Bringing you yesterday's news from Japan and Asia, today.
Last year, something beautiful came to Japan. It was only here for a short while, but in that time, it left a deep impression on many people, including us here at RocketNews24. And while we were sad to see it go, it’s time to dry our tears, because this spring, it’s coming back again!
So, all excited for cherry blossom season? That’s great, but what we’re actually talking about right here are Kentucky Fried Chicken-flavor potato chips.
Tesla Cosplay are an all-female group who describe themselves as “five girls from Oregon who decided to add a little ‘awesome’ to their lives”. And looking at these photos from their recent Princess Mononoke shoot on location, we think they’ve achieved that aim!
When we think of superheroes or other magical beings with fast-healing abilities, we rarely think of children. But if you’ve seen a toddler fall, smack itself in the face, cry for a few seconds, and then run off giggling, you might realize that we’re looking for our superpowered guardians in the wrong age groups.
Of course, that’s not to say that children aren’t vulnerable to all sorts of injury, and we most definitely need to be careful with them! It’s just that they seem to have a strange resiliency that’s somewhat rare in adult humans. Take, for example, this three-year-old who fell out of a window last week, hit a parked car, and then just walked the whole thing off!
While some video game characters have settled into more or less permanent relationships with their publishers, like Nintendo’s Mario or Bandai Namco’s Kazuya and Heihachi Mishima, not every digital hero gets to enjoy a never-ending string of sequel appearances. For example, it’s been five years since the release of Mega Man 10, which so far serves as the final installment in the action platforming series.
But the Blue Bomber’s memory lives on in the hearts and minds of the many fans he acquired during his salad days following his 1987 debut. So even if publisher Capcom has kicked Mega Man to the curb, you can still show your love for the character with these retro-cool Mega Man kicks.
Oh Japanese convenience stores. Those bright, white-glowing oases that have everything you could ever possibly need inside of them, all wrapped up with a pair of chopsticks and a warm smile from the clerk.
Except for when you want an onigiri (rice ball) or sushi roll. Anyone who buys one of the items pictured above typically finds themselves suddenly engaged in a battle of wits matching human against plastic wrap. And the plastic wrap usually wins, resulting in a mess of rice, seaweed and tears of frustration.
But fear not! We here at RocketNews24 are here to help with step-by-step instructions so you will never lose to another conbini snack again.
PMS (Premenstrual Syndrome) is something many women and men are familiar with. Women bear the brunt of it on a monthly basis, while some men are indirect victims due to the mood swings of the “PMS-ing” females around them.
I doubt anyone would disagree that PMS is in no way enjoyable, but for once, the monstrosity that messes up our lives on a regular basis is starting to look interesting as Korean pop idol Lizzy teams up with comedian Park Myeong-Su to sing about it. Check out the music video after the break!
As popular as the comic and anime series Sailor Moon is, it’s no surprise that the lovely lady warriors have been turned into myriad collaborative items over the years ranging from lingerie to mobile phones. But regardless of how many Sailor Moon items we’ve seen on the market, we’re pretty sure that it’s still very exciting for fans to see their favorite heroines featured in beautiful high-fashion products. Well, that’s what fans can actually look forward to next month, when Isetan Department Store comes out with their new range of limited edition Sailor Moon and fashion brand Samantha Vega collaborative products. Let’s take a look at the moon prism-powered fashion accessories that should delight Sailor Moon fans and fashionistas alike!
When you ask people where they would live if they could move anywhere in the world, a lot of times they’ll stick with their home countries. We don’t blame them! After all, their family is probably there, they are used to the culture and lifestyle, moving to a new country would, frankly, be tough.
But, what if you could move your whole country with you? Our RocketNews24 reporters braved the cold on the streets of Tokyo’s Shinjuku district to ask passersby, “Where would you move Japan, if you could?”
Tamago kake gohan (or TKG to the cool kids) is a wonderfully simple Japanese meal, made by beating an egg and then pouring it over cooked rice. And the staff in our Tokyo office are pretty big fans. Our writer Yoshio even goes so far as to say that eating tamago kake gohan is one of the little moments in life when he feels lucky to be Japanese.
So when we discovered this unconventional recipe for Ultimate TKG, we just knew we had to give it a try – and the results were even more ultimate than we imagined! Join us after the jump for a step-by-step guide. All you’ll need is a bowl of cooked rice, an egg, and a strong wrist.
