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July 05, 2025
 

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COSPLAY

Tokyo Comic Con took place at Makuhari Messe in Chiba on Dec. 6, 7 and 8.
CULTURE
Dec 18, 2024
Comic cons are far more than just cosplay
The conventions allow fans of comics to meet their heroes — both actors and authors — with manga and anime playing an increasingly bigger role each year.
Cosplayer Xu Yunting (left), dressed as Jesse, a male character from the video game Light and Night, and video game enthusiast Feng Xinyu visit a crafts shop during their 'cos commissioning' date in Shanghai.
LIFE / Lifestyle
Sep 11, 2024
'Dream men': Female cosplayers in China fulfill fantasies for young women
A trend called "cos commissioning" is allowing young women in China to perform idealized heteronormative relationships — with other women.
The judge and last year's winner, Lettie Shiels, sits in the dressing room during the World Cosplay Summit in Nagoya on Saturday.
CULTURE / Entertainment news
Aug 4, 2024
Transformative hobby: Going for gold at Japan's World Cosplay Summit
The three-day event in Nagoya drew thousands of fans — many keen to show off their own costumes.
Japan Times
LIFE / Lifestyle
Oct 24, 2021
Masks, monsters and munchies: Get your spook on this Halloween
Halloween is an annual excuse for people of any age to dress up, decorate and eat way too many treats. Here's how everyone can enjoy this frightfully fun holiday in 2021.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music
Jun 24, 2021
Hikari makes soft-power moves with anime and Vocaloid covers
In 2021, the performer launched Singing Cosplayer Hikari, a multiplatform project anchored by her YouTube channel, to harness the booming popularity of anime and Japanese music.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Nov 1, 2020
Photo essay: This is Halloween ... in Tokyo 2020
Despite officials' pleas to stay home, crowds of revelers — with and without masks — converge for a costume street party in Shibuya.
Japan Times
LIFE / Style & Design
Jul 21, 2019
Untapping the power that lies between fashion and costume
"Fashion and costume can offer freedom, protection, power. Sometimes they can even change the world."
Japan Times
LIFE / Lifestyle
Jul 6, 2019
Cosplay conquers the world
The art of dressing up as characters from anime, manga, video games or TV shows has evolved into a global phenomenon.
Japan Times
MORE SPORTS
Mar 3, 2019
In pictures: The rain, the pain and the fun of Tokyo Marathon 2019
Low temperatures and persistent rain put a slight damper on the celebratory aspect of the 13th Tokyo Marathon but at least it didn't harm the runners' overall performances. The winner — Ethiopia’s Birhanu Legese — clocked the event's second-best time ever, and a record number of runners — 38,000...
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Our Lives / TELLING LIVES
Feb 3, 2019
From cosplay fan to idol, Yuriko Tiger's journey has been a colorful one
It was 1964 when 19-year-old ye-ye singer Sylvie Vartan captured the hearts of Japanese cinemagoers in the French film "Cherchez l'idole," released here as "Aidoru o Sagase" and in English as "The Chase." Her track from that film, "La plus belle pour aller danser," was a hit here, selling more than a...
JAPAN / History / Defining the Heisei Era
Nov 24, 2018
Defining the Heisei Era: Examining the rise of otaku culture
With the number of children shrinking, popular entertainment naturally began targeting the otaku population that didn't hesitate to open their wallets for material many considered juvenile.
Japan Times
CULTURE
Dec 1, 2016
Tokyo Comic Con calls on Hollywood's big guns for star power
As we sit down for an interview, Tokyo Comic Convention Committee Chairman Mitsuaki Munegumi casually points to a glass case in the center of the room.
Japan Times
LIFE / Food & Drink
Nov 4, 2016
Tokyo's first Russian-style maid cafe
Twelve men sit in silence at a new cafe in Tokyo's Shinjuku district as three women dressed in Russian attire start serving a sour-looking plate of borscht.
Japan Times
LIFE / Digital
Sep 15, 2016
From the latest titles to VR and cosplay, the Tokyo Game Show has been in Japan's corner for 20 years
Twenty years ago, two new video game trade shows launched in Tokyo with the hopes of capturing the attention — and yen — of gamers in Japan. The first Tokyo Game Show (TGS) took place from Aug. 22 to 24, 1996, and was followed that November by E3 Tokyo, a Japanese offshoot of the U.S.-based Electronic...
