William Gib­son famous­ly observed that the future is already here, it's just not even­ly dis­trib­uted. That line is often thought to have been inspired by Japan, which was already pro­ject­ing a thor­ough­ly futur­is­tic image, at least in pop­u­lar cul­ture, by the time he made his debut with Neu­ro­mancer in 1984. But as any­one who's spent enough time in the coun­try under­stands - albeit not with­out frus­tra­tion - even twen­ty-first-cen­tu­ry Japan remains in many ways a pre-dig­i­tal soci­ety.
The Boyfriend is structured around queer men living and working together for two months. Throughout their time, they navigate love and friendship, which flits between sweet and intense. In the first season, the men lived in a beachside house. However, for season 2, Netflix is swapping the beach for the snow. The second season sees the men live in the winter landscape of Lake Akan in Hokkaido. This time, their group will work at a peppermint-coloured coffee truck.
A man has carried out a mass stabbing attack at a Japanese tyre factory, also spraying victims with a chemical substance, according to local officials. Eight people were stabbed and seven others were injured after being sprayed by a bleach-like agent at the Yokohama Rubber Co tyremaker in Japan's Mishima, southwest of Tokyo, on Friday, said the Fujisan Nanto Fire Department.
In Japan, legal frameworks concerning sexual minorities, including transgender individuals, are insufficient, and societal discussions have not progressed. Without a clear vision for promoting understanding, gaining the understanding of students and parents requires a certain amount of time and careful dialogue.
In mid-November, a local TV station in Kochi Prefecture reported that an American man who had served as a tourism ambassador for the small coastal city of Susaki had been indicted on October 21 for alleged possession of dried cannabis. The man, identified in Japanese reports as 39-year-old "David Bujadana" or "David Buhadana," was later investigated on suspicion of arranging for narcotics to be shipped from the United States to Japan,
I'm excited to announce that me and Audrey will be visiting Japan from November 12 to November 24, 2025! This will be our first time in Japan, and we can't wait to explore Tokyo. Yes, we'll be in Tokyo for most of it, near the Shinjuku area, working from coffee shops, meeting some colleagues, and exploring the city during our free time.
The first time I got on a plane was memorable - not because I was heading to a fancy vacation spot, but because I was going to boot camp for the Marine Corps. From the moment I arrived at the recruiter's office, the energy was intense. Family members were calling to wish me good luck, and my nerves mixed with excitement. I'll never forget when the pilot announced, "Let's give a round of applause for the future Marines on board."
Japan has approved over-the-counter sales of an emergency contraceptive pill, its manufacturer says, allowing women in the country to take such medication without prescription for the first time. ASKA Pharmaceutical said wider access to the pill would "empower Japanese women in the area of reproductive health". A date for it to go on sale has yet to be announced. The pill will be labelled as "medicine requiring guidance", meaning women must take it in the presence of a pharmacist.
At a Cabinet Office press conference, Minister of State for IP and AI Strategy Minoru Kiuchi emphasized that anime and manga are "irreplaceable treasures" representing Japan's cultural pride (via IGN). The government urged OpenAI to respect Japanese copyrights and avoid misuse of its technology. Digital Minister Masaaki Taira echoed this sentiment, suggesting that if OpenAI doesn't voluntarily comply, Japan could invoke provisions under the AI Promotion Act--legislation that promotes AI development while also addressing risks such as copyright violations.
Life is a series of battles, and I just lost my last one against four gyoza on a skewer. It was an unexpected blow, because honestly, who could have expected me - a springy, respectably proportioned hot dog - to lose against a seemingly inflexible spear of small, unassuming dumplings? This is my struggle in Sausage Legend: Arena, a mobile game with a very simple premise: duel with other players' sausages and win.
Asahi Group Holdings said in a news release on September 29 that it was "experiencing a system failure caused by the cyberattack, affecting operations in Japan." According to several news outlets, the attack halted Asahi's production in a majority of its 30 production facilities in Japan, and the company has been unable to resume operations since September 29. In the release, it added that while no leakage of customer data had been confirmed, its order and shipment operations in Japan had been suspended.
"I can't believe they pay you to do this!" I was making good money. In addition to a salary of a few bucks over minimum wage, we'd average 10 snowmobiles per tour, and $20 tips per snowmobile. That was split between the lead and tail guide, with the tail guide - me - getting 20% or about $120 a day.
Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba has decided to resign to avoid a split within the ruling Liberal Democratic Party (LDP), the broadcaster NHK is reporting. The announcement on Sunday comes weeks after Ishiba denied reports he planned to resign over a historic defeat his LDP-led coalition suffered in a July election, losing its upper house majority, saying he wanted to make sure the tariff deal struck with the United States was appropriately implemented.
An attempt to promote friendship between Japan and countries in Africa has transformed into a xenophobic row about migration after inaccurate media reports suggested the scheme would lead to a flood of immigrants. The controversy erupted after the Japan International Cooperation Agency, or JICA, said this month it had designated four Japanese cities as Africa hometowns for partner countries in Africa: Mozambique, Nigeria, Ghana and Tanzania.
