For its latest concept bra to announce its new range, Triumph has come up with the Branomics Bra. Yes, you've guessed it. This is a reference to Prime Minister Abe's "Abenomics", the fiscal ...

As Japan’s population continues to decline, we see more and more non-human characters pop out and come to life on a daily basis. The yuru-kyara boom which started less than a decade ago is now ...

If Kabukicho had a theme park starring Akihabara chika aidoru ("underground" idols), this might be it... After opening last summer amidst much sound and fury, we finally paid a visit to the Robot ...

For a country with a declining birthrate (and by extension, the population as a whole), Japan's toy manufacturers are not showing any signs of giving up. Granted it hasn't been plain sailing for ...

In Japan, April is the month of new starts. The new school year. New company employees join their firms. And we see an increasing number of TV commercials promoting the message of “It’s now or ...

Raising kids is indeed one of the toughest jobs out there. While parenting entails balancing when to treat and when to reprimand your child (of which I’m sure the latter is much harder), Media ...

The Japanese have one of these effortless and inimitable attitudes towards religion. It is both part of their lives, sort of, in the form of Shinto customs, visiting shrines, animistic "power ...

It's a common perception among foreigners that the Japanese are polite and respectful. They say that the Japanese show, if not innately have, good manners in public and seem to act orderly even under ...

The popular anime franchise Evangelion is well know for creating all kind of Evangelion-themed products. To promote the DVD and Blu-Ray release of the latest movie Evangelion: 3.0 You Can (Not) Redo ...

Residents in Japan may have spotted that recently Kirin has been featuring Disney characters on its Gogo no Kocha (Afternoon Tea) drink bottle labels. Just another gratuitous and forgettable ploy ...

Over the weekend I was lucky enough to be offered a free ticket to the "Kawaii!! Matsuri". What is the "Kawaii!! Matsuri?" Well, it literally translates as "Cute!! Festival". And that is exactly what ...

Panasonic has just launched a new service whereby you can get your very own uniquely designed camera. The Design Simulator customizing service can be accessed via PanaSense, the maker's ...

April is the time of a new start. It’s the beginning of a new school year. It’s when new recruits start their first full-time jobs. Cherry blossoms are in full bloom. It’s a perfect time of a ...

Lanterns in Japan are called chochin and are featured on the front of most izakaya restaurants, as well as shrines. There is a famously huge one, for example, at Kaminarimon ("Thunder Gate") in ...

A couple of weeks ago, I ventured to Shibuya station with no intent to board a train. UNIQLO had opened a giant pop-up shop on the former Tokyu Toyoko line platforms. Honestly, I figured this was ...