Bandai Namco to power up overseas retail presence with more shops
TOKYO -- Japanese entertainment group Bandai Namco Holdings is deepening its global push with plans to quintuple its experience-based stores in overseas markets in the next five years.
Multi-brand retail complexes, dubbed Bandai Namco Cross Stores, offer merchandise based on the group's popular intellectual properties. They range from model kits based on the Gundam sci-fi anime series and game cards from the One Piece adventure franchise to Pac-Man merchandise, Tamagotchi digital pets and other toys. Capsule toy vending machines and an arcade area are also under the same roof.
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SoraNews24
41 minutes ago
- SoraNews24
Japanese people demand that Gackt taste the government's old old old rice
That's where they want Gackt to go-oh-oh… Way down to kokokomai. With rising rice prices reaching critical mass, newly appointed agriculture minister Shinjiro Koizumi has made it his personal mission to bring the prices down. To do this, he has authorized the release of stockpiled rice which will be sold through select retailers. However, this stockpile includes rice harvested from the past four years. Rice classification dictates that rice harvested last year is known as ' shinmai ' or 'new rice' and rice from the year before that is ' komai ' or 'old rice' and with each preceding year, a ' ko / old' is added. So, in this case, the oldest stockpiled rice is 'old old old rice' ( kokokomai ) from 2021. Japanese people by and large are deadly serious about their rice since it's generally eaten multiple times a day, every day. So, the prospect of eating old, old, old rice is not very appealing and some in the industry have even scoffed at it, saying that it's meant for livestock feed rather than human consumption. To dispel these criticisms, Koizumi held a press conference on 30 May, during which new rice, old rice, old old rice, and old old old rice were all cooked the same way and given out for a taste test to see if people could tell the difference. Koizumi himself ate them all and remarked, 'Frankly, they were all delicious.' Judging by the reaction online, however, many people were still not convinced. It's understandable since no one really has a sense of Koizumi's gourmet sensibilities to trust his judgment. Instead, people are demanding that musician and actor Gackt be the arbiter of taste. The reason is that, aside from being a major entertainer in Japan, Gackt's other claim to fame is as a juggernaut on the television show Geinojin Kakuzuke Check! , a game show where celebrities must distinguish between high-class and low-class art, music, craftsmanship, dance, and cuisine. Despite the wide range of arts and culture, Gackt has maintained a perfect individual record over several years and cemented his position as an indisputable man of taste long ago. ▼ Gackt has lost in team competitions though, because of his partners Daigo and Golden Bomber's Sho Kiryuin. Here they both are simultaneously guessing kangaroo meat was Michelin-grade sukiyaki and eliminating Gackt from competition. Hardcore Gackt heads might point out that Gackt stopped eating rice decades ago, but that doesn't seem to matter because in an episode of Geinojin Kakuzuke Check! just last year he was able to correctly identify a seafood rice dish made by a Michelin-starred chef because of the texture in the grains. And so, because of his superhuman powers of taste, Gackt is perhaps the only person in Japan no one would dispute if he said old old old rice tasted just as good as new rice if online comments are anything to go by. 'Why didn't they invite Gackt to the tasting event?' 'I remember Gackt said he preferred chilled old old rice, and he's right because it has more nutritional value. He really knows his stuff.' 'If they could fool Gackt with old old old rice, then everyone would buy it.' 'Gackt would be able to tell right away.' 'I would believe whatever Gackt said about it, good or bad.' 'Gackt would probably spit it out after one bite.' 'But most people aren't Gackt anyway, and probably wouldn't notice the difference.' That last comment brings up a good point. If Gackt says a certain food is great or not, I'd believe him but it doesn't mean I'd be able to tell the difference myself. It also kind of makes you wonder if his unique ability is more of a curse than a gift if he can tell so easily when something is disappointingly not up to par. I guess I'll just be happy in my blissfully ignorant world of only being able to distinguish premium Black Thunder chocolate bars and Garigari-kun ice pops. Source: Daily Sports, Twitter/ 古古古米 Gackt Featured image: ©SoraNews24 ● Want to hear about SoraNews24's latest articles as soon as they're published? Follow us on Facebook and Twitter!
The Mainichi
an hour ago
- The Mainichi
Japanese baseball legend Shigeo Nagashima dead at 89: Yomiuri newspaper
TOKYO (Kyodo) -- Japanese baseball legend Shigeo Nagashima, who rose to stardom for his on-field exploits during the country's era of rapid economic growth in the 1960s and 1970s, died Tuesday, the Yomiuri Shimbun newspaper said. He was 89. Nagashima, who was a key player of the Yomiuri Giants team that achieved nine consecutive Central League and Japan Series titles from 1965 to 1973 and later managed the club, was a charismatic figure whose popularity transcended sports. Together with teammate Sadaharu Oh, or "O-N" as the pair were nicknamed, Nagashima became a household name at a time when the country's economy was booming and is fondly remembered by many middle-aged and older Japanese with nostalgia for those times.
Japan Today
4 hours ago
- Japan Today
Japanese social media user held over ¥3 mil extortion to delete post
A Japanese social media personality has been arrested for allegedly extorting a man out of 3 million yen in exchange for removing his private details from the internet, Tokyo police said Monday. Yuki Azuma, 29, who posts as Entertainer Orihara, is known for exposing apparent secrets of famous people on social media, according to the police. He allegedly uploaded the personal information and headshot of a 30-year-old man to X, and extorted the money from him at a Tokyo restaurant in October last year. Azuma hinted at further posts, telling the man he was considering releasing "everything," the police said. He has remained silent about the allegations, they said. © KYODO
