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High school students’ teacup ride blows up online, looks more fun than the Disneyland one

Preston Phro
Oct 6, 2015
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For many of our readers, the “culture festivals” held at high schools and colleges will already be familiar thanks to their prevalence in anime and TV dramas produced in Japan. Even if you’ve never been to Japan yourself, you probably already know that the classes turn their rooms into fun little shops, offering food and entertainment for their families, friends, alumni fellow students and teachers.

While most of them aren’t particularly elaborate, every now and then, a class with will show up with a project that goes above and beyond. This year, one of those projects exploded online, capturing the attention of thousands of Twitter users. The idea? The students made their own “tea cup” ride! It’s just like what you’d see at Disneyland, but entirely mechanical and way, way more awesome!

Baked Sweetness from London arrives in Tokyo as Lola’s Cupcakes opens shop in Harajuku!

Kay
Oct 5, 2015

The Harajuku/Omotesando district in Tokyo is already a mecca of sweet shops from around the world, but things in the area just got even sweeter this past weekend as another internationally loved bakery opened its very first shop in Japan. Yes, we’re delighted that London’s celebrated LOLA’S cupcakes now has a shop in Tokyo, and as you may have guessed, we weren’t about to miss out on trying the sweet creations from one of London’s best-loved baking outlets, so there we were on opening day.

We already knew from the pictures that their cupcakes look simply amazing; now we couldn’t wait to try some for ourselves, and there were even going to be four original Japanese flavors too — Yum!

Join the hordes of net users giggling at GIFs of sumo wrestlers performing comedic moves【Videos】

Krista Rogers
Oct 5, 2015

Unless you’re striving to become one of the big guys yourself, you may not have much connection to the world of professional sumo. As an ancient sport with plenty of ritual elements, the wrestlers, known as rikishi in Japanese, have a highly regimented training lifestyle. With all those rules, it’s certainly easy to overlook the comedic side of sumo.

Wait, there’s a comedic side to sumo?

Angry university student knocks classmates’ drone out of the sky, throws a hissy fit【Video】

Krista Rogers
Oct 4, 2015

We’ve already seen what happens when a pack of square-dancing ladies go after a drone carrying around coupons for cakes. But what happens when a similar scene occurs on a university basketball court with what appears to be a spoiled, entitled student having a tantrum thrown into the mix? The sight is not very pretty, to say the least.

This compilation of teas from around the world is making us thirsty! 【Video】

Meg Murphy
Oct 4, 2015

While coffee may be the world’s favorite caffeinated beverage, tea has a much longer history, and is still deeply ingrained in many cultures. How people in each country take their tea is as varied is the types of tea available, and even personal preferences within each country.

Whether you like your tea black, green, white, hot, iced, served straight or with yak butter, take a look at this video compilation of teas around the world and see how many you have tried!

Check out the incredible futuristic gear at Japan’s 2015 Good Design Awards 【Videos】

Krista Rogers
Oct 3, 2015

Every year since 1957, Japan’s Good Design Awards have honored products which are designed in such a way to have a positive impact on people’s lives. The award system, which is now operated by the Japan Institute of Design Promotion, has recently released their list of 2015’s Good Design Best 100 award winners.

With such innovative ideas as LED jump ropes and basketball courts, these awards are truly the best place to catch a glimpse of athletics equipment of the future!

“My son didn’t look back when I waved.” Toyota ad will leave you choked up, wanting to call home

Casey Baseel
Oct 3, 2015

You might think that Japanese advertisements are all Hollywood celebrity endorsements or surreal tales of busty schoolgirls with nose rings, but when it wants to, Japan can make commercials that yank on the heartstrings as strongly as anywhere else in Asia. Getting the waterworks flowing today is Toyota, asking the question, “Do you care about your parents as much as they love you?”, and while the video is short on cars, it makes up for that with plenty of tears.

This precious kitten’s “squeak” is making us all squee! 【Video】

Meg Murphy
Oct 2, 2015

Not another cat video! …said no one ever. We here at RocketNews24 know just as well as anyone that nothing does cuteness more purrfectly than cats do. We’ve found one kitten, though, that’s people in Japan mad, and absolutely killing us with its most adorable, squeaky meow.

