Japan Reacts

Author: Japan Reacts Editorial

  • Post Claiming ‘Company Covers 100% of Tokyo Rent’ Sparks Pushback on 5channel

    When the thread’s original poster complained that “Tokyo rent is expensive,” they were hit with a wave of replies insisting “normally your company’s rent subsidy covers it in full, with no cap.” That drew pushback like “no landlord’s screening would ever approve that” and “isn’t that actually company-leased housing you’re thinking of?”, along with comments suggesting the OP was mixing it up with the housing assistance that comes with welfare (seikatsu hogo). Partway through, the discussion drifted from rent subsidies themselves toward wanting that money folded into base salary instead, plus the fact that some companies cap subsidized units at 50 square meters or less.

    1AnonymousOct 10, 2026 19:20
    Wow, impressive (´・ω・｀)
    7AnonymousOct 10, 2026 19:25
    You'd never pass the screening for a 2-million-yen-a-month place anyway, so forget it.
    8AnonymousOct 10, 2026 19:25
    Re: #7
    The lease is in the company's name, dude.
    Have you never had a job?
    12AnonymousOct 10, 2026 19:28
    Re: #8
    By definition, a rent subsidy doesn't require the lease to be in the company's name.

    Can you only argue by making stuff up?
    14AnonymousOct 10, 2026 19:29
    Re: #12
    Whether it's "required" isn't really the point, is it?
    20AnonymousOct 10, 2026 19:36
    Re: #12
    There's such a thing as company-leased housing (shakuage shataku), you know.
    9AnonymousOct 10, 2026 19:25
    I think OP (Re: #1) is actually talking about the rent assistance that comes with welfare ("namapo").
    10AnonymousOct 10, 2026 19:26
    Re: #9
    What makes you say that?
    11AnonymousOct 10, 2026 19:26
    In Tokyo, a 1990s-built apartment or a 1K unit runs about 100,000 yen, right?
    I know because I saw it on a real-estate YouTuber's channel.
    Are you dumb or something?
    Where I'm from you can get the same kind of place for 30,000-40,000 yen lol
    13AnonymousOct 10, 2026 19:28
    Re: #11
    Depends on the location and size.
    27AnonymousOct 10, 2026 19:39
    Don't need a rent subsidy — just raise my base salary instead.
    28AnonymousOct 10, 2026 19:41
    Re: #27
    Everything from income tax to health insurance premiums goes up if you do that, so company-leased housing wins hands down.
    29AnonymousOct 10, 2026 19:42
    "Rent subsidy provided!" (up to 50㎡) is basically the standard catch.
    30AnonymousOct 10, 2026 19:45
    Re: #29
    That's more than enough space for a family of up to five.
    37AnonymousOct 10, 2026 20:07
    At 40 square meters, two adults and one toddler is already cutting it close…
    150AnonymousOct 10, 2026 21:31
    Re: #37
    We live in a roughly 60-square-meter rental with two adults and one toddler, and it's cramped enough that we're building a 120-square-meter house.
    Even that feels tight, honestly.

    Background and Key Points of This Discussion

    Company-leased housing (shataku) works by having the company sign the lease itself and then rent the unit out to the employee — an arrangement that’s often more favorable than a cash rent subsidy when it comes to income tax and social insurance calculations, which the thread itself raised as a reason companies prefer this method. On the other hand, “no cap” isn’t about screening an individual employee’s income — it comes down to the company’s own contract and budget, and in practice many companies do limit the price range or size of eligible units. Early in the thread, some posts also conflated this kind of company rent subsidy with the housing assistance paid to welfare (seikatsu hogo) recipients, but it’s worth keeping in mind that these are two entirely separate systems. It should also be noted that no concrete basis was given in the thread for the claim that “even a 2-million-yen property gets approved with no cap” — it’s best read as one individual’s anecdote rather than a general rule.

    *This article is excerpted and summarized from the 5channel (News Speed VIP) thread “Me: “Man, Tokyo rent is expensive.” You guys: “Huh? Normally your rent subsidy covers it in full with no cap, right? lol Huh?”.”

  • License Photo Leak Sparks Wave of Reissue Requests—But Does It Actually Stop Identity Theft?

    After car-sharing service “Times Car” suffered a cyberattack that leaked driver’s license images and other data, people across Japan have been rushing to get their licenses reissued, fearing impersonation. According to Jiji Press, the National Police Agency is urging banks and other institutions to tighten identity checks, but experts say reissuing a license does little to actually prevent the fraud. On 5ch, a thread lit up with doubts like “What’s the point of reissuing when the leaked image of the old license is still out there?” One explanation that won broad support was that reissuing isn’t meant to stop impersonation itself—it’s a self-defense move so you can later prove “that wasn’t me” if your data gets misused. Others worried that having a reissue on record, tied to a data leak, could count against them when signing contracts like car-sharing memberships.

    After car-sharing service “Times Car” was hit by a cyberattack that leaked a large volume of driver’s license images and other personal data, people nationwide have been applying one after another to get their licenses reissued. The move appears driven by anxiety over impersonation and a desire to update the information printed on the card, but the reissue is said to do little to actually prevent harm. The National Police Agency is calling on banks and other institutions to thoroughly verify identities, and is advising the public: “If you suspect fraud or misuse of your personal information, please contact the police immediately.”

    Jiji Press

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

    2AnonymousOct 10, 2026 20:05
    But you're paying for it out of pocket, right?
    And all that actually changes is the last digit, 0 to 1?
    5AnonymousOct 10, 2026 20:06
    Does reissuing make it so the old license's leak never happened? Loan screenings would probably still pass it through unchanged though
    117AnonymousOct 10, 2026 20:41
    Re: #5
    Even if it passes, the license itself is already invalid, so the lender's the one at fault for approving it.
    7AnonymousOct 10, 2026 20:07
    18AnonymousOct 10, 2026 20:09
    For identity checks, I recommend the oh-so-safe-and-secure My Number card…
    79AnonymousOct 10, 2026 20:29
    Re: #18
    Even apps used by tokuryu gangs (loosely-organized, social-media-recruited crime rings) can read that chip
    20AnonymousOct 10, 2026 20:09
    What's actually the worst-case scenario from a leaked license photo?
    Feels like it won't end up being as big a hassle as people think
    38AnonymousOct 10, 2026 20:14
    Re: #20
    Your name getting publicly outed as something embarrassing like "Princess"?
    100AnonymousOct 10, 2026 20:36
    Re: #20
    Didn't Mercari and places like that require uploading a license photo as proof of identity?
    There are other services too—dating apps, adult content sites—where uploading a license photo gets you verified
    So basically, someone could set up accounts in your name on services like these and run wild with them
    156AnonymousOct 10, 2026 20:51
    Re: #20
    There was apparently someone who had a credit card issued in their name and had appliances bought with it
    34AnonymousOct 10, 2026 20:13
    We have the My Number card now, but back in the day a driver's license was pretty much the only thing that counted as ID—that's part of the problem too
    37AnonymousOct 10, 2026 20:14
    Re: #34
    Health insurance card, passport
    56AnonymousOct 10, 2026 20:20
    The government says "protect yourself," but—
    how am I supposed to protect personal info I already handed over to them?
    I'd get it if they told ministries and companies to stop collecting anything beyond the bare minimum of personal data, but…
    70AnonymousOct 10, 2026 20:27
    Re: #56
    That's something you need to figure out yourself
    Self-help comes first
    59AnonymousOct 10, 2026 20:21
    Re: #2
    The photo changes too
    And once it's folded into the My Number card, it becomes a completely different document
    102AnonymousOct 10, 2026 20:37
    Re: #59
    Even if the photo changes,
    isn't the police pretty much the only one who can tell the old one isn't valid anymore?