The newest Pirates of the Caribbean movie, Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales, has begun principal photography in Australia, so the production team released its very first still from the set–something that is bound to fire up all the pirate fans and Johnny Depp fans around the world. A return of Captain Jack Sparrow is as exciting as, “yo ho ho, and a bottle of rum.”
After the cast and crew, the person most excited by the news is probably RocketNews24’s own Go Hatori, AKA Asian Johnny Depp! He’s back to toast the new movie with a costume and a special drink in the form of a human head analogue. Because… Well at least we kept him off the streets.
While visiting the city of Sapporo, our adventurous reporter Mr. Sato stumbled upon this bizarre looking complex called the Retro Space Saka Hall. The whole place looked incredibly sketchy, but that was right up his alley.
Little did he know, however, that this dingy-looking industrial complex nestled in snow would almost move him to tears.
A lot of work goes into making animated films, but what is it that really makes a particular film stand out? Of course the animation itself is important, as is the storyline, but you can’t forget about the voices that give the characters their unique personalities and help bring them to life.
If you’re a fan of anime, you probably have a favorite voice actor or two, be they English-speaking or the original Japanese seiyuu. But how many of you are familiar with the Japanese people behind Hayao Miyazaki’s animated characters? As it turns out, professional voice actors are seldom used in the making of Miyazaki’s films. In fact, some of the voices behind the father characters aren’t even actors at all, with the likes of journalists and copywriters even being used to fill key roles.
Paris is certainly a city with no shortage of cafes, and when the coffee you’re serving is good enough to be highly praised by discerning Parisians, you’re bound to get noticed — even half way around the world in Tokyo! That’s exactly what’s happened with the cafe Coutume, which opened its third location in Japan earlier this month. The new shop, located in Tokyo’s Futakotamagawa neighborhood, provides a slightly different service style from the first two branches in Japan that opened last year in Aoyama (also in Tokyo) and Osaka.
And of course, we were more than eager to go and check the new shop out on opening day to taste what some people are saying is Paris’ best coffee!
Being the very heart of the anime and consumer electronics scene in Japan, it’s no surprise that Tokyo’s Akihabara neighborhood has Internet cafes where you can also read comics from a massive in-house manga library. But as nice as it can be to immerse yourself in all of the extremely important information available online, or to gorge yourself on a year’s worth of manga at a fraction of the price you’d pay to buy it, you might find yourself wanting to do so in relaxing, even traditional surroundings.
If so, a visit to the Nagomi-Style Cafe Akiba is in order, as it’s the only manga and Internet cafe in Akihabara designed with the look and atmosphere of a Japanese ryokan inn.
As I’m currently teaching at a high school, I already have plenty of teenagers trying to do things like change the due dates of their assignmentsmess in order to mess with my brain, thank you very much. The last thing I need is for my fruit to try to do the same…so imagine my frustration when I learned that there’s a place in Japan where you can buy strawberries pretending to be peaches (or is it the other way around!?)!
In a lot of ways, eggs are a pretty wonderful food. Cheap and versatile, they’re just about the quickest and easiest route to a hot, filling meal that’s high in protein and low in calories.
But while eggs may taste great, they don’t quite measure up to the standards set by other breakfast staples in the aroma department, such as sizzling bacon or freshly sliced grapefruit. Unless, of course, you’ve got your hands on some of these special eggs from Kochi Prefecture that smell, and taste, like yuzu, one of Japan’s most delicious citrus fruits. And yes, the scent is all natural.
Every season there’s a wave of new anime shows, many of them based on some other form of media such as a manga or light novel series. Most reasonably popular manga titles seem to make it onto the screen in animated form at some point or other, so it can be galling when your favorite series is passed over by the animation studios time and again in favour of yet more giant robots and impossibly large and buoyant chests.
Read on to see which manga series Japanese readers most want to see animated, and let us know what your own picks would be.
Like most countries around the world, Japan has quite a few delicious foods, like sushi, tempura and sukiyaki, that really stand out. But as delicious as they are, these wonderful dishes are usually only enjoyed every once in a while and are by no means what a regular Japanese person enjoys for their meals on a daily basis.
Of all the meals, a typical Japanese breakfast is perhaps what people are most curious about since it’s the least talked about (it’s not like breakfast is usually served at your local Japanese restaurant, after all!). Are Japanese people still scarfing down traditional Japanese foods each morning, or have they switched to a simpler, more Western style of breakfast? Let’s find out!
