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Get married in the name of the moon with official Sailor Moon marriage registration certificates!

Oona McGee
Oct 26, 2015
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If you’ve finally met your real-life Princess Serenity or Prince Endymion and have decided to venture out together in holy matrimony, congratulations! Now it’s time to invest in a tiara, stock up on some sexy lingerie and start planning a wedding filled with special Sailor Moon details. And when it comes to filing the paperwork at City Hall, you’ll no longer be plunged back into reality with boring forms because now you can continue the fantasy with two very special Sailor Moon-themed marriage registration kits!

Look forward to 2016 with new anime Active Raid from the director of Code Geass!

KK Miller
Oct 26, 2015

More often than not, stories and franchises start as manga in Japan and, if they become popular enough, you will see them evolve into an anime, musical, or sometimes even a live-action versions. While it is great to see our favorite stories presented in different formats, viewers will usually know exactly where the plot will go and how the characters develop.

A show that can never fall victim to that trap is a completely original anime series that makes its debut on the TV screen. You won’t know if it’s going to be any good, but with the kind of pedigree behind Active Raid: Special Public Security Fifth Division Third Mobile Assault Eighth Unit, you can bet we are looking forward to its 2016 release. Though it’s going to take us a while to use its full name in conversation…

Sweet high-school anime shows how learning kanji can be the key to getting a girlfriend【Videos】

Cara Clegg
Oct 24, 2015

Kanji characters are one of the most fascinating, but also the most troublesome, aspects of the Japanese language—and that goes not just for foreign learners but also for Japanese natives. The Kanji Kentei is a standardized test that you can take to prove your kanji knowledge, but after being drilled on the kanji throughout their school lives Japanese people might not be taken by the idea of sitting for even more exams on the subject.

That’s why the Kanji Kentei administrators, in an effort to encourage people to give up their free time to study kanji and take their exams, has fallen back on the failsafe go-to of Japanese advertising: cute, nostalgic anime.

We visit Tomonoura, the scenic harbor town that inspired Studio Ghibli’s “Ponyo”【Photos】

Scott Wilson
Oct 24, 2015

If you’ve seen Ponyo, Studio Ghibli’s adorable movie about a fish girl who wants to be human, then the above location may seem pretty familiar. That’s because it was taken in the port town of Tomonoura, where Hayao Miyazaki and his team spent months getting the inspiration and imagery to create their next animated film.

As massive Ghibli fans, we had to take a look at the town for ourselves and see what real-life Ponyo looks like. Read on to check out the beautiful scenery for yourself, and see the effect that Ponyo has had on the town, as well as the effect the town had on Miyazaki.

Japanese lawyer: Making cosplay for others is copyright infringement

Anime News Network
Oct 24, 2015

In about a week, Halloween, cosplayers‘ favorite holiday, will be upon us. Millions of people — increasingly including Japanese — will take to the streets in costume, and much of it will be cosplay. But some of this activity may actually be against Japanese law.

Real life Pokémon gym set to open in Japan next month

Casey Baseel
Oct 22, 2015

Despite the famous “Gotta catch ‘em all!” tagline, Pokémon trainers don’t spend every moment of their adventures traipsing through the underbrush searching for new Pocket Monster species. Part of the process of becoming a Pokémon Master is making a pilgrimage to gyms where trainers can strengthen their skills and bonds with their adorable biological arsenal.

Until now, the only places to find these gyms were within the video games and anime of the Pokémon franchise, but next month marks the opening of the first official Pokémon gym in Japan, where fans can meet and train with a variety of Pokémon in interactive and augmented reality attractions.

Evangelion Shinkansen gets range of souvenirs, including its very own bullet train ekiben obento

Oona McGee
Oct 22, 2015

A train journey in Japan is much more than a means to a destination; with spotless carriages and unique tie-in promotions, riding the Shink is an event in itself. And with the Evangelion Shinkansen bullet train scheduled to start running from November 3, things are set to get even more exciting as passengers can now ride the rails from Osaka to Fukuoka and back inside a train dressed up as a giant bio-machine.

To mark the special occasion, Japan Rail West is releasing a whole range of commemorative Eva bullet train goods for travellers in the country, including stationery, snacks, and an awesome ekiben bento that comes in a keepsake ceramic shinkansen-shaped container.

The top 20 anime/manga series Japanese fans would like to show to their kids

Krista Rogers
Oct 22, 2015

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.

Clean drinking water makes stalking more romantic, manga schoolgirl ad wants us to remember

Casey Baseel
Oct 22, 2015

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.

New Japanese model unit says happy Halloween with Sailor Moon lingerie cosplay photo shoot

Casey Baseel
Oct 22, 2015

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.

