Japan Reacts

Author: Japan Reacts Editorial

  • Inba Marsh Levee Breach Sparks Snapping Turtle Boom? “Breeding Switch” Could Mean 50x Growth a Year

    Inba Marsh in Chiba prefecture suffered multiple levee breaches before dawn on the 22nd after heavy rain from Typhoon No. 25, raising fears that the range of the invasive snapping turtles established in the marsh could expand even further. According to the original article, once a “breeding switch” is triggered, their numbers could multiply by as much as 50 times in a single year. On 5ch, some proposed eating the turtles as pest control or using natural predators to curb them, while others questioned not the turtles’ breeding power itself but the marsh’s inadequate drainage capacity after the breach and the history behind its land reclamation — broadening the discussion into disaster-prevention territory.

    Snapping Turtles Set to Explode After Inba Marsh Levee Breach? Experts Warn of a “Breeding Switch” That Could Mean Up to 50x Growth a Year

    It’s been just over two weeks since Typhoon No. 25 caused massive damage centered on the Kanto region, including Chiba and Kanagawa prefectures.

    Around Inba Marsh, where multiple sections of the levee breached before dawn on the 22nd, there are concerns that the range of the snapping turtle — a designated invasive species believed to be established in the marsh — could expand.

    Source: encount.press / Original article here

    2AnonymousOct 9, 2026 23:10
    Is it so wrong to be #2?! (riffing on the famous "why can't we be #2" budget-review quote)
    25AnonymousOct 10, 2026 11:35
    Already covered in Re: #2
    3AnonymousOct 9, 2026 23:28
    Just flush the droppings of the snapping turtle's natural predator into the affected area
    4AnonymousOct 9, 2026 23:30
    Guess we've got no choice but to release jaguars or crocodiles
    38AnonymousOct 11, 2026 14:54
    Re: #4
    Jaguars have already been released around Ichihara
    5AnonymousOct 9, 2026 23:32
    Eat to support! (the classic rallying cry for buying up goods from disaster-hit areas)
    6AnonymousOct 9, 2026 23:32
    Heard they're tasty, but are you even allowed to catch them?
    8AnonymousOct 9, 2026 23:49
    Re: #6
    Like softshell turtles, they're muddy-tasting, so if you're going to eat one, a week of purging in clean water is a must.
    But they're a designated harmful invasive species, so moving a live one without a permit is banned — you can't just take one home alive.
    If you catch one and dispatch it on the spot, though, bringing it home is fine.
    How muddy-tasting any given turtle from here turns out to be is pure gacha until you actually eat it.
    I caught and ate one from the irrigation canal near my parents' place — it was good.
    13AnonymousOct 10, 2026 01:29
    Just clickbait fodder from some rage-bait website
    14AnonymousOct 10, 2026 01:37
    There's also talk floating around of building a bypass to drain Inba Marsh's water out to the Pacific too
    15AnonymousOct 10, 2026 04:11
    16AnonymousOct 10, 2026 04:41
    By the way, check out my "breeding switch." What do you make of this guy?
    17AnonymousOct 10, 2026 04:44
    By the way, check out my snapping turtle. What do you make of this guy?
    18AnonymousOct 10, 2026 06:01
    By the way, check out my Lake Inba. What do you make of this guy? (said using "atai," a cutesy feminine way of saying "I")
    21AnonymousOct 10, 2026 08:29
    Re: #18
    It's been overused and busted wide open, lol
    Not gonna be good for much from here on out
    19AnonymousOct 10, 2026 07:57
    I want to do my part and eat one, but where do you even buy them?
    20AnonymousOct 10, 2026 08:18
    Let Banuma (a shortened nickname for Inba Marsh) go back to how it used to be
    23AnonymousOct 10, 2026 08:46
    This is what happens when you don't wipe them out down to the very last one — they just keep spreading, exactly like with the kyon (the invasive Reeves's muntjac deer).
    24AnonymousOct 10, 2026 10:35
    One Mississippi, two Mississippi, three Mississippi… fifty Mississippi
    26AnonymousOct 10, 2026 11:51
    Eat to support!
    27AnonymousOct 10, 2026 12:26
    Yeah, guess everyone pictures that same goofy "snapping turtle, de-re-re-ren ho-ho-ho" chant, lolol
    28AnonymousOct 10, 2026 12:34
    Just thought up "Kakimitsugame" (Persimmon-Honey Turtle) — a pun swapping the syllables of Kamitsukigame (snapping turtle)
    29AnonymousOct 10, 2026 12:49
    They say the turtles are multiplying, but what exactly are they eating? Don't tell me it's… humans?
    36AnonymousOct 11, 2026 11:23
    Ka-mi-tsu-ki-ga-me rendered as "過三月咬め" ("after three months, bite") — a kanji pun on the snapping turtle's name
    37AnonymousOct 11, 2026 14:45
    If I'm gonna eat one, I'd want to purge the mud out of it for a few months…
    39AnonymousOct 11, 2026 18:08
    Inba Marsh used to be much bigger, but it's been boxed in and shrunk down by levees in the name of land reclamation — now nature's giving it payback.
    All anyone thinks about is expanding farmland? Is eating really all people care about?
    40AnonymousOct 11, 2026 18:18
    The R4 breeding switch
    41AnonymousOct 11, 2026 18:23
    Snapping turtle countermeasures boomerang back — kinda like Gamera, lol (the giant turtle kaiju)

    Background and Points of Debate

    The snapping turtle was designated a specified invasive species in 2005, and transporting or keeping one alive without a permit is banned under the Invasive Alien Species Act. “Eat to support” was a popular refrain in the thread, but what doesn’t come through from the original article or the thread’s reactions alone is that prep work like purging the mud out is required, and that legally bringing one home means dispatching it on the spot rather than transporting it live. The discussion also expanded beyond the turtles’ breeding power itself to touch on how Inba Marsh’s waters have been narrowed over the years through land reclamation, along with criticism of the levee’s inadequate drainage capacity — blending invasive-species concerns with criticism of flood-control policy. The phrase “breeding switch” comes from the original article’s headline, and the thread doesn’t go into detail on exactly which environmental factors would trigger it.

    ※This article is excerpted and summarized from the 5ch (Science News+) thread “Snapping Turtles Set to Explode After Inba Marsh Levee Breach? Experts Warn of a “Breeding Switch” That Could Mean Up to 50x Growth a Year.”

  • “Detective Tsuda” Heads to Taiwan — Minamikawa and “Drum” Join In, Producer Fujii Reveals Behind-the-Scenes

    The “assassination” uproar that broke out during TBS’s live broadcast of “All-Star Thanksgiving Festival ’26 Autumn” is set to tie in with the popular segment “Detective Tsuda.” Atsuhiro Tsuda of the comedy duo Diane will take on the role of investigator, heading to Taiwan together with his partner Minamikawa and “Drum,” a character from the drama “VIVANT.” Producer Kentaro Fujii commented, “We’ve split staff into a Night Festival team and a Detective Tsuda team (a separate unit), so everyone’s running flat out,” shedding light on the behind-the-scenes production setup. On 5ch, reactions split between those welcoming the segment becoming an annual tradition and those knocking it as a tired routine that gets less funny the bigger the budget gets.

    “Detective Tsuda,” the popular segment from Downtown’s namesake show “Wednesday Downtown” (TBS), kicked off on the 10th in an unexpected way. Sparked by the “assassination” that occurred during the network’s live special “All-Star Thanksgiving Festival ’26 Autumn: 70th Broadcast Anniversary SP,” the segment is now tying in with the currently airing Sunday drama “VIVANT” as well. Atsuhiro Tsuda of Diane has taken on the investigation, with Drum and his “partner” Minamikawa joining in too — a development that’s got viewers’ expectations rising.

    During that day’s live broadcast of “All-Star Thanksgiving Festival ’26 Autumn: 70th Broadcast Anniversary SP,” a bizarre incident occurred when a show assistant was “assassinated” live on air. Host Koji Imada asked guests Ryusei Yokohama and Shun Oguri, who were appearing live, to help get to the bottom of the case, but they turned him down, citing filming commitments.

