Totoro beer? Hayao Miyazaki draws new version of anime icon for Japanese craft beer label

Two of Studio Ghibli’s co-founders team up for stylish microbrew promotion.

Totoro, the forest spirit from Studio Ghibli’s classic anime film My Neighbor Totoro, is one of the most widely recognized and beloved figures in Japanese media. And now, like many other celebrities from the entertainment field, he’s endorsing a brand of beer.

But in keeping with Ghibli’s old-fashioned craftsman’s philosophy to the way it makes anime, the beer which features Totoro’s likeness isn’t a macrobrew from Asahi, Kirin, or any of the country’s other brewing giants. Instead, the character is found on bottles of Niigata Prefecture’s Echigo Beer.

This new version of the character is drawn by Totoro director Hayao Miyazaki himself. If you’re wondering why the crescent-shaped markings on Totoro’s tummy have been replaced by Japanese text, it’s because the drawing is also a signature.

However, the kanji characters don’t spell out Miyazaki’s name, but rather that of Toshio Suzuki, the Studio Ghibli co-founder who served as producer for Totoro and several other hits from the animation house.

Suzuki’s contribution to the label’s design is his calligraphy of the character 遊, pronounced yu and meaning “play” or “enjoyment.” “The calligraphy turned out so well that it’s hard to believe I wrote it,” says Suzuki. “None of the wickedness in my heart is reflected in it.”

So to summarize, Suzuki produced the calligraphy, and then Miyazaki produced Suzuki’s signature. It’s kind of strange for a signature to be created/written by anyone other than the person whose name it matches, but if we’re being honest, if Hayao Miyazaki offered to write our signatures for us, we’d take him up on the offer in a heartbeat.

The special-label Echigo Beer Pilsner is available exclusively from the online shop of the brewery’s parent company here, priced at 4,320 yen (US$39) for a bundle of six bottles, with the Ghibli-created visuals also on the box they ship in.

Source, images: @Press

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This ad for Ueno Clinic makes no sense… until you realize what the clinic specializes in【Video】

Whoever conceived this commercial deserves some kind of award.

A commercial from a chain of Japanese medical centers has been turning heads recently for its high production value and abstract message. Let’s take a look!

Generally, a commercial’s job is to explain the product or service it represents on at least a basic level. But I defy anyone to figure out what Ueno Clinic does based on this ad alone. Don’t worry if you don’t speak Japanese either, because it wouldn’t help anyway.

The video shows a lone hooded warrior who follows his destiny to become an Uenoman. Once he does, he becomes super powerful and capable of changing the world.

Ueno Clinc, on the other hand, is a medical facility specializing in STD treatment and a condition known as phimosis. I’ll spare you the graphic images a Google search would yield and explain that phimosis is a condition in which a man’s foreskin is unable to retract over the head of the penis.

From an advertising point of view, this particular skill set is difficult to promote in a palatable way to the masses. I know if I were an ad exec and someone came to me asking for a cool way to promote his foreskin-cutting business, I’d probably consider a different line of work.

But someone stepped up to the challenge and did an admirable job. If we revisit the commercial we see a man lost in a burning, discolored world of menacing bug-like creatures. Finally, when he pulls down the sheath covering his head (exaggerated wink), he becomes an Uenoman and suddenly everything, ahem, clears up.

The only real problem is that the symbolism is so out there, there’s no real way of getting it unless you know what Ueno Clinic does ahead of time. But once you do, it’s a pretty memorable ad campaign. Here’s another spot featuring a husband and wife watching Uenomen on TV, but the wife doesn’t realize a dashing Uenoman is closer than she thinks….

It’s a clever way to get a delicate message across the airwaves and to promote an important service, because unlike these ads, STDs and other genital complications are no laughing matter… unless you count that time Yuichiro’s pee looked like cola because he hadn’t exercised in ten years. That was kind of funny.

Source, images: YouTube/Ueno Clinic Group

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Japanese astrophysicists assures us that we have a long time before our universe rips apart

Nothing stays the same forever, even for our seemingly unchanging universe.

Whether you are a firm believer that the world was created by goddess Madoka Kaname or not, it is now widely accepted and scientifically proven that our universe was formed by the Big Bang, a massive explosion of cosmic proportions that gave rise to billions of galaxies.

That occurred roughly 13.8 billion years ago, and there was a time when scientists wondered if the universe would succumb to its own gravity and collapse in on itself in an epic Big Crunch. However, extensive studies would later prove that the Big Bang’s explosion was so immense that its momentum far exceeded the universe’s own gravity pull.

