Japan Reacts

Author: Japan Reacts Editorial

  • SixTONES Fan Recommended a ‘Ikizu-Live’ Concert — Falls for Liella! Instead

    A thread on 5ch’s Love Live! board picked up on a post from a SixTONES fan who’d been recommended an “Ikizu-Live” concert by an acquaintance — but ended up getting hooked on Liella!, the idol unit from Love Live! Superstar!!, instead. Commenters floated theories like “in the end, looks were probably the deciding factor,” while debating the gap in passion between fans of real-life idols and fans of 2D/voice-actor idol groups. Some pointed to social media engagement numbers as a gauge of popularity, and the discussion soon grew from a single anecdote into a broader comparison of fandoms across genres.

    1AnonymousSep 21, 2026 17:05
    Guess looks really do matter after all
    2AnonymousSep 21, 2026 17:11
    When did they end up on Liella!?
    3AnonymousSep 21, 2026 17:12
    Stop making up stories that sound this plausible (this reads like fanfic)
    4AnonymousSep 21, 2026 17:17
    Normally you'd get into a real idol instead
    5AnonymousSep 21, 2026 17:17
    Come on, nobody's actually into the 'star' idols, lol (i.e., the 2D Superstar!! crowd)
    12AnonymousSep 21, 2026 17:37
    Re: #5
    Check out the comments section over on Jan-New?
    They're getting showered with praise there
    6AnonymousSep 21, 2026 17:20
    A victory for lookism
    In the end it's all about performance and visuals
    7AnonymousSep 21, 2026 17:30
    Real idol otaku are gonna be into real idols, of course
    8AnonymousSep 21, 2026 17:34
    Who's the cute one in Ikizu-Live?
    9AnonymousSep 21, 2026 17:34
    Liella!'s got style too
    If you're a female voice-actor-idol, they're the ones to aim for, career stage be damned
    10AnonymousSep 21, 2026 17:35
    Well, obviously
    You think Ikizu-Live's lineup can win over female fans with those faces?
    If you're recommending something to outsiders, Liella! is the only real choice
    13AnonymousSep 21, 2026 17:38
    Ikizu-Live's music is made for otaku anyway
    19AnonymousSep 21, 2026 18:10
    Ikizu-Live's fan-account post has almost 300 likes, but Liella!'s only pulling something like 30… that's the reality right there
    21AnonymousSep 21, 2026 18:12
    Liella!'s seriously washed up (dead content)
    What do they even do from here?

    Background and Talking Points

    Liella! is the idol unit from the anime Love Live! Superstar!!, known for having the voice actors themselves perform on stage. What stood out in this thread was real-life male idol fans using “looks” as their yardstick when comparing female idol-type groups — though it’s worth noting this reads less like a judgment of any one person’s appearance and more like a discussion of how fanbases and levels of passion differ by genre. Some comments also cited social media “like” counts as a measure of popularity, but the thread doesn’t address that such numbers can’t be compared directly given differences in posting timing and follower demographics.

    *This article is compiled and summarized from the 5ch (Love Live!) thread “A SixTONES otaku was supposed to get an Ikizu-Live recommendation but washed up at Liella! instead.”

  • Despite Annual Health Screenings, Colorectal Cancer Reaches Stage 4 — Debate Over the Limits of Testing

    Even though he had gotten a “ningen dock” (Japan’s comprehensive health screening) every year, his colorectal cancer wasn’t found until stage 4, by which point surgery was no longer an option — this survivor’s story was reported and became a hot topic on 5ch. The blame centered on the fecal occult blood test commonly used in these screenings, which tends to miss lesions that aren’t actively bleeding. The thread saw both claims that “a colonoscopy would have caught it” and defenses that “the fecal occult blood test alone just has its limits,” and the debate spread into differences in screening content, checkup rates, and the high cost of more thorough tests.

    [Battling Illness] Despite Annual Health Screenings, ‘Colorectal Cancer’ Stage 4 — “There’s No Way to Operate”

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

    2AnonymousSep 21, 2026 14:51
    You need to go at least once every six months
    Honestly, given how easy it is to miss something, even once every three months would be reasonable
    4AnonymousSep 21, 2026 14:55
    That's just fate
    If anything, blame heaven
    5AnonymousSep 21, 2026 14:55
    Maybe the health screening itself was pointless
    My workplace does blood tests and stool tests every six months
    6AnonymousSep 21, 2026 14:59
    Doesn't a health screening usually include a stool test?
    7AnonymousSep 21, 2026 15:01
    Re: #6
    It says once a year
    That's expensive
    8AnonymousSep 21, 2026 15:01
    Don't tell me the punchline is they didn't even run the fecal occult blood test?
    9AnonymousSep 21, 2026 15:02
    If he never got a colonoscopy, that's on him
    10AnonymousSep 21, 2026 15:02
    Under extreme stress, cancer can form in 3 months
    Source: me
    17AnonymousSep 21, 2026 15:10
    Re: #10
    Only 3 months? What kind of stress causes that…
    21AnonymousSep 21, 2026 15:26
    The negative effects from vaccines
    Is the risk really a flat 0%?
    22AnonymousSep 21, 2026 15:28
    Cancer's main causes are genetics and environmental factors (diet), but
    colorectal cancer specifically seems to be caused by toxins produced by gut microbes
    and apparently a lot of Japanese people happen to carry these microbes
    24AnonymousSep 21, 2026 15:41
    Yeah, they're definitely putting something weird in the food
    25AnonymousSep 21, 2026 15:42
    Re: #17
    New-employee health checkup in April
    Getting home at 1am every night
    One day my back started aching and I couldn't stop coughing at night, so I was chugging cough syrup
    Six-month follow-up checkup in October
    They told me to push it back since things were busy, but I pushed through and went anyway
    Found a huge tumor in my lung
    → Hospitalized the next day
    After 3 rounds of chemo, had open-chest surgery down the center of my sternum
    26AnonymousSep 21, 2026 15:45
    Re: #25
    So what happened after that — how are you doing now?
    27AnonymousSep 21, 2026 15:51
    In Germany a lot more people get colonoscopies, and polyps get removed right there during the exam, so they have less colorectal cancer than Japan
    28AnonymousSep 21, 2026 15:53
    > Even though I got a health screening every year
    That right there is exactly the problem
    29AnonymousSep 21, 2026 15:54
    Re: #26
    I just went in for an X-ray at a hospital I hadn't visited in over 10 years, and since nobody said anything about it I let it go — my old chart isn't even on file anymore
    But now every time I see a doctor, they ask about the surgical scar and the clip visible on my chest X-ray
    30AnonymousSep 21, 2026 15:55
    I heard a colonoscopy once every 10 years is supposedly enough, though
    33AnonymousSep 21, 2026 16:04
    Apparently there's a type of colorectal cancer that doesn't grow as a polyp, which makes it hard to catch
    34AnonymousSep 21, 2026 16:08
    Even if you say you go every year, a health screening usually doesn't include an actual colonoscopy
    36AnonymousSep 21, 2026 16:17
    Health screenings run the full range from top-tier to bare minimum, you know
    37AnonymousSep 21, 2026 16:19
    Only 35% of people even in their 40s to 60s have ever had a colonoscopy
    38AnonymousSep 21, 2026 16:25
    It depends on whether they're actually scoping the stomach and intestines
    or just doing a barium swallow and a stool test
    39AnonymousSep 21, 2026 16:31
    Even something barely more than a basic checkup gets marketed as a 'health screening'
    Is there even a real definition for it?
    40AnonymousSep 21, 2026 16:31
    A guy at my company drank the barium for his checkup and it came back normal, but six months later cancer was found and he died
    41AnonymousSep 21, 2026 16:33
    Getting both an upper and lower endoscopy adds about 50,000 yen (~$330) to the bill
    42AnonymousSep 21, 2026 16:34
    Even doctors won't drink the barium themselves
    You should get a PET scan instead
    43AnonymousSep 21, 2026 16:35
    Colonoscopies eat up a whole day because of the laxative prep, so people tend to put them off
    45AnonymousSep 21, 2026 16:37
    > I got a health screening every year, but by the time my cancer was found it was already stage IV. The test used in these screenings to check for colorectal cancer is generally the fecal occult blood test (which checks whether blood is mixed into the stool).