    (Omitted)

    Source: iza.ne.jp / Read the original article here

    4AnonymousOct 11, 2026 14:33
    They're just having fun amongst themselves at this point.
    The cheap Yokomizo-style (mystery writer Seishi Yokomizo) parody, with Tsuda visibly hating it — that was the good part.
    5AnonymousOct 11, 2026 14:34
    I genuinely don't get what's funny about this.
    6AnonymousOct 11, 2026 14:36
    Already sick of this one.
    9AnonymousOct 11, 2026 14:39
    Re: #6
    Once it becomes an annual viewing habit, whether it's gotten stale stops mattering.
    36AnonymousOct 11, 2026 15:37
    Re: #6
    It got boring once Tsuda got famous and let it go to his head.
    76AnonymousOct 11, 2026 16:30
    Re: #6
    It needs to be more like once every two years — Tsuda's already wise to the bit by now.
    They need to swap in a different segment or person.
    7AnonymousOct 11, 2026 14:37
    Is this airing on New Year's Eve this year?
    If they pull it off, this could become the Reiwa-era "You Must Not Laugh" (the famous Gaki no Tsukai New Year's special).
    72AnonymousOct 11, 2026 16:28
    Re: #7
    Sowashi and the others look likely to do their New Year's Eve thing again this year, so there's probably no room for this on the 31st.
    8AnonymousOct 11, 2026 14:37
    Once everyone just accepted the absurd setup — time machines and all — without even pushing back on it, it stopped being funny.
    10AnonymousOct 11, 2026 14:40
    "Detective Tsuda" is the segment that brings out Tsuda's funny side to the absolute max.
    11AnonymousOct 11, 2026 14:43
    Tsuda's only funny when he's playing detective.
    12AnonymousOct 11, 2026 14:43
    The murder happened in the studio — Odaiba's got nothing to do with it, lol.
    13AnonymousOct 11, 2026 14:43
    Minamikawa's just there to assist with the staged setups, so he's unnecessary.
    That's probably exactly why he's so valued on Wednesday Downtown though.
    14AnonymousOct 11, 2026 14:46
    I don't get this "Drum" thing — is that a person's name?
    20AnonymousOct 11, 2026 14:56
    Re: #14
    It's the character from VIVANT who talks through a smartphone.
    Since he can't actually speak himself, making him an investigation assistant is going to be rough lol.
    16AnonymousOct 11, 2026 14:51
    Tsuda clearly knows by now this is a cushy gig,
    so watching him put on his fake-tantrum act about hating it just isn't funny anymore.
    17AnonymousOct 11, 2026 14:53
    Is "Drum" even Japanese?
    Is that the character's name, or an actual stage name?
    19AnonymousOct 11, 2026 14:54
    Wait, Drum's getting dragged into this too? Enough with the separate unit already.
    21AnonymousOct 11, 2026 14:57
    Is Hassy-Happy coming?
    44AnonymousOct 11, 2026 15:53
    Re: #21
    No way he's showing up…
    22AnonymousOct 11, 2026 15:00
    Re: #1
    The "secret guest" theory is way too sloppy, so this has to be foreshadowing for Detective Tsuda.

    Same thing happened with the album thing — I bet it'll all click into place as planned foreshadowing.
    23AnonymousOct 11, 2026 15:02
    At this point it's just a segment that flops no matter how much money they needlessly throw at it.
    24AnonymousOct 11, 2026 15:04
    The funny part was Tsuda doing it reluctantly, but lately he can't hide how into it he actually is.
    27AnonymousOct 11, 2026 15:05
    Surely Drum disappears partway through, right?
    If he stuck around the whole time, the conversations would drag.
    28AnonymousOct 11, 2026 15:09
    The second installment was the last one that was actually funny.
    Same as "You Must Not Laugh" — the fancier they make it, the less funny it gets.
    29AnonymousOct 11, 2026 15:09
    Is he gonna ask for "short sleeves, please" again this time?
    35AnonymousOct 11, 2026 15:34
    I wish they'd go back to the original format soon.
    And bring in someone who actually seems to enjoy deduction — like Hidetaka Kano.
    37AnonymousOct 11, 2026 15:37
    Wow, you guys are really putting thought into this.
    Rough.
    38AnonymousOct 11, 2026 15:39
    Don't need Drum.
    No matter how much they're staying in character, it's creepy and it kills the pacing.
    42AnonymousOct 11, 2026 15:50
    Honestly Tsuda's not funny in this at all.
    45AnonymousOct 11, 2026 15:53
    "Detective Tsuda" gets less funny the bigger the budget gets.
    46AnonymousOct 11, 2026 15:57
    Last time Ryan Oishi was funny,
    but reusing the same bit again might start to feel stale.
    I'd like them to swap out the heroine role.
    47AnonymousOct 11, 2026 15:57
    The after-festival special runs a full 90 minutes.
    Just give us the highlight reel of Tsuda's part.
    48AnonymousOct 11, 2026 16:01
    Ditch Drum — make the character who annoys Tsuda a woman instead.
    50AnonymousOct 11, 2026 16:04
    I kind of want to see Tsuda lose it at Drum repeatedly though.
    52AnonymousOct 11, 2026 16:05
    Re: #50
    "Say something, dammit!" Ugh, seriously—
    he just keeps shouting that over and over.
    53AnonymousOct 11, 2026 16:08
    Never thought Tsuda would become this big of a star.
    You really can't predict this stuff.
    54AnonymousOct 11, 2026 16:08
    Blew up the murder weapon with a lantern to destroy the evidence.

    Background and Key Points of This Topic

    “Detective Tsuda” began as a segment designed to capture Atsuhiro Tsuda’s unscripted reactions, and over the years the cast and sets have grown increasingly elaborate. This installment was triggered by a staged “assassination” during the live “All-Star Thanksgiving Festival” broadcast, which led into a tie-in with the drama “VIVANT” and Tsuda’s trip to Taiwan. The thread split between those arguing that “budget and funniness are inversely proportional” — the bigger the production, the less funny it gets — and those praising the segment for becoming a beloved yearly tradition. Many replies were simply trying to pin down basic facts, like what role Minamikawa plays and whether “Drum,” the VIVANT character, is even human — background worth knowing for readers unfamiliar with the segment. It’s also worth noting that the “assassination” is a scripted bit within the special, not an actual incident, which is easy to misread.

    *This article is excerpted and summarized from the 5ch (Geisoku Sokuho+) thread ““Detective Tsuda” Heads to Taiwan with Minamikawa and Drum! Producer Fujii: “We’ve split staff into a Night Festival team and a Detective Tsuda team (separate unit), so everyone’s running flat out”.”

  • No Refunds Over ‘I Didn’t Get My Bonus’: Theater Screening the Chiikawa Movie Issues Unusual Warning

    The movie Chiikawa the Movie: The Secret of Mermaid Island has been rolling out a set of six limited-edition admission bonuses, and distribution of the latest item, a “charm mini figure,” began on the 10th. AEON Cinema Kennō in Tsubame, Niigata Prefecture, took to its official X account with an unusual request: it will not accept cancellations for screenings from 11:15 AM on October 11 onward on the grounds that “I didn’t get the bonus.” On 5ch, the announcement drew comments framing it as a check on resellers who repeatedly attend just to collect bonuses, alongside remarks noting that customers already agree to a no-cancellation policy when buying tickets — while others raised concerns that the number of bonus items simply doesn’t match the number of seats available.

    October 11 (Sun), 4:19 PM

    The sixth wave of admission bonuses for the buzzy movie Chiikawa the Movie: The Secret of Mermaid Island (now in theaters) — a “charm mini figure” (two varieties) — started being handed out yesterday, the 10th. In response, the official X account of AEON Cinema Kennō, a theater in Tsubame, Niigata Prefecture, made an unusual appeal that has since become a talking point.

    The post reads: “Regarding screenings of Chiikawa the Movie: The Secret of Mermaid Island from 11:15 AM on October 11 (Sun) onward, we are unable to accommodate cancellations on the grounds that ‘I didn’t get the bonus.’ Please be aware of this before purchasing your ticket. We look forward to welcoming you all to the theater!”

