On April 9th, Japan’s Finance Ministry announced new designs for Japan’s banknotes with advanced anti-counterfeiting measures. Scheduled to go into circulation in 2024, the banknotes…

There isn’t a cute or quirky item that Japanese “adventurous” bookstore and oddity shop Village Vanguard has said no to selling, but there recent interest…

As Japan’s beautiful sakura season begins to approach its end and people wrap up their hanami, or cherry blossom viewing parties, photographers have flocked to…

A painful prefix: Ita- Some of our readers may be familiar with the term itasha 痛車 (literally meaning “pain(ful) cars”), the term for cars with…

Japanese train station staff have a reputation for remarkable service and helping commuters in need, but starting in April stations on the Keio railway line…

Yuna Kimura is a multi-talented creator whose acrylic plate artworks and accessories have been getting noticed, of late. A graduate student at Kobe University who…

Artists practiced in kirie, the traditional art of Japanese paper cutting, often take washi paper and make such beautiful and intricate carvings that it’s hard…

Seiko’s luxury Gundam watches and the surprise release of Gundam vs. Hello Kitty have marked some fun ways to celebrate the 40th anniversary of Mobile…

Sekai no Owari ni Shiba Inu to 世界の終わりに柴犬と (literally, “Together with my Shiba inu at the end of the world”) is Japanese manga artist Yū…

Given the inventive takes on ramen, such as chocolate Valentine’s Day ramen and Pringles-flavored cup noodles, as well as Hello Kitty’s reputation for collaborations as…

The Idolmaster franchise is no stranger to strange (or at least, unexpected) collaborations, having already tag-teamed with New Japan Pro-Wrestling, for example, and partnered with…

Japanese IOT technology company FutureModel Corporation’s most recent version of their NichePhone mobile phone series, the NichePhone S-4G, has a new accolade to add to…

Only a few days have passed since April 1st, when Japan announced that the new era beginning next month would be called the Reiwa Era….

The Heisei Anime Song Grand Prix The winners of the Heisei Anisong Taisho 平成アニソン大賞 (Heisei Anime Song Grand Prix), an award to decide on the…

The end of March and beginning of April was one of the most eventful few days in recent memory here in the Tokyo area. Not…