    > But since I wasn't bleeding at all, the fecal occult blood test couldn't catch it. To improve your odds of catching it early, I'd also recommend a blood tumor-marker test and a colonoscopy (*).
    46AnonymousSep 21, 2026 16:39
    So is the barium swallow pointless, then?
    Guess you really do need regular scope exams after all
    47AnonymousSep 21, 2026 16:41
    Plenty of people survive even at stage 4, so honestly it just depends on the person
    48AnonymousSep 21, 2026 16:42
    A camera down the throat isn't too bad, but the one for the colon is rough
    50AnonymousSep 21, 2026 16:43
    I just mentioned I'd been having diarrhea and the visit was covered by insurance
    51AnonymousSep 21, 2026 16:43
    It removes polyps and prevents colorectal cancer outright, so it's absolutely worth it
    52AnonymousSep 21, 2026 16:44
    Without add-on options a 'ningen dock' is basically the same as a regular checkup, but piling on the extras runs the bill up into the tens of thousands of yen, which makes you hesitate

    Background and Key Points of the Debate

    A “ningen dock” (comprehensive health screening) isn’t a legally standardized program — what gets tested varies a lot depending on the facility and the course you pick. The fecal occult blood test, widely used as the first-line check for colorectal cancer, tends to come back negative for lesions that aren’t bleeding — the article quoted in the thread itself says the cancer “wasn’t found because I wasn’t bleeding at all.” The thread cited a figure showing only just over 30% of people in their 40s to 60s have ever had a colonoscopy, and the hassle of laxative prep plus the extra tens of thousands of yen for a combined upper/lower endoscopy help explain that low uptake. A common misconception is the assumption itself that “getting a health screening every year prevents colorectal cancer” — in reality, whether a course centers on the fecal occult blood test or includes a full colonoscopy changes what kinds of lesions can actually be caught. Opinions in the thread split between those pointing out the tests’ inherent limits and those questioning the choice not to get a colonoscopy in the first place.

    *This article is excerpted and summarized from the 5ch (Hello! Project board) thread “Colorectal Cancer Despite Annual Health Screenings — Whose Fault Is It?.”

  • Is It True? Foot-Traffic Data Reveals a ‘Tale of Two Shibuyas’

    An article in which Teikoku Databank used foot-traffic data to test the theory that “young people are abandoning Shibuya” drew a wave of reactions on 5ch’s News Express+ board. Posters pointed to specific patterns, like young people from the Saitama direction bypassing Shibuya entirely for Ikebukuro, Shinjuku, or Koshigaya Lake Town, and argued that Tokyu’s redevelopment is turning the area into an office district no longer geared toward young people. Others countered that the station area and Center-gai are still packed with people, so the thread was split on whether the “Shibuya exodus” is really happening. Comparisons noting that Omotesando and Yoyogi have kept their calmer atmosphere also became a talking point.

    Is the “Youth Exodus from Shibuya” Real? Foot-Traffic Data Reveals a “Tale of Two Shibuyas”

    Mon, Sep 21, 7:04 AM JST

    Teikoku Databank

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

    17AnonymousSep 21, 2026 15:25
    Omotesando and that area are nice and calm.
    Though it's packed with tourists on weekends.
    210AnonymousSep 21, 2026 17:28
    Re: #17
    Perfect for a bit of morning exercise.
    70AnonymousSep 21, 2026 15:53
    They swarm the place for Halloween and the World Cup though.
    79AnonymousSep 21, 2026 15:56
    Re: #70
    If anything, those are the only times anyone's actually there.
    71AnonymousSep 21, 2026 15:53
    Re: #1
    > "Young people these days don't hang out in Shibuya," "the exodus from Shibuya is progressing"
    Well yeah, that's literally just young people leaving Shibuya.
    75AnonymousSep 21, 2026 15:54
    Re: #71
    Looking at the data, the point was that there are plenty of young people there, but they're split geographically from the older crowd.
    101AnonymousSep 21, 2026 16:11
    So which is it in the end—are the young people there or not?
    105AnonymousSep 21, 2026 16:13
    Re: #101
    It's basically just kids who got bored of Harajuku wandering over. It's not even really a destination people set out for anymore.
    109AnonymousSep 21, 2026 16:15
    Re: #101
    They're there, but only around the station and Center-gai, I'd say.
    102AnonymousSep 21, 2026 16:11
    Everything Tokyu touches turns to ruin.

    Empty even though it's in Shinjuku's Kabukicho… The current state of Tokyu's 'Kabukicho Tower' turning into a ghost building (by Kazuki Tanigashira) | Money Gendai | Kodansha
    s://gendai.media/articles/-/154251?imp=0
    117AnonymousSep 21, 2026 16:18
    Re: #102
    Maybe it'll get bought out by Chinese capital again, like Ginza Nowa (a Ginza building bought up by Chinese investors).
    130AnonymousSep 21, 2026 16:25
    Re: #102 The old Tokyu Plaza and Tokyu Bunka Kaikan were easy to use, but…

    Today's Tokyu buildings probably just have terrible pedestrian flow.
    108AnonymousSep 21, 2026 16:15
    Shibuya peaked around 1990, when the chiima ruled the streets (chiima: flashy street-gang youth cliques of the era).
    114AnonymousSep 21, 2026 16:17
    Re: #108
    Chiima were a late-90s thing, lol.
    111AnonymousSep 21, 2026 16:16
    Heard Tower Records is shutting down.

    Even less reason to go there now.
    112AnonymousSep 21, 2026 16:17
    Re: #111
    Seriously? lol
    I failed the part-time job interview at the Shibuya Tower Records once (´･ω･｀)
    121AnonymousSep 21, 2026 16:20
    There are only half as many young people as there were in our generation, so of course it's like this. And with the population aging, people spend way less on clothes and makeup and that whole dressing-up game. Still, where are all the kids even going?
    132AnonymousSep 21, 2026 16:25
    Re: #121
    Young people from Saitama used to ride the Saikyo Line straight into Shibuya. Now they just get off at Ikebukuro.
    133AnonymousSep 21, 2026 16:27
    Re: #132
    I get that, lol. Even when they go further, it's only as far as Shinjuku. They don't bother with Harajuku or Shibuya.
    173AnonymousSep 21, 2026 16:59
    Re: #132
    Some of them just head to Koshigaya Lake Town (a big suburban mall) instead. They don't go to Shibuya at all.
    166AnonymousSep 21, 2026 16:54
    Tokyu's plan is probably to ditch young people entirely and turn the place into an office district. They probably figured big-money tenants beat young people who don't spend anyway. And sure enough, they dragged Google in. But there aren't that many companies like that out there. Seems like nobody's coming unless they drop the rent.
    186AnonymousSep 21, 2026 17:08
    Re: #166
    If they're bringing in Google, it's probably a plan to remake the whole town. No point lowering the rent—only their own circle gets to move in anyway.
    188AnonymousSep 21, 2026 17:11
    Re: #186
    This 'Greater Shibuya' concept they're pushing is really about sorting people and companies. They'll just keep remodeling it into a town with ever-higher rents and salaries.
    207AnonymousSep 21, 2026 17:27
    Re: #186
    All those 'insiders' already got snapped up by the Hills developments (Mori Building's Roppongi Hills-style office towers), lol.
    168AnonymousSep 21, 2026 16:55
    Shibuya just keeps getting uglier. Why can't Tokyo ever do 'subtractive' redevelopment—less clutter instead of more? It's heading in the exact opposite direction of refined.
    170AnonymousSep 21, 2026 16:57
    Re: #168
    Isn't that basically impossible in Shibuya? Land prices are so high that developers end up chasing returns on their investment.

    Apparently there are places like that out in the suburbs, or so I've heard—don't know the details. Not sure how it is along the Tokyu lines either.

    'Invest and keep it simple' is a tough combo to pull off. Marunouchi's probably one of the better examples of it actually working?
    172AnonymousSep 21, 2026 16:59
    Yoyogi and Harajuku are still doing fine, though.
    175AnonymousSep 21, 2026 17:02
    Re: #172
    I think it's the renovated station's fault. If you have a drinking party in Shibuya and get wasted, you don't feel like you can even find your way home anymore. Used to be you could say your goodbyes and be on the train 30 seconds later. Also apparently the rats have multiplied like crazy, which doesn't help either.
    184AnonymousSep 21, 2026 17:07
    Re: #172
    Yoyogi has a good kind of messiness to it. Though honestly the only place I go there is Books Kinokuniya (the foreign-language bookstore).
    180AnonymousSep 21, 2026 17:04
    Shibuya lost all its value once Studio Alta closed down.
    182AnonymousSep 21, 2026 17:06
    Re: #180?

    I mean, I don't go near Shinjuku unless I actually have business there.
    197AnonymousSep 21, 2026 17:20
    Isn't it Ueno and Ikebukuro that are bustling now? Tokyu's hopeless developers completely let the golden-egg-laying energy of young people slip through their fingers.
    200AnonymousSep 21, 2026 17:21
    Re: #197
    Why Ikebukuro and Ueno, though?