    出典: news.yahoo.co.jp / Original article here

    9AnonymousOct 11, 2026 17:01
    Yeah, I don't want to watch it over and over again — though if they re-released the sticker, I might've gone a third time.
    82AnonymousOct 11, 2026 17:45
    Re: #9
    Guess the stickers are popular.
    Personally they're the bonus item I care about least.
    10AnonymousOct 11, 2026 17:01
    Can resellers even make a living sitting through a 2-hour movie for like 300 yen (~$2) profit?
    13AnonymousOct 11, 2026 17:03
    Re: #10
    Do they even watch it?
    Probably just grab the bonus and leave.
    41AnonymousOct 11, 2026 17:22
    Re: #10
    Factor in transportation or gas money and it's not even worth it.
    35AnonymousOct 11, 2026 17:15
    The comments here are the exact opposite of what's quoted in the article.
    Guess 5ch really is on the side of the 'monster customers.'
    52AnonymousOct 11, 2026 17:26
    Re: #35
    Well, 5ch is basically a gathering of "anti-profit" types (people who reflexively hate anyone making money). They'll exaggerate their own education or income, but can't stand it when someone else profits.
    40AnonymousOct 11, 2026 17:21
    You check a box and agree to the terms when you buy the ticket, right?
    54AnonymousOct 11, 2026 17:27
    Re: #40
    Including that point — I bet someone's going to go complain to the Consumer Affairs Agency about this.
    48AnonymousOct 11, 2026 17:25
    Looking at the reactions here, it seems both theaters and customers understand that once you've paid for a movie ticket, it's non-refundable even before the screening.
    Guess it's treated differently from transportation tickets.
    61AnonymousOct 11, 2026 17:33
    Re: #48
    Have you never bought a ticket before?
    49AnonymousOct 11, 2026 17:25
    Wait, can you even cancel movie tickets?
    73AnonymousOct 11, 2026 17:41
    Re: #49
    There's a confirmation button stating changes and cancellations are not allowed at all.
    Anyone demanding a refund is just a complainer.
    50AnonymousOct 11, 2026 17:25
    Live by the bonus-item marketing scheme, die by the bonus-item marketing scheme, huh.
    Looks rough fighting to survive *picks nose* (a dismissive "not my problem" gesture)
    56AnonymousOct 11, 2026 17:29
    The number of bonus items and the number of tickets sold really ought to match up (´・ω・｀) just saying
    60AnonymousOct 11, 2026 17:32
    Re: #56
    Yeah
    And that means they're running short on bonuses
    Still got plenty of room to grow then
    58AnonymousOct 11, 2026 17:32
    Re: #50
    It's the content that *isn't* selling that has to fight desperately to survive.
    Chiikawa was already a massive hit as an IP business before the movie, so it doesn't need to bet everything on the film to survive.
    Content that was never a hit in the first place doesn't even have the budget for lavish bonus items.
    63AnonymousOct 11, 2026 17:35
    Re: #58
    The point is about why they put out this statement.
    Even if the IP itself is profitable, the theater should be raking it in hand over fist (lol), but getting hit with cancellations means a big loss for them.
    67AnonymousOct 11, 2026 17:38
    Re: #63
    So neither the theaters nor the production side are doing admission bonuses to "survive," right?
    They're doing it to pile on an extra boost precisely *because* it's a hit.
    It's not about survival — they survived ages ago.
    68AnonymousOct 11, 2026 17:39
    Re: #63
    This isn't about people who already canceled — it's aimed at customers whining and demanding to be allowed to cancel.
    65AnonymousOct 11, 2026 17:36
    Still #1 today — insane, 20 billion yen is basically locked in.

    Updated 2026/10/11 17:20 — Latest daily detailed report (updated roughly every 20 min)
    Rank Tickets sold (vs. prior) Seats (fill rate) vs. last week 95-min rate Full-day est. Movie title
    *1 *78748(+1860) *90651(.928) 217.8% 47.5% *79144 Chiikawa the Movie: The Secret of Mermaid Island
    *2 *63091(+1458) 111424(.804) 107.5% 61.1% *63783 Mom's No Longer in This World…
    *3 *52483(+***0) 219960(.643) ****** 55.7% *52614 Resident Evil
    *4 *46205(+1022) 209740(.788) ****** 60.8% *47113 You, Like the Stars (Nanji, Hoshi no Gotoku)
    *5 *32006(+*347) *86894(.808) *78.7% 64.8% *32566 Bayside Shakedown N.E.W. …
    80AnonymousOct 11, 2026 17:44
    Re: #65
    The box-office bump from this particular bonus is under 400 million yen.
    That's a different pace from the 1.7 billion yen bump during wave 4.
    By the way, apparently there was a flash update putting it at 17.6 billion yen just now, but the road ahead looks pretty tough from here.
    94AnonymousOct 11, 2026 17:50
    Re: #80
    They're just limiting seat counts to match the bonus supply — a 99.3% occupancy rate (with only wheelchair seats consistently left empty) is a terrifyingly high fill rate, so if they had more bonus stock, this could still go a lot further.
    69AnonymousOct 11, 2026 17:39
    Re: #61
    Does it really not strike you as odd?
    Setting this particular case aside —
    why is it that on issues like this, you 5ch folks always side with the supplier instead of the user?
    77AnonymousOct 11, 2026 17:43
    Re: #69
    When you buy a ticket, it plainly states
    "Changes and cancellations are not possible under any circumstances,"
    and clicking the purchase button means you've agreed to that.
    83AnonymousOct 11, 2026 17:45
    Re: #77
    But I think what that guy's probably trying to say is something like, "why can't I just cancel freely, like returning something on Amazon?"
    Honestly I don't even know where to start explaining (lol)
    97AnonymousOct 11, 2026 17:51
    Re: #77
    Huh, I see.
    I've bought tickets before and then had plans fall through and just ate the loss — of course since I'd already agreed to the terms, I never went and demanded a cancellation or refund.
    So even finding that questionable is weird, huh? Got it, thanks for engaging with me.
    91AnonymousOct 11, 2026 17:48
    Couldn't they just prepare enough bonus items to cover seats × number of screenings in advance? 🤔
    And it makes no sense to lure people in with a bonus and then say "sorry, no bonus."
    Seems like it could run afoul of the Premiums and Representations Act (Japan's law against misleading promotions) — wonder how that shakes out.
    112AnonymousOct 11, 2026 17:56
    Re: #91
    If you know the bonus distribution date, that means you've seen the announcement page on X or the official site, right?
    The bonus info page clearly states it could run out as early as the day it's released,
    and there should be a notice at ticket purchase too — so on what basis would this violate the Premiums and Representations Act?
    93AnonymousOct 11, 2026 17:50
    It's limited quantity, so if you couldn't secure a ticket on day one, that's just on you.
    101AnonymousOct 11, 2026 17:52
    Re: #93
    The official side just hypes it up beforehand saying it might run out on day one, that's all.
    Honestly it feels like they're just disrespecting the theaters on the ground.
    At least announce how many units they prepared.
    104AnonymousOct 11, 2026 17:53
    >We are unable to accommodate cancellations on the grounds of 'I didn't get the bonus'

    Well, of course.
    As a sales contract, what's being sold is the seat — the bonus isn't part of the contract.
    Probably resellers or something pulling this kind of whining tactic.
    109AnonymousOct 11, 2026 17:55
    Re: #104
    If that logic flies, then this would also hold up:
    "We'll include a gold bar as a bonus" → "Actually we couldn't source it, so never mind" (or "only the first 5 people get one, then we're done"), "but since the reservation is strictly a contract for the seat, we won't accept cancellations."
    106AnonymousOct 11, 2026 17:53
    Cancellations were never possible to begin with — the complainers here are just the weird ones.
    114AnonymousOct 11, 2026 17:56
    Re: #106
    Oh really? Didn't know that.
    I probably would've casually tried to cancel too, if it were a second-or-later viewing just for the bonus.

    Background and Key Points of This Discussion

    Movie admission bonuses are distributed in limited quantities, and theaters typically operate on the premise that supplies are capped — the official side itself has pre-announced that “the bonus items may run out quickly.” Ticket sales themselves constitute a contract for the use of a seat, and whether or not a bonus is included isn’t part of that contract, so changes or cancellations citing the bonus are not normally permitted. In the thread, most comments accepted the theater’s response as reasonable given this premise, though some called for operators to improve things — for instance, by matching the number of bonus items to the number of seats in advance, or by publicly disclosing how many units are being distributed. There were also posts alleging that some people use discounted tickets to attend repeatedly and resell the items, suggesting this kind of request could spread to other theaters as a structural issue facing bonus-driven marketing for popular franchises.

    ※本記事は5ch(芸スポ速報+)スレッド「[Chiikawa Movie] Theater Issues Unusual Appeal Over Admission Bonuses: “We Are Unable to Accommodate Cancellations on the Grounds of ‘I Didn’t Get the Bonus’”」より抜粋・要約して構成しています。

  • Shinji Ishimaru vows crackdown on SNS slander — 5ch: “The guy’s basically irrelevant now”

    Shinji Ishimaru (44), former leader of the regional party “Saisei no Michi” (“Path to Rebirth”), announced on his X account on the 9th, in a post titled “An important announcement,” that he will now deal strictly with slander and defamation directed at him on social media. He said that until now he had refrained from responding to individual posts out of respect for freedom of expression, but changed his stance after noticing an uptick in malicious posts. On the 5ch thread, commenters looked back on Ishimaru’s recent history — including how, after gaining substantial support in the Tokyo gubernatorial election, he founded a political party but failed to get a single candidate elected, plus a lawsuit over unpaid election poster fees — with opinions on the man himself split between praise and criticism.

    10/11 (Sun) 15:11

    Shinji Ishimaru (44), former leader of the regional party “Saisei no Michi,” updated his X (formerly Twitter) account on the 9th with a post titled “An important announcement.”

    Ishimaru opened with, “Out of the blue, I have an important announcement for everyone,” before issuing this statement: “Until now, out of respect for freedom of expression, I have in principle refrained from responding individually to various opinions and criticisms on social media and elsewhere. However, as malicious posts have become increasingly noticeable in the public discourse, I’ve come to feel the need to once again put a stop to this verbal violence, and have decided to deal strictly with any slander or defamation concerning me on social media and elsewhere going forward.”

