After a landslide win in the July Upper House election gave his Liberal Democratic Party-New Komeito bloc a comfortable majority in both Diet chambers, many people and media outlets concluded Prime Minister Shinzo Abe would have three "golden" years without any national elections or political setbacks.

But now, almost six months later, critics say 2014 might not go as smoothly for Abe as thought.

The still fragile economy and Abe's potentially dangerous push to realize his nationalist policies could undermine his relatively stable power base if they go awry.