Girls in Japanese comics, cartoon videos or anime share a common look - big eyes that, by making the rest of the face look small, add the cuteness and sex appeal prized by many Japanese men. Since no amount of cosmetic surgery will make actual human eyes larger, some girls are trying another way to up their cute quotient: extra-wide contact lenses!

Research done by Goo Japan shows that the number of unmarried folks in Japan is on the increase.
The percentage of unmarried men aged 25 - 29 has reached 70% compared to the 1950's where it was only 34%.

"TOYAMA--A strange mix of pop music and a parochial dialect unfamiliar to most Japanese is attracting a growing number of fans to an anime show on satellite TV."

Commuters arriving at Shinjuku's Kamiigusa Station in Tokyo see this: A large Gundam statue!

The foreign ministry announced Friday it was appointing the cartoon cat Doraemon as the nation's first "anime ambassador," in Japan's latest effort to promote its soft power through its animation industry. ...The character will appear in films to be shown in Japanese missions overseas, talking about the country's lifestyle and customs.