    Source: news.yahoo.co.jp / Original article here

    2AnonymousOct 11, 2026 16:56
    Has this guy actually accomplished anything?
    5AnonymousOct 11, 2026 16:57
    He's basically irrelevant now, isn't he?
    23AnonymousOct 11, 2026 17:03
    Re: #5
    Yeah, haven't heard that name in a while
    6AnonymousOct 11, 2026 16:57
    Just who exactly are you??
    7AnonymousOct 11, 2026 16:57
    So basically: he gets to slander people, but won't accept being criticized himself?
    73AnonymousOct 11, 2026 17:51
    Re: #7
    No — it's: he gets to criticize people, but won't accept being slandered himself.
    9AnonymousOct 11, 2026 16:58
    Alright, let's report this post then
    11AnonymousOct 11, 2026 16:58
    Are you the guy who does impressions of "Ishimaru Kenji"?
    14AnonymousOct 11, 2026 17:00
    I don't know any of the backstory, so my reaction is just "…and? so what?"
    16AnonymousOct 11, 2026 17:00
    Haven't heard his name in ages — what's he up to these days?
    17AnonymousOct 11, 2026 17:01
    Oh, he's that guy on the dating reality show
    18AnonymousOct 11, 2026 17:01
    There are people out there who praise him as some kind of world-class leader —
    and that's not slander?
    22AnonymousOct 11, 2026 17:03
    Wait, this guy's still a politician?
    24AnonymousOct 11, 2026 17:04
    Wonder what this guy will be up to in five years
    26AnonymousOct 11, 2026 17:05
    Re: #24
    Probably "Detective Ishimaru" or something
    27AnonymousOct 11, 2026 17:05
    Isn't he the short-sleeper guy? (claims he barely needs to sleep)
    28AnonymousOct 11, 2026 17:06
    Wasn't he the one who became mayor of some city, turned it into a mess, and quit almost right away? I hear that city's still split down the middle and in rough shape.

    For someone who's so quick to criticize everyone else, he sure doesn't like being criticized himself.
    31AnonymousOct 11, 2026 17:08
    My only impression is "oh yeah, this guy existed"
    32AnonymousOct 11, 2026 17:09
    Defamation, and stiffing someone on a bill, taken to court over both
    Did you forget what a mess he made of himself in that trial?
    33AnonymousOct 11, 2026 17:09
    I thought he'd gone into showbiz, but I guess that's not quite it either
    34AnonymousOct 11, 2026 17:09
    What even was the whole "Ishimaru boom" about?
    Those short clips of city council sessions going around back then just looked like nitpicking over trivial stuff, with nothing substantive ever actually moving forward.
    36AnonymousOct 11, 2026 17:10
    Does he still get booked for dating reality shows and debate programs?
    40AnonymousOct 11, 2026 17:12
    Oh right, this guy existed lol
    41AnonymousOct 11, 2026 17:16
    He's fallen way behind Team Mirai, huh
    43AnonymousOct 11, 2026 17:18
    Did he ever actually pay for those posters?
    48AnonymousOct 11, 2026 17:20
    He probably still thinks the public cares about him lol
    50AnonymousOct 11, 2026 17:22
    Ishimaru's still getting dragged, huh
    Guess losing the election didn't make him a has-been after all
    52AnonymousOct 11, 2026 17:25
    Is he still showing up on ReHacQ?
    I finally got sick of Takahashi's shtick, unfollowed it, and took it out of my recommendations.
    55AnonymousOct 11, 2026 17:28
    He ran in the Tokyo gubernatorial election, lost, but pulled in a surprising number of votes and became the man of the moment for a while.
    Then he started a party, ran a decent number of candidates, and didn't get a single one elected — I saw a clip where Konishi half-mockingly razzed him about it and he completely lost his temper.
    Getting ribbed like that would piss anyone off, fair enough.
    57AnonymousOct 11, 2026 17:30
    Nobody even remembers this guy anymore (´・ω・｀)
    It's basically nostalgia bait at this point
    58AnonymousOct 11, 2026 17:30
    I wonder if the Doutor chairman is still starstruck by him?
    Hope he's careful not to fall for a wire-transfer scam.
    59AnonymousOct 11, 2026 17:30
    Guess his personality, which seems ill-suited to being a politician, is part of the problem too.
    65AnonymousOct 11, 2026 17:32
    I mean, he's just a private citizen now
    There's got to be a limit to this, surely
    66AnonymousOct 11, 2026 17:36
    Re: #65
    He's a TV personality now, isn't he?
    72AnonymousOct 11, 2026 17:50
    Sorry, who was this again?
    80AnonymousOct 11, 2026 17:57
    Re: #71
    Re: #72
    Anyway, you two are now report-candidates

    Background and Key Points of This Story

    Ishimaru drew attention by finishing a strong second in the 2024 Tokyo gubernatorial election, then went on to found the party “Saisei no Michi,” fielding numerous candidates in races such as the Tokyo assembly election — none of whom won. It has also previously been reported that he was sued and lost a case over unpaid production costs for election posters, billed to a company connected to his younger sister. Because this new “strict crackdown on slander and defamation” policy comes after that string of events and amid an otherwise lackluster electoral record, the thread also raised questions about the fairness of his distinction — “I get to criticize others, but won’t accept slander against myself” — as well as about his current standing more broadly. While cracking down on slander and defamation is a reasonable stance on its own, exactly where “criticism” ends and “slander” begins is a line readers tend to draw differently, and notably, the comments in the thread itself were far from unanimous on how to judge it.

    *This article is excerpted and summarized from the 5ch (Geinou/Sports News+) thread “Shinji Ishimaru posts “important announcement,” says he will “deal strictly with slander and defamation concerning me on social media”.”

  • Juice=Juice’s Current Lineup Praised as “Everyone Has a Great Personality” — 5ch: “We Don’t Want to Make Dambara Sad”

    A thread titled “Every member of the current Juice=Juice has a great personality” appeared on the Hello! Project board, with posters reminiscing about the current members’ characters. They praised Matsunaga Ria for being kind to her juniors, and noted that Kanazawa Tomoko, Uemura Akari, and Ichika have been able to do their own thing without getting mocked by those around them. They also quoted Kawashima Ikka’s remark, “I feel like kindness might actually be a selection criterion.” On the other hand, some recalled that “the original members really did have bad personalities back then,” and the thread settled on the view that the current good team chemistry owes a lot to the influence of leader Uemura and member Dambara.

    1AnonymousOct 11, 2026 15:59
    That's actually pretty amazing, isn't it.
    2AnonymousOct 11, 2026 16:00
    The way you're putting it makes it sound like the original members had bad personalities.
    30AnonymousOct 11, 2026 16:20
    Re: #2
    That's because they actually did.
    61AnonymousOct 11, 2026 16:55
    Re: #2
    Could you say that to Inaba's face though?
    68AnonymousOct 11, 2026 17:03
    Re: #2
    It's not so much "bad personalities" — basically every idol is a rival to every other idol. Uemura was just the least bad because she has no ambition. Though even Uemura has strong likes and dislikes lol
    4AnonymousOct 11, 2026 16:02
    How are you supposed to tell anyone's personality from just this photo?
    9AnonymousOct 11, 2026 16:05
    Matsunaga was a good one from the start — she was kind to Tako-chan.
    10AnonymousOct 11, 2026 16:05
    In any other group, Ichika-chan probably would've gotten crushed.
    13AnonymousOct 11, 2026 16:07
    The fact that Tako and Ichika can do their thing with zero drama, without anyone mocking them, is probably the answer. It gets hard whenever there's a member who sneers at kids like that.
    14AnonymousOct 11, 2026 16:07
    Kawashima: "The members of Juice=Juice are shockingly kind — kind enough that I wonder if kindness is literally a selection criterion."
    16AnonymousOct 11, 2026 16:09
    My strongest memory of Matsunaga is her going totally wild and not listening to anyone during the 'Rimi Sta' segment with Manakan.
    17AnonymousOct 11, 2026 16:10
    I guess it's all down to Dambara's influence — even Rei Rei's turned into a saint-like mother figure.
    32AnonymousOct 11, 2026 16:21
    Re: #17
    That's more Uemura's influence than Dambara's.
    18AnonymousOct 11, 2026 16:12
    A 16-year-old schoolgirl who looks like she could be in Hello! Project, horsing around at a cat café
    https://live.nicovideo.jp/watch/lv351560450
    23AnonymousOct 11, 2026 16:16
    Good to see the little troublemaker who used to go wild grow into a caring senpai. Hayashi seems like she's got quite a strong personality, so it'll be interesting to see how she develops once she loses the "group's youngest kid" buff.
    25AnonymousOct 11, 2026 16:16
    "I don't want to make Dambara-san sad" — it's nice that everyone seems to be thinking that.
    26AnonymousOct 11, 2026 16:17
    Tako-chan's literally the only one with a good personality though.
    38AnonymousOct 11, 2026 16:24
    Re: #26
    🤤 What about me?
    27AnonymousOct 11, 2026 16:17
    The ones with bad personalities mostly ended up shuffled off into Kobushi/Tsubaki Factory (a nickname blending the two sister groups), after all. Not totally sure about ANGERME. Beyooooonds have good personalities too.
    29AnonymousOct 11, 2026 16:18
    If that other stuff is reconstituted-from-concentrate juice with metal shavings in the zip-pouch, then this one's 100% pure juice — of course the personalities are good. (wordplay off the group's name, "Juice=Juice")
    31AnonymousOct 11, 2026 16:20
    A group that peaked and died in the original-lineup era.
    57AnonymousOct 11, 2026 16:45
    Re: #31
    The original lineup never even got off the ground lol
    35AnonymousOct 11, 2026 16:22
    Matsunaga Ria:
    "The current Juice=Juice all talk together and eat meals sitting around a table, but the original members always had their earphones in backstage and only ever looked at the mirror. I often find myself thinking I don't want our juniors to go through that kind of experience. I want them to have nothing but happy experiences and keep smiling forever!!"
    36AnonymousOct 11, 2026 16:23
    Hayashi's got her head on straight — she knows exactly what she's doing playing the baby of the group.
    37AnonymousOct 11, 2026 16:23
    Yesterday's Juice Day event was a big success too.
    42AnonymousOct 11, 2026 16:26
    https://cancam.jp/archives/1759787