    Background and Key Points of This Discussion

    Around Shibuya, Tokyu’s large-scale redevelopment continues to push forward, with the area increasingly shaped for office workers—including efforts to attract Google’s offices—while others point out that rents are too high for most companies to move in at all. On top of an overall shrinking youth population, redevelopment around Shibuya Station has made transfers more complicated, and some say it’s become less convenient to casually drop by than it used to be. The thread repeatedly pushed back on the simple idea that “there are no young people in Shibuya”—people still gather around the station and Center-gai, even as areas like Omotesando and Yoyogi stay calmer, showing the picture varies a lot by neighborhood. One poster’s account of young people from the Saitama direction stopping at Ikebukuro suggests destinations may simply be scattering depending on which train line people ride.

    ※This article is compiled and summarized from the 5ch (News Express+) thread “[Youth Exodus from Shibuya] Is It True? Foot-Traffic Data Reveals a ‘Tale of Two Shibuyas’”.

  • Chunichi Sets Attendance Record at Home Finale for 2nd Straight Year — 5ch: ‘Jeering the Top Brass?? lol’

    On September 20, the Chunichi Dragons played their final home game of the season at Nagoya Dome. During the pre-game ceremony, manager Kazuki Inoue apologized to fans for the team’s current standing, saying he was “resigned to” their position in the rankings — a moment met with a mix of applause and angry jeers from the stands. Meanwhile, total attendance for the season reached 2,533,782 across 72 games (an average of 35,687 per game), marking the highest figure for a second straight year since the team began reporting actual attendance counts. On 5ch, discussion ranged from the gap between the team’s poor results and rising attendance, to Seishiro Sakamoto’s home run, to the Central League pennant race involving the Hanshin Tigers and DeNA BayStars.

    1AnonymousSep 21, 2026 17:13
    Previous thread
    Giants Acting Manager 145
    4AnonymousSep 21, 2026 17:15
    Kudo
    HERE HE COMES━━━━(°∀°)━━━━!!
    5AnonymousSep 21, 2026 17:22
    Vantelin Dome — home finale ceremony underway
    6AnonymousSep 21, 2026 17:22
    The Dragons' final Nagoya Dome ceremony of the season is starting
    12AnonymousSep 21, 2026 17:24
    Wait, the BayStars haven't won?
    14AnonymousSep 21, 2026 17:25
    Remaining schedule for the top 3 Central League teams (as of Sept 20)


    Central League pennant race line (as of Sept 20)


    Hanshin's magic number situation for the 21st


    September Central League above-.500 trend
    41AnonymousSep 21, 2026 17:31
    Re: #14
    Game over
    Hanshin 2-2 DeNA
    15AnonymousSep 21, 2026 17:25
    They're bringing Reynolds out here?
    20AnonymousSep 21, 2026 17:27
    The BayStars gave it their all — if they lose this one, it's over
    21AnonymousSep 21, 2026 17:27
    Whatever
    The Giants are gonna lose at Koshien anyway
    22AnonymousSep 21, 2026 17:27
    Ishida's been decent too — if they pull ahead, maybe it's Ishida's win
    23AnonymousSep 21, 2026 17:28
    Chu-Dora [Chunichi Dragons] have a winning record at home, so no booing lol
    24AnonymousSep 21, 2026 17:28
    Oh, Reynolds is starting? What happens if they take the lead?
    32AnonymousSep 21, 2026 17:29
    Well, they probably want to bring him in against Sato and Oyama when it really matters
    35AnonymousSep 21, 2026 17:29
    Nagoya Dome's 30th season
    Over 2.5 million total across 72 games
    Highest ever since actual attendance reporting began
    40AnonymousSep 21, 2026 17:31
    Re: #35
    At this rate the club doesn't even need to win the pennant
    Fans aren't leaving even when the team's weak
    36AnonymousSep 21, 2026 17:30
    Pinky's apology-and-thanks speech (a nickname used for the manager in the thread)
    38AnonymousSep 21, 2026 17:30
    Manager Inoue's speech
    Once he goes quiet, you can hear the heckling loud and clear lol
    47AnonymousSep 21, 2026 17:33
    Re: #38
    "Then YOU quit!"

    HAHAHAHAHA lol
    *clap clap clap clap clap clap*
    42AnonymousSep 21, 2026 17:31
    [Chunichi] Total attendance sets a 'record high' for the 2nd straight year, announced at 2,533,782 (avg. 35,687/game)
    https://news.yahoo.co.jp/articles/8556880e0ffabad57dfaec4d2bb2e5a6a20dba34
    46AnonymousSep 21, 2026 17:32
    Chunichi's roster could genuinely compete at the top if things click
    50AnonymousSep 21, 2026 17:34
    Re: #40
    No, that's bad
    Newspapers and Monthly Dragons magazine won't sell
    TV and radio ratings won't go up either
    Everyone loses
    54AnonymousSep 21, 2026 17:35
    Please keep Nanako Kurosaki out of this, she's definitely lurking around here lol

    75
    56AnonymousSep 21, 2026 17:35
    Sakamoto's brutal slump was all just build-up for this at-bat lol
    58AnonymousSep 21, 2026 17:36
    Seishiro, possessed by home-run fever thanks to Sakamoto's advice
    66AnonymousSep 21, 2026 17:37
    Figured they'd bring in a pinch hitter if it came down to it — oh wait, Hanshin isn't even in this game
    67AnonymousSep 21, 2026 17:37
    The man driven mad by home runs
    Seishiro Sakamoto
    77AnonymousSep 21, 2026 17:41
    Chunichi Dragons pitcher Raynosuke Sakurai's entrance music is
    Sarah Brightman's "Time to Say Goodbye"

    Kind of an unlucky pick for a song right before you take the mound
    Though the original is
    a 1995 song by Italian singer Andrea Bocelli, "Con te partirò"
    Con Te Partirò
    meaning, roughly, "let's set off together with you"
    81AnonymousSep 21, 2026 17:42
    Chunichi manager Inoue met with applause and jeers from the stands — apologizes to fans at home finale ceremony: "That we've settled for our current standing…"
    https://news.yahoo.co.jp/articles/132b91eab7c9cf15f530b99f0ea313a4d9471039
    98AnonymousSep 21, 2026 17:46
    Re: #81
    Wait, they actually printed 'jeers' aimed at the top brass? lol
    83AnonymousSep 21, 2026 17:43
    Pitchers who are just fast and nothing else blow out their shoulders quick
    101AnonymousSep 21, 2026 17:46
    Re: #83
    You mean Ma-kun? wwwww
    86AnonymousSep 21, 2026 17:43
    [Seibu] Kaima Taira pulled from the active roster under the infectious-disease exception after reporting a fever — several teammates already out with the flu
    https://news.yahoo.co.jp/articles/121470a4a954bcd3f0b026d6f3f5aeeb9891b697
    93AnonymousSep 21, 2026 17:45
    Re: #86
    It's going around Saitama Prefecture right now
    87AnonymousSep 21, 2026 17:44
    A flu outbreak at this point in the season is rough
    97AnonymousSep 21, 2026 17:46
    Meanwhile COVID's going around in Okayama Prefecture
    100AnonymousSep 21, 2026 17:46
    Most of Kudo's pitches would be called balls if you just took them — why swing at all?
    105AnonymousSep 21, 2026 17:47
    His fastball's so quick that batters start their timing early and get beat

    Background and Key Points

    In recent years, NPB has shifted from reporting visually-estimated attendance figures to verified actual counts for each team, and Chunichi’s 2,533,782 is the highest figure recorded since that switch. The fact that attendance keeps climbing even as the team struggles in the standings illustrates how results and attendance don’t necessarily move together — the thread was split between an optimistic view (“fans aren’t leaving even when the team’s weak”) and concern that “if newspaper and broadcast numbers don’t rise too, it’s bad for the club overall.” At the final whistle, the Hanshin-DeNA game had ended in a 2-2 draw, drawing attention to the timing of Hanshin’s pennant-clinching magic number. It’s also worth noting that the exchange about Seishiro Sakamoto’s (Chunichi) home run could easily be confused with Hayato Sakamoto (Giants) — who shares the same surname and has been in the news for a slump — since the wording makes it easy to mix the two up if you’re not following the context closely.

    ※This article is excerpted and summarized from the 5ch (Hello! Project board) thread “Giants Acting Manager 146.”

  • Tsubaki Factory’s ‘Why Don’t They Sell?’ Debate Ends in a 5ch ‘Checkmate’

    On the Hello! Project subforum, a debate broke out over why Hello! Project group Tsubaki Factory isn’t selling better. Some praised the members’ visuals and talent, but plenty of others pointed to the group’s low name recognition and weak songs. What really caught attention was a strange reversal: regional shows keep selling out one after another, while Tokyo and Osaka venues can’t sell out even after opening a second round of ticket sales. Some suggested this might trace back to fewer regional stops on this summer’s tour and fans cutting back on travel due to rising prices.

