Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba is one of the most popular franchises in recent memory, so of course Osaka’s Universal Studios Japan wants to highlight Tanjiro and his friends. The park is retiring some of its previous Demon Slayer stuff, but is also adding more …Read more »
2024 is a big year for Hello Kitty, the iconic Sanrio mascot. Created in 1974, she’s gone on to dominate kawaii culture with her own anime, games, live shows, and merchandise. (So much merchandise.) With this year marking her 50th anniversary, she’s out there even …Read more »
Anime Expo takes place July 4-7, and The Akademeia 21st Century school is bringing 30 students from Japan to teach con-goers more about “the true cool Japan experience.” You can find them at Booth 180. Three of the students—Nozomu Matsuoka, Rina Iiumi, Misaki Aoki, and …Read more »
Risk Monster, a credit management company located in Tokyo, does a yearly survey titled Organizations Where I Want my Children/Grandchildren to Work. A total of 800 people were surveyed, evenly split with 200 having a daughter, 200 having a son, 200 having a granddaughter, and …Read more »
People working at the Kyoto District Legal Affairs Bureau are supposed to be upholding the law, not breaking it. But an employee recently filed a damage report, alleging that another worker physically assaulted him — over giving away spoilers for Oshi no Ko! According to …Read more »
The first time we got word of Donkey Kong Country coming to Universal Studios Japan — as part of an expansion of Super Nintendo World — was in 2021. Then, late last year, it was revealed that we could expect the Donkey Kong Country section …Read more »
Sailor Moon’s characters are involved with Azabu-Juban district, in Tokyo’s Minato Ward. Because of this, and as a way to bring in tourists, Minato Ward decided to put five Sailor Moon-themed manhole covers in places important for the original story. If you go to the …Read more »
At midnight on April 1, the X (Twitter) account for the Bobobo-bo Bo-bobo manga unveiled an April Fools’ prank: that there would be a Bobobo-bo Bo-bobo stage play. Everyone could get a good laugh at the idea, but later in the day there was a …Read more »
A lot of anime fans want to also buy anime merchandise, and where are the best places to do that? If you’re looking for a brick and mortar building as opposed to the internet, then the Ikebukuro neighborhood in Tokyo is bound to please, because …Read more »
Over the years Japan has been putting otaku decorations on manhole covers, and now Minato Ward, located in Tokyo, is joining in with manhole covers featuring Sailor Moon. This was chosen because the characters are involved with Minato Ward’s Azabu-Juban district. While the people who …Read more »
AnimeJapan is the annual industry event in Tokyo where anime distributors, producers, journos and fans alike gather to marvel at reveals, previews, cosplay, cardboard cutouts and more. AnimeJapan 2024, set for March 23 and 24, has just revealed its new key art for this year. …Read more »
A recent survey of elementary schoolers in Japan that asked “who do you admire?” had many of the results you might expect: mom, dad, teacher, a friend. But there were also some surprising entries. In third place was Ai Hoshino, the singer from the manga …Read more »
2024 is here, and that means the Year of the Dragon! Studio Ghibli rang in the New Year by sharing an online nengajo, a type of Japanese greeting card. Hayao Miyazaki drew a dragon for the card, and Studio Ghibli wrote a note about what’s …Read more »
The original anime movie SPY×FAMILY CODE: White is out now in Japan, and special new Anya Forger candy is out now in the Japanese convenience store chain Lawson. There are seven different possible Anyas you can get, and each one has a different — and …Read more »
Two big franchises, Haruhi Suzumiya and Lucky Star, are, believe it or not, 20 years old this year. The first Haruhi Suzumiya light novel was published in June 2003, while the Lucky Star manga kicked off in December of the same year. Both properties were …Read more »
Danica Davidson
Kara Dennison
Matt Schley