    Ishiyama Sakura:
    "It's precisely because Dambara-san is our leader that today's Juice=Juice came together the way it has, and she supported us from back when we were still so inexperienced — that's why we're able to be here now."
    43AnonymousOct 11, 2026 16:30
    It's kind of touching seeing Matsunaga goofing around with the members on TikTok.
    44AnonymousOct 11, 2026 16:30
    That's actually just Matsunaga's natural personality though.
    54AnonymousOct 11, 2026 16:43
    Yafuzou kept sending letters to Mippuru the whole time, and it ended up bringing her back to Juice.
    63AnonymousOct 11, 2026 16:58
    Re: #54
    What's admirable is that she doesn't go around saying that herself. Miyamoto's fans keep going around saying "It's all thanks to Karin-chan!" though.
    56AnonymousOct 11, 2026 16:45
    I don't think I've ever seen a two-shot of Irie and Ishiyama.
    58AnonymousOct 11, 2026 16:46
    Re: #56
    Haven't you bought the autumn tour merch?

    Background and Key Points of This Topic

    Juice=Juice is an idol group under Hello! Project (Up-Front), and over the more than 10 years since its formation it has gone through repeated member departures and additions. What split opinion on the thread was the question of whether the original-member era really did have a harsh atmosphere personality-wise — even fans who remember that period are divided on it. It’s also worth noting that the “good personalities” reputation rests on subjective grounds — the members’ own comments, media remarks, and fans’ personal impressions — rather than any official assessment of character. Dambara Ruru and Uemura Akari, named as reasons the group’s internal atmosphere improved, are both current members, so this can be read as an episode illustrating how team dynamics have shifted alongside generational turnover.

    *This article is excerpted and summarized from the 5ch (Hello! Project board) thread “[Great News] Every Single Member of the Current Juice=Juice Genuinely Has a Good Personality wwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww.”

  • Does Hello! Project Have Anyone Fit for a Marathon? 5ch: ‘Mai Yajima Would’ve Been Perfect’

    On 5ch’s “Hello! Project” board, a thread asked whether any Hello! Project members could actually compete in the mini-marathon that’s a signature segment of TBS’s popular special “All-Star Thanksgiving Festival.” AKB48 and NMB48 have sent selected members to this event every year, and past winner Momoka Ito is said to be a serious talent who won sectional awards in relay races back in elementary school. On the Hello! Project side, names like Mai Yajima and Erina Ikuta came up, but some pointed out that when Hitomi Yoshizawa appeared in the past, she didn’t make much of an impression — with others noting the gap in training environments, since Hello! Project is kept busy with concert tours while the AKB family is said to have comparatively more free time.

    1AnonymousOct 11, 2026 16:10
    This year's fall lineup
    there's always next spring
    2AnonymousOct 11, 2026 16:16
    Mai Yajima
    Erina Ikuta
    13AnonymousOct 11, 2026 16:34
    Re: #2
    Yajima had already lost a lot of her athleticism by her 20s though
    3AnonymousOct 11, 2026 16:16
    Probably just Yajima
    9AnonymousOct 11, 2026 16:32
    Re: #3
    Even back in her single days, she pathetically pulled a hamstring on London Hearts (ロンハー, a variety show)
    4AnonymousOct 11, 2026 16:17
    Mai Yajima should've done this back when she was young
    5AnonymousOct 11, 2026 16:19
    If Mai Yajima had shined here, she might be more famous than Airi Suzuki by now
    6AnonymousOct 11, 2026 16:21
    Isn't Shionne into marathons?
    7AnonymousOct 11, 2026 16:25
    Before that, is she even considered a 'celebrity' lol
    8AnonymousOct 11, 2026 16:28
    Even though she's never helped out with SASUKE's female-idol slot?
    12AnonymousOct 11, 2026 16:34
    Being serious for a second — Hitomi Yoshizawa ran this once before, but she was so slow it wasn't even worth discussing, and she barely got any screen time
    45AnonymousOct 11, 2026 16:58
    Re: #12
    SASUKE also had Shinoda of 'Taishisu' (a tarento duo's nickname) compete way back, but she got eliminated early and only showed up in the highlight reel
    so even when they do show up, they can't deliver results
    14AnonymousOct 11, 2026 16:35
    Hinopa, who's won a cross-country meet before
    15AnonymousOct 11, 2026 16:35
    Hello! Project always disappoints whenever they're on TV
    that's because they never prepare for anything
    17AnonymousOct 11, 2026 16:36
    Re: #15
    That's just Hello! Project fans overhyping them on their own
    reality just doesn't match up
    16AnonymousOct 11, 2026 16:36
    Re: #1
    Only NMB's Sakashita, who finished 1st, and Ito, who held 2nd the whole way before finishing 3rd, got any camera time
    everyone else had zero presence
    18AnonymousOct 11, 2026 16:38
    Biyo's new member Sugiyama apparently has soccer experience and has done track too
    but from the look of it, doesn't seem like much lol
    19AnonymousOct 11, 2026 16:38
    What about Roko-chan?
    Isn't she more of a sprinter though?
    20AnonymousOct 11, 2026 16:39
    Hello! Project's too busy doing the rounds to find time to train
    meanwhile NMB, who can't even pull off a tour, has time to burn
    21AnonymousOct 11, 2026 16:39
    Yoshizawa pulled a 'Twin Turbo' back in the day (a famous racehorse known for sprinting hard early, then collapsing)
    35AnonymousOct 11, 2026 16:47
    Re: #21
    Wasn't that more of a 'Mejiro Palmer' case? (another legendary racehorse, known for perpetually finishing just short)
    22AnonymousOct 11, 2026 16:40
    > Momoka Ito set a new city-tournament record in long-distance running back in 4th grade.
    　
    > She also won a sectional award at a relay race tournament in middle school, so her long-distance ability was already proven back then.
    　
    Yeah, no wonder she's strong
    37AnonymousOct 11, 2026 16:49
    Re: #22
    A new city record means she's the top out of hundreds of thousands of people
    that's insane lol
    23AnonymousOct 11, 2026 16:41
    If you give Hello! Project a slot, they'll just dig up someone like Korenaga and send her out there
    25AnonymousOct 11, 2026 16:42
    On top of that, Itomomo's also done ballet for years and has a pre-1st-grade Eiken (English proficiency) certificate
    she's worked a high-end hotel's front desk and done cram-school tutoring on the side
    her life is just winning at everything
    31AnonymousOct 11, 2026 16:44
    Re: #25
    I heard if she hadn't made it into AKB, she was going to study abroad
    she's probably from a well-off, prestigious family
    26AnonymousOct 11, 2026 16:42
    The general-women's slot gets to start before everyone else
    so in terms of standing out, that's actually the best shot at it
    27AnonymousOct 11, 2026 16:42
    There's no Hello! Project member who actually does long-distance running, right?
    32AnonymousOct 11, 2026 16:44
    Ikuta's probably got free time too — she should just run a full marathon
    33AnonymousOct 11, 2026 16:44
    This isn't even about being fast
    'Trash Project' (a mocking nickname for Hello! Project) manages things so weirdly they can't even build an environment for proper practice
    34AnonymousOct 11, 2026 16:45
    NMB and SKE get invited to shows like this, so why do they even bother showing up for AiBato (an idol singing-competition show)?
    36AnonymousOct 11, 2026 16:47
    Hello! Project's lost that hunger you'd expect from someone raised in a run-down coal-mining tenement — no way they can win
    40AnonymousOct 11, 2026 16:50
    Re: #36
    These days AKB's full of rich girls too though
    barely anyone's actually poor, so where's all this grit coming from?
    38AnonymousOct 11, 2026 16:49
    Both Yajima and Sasaki are sprinter types — isn't there nobody who does mid-to-long distance?
    42AnonymousOct 11, 2026 16:51
    Re: #38
    Shuttle Run! Ichika Arisawa
    2021-11-05 19:53:55
    https://ameblo.jp/juicejuice-official/entry-12708376685.html
    https://stat.ameba.jp/user_images/20211105/19/juicejuice-official/b8/ec/j/o1080144015026865733.jpg
    https://stat.ameba.jp/user_images/20211105/19/juicejuice-official/c3/75/j/o1080144015026865737.jpg
    Today I went jogging!
    I ran for about an hour~!
    When it comes to running, it reminds me of the "shuttle run."
    We had the "shuttle run" in the school fitness test, you know…
    I'm normally really bad at ball sports like basketball and volleyball, so the shuttle run was the only thing I had going for me, lol
    Since it was the only thing I could do, I always kept going until the very end and gave it my all♪
    My personal best was 120 laps!
    At the end the teacher ran together with me — it's my best memory from P.E. class!!
    Ever since joining Hello! Project I've built up even more stamina, so I want to give it another shot!!
    39AnonymousOct 11, 2026 16:49
    She's supposed to be a stamina monster, right?
    Let's see her prove it then
    41AnonymousOct 11, 2026 16:51
    When it comes to marathons, it's gotta be nksk
    56AnonymousOct 11, 2026 17:13
    Itomomo's got that 'I'd give my life for AKB' kind of spirit