    1AnonymousSep 21, 2026 16:25
    Their visuals are great, though
    2AnonymousSep 21, 2026 16:26
    Re: #1
    Looks alone don't sell in this business
    36AnonymousSep 21, 2026 16:39
    Re: #2
    Nogizaka46
    Checkmate
    4AnonymousSep 21, 2026 16:26
    Hokkaido Nippon-Ham Fighters Official@FightersPR

    Fox Dance together with everyone from Tsubaki Factory
    🦊🌺

    After the game: special 〈AFTER GAME〉 live show🎤

    #TsubakiEscon @tsubakifac_uf

    #lovefighters
    https://video.twimg.com/amplify_video/2101561765280743425/vid/avc1/1280×720/rD9RgIA-FLk4bQG7.mp4
    5AnonymousSep 21, 2026 16:26
    Maybe people are avoiding them because of the group name?
    9AnonymousSep 21, 2026 16:27
    Re: #5
    Nobody even knows them enough to avoid them
    11AnonymousSep 21, 2026 16:27
    Re: #5
    They don't even know them, let alone avoid them
    7AnonymousSep 21, 2026 16:27
    What if they were called 'Tsubaki Workshop' instead
    12AnonymousSep 21, 2026 16:29
    Re: #7
    That's even lamer
    19AnonymousSep 21, 2026 16:33
    For starters, nobody even knows they're a Hello! Project group
    Go outside and you'll see
    22AnonymousSep 21, 2026 16:34
    Nothing nobody's ever heard of has ever sold
    24AnonymousSep 21, 2026 16:35
    The real test starts once Onoda graduates
    If she's not going to, they need to cut her stage time way down
    25AnonymousSep 21, 2026 16:36
    A jackpot talent on the level of 'Little Kame' (idol fan slang for a once-in-a-generation breakout star) isn't coming to Hello! Project again for a long while, and there's no reason to think one's headed for Tsubaki either
    26AnonymousSep 21, 2026 16:37
    Saying the Hina'z have no talent means you haven't been watching Tsubaki lately
    All three bring something different to the table
    27AnonymousSep 21, 2026 16:37
    Member for member they're honestly top-tier
    Such a waste somehow
    29AnonymousSep 21, 2026 16:38
    So it really does come down to that 'gay bar otaku' fanbase connection, huh (slang for a niche subset of fans)
    30AnonymousSep 21, 2026 16:38
    Skill-wise the Hina'z are the best
    Though it means nothing if they don't get singing parts
    32AnonymousSep 21, 2026 16:39
    I don't think their visuals or skills are really as high as people say
    34AnonymousSep 21, 2026 16:39
    'Skilled member, skilled member' — have you all forgotten Kishimoto could sing that well and still never got popular?
    For Tsubaki fans what matters is handshake-event charm, not singing
    35AnonymousSep 21, 2026 16:39
    The Angler
    The Power Dancer
    The All-Rounder
    37AnonymousSep 21, 2026 16:40
    Neither the members' visuals nor the songs are actually good
    Seems to land with the old-guy fans though
    Somebody needs to rethink that take
    38AnonymousSep 21, 2026 16:40
    Re: #36
    The songs are good, and being on Sony means they get a push too
    Checkmate
    43AnonymousSep 21, 2026 16:41
    Re: #38
    The songs are good? lol give me a break, that's just not happening
    39AnonymousSep 21, 2026 16:40
    They don't have a key standout member
    Like OCHA NORMA's got Kirara and Momo
    Or Juice=Juice's got Danbara
    Tsubaki's got a decent overall level but no single strong ace
    That said they're probably selling better than before
    Recent tours sold out Fukuoka and Ehime
    They never used to sell out regional shows in the past
    Yet they're going with the wrong strategy of shrinking the tour anyway
    40AnonymousSep 21, 2026 16:40
    They're idols — if the visuals aren't good, they won't sell
    45AnonymousSep 21, 2026 16:41
    They sold out Hokkaido in spring too
    Yet they're skipping it in fall — what a mixed signal
    46AnonymousSep 21, 2026 16:42
    Re: #45
    Spring was just easy to get to, that's all — there aren't many diehard fans, so fall isn't selling
    52AnonymousSep 21, 2026 16:45
    Re: #45
    Dunno where they played, but it was probably Otaru or Penny Lane, right?
    Would like to see them sell out a venue in the 1,000-capacity range
    48AnonymousSep 21, 2026 16:43
    It's not even a question of selling or not — there's simply no Hokkaido date on the fall tour
    that's the whole story
    51AnonymousSep 21, 2026 16:45
    Re: #48
    Places that are easier to reach than Hokkaido are the ones not selling though
    61AnonymousSep 21, 2026 16:51
    Same goes for OCHA NORMA — none of the regional shows need a second round of tickets
    Most of those shows sell out
    Meanwhile there's this odd phenomenon where Tokyo, Osaka, and Nagoya don't sell out even with a second round
    Sure, capacities differ, but even accounting for population, Tokyo and Osaka are underselling way too much
    Possible reasons:

    Summer Hello! dropped its regional stops, so there's less chance to see them there
    Lower-tier groups don't do full nationwide tours much anymore, cutting viewing opportunities
    Rising prices mean fewer people traveling from the regions to Tokyo/Osaka

    In other words, live shows have dropped sharply in the regions, so fans are flocking to what's left there, while rising costs are keeping people from traveling to Tokyo and Osaka
    74AnonymousSep 21, 2026 16:59
    Re: #61
    Huh, that's pretty interesting actually
    66AnonymousSep 21, 2026 16:53
    Bet on King — she can still rack up likes even on a low-attention post announcing second-round Budokan tickets
    https://imgur.com/lTIUJM7.jpeg
    73AnonymousSep 21, 2026 16:59
    Bet on King — top of the group for likes whether she's got bangs or not

    Background and Key Points of This Discussion

    In recent years, Hello! Project has noticeably scaled back its summer nationwide tours and cut regional dates, creating a structure where fan turnout trends can diverge sharply between big cities and rural areas. Posters in the thread pointed out that major venues in Tokyo and Osaka fail to sell out even after opening a second round of ticket sales, while regional shows often sell out in the first round alone — a gap they attributed to rising travel costs and uneven opportunities to attend events. Opinions were split on the members’ talent and the quality of the songs: some praised the high caliber of the members, while others firmly held that the group suffers from poor name recognition and weak material. It’s worth noting that the turnout trends and sellout figures discussed here are based on posters’ personal impressions and anecdotal sightings, not officially published sales data.

    *This article is compiled from excerpts and a summary of the 5ch (Hello! Project board) thread “I don’t get why Tsubaki Factory doesn’t sell.”

  • FC Tokyo’s Yuto Nagatomo Set for Long-Term Absence with Torn Right ACL

    On September 21, FC Tokyo announced that defender Yuto Nagatomo has been diagnosed with a “right knee anterior cruciate ligament injury.” The expected recovery time hasn’t been disclosed, but a long-term absence appears unavoidable. Given the severity of the injury at age 40, reactions poured in on 5ch’s Geinou/Sports Breaking News+ board as soon as the news broke — a mix of worry over the impact on the Japan national team (the Asian Cup and November’s match against Brazil), calls for him to retire at season’s end, and pushback that it’s too soon to talk retirement. Some discussion also centered on the gap between Nagatomo’s own description of a “tear” on social media and the club’s official wording of “injury.”

    Sponichi

    [September 21, 2026, 14:29]

    FC Tokyo announced on the 21st that defender Yuto Nagatomo has been diagnosed with a “right knee anterior cruciate ligament injury.” Full recovery time hasn’t been disclosed, but he appears set to be forced into a long-term absence.

