Dec 09 (Kabuki In-Depth) - This week, the focus on a outstanding supporting actor who sadly passed away last month.
Mikawaya! ・ Ichikawa Danzō IX
POPULAR NEWS
The Kanji of the Year for 2025 was announced at Kiyomizu Temple in Kyoto on December 12th, with the Japan Kanji Aptitude Testing Foundation selecting the character for bear for the first time after nationwide sightings, record-high damage and injuries.
Northern Japan was hit by warning-level blizzards and whiteout conditions on December 12th, with heavy snow, violent winds and subzero temperatures disrupting transport across wide areas while recovery continued in communities already damaged by last week’s powerful earthquake.
A train running on the Akita Nairiku Jukan Railway derailed and overturned near Kayakusa Station in Kitaakita City on the morning of December 12th, with the incident reported to police and fire authorities shortly before 6:50 a.m.
The Nobel Prize award ceremony was held on the evening of December 10th, or early on December 11th in Japan, at the Stockholm Concert Hall, where King Carl XVI Gustaf of Sweden presented the highest honors — the medal and certificate — to Osaka University specially appointed professor Shimon Sakaguchi, 74, the recipient of this year’s Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine, and Kyoto University distinguished professor Susumu Kitagawa, 74, who won the Nobel Prize in Chemistry.
America’s business magazine Forbes announced on December 10th that Prime Minister Takaichi has been ranked third on its list of the “World’s Most Powerful Women,” placing the Japanese leader near the top of a global ranking of 100 figures across politics, business, and culture, and marking a prominent acknowledgment of Japan’s first female prime minister.
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IKKO, a talent and beauty professional, revealed on her Instagram account on December 1st that she had been hospitalized for facial nerve paralysis, a condition that left part of her face immobile.
On December 14th at 4:30 p.m., a special program marking the 100th year since the start of the Showa era will air, focusing in particular on the more than six decades that defined the Showa period and revisiting Akita’s collective memories through archival footage from Akita Broadcasting and a trove of nostalgic photographs.
Actor Hiroya Shimizu admitted in court on December 8th to charges of violating the Narcotics Control Act after being accused of possessing dried marijuana at his home in Tokyo’s Suginami Ward in September, acknowledging the indictment by saying in court that the allegations were “not mistaken.”
A new feature-length animated adaptation of Peleliu — Guernica in Paradise — is coming to theaters, built on a collaboration with Mone Kamishiraishi, who performs the theme song titled “A Miracle-like Thing.” The story is based on the brutal Battle of Peleliu, where only 34 soldiers survived out of an estimated 10,000, and is being released to coincide with the 80th year since the end of the war, offering a depiction of friendship forged in the midst of devastating conflict.
Japan and Saudi Arabia moved to strengthen cooperation in the entertainment sector as officials and industry representatives gathered in Tokyo on December 2nd for a bilateral forum that highlighted new avenues for cultural exchange, including competitive gaming among high school students.
The average budget for Christmas gifts in 2025 is set to rise from 2024 as so-called age-less toys gain popularity, according to a survey released on December 2nd by the Japan Toy Association on toys people hope to give to their children or grandchildren.
Universal Studios Japan launched its annual Christmas event on November 19th, offering visitors a lineup of character greetings, seasonal foods, and a large-scale nighttime show designed to highlight the spirit of the holiday season.
Superman is suddenly appearing far more often at Japan’s biggest cosplay events—from Ikebukuro Halloween to Comiket—and not in a casual or ironic way.