Galaxies are currently drifting further away from each other, and extensive research has showed that the universe’s expansion is, in fact, constantly accelerating outward like an inflating balloon.

▼ From gigantic stars to tiny atoms, everything in the universe is affected.

Although the expansion process might be incredibly slow for now, there will come a point in time where it has accelerated to unimaginable speeds, separating planets from their orbits around stars, and in the very last moments of the universe’s life, ripping even atoms to shreds in a cosmic event called the Big Rip.

▼ The world as we know will cease to exist.

The good news is that a group of Tokyo University astrophysicists, along with researchers from the National Astronomical Observatory of Japan, recently announced on 26 September that the universe will be stable for at least the next 140 billion years.

Faced with such an outcome, Japanese netizens reacted to the news:

“That’s good for peace of mind.”
“Doesn’t matter since our sun is only going to last only another 5 billion years.”
“Even the universe has limits.”
“When there’s a beginning, there’s an end.”
“Since the world’s going to end anyway, there’s no point in space travel.”

Rather than being disheartened by the inevitable end, we should consider ourselves lucky that we were born in a relatively calm age and not right before the apocalypse. Scientists may have worked out the fate of our world and humankind’s period of existence, but 140 billion years is still plenty of time for us to create universe-sized robots to keep the Big Rip under control.

Source: Kyodo via Hachima Kiko
Top image: GAHAG
Insert images: GAHAG (1, 2)

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Talent agency frustrated at idol fans’ aggressiveness, tells them to stop on official website

Instinctively chasing down idols may be acceptable in fans’ eyes, but not so in everyone else’s.

Seeing members of Japanese idol groups like Arashi up close is a dream come true for fans, and many would approach them just for an opportunity to touch or speak with their favorite idol.

Unfortunately, it is not uncommon for overzealous fans to try almost anything to get close to idol members. It has gotten to the point where Johnny & Associates, Japan’s largest talent agency, recently aired concerns about some truly disturbing behavior on their official website.

▼ The agency hopes to spread the message to all fans.
(Truncated translation below)

【ジャニーズ事務所からのお願い】 画像のことを守れない方は コンサート、舞台、番組協力など 来なくて結構です。 マナーに反する過激な行為を見つけた際は開催中止勧告する場合があります。 今後もマナーを守れる人だけお越しくださいま… twitter.com/i/web/status/1…

—
[👑King&Prince👑Jr.] (@Johnnys_Jr_joho) September 26, 2018

“We have implored fans not to chase our celebrities when they are traveling, but we have witnessed these troubling actions time and again. Not only will such behavior impede them, it will also disrupt traffic and adversely affect other people. We have received repeated warnings to improve the situation from relevant organizations.

The following incidents have been reported:

● Taking plane or Shinkansen seats near our members and standing up to peek at them.
● Blocking passage of people into Shinkansen cabins where members are resting.
● Constantly taking pictures or recording movies of our members.
● Impeding movement of our members.
● Intentionally bumping into or hugging our members.
● Chasing members despite warnings from managers, security officers and JFC support staff.
● Shooting staff with airguns.
● Causing trouble to fellow passengers.
● Chasing members in cars.

Such extreme congestion are clearly dangerous and may lead to accidents.

▼ Who on Earth brings an airgun to meet idols?

The message continued:

“Should these actions continue, not only will our members feel unsafe while traveling, the severely impacted general public will also view them in a negative light. If no improvements are observed, affected organizations may appeal to cease concerts, and our members may lose access to public transport. The actions from extreme people will shatter all the trust and goodwill established by both idols and fans.

This is an important request. Please stop chasing our members when they are at stations or airports. For those who cannot moderate their actions, please do not enter public transport where our idols are.”

Taking the list of aggressive behavior into account, it sounded as if various public transport authorities are putting their foot down with Johnnys and potentially holding the agency responsible for fans jeopardizing the safety of people.

Although the message was posted on the official website, it has done little to change the behavior of overeager fans, as evidenced by an incident two weeks later where King & Prince, the agency’s newest idol unit, attempted to board the Shinkansen at Sendai Station after their first concert tour. A swarm of fans crowded the platform and delayed the train line, affecting customers and prompting the agency to issue yet another warning.

