Japan’s Emperor Akihito is the man. Not only because he and the Empress look like the most friendly, adorable old people to ever walk the planet, but also because he’s a bit of a trailblazer. You might not believe it from his harmless appearance, but during his lifetime Emperor Akihito has done a ton of [...]
Japanese sparkling water beer is the medicine that helps the salaryman endure their boss’ off pitch karaoke during the frequent work parties. It is the refreshing, crisp drink that gets the common Japanese red-faced in only half a pint. Those who have had the pleasure of drinking the more popular “dry” variety can probably describe them as [...]
What is “beautiful?” Depends who you ask! Beauty is a very subjective thing, and its definition changes wildly depending on who you ask. What’s ugly and hideous to one person is attractive and sexy to the next. There’s no better example of this than the Japanese yaeba phenomenon. Some people in Japan think that a [...]
Spring is here, and with a new season comes lots of new anime for all of us to feast our eyes upon. I mean, we can’t just stare at cherry blossoms forever – we have to do something else with our spring days eventually. Just like last season (Winter 2012 in case you missed it), [...]
If you’ve been following Tofugu the last year, we’ve run a fair amount of posts about AKB48, Japan’s hottest music group. They’re a group of dozens of young, Japanese girls who have had hits on the Japanese charts for about three years running. We don’t write about them because we’re necessarily big fans of AKB48, [...]
In Japanese and Asian cultures, there are many physical traits that are considered to be attractive. A lot of the attractive traits are universally true across most cultures, but there are a few that are more specific to Japan. For instance, yaeba (snaggle tooth), anyone? Photo Source: Smosh Unfortunately, I’m not here to talk about [...]
Many would say that July 16th, 1988 was the day that the Western world was really introduced to anime. This is the date that Katsuhiro Otomo’s Akira was released in the United States. Audiences were shocked and awed by its hyperrealism, cyberpunk motifs, and dystopian future. Fans loved it. It was the start of a [...]
Recently, Japan seems a lot like an Alfred Hitchcock movie. (No, not Psycho, but close.) Over the last twenty or so years, the crow population in Japan has simply exploded. They’re not quite pecking people to death, but they’ve nonetheless become an avian menace. Why have there been so many crows recently? Most people chalk [...]
We all know that Japan’s drug laws are pretty darn strict. But, did you know that crystal meth was originally invented in Japan? Possibly because of this, Japan has had a pretty up and down history with the drug, most of which is pretty interesting. So let’s take a look at the story of meth [...]
We all know Japan is no stranger to eating whales, but did you know they also eat Vikings as well? Ever since the 1950s, eating Vikings has become a very regular thing in Japan. Everywhere from Okinawa to Hokkaido, Japanese folk enjoy Vikings on a daily basis. What’s that? You’re not following me here? Allow [...]
