Welcome to The Avocado’s weekly discussion of Japanese pop culture! Earlier this year I stumbled upon an article highlighting the fact that someone had just earned the honor of holding the top spot on Japan’s Hot 100 chart two years … Continue reading Weekly Japanese Pop Culture Thread (May 6, 2020)

Welcome to The Avocado’s weekly discussion of Japanese pop culture! This was a busy week, so I didn’t have time to write too much. So I want to quickly highlight a show that several of you have talked about and … Continue reading Weekly Japanese Pop Culture Thread (April 29, 2020)

Welcome to The Avocado’s weekly discussion of Japanese pop culture! Spring is here, and with it comes a new anime season. Rejoice! Surprising literally no one, I am featuring my beloved Fruits Basket this week because the second season officially … Continue reading Weekly Japanese Pop Culture Thread (April 8, 2020)

Welcome to The Avocado’s weekly discussion of Japanese pop culture! This week I want to talk about some music that I think you might enjoy: city pop and Shibuya-kei. I’m not even close to being a music expert, and I … Continue reading Weekly Japanese Pop Culture Thread (April 1, 2020)

Hello! As you may have seen, Merve decided to pass the torch last week, so from now on Grumproro (that’s me!) will be posting this every week. I guess I’ll introduce myself first…um…I’m kind of nervous! My name is Grumproro, … Continue reading Weekly Japanese Pop Culture Thread (March 25th, 2020)

22/7 is a multimedia project spanning an idol group, a variety show, a rhythm game, and most recently, an anime series by A-1 Pictures. They are so named because 22/7 is a common approximation for π, a transcendental number,[footnote]A transcendental … Continue reading Weekly Japanese Pop Culture Thread (March 18th, 2020)

ID: Invaded is an anime television series by NAZ about a world in which people can enter a murderer’s psyche to solve crimes. The show follows a group of investigators who attempt to catch John Walker, an elusive man linked … Continue reading Weekly Japanese Pop Culture Thread (March 11th, 2020)

In/Spectre is a Japanese supernatural mystery novel series by Kyo Shirodaira. It tells the story of two young university students who had special experiences with yōkai in their youth. An anime adaptation by Brain’s Base is currently airing. What have … Continue reading Weekly Japanese Pop Culture Thread (March 4th, 2020)

Smile Down the Runway is a shōnen manga series by Kotoba Inoya about an aspiring fashion designer and an aspiring model who team up to fulfill their respective dreams. An anime adaptation by Ezo’la is currently airing. What have you … Continue reading Weekly Japanese Pop Culture Thread (February 26th, 2020)

Ride Your Wave is the latest film from Masaaki Yuasa and Eunyoung Choi’s animation studio, Science SARU. It tells the story of a surfer and a firefighter who fall in love, though their romantic bliss may be short-lived. The film … Continue reading Weekly Japanese Pop Culture Thread (February 19th, 2020)

The Wonderland is a coming-of-age fantasy adventure film directed by Keiichi Hara. It tells the story of a teenage girl and an older family friend who get whisked away to an alternate dimension that they must save from ruin. The … Continue reading Weekly Japanese Pop Culture Thread (February 12th, 2020)

Somali and the Forest Spirit is a seinen manga series by Yako Gureishi. It tells the story of a father-daughter bond that forms between a golem and a lone human girl. An anime adaptation by Satelight and HORNETS is currently … Continue reading Weekly Japanese Pop Culture Thread (February 5th, 2019)

BOFURI: I Don’t Want to Get Hurt, so I’ll Max Out My Defense. is a comedic light novel series by Yuumikan about a teenage girl who plays a VR MMO and prioritizes defensive stats to a ridiculous degree. An anime … Continue reading Weekly Japanese Pop Culture Thread (January 29th, 2020)

Weathering With You is the latest feature from Japanese filmmaker Makoto Shinkai and his studio CoMix Wave. It tells the story of a teenage runaway and a “sunshine girl” with the power to control weather. A chance encounter between them … Continue reading Weekly Japanese Pop Culture Thread (January 22nd, 2020)

Science Fell in Love, So I Tried to Prove It is a shōnen manga series by Alifred Yamamoto about two graduate students at Saitama University who are attracted to each other, but are unsure if what they’re experience is “love,” … Continue reading Weekly Japanese Pop Culture Thread (January 15th, 2020)

The winter anime season is almost upon us, so it’s time for a quick preview. For a full list of what’s on offer, AniChart has got you covered. This season has some continuations, most notably Chihayafuru, My Hero Academia, and … Continue reading Weekly Japanese Pop Culture Thread (January 8th, 2020)

Happy new year, and welcome to the Japanese pop culture thread! I’m on vacation right now, so this is all you get. Next week, I’ll have a preview of the winter 2020 anime season. Header image from Persona 5: The … Continue reading Weekly Japanese Pop Culture Thread (January 1st, 2020)

Merry Christmas! Here’s a video of Japanese electronic rock quartet Negoto performing「水中都市」(“Underwater City”) at their last ever live concert before their disbandment. What have you been watching/eating/playing/reading/listening to lately. (Header gif from Kyōran Kazoku Nikki.) Continue reading Weekly Japanese Pop Culture Thread (December 25th, 2019)