    Does Hello! Project have anyone with that kind of fire?
    Aren't they all just cool, detached types who think trying hard for real is embarrassing?
    60AnonymousOct 11, 2026 17:13
    Re: #56
    Probably just Ange

    Background and Key Points of This Discussion

    The mini-marathon on “All-Star Thanksgiving Festival” is a recurring segment where appearance fees shift depending on finishing order, and members selected from the AKB48 group family have taken part every year. The thread split over whether the gap comes down to “raw talent” or “differences in training environment” — some argued Hello! Project members struggle to fit in specialized training because they’re tied up with concert tours, while the AKB family was said to have comparatively more flexible schedules. That said, this is speculation within the thread, and no actual figures directly comparing the two groups’ schedules were presented. Momoka Ito’s case — having a track record in long-distance running since her school days — is an unusual one, and shouldn’t be taken as representative of idols’ athletic ability as a whole.

    ※This article is compiled and summarized from the 5ch (Hello! Project board) thread “Is there really nobody in Hello! Project with the potential to compete in the All-Star Thanksgiving Festival mini-marathon?“.

  • Full-time, in your 40s, earning under ¥6 million a year — is that normal? 5ch thread: “I’m a Tokyo PM making ¥3.2 million”

    A thread titled “Anyone here over 40, full-time, earning under ¥6 million a year, with 10+ years at the same company?” popped up on 5ch’s News VIP board. Many posters said they stick with their current jobs because of perks like no overtime, no forced relocations, and a short commute — but things turned into a debate over how to read the statistics, with one poster pointing out that only the top 30-40% of men actually earn over ¥6 million a year. One concrete example that came up: a project manager at a Tokyo IT company, 9 years in, making just ¥3.2 million a year — sparking discussion about how wages for the “lost generation” (those who entered the job market during Japan’s prolonged post-bubble downturn) have struggled to grow.

    1AnonymousOct 11, 2026 12:03
    What's the job? Why are you still doing it?
    6AnonymousOct 11, 2026 12:05
    Re: #3,4
    What's the job? Why are you still doing it?
    9AnonymousOct 11, 2026 12:07
    Re: #6
    To eat.
    To get by.
    For retirement.
    And because I've got no energy left to job-hunt or try anything new.
    10AnonymousOct 11, 2026 12:08
    Re: #6
    I mean, most workers are probably in that boat tbh
    7AnonymousOct 11, 2026 12:06
    Every VIPPER (regular of 5ch's VIP board) is high-spec, there's no losers like that here
    8AnonymousOct 11, 2026 12:07
    Re: #7
    Figured there'd be about three people like that
    Guess there really aren't, huh
    14AnonymousOct 11, 2026 12:11
    Short hours, basically no overtime, no weekend work, no transfers, chill workload, I can take paid leave whenever I want, and it's close to home
    19AnonymousOct 11, 2026 12:24
    Re: #14
    What job is it?
    31AnonymousOct 11, 2026 12:56
    Re: #30
    There's not even one here on 5ch, huh?
    33AnonymousOct 11, 2026 13:04
    Re: #31
    Well, only high-earning elites use 5ch anyway
    32AnonymousOct 11, 2026 13:03
    Re: #31
    But proper surveys are run by the government and private research firms
    Of course people trust that data over some random guy on the internet
    34AnonymousOct 11, 2026 13:05
    Re: #32
    Yeah, exactly
    36AnonymousOct 11, 2026 13:12
    Re: #34
    And?
    That's just talking about the average, you know
    49AnonymousOct 11, 2026 13:36
    40 years old, PM at a Tokyo IT company, 9 years since I switched jobs, ¥3.2 million a year.
    Bring it on.
    52AnonymousOct 11, 2026 13:41
    Re: #49
    Isn't that seriously too low though
    Why stick around a place like that for 9 years?
    69AnonymousOct 11, 2026 13:55
    Re: #49
    Is that really a PM role?
    You probably mean an on-site team lead dispatched to a client (客先常駐)
    Even so, that salary is scarily low
    64AnonymousOct 11, 2026 13:50
    Re: #61
    Ah, so it's relative to your last job, got it
    But honestly, I get the urge to just want an easy job even if the pay's below average, basically part-timer level
    70AnonymousOct 11, 2026 13:55
    Re: #64
    Well, at my first job I made ¥5 million in year one, then it crashed into the ¥2 million range from year two
    Working 20+ hours a day with only 4 days off a year was the default there
    So when I switched jobs, I genuinely didn't care about the pay cut — it was such a relief
    73AnonymousOct 11, 2026 13:57
    Re: #70
    The way your old job's pay dropped is just insane
    You've been through it
    Any chance your pay goes up from here at your current job?
    92AnonymousOct 11, 2026 14:52
    Re: #73
    Doesn't look like it
    I re-entered the job market during the "ice age" (Japan's prolonged hiring freeze era), so I'm from a generation stuck on a low pay scale — getting squeezed from both the generation above and below me

    Re: #74
    Please do
    94AnonymousOct 11, 2026 14:56
    Re: #92
    That's rough
    Might honestly be better to switch career tracks entirely — work part-time at Shimamura or My Basket (Japanese retail/convenience chains) while aiming for a full-time position

    Background and key points of this discussion

    Surveys from Japan’s Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare and the National Tax Agency put the average annual income in the ¥4 million range, but that figure is skewed upward by high earners — in reality, only about 30-40% of men earn more than ¥6 million a year. The thread’s debate centered on this gap between the “average” and what most people actually make: one camp argued that an income under ¥6 million is “normal” based on the average salary data, while the other countered that the average is only pulled up by a small slice of high earners. The thread also surfaced real accounts of stagnant wages among the so-called “lost generation” — those who job-hunted during Japan’s prolonged economic slump, when starting salaries and raise schedules were set low and never really caught up. The point readers often miss is that “average income” and the income of the “majority” aren’t the same thing — in practice, full-time employees earning ¥6 million or less are likely the majority.

    ※This article is excerpted and summarized from the 5ch (News VIP) thread “Is anyone on this board over 40, full-time, earning ¥6 million or less, with 10+ years at the company?“

  • DeNA Sweeps to CS Final Stage — Giants’ Shock Elimination Has 5ch Saying ‘Too Weak in Short Series’

    In Game 2 of the Central League Climax Series on October 11, third-place DeNA beat second-place Yomiuri Giants 4-1, clinching the Final Stage with back-to-back wins. The Giants’ game ended with a listless, half-hearted swing-and-miss in the last inning, and the thread lit up over the lack of fight in that final at-bat and the lineup’s weakness since late in the season. Jokes bordering on conspiracy theories about acting manager Hashigami’s in-game calls also flew around, and opinions were split on how the team stacks up against first-place Hanshin, who awaits in the Final Stage.