    Source: sponichi.co.jp / Original article here

    5AnonymousSep 21, 2026 16:46
    If only this had happened a few months earlier…
    69AnonymousSep 21, 2026 16:58
    Re: #5
    Guess we'll be seeing the national team player on crutches now.
    113AnonymousSep 21, 2026 17:12
    Re: #5
    That's because the 'punishment game' for Endo was as brutal as Kazu's. (Kazu = Kazuyoshi Miura, the legendary striker still playing pro in his late 50s)
    6AnonymousSep 21, 2026 16:46
    Just retire already. This is embarrassing.
    7AnonymousSep 21, 2026 16:46
    Honestly good news — no need to keep going easy on the old guy anymore.
    12AnonymousSep 21, 2026 16:47
    Seriously? Doesn't look like he'll make the Asian Cup.
    15AnonymousSep 21, 2026 16:47
    Damn, seriously?
    If you were gonna get hurt, could've done it before the World Cup.
    16AnonymousSep 21, 2026 16:48
    National team regular out long-term — FC Tokyo is done for. ("owata" — internet slang for "it's over")
    17AnonymousSep 21, 2026 16:48
    So his last year's gonna end with him doing rehab, huh.
    18AnonymousSep 21, 2026 16:48
    Good news, honestly — Moriyasu might've picked him for the Asian Cup otherwise.
    19AnonymousSep 21, 2026 16:48
    He's just cheering from the bench anyway, so just keep him on the roster.
    20AnonymousSep 21, 2026 16:49
    Well, now he's got a good excuse to retire.
    21AnonymousSep 21, 2026 16:49
    Nagatomo: "Bravo!"
    Nagatomo: "This'll totally go viral, lol"


    ┐⁠(⁠´⁠ー⁠｀⁠)⁠┌ (shrug — riffing on Nagatomo's own viral "Bravo!" catchphrase from the 2018 World Cup)
    23AnonymousSep 21, 2026 16:49
    Damn, seriously?
    Hope he's back in time for the next World Cup.
    24AnonymousSep 21, 2026 16:49
    He's already got his "legend" badge locked in,
    so he's set for life after retirement —
    probably not much motivation left anyway.
    27AnonymousSep 21, 2026 16:49
    If he was gonna get hurt anyway, he should've done it before the World Cup…
    36AnonymousSep 21, 2026 16:51
    Let him heal up slowly, and once the season wraps, give him a proper farewell match to send him off.
    Thanks for everything.
    39AnonymousSep 21, 2026 16:52
    Can't exactly call this one "Bravo!"
    Mamma mia.
    41AnonymousSep 21, 2026 16:53
    "Shockwave"??? He wasn't even playing in the match?
    54AnonymousSep 21, 2026 16:55
    The air purifier just broke, lol
    116AnonymousSep 21, 2026 17:13
    Re: #54
    Filter's probably clogged.
    58AnonymousSep 21, 2026 16:55
    Isn't this the kind of injury that could threaten his career?
    73AnonymousSep 21, 2026 16:59
    Re: #58
    It just says "injury," so it depends on severity — unlike a full tear, it might not be career-ending, but at his age, who knows.
    62AnonymousSep 21, 2026 16:56
    What's the national team gonna do now?!
    67AnonymousSep 21, 2026 16:57
    Re: #62
    Might actually be decent timing for a break, if he's aiming for the next World Cup.
    87AnonymousSep 21, 2026 17:03
    Who?
    Isn't he one of those Yoshimoto comedians?
    97AnonymousSep 21, 2026 17:06
    Re: #87
    Yeah
    He's in a comedy duo called "Inu."
    95AnonymousSep 21, 2026 17:05
    Re: #73
    Different sport, but I've torn my ACL too — your performance genuinely drops like 20%.
    The knee instability makes your lower body tense up for no reason, so your first step gets thrown off and you lose all your spring.
    124AnonymousSep 21, 2026 17:15
    Re: #95
    If it's just "injury" it might not be that bad, no?
    Sounds more like a full-tear thing.
    105AnonymousSep 21, 2026 17:08
    How do you even treat an ACL injury like this?
    Not sure it heals on its own.
    123AnonymousSep 21, 2026 17:15
    Re: #105
    Of course it doesn't heal on its own, lol
    There's a conservative approach that skips surgery on purpose, but that's usually for older patients.
    Nagatomo's probably getting ligament reconstruction surgery — it's a pretty major operation, and rehab takes a while too.
    107AnonymousSep 21, 2026 17:09
    He's not gonna become a manager after retiring, right?
    I wouldn't want him climbing the ranks at the JFA either — honestly, I just want him to step away from soccer entirely and live his life as a TV personality or something.
    128AnonymousSep 21, 2026 17:16
    Is he gonna make it in time for the Brazil match in November?
    133AnonymousSep 21, 2026 17:17
    Re: #128
    This isn't like when you sprained your ankle, man, lol
    135AnonymousSep 21, 2026 17:17
    And here he'd just gotten re-signed after being a free agent too…
    143AnonymousSep 21, 2026 17:19
    Re: #135
    That kind of theatrics is exactly why people don't like him, but he just doesn't get it.
    138AnonymousSep 21, 2026 17:17
    Nagatomo himself called it a "tear" on social media though — so which is it?
    141AnonymousSep 21, 2026 17:18
    Re: #138
    "Injury" includes "tear" as a category.

    Background and Key Points of Discussion

    The severity of an ACL (anterior cruciate ligament) tear is hard to gauge from news reports alone. FC Tokyo’s official statement uses the word “injury” without specifying whether it’s a partial or complete tear. Nagatomo himself, however, described it as a “tear” on social media, and this gap in wording became a talking point on the thread (>>138, >>141). Generally, a complete tear requires reconstructive surgery and can mean six months to a year of rehab before a return — and being 40 years old only clouds that outlook further. The thread’s discussion split largely into two camps: one focused on the practical worry over the national team, namely whether he’ll be fit for the upcoming Asian Cup and November’s match against Brazil; the other centered on Nagatomo’s own future, with some saying he should call it a career this season and others arguing it’s too early to assume retirement. A few replies also offered firsthand accounts of how severe this kind of injury can feel — not medical authority, but a useful gut-level perspective from people who’ve been through it.

    ※This article is excerpted and summarized from the 5ch (Geinou/Sports Breaking News+) thread “Shockwave hits FC Tokyo — DF Yuto Nagatomo suffers right knee ACL injury, tragedy on his 40th birthday, long-term absence unavoidable.”

  • Public Bathhouses: Over 80% Have Vanished in 50 Years — Aomori Tops the Nation Per Capita

    According to the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare’s fiscal 2024 sanitation administration report, the number of public bathhouses (sento) nationwide has fallen to 2,730 facilities — meaning more than 80% have disappeared over the past 50 years. By prefecture, Yamagata now has zero sento, while Aomori ranks first nationwide with 22.40 facilities per 100,000 residents. The article drew responses from a wide range of generations on 5ch, with users sharing memories of visiting bathhouses back when they had no bath at home, discussing how rising water and gas bills are squeezing bathhouse operators, and comparing regional differences in hot spring and bathhouse culture.

    Published 9/20 (Sun) 10:00

    Asahi Shimbun

    Neighborhood public bathhouses keep disappearing. According to the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare’s sanitation administration report (fiscal 2024), sento classified as “public bathhouses” number 2,730 nationwide — meaning more than 80% have vanished over the past half century. By prefecture, Yamagata has become a “zero-sento prefecture,” while Aomori, with 22.40 facilities per 100,000 people, can be called “Japan’s most bathhouse-loving prefecture.”

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

    2AnonymousSep 21, 2026 15:15
    Bathhouse brawl, huh
    42AnonymousSep 21, 2026 15:25
    For some reason Aomori bathhouses don't stock shampoo or body soap
    so apparently it's standard practice to keep your own bottles in the car
    6AnonymousSep 21, 2026 15:16
    Apparently a lot of houses didn't have baths back in the day, but I honestly can't picture that
    13AnonymousSep 21, 2026 15:19


    Re: #6
    There's a new-build apartment put up where an old machiya townhouse in the historic district used to stand — and unbelievably, it's shower-only, no bathtub.
    Honestly, my real thought is "you're paying 80,000 yen rent for THAT?" @a prefectural capital in the Kinki region
    8AnonymousSep 21, 2026 15:16
    It stung that Tokyo made tap water free only for households, which made things relatively pricier for everyone else
    12AnonymousSep 21, 2026 15:18
    Re: #8
    On top of that, my ward hands out gas and electric subsidies to every household
    Bless, truly bless
    25AnonymousSep 21, 2026 15:22
    Re: #8
    Between water and fuel costs it just stopped being worth it
    but since prices are regulated as a daily necessity, there's no room to actually turn a profit
    meanwhile the pricier "super sento" spa complexes are actually doing well
    11AnonymousSep 21, 2026 15:18
    Re: #6
    When I was a kid, it wasn't rare for our bath to break down and for us to end up at the bathhouse
    47AnonymousSep 21, 2026 15:26
    Re: #11
    Wait, baths actually break down? Were they just more failure-prone back then?
    I'm in my 40s and I've never really heard of that
    15AnonymousSep 21, 2026 15:19
    Back then even municipal housing made you buy and install your own bathtub, and when you moved out you had to rip it out and dispose of it yourself
    no wonder people went to the bathhouse