Whether such warnings will be taken to heart remains yet to be seen, but fans should at least try to maintain order in public places even if it means distancing themselves from the idols they love. Causing public disorder may easily lead to accidents, and besides, there may be some really crazy knife-wielding fans hidden somewhere in the throng of people.

Source: Johnny’s Net via Twitter/@Johnnys_Jr_joho
Top image: Pakutaso
Insert image: Pakutaso

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What time appears most in Japanese and English song lyrics?

Seven p.m.? Eight in the morning? What time of day inspires the most crooning?

Times often figure prominently in song lyrics to help establish a certain mood, whether it’s the heartbroken romantic pining to the early hours of the morning, or the peppy pop song celebrating the end of the workday in the afternoon.

It used to be a question that would require hours of painstaking research to find out, but thanks to the wealth of data on the Internet, we can now find out rather easily. That’s just what Twitter user Kasumi Shirakaba (@kasumishirakaba) did with Japanese songs when she posted her findings for all to see.

「一番“歌われてる”時刻って『午前2時』じゃない？天体観測とか炉心融解とか」って話をしたので歌詞検索で調べてみたら圧倒的に午前2時だった。 日本で「歌詞」に最も多く登場する時刻は午前2時で、一番出てこないのは午前11時。 https://t.co/BL8lc5klq2

—
白樺香澄がなんか言ってるぞ (@kasumishirakaba) September 26, 2018

Interestingly, the top answer was a decisive 2 a.m. Here is a translated chart of Shirakaba’s findings.

▼ Ranking of frequency certain times appear in Japanese song lyrics

Overall, it seems the entire swath of early-morning hours dominated music with 2 a.m. being the peak hour of musical happenings. It stands to reason as this time would probably be the cross-over period of both the late-night partiers and lovelorn insomniacs.

Shirakaba explains that she acquired this information by searching various times in a search engine on the website Uta-net which contains the lyrics to a vast array of songs. She also searched the times in the various writings styles of both Chinese and Arabic numerals and variations of the 12-hour and 24-hour writings styles. The 24-hour clock (17:24 instead of 5:24 p.m.) is rather common in spoken Japanese so would appear often enough in songs as well.

However, uta-net only contains the lyrics to Japanese songs, or English songs covered by Japanese artists. So how would Shirakaba’s results measure up to a similar experiment done with English language music?

To find out I used engine called Song Search (songsear.ch). It has a wide selection and allowed me to find the exact phrasing of times that I wanted. I made two separate lists and I think you’ll quickly see why.

▼ Ranking of frequency certain times appear in English song lyrics

Clearly “midnight” is the winner by a long shot, but it might not be fair to include that because the word is often used in a descriptive sense rather than the literal time of 12:00. Many songs reference, “midnight trains” or “midnight alleys,” and when Billy Idol says “she cries more, more, more,” it would seem uncharacteristic of that rebel yell to be confined to the literal “midnight hour” of 12:00 to 12:59.

“Noon” falls into the same problems with a lot of its songs referencing “high noon,” probably alluding to the film of the same name and westerns in general.

Still, based on the examples I saw, a lot of the songs are indeed referring to the exact times, and even if you eliminated up to 87 percent of songs that use these words, “midnight” would still come out on top.

But if you’re a stickler for the rules and feel “midnight” and “noon” shouldn’t count as actual times, here is perhaps a more satisfying list.

▼ Ranking of frequency certain times appear in English song
lyrics excluding the words “midnight” and “noon”

This time 3 a.m. comes out on top with 2 a.m. close behind. Also 12 a.m. fares fairly well, despite it not being exactly sure whether it’s referring to midnight or noon outside of context.

When it comes to “most commonly-referenced times,” it turns out there isn’t much difference between Japanese and English tunes, aside from the poetic advantages of the words “midnight” and “noon.”

One interesting discrepancy is that further down the list Japan appears to have more emphasis on early afternoon possibly due to idol or anime songs dealing with after-school stuff. Meanwhile, English songs seem to gravitate toward the morning, possibly while singing about waking up and starting one’s day.

I guess what we can all take away from this is that the world is sorely lacking songs about that post-lunch haze of one in the afternoon.

Source: Twitter/@kasumishirakaba, Togetch, Song Search, Uta-net
Images: SoraNews24

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Newest skyscraper in China looks like a giant penis, gets mocked online with phallic comments

Now that is an erection of a building.

China has some of the most fascinating architecture in the world, boasting grand designs and awe-inspiring styles that has even caught the eye of Chinese president Xi Jinping.