    DeNA  2 0 0  0 0 0  1 1 0 |4

    Giants    0 0 0  1 0 0  0 0 0 |1

    [Battery]

    Source: nikkansports.com / Original article here

    4AnonymousOct 11, 2026 17:02
    Yomi-Jai (a mocking rival-fan nickname for the Yomiuri Giants): 'Hey Hanshin, we got DeNA's bats all nice and toasty-warmed-up for you'
    8AnonymousOct 11, 2026 17:02
    What was Richard even looking at on that last swing?!
    51AnonymousOct 11, 2026 17:04
    Re: #8
    Seriously, right
    That swing had total 'whatever, I don't care anymore' energy
    Maybe he's already been told he's getting traded
    11AnonymousOct 11, 2026 17:02
    Abe Shinnosuke:
    'See? Told you guys needed me, didn't I?'
    27AnonymousOct 11, 2026 17:03
    Re: #11
    If he were in charge they probably wouldn't even have made the CS lol
    12AnonymousOct 11, 2026 17:02
    GUAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH!!
    15AnonymousOct 11, 2026 17:03
    What was with that strikeout at the end where he looked like he didn't even want to swing?
    17AnonymousOct 11, 2026 17:03
    Conspiracy theory: the front office doesn't want Hashigami promoted to full-time manager, so they threw the game on purpose
    52AnonymousOct 11, 2026 17:04
    Re: #17
    If that were the plan, you'd do it tomorrow.
    You've gotta cash in some revenue first before bowing out.
    18AnonymousOct 11, 2026 17:03
    Congrats to Yokohama on making the Japan Series
    19AnonymousOct 11, 2026 17:03
    Well, that's just a fair loss
    They simply can't hit at all
    24AnonymousOct 11, 2026 17:03
    It's not that Yokohama is too strong in short series


    it's that the Giants are too weak in short series, isn't it?
    25AnonymousOct 11, 2026 17:03
    That last whiff is hilarious
    Was that Reynolds' retirement game or something?
    37AnonymousOct 11, 2026 17:03
    Re: #25
    Yeah, seriously, he looked way too unmotivated
    26AnonymousOct 11, 2026 17:03
    Ugh
    Hanshin's not gonna like this
    They'd have had it easier if the Giants had made it through
    29AnonymousOct 11, 2026 17:03
    Even with a talent disadvantage, they managed to scrape by to 2nd place over the long pennant race through roster shuffling,
    but in a short series there's nothing you can do about this lack of firepower
    30AnonymousOct 11, 2026 17:03
    Theory: Manager Aikawa is secretly a managerial genius
    68AnonymousOct 11, 2026 17:05
    Re: #30
    The roster wasn't fully settled in the first half

    In the end, letting Yamamoto go turned out to be the right call (thanks, Ogata)
    31AnonymousOct 11, 2026 17:03
    Hara: 'Guess it really doesn't work without me, huh'
    91AnonymousOct 11, 2026 17:06
    Re: #31
    Then again, there's always the All Blacks
    39AnonymousOct 11, 2026 17:03
    Who's even coming up with the game plan here?
    41AnonymousOct 11, 2026 17:03
    Still better than the Giants, who kept getting crushed by Hanshin down the stretch
    44AnonymousOct 11, 2026 17:04
    Losing to the Bay(Stars) is just way too embarrassing
    69AnonymousOct 11, 2026 17:05
    Re: #44
    I feel like the Giants haven't beaten the BayStars (DB) in the CS for several years now
    53AnonymousOct 11, 2026 17:04
    Felt like the Giants are planning to swap in a new manager before the draft, so winning the CS would've been inconvenient for them
    76AnonymousOct 11, 2026 17:05
    Re: #53
    Man, those conspiracy-theory brain endorphins feel good
    57AnonymousOct 11, 2026 17:04
    When do the BayStars start selling Japan Series tickets?
    73AnonymousOct 11, 2026 17:05
    Re: #57
    It's NPB, not the team, that sells Japan Series tickets
    74AnonymousOct 11, 2026 17:05
    That last swing-and-miss was way too bad lol
    85AnonymousOct 11, 2026 17:06
    Re: #74

    A total give-up swing lol
    79AnonymousOct 11, 2026 17:05
    Given how weak they were down the stretch,
    Hanshin's getting swept 3-0 by Yokohama for sure
    92AnonymousOct 11, 2026 17:06
    Re: #79
    3 wins won't be enough (Hanshin starts the Final Stage with a 1-game advantage)
    88AnonymousOct 11, 2026 17:06
    From the 1-hole to the 5-hole, Yokohama's lineup hits harder than Hanshin's
    96AnonymousOct 11, 2026 17:06
    Re: #88
    Nah, Hanshin's is clearly way better than that
    104AnonymousOct 11, 2026 17:07
    It's not so much that the Giants are weak — it's weird that the BayStars, who are clearly the stronger team, ended up in 3rd place
    112AnonymousOct 11, 2026 17:07
    Re: #104
    Exactly, right? Maybe they're like Frieren, holding back and hiding their true power (Frieren: Beyond Journey's End — the heroine who conceals how strong she really is)

    Background and Points of Debate

    In the Climax Series First Stage, the 3rd- and 2nd-place teams face off in a best-of-three with no advantage win, a format used since 2015. This time, DeNA took Games 1 and 2 back-to-back, locking up their Final Stage spot early. What split the thread was whether the Giants’ batting slump comes down to individual players or to managerial decisions and roster moves (such as letting go of pitcher Yamamoto). Some read the final-inning strikeout as a ‘half-hearted swing,’ while others chalked it up to simple timing issues, and jokes bordering on conspiracy theories about acting manager Hashigami’s in-game calls made the rounds too. Opinions were likewise split on how the team compares to first-place Hanshin, who awaits in the Final Stage — a difference rooted in how each team’s form shifted between the first and second halves of the season.

    *This article is compiled from excerpts and a summary of the 5ch (Geinou/Sports News+) thread “[Baseball] Central League CS Game 2: G 1-4 DB [10/11] — DeNA Advances to CS Final Stage with Back-to-Back Wins, 2nd-Place Giants Eliminated.”

  • Full-season standings or recent form? 5ch: ‘Handing the Japan Series spot to a team that’s only 2 games over .500 seems wrong’

    Debate broke out on 5ch’s general sports board (Nanademo Jikkyou G) over Nippon Professional Baseball’s Climax Series (CS) qualification and which teams are actually built for short playoff series. It started with the view that “it’s strange to hand out an advantage based purely on full-season standings” — one camp argued that by recent win percentage, Yokohama (DeNA) would actually be sitting in first place, while another countered that full-season results are the only fair measure. The thread also dug into the Yomiuri Giants’ weakness in short series and their long slump, plus their head-to-head record against SoftBank in interleague play, with plenty of analysis grounded in each team’s circumstances.

    1AnonymousOct 11, 2026 16:31
    Tremble in your sleep, SoftBank Hawks (a classic taunt line borrowed from Fist of the North Star)
    5AnonymousOct 11, 2026 16:34
    At the end of the day, whoever catches fire in autumn wins
    Going by win percentage since September, Yokohama would be in first
    Can't hand the Japan Series spot to a team sitting 1st or 2nd purely on wins banked up in spring and summer
    7AnonymousOct 11, 2026 16:35
    Re: #5
    Giving the Japan Series spot to a team that's only 2 games over .500 seems questionable too
    20AnonymousOct 11, 2026 16:39
    Re: #5
    By record since July, Yokohama's actually in first
    8AnonymousOct 11, 2026 16:36
    2025 CS Final Stage
    Hanshin ☆○○○
    Yokohama ●●●

    That said, they got swept straight out last year
    18AnonymousOct 11, 2026 16:39
    Re: #8
    It's just wrong that reaching the CS Final feels routine for a team that finished 3rd…
    19AnonymousOct 11, 2026 16:39
    Mind you, since then they're apparently 1-5 against SoftBank in interleague play
    28AnonymousOct 11, 2026 16:42
    Re: #19
    Those were just bait games (early-season games sacrificed as "chum," not meant to be taken seriously)
    34AnonymousOct 11, 2026 16:43
    Watarai's quietly leveled up
    And two years ago he wasn't even in the active roster
    35AnonymousOct 11, 2026 16:44
    Re: #34
    Wasn't he injured back then?
    42AnonymousOct 11, 2026 16:45
    Re: #34
    Two years ago was his rookie season fresh out of high school, so of course he's grown since
    44AnonymousOct 11, 2026 16:46
    More to the point, the Giants are just too weak in short series
    Aren't they close to the worst team at it?
    48AnonymousOct 11, 2026 16:47
    Re: #44
    Yeah, they can't win when it matters most — that's also why they missed the pennant
    50AnonymousOct 11, 2026 16:47
    So in the end, short series come down to hitting power
    Is that the takeaway?
    52AnonymousOct 11, 2026 16:48
    Re: #50
    They got blown out last year though, so it's pitching, right?
    57AnonymousOct 11, 2026 16:49
    The Giants have really gotten weak, huh
    They can't keep acting like the lords of the league anymore
    61AnonymousOct 11, 2026 16:50
    Re: #57
    They're just an average team now
    No star players, nothing flashy about them
    66AnonymousOct 11, 2026 16:52
    Re: #57
    Their parent company's in a declining industry
    Their player development is nonexistent
    All they do is collect other teams' aging veterans
    The only "league leader" thing left is being based in Tokyo
    65AnonymousOct 11, 2026 16:51
    14 years without a Japan Series title — isn't that a first in franchise history?
    They used to win it about once every three years back in the day
    69AnonymousOct 11, 2026 16:52
    Re: #65
    The era of buying your way to wins is over
    Now that they can't win a money fight against MLB, it's an era of developing your own talent
    71AnonymousOct 11, 2026 16:54
    Re: #65
    No more reverse-designation picks (the old draft system letting top prospects choose their team), no poaching foreign stars anymore, and no big names coming through free agency either
    74AnonymousOct 11, 2026 16:54
    Vs. Hanshin
    12 wins, 13 losses, 98 runs scored, 99 runs allowed

