Cool Japan

Our established custom of the New Year's Day 2 hours special. In the world of online videos introducing Japan, cool things about Japan that Japanese people don't notice are disseminated daily. Entertaining popular videos chosen by foreigners that are hilarious and shocking appear one after another. What's cool? What's strange? We get in a heated discussion with 56 foreigners in the studio. Once again we rank popular videos in 6 categories. We excavate Japanese cools that will serve as hints for new inbound tourism.

Japanese people's daily lives are filled with engi. With ceremonies for obi tying, name giving, and 60th and 90th birthdays, Japanese people are surrounded by lucky objects from birth to death. They are always mindful of engi, for example with tea with standing tea stalks and visiting spiritual sites. They eat a lot of New Year cuisine, draw fortune slips on each year's first visit to a temple or shrine, and pray to the gods for success in romance each year. We investigate the mysteries of Japanese people and engi from the perspective of foreigners.

Rediscovering Tokyo 2020—a series where we rediscover the appeals of Tokyo. This time’s theme is Tokyo Bay. It’s a world leader of and key location for marine traffic where 500 large ships come and go daily, and it’s full of places in the surrounding area that foreigners are curious about. So we surveyed 200 foreigners and determined the top 5 cool spots of Tokyo Bay. We rediscover the surprising appeals of Tokyo Bay from the perspective of foreigners.

Japanese cuisine has taken the world by storm. What's especially becoming increasingly popular is chicken dishes. Both karaage and yakitori made it in a ranking of the top 10 Japanese dishes that foreigners like. Unlike sushi and ramen, it seems like chicken is just grilled or deep fried, but they are very popular among foreigners. There are chicken dishes around the world, so what is it about Japanese chicken dishes that captivate foreigners? How are they different from chicken dishes overseas? There are secrets to the chicken dishes that even Japanese people don’t know about...

The Tsukiji Market, which was popular among foreigners, ended its 83 years of history and moved to Toyosu. Actually, in recent years markets all around Japan have been very popular among foreign tourists. The reason is that markets are a gathering of small shops that are closely related to daily life. You can find rare foods, cuisine, and miscellaneous goods, and you can catch a glimpse of the region’s lifestyle and diet. Above all, the energy from the people gathering attracts foreign tourists. We investigate the appeals of such Japanese markets.

"The 2.5th dimension" has been a trendy term among young Japanese people recently. It refers to a new form of entertainment between the 2nd and 3rd dimensions in which anime, manga, and games are made into live-action versions and connected to the real world. Young women are rushing to 2.5th dimension musicals, in which manga and anime are turned into stage plays, and towns are enlivened through "holy land pilgrimages", where people visit places that became the setting for anime. Why does the 2.5th dimension captivate the hearts of young people? Our foreign guests visit the actual locations.

Rural areas are being revitalized and regaining their splendor. The reasons are furusato tax payments, people moving there, and apartment complex revitalization projects. Such things are attracting the attention of young people and foreigners. Why do things related to revitalization become popular? In fact, the true goodness of Japan that finds value in old things is hidden there. We investigate differences between cultures through various examples of regional revitalization.

In our Cool Japan outings, we have foreigners living in a region introduce its appeals that Japanese people don't notice and search for hints for regional revitalization. This time is a collaborative project with The Directhon, a show that viewers participate in. Local viewers think of a project for attracting foreign tourists, and based on that we produce videos and have a thorough discussion with 8 foreigners living in Shizuoka Prefecture. We investigate the surprising appeals of Shizuoka and spots that the world will think are cool.

Onsen are popular even among foreign tourists. Nowadays onsen districts around Japan and day-trip onsen and Sento near Tokyo are full of foreigners. Our foreign guests report on the appeals of the latest super Sento and secret onsen deep in the mountains. What do they think is cool about Japanese onsen? We excavate cools of onsen that further spread the appeals of Japan to the world.

Japan is going through an unprecedented muscle boom. People go to the gym, buy salad chicken to build muscle, and watch muscle exercises on TV. Why are Japanese people fascinated with muscles right now? Are what is appealing to foreigners and what Japanese people consider to be ideal different? The differences between the muscles that Japanese people and foreigners like and the admiration for muscles not only by men but Japanese women as well. Is Japanese people's muscle worship cool from the world's perspective?