Evangelion x Japanese Sword dolls take a trip to traditional Japan with katana blades and kimono

Oona McGee
Oct 21, 2015

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.

Evangelion SIM-free smartphones and life-sized figures on sale at 7-Eleven

Oona McGee
Oct 21, 2015

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.

Rurouni Kenshin comes to picture-perfect life as photos of stage musical’s cast are released

Casey Baseel
Oct 21, 2015

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.

Otaku speed-dating party lets participants chat online before event, review each other during it

Casey Baseel
Oct 21, 2015

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.

Get in the bullet train, Shinji! The Evangelion Shinkansen is here 【Videos】

Casey Baseel
Oct 20, 2015

Fans of hit anime Evangelion are used to having their patience tested. Almost three years after the Japanese theatrical release of the Evangelion 3.0 feature film, the movie still isn’t available on home video in North America. Meanwhile, the fourth, and reputedly final, chapter of the Rebuild of Evangelion film series remains without a release date.

But if there’s one thing Japan demands punctuality from, it’s the country’s trains. So with the Evangelion Shinkansen scheduled to go into service next month, the anime-themed bullet train is practically complete and recently made its public and video debut.

Attack on Titan car navigation system stars Survey Corps, a walled city and checkpoint giants

Oona McGee
Oct 20, 2015

The live-action Attack on Titan movies may have been a bit of a disappointment, but we’ll always have the glorious anime. And now the animated protagonists from the acclaimed series are bringing their world into ours and guiding us around it with an amazing new tablet and car navigation system.

Filled with special extras including the opportunity to “rank up” according to distances travelled, a choice between “return to the wall” or “Survey Corps outer expedition” route views, and an appearance from a Titan when we pass through convenience store checkpoints, it’s bound to make trips to the grocery store much more exciting!

New Trigun sneakers are the perfect footwear for your next stampede across the anime badlands

Casey Baseel
Oct 20, 2015

Beloved by fans as it may be, the 1998 space cowboy anime Trigun isn’t completely beyond criticism. The pacing is uneven, and the production budget clearly isn’t large enough for the animators to effectively realize their artistic ambitions.

But Trigun hits its target dead center in creating two instantly memorable male leads: disarmingly happy-go-lucky gunslinger Vash the Stampede, and itinerant, heavily armed clergyman Nicholas D. Wolfwood. Both characters ooze coolness and presence from their heads to their toes, and now you can have some of that style for your own feet with two pairs of Trigun sneakers.

Love anime and driving? Carmaker Subaru now selling official itasha

Casey Baseel
Oct 20, 2015

Different people have different concepts of Japanese automaker Subaru. For motorsports enthusiasts, the first image that comes to mind is the company’s all-wheel drive cars doing sick jumps on rally gravel stages. Technology buffs, meanwhile, may think of their EyeSight automatic braking safety system.

Japanese animation fans, though, may best know Subaru as the major sponsor of animation studio Gainax’s celestial-themed magical girl anime Wish Upon the Pleiades (known in Japanese as Hokago no Pleiades). And while the series’ TV run is over, that doesn’t mean Subaru’s love for the anime has expired, as the car manufacturer has created, and is selling, an official Wish Upon the Pleiades itasha covered with graphics of the show’s cast.

If people, not pocket monsters, battled it out in the Pokémon world【Video】

Meg Murphy
Oct 20, 2015

In the Pokémon world, trainers collect and battle their pet monsters against other trainers to gain experience, earn badges, and aim to become the greatest pocket monster master in the world. But what about the Pokémon themselves—do they even get a say in whether or not they want to fight? If trainers want to determine which of them is the strongest, why don’t they just duke it out themselves?

Well, the folks over at Dorkly ran with that clever idea and made it happen, with two guys fighting it out to familiar chip-tune battle music in this all-too-perfect video showing just what it would look like if humans battled it out in the Pokémon world!

Asahi Shimbun’s app featuring moe school-girl broadcasters is a deceptively good study tool

Master Blaster
Oct 19, 2015

As in any country, a Japanese newspaper’s credibility often rests on a very fine political line. If their reporting leans even a little left or right, they run the risk of being called a stack of toilet paper scribbled on by talentless hacks by half the population. It’s a precarious position, and one in which releasing an app wherein you dress up school girls as a reward for current event awareness only seems to provide fuel for your detractors.

And yet on October 14 one of Japan’s leading newspapers, Asahi Shimbun, released just such an app called Kikasete Tensei Jingo. It features several moe girls reading from selected editions of the paper’s long-running Tensei Jingo editorial column. However, as pointless as it may appear on the surface there is some heavy language practice potential buried in there.