Deep Dive, a podcast that goes below the surface of Japan

Utagawa Kuniyoshi's "Haunted Old Palace at Soma" (ca. 1845-46), in which a sorceress draws forth a giant skeleton to attack a warrior.

staff writer

Author, Bram Stoker Award nominee and host of the podcast “Uncanny Japan,” Thersa Matsuura joins us to share her fascination with the Japanese supernatural.

DEEP DIVE Oct 21, 2020

Episode 69: Why we should be celebrating Japan's tattoo culture

by Oscar Boyd and Alice Gordenker

STAFF WRITERS

Japan has an uncomfortable relationship with tattoos, which are associated with the yakuza and the criminal underworld.

Naomi Osaka adjusts her mask after defeating Jennifer Brady in their U.S. Open semifinal on Thursday in New York.

DEEP DIVE Oct 14, 2020

Episode 68: Naomi Osaka — seven matches, seven masks, seven names

by Oscar Boyd and Joel Tansey

STAFF WRITERS

News editor Joel Tansey discusses the impact of Naomi Osaka’s support for the Black Lives Matter movement both in the U.S. and Japan, and what a new wave of activism ...

Sayaka Murata's "Convenience Store Women"

DEEP DIVE Oct 8, 2020

Episode 67: 'Convenience Store Woman' and the art of translation

by Oscar Boyd

STAFF WRITER

Ginny Tapley Takemori discusses the process of translating Japanese literature into English — a somewhat forgotten art.

Fun with fungi: Jeremy Umansky and Rich Shih explored the many uses of kōji independently for years before collaborating on “Koji Alchemy,” the first English-language publication devoted to the mold.

DEEP DIVE Sep 30, 2020

Episode 66: Kōji — the magical mold of Japan

by Oscar Boyd and Claire Williamson

STAFF WRITERS

Japan Times food editor Claire Williamson joins Deep Dive to discuss her new found passion for Aspergillus oryzae, the mold better known in Japan as kōji.

DEEP DIVE Sep 23, 2020

[Bonus episode] The making of the Walkman

by Oscar Boyd and Matt Alt

STAFF WRITERS

This episode is based around an extract from the audiobook of "Pure Invention." We join in the middle of chapter 5, which is all about the invention of the Walkman.

A firefighter battles the Creek Fire as it threatens homes in the Cascadel Woods neighborhood of Madera County, California, on Monday.

DEEP DIVE Sep 16, 2020

Episode 65: Where is Japan's green recovery?

by Oscar Boyd and Ryusei Takahashi

STAFF WRITERS

Staff reporter Ryusei Takahashi joins Oscar Boyd to discuss the idea, opportunities and difficulties of a green recovery in Japan.

Prime Minister Shinzo Abe speaks at a news conference in Tokyo on June 18.

DEEP DIVE Sep 9, 2020

Episode 64: The end of Shinzo Abe: What will his legacy be?

by Oscar Boyd and Tobias Harris

In part two of this two part look at the end of Prime Minister Shinzo Abe’s time in office, we look at Abe's legacy as Japan's longest-serving prime minister.

DEEP DIVE Sep 2, 2020

Episode 63: The end of Shinzo Abe: What happened and who's next?

by Oscar Boyd, Satoshi Sugiyama and Tobias Harris

STAFF WRITERS

This is part one of a two part look at the end of Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's time in office.

Prime Minister Shinzo Abe during a news conference at the prime minister's official residence in Tokyo on Aug. 28.

DEEP DIVE Aug 28, 2020

[Rebroadcast] What's the secret to Shinzo Abe's longevity?

by Oscar Boyd and Sakura Murakami

STAFF WRITERS

This episode was originally recorded in December 2019, in a world that had not yet gone through the trials of the coronavirus, and when Japan was looking ahead to hosting ...