    How would you even judge from an image alone that it's invalid while it's still within its expiration date?
    114AnonymousOct 10, 2026 20:40
    Re: #102
    The only real fix seems to be opening up a system that lets private businesses check the latest reissue count
    But the police, who like to hoard that kind of info, probably won't go for it
    121AnonymousOct 10, 2026 20:43
    Re: #102
    It won't stop the places with lax checks
    It's there so you can prove "that wasn't me" if a loan gets taken out behind your back
    67AnonymousOct 10, 2026 20:26
    Everyone's pushing people to reissue, but doing so actually tags you as less trustworthy
    Even one reissue dings your score, and at two they won't lend you a car—my car-share contract got rejected because of it
    80AnonymousOct 10, 2026 20:30
    Re: #67
    No way that happens, not with this much of an uproar going on
    74AnonymousOct 10, 2026 20:28
    Even after renewal, impersonation is still possible once the old one's expired, so I'm not expecting it to prevent anything
    It's so I can say "that wasn't me" if a loan gets taken out without my knowledge
    If you consult the police, get a case number, and reissue citing the leak as the reason, it leaves a paper trail
    I'd rather not have the police kicking my door in because it was used in a crime
    109AnonymousOct 10, 2026 20:39
    Re: #74
    Ah, so it's not about preventing the misuse itself,
    it's updating it so you have proof "that wasn't me" if it does get misused—got it
    130AnonymousOct 10, 2026 20:45
    Re: #121
    Got it, so that's what Re: #74 was getting at
    78AnonymousOct 10, 2026 20:29
    If Times' contract has a clause saying they're exempt from liability, there's nothing to be done
    but is that actually how it reads?
    84AnonymousOct 10, 2026 20:32
    Re: #78
    Terms that violate the law are void
    86AnonymousOct 10, 2026 20:33
    Even if you get your license reissued, that won't stop impersonation using the already-leaked image
    94AnonymousOct 10, 2026 20:35
    Re: #86
    It's not about preventing impersonation
    It's self-defense for after you've already been impersonated
    164AnonymousOct 10, 2026 20:52
    If the driver's license—supposedly the strongest form of ID out there—is now unreliable, what are we even supposed to use for identification going forward?
    181AnonymousOct 10, 2026 20:56
    Re: #164
    The My Number card will probably meet a similar fate eventually too
    182AnonymousOct 10, 2026 20:56
    Re: #164
    Blood or saliva DNA
    These days AI can even analyze registered fingerprints
    Also, if your seal-stamp image gets stolen, it's trivial to make an identical seal
    212AnonymousOct 10, 2026 21:05
    Re: #164
    Well, a driver's license was originally just a certificate proving you're qualified to drive—using it as ID was always just a repurposing anyway, so the My Number card should do fine from here on
    170AnonymousOct 10, 2026 20:54
    Could someone open a bank account I don't even know about?
    Honestly, any bank still approving identity checks based on nothing but a copy of a license is way behind the times
    183AnonymousOct 10, 2026 20:56
    Re: #170
    Wasn't chip authentication supposed to be mandatory for banks?
    186AnonymousOct 10, 2026 20:56
    Re: #170
    Wasn't a My Number required to open a bank account?
    187AnonymousOct 10, 2026 20:56
    Private companies are just eyeballing the image, not actually querying anything each time, right?
    So isn't this pointless?
    By that logic the IC chip on the license is just wasted tax money too, isn't it just as pointless?
    191AnonymousOct 10, 2026 20:58
    Re: #187
    They check the card's thickness too, so an image alone wouldn't cut it
    196AnonymousOct 10, 2026 20:58
    Re: #187
    That "we buy online" used bookstore chain did identity checks with nothing but a license photo
    Just remembered that

    Background and Key Points of This Discussion

    For years, the driver’s license was treated as the “ultimate” proof of identity in Japan, but when the image itself leaks—as in this case—a verification method that just checks the number and photo loses much of its bite. As for the “self-help” the National Police Agency keeps invoking, the companies entrusted with the data aren’t exactly blameless either, so how much individuals can realistically be expected to defend against this on their own is really a separate question. Where the thread split was over what reissuing actually accomplishes. Against the hope that “once the photo changes, you should be able to tell the pre-leak license is invalid,” in reality only institutions that can query the police database can determine validity—most private businesses verify identity purely by how the image looks. So reissuing isn’t really a safeguard against impersonation itself; it functions more as creating a record you can point to later, to claim “that wasn’t me” if the data gets misused. There was also unease that having a reissue history tied to a data leak might mark someone as a “high-risk customer” in contracts like car-sharing memberships—raising the broader question of why the victims end up bearing the disadvantage.

    *This article is compiled from excerpts and a summary of the 5ch (News Express+) thread “License Photo Leak Sparks Wave of Reissue Requests.”

  • Fire Emblem’s “Locked After First Playthrough” System Draws Complaints — 5ch: “Too Exhausting to Even Want a Second Run”

    A discussion has broken out on 5ch’s Hardware & Industry (Geha) board over the burden of completionist elements in the latest Fire Emblem title. It started with reports that items and growth/training elements needed for Part 3 actually get locked in the moment you clear your first playthrough, with no way to go back and reacquire them later. Since the development team had previously explained that “no matter what order you play in, we’ve made sure no irreversible elements appear,” voices rose pointing out the discrepancy with this system. On the thread, opinions clashed between “trying to be a completionist is just asking for trouble” and “a system that contradicts the official explanation is a garbage system,” with defenders and critics continuing to go back and forth.