But one newly-opened skyscraper in the province of Guanxi has everyone scratching their heads. Called the Guangxi New Media Center, the building took two years to complete and certainly looks impressive from the ground thanks to its breathtaking terraced exterior.

▼ Unfortunately, it also bears an uncanny resemblance
to a massive penis at certain angles.

▼ It wasn’t long before playful netizens added
fireworks effects to celebrate its, uh, completion.

According to local media, the architects modeled the building after the majestic Longsheng Rice Terraces, which have attracted visitors from afar with its lush scenery.

▼ No one expected the region’s most incredible view…

▼ …to be depicted as a towering penis.

Japanese netizens agreed that it resembled glorified male genitalia more than anything else:

“What was going through their heads when they designed this building?”
“There seems to be a lot of architects who love creating such stuff.”
“The locals are definitely going to call it the Penis Tower.”
“Is this some kind of contemporary art that can only be understood by a select few?”
“That’s what I love about China.”

No one knows if the design was deliberate, but it looks like Guangxi New Media Center has already garnered attention at a worldwide scale after just a few months of opening. Japanese netizens shouldn’t be so quick to laugh though, as Tokyo also boasts an immense object that looks like a golden poo on a building.

Source: Shanghaiist, Edamame via Kinisoku
Featured image: Twitter/@OFalafel

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Drawfee Presents CARTOON HELL [Official Trailer]

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More Japanese workers are ditching crisp business suits for casual and comfortable wear

Times are changing, and Japan’s younger generation now favors practicality over formality when it comes to work fashion.

In Japan, joining the workforce as a salaryman or office lady means donning business suits of very basic styles and colors. As crazy as it may sound, deviation from fashion norms established by countless generations of office workers wearing black and white can actually reduce your chances of landing jobs.

But even for a country that holds tradition in high regard, the winds of change have begun to blow, as shown by a comprehensive analysis of the Family Income and Expenditure Survey conducted by Japan’s Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications. In 1991, the average Japanese household spent 25,000 yen (US$220) a year on business suits, which amounted to 0.5 percent of the national average annual income of 4.6 million yen.

▼ That expenditure rapidly dropped to a mere 6,959 yen per year in 2016,
more than a three-fold decrease.

This may have been attributed to a number of factors, including the proliferation of IT and venture companies where workers are often allowed to operate in casual work clothes. The government’s Cool Biz initiative to help reduce electricity consumption might have also played a huge role in the decline of suits, encouraging workers to ditch standard business suits in favor of short-sleeved shirts without jackets during the sweltering summer months.

Nevertheless, some Japanese companies still maintain strict dress code guidelines to this day even in the unbearable heat. Workers forced to wear suits during hot summers could often be drenched in sweat by they walked just from the train station to the office, which meant more trips to the dry cleaners.

▼ Some were driven to the point where they would transfer in a heartbeat
to a company that allowed casual wear.

What’s more, investing 40,000 yen or more on a set of suits for work might not be everyone’s cup of tea, not to mention the additional financial burden for fresh university graduates who have to repay student loans.

The decline in sales has caused stocks to plummet for business suit companies like Aoyama Trading and Aoki Holdings, two of the biggest brand names in the office attire industry. Even new classy fabrics and styles seem to have minimal effect on the market slump.

While it’s a stretch to say that we’ll be witnessing the death of business suits in Japan soon, the fact that more workers desire comfortable wear suggests that practicality has become a higher concern for them. Besides, no one wants to look at sweaty man-nipples through stark white shirts.

Source: Niconico News via My Game News Flash
Top image: Pakutaso
Insert images: Pakutaso (1, 2)

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A peek inside one of the last VHS-only video rental stores in Japan

Looks like someone was kind enough to rewind back to 20 years ago.

Considering what a technologically advanced and media-hungry country Japan is, people are often surprised to learn that the country still has a large number of video rental stores. I’ve got one in my neighborhood that’s clean and stocked with the latest releases, and it’s actually kind of nice for when I want to watch a movie without having to worry about my Internet connection, online region codes, or anything else that can make streaming services a hassle.

But Twitter user @ayukawaarisa recently stumbled across something that’s rare even in Japan: a video rental store where the entire stock is still on VHS.

vhsしかないビデオ屋発見 https://t.co/HRwq8KoBDo

—
鮎川亜里沙 (@ayukawaarisa) September 23, 2018

Sitting unassumingly along the side of a road in Mie Prefecture is video rental shop Joyful. The signs at the entrance to its dusty parking lot proudly tout that the shop is open every day all-year round, and that there’s no membership or sign-up fees. There’s even a special going on right now, which allows you to rent five tapes for a whole week for 1,000 yen (US$9), in case you’re catching up on your personal backlog of unseen ’80s action movies.