“Miyako” – one of the most beautiful, feels-inducing Japan videos you’ll ever see【Video】

Oona McGee
Oct 2, 2015

If you’ve ever visited Japan, chances are your first stop in the country has been a big, bustling metropolis like Osaka or Tokyo. While the enormous flat screens, heaving intersections and impressive skyscrapers make for some memorable photo moments, it’s the serene, picturesque country towns that really hold the true essence and beauty of Japan.

For those of us who can’t make a trip out to soak in the serenity of the countryside, there’s a short, three-and-a-half minute film that will transport us there. If you loved Chihiro’s tranquil train ride in the Studio Ghibli movie Spirited Away, you’ll love this touching video, which introduces us to a stationmaster called Miyako, who waves at all her departing passengers—and keeps waving until they disappear into the horizon—showing us just how moving a simple gesture can be.

Japanese restaurant makes awesome anime and game character pancake art, takes requests 【Videos】

Casey Baseel
Oct 1, 2015

Even if you’re not ordinarily a very artistic person, we bet you get a spark of inspiration when you’ve got a pancake on your plate. Who hasn’t drawn a doodle or sketched a smiley face in maple syrup, or at least initialed their flapjacks with the sticky, tasty condiment?

After all, tasty as they may be, pancakes look pretty dull if you don’t add any decoration…unless you’re dining at this restaurant in Japan where the pancakes come pre-decorated with images of Pikachu, Mario, and dozens of other anime and video game characters.

Japanese coffee maker’s commercial is dark, milky, and udderly crazy 【Video】

ロケットニュース24
Sep 30, 2015

Not everyone loves Japanese TV, but we have to admit that one thing it has going for it is absolutely bonkers commercials. You can find weird, unsettling, funny, emotional, or even just hilarious commercials the world over, but it sometimes seems that Japan has a particularly high concentration of them. Maybe there’s something in the coffee…

And speaking of coffee, Japanese coffee brand Blendy has produced one of the most bizarre commercials we’ve seen to date, mixing absurdist comedy with unsettling, dark undertones. Oh, and milk. Lots and lots of milk.

Roll cake-headed town mascot character attacked by group of men, woman inside injured

Jamie Koide
Sep 30, 2015

Upon arriving in Japan, one of the first things you’ll probably notice is the large army of characters being used to sell anything from services to stationary to automobiles, or giving tips on being a good citizen like when it comes to separating your trash or picking up your dog’s poop after it finishes doing its duty. Most of them are cute, but some are downright scary.

In recent years, yurukyara, literally “weaker mascot characters”, have slowly been taking over the country, with more and more cities and businesses allocating funds to coming up with the prefect representative character costume each year. Aside from being hot and stuffy inside, being a yurukyara seems like a pretty awesome job. Kids are happy to see you, people are clamoring to get a picture of you, and generally everyone loves you…

Or at least that’s the impression we got until news of a mascot character in a small Ehime Prefecture town getting attacked.

Japanese chef shows off amazing cooking skills with high-flying omelettes 【Video】

Meg Murphy
Sep 30, 2015

If any of you have ever tried your hand at making omurice– a Japanese rice omelette- then you’ll know it can get a bit tricky when trying to plate up. This chef, however, not only makes the process look super quick and easy, but he even turns the process into a mini performance as he shows off his skill!

Video of Japanese cats relaxing with chill snail friend will make you feel purr-fect happiness

Scott Wilson
Sep 29, 2015

Do you need a one-minute escape into pure cuteness bliss? Perhaps you had a terrible day at work or a really bad hair day?

Well don’t worry; it’s going to be all right. We have the cure for your stressful day: two Japanese cats hanging out with their snail friend. These laid-back cats and their chill snail buddy are one of the most relaxing videos we’ve ever seen.

Japanese gamer beats insanely hard Mario course, goes insane with joy and breaks down in tears

Casey Baseel
Sep 29, 2015

Well, that didn’t take long. It was just a couple of days ago that we took a look at Mario Maker user PangeaPanga’s course titled Pit of Panga: P-Break and shook our heads in awe at its diabolical difficulty. While it’s true that Nintendo doesn’t allow you to upload Mario Maker levels unless you can prove they’re beatable, we wouldn’t have been surprised if no one other than PangeaPanga himself was able to clear his creation.