Bandai Namco Games announced it will release the new Godzilla game on PlayStation 3 and PlayStation 4 in North America and Europe in July.
McDonald’s new Happy Meals offer up cute and practical Sanrio lifestyle goods
All-you-can-drink Starbucks and amazing views part of Tokyo’s new 170 meter-high sky lounge
More foreign tourists than ever before in history visited Japan last month
Starbucks reopens at Shibuya Scramble Crossing with new look and design concept
Studio Ghibli glasses cases let anime characters keep an eye on your spectacles
Beautiful Sailor Moon manhole cover coasters being given out for free by Tokyo tourist center
Imitation crab meat shrine built in Kobe
Hamster abandoned at Tokyo ramen restaurant gets new home
The oldest tunnel in Japan is believed to be haunted, and strange things happen when we go there
Toyota built a life-sized Miraidon Pokémon and are letting people test drive it this weekendMcDonald’s new Happy Meals offer up cute and practical Sanrio lifestyle goods
Disney princesses get official manga makeovers for Manga Princess Cafe opening in Tokyo
We try out “Chan Ramen”, an underground type of ramen popular in the ramen communityStarbucks reopens at Shibuya Scramble Crossing with new look and design concept
Beautiful new Final Fantasy T-shirt collection on the way from Uniqlo【Photos】
Foreign English teachers in Japan pick their favorite Japanese-language phrases【Survey】
Is the new Shinkansen Train Desk ticket worth it?More foreign tourists than ever before in history visited Japan last month
There’s a park inside Japan where you can also see Japan inside the park
Japanese convenience store packs a whole bento into an onigiri rice ballMcDonald’s new Happy Meals offer up cute and practical Sanrio lifestyle goods
Studio Ghibli releases Kiki’s Delivery Service chocolate cake pouches in Japan
Japan’s bone-breaking and record-breaking roller coaster is permanently shutting down
New definition of “Japanese whiskey” goes into effect to prevent fakes from fooling overseas buyers
Foreign passenger shoves conductor on one of the last full runs for Japan’s Thunderbird train
Our Japanese reporter visits Costco in the U.S., finds super American and very Japanese things
Kyoto bans tourists from geisha alleys in Gion, with fines for those who don’t follow rules
Studio Ghibli unveils Mother’s Day gift set that captures the love in My Neighbour Totoro
Domino’s Japan now sells…pizza ears?
New Japanese KitKat flavour stars Sanrio characters, including Hello Kitty
Sales of Japan’s most convenient train ticket/shopping payment cards suspended indefinitely
Sold-out Studio Ghibli desktop humidifiers are back so Totoro can help you through the dry season
Japanese government to make first change to romanization spelling rules since the 1950s
Ghibli founders Toshio Suzuki and Hayao Miyazaki contribute to Japanese whisky Totoro label design
Doraemon found buried at sea as scene from 1993 anime becomes real life【Photos】
Tokyo’s most famous Starbucks is closed
One Piece characters’ nationalities revealed, but fans have mixed opinions
We asked a Uniqlo employee what four things we should buy and their suggestions didn’t disappoint
Princesses, fruits, and blacksmiths: Study reveals the 30 most unusual family names in Japan
Studio Ghibli’s new desktop Howl’s Moving Castle will take your stationery on an adventure
Beautiful Sailor Moon manhole cover coasters being given out for free by Tokyo tourist center
Imitation crab meat shrine built in Kobe
Hamster abandoned at Tokyo ramen restaurant gets new home
The oldest tunnel in Japan is believed to be haunted, and strange things happen when we go there
Toyota built a life-sized Miraidon Pokémon and are letting people test drive it this weekend
Sip on Starbucks at this secret lounge high above Tokyo
Fried sandwiches arrive in Tokyo, become hot topic on social media
Osaka’s creepy cute mascot speaks for first time, adds more fuel the creepy OR cute debate【Video】
Thanks to the shogun, this Tokyo Shinto shrine has good luck charms to help you win idol tickets
Japan’s most popular maid cafe, Akiba Zettai Ryoiki, opens new “Maid Cafe Winery” in Akihabara
A taste of Japanese curry usually only sold overseas, at Tokyo’s Curry House CoCo Ichibanya World
Giant Clodsire Pokémon plushie comes with up to 32 Woopers in super size, super cute set【Pics】
Anime Spirited Away finds a new way to be beautiful with gorgeous traditional hanafuda card set
Chirin-chirin ice cream: The frozen treat that sounds like a bell and looks like a rose