    1AnonymousOct 10, 2026 18:25
    Isn't there way too much stuff you need to have ready before Part 3?
    It's exhausting getting told you're missing this or that.
    12AnonymousOct 10, 2026 18:34
    If you're aiming for zero missed items and perfect training right from the start, of course it turns into a chore — a grindy obligation that becomes painful.
    Just play it casually and don't sweat it.
    16AnonymousOct 10, 2026 18:36
    Re: #12
    I played casually, then realized I was missing this and that and it was basically mandatory, and redoing it all is such a hassle that I ended up thinking, "ugh, I don't even need to clear this game anymore."
    70AnonymousOct 10, 2026 19:49
    Re: #12 Re: #29
    Turns out it gets locked in based on your first playthrough, so you HAD to do it right the first time.
    Come on, make your excuses now, you armchair fanboy.
    21AnonymousOct 10, 2026 18:41
    Young people care about time efficiency, so they just play the optimal route.
    The ones complaining about that are just out-of-touch old-timers.
    25AnonymousOct 10, 2026 18:46
    Re: #21
    If you're after the optimal route, that's the opposite of a perfect playthrough.
    Going for full completion IS the deep-grind content.
    If you care about time efficiency, just steamroll through with easy overpowered characters and gear, right?
    The game's balanced so you can clear it easily with just the three starting characters anyway.
    24AnonymousOct 10, 2026 18:44
    Re: #16
    None of it's actually required, though.
    38AnonymousOct 10, 2026 19:01
    Re: #24
    The less you've collected, though, the harder Part 3 gets.
    40AnonymousOct 10, 2026 19:04
    Re: #38
    Is that really a problem? Just set the difficulty to Normal/Casual then.
    29AnonymousOct 10, 2026 18:52
    If you're aiming for full completion in the first place,
    trying to do it all in one playthrough
    is just pointless and unreasonable.
    31AnonymousOct 10, 2026 18:54
    Re: #29
    It's so exhausting I don't even want to do a second playthrough.
    41AnonymousOct 10, 2026 19:06
    Re: #40
    It's not about whether you CAN clear it — it's just a pain.
    58AnonymousOct 10, 2026 19:35
    Re: #41
    If it's just an inconvenience, then it's not exactly mandatory, is it?
    44AnonymousOct 10, 2026 19:08
    Yeah, it's getting absolutely roasted — this is fun to watch.
    46AnonymousOct 10, 2026 19:09
    Re: #44
    And people were already losing it over Wolverine, too.
    60AnonymousOct 10, 2026 19:37
    Re: #58
    That's exactly why I said it's too much of a hassle and I haven't bothered.
    62AnonymousOct 10, 2026 19:40
    Re: #60
    If you haven't even done it, then nothing's actually been a hassle for you.
    64AnonymousOct 10, 2026 19:42
    Turns out that even with multiple playthroughs, Part 3 items and the like get locked in based on your first clear — some players have ended up wiping their save data entirely over this.
    This is straight-up a garbage system.
    71AnonymousOct 10, 2026 19:49
    Re: #64
    Can that still be changed as long as you haven't entered Part 3 yet?
    73AnonymousOct 10, 2026 20:01
    I haven't played it myself so this is secondhand, but apparently when you get a game over, your level and experience stay as they are
    and you just redo the chapter from the start, so you supposedly can't get permanently stuck.
    Maybe people who reset every time someone dies just haven't noticed this.
    82AnonymousOct 10, 2026 20:14
    Re: #73
    But any characters you recruited or classes you unlocked during that chapter all get reset too, right? Is that really how it works?
    76AnonymousOct 10, 2026 20:06
    Re: #70
    If chasing a perfect playthrough is what's making the game painful for you,
    that's putting the cart before the horse — I have to ask what you're even playing for.
    It's fine if there are some irreversible elements.
    Maybe this just isn't the game for perfectionists.
    79AnonymousOct 10, 2026 20:10
    Re: #76
    The fact that this turned out to be a flat-out lie is kind of rough, though…

    Yokota:
    Basically, we've designed it so that no matter what order you play in, the way you progress won't create any irreversible elements — so please feel free to enjoy whichever route you like.
    77AnonymousOct 10, 2026 20:08
    You wouldn't even notice something like that if you weren't checking a strategy guide site in the first place.
    84AnonymousOct 10, 2026 20:15
    Re: #77
    It's not even on the strategy guide sites.
    This is a phenomenon that stayed hidden precisely because the game takes so long to clear.
    Seriously, armchair players who haven't even touched it should just stay quiet.
    83AnonymousOct 10, 2026 20:15
    Re: #70
    So basically you want to clear the game with every single protagonist AND do extra replays on top of that?
    That's content meant for AFTER you've already gotten at least 200 hours of enjoyment out of this game — it's there to squeeze out even more fun.
    At that point you clearly love this game.
    86AnonymousOct 10, 2026 20:17
    Re: #83
    Even if it's a fun game, a garbage system is still a garbage system.
    I don't get why you can't just admit there's even one bad element in it.
    88AnonymousOct 10, 2026 20:19
    It's hilarious that literally everyone defending this has never even played it.
    92AnonymousOct 10, 2026 20:23
    Re: #88
    How many times are you gonna write the same thing, lol.
    91AnonymousOct 10, 2026 20:22
    It's just plain unfriendly design.
    I wish it had something like Xenoblade's visions that warn you an item will be needed later, or a feature that announces at the start of a chapter when a short-window quest is about to appear.
    The game's too long to stay on high alert every single turn.
    96AnonymousOct 10, 2026 20:26
    Re: #91
    It's a game built around multiple playthroughs anyway, so it's fine.
    Just grab it on your second or third run.
    100AnonymousOct 10, 2026 20:30
    Re: #96
    The items get locked in on your FIRST playthrough, though.
    Armchair players, just stay quiet.
    102AnonymousOct 10, 2026 20:31
    Re: #100
    So can it still be undone as long as you haven't reached Part 3 yet? That's what it comes down to.
    113AnonymousOct 10, 2026 20:39
    Re: #100
    https://imgur.com/a/rgU4Lh8
    It's not locked in — how many hundreds of hours have you even put in?
    104AnonymousOct 10, 2026 20:33
    You miss it early on, at some point you don't even realize matters, and when you notice later you have to redo the whole chapter.
    And if you want it carried over into your later save data too, you have to redo the entire route (dozens of hours).
    107AnonymousOct 10, 2026 20:35
    Re: #104
    Isn't that pretty common in other games too, lol.
    115AnonymousOct 10, 2026 20:40
    Re: #104
    That's not a "redo," that's a second playthrough, right? You're phrasing it that way on purpose to make it sound worse.

    Background and Key Points of This Discussion

    At the heart of this topic is the tension — common throughout the Fire Emblem series — between “replay elements” and “irreversible elements.” In a prior interview, the development side (Mr. Yokota) explained that the game was “made so that no irreversible elements appear no matter what order you play in,” but on the thread, reports have surfaced that items and classes needed for Part 3 actually get locked in once you clear your first playthrough, with no way to change them afterward. The fact that it isn’t even covered on strategy guide sites appears to be because the game takes so long to clear that few players have verified it firsthand. Opinion on the thread is split between “trying to be a completionist is unreasonable” and “the official explanation doesn’t match the actual system,” and neither side is entirely off base. What’s easy for readers to misunderstand is that this lock-in isn’t a “bug” but an existing, built-in system, and that it’s hard to notice during a normal (non-completionist) playthrough.

    ※This article is compiled and summarized from the 5ch (Hardware & Industry/Geha) thread “I’ve lost the will to clear FE, it’s just too exhausting.”

  • Naniwa Danshi’s Michieda Shunsuke Loses It in Korea, Yells “Clear the Way!” — Co-Star Bursts Into Tears

    On October 8, Michieda Shunsuke of Naniwa Danshi, appearing at the Busan International Film Festival in South Korea, found himself shouting “Clear the way!” amid a crush of fans — leaving his co-star in tears. He’s reportedly so popular in Korea that he’s earned the nickname “Michigetta Shunsuke.” On 5ch threads, reactions ranged from surprise at how popular STARTO (formerly Johnny’s) talent are overseas, to doubts about the local security setup, to complaints about fans’ overheated behavior — with opinions also split on what’s really behind his popularity.