    I did the same thing when I was boarding during my student days — used the local sento
    54AnonymousSep 21, 2026 15:28
    Re: #15
    First I've ever heard of that
    17AnonymousSep 21, 2026 15:20
    Back in the Showa era it was 100 yen for adults, 50 yen for kids
    We had no bath at home so we'd go every 2-3 days
    That coffee milk after a bath hit so good
    34AnonymousSep 21, 2026 15:24
    Re: #17
    Come on
    how old even are you
    you're past the average life expectancy at this point (lol)
    50AnonymousSep 21, 2026 15:27
    Re: #17
    The hot spring I hit up in Beppu about 10 years ago was 100 yen
    20AnonymousSep 21, 2026 15:21
    This right here is the real Japanese tradition
    https://1010.or.jp/menu/history/src_rekishi/rekishi04.gif
    24AnonymousSep 21, 2026 15:22
    Bring back mixed-gender bathing and business would bounce right back
    113AnonymousSep 21, 2026 15:43
    Re: #24
    That'd just mean more creepy guys lurking with just their eyes above the water ("crocodiles")
    176AnonymousSep 21, 2026 16:05
    Re: #24
    My heart is that of a woman!
    41AnonymousSep 21, 2026 15:25
    I get the appeal of super sento, but regular bathhouses I don't really get
    worst case they don't even have soap or shampoo
    61AnonymousSep 21, 2026 15:29
    Re: #41
    Wait, isn't the whole point of a sento that you bring your own basin loaded with soap, shampoo, and a towel,
    with your change of clothes wrapped up in a bath towel?
    43AnonymousSep 21, 2026 15:25
    Honestly, Japanese people barely bathe anymore
    even showering feels like a hassle
    49AnonymousSep 21, 2026 15:27
    Re: #43
    That's nasty, don't hold up some outlier as your example
    45AnonymousSep 21, 2026 15:26
    Re: #1
    51AnonymousSep 21, 2026 15:27
    A bath full of perverts sounds terrifying, hard pass
    52AnonymousSep 21, 2026 15:27
    In Hachinohe, Aomori, the bathhouses open around 5 a.m.

    A bath before work is just standard there
    57AnonymousSep 21, 2026 15:28
    Re: #52
    Didn't know that was a thing
    59AnonymousSep 21, 2026 15:28
    Regular sento are still fairly common within Tokyo's 23 wards
    but out in the suburbs it's a wasteland
    my parents' place is in some city out in Kitatama and there's only one bathhouse left
    73AnonymousSep 21, 2026 15:33
    So 80% of them are gone, huh
    78AnonymousSep 21, 2026 15:34
    Re: #73
    They could just deregulate the pricing, that's all it'd take
    but nobody's pushing for that law to change, so sento are probably doomed
    89AnonymousSep 21, 2026 15:37
    Re: #73
    (Come on, you should've phrased that as "80 pah-sento" — a pun blending "percent" and "sento")
    84AnonymousSep 21, 2026 15:36
    Yamagata's got day-trip hot springs everywhere
    wasn't it the case that literally every single municipality has one?
    about 300 yen and body soap and shampoo are included
    Yamagata's basically paradise
    90AnonymousSep 21, 2026 15:37
    Re: #84
    Hokkaido's kind of the same. Except you need a car
    151AnonymousSep 21, 2026 15:53
    A bathhouse straight out of that old Showa-era song "Kandagawa" takes some nerve to walk into (a 1973 folk hit about a poor couple's shared trips to the sento)
    156AnonymousSep 21, 2026 15:55
    Re: #151
    Guess a super sento has a lower bar to clear (´・ω・`)
    159AnonymousSep 21, 2026 15:55
    Re: #151
    That's the song about the worst boyfriend ever, leaving his girlfriend waiting outside in the dead of winter
    don't soak so long, man

    Background and Key Points

    Under Japan’s Public Bathhouse Act, each prefecture sets a price cap on sento admission fees by ordinance, meaning operators can’t just raise prices whenever they want. The thread’s suggestion to “just deregulate the pricing” is pointing straight at this structure — even as water and fuel costs climb, prices can’t easily follow, which is considered one driver behind the wave of closures. Also, Aomori’s title as “Japan’s top sento prefecture” is based on facilities per 100,000 residents, not on how popular any individual bathhouse actually is. Likewise, Yamagata having zero sento doesn’t mean bathing culture there has died out — day-trip hot spring facilities simply became widespread and effectively replaced the sento business model, a nuance the raw numbers alone don’t convey. The thread was also full of firsthand stories from an era when homes had no bathtub, reflecting how changing housing conditions are part of what’s driving people away from bathhouses.

    ※This article is compiled and summarized from the 5ch (Newsplus) thread “【♨】Bathhouses Down 80% in 50 Years — What Japan’s Top Sento Prefecture Reveals About Changing Bath Culture.”

  • “Wolverine” Europe Sales Reportedly Down 60% From Spider-Man 2 — 5ch: “No Wonder They Haven’t Announced It”

    Figures circulating on social media claim that first-week European sales of Sony’s action game Wolverine (developed by Insomniac Games) came in roughly 60% below the opening of its predecessor, Marvel’s Spider-Man 2. The numbers set off discussion on 5ch’s Hardware/Industry (“Geha”) board†. With the title reportedly carrying a development budget of around $300 million and already facing criticism over its reception, the steep drop drew mixed reactions — some posters noted the tally may only cover physical copies in a market with a high digital-sales ratio, while others compared it to a separate report claiming Death Stranding 2‘s European sales were down 66% year-on-year from its own predecessor over the same period.

    † “Geha” (ゲハ) is 5ch shorthand for the Hardware/Industry board, a notoriously combative forum for console-war-style sales discussion.

    1AnonymousSep 21, 2026 15:54
    A 60% drop is brutal.
    7AnonymousSep 21, 2026 15:56
    Well, when the game gets branded a piece of crap that hard, of course sales tank (´・ω・｀)
    8AnonymousSep 21, 2026 15:56
    $300 million — basically one whole Tokyo Skytree's worth of budget.
    Converting that to Skytree height:
    634 × 0.4 = 253.6m

    …and it still loses to Tokyo Tower by a mile (333m) 😭
    11AnonymousSep 21, 2026 15:57
    Spider-Man 2 opened at 2.5 million units.
    If this is really down 60%, that's under 1 million by simple math…

    No wonder there's been no official announcement.
    12AnonymousSep 21, 2026 15:58
    Re: #11
    Under a million at launch, huh.
    Explains why they were so desperate to push that rumor of "2 million sold" lol
    13AnonymousSep 21, 2026 15:58
    Ah… if it's not much different from Death Stranding 2's -66% in Europe, someone's getting a pink slip…
    29AnonymousSep 21, 2026 16:03
    Re: #13
    Basically neck and neck, but wait — Death Stranding 2 dropped MORE than Wolverine, a game this widely mocked? 🥺
    14AnonymousSep 21, 2026 15:59
    Wait, wasn't Europe supposed to be Spider-Man's best-selling region?

    And THAT region is down 60%?
    What??
    16AnonymousSep 21, 2026 16:00
    Re: #14
    Sounds like it's headed for a huge flop in Japan too — this could be bad worldwide.
    17AnonymousSep 21, 2026 16:00
    Re: #14
    Hey, it kept 40%…!

    ‡ “クソして寝ろ” (“take a shit and go to sleep”) is a stock 5ch put-down meaning roughly “give up, there’s nothing left to argue.”

    41AnonymousSep 21, 2026 16:07
    The defenders kept spamming threads about "high PS Store ratings!!"
    but all that ended up doing was torching the PS Store's credibility as a benchmark…
    42AnonymousSep 21, 2026 16:08
    Re: #41
    Never once saw anyone say it was more fun than Spider-Man 2.
    70AnonymousSep 21, 2026 16:19
    Re: #41
    After seeing all those bugs and the shoddy game systems, being told the store rating beats Spider-Man just doesn't land.

    § “Saros” appears to refer to a sales-tracking account/analyst cited as the source of the 300k-unit figure; not independently verified here.

    51AnonymousSep 21, 2026 16:11
    Re: #46
    The digital ratio isn't going to swing wildly from Spider-Man 2's, though.

    Same PS5 exclusive, same Marvel lineup, same publisher, same genre of game.
    52AnonymousSep 21, 2026 16:11
    Re: #51
    Too correct, lol.
    55AnonymousSep 21, 2026 16:12
    Re: #51
    Yeah, it's not even a code-in-a-box release, no real reason for it to shift much.

