10, 2014

As any young Japanese college graduate can attest, Japan’s hellish job hunting process can be one of the most stressful and demotivating periods of a person’s life. Numerous rejections, along with that feeling of isolation after seeing those around you get job offers, is enough to make anyone severely depressed.

So what does that have to do with a gas company, you ask? A commercial by Tokyo Gas Co., Ltd. which features a girl in the midst of the job hunting process has been stirring up controversy and was even taken off the air. Why? Apparently, its portrayal of the painful job hunting process was so accurate that it left people feeling a little too miserable after seeing it.

Japanese people react to reading that “pizza is a vegetable in America”

Krista Rogers
Jul 10, 2014

If you live in the States, you may remember a few years ago when Congress blocked a proposal that aimed to make school lunches for children healthier. One of the provisions which stirred up considerable debate involved increasing the amount of tomato paste necessary to be considered a full serving of fruits and vegetables, but the proposal was eventually nixed, effectively maintaining that the tomato sauce used on pizza could count as a serving of vegetables.

After a Japanese news site broke the story fashionably late last month, Japanese people were incredulous to hear that from a legal standpoint, “pizza is a vegetable” in the U.S. Read on to learn more about the ongoing debate and some reactions of readers.

Sailor Moon Crystal gets one million views on Niconico in two days

Anime News Network
Jul 10, 2014

Niconico‘s stream of the first episode of Sailor Moon Crystal has been viewed more than 1 million times in two days, and has approximately 250,000 comments. The Japanese simulcast stream on Niconico had approximately 140,000 viewers alone. Niconico is streaming the series in 12 countries.

Does the way you cross your arms say anything about your personality? Japan thinks so

Mike
Jul 10, 2014

Everybody, go ahead and cross your arms right now. Done? Alright. Now, try to cross them the other way. If you’re currently crossed with right forearm on top, try to switch position so that your left forearm is on top. Feels incredibly awkward and unnatural, doesn’t it?

It turns out most people have a natural bias for arm-crossing direction, with slightly more than half of most global populations preferring the left-forearm-on-top approach, although the two preferences are basically 50-50. Some people apparently cross their arms either way without even thinking about it, although this population is exceedingly small.

So why do we humans find one way so natural and the other way so incredibly weird-feeling? It may have something to do with your psychological composition, according to the (admittedly somewhat unreliable) Japanese Internet.

Hatsune Miku will protect your eyes from the dangers of staring at her for too long

Cara Clegg
Jul 10, 2014

Just when you thought they couldn’t possibly come out with any more Hatsune Miku merch…someone finds a way to get the teal-haired songstress’ face on yet another new product!

Man’s image of the ideal female body is shockingly skinny even by Japanese standards

Casey Baseel
Jul 10, 2014

Happiness in the real world is largely the result of prioritizing what’s really important for you, going after those things, and not being too picky about everything else. Of course, when you’re talking about fantasizing, you can have it all, as we’ve seen previously when men are asked for the characteristics of their ideal woman.

So when a men’s magazine in Japan recently published the results of a similar survey, we weren’t surprised that the compiled average of the physical parameters were pretty strict. What was shocking, though, was the response given by one man, whose image of the perfect female figure isn’t just largely unattainable, it’s downright unhealthy.

You go, girl! Ancient game of Go reaches out to Japan’s youth with trendy magazine

Master Blaster
Jul 9, 2014

The Chinese strategy game called Go or Igo in Japanese has been around for millennia. The rules are among the simplest in existence but the underlying theory to winning is so vastly complex it takes a high degree of experience, patience, and observation to succeed.

Perhaps it’s that same complexity that’s keeping younger generations in Japan from picking a bowl of stones. However, that’s not stopping Igo associations who have developed the ultimate stratagem for hooking new players: a Go-themed free girls’ magazine with topics such as extreme go and finding your dream Go-playing soul-mate.

Cry into your Mega Man cushion while you wait in vain for a new game in the series

Casey Baseel
Jul 9, 2014

Despite the reluctance of video game publisher Capcom to green-light any new titles, there’s a lot to love about the Mega Man franchise, including creative boss battles, catchy music, and tough but fair challenges. The defining characteristic of the series, though, is the ability to acquire the weapons of your fallen foes, upgrading your starting buster gun so that it fires flames, saw blades, or that weird circle of leaves from Mega Man 2.

Mega Man only has a limited number of shots with each weapon, though. Thankfully, he can restock his health and weapon energy by picking up containers called E Tanks during each level. Still, there never seem to be enough E Tanks about when you really need them, so if you’re a trigger happy Mega Man fan, you might want to keep one lying around your living room in the form of this cool E-Tank cushion.

Hayao Miyazaki spends retirement from anime by…spending every day at his animation studio

Casey Baseel
Jul 9, 2014

Some people have a hard time adjusting to life after retirement. Whether it’s the stockbroker who can’t stop checking the market reports or the English teacher who feels the need to correct his grandchildren’s grammar, sometimes old habits die hard.

Maybe that’s why even after announcing his retirement from making feature films, anime legend Hayao Miyazaki has been making frequent visits to Studio Ghibli, the production house where he served as director for so many years.

And by frequent visits, we mean that the guy is there every single day.

Despite success abroad, even Sony’s PlayStation 4 can’t inject life into Japan’s console market

Philip Kendall
Jul 9, 2014

There was quite the uproar when Sony announced that it would be releasing its newest console in its homeland months after going on sale in other territories. Judging by the reception the console has received, though, it looks like Sony may have been right to put Japan last when it came to PlayStation 4.