    2026.10.10 19:20

    “Kyaaa!” “Michigetta Shunsuke!”

    On October 8, swept up in a surging tide of female fans while flashing his silver hair, was Michieda Shunsuke of Naniwa Danshi. That day he was appearing at the “31st Busan International Film Festival,” held in South Korea. He’s explosively popular there too, affectionately known by the nickname “Michigetta Shunsuke” — combining his name with the Korean word “michigetta” (미치겠다), meaning something like “I’m going crazy” (over how good he looks).

    Source: smart-flash.jp / Original article here

    2AnonymousOct 10, 2026 19:36
    Naniwa-whaddyasay (a pun mixing the group's name "Naniwa" with Kansai dialect for "what are you saying")
    100AnonymousOct 10, 2026 20:15
    Re: #2
    Nice one, Pun Master (sarcastic jab at a corny joke)
    3AnonymousOct 10, 2026 19:38
    Didn't something like that just happen at Timeless recently — and now he's pulling the angry act again?
    4AnonymousOct 10, 2026 19:38
    Thought this was gonna be another Johnny's scandal, but turns out he's a good guy.
    Johnny's fan culture is hopeless no matter what country you're in.
    5AnonymousOct 10, 2026 19:40
    Just because your own life is boring doesn't mean you should waste it stalking celebrities.
    6AnonymousOct 10, 2026 19:40
    Did they even make a live-action version of that creepy anime?
    7AnonymousOct 10, 2026 19:41
    ComDot? (a popular Japanese YouTuber group)
    20AnonymousOct 10, 2026 19:44
    Re: #7
    [DECLARATION OF WAR]
    To all YouTubers:
    Clear the way, ComDot is coming through.
    We're taking over Japan.

    8AnonymousOct 10, 2026 19:41
    "Ugly girls, clear the way!"

    Now THAT would be something, lol
    11AnonymousOct 10, 2026 19:42
    Was it really worth crying over? Did something else happen?
    15AnonymousOct 10, 2026 19:42
    Is Anzai the AKB member who just placed 2nd in that race on the All-Star Thanksgiving Festival a few minutes ago?
    17AnonymousOct 10, 2026 19:43
    Michieda used to wear bright red lipstick to make his lips look thinner, but now that he's stopped, his lips look fuller.
    21AnonymousOct 10, 2026 19:44
    Re: #1
    I remember Johnny's Yamashita being huge in South Korea too — caused a big uproar at the airport.
    22AnonymousOct 10, 2026 19:44
    Bursting into tears over something this minor? Is she okay?
    35AnonymousOct 10, 2026 19:48
    Re: #22
    Guess she's off his co-star list from now on.
    23AnonymousOct 10, 2026 19:45
    Can't Korea even manage proper security?
    26AnonymousOct 10, 2026 19:45
    The trailer for this movie
    always plays before you watch "Chiikawa,"
    and there's a line — "Looking at you stirs up my desire" —
    that people said was so creepy they didn't want to watch it.
    28AnonymousOct 10, 2026 19:46
    Are they secretly dating?
    Did he blow up protecting a girlfriend who was scared to tears?
    40AnonymousOct 10, 2026 19:49
    Those were probably Japanese fans living in Korea, right?
    44AnonymousOct 10, 2026 19:51
    Re: #40
    No idea why, but Michieda's popular in Korea.
    60AnonymousOct 10, 2026 19:55
    Re: #44
    In China and Korea, Hanyu Yuzuru is popular with the otaku crowd too — androgynous-looking guys do strike a chord with some fans there.
    53AnonymousOct 10, 2026 19:52
    > It got so crowded there was nowhere to put your feet, turning into a "discharge"

    Discharge, lol (likely a mistranslation of a word meaning "chaos"/"commotion" that came out reading like the military term for "discharge")
    63AnonymousOct 10, 2026 19:56
    Re: #53
    "Nowhere to put your feet" is usually what you say about a messy room anyway, so that's rough.
    54AnonymousOct 10, 2026 19:52
    Feels like the actress is the one who made Michieda act out unnecessarily.
    65AnonymousOct 10, 2026 19:58
    Re: #54
    What is this guy even saying.
    55AnonymousOct 10, 2026 19:52
    People have died in domino-style crowd crushes over there before — with so many idiots who can't read the room, it must've been terrifying.
    68AnonymousOct 10, 2026 19:59
    AAAH! (a meme reaction image often used to imply a BL/romantic subtext)
    75AnonymousOct 10, 2026 20:02
    If she's a professional actress, she should've played it cool despite being scared.
    76AnonymousOct 10, 2026 20:03
    Re: #75
    In the show she's actually called "Prince" — she plays a boyish, cool character.
    104AnonymousOct 10, 2026 20:16
    Oh, she's basically one of the guys
    Thought she was over 30 but she's only 24, nice
    Keep glaring at people, go for it
    107AnonymousOct 10, 2026 20:17
    Re: #104
    Guess his true feelings slipped out — fans are just cash cows to him after all.
    109AnonymousOct 10, 2026 20:18
    https://pbs.twimg.com/media/HSKe1k1aAAAQnjC.jpg:orig

    Background and Key Points of This Topic

    This incident occurred on October 8, when Michieda Shunsuke, appearing at the Busan International Film Festival, shouted “Clear the way!” amid a crush of local fans, leaving his co-star in tears. There have been past reports of STARTO (formerly Johnny’s)-affiliated talent drawing fervent popularity in Korea, so this isn’t an unprecedented case. In the thread, opinions were split between those pointing to inadequate security and those blaming the fans’ own overheated behavior, with no consensus on which was the main cause. There was also a theory that “androgynous looks tend to be well-received in China and Korea,” but this is speculative and not something that can be stated as fact. Some posts speculated about a possible relationship, but this remains conjecture, not something confirmed by the article, and should be read with caution.

    *This article is excerpted and summarized from the 5ch (Geinou/Sports News+) thread “[STARTO] Naniwa Danshi’s Michieda Shunsuke shouts “Clear the way!” in anger, co-star bursts into tears… a “major incident” caused by some fans in Korea [Ailuropoda melanoleuca★].”

  • Tsubaki Factory’s Pre-Budokan Livestream Starts 15 Minutes Late — 5ch: ‘Just Start It at 7PM Already’

    On the night of the 10th, Tsubaki Factory held a YouTube livestream titled “Let’s Go! Tsubaki Factory” on Skyperfect!’s official channel ahead of their Nippon Budokan concert. The stream was originally set to start at 6:30 PM, but the official account announced a last-minute delay to “around 6:45 PM,” and then pushed things back again right before going live with “please wait 5 more minutes.” On 5ch’s Hello! Project board, conflicting reports about ticket sales circulated — some posts saying “almost sold out,” others “about to sell out completely” — while the repeated delays drew complaints like “they should’ve just started at 7 PM from the beginning.” The thread ended up a mix of excitement and grumbling.