But in less than a week, the hardest of the hard-core have risen to the challenge, and while this video of a Japanese gamer finishing the level is a display of some impressive platforming skills, what really makes it worthwhile is the surge of adrenalin that sends him shouting his victory to the heavens, and how it leaves his body in pain and his psyche tattered as he breaks down in tears of joy at his gaming accomplishment.

Prepare to be outraged: Japan votes for its “100 Best World Class Songs” 【Videos】

Master Blaster
Sep 29, 2015

The long-running Japanese music program Music Station recently held a nation-wide survey polling 10,000 people on what they thought were Japan’s most world-class songs. Respondents told the TV show which songs they felt best represented Japan, throwing up popular artists such as Arashi and Mr. Children, and the results were aired on 23 September.

As with any music ranking, the results are open for debate, and this list is certainly no exception. However, looking at the top 10, it’s hard not to wonder where Music Station found the people who were asked to name Japan’s greatest ever song, and many Japanese netizens are calling the list “a national embarrassment”.

Are they right? Let’s find out by kicking things off with the 10th Best World Class Song: “Koi Suru Fortune Cookie” by AKB48.

Mobile Suit Toyota – Japanese automaker makes awesome anime ad for new Gundam-themed car

Casey Baseel
Sep 29, 2015

We’re sure everyone’s first choice for mode of transportation would be giant robot, but there are times when you need something more practical to get from Point A to Point B. Being behind the wheel of a four-door hatchback doesn’t mean you have to give up your mecha jock daydreams, though, thanks to the newest collaboration between Toyota and anime franchise Gundam.

The automaker has just released not only a special model inspired by charismatic anime villain Char Aznable, but also an awesome anime commercial for it that has higher production values than the original Mobile Suit Gundam TV series.

An end to high heel pain? Japanese designer offers revolutionary and stylish footwear redesign

Casey Baseel
Sep 29, 2015

I’ve always been a little confused by high heels. It’s partially because I’m not so tall myself and don’t really have much of a height advantage to spare (even if my date is wearing flats), and partially because if I’m looking at a woman there are probably enough other things that are going to attract my gaze that she’s likely to ask me to stop staring at her long before I get to her shoes, no matter how nice they may look.

High heels seem like an even odder choice in Japan, where the reliance on public transportation means walking around for long stretches of time in shoes where comfort and mobility seem to have been afterthoughts in the design process. Still, many women in Japan step out in high heels as part of their plan to present a femininely fashionable or snappy professional image. Now, one Japanese designer is trying to help those women not only look good, but help their feet feel good as well with a revolutionary ergonomic redesign of high heels.

The latest in Japanese iPhone security: using your butthole to lock your phone 【Video】

Scott Wilson
Sep 28, 2015

So everyone knows you can lock/unlock your iPhone using your thumbprint. Sure, that’s great and all, but what if you want to be even more secure? After all, what’s stopping phone thieves from stealing your fingerprints and snooping through all of your secret selfies?

Have no fear, RocketNews24’s Japanese-language writers have the perfect solution: getting your iPhone to recognize your butthole. A member of the same incredibly mature team that researched how to flavor food with burps now brings you the latest in iPhone security and will show you how to make your own iPhone something that no one could ever, or would ever want to, break into.

It probably goes without saying, but this technique is a little NSFW, so be sure no judging eyes are around before you read on.

Ready for a dose of feels? Grab the tissues because this daughter’s love is beautiful【Video】

Oona McGee
Sep 28, 2015

We here at RocketNews are a soft bunch at heart. We’ve been affected by tear-inducing, feel-good videos from countries like Japan, Hong Kong and Thailand, and now it’s Singapore that’s got us by the feels with a touching new clip.

Based on a true story, this commercial plays more like a short art film, with atmospheric shots and superb acting that seems too real to be rehearsed. Come with us as we take a peek into the life of a graduating high school girl who looks after two younger siblings and her widowed, wheelchair-bound father, as she sacrifices her education and future for her family. Oh, and bring that box of tissues with you – you’ll be needing it!