    So… it bombed.
    64AnonymousSep 21, 2026 16:16
    Re: #51
    Yeah, no reason for it to change.
    56AnonymousSep 21, 2026 16:12
    Re: #26
    When Sony stays silent officially, that's a bad sign.
    61AnonymousSep 21, 2026 16:15
    Re: #56
    They can't say it themselves, so they're letting fake numbers do the talking instead.
    71AnonymousSep 21, 2026 16:19
    ■ Europe was Spider-Man 2's best-performing region
    　→ and it's down 60% there

    ■ Same PS5 exclusive, same Marvel property, same developer, so no real reason for the digital ratio to differ from Spider-Man 2
    　→ meaning it really is down ~60%

    ■ Reputation is terrible, so little chance of a sales rebound from here


    There's genuinely nothing left to argue — total flop 😄
    72AnonymousSep 21, 2026 16:20
    Re: #71
    No room left to argue, it just bombed, lol.
    73AnonymousSep 21, 2026 16:21
    Re: #71
    And a Japan flop is basically locked in too.
    74AnonymousSep 21, 2026 16:21
    The open-world prototype version looked like it would've visualized scent trails as human-shaped figures — tracking where they led and what happened, kind of like Return of the Obra Dinn. That looked genuinely interesting.
    76AnonymousSep 21, 2026 16:21
    Re: #74
    Wasn't the plan for the claws to be able to cut through literally anything?
    83AnonymousSep 21, 2026 16:25
    Is there anything that could offset a 60% drop?
    Like, insanely high Metascore and user score driving steady long-tail sales, maybe? 😄😄😄
    85AnonymousSep 21, 2026 16:25
    Re: #83
    Both are low, so honestly a slow-burn sales recovery looks unlikely too…
    89AnonymousSep 21, 2026 16:27
    Time to cut Insomniac loose and recoup some cash.
    90AnonymousSep 21, 2026 16:28
    Re: #89
    Sony would totally do that.

    Background and Key Points

    Opening-week sales figures for games are typically unofficial estimates compiled from European retail-panel data, and this “60% decline” figure is no exception — it originates from a screenshot circulating on social media, not a number officially released by Sony or developer Insomniac Games. In recent years, digital sales have come to account for over 70% of total sales for many major titles, so a tally covering physical copies alone captures only part of actual sales — a point worth keeping in mind. Within the thread, the dominant view was that since Wolverine shares a PS5-exclusive, Marvel-branded, same-publisher profile with Spider-Man 2, its digital sales ratio is unlikely to differ much — implying the real decline is close to the reported 60% — though this remains speculation rather than confirmed data. The also-discussed claim that Death Stranding 2‘s European sales fell 66% comes from a similarly unofficial tally, and it’s worth noting that comparing the two titles side by side is itself a comparison built on non-official data.

    *This article is excerpted and summarized from the 5ch (Hardware/Industry, “Geha”) thread “Europe Sales: “Wolverine Down 60% From Spider-Man 2 — Total Flop 😭”.”

  • Man Shows Secretly Filmed Video to Ex’s New Boyfriend, Hoping She’d Come Back — 18-Year-Old Arrested

    In Fukuoka Prefecture, an 18-year-old female high school student reported that “it seems someone secretly filmed me naked,” leading to the arrest of her 18-year-old ex-boyfriend on suspicion of violating Japan’s law against filming sexual acts or exposed bodies. According to investigators, the man is believed to have shown video he filmed without her consent to the woman’s current boyfriend. His alleged motive — that showing the video would make the current boyfriend break up with her so she’d come back to him — drew a wave of “I can’t understand what he was thinking” reactions on 5channel. The thread was also divided over who the real victim in this case actually is.

    “It seems I was filmed naked” — 18-year-old female high schooler’s report leads to arrest of her ex-boyfriend, an 18-year-old high schooler, who allegedly said “If I show her boyfriend the (nude) video, they’ll break up and she’ll come back to me…”

    Mon, Sep 21, 13:18 JST

    RKB Mainichi Broadcasting

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

    3AnonymousSep 21, 2026 15:39
    >The high school boy apparently said, "If I show her current boyfriend the (nude) video…"

    For a second I thought this was gonna turn gay lol
    120AnonymousSep 21, 2026 16:12
    Re: #3
    Oh, so it's that kind of NTR (netorare — the "stolen girlfriend" trope) 🤩
    235AnonymousSep 21, 2026 16:41
    Re: #3
    The premise here is that he secretly filmed a female high schooler naked. But I don't get it — I can't see how showing her current boyfriend the (nude) video would make them break up and bring her back to him. What kind of logic makes someone think "show the boyfriend the video → they break up → she comes back to me"?
    5AnonymousSep 21, 2026 15:41
    So it's a crime to get filmed naked during sex?
    Even between classmates?
    11AnonymousSep 21, 2026 15:42
    Re: #5
    This used to happen all the time back in the day
    69AnonymousSep 21, 2026 15:59
    Re: #5
    As long as you don't use it to threaten anyone, it should be fine, no?
    160AnonymousSep 21, 2026 16:21
    Re: #5
    Doing it without the woman's consent — of course she'd be pissed
    19AnonymousSep 21, 2026 15:44
    "Show her the video and she'll break up and come back to me"…
    I have no idea what he's talking about
    161AnonymousSep 21, 2026 16:22
    Re: #19
    I was totally lost at first too, but here's the deal — she had a current boyfriend, but agreed to sleep with her ex when he asked, he secretly filmed it as "proof," and then the ex figured: "show the video to the current boyfriend" → they "break up" → she "comes back" to him
    44AnonymousSep 21, 2026 15:50
    All three of them are headed nowhere good in life
    Won't even get into a decent university at this rate
    56AnonymousSep 21, 2026 15:53
    Re: #44
    The current boyfriend didn't do anything wrong here lol
    60AnonymousSep 21, 2026 15:56
    Re: #44
    They're probably at some private university in Fukuoka
    49AnonymousSep 21, 2026 15:51
    At 18 it wouldn't count as child pornography, right? So what was he arrested for — extortion?
    129AnonymousSep 21, 2026 16:16
    Re: #49
    It says he was arrested on suspicion of violating the law against filming sexual acts/exposed bodies, so it's voyeurism — probably filmed while she was asleep or without her knowing
    213AnonymousSep 21, 2026 16:36
    Re: #49
    Whether you call it revenge porn, defamation, or voyeurism, it's guilty either way. And what does "they're classmates" have to do with anything?
    67AnonymousSep 21, 2026 15:58
    Stuff like this you're supposed to just quietly keep as a lifelong treasure, y'know
    84AnonymousSep 21, 2026 16:03
    Re: #67
    Normally you'd just delete it…
    74AnonymousSep 21, 2026 16:00
    Feels like it's mostly men who get obsessive over exes and former spouses — why is that?
    Can't they just move on to someone new?
    99AnonymousSep 21, 2026 16:06
    Re: #74
    Women tend to move on more easily
    And it's almost always men who end up stalking and killing their exes too
    140AnonymousSep 21, 2026 16:17
    Okay so I get that she let her ex into her room and they hooked up, but what kind of situation actually leads to that?
    Was she being threatened or something?
    148AnonymousSep 21, 2026 16:19
    Re: #140
    If she'd been threatened, they'd have added a non-consensual sex charge on top
    Since they didn't, the sex itself must've been consensual
    187AnonymousSep 21, 2026 16:28
    They're both high schoolers with smartphones, so… scary stuff

    Back in our day it was camcorders, so filming itself would've been a lot harder
    192AnonymousSep 21, 2026 16:29
    Re: #187
    People filmed stuff just fine back then too
    188AnonymousSep 21, 2026 16:29
    Wait, so who's actually the victim here?
    194AnonymousSep 21, 2026 16:30
    Re: #188
    The current boyfriend who got cheated on lol
    195AnonymousSep 21, 2026 16:30
    Re: #188
    Victim or not, the one who really got screwed over is the current boyfriend
    197AnonymousSep 21, 2026 16:30
    Re: #188
    It's the woman — she's the victim, and she probably got put through some kind of secondary victimization by the police on top of it
    196AnonymousSep 21, 2026 16:30
    Re: #187
    The image of a camcorder just cracked me up lol
    What is this, a kid's field day? lol
    207AnonymousSep 21, 2026 16:34
    Re: #196
    Well, before smartphones existed, camcorders were all you had
    Those things make it super obvious you're filming a sex tape, so I figured it must've been tough to pull off… lol
    218AnonymousSep 21, 2026 16:38
    Re: #207
    Nice, isn't it~
    237AnonymousSep 21, 2026 16:41
    Re: #207
    Smells like lavender (a stock 5ch in-joke line dropped for ironic effect)

    Background and Key Discussion Points

    At issue in this case is Japan’s “Act on Punishment of Photographing Sexual Acts, etc.,” which took effect in 2023 — a law that criminalizes non-consensual filming itself, with no threats or extortion required for the offense to hold. Since the age of adulthood was lowered to 18 in 2022, both parties are legal adults; the terms “female high schooler” and “high school boy” simply reflect their status as students, not minors, so this isn’t a case handled under the Juvenile Act. Where the thread split was over “who’s the real victim” — legally, the woman who was filmed without consent is the victim, but much of the commentary leaned toward viewing the current boyfriend, who found out about the affair, as “the biggest victim.” The article itself doesn’t clarify whether the sexual encounter was consensual or coerced, and speculation over that point is what’s driving the thread’s momentum. The full circumstances behind the filming and the real nature of the relationships will have to wait for follow-up reporting.

