AU Hikari is a broadband service for subscribers in Japan including internet (yeah, 1GBps), tv, and digital phone. Their most recent commercial uses a Rube Goldberg machine to highlight the “power of optics”. Rube Goldberg machines are referred to in Japanese as a Pythagoras Device or sometimes by the eponym “Pythagoras Switch” (named after the popular…
The NFL Game Pass is still the best way to legally watch NFL games from Japan. It is only available to people living outside the US, costs 27,415 yen, and lets you watch on computers and devices as well. If paying nearly 300 US dollars to watch the NFL seems a bit steep, it might…
Momotaro aka The Peach Boy is a very well known Japanese folktale. It’s most often depicted with cute characters, although the story itself is an action packed battle starring Momotaro and the monkey, pheasant, and dog he befriends in his travels. Pepsi Japan has picked up the story and began releasing a series of commercials…
I was perusing through some of the recently added tv shows on Hulu the other day (I have Hulu Plus so I can watch on my devices), and noticed that some live action Japanese tv shows have been added for (I believe) the first time. They seem to be shows also available on the “DramaFever”…
One of Hayao Miyazai’s most beloved films, “Kiki’s Delivery service” is set to be released as a live action film in March of 2014. The original animated version was released in Japan in 1989, and then dubbed and released in the US by Disney in 1997. It is, simply put, the story of a young…
In sad news today, popular Japanese comedian “Yakkun Sakurazuka” (real name Yasuo Saito) who is famous for dressing in girl’s high school uniforms mimicking the Japanese film archetype of the badass, bullying high school girl. He studied Cinema at Nihon University, and has appeared as both a regular and a guest on several TV shows,…
Erana Brewerton, a respected Maori scholar on a cultural program visiting Hokkaido was denied entry to a hot spring in Hokkaido that prohibits tattoos. Brewerton is a celebrated scholar in New Zealand and has a traditional tattoo on her face. Many hot springs have policies prohibiting tattoos but in many cases are not enforced unless…
A weekly staple for fans of the Japanese comedy team Downtown, and their friends is set to come to an end. The gang on Lincoln will be calling it quits. The show started up in October of 2005 and will be finishing a successful run on Tuesday, September 10th. Mimura from “Summers” posted a message…
I am pretty happy to see Salvage Mice on Netflix. The US gets far too great a share of Japanese horror and gore and far too few of these fun little flix with a bit of comedy and heart. Granted, it’s still a “girls in high school uniforms fighting” kind of show, but it uses…
TLC has decided to celebrate the 20th anniversary of the song “Waterfalls” by teaming with Japanese pop star Namie Amuro for a version which (in a slight bit of controversy) removes the rapping of the late Lisa “Left Eye” Lopes. (Although Left Eye’s estate will benefit from royalties due to her writer’s credit on the…
Just in time for summer and following in the footsteps of Pepsi drinks intended to be both great thirstquenchers for hot and humid Japan, Pepsi has released it’s latest and most delicious sounding flavor so far. Salty Watermelon Salty Watermelon Pepsi is scheduled to go on sale in Japan starting July 24th for the suggested…
If you’ve been to Japan and walked through one of the drinking districts or shopping districts or malls or most any place with a good amount of foot traffic, you may have been tempted to slip inside and drop a few hundred yen into a video game. The popularity of public arcades lives on in…