Japan Times
JAPAN
Jun 22, 2016
Superhero Ultraman thwarted by JR Meguro Station staff
Superhero Ultraman was spotted around JR Meguro Station in Tokyo last week and again on Tuesday.
LIFE / Lifestyle
Oct 26, 2015
This is Halloween, Japan-style
Stumped for a costume idea this year? This selection of outfits from pre-Halloween parades on Sunday, curated from social media and Japan Times's staff, might give you a few ideas for the big event this weekend.
Japan Times
LIFE / Lifestyle
Oct 21, 2015
Join the zombie horde for Halloween this year
Last Halloween I showed up at a nightclub in Shibuya wearing a pair of fangs and a sexy dress and expected to get the costume discount. The doorman laughed in my face.
Japan Times
CULTURE / CULTURE SMASH
May 16, 2015
Anime oasis of the Midwest flourishes
The 18th annual Anime Central (ACen), North America’s third largest anime convention, is underway this weekend in Rosemont, near Chicago. Last year's event drew a record 29,000 unique attendees, tallying 81,000 in total over its three full days. Organizers expect to breach those figures again in 2015....
CULTURE / Books
Mar 28, 2015
'License to Play' compiles research on all things ludic in Japanese culture
The stereotype of a stressed-out salaryman, vacantly sipping on his post-overtime can of beer, does little to confirm that Japanese society is deeply clued into notions of fun and play.
Japan Times
CULTURE / CULTURE SMASH
Mar 27, 2015
AnimeJapan 2015 sees the big picture
For most in Japan, April marks the start of the new working year. But for the anime and manga industries, it all begins in March.
A prophesied disaster (likely) won’t strike Japan this weekend
A viral manga prediction of a July 5 disaster has gripped Japan with anxiety and triggered an economic impact, but experts warn that while such dates are unreliable, the threat of a massive earthquake remains real. 
Magnitude 5.5 earthquake jars Tokara Islands amid flurry of seismic activity
A strong quake struck off the Tokara Islands on Thursday afternoon, with the island chain having recorded around 1,000 earthquakes since a burst of seismic activity first began on June 21.
Japan to require flight passengers to keep power banks within sight
The transport ministry has announced new regulations requiring flight passengers to keep power banks within sight to mitigate fire risks while on board planes.
Ghibli’s Isao Takahata exhibit shows how beloved anime is made
“The man who planted Japanese animation” exhibition includes a variety of sketches, drawings and animation cels from Isao Takahata films such as color design for characters by Michiyo Yasuda from "Grave of the Fireflies."
Residents of Tokara Islands begin evacuation as seismic swarm continues
Details about evacuations from Akuseki Island, located in the Tokara island chain in Kagoshima Prefecture, is seen written on a whiteboard in the city of Kagoshima on Thursday.
Ghibli’s Isao Takahata exhibit shows how beloved anime is made
“The man who planted Japanese animation” exhibition includes a variety of sketches, drawings and animation cels from Isao Takahata films such as color design for characters by Michiyo Yasuda from "Grave of the Fireflies."
Flag football facing challenges and opportunities ahead
Japan’s women’s flag football team at the 2025 International Bowl in Los Angeles in June. The sport is enjoying continued growth in the country.
From Hokusai’s Great Wave, shinkansen to One Piece: a cultural treasure box for Lego Japan
Michael Ebbesen, general manager of Lego Japan, says Lego bricks based on Japanese culture have a rich global appeal and are sellable around the world.
With farmed fish, RelationFish swims against the tide in fine dining
Chef Hideaki Matsuo (middle) and the staff of Oseto Suisan Fisheries prepare to check on their sustainably farmed fish.
As Southeast Asia heats up, a Japanese cooling giant sees a major opportunity
An employee of Daikin Cambodia explains the use of different tools during an air conditioner installation training session in Phnom Penh. Daikin is one of Japan’s oldest air conditioning companies, but as Japan’s population falls, the firm is keying in on overseas growth.

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