    Let’s Go! Tsubaki Factory ～Nippon Budokan! Please Definitely Come Livestream～【Sat 10/10 6:30PM～】

    #LetsGoTsubakiFactory

    Live broadcast Sat 10/10 6:30PM〜!!

    Source: m.youtube.com / Original video here

    2AnonymousOct 10, 2026 13:22
    Tsubaki Factory
    @tsubakifac_uf
    "Let's Go! Tsubaki Factory
    ～Nippon Budokan! Please Definitely Come Livestream～"

    It's finally tonight!!

    🕡Tonight from 6:30PM
    📱On Skyperfect!'s official YouTube

    Don't miss it👀
    https://youtube.com/live/oQpayPfZO9M?si=Z6fuYe6jqtl0_qcE

    #LetsGoTsubakiFactory
    #TsubakiFactory
    #Skyperfect
    #HelloProject
    3AnonymousOct 10, 2026 13:24
    The 'Patch-Up Factory'

    'Teko-Faku' for short (teko-ire = TV slang for last-ditch gimmicks used to prop up a flagging show)
    4AnonymousOct 10, 2026 13:24
    Didn't general sale already sell out completely?
    7AnonymousOct 10, 2026 13:27
    Re: #4
    29: Anonymous Wannabe…: Sat 10/10/2026 12:16:41.94 0
    "Almost sold out" is basically the same as sold out
    10AnonymousOct 10, 2026 13:28
    Re: #4
    Well, it's been 3 hours and it's still showing ◎ (plenty available), so it's not actually sold out
    8AnonymousOct 10, 2026 13:27
    Rooting for you~ not going myself, but rooting for you~
    12AnonymousOct 10, 2026 13:31
    Is Lawson Ticket sold out?
    14AnonymousOct 10, 2026 13:35
    Re: #12
    FamilyMart's showing "almost sold out"
    16AnonymousOct 10, 2026 13:39
    Re: #12
    About to sell out completely
    13AnonymousOct 10, 2026 13:31
    I'll watch this after the Juice=Juice concert today
    15AnonymousOct 10, 2026 13:37
    The photo tucked in my commuter pass
    her smile won't move,
    but under that big Rising Sun flag
    I finally get to meet you.
    Step off at Kudanshita station, down the slope,
    push past the stream of fellow fans,
    and at dusk the clouds burn red and fall away,
    and under the roof, Mao's spotlight shines.
    (Kudanshita is the train station for Nippon Budokan; "Mao" refers to a Tsubaki Factory member)
    18AnonymousOct 10, 2026 15:04
    I'm way too excited for this "important announcement," I can't stand it
    22AnonymousOct 10, 2026 17:21
    Is the idol-otaku streamer P not doing his usual "waiting for Ikutsuba" stream? ("Ikutsuba" is fan shorthand for "Let's Go! Tsubaki Factory")
    23AnonymousOct 10, 2026 17:22
    Lawson Ticket's Family seats are almost sold out
    Hurry
    24AnonymousOct 10, 2026 17:31
    Let's Go! Tsubaki Factory
    @GOTFTV
    Regarding the livestream start time,
    we will be starting tonight around 6:45 PM🙇‍♀
    We're very sorry for the wait‼
    #LetsGoTsubakiFactory
    25AnonymousOct 10, 2026 17:35
    As a broke homebody who can't afford a ticket, this stream's a real treat for me
    36AnonymousOct 10, 2026 18:35
    What's the deal with this 15-minute thing anyway?
    38AnonymousOct 10, 2026 18:36
    I guess "subscribe to the channel" meant exactly that, huh
    39AnonymousOct 10, 2026 18:36
    Wait, it's on Skyperfect's channel and not Tsubaki's own?
    I subscribed anyway since I wanted to leave comments
    42AnonymousOct 10, 2026 18:38
    Tsubaki Factory
    @tsubakifac_uf

    ＼YouTube livestream starting soon‼／

    Let's Go! Tsubaki Factory
    ～Nippon Budokan! Please Definitely Come Livestream～

    Starting soon at 6:30PM～!
    The stream begins on Skyperfect!'s official YouTube channel✨

    Of course for everyone who's been watching Ikutsuba all along, but first-timers too — please come watch!❤‍🔥

    #TsubakiFactory #LetsGoTsubakiFactory #Ikutsuba #tsubaki_factory #HelloProject

    https://video.twimg.com/amplify_video/2108853261889597440/vid/avc1/1920×1080/E4AhZru-Fb_JvBOs.mp4
    52AnonymousOct 10, 2026 18:43
    Re: #42
    Did Runo just slyly swipe Chiori's orange (signature color)?
    138AnonymousOct 10, 2026 18:53
    Tsubaki Factory
    @tsubakifac_uf

    Making final adjustments right now!

    Please wait 5 more minutes!!🙇‍♂
    149AnonymousOct 10, 2026 18:54
    Re: #138
    If that's the case they should've just started at 7PM from the get-go💢
    155AnonymousOct 10, 2026 18:55
    I think I just figured out why the show got cancelled
    174AnonymousOct 10, 2026 18:56
    Re: #155
    Yeah, near the end it was just rehashes of old segments
    Maybe the competent staff got poached
    176AnonymousOct 10, 2026 18:56
    The thing that flashed on screen for a second
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oQpayPfZO9M&t=2m14s
    199AnonymousOct 10, 2026 18:56
    Re: #176
    Fuu-chan lol
    205AnonymousOct 10, 2026 18:57
    The agency's really pushing their "King" hard, huh (member nickname)
    222AnonymousOct 10, 2026 18:57
    Re: #205
    Well, she's just genuinely talented
    301AnonymousOct 10, 2026 19:04
    Ressa's got zero sense for ōgiri, doesn't he (ōgiri = comedic wordplay/improv game)
    312AnonymousOct 10, 2026 19:05
    Re: #301
    You clearly haven't been watching Ikutsuba
    316AnonymousOct 10, 2026 19:05
    Re: #301
    Actually it's the opposite — back on the regular show he had pretty good comedic sense
    305AnonymousOct 10, 2026 19:05
    Does this thing even have a writer?
    324AnonymousOct 10, 2026 19:06
    Re: #305
    The "writer" is always just director Okamura moonlighting

    Background and Key Points of This Discussion

    Tsubaki Factory is an idol group under Hello! Project, and this livestream — doubling as an announcement tied to their upcoming Nippon Budokan concert — was broadcast for free on Skyperfect!’s official YouTube channel. Opinions in the thread mainly split over two things: the repeated start-time delays, and how to read the ticket sales figures. Because the announced start time slipped from 6:30 PM to 6:45 PM and then a few more minutes beyond that, viewers’ reactions ranged from eager anticipation to pointed criticism of the production’s handling. As for tickets, stock indicators varied by vendor, so whether “almost sold out” meant “about to completely sell out” or “there’s still some room left” was debated post by post. Some posts also speculated about the reasons behind the end of the group’s previous TV program, suggesting a possible connection between the shift to livestreaming and that show’s cancellation.