    *This article is excerpted and summarized from the 5channel (Newsplus) thread “[Fukuoka] “I was filmed naked” — report by 18-year-old female high schooler leads to arrest of ex-boyfriend, 18, who allegedly said “If I show her boyfriend the video, they’ll break up and she’ll come back to me…”.”

  • 5ch Grills a Nagano Local With Questions About Home Turf — “No Way I’m Riding That, I’d Die”

    A thread titled “I’m from Nagano Prefecture, ask me anything” popped up on 5ch’s Nanademo Jikkyo board, and a poster claiming to live in Suwa City fielded a stream of questions from other users. Topics ranged from local food culture to the realities of a dangerous festival — rumors about a rivalry between Nagano City and Matsumoto, why salad gunkan-maki (a vegetable-topped sushi roll) is so popular locally, and firsthand experience with the Onbashira Festival. One reply stood out: asked whether they’d ever ridden the felled logs at Onbashira, the local said, “I’ve made it a rule never to ride it — I could die,” revealing just how dangerous the Shinto ritual really is, with an actual history of fatalities. There was also a reply speculating on how the Linear Chuo Shinkansen might affect Iida City. Overall, the thread built up steadily through simple questions and matter-of-fact answers from a local.

    1AnonymousSep 21, 2026 13:10
    By the way, I live in Suwa.
    12AnonymousSep 21, 2026 13:14
    Wait, is that even a real prefecture in Japan?
    14AnonymousSep 21, 2026 13:15
    Re: #12
    YOU. LIKE GENSHIN? (written in stilted all-katakana for a deliberately robotic, broken-Japanese effect)
    15AnonymousSep 21, 2026 13:15
    Re: #12
    It's in Kyushu, obviously.
    19AnonymousSep 21, 2026 13:16
    Is the Nagano City–Matsumoto rivalry actually real?
    21AnonymousSep 21, 2026 13:17
    Re: #19
    They don't actually hate each other — it's all just for show, like pro wrestling.
    22AnonymousSep 21, 2026 13:17
    Re: #19
    Well, honestly, they're both genuinely nice places — they just like to one-up each other.
    23AnonymousSep 21, 2026 13:18
    Re: #14
    Genshin, the game? I don't play it, so I don't really have an opinion either way.
    25AnonymousSep 21, 2026 13:19
    Re: #23
    OK. UNDERSTOOD. (same stilted all-katakana delivery as before)
    27AnonymousSep 21, 2026 13:19
    Why do you like salad gunkan-maki more than salmon or tuna?
    30AnonymousSep 21, 2026 13:21
    Re: #27
    Well, we're landlocked with only freshwater here, and the vegetables are genuinely good. That said, Shinshu salmon (locally farmed trout) is tasty too.
    35AnonymousSep 21, 2026 13:22
    Re: #27
    Salad gunkan-maki actually originated in Nagano.
    29AnonymousSep 21, 2026 13:20
    Once the Linear Shinkansen is finished, will Iida City see more development?
    31AnonymousSep 21, 2026 13:21
    Re: #29
    Probably, yeah.
    37AnonymousSep 21, 2026 13:22
    Re: #29
    Though honestly, I have a feeling it'll end up being a pretty modest bump in development.
    33AnonymousSep 21, 2026 13:22
    OP, where in Nagano do you actually live?
    40AnonymousSep 21, 2026 13:23
    Re: #33
    I already said Suwa City.
    36AnonymousSep 21, 2026 13:22
    Have you ever ridden the log at the Onbashira Festival?
    41AnonymousSep 21, 2026 13:24
    Re: #36
    I've made it a rule never to ride it — I could die. Seriously, that festival's dangerous enough that people have actually died doing it.
    44AnonymousSep 21, 2026 13:29
    The ski resorts are basically dead from lack of visitors — doesn't that worry you at all?
    47AnonymousSep 21, 2026 13:30
    Re: #44
    Not really, doesn't worry me much. When I actually go skiing, I usually head out to Niigata anyway.
    46AnonymousSep 21, 2026 13:29
    Didn't you just say "Suwa"? They're asking which city or town within the Suwa area, right? 🤔
    48AnonymousSep 21, 2026 13:31
    Re: #46
    Sounds like something a certain pink-haired, Kansai-dialect-speaking Voiceroid (a text-to-speech character popular in Japanese commentary videos) would say: "Fair enough, my bad — but when you say Suwa, obviously you mean Suwa City!"
    49AnonymousSep 21, 2026 13:32
    I wouldn't want to live in Suwa — the ground's too soft there. Even a big truck driving by makes the place shake.
    51AnonymousSep 21, 2026 13:33
    Re: #49
    Fair point. Also, Lake Suwa's kind of known as a haunted spot — apparently spirits tend to gather near water.
    53AnonymousSep 21, 2026 13:35
    Re: #49
    But I own a house here, so honestly, I don't want to leave.
    52AnonymousSep 21, 2026 13:34
    Re: #50
    Suwa isn't part of Nanshin (the southern Shinshu/Nagano region), you know.
    79AnonymousSep 21, 2026 13:54
    Re: #52
    Don't tell me you moved here recently. You wouldn't get that wrong if you'd actually grown up in Suwa — you'd have competed in the Nanshin regional tournament for school clubs, so normally there's no way you'd mix that up.
    82AnonymousSep 21, 2026 13:56
    Re: #79
    For the record, I moved back to Nagano when I was at Shinshu University — I lived in Matsumoto back then. And yeah, I'm 29 now.
    86AnonymousSep 21, 2026 13:59
    Re: #79
    Also, funny enough, I actually wasn't born in Suwa.
    55AnonymousSep 21, 2026 13:38
    There's a really old Daiso near Lake Suwa, right?
    57AnonymousSep 21, 2026 13:40
    Re: #55
    You mean the Suwa Shiga store?
    58AnonymousSep 21, 2026 13:41
    I heard Nagano locals love a fish cake called "Vitamin Chikuwa" — do people in Suwa eat it regularly too?
    59AnonymousSep 21, 2026 13:41
    Re: #58
    I don't really eat it much.
    65AnonymousSep 21, 2026 13:45
    Re: #59
    Thanks for the answer ("サンガツ" — forum slang for "thanks"). One more question: for local events like the Onbashira Festival, does literally everyone living in the Suwa area have to take part? Or is it fine to skip it if you're not in the neighborhood association?
    69AnonymousSep 21, 2026 13:47
    Re: #65
    It's not mandatory or anything. I mean, forcing people to join a festival dangerous enough to kill people would be insane anyway.
    67AnonymousSep 21, 2026 13:46
    Built a log house out in a village — I'm basically half a Chino City resident now. Got friendly with a nearby bakery, gelato shop, tofu shop, and some local farmers. So much great food around here, I really love it.
    70AnonymousSep 21, 2026 13:48
    Re: #67
    Glad to hear it.

    Background and Key Points

    “I’m from [Prefecture], ask me anything” threads are a staple format on 5ch, usually centered on asking a local about regional geography, culture, and food customs. This thread was no exception, running through Nagano-specific topics like the Onbashira Festival, salad gunkan-maki, and the relationship with Matsumoto. Onbashira is the common name for the Onbashira-sai, a ceremonial event held at Suwa Taisha shrine, where the biggest highlight is “kiotoshi” — sending massive logs sliding down a steep slope while riders cling to them. It’s a genuinely dangerous Shinto ritual with an actual history of fatalities. Participation is generally organized by neighborhood association, so the thread’s claim that it’s “not mandatory” broadly matches reality. As for salad gunkan-maki, one theory holds that because landlocked Nagano has no access to the sea, vegetable-topped sushi rolls caught on there more than raw-fish ones, and some locals even claim the dish originated in the region. The supposed “bad blood” between Nagano City and Matsumoto reflects a light rivalry rooted in their different standings — one as the prefectural capital, the other as a former castle town — rather than any serious conflict. The Linear Chuo Shinkansen is currently under construction between Shinagawa and Nagoya, with a new station planned near Iida City, though the article doesn’t mention that the opening timeline remains uncertain due to delays in the Shizuoka section. Rather than sparking disagreement, the thread mostly consists of simple questions met with matter-of-fact answers from a local, making for an enjoyable read about regional trivia.

    *This article is compiled as excerpts and a summary from the 5ch (Nanademo Jikkyo board) thread “I’m from Nagano Prefecture, ask me anything.”