@ayukawaarisa あ！ダウンタウンのごっつええ感じだ！ https://t.co/0y9w9DF1vm

—
しょうたそ(ごぜんぜうな) (@inoue_shouta) September 24, 2018

Waiting inside are monolithic monuments to the magnetic tape era, as Joyful’s ownership apparently never saw any benefit in stocking those new-fangled DVDs all those kids who’re now in their 30s got so excited about. That, obviously, means that you won’t find any movies that were released anywhere close to recently, but if you’re completely committed to classic films on analog media, @ayukawaarisa says that Joyful is also offering tapes for sale for 1,000 yen each, if you’d rather have one movie forever than five for seven days.

Online reactions included:

“Wow. It’s like some place where time stopped in the ‘90s.”
“At first I thought he was tweeting an old photo from 30 years ago.”
“Such a nostalgic sight.”
“Even if I rented something from them, I don’t have a VCR anymore. It’s so tragic.”
“I bet some of the videos are cursed.”
“It’s like you discovered an ancient ruin.”

Regarding that last comment, Joyful is located in Ise, the same city as the Ise Shrine, one of the holiest sites in Shintoism. While Joyful’s historical significance isn’t quite as deep, it’s still a relic of a part of modern culture that within a generation will probably be as extinct as the general stores of the Old West or blacksmith shops of the medieval era. With Joyful offering its movies for sale, it probably won’t be long before it finally closes its doors for good, so it’s nice to have some photo to remember it by.

Shop information
Joyful / ジョイフル
Address: Mie-ken, Ise-shi, Sochi-cho, 2211-2
三重県伊勢市佐八町２２１１−２

Source: Twitter/@ayukawaarisa via Otakomu
Featured image: Twitter/@ayukawaarisa
Top image: Google

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Sanrio’s laziest character gets a hand from its surliest as Bad Badtz-Maru joins Gudetama Cafe

Constantly scowling penguin is incapable of service with a smile, but he looks adorably delicious anyway.

Lazy as Gudetama may be, Sanrio’s lovably lethargic character doesn’t really need any help running his restaurants. After all, as an anthropomorphized egg, Gudetama is already incredibly well-suited to serving as inspiration for all sorts of themed foods and drink items.

Nevertheless, another Sanrio star is coming to lend a hand at the Gudetama Cafe in Osaka, and it’s one who shares Gudetama’s aversion to the sugary sweetness radiated by so many of Sanrio’s other characters.

Bad Badtz-Maru, the surly penguin with the signature scowl, will be appearing at the cafe as part of a lineup of four collaborative items. Starting things off, Badtz-Maru crawls inside a warm blanket made out of his Sanrio brethren with the Badtz-Maru Taking a Break in a Gudetama Furon Hayashi Rice (1,150 yen [US$10.40]), with fluffy white rice covered in demi-glace sauce.

The pair get a little more personal space with the Gudetama and Badtz-Maru Mini Mini Burger Set (1,200 yen), though the Badtz-Maru burger seems to be stuffed with roast beef instead of any sort of patty.

Gudetama and Badtz-Maru team up for their third, and final, starchy dining option with the Gudetama and Badtz-Maru Tiramisu Pancake (1,150 yen), which, as is often the case with dessert pancakes in Japan, comes with a side of sliced fruit and berries.

And last, if you prefer your desserts Japanese style, there’s the Gudetama and Badtz-Maru Anmitsu Parfait (1,100 yen), featuring agar jelly and a skewer of sanshoku dango mochi dumplings.

All customers receive a Gudetama/Badtz-Maru placemat and sticker to take home with them, and, as is standard at Japanese themed cafes, each drink also gets you a coaster.

▼ The Gudeatama/Badtz-Maru placemat

Badtz-Maru clocks in for work on October 1, and the four crossover items will be available until November 30.

Cafe information
Gudetama Cafe / ぐでたまかふぇ
Address: Osaka-fu, Osaka-shi, Kita-ku, Kakuda-cho 5-15, Hep Five 7th floor
大阪府大阪市北区角田町5-15 HEP FIVE 7F
Open 11 a.m.-10:30 p.m.
Website

Sources: @Press, IT Media
Images: @Press

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