    *This article is excerpted and summarized from the 5ch (Hello! Project board) thread “■ Tsubaki Factory ■ YouTube ‘Let’s Go! Tsubaki Factory ～Nippon Budokan! Please Definitely Come Livestream～【Sat 10/10】’ ■ 18:30～ ■1.”

  • Wave of Cyberattacks Sparks Talk of Class-Action Suits — License Leak Compensation Seen at ¥10,000–50,000, ¥50,000–100,000 If Secondary Damage Occurs

    Following a string of personal data leaks from repeated cyberattacks, victims are increasingly considering class-action lawsuits. According to a lawyer’s analysis, compensation for leaks limited to information like driver’s license details would run around ¥10,000–50,000, while cases where secondary damage such as fraudulent use actually occurs could see payouts of ¥50,000–100,000. On 5ch, posters reported a wave of breach notifications from Times Car (a car-sharing service) and JR East’s “eki-net” ticketing service, sharing the specific details of what information had leaked. Meanwhile, skepticism ran through the thread about how meaningful the compensation really is — comments like “they’ll probably just fob us off with a ¥300 QUO card” — alongside a pessimistic camp saying “proving damages is hard, so lawsuits are a long shot” and a more hardline camp insisting “they should fight this all the way.”

    Wave of cyberattacks sparks talk of class-action suits — companies’ compensation seen at “¥10,000–50,000 for leaked license info,” “¥50,000–100,000 if personal info is misused and secondary damage occurs” — lawyer explains

    Kansai TV

    Please see the source for the full article

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

    2AnonymousOct 10, 2026 14:53
    The damages are probably piling up so high they can't actually pay it all out — this'll just get swept under the rug.
    63AnonymousOct 10, 2026 15:24
    Re: #2
    Nothing's going to change unless the business world actually gets punished.
    Some companies have been handling personal data while running security that hasn't been updated in 20 years.
    Japanese people are too docile, so companies completely walk all over us.
    4AnonymousOct 10, 2026 14:53
    ¥300 (a QUO card)
    6AnonymousOct 10, 2026 14:54
    Re: #4
    Shipping would cost more than that.
    129AnonymousOct 10, 2026 16:26
    Re: #4
    1,500 points (in their own in-house service points)
    8AnonymousOct 10, 2026 14:55
    If there were real money in it, lawyers would already be swarming this — like they did with the overpaid consumer-loan interest refunds (the "kure-sara kabarai" boom).
    51AnonymousOct 10, 2026 15:16
    Re: #8
    They're citing an actual going rate, so there's probably real money in it.
    15AnonymousOct 10, 2026 14:59
    Got an email from Times Car.
    Here's the gist of it:

    List of customer information confirmed leaked in this incident:

    – Name
    – Department (for corporate members)
    – Address
    – Date of birth
    – Phone number
    – Email address
    – Driver's license info (photo of the license)

    That's about everything that leaked.
    48AnonymousOct 10, 2026 15:14
    Re: #15
    I use it for both work and personal stuff, so I got the full combo. Should I be worried?
    50AnonymousOct 10, 2026 15:16
    Re: #48
    Got an email like this today:

    Thank you for using eki-net.

    Following unauthorized access that occurred at IDC Frontier, it has come to light that your email address may have leaked.
    No leak has been confirmed at this time, but the possibility that it was viewed or obtained cannot be completely ruled out.

    We deeply apologize for the serious concern this has caused you.

    ■Personal information that may have leaked
    – Email address
    *There is no possibility that your name, address, phone number, credit card number, etc. were leaked.

    Once again, we sincerely apologize for the concern this has caused you.
    56AnonymousOct 10, 2026 15:20
    Re: #48
    That's just rage-baiting for replies.

    [BREAKING] Sompo Japan may have leaked info on 60,000 customers ★2 [Flea Market★]
    https://asahi.5ch.io/test/read.cgi/newsplus/1791368369/130
    130 Name: Anonymous Donburako [] Posted: 2026/10/07 (Wed) 19:53:48.63 ID:yVO+K1dN0 [1/30]
    I got an email from Times Car too.
    The personal info of mine that leaked was:
    – Name
    – Company name
    – Department
    – Home address
    – Date of birth
    – Phone number
    – Email address
    – Driver's license info

    That's about it.

    "Is it the public's fault?" — Digital Minister Furukawa's remark "protect your own information yourself" stirs controversy… distrust mounts over the government's data defenses [Taru-fun★]
    https://asahi.5ch.io/test/read.cgi/newsplus/1791383025/798
    798 Name: Anonymous Donburako [] Posted: 2026/10/08 (Thu) 01:03:29.03 ID:xjD0GP4N0 [1/4]
    I got an email from Times Car too.
    The personal info of mine that leaked was:
    – Name
    – Company name
    – Department
    – Home address
    – Date of birth
    – Phone number
    – Email address
    – Driver's license info

    That's about it.
    26AnonymousOct 10, 2026 15:03
    So many companies across so many industries have been hit
    that this is probably just going to get quietly dropped lol.
    141AnonymousOct 10, 2026 16:42
    Re: #26
    If you can't pin down exactly where the leaked data ended up, prosecuting is going to be tough.
    143AnonymousOct 10, 2026 16:47
    Re: #141
    That's not true.
    146AnonymousOct 10, 2026 16:50
    Re: #141
    That's just a weak excuse.
    Fight it all the way.
    Justice wins in the end.
    29AnonymousOct 10, 2026 15:03
    So joining the class action costs around ¥3,000 (probably), and you'd get back ¥5,000–10,000.
    Tough call whether it's worth joining…
    142AnonymousOct 10, 2026 16:43
    Re: #29
    And then the lawsuit participant list leaks too.
    44AnonymousOct 10, 2026 15:12
    Class-action lawsuits are a citizen's right.
    We're at the point where it wouldn't be weird to see ads for it.
    The government moves too slowly and isn't looking at this from the public's perspective.
    45AnonymousOct 10, 2026 15:12
    Back in the Showa era, your name, address, and phone number were printed in the phone book and handed out to the entire country.
    So it's a bit late to make a fuss about that stuff leaking now, isn't it?
    47AnonymousOct 10, 2026 15:14
    Re: #45
    Says the kid who's never had a landline lol.
    80AnonymousOct 10, 2026 15:33
    Your personal info isn't even worth ¥500.
    81AnonymousOct 10, 2026 15:34
    Re: #80
    Idiot. It's worth ¥100 trillion per person.
    82AnonymousOct 10, 2026 15:34
    Your face, address, and name leaking means criminals could target you.
    ¥50,000 for the emotional distress is on the cheap side.
    I'd want at least ¥100,000.
    91AnonymousOct 10, 2026 15:44
    Re: #82
    Don't hold back.
    It's ¥100 trillion per person.
    Holding back is exactly why they walk all over us.
    Seize every last asset the employees own.
    Make their great-great-grandchildren keep paying off what's left.
    Go all out.
    86AnonymousOct 10, 2026 15:40
    "Oops, data leaked, my bad lol" and that's the end of it — what's with that?
    89AnonymousOct 10, 2026 15:43
    Re: #86
    Go actually rile the victims up into filing a class action.
    You can do it.
    90AnonymousOct 10, 2026 15:44
    Times Car: 6 million people × ¥10,000 = ¥60 billion.
    That'll bankrupt them!!
    94AnonymousOct 10, 2026 15:46
    Re: #90
    They send it to a random 500 people.
    Online you see scattered posts saying "I got mine."
    But plenty of people didn't get anything.
    If they only pay out to people who actually complain, they can get away with spending just ¥10 million lol.
    134AnonymousOct 10, 2026 16:29
    Re: #90
    They should just go bankrupt. Nobody needs them anyway.
    92AnonymousOct 10, 2026 15:45
    As a practical matter, is there really no legal penalty for a company that leaks personal data? Isn't that messed up?
    96AnonymousOct 10, 2026 15:47
    Re: #94
    That would be fraud.
    105AnonymousOct 10, 2026 15:58
    Re: #96
    "Shipment will serve in lieu of an announcement." (a classic sweepstakes disclaimer meaning: if nothing arrives, you simply didn't win — no separate notice gets sent)
    166AnonymousOct 10, 2026 17:31
    Re: #105
    "Compensation will be sent out, and that shipment will serve as the announcement" lol
    97AnonymousOct 10, 2026 15:48
    Once a company's data has already leaked, wouldn't it make more sense for them to just shamelessly go all-in and start selling the data themselves to cover the damages?
    101AnonymousOct 10, 2026 15:52
    Re: #97
    That's a violent crime — basically treason against the state.
    135AnonymousOct 10, 2026 16:29
    Flip this around and it really just means