    At Koshien
    5 wins, 5 losses

    That's genuinely even
    97AnonymousOct 11, 2026 17:02
    Re: #74
    One of those wins was an extra-innings 1-run squeaker against a hungover Hanshin the day after they'd clinched the pennant
    So really it should've been 14 wins, 11 losses
    93AnonymousOct 11, 2026 17:00
    Honestly, why was Yokohama flying so low through summer in the first place?
    95AnonymousOct 11, 2026 17:01
    Re: #93
    Probably just hadn't built up enough data on them yet
    By season's end they're scouted so thoroughly that teams run player-specific shifts against them
    110AnonymousOct 11, 2026 17:03
    Re: #93
    They spend the first half collecting data then hit the gas in the second half — same every year
    122AnonymousOct 11, 2026 17:07
    But honestly, for the Yomiuri Giants (mocking slang: "Yomi-Jai"), this was a pure-profit Climax Series — they raked in Dome ticket sales and didn't even have to travel to Koshien
    126AnonymousOct 11, 2026 17:08
    Re: #122
    Feels like Maru personally didn't profit at all though (wordplay on "maru-moke," meaning pure profit, and the player's name Maru)
    128AnonymousOct 11, 2026 17:08
    Re: #122
    Well, for the 2nd-place team, giving it your all at home and still losing is actually the most profitable outcome
    So they probably wanted at least one win
    127AnonymousOct 11, 2026 17:08
    https://imgur.com/qtpHlfi.jpeg
    What even was that at the end
    133AnonymousOct 11, 2026 17:09
    Re: #127
    This isn't a ceremonial first pitch, come on 😅
    134AnonymousOct 11, 2026 17:09
    Re: #127
    Richard just drew a massive dud on the lottery, that's all
    143AnonymousOct 11, 2026 17:13
    Re: #127
    Even the battery exchanging signs looked like they sensed something was off
    131AnonymousOct 11, 2026 17:09
    But was it really okay for Tobashira to get the "hero of the game" interview for this?
    138AnonymousOct 11, 2026 17:10
    Re: #131
    Yeah, nobody expected him to be the pick for "hero of the game"

    Background and key arguments in this debate

    The Climax Series (CS) is a format introduced in 2007 that grants the league’s first-place team a one-win head start at the opening of the Final Stage. It’s meant to reward performance across the full season, but in the thread, the view that recent win percentage better reflects true current strength clashed with the view that rankings should be decided by full-season totals. Both sides have some logic to them, and since the debate ties into broader opinions for or against the CS system itself, no clear consensus emerged. The comments about the Giants’ long slump were likewise just thread opinion — several posters pointed to limits in the team’s player development and its free-agency and foreign-player acquisitions — but it’s worth noting these are 5ch commentary, not an official analysis.

    *This article is excerpted and summarized from the 5ch (Nanademo Jikkyou G) thread “DeNA BayStars, Demons of the Short Series — The Japan Series Is Inevitable!“

  • Giants Booed by Home Fans — 5ch Buzzes Over Acting Manager’s Future

    A report that the Giants were booed by fans during their post-game bow to the right-field stands sparked discussion on 5ch. The thread centered on the team’s future under its ongoing acting-manager setup, with posters venting frustration that the club’s payroll — second-highest in the league — hasn’t translated into results, alongside personal takes on candidates floated for the next manager job. Some doubted whether the booing really happened, but replies from people who said they were at the stadium filled in the details, leaving opinions in the thread split.

    1AnonymousOct 11, 2026 16:56
    Previous thread
    Giants Acting Manager Thread 172
    15AnonymousOct 11, 2026 17:00
    Nakayama's off in the active-player draft (a system where teams can let go underused players) — thanks for everything, see ya lol
    75AnonymousOct 11, 2026 17:02
    Re: #15
    Hirauchi's getting priority, so is there even a roster spot for you?
    23AnonymousOct 11, 2026 17:01
    Ogasawara: "(My chance to pitch) just isn't coming."
    38AnonymousOct 11, 2026 17:01
    Re: #23
    You're bad against the BayStars, aren't you
    53AnonymousOct 11, 2026 17:02
    He's gonna get heckled with 'step down' chants at the Fan Festa
    69AnonymousOct 11, 2026 17:02
    Re: #53
    He'll be gone before that even happens
    76AnonymousOct 11, 2026 17:02
    Re: #53
    He'll have already announced he's stepping down before that
    85AnonymousOct 11, 2026 17:02
    How do you lose like that while sitting in 2nd place?
    93AnonymousOct 11, 2026 17:03
    Re: #85
    The 2024 Hanshin Tigers
    101AnonymousOct 11, 2026 17:03
    THE BOOING HAS ARRIVED ━━━━(ᵒ∀ᵒ)━━━━!!
    136AnonymousOct 11, 2026 17:05
    Re: #101
    Didn't catch the broadcast so I can't say for sure — was the booing real?
    If so, I'll have to bump up my opinion of the home crowd a little lol
    115AnonymousOct 11, 2026 17:04
    125AnonymousOct 11, 2026 17:04
    So who's gonna be manager?
    135AnonymousOct 11, 2026 17:05
    Re: #125
    Memozairu's making a comeback (a nickname fans use for a certain player/coach)
    131AnonymousOct 11, 2026 17:04
    Good effort out there, everyone.
    People keep saying the Giants have no talent, no talent —
    but their payroll is 2nd highest in the whole league,
    so let me say this loud and clear: this performance is pathetic.
    141AnonymousOct 11, 2026 17:05
    Re: #131
    They're just overpaying past-their-prime veterans, that's the real issue
    146AnonymousOct 11, 2026 17:05
    Since when did it become okay to boo your own players? Manners have really gone downhill
    147AnonymousOct 11, 2026 17:05
    Re: #136
    For real — it happened during the bow to the right-field stands
    182AnonymousOct 11, 2026 17:07
    Re: #147
    Nice work!
    Great job out there!
    153AnonymousOct 11, 2026 17:06
    Well, guess you're free tomorrow now, huh
    158AnonymousOct 11, 2026 17:06
    Re: #153
    Why not go cheer for the Dodgers instead?
    162AnonymousOct 11, 2026 17:06
    Re: #153
    Just go watch Game 3 of the Pacific League series instead
    217AnonymousOct 11, 2026 17:10
    Re: #153
    9:00 MIL vs LAD
    14:00 Seibu vs Nippon-Ham
    177AnonymousOct 11, 2026 17:07

    What even is that at the end
    185AnonymousOct 11, 2026 17:07
    Re: #177
    He probably swung with his eyes closed lol
    183AnonymousOct 11, 2026 17:07
    Fully rested and they still show up like this at Koshien (Hanshin's home stadium)
    197AnonymousOct 11, 2026 17:08
    Re: #183
    Don't go choking on us, Tigers scrubs lol ("珍カス" — a derisive nickname rival fans use for Hanshin supporters)
    193AnonymousOct 11, 2026 17:08
    Even if Hashigami doesn't get officially promoted to manager,
    there's no way they fire and dump someone who finished 2nd in the league —
    keeping him on as a coach seems like the reasonable call.
    211AnonymousOct 11, 2026 17:09

    What is this
    222AnonymousOct 11, 2026 17:10
    Re: #211
    He's not an alum of either team, right?
    224AnonymousOct 11, 2026 17:10
    Why didn't they go straight to Kimiyasu Kudo right after they canned the 'delivery guy' (a nickname mocking him for 'delivering' home-run balls to the stands)? That 'Panda' 🐼 guy is a total non-starter — he'll only weaken the team further. Remember, Hata and Taguchi ended up as the main starting pitchers under him!
    239AnonymousOct 11, 2026 17:11
    Re: #224
    That's because he's a manager who doesn't even know his own players lol
    There was zero coordination with the farm team at all
    235AnonymousOct 11, 2026 17:11
    Maria's here at the stadium in person again — don't tell me they won again

    Background and Key Points of This Discussion

    In Japanese pro baseball, an “acting manager” takes over when the regular manager can’t lead the team due to suspension, health leave, or similar circumstances — a setup that tends to make the team’s management less stable than usual. Figures named in the thread, like Kimiyasu Kudo and Hashigami, are typically discussed as team alumni with coaching backgrounds. Booing itself is relatively rare in NPB, so when it was reported as a reaction from the stands, some questioned whether it actually happened — though replies from posters claiming to have witnessed it firsthand backed up the account. It’s also common for fans to question the quality of reinforcements or how players are being used when a team’s payroll ranks near the top of the league but its standing and results don’t measure up, and this thread is a textbook example of that pattern.

    *This article is compiled from excerpts and a summary of the 5ch (Hello! Project board) thread “Giants Acting Manager Thread 173.”