TV in Japan

Gyagu Manga Biyori, which translates directly as Good Day for Gag Manga is a fascinating look into quickie manga culture.

Imagine it as a kind of Liquid Television for Manga/Anime with each short episode diving into an entirely different style and type of anime.

For example, here’s a short “drama” all about the sticker industry:

And then there’s Usami-Chan, the grade-school rabbit female detective:

Or how about just a fun trip with the Grim Reaper:

Japan Probe is doing a wonderful job of blogging last night’s Kinchan no Kasou Taishou 2008 special starting with this amazing massage chair.

This is how you learn to use the chopsticks. And then take on the masters. And then, become the master! On TV. In Japan.

Thanks to DBSboy for the tip!

I’m a big fan of the BB. They help launch (by linking to) the original TV in Japan WAY back in the day - as I’m sure they’ve done to literally thousands of other blogs.

Lately, the forayed into TV production and do an excellent job of both shooting & curating some tremendous internet oddities for all of us to watch.

Today, they’ve uncovered the excellent new Nipponophile documentary/tv series Tokyology. Very much looking forward to seeing the whole thing.

These videos of homemade marble mazes are incredible. And they’re being featured on the Japanese YouTube page which I think makes them close enough to Japanese TV to blog.

I can’t find much about these online in the English web. Anyone with more info - please drop it in the comments! I’d love to learn more.

This is how you make the most of your fame. By slamming your fist down. In the name of slushee drinks. On TV. In Japan.

Via Japan Probe!

The Frogman Show is a strange flash-based anime from Japan that is full of weird, strange & seemingly full of lots of insane characters.

According to Business Week, The Frogman Show “is aired on a late-night program for Japanese broadcaster TBS (Tokyo Broadcasting System), and that costs only 10% to 20% of what traditionally produced animation costs to make”.

I imagine there’s a lot more that some of my readers could tell me about the series but if you’d like to read a little further about the use of Flash in Anime, the BusinessWeek article is fascinating.

Following up on the amazing bubble popping toy of last year, C-Scout’s Trends in Japan blog has uncovered this year’s hot new toy popping sensation - The Endless Edamame.

This is how you foreshadow the robot uprising. With small robots. Goofing around in smoke. With tiny little deadly lasers. On TV. In Japan.

Via Engadget - your source for all robot uprising information.

This is how you transform. With the help of a drawer. And a guy with a tongue painted on his stomach. On TV. In Japan.

UPDATED: Sorry put up one of my wife’s ESL videos. Kids + lack of sleep + late night work doesn’t go together well.

This is how you sell yet another Kirin drink. With stilts. And bad costumes. On TV. In Japan.

P.S. This is actually a viral campaign from Kirin with an actual page with embeddable codes and everything. Japan is getting it! I think.

This is how you make the stakes matter. By putting your teammates on a slide. That grows. And grows. And grows. Really it grows much higher than I ever thought. On TV. In Japan.

This is how you cause an incident. If you’re not careful with the bamboo. On TV. In Japan.

This is how you spice up football. With things like jet packs. And anime squiggles. On TV. In Japan.

Via Watashi to Tokyo!

This is pure Japanese pop. Vocals. And visuals. On TV. In Japan.

NOTE: Who can tell me the name of the song? I need to know.