    companies shouldn't be collecting personal information so casually in the first place.
    But it's always the companies that haven't thought it through that demand the most personal data.
    139AnonymousOct 10, 2026 16:40
    Re: #135
    I really wish that mindset would catch on.
    They make you fill in fields that have nothing to do with actually using the service.

    Background and key points of this story

    In recent years, personal data leaks have come to light one after another at multiple companies, including Times Car and JR East’s “eki-net” (stemming from unauthorized access at its outsourcing partner, IDC Frontier). This article introduces the going rate for compensation in such leaks as outlined by a lawyer: roughly ¥10,000–50,000 for leaks of basic information such as driver’s license details, and ¥50,000–100,000 in cases where secondary damage (such as fraudulent use or identity theft) actually occurs. These figures are only rough benchmarks drawn from past class-action settlements and out-of-court agreements — they are not amounts fixed by law. Where opinions split in the thread was over whether this compensation actually carries any real teeth. Because so many companies have been hit on such a large scale, a pessimistic camp argued it would likely “get swept under the rug” or that “proving damages makes lawsuits hard to pull off,” while a more hardline camp insisted companies “should be fought all the way.” There’s also deep-seated frustration over token compensation in the form of QUO cards or points, and readers may easily be misled into assuming real-world payouts will match the lawyer’s benchmark figures — in practice, they often don’t.

    *This article is excerpted and summarized from the 5ch (News Flash+) thread “Wave of cyberattacks sparks talk of class-action suits — “¥10,000–50,000 for leaked license info,” “¥50,000–100,000 if secondary damage occurs” — lawyer explains.”

  • FF9 Didn’t Sell, FF10 Did — Thread Asks If That Logic ‘Doesn’t Hold Water’

    On 5ch’s “Nandemo Jikkyo G” board, a thread kicked off over the theory that “FF9 flopped because of FF8, and FF10 sold well thanks to FF9.” The opening post questioned whether this logic “doesn’t hold water,” and the discussion quickly spread to cover whether FF9 was actually advertised, how FF8 and FF9 each stack up critically, and whether the whole “sales chain reaction” idea holds up at all. Posters also disagreed on basic facts, like whether there was a Coca-Cola tie-in commercial and how many copies FF10-2 actually shipped.

    1AnonymousOct 10, 2026 17:32
    True that
    2AnonymousOct 10, 2026 17:34
    The real reason is FF9 just wasn't advertised at all
    73AnonymousOct 10, 2026 18:23
    Re: #2
    There was a Coca-Cola tie-in commercial, and ads for FF9 itself ran every day. Famitsu even ran actual promotional ads separate from the strategy coverage
    4AnonymousOct 10, 2026 17:36
    I hear 'FF9 flopped because of FF8' all the time, but I've never once heard 'FF10 sold because of FF9'
    9AnonymousOct 10, 2026 17:40
    FF10 moved to the PS2, a whole new console, and it still sold like crazy
    18AnonymousOct 10, 2026 17:45
    Re: #9
    If anything it had enough pull to make people buy a PS2 just to play it
    16AnonymousOct 10, 2026 17:44
    If the game after FF10 sold well, that'd actually make the theory convincing
    34AnonymousOct 10, 2026 17:52
    Re: #16
    That'd be FF11, and yeah, that sold insanely well
    37AnonymousOct 10, 2026 17:54
    'They didn't advertise it' is a flat-out lie — Coca-Cola, remember?
    79AnonymousOct 10, 2026 18:30
    Re: #37
    Coca-Cola's got nothing to do with it
    38AnonymousOct 10, 2026 17:55
    People talk about FF8 pretty specifically — 'this scene was great,' 'this system was great,' stuff like that — but nobody does that for FF9. All anyone remembers about 9 is Vivi's emotional death, and they just praise it on vibes alone
    40AnonymousOct 10, 2026 17:55
    Re: #38
    Wait, did he actually die?
    44AnonymousOct 10, 2026 17:58
    Re: #38
    Exactly this. You see plenty of people say they love 9, but not one of them actually remembers the story — that says it all. It's also got a lot of unfriendly design, like abilities you can permanently lock yourself out of learning if you carelessly sell your weapons and armor
    42AnonymousOct 10, 2026 17:56
    Re: #34
    So FF12 sold well too then, by that logic?
    43AnonymousOct 10, 2026 17:58
    Re: #42
    The one after 11 is 10-2
    47AnonymousOct 10, 2026 18:00
    Re: #43
    Then the whole theory's dead
    57AnonymousOct 10, 2026 18:05
    Re: #47
    10-2 actually sold fine though — close to FF10's initial shipment numbers. Well, the content was… what it was, so there's that
    58AnonymousOct 10, 2026 18:06
    Re: #57
    It only sold about a tenth of FF10, so that's a stretch
    51AnonymousOct 10, 2026 18:02
    I have genuinely never once seen someone say FF8 is their favorite
    55AnonymousOct 10, 2026 18:03
    Re: #51
    It's my favorite. I played it enough to basically do a no-leveling run
    62AnonymousOct 10, 2026 18:09
    Re: #2
    They ran tons of commercials for it. I clearly remember the Coca-Cola collab
    84AnonymousOct 10, 2026 18:31
    Re: #62
    Re: #73

    They went as far as directly emailing individual fan sites threatening lawsuits over strategy-guide content, so even Famitsu had nothing resembling real strategy coverage beyond the pre-release preview article. They also loudly declared there'd be no Ultimania guide published for it…

    …only to walk that back later.

