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KT Systems has announced that it will open what it describes as Japan's
first boys-love bar in Tokyo's Akihabara otaku shopping district on May 30. According to KT Systems, the MiracleJumP bar will have both "two-dimensional" staff members (in the form of dōjinshi characters) and living boys-love staff members.

Manga creator Masayuki Ishikawa is collaborating with Utsunomiya-based craft brewery Preston Ale to produce a limited run of Moyashimon Ale. Each of the 1,000 gift-box sets comes with three Moyashimon (Moyasimon) Ale bottles, one pale Preston Ale bottle, one brown Preston Ale bottle, two original Moyashimon beer glasses, and four Moyashimon coasters. (800 sets will be available online in Japan starting on May 21, and 200 more will only be available in two retail stores starting on June 4.)

A 57-year-old man has been arrested for allegedly forging documents to marry his former wife’s teenage daughter, who apparently had not agreed to the marriage and could not legally marry him, police said Friday.

The man, a tax accountant in Akashi, Hyogo Prefecture, brought papers to the Akashi city office in April to file for marriage with the 16-year-old high school student the day after he divorced his wife, police said.

The man, suspected of forging a parental consent document required in the event of a marriage involving a minor as well as another document, has admitted to the allegation and said he did it because he liked the girl, police said.

The girl found out about the marriage filing after receiving a notice from the city office and has since sought to nullify it at a family court. Once the court recognizes the marriage as invalid, her registration will be restored to its original state.

Under the Civil Code, a person cannot marry the child of a former spouse.

On Wednesday, the Osaka Prefectural Government posted the latest 11 magazine issues that it is designating for its "harmful publications" list — including eight boys-love manga magazine issues. In accordance with its existing ordinance regarding the healthy development of youths, Osaka has been maintaining a list of "harmful publications" which are legally prohibited from being bought or read by anyone younger than 18 years old. The April 30 addendum to the list is as follows:

Oh hi! This is 28 year-old voice actress Eriko Nakamura. She voices Haruka Amami, one of the main idols in Namco's idol simulator THE iDOLM@STER franchise.

The Yokohama-native was in Japan's Kansai area recently, visiting historic Kyoto. She stopped by sites like Kiyomizu Temple and the Golden Pavilion. On her blog, photos were uploaded of her at each location.

Someone on the Japanese internet then decided to use Google Maps to map out the route she took during her trip. That's...kinda creepy! Thankfully, these blog posts were uploaded at night — long after Nakamura had visited the sights.

While this map was most likely created as a gag (hopefully), blog photos of idols and voice actresses do undergo intense scrutiny. For example, during Christmas, which is often a big date night for couples, many idols and voice actresses post photos of themselves, claiming to be "dateless" or "alone". These photos and blog posts are then dissected and sussed out to attempt to see who is really alone and who is not.

What's more, any slight changes in hair or clothes is noted. Recently, it was noted that Haruhi Suzumiya voice actress Aya Hirano was wearing what some were claiming could be an engagement ring. Hirano's talent agency had not even announced that she had a boyfriend. (While the news of couples is often broken by Japanese tabloids, the official word typically comes via talent agencies.)

A new book covering the history of German National Socialism, the “MoeMoe Nazis Book,” eschews boring period photography in favour of trouser-less female stormtroopers and Gestapo BDSM maniacs, all under the firm leadership of a moe Fuhrer. The book even includes iillustrations by Rei Hiroe, of Black Lagoon fame…

The book itself is a series of articles covering the history of the Third Reich, gratuitously illustrated with moe/sexy style illustrations of the subjects covered. It does promise serious information in spite of its preoccupation with fascist pantsu.


GaGa: Unfortunately none of the images will be posted here ;)

Remember Nene Anegasaki, the girl from inside the video game Love Plus who was once married to a real man named Sal9000? Well, apparently, some other dude decided to have a birthday party for her yesterday (according to the game, her birthday is 4/20). Here you see her smiling happily in front of her birthday cake and some cough drops.

The government is aiming for 55% of women to continue working after having their first baby by 2020, up from 38% in 2005, sources familiar with the matter said Monday. Under its employment policy to be included in its growth strategy, the government will also aim to improve employment conditions for women and reinforce growth amid the declining birthrate and the aging of society.

The government will also seek to raise the ratio of fathers taking childcare leave to 13% from 1.23% in 2008 and to increase the rate of annual paid holidays taken by employees to 70% from 47.4% in 2008, the sources said.

The government will aim to reduce the number of part-time workers to 1.24 million, about 40% lower than in 2003, when it hit a peak of 2.17 million, the sources said.

The goals were agreed Monday at a working group meeting of government officials, experts, and labor and management representatives. The working group will work out the details of how to achieve the numerical targets.

KOMAKI, Japan — It's springtime in Japan and that means one thing. Actually, two things. Penis festivals and vagina festivals. It may sound like a sophomoric gag. But these are folk rites going back at least 1,500 years, into Japan's agricultural past. They're held to ensure a good harvest and promote baby-making. Maybe they should hold more such festivals. Japan has one of the world's lowest birthrates (1.37 children per woman), which experts blame on stagnant incomes and changing gender relations.


The center-left government that came to power last year hopes to make child-rearing more affordable with a $280 monthly stipend per kid.

Summery: Osaka considering the start of prohibiting the sale and distribution of Josei/Boy-love materials to minors, and looking into the true extent of child pornography in anime and manga.

A new type of cram school has opened in Japan designed to help women find a husband and prepare for life after nuptials. The school targets women who are hoping to prepare themselves for dating and marriage, and help them find love and marriage. Some students include the so-called “Ara-Fo” or “Around Forty” unmarried women who are currently one of the fashionable topics for dramas in Japan.

A little bit of an odd story for you, the Yahoo! Books Japan website was listing an anime adaptation for story creator Noboru Maeda (Hurricanes) and manga artist Dan Yoshii's Ontama! manga. That was on June 19th but now the current version of the Yahoo! Books Japan website doesn't show the mention of the anime adaptation on the manga's second volume page.

Whether it is still a go or not is left in the air but according to the June 19th page the anime will be distrubted online on the Nico Nico Channel this summer. Hurricanes Maeda is a comedian who has voiced characters in the Onegai My Melody television anime series and the Netrun-mon the Movie anime video.

[i]The manga's story centers around Ichigo, a fourth-grade girl who lives with her gentle-hearted mother and stepfather. Worried about the discord between her parents, she wishes "to meet my real father!" and she is suddenly taken before her real father in the past. Now, she tries to keep her real father and mother together while building friendships in school. This "parallel family" manga ran in Wani Books' Comic Gum magazine until this year's June issue, and the second and final compiled book

What a way this would be to start the day. I know I'd have more incentive to be up if I could expect a persocon-type robot making my morning beverage.

Hina is a popular, programmable Japanese robot, and the video of her brewing coffee is pretty amazing. It is staged though, but not stop motion. The little robot has enough articulation to perform the tasks at hand via a program. Now all it needs is the AI to do it without help. But I have seen the future, and I want it now!

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