Currently, flour foods are captivating foreigners. In particular, takoyaki, which are grilled while being flipped, have become a representative dish that foreigners want to try. Dishes that you "cook yourself," which are rare overseas, such as Okonomiyaki and Monjayaki are also very popular. Supporting the popularity of flour foods is the sweet and spicy sauce that foreigners love. Is the specialized sauce that supports the taste of flour foods cool? Will Japanese flour foods be the next dish that spreads to the world?

Along with samurai and ninja, Japanese swords are very popular around the world. Even in Japan, sword fans mainly composed of young women are quickly increasing due to a game in which famous swords are personified. The female fans, who are called sword fan girls, visit museums and art museums, and sword exhibitions and events are packed full. Many foreigners visit Japan just to see swords. Why are people fascinated with swords? We investigate their appeals.

Despite neighboring Tokyo, Saitama Prefecture has been belittled for being lame for many years. It ranked 43rd in Japan in terms of its appeal as a prefecture. Further, Tokyo is ranked 1st, Chiba Prefecture 3rd, and Kanagawa Prefecture 6th for the number of foreign visitors, while Saitama is far behind at 22nd. We want to find appeals that the world will accept and free Saitama from being called lame. So we gathered 8 foreigners living in Saitama in the studio. They find cool spots that we Japanese don't notice and discuss them thoroughly.

Foreigners say that fruit sandwiches are inconceivable and sandwiching side dishes between bread is strange. However, people who become hooked on cutlet sandwiches once they eat them are rapidly increasing. What's the aesthetic of Moedan sandwiches that are particular about the beauty of cross sections? Following ramen, sushi, and tempura, will they see a boom that spreads to the world? We investigate the cools of Japan's sandwiches.

There's currently a bit of a boom in Japan for escaping the city and moving to the countryside. The number of people who moved to the countryside increased fourfold in the 5 years since 2009. The style in which people move is also changing. It used to be senior citizens who had retired from work moving to the countryside to live a second life, but recently young people are also moving. How do foreigners view life in the Japanese countryside? We investigate the differences between how the world and Japan think about the good life while looking at the actual circumstances of life in the Japanese countryside.

Tying is a culture that is unique to Japan; beauty and prayers are created just by tying one piece of string. Foreigners are surprised that it is alive and well in modern society. Even today, things are tied for clothing, food, housing, martial arts, sumo, and gifts for ceremonial occasions. From the beautiful Mizuhiki to obi knots, which continue to evolve even today, and the ropework skills of "modern ninja" firemen that are extolled overseas. Our foreign guests search for cools in Japanese tying.

Consolidating in small spaces and functional. "Compact" could be said to be Japan's specialty. Japan beat the world to invent a portable audio player and established the ultra-compact car genre called the Kei car, which doesn't exist overseas. Recently, small yet functional things such as ultra-compact handy fans and clothing compression bags continue to be created, and foreigners lavish praise on Japan's spirit of compactness. Foreigners search for new cools with Japan's "Compact," which is gathering attention from around the world, as the theme.

Japanese schools are packed with events such as the opening ceremony, field days, culture festivals and school excursions throughout the year. Autumn is the season that's especially filled with events. School events are standard for Japanese people, but in fact they are uncommon in the West. There are no opening ceremonies after the end of long vacations, and it is common for school to resume as if nothing had happened. We discuss school events, which can be said to shape the orderliness, cooperativeness and national character of Japanese people, from the perspective of foreigners.

Zoos are always popular as a place that people want to go to during summer break. In fact, relative to its national territory, Japan has the most zoos in the world. Japanese people go to zoos for excursions, dates, and with family on days off. Perhaps because it doesn't have much land, zoos specializing in particular species such as monkeys, bears, and reptiles are increasing. In recent years, animals have been aging in zoos. We close in on vets who face problems that zoos have. Are Japanese zoos cool compared to the world?

Sneakers are indispensable for exercise, especially during autumn, the season of sports. Japan is experiencing an unprecedented sneaker boom. The average Japanese person owns 6.8 pairs of sneakers. Further, Japan's sneaker culture is attracting attention from around the world. Sneakers aren't just fashionable but practical, and behind the boom were a variety of factors that are unique to Japan, such as functionality for making children run faster. We investigate the cools of Japan's sneaker culture.