    What you're watching is the failed scramble to make up for it after that reversal
    98AnonymousOct 10, 2026 18:38
    Re: #84
    You're mixing up strategy guides with advertising
    103AnonymousOct 10, 2026 18:40
    Re: #84
    'Famitsu had no strategy articles either' — that's just wrong. Publishing an actual strategy guide book was banned, but they ran normal strategy coverage just fine
    66AnonymousOct 10, 2026 18:13
    FF9 was sitting right at the bottom of the uncanny valley
    67AnonymousOct 10, 2026 18:15
    Re: #66
    Did you just learn the phrase 'uncanny valley' recently or something?
    68AnonymousOct 10, 2026 18:16
    FF9 fanatics are kind of an odd bunch, honestly
    69AnonymousOct 10, 2026 18:18
    Re: #68
    If 'a bit odd' is as bad as it gets for people called fanatics, that's actually pretty tame
    80AnonymousOct 10, 2026 18:30
    This exact cycle of excuses is how we ended up with FF16, you know that?
    83AnonymousOct 10, 2026 18:31
    Re: #80
    I think criticism and slander are two different things
    82AnonymousOct 10, 2026 18:31
    Re: #44
    If you don't even remember the story, you wouldn't know about the emotional death scene either. Besides, nobody talks about FF8's story that much either
    93AnonymousOct 10, 2026 18:35
    Re: #82
    Bad phrasing on my part. Most people only ever talk about the early stretch where you escort Garnet to Lindblum, and then the epilogue after the final boss. Seriously, I almost never see anyone discuss the story outside those two bits
    87AnonymousOct 10, 2026 18:33
    FF8's like Romancing SaGa — it splits people hard into love-it-or-hate-it camps, so it's probably got the most upside if it ever gets a remake
    91AnonymousOct 10, 2026 18:35
    Re: #87
    'Love it or hate it' means something completely different in each case though, doesn't it?
    105AnonymousOct 10, 2026 18:41
    Re: #87
    I just wonder how they'd rebalance the Junction system for a remake. It's a mechanic where only the players who figure out how useful item refining is actually benefit. Everyone already knows the trick by now, so going all-in on refining makes the game absurdly easy from the very start
    88AnonymousOct 10, 2026 18:33
    FF9 is all vibes — as an actual game it's a dud
    92AnonymousOct 10, 2026 18:35
    Re: #88
    FF8's vibes are bad too, so that's even worse then
    101AnonymousOct 10, 2026 18:38
    Both FF8 and FF9 have characters who go on full-blown tyrannical rampages in their stories. It bugs me that Seifer and Brahne basically get let off the hook by the end
    104AnonymousOct 10, 2026 18:40
    Re: #101
    Brahne isn't let off the hook lol, she's just given a pass because she died — that's it
    102AnonymousOct 10, 2026 18:39
    FF9 just seems to attract shallow fans somehow — nobody can actually discuss it in any depth

    Background and Key Points

    FF8 (1999) hit the highest shipment numbers the series had seen up to that point, while FF9 (2000), which deliberately returned to a more old-school, stylized art direction, is said to have sold less than its predecessor. FF10 (2001) was the first mainline entry on the PS2, and its full voice acting and upgraded 3D presentation were well received, driving strong sales. The thread’s core claim — “FF9 flopped because of FF8” and “FF10 sold because of FF9” — is a retroactive bit of folk theory that tries to explain everything purely through the relationship between consecutive titles, when in reality console transitions and differing creative directions played a much bigger role. As for advertising, a Coca-Cola tie-in commercial did exist, but Square’s hardline stance on unauthorized strategy-guide content may have left people with the impression that the game “wasn’t promoted at all” — and even within the thread, posters couldn’t agree on the facts. Nobody offered concrete figures for FF10-2’s shipment numbers either, and claims about it varied from post to post.

    ※This article is excerpted and summarized from the 5ch (Nandemo Jikkyo G) thread “[Proposition] FF9 flopped because of FF8! FF10 sold because of FF9! ← Doesn’t this logic have holes in it?“

  • Shogi: Tomoka Nishiyama Becomes Pro Under Special Exception — First Woman Ever, but Opinions Split

    It was reported that Tomoka Nishiyama, a women’s professional shogi player, became the first woman in history to earn full professional status under a special exception rule — and the news sparked debate in a thread on 5ch’s Hello! Project board. Normally, the only paths to turning pro are winning the apprentice 3-dan league or passing the professional qualifying exam; this marks the first time anyone has been promoted via a special exception from the women’s professional ranks. Alongside congratulatory comments, the thread also saw dissenting voices such as “a rule based on special favoritism just proves she’s not good enough” and “I wish she’d gotten through via the 3-dan league or the qualifying exam instead,” leaving reactions split.

    1AnonymousOct 10, 2026 17:23
    Congrats
    2AnonymousOct 10, 2026 17:24
    As a Kana Satomi fan, I've got mixed feelings about this
    3AnonymousOct 10, 2026 17:25
    Re: #1
    Fujii-kun: "I wonder if her motivation is guaranteed? 😡"
    8AnonymousOct 10, 2026 17:27
    Re: #3
    Fujii-kun: "I wonder if her playing strength is guaranteed? 😡"
    10AnonymousOct 10, 2026 17:28
    Switching your ID between showing a trailing '0' and not, to reply to yourself again? (a common 5ch trick for faking multiple posters)
    12AnonymousOct 10, 2026 17:29
    Women don't cut it in chess either — there's a theory that male and female brains are just wired differently
    23AnonymousOct 10, 2026 17:35
    Re: #12
    In Go, men and women actually compete head-to-head in the same matches, though
    54AnonymousOct 10, 2026 18:09
    Re: #12
    If male and female brains were really wired differently, it wouldn't make sense that women dozens of times better at shogi than you exist. The gender gap in how many people even attempt to become a pro, plus differences in their environment, makes way more sense as the real explanation
    14AnonymousOct 10, 2026 17:30
    There are plenty of female pros in mahjong, though
    15AnonymousOct 10, 2026 17:30
    Ah, so this one's decided based solely on results in the women's tournaments? Becoming a pro this way is just going to make it obvious she doesn't have the strength for it
    16AnonymousOct 10, 2026 17:30
    Wasn't the "I'm charging in now!" person already a women's professional player?
    17AnonymousOct 10, 2026 17:31
    Mahjong has a strong luck factor — there's stuff like tenhou and chiihou (rare instant-win hands decided purely by the deal)
    24AnonymousOct 10, 2026 17:35
    Guess having kids does weaken your game a bit, huh
    25AnonymousOct 10, 2026 17:36
    Wait, it's neither the qualifying exam nor the apprentice school route? What kind of system is this
    26AnonymousOct 10, 2026 17:37
    Honestly, both Fukuma and Nishiyama have already played tons of pro tournament games through the women's quota, so we already have a good read on how strong they are. We know they're on par with the lower-ranked men's pros, so they should just go ahead and make both of them full professionals already
    27AnonymousOct 10, 2026 17:38
    Congrats
    Still, I wish she'd gotten through via the 3-dan league or the qualifying exam
    This time it's a rule based on special favoritism
    28AnonymousOct 10, 2026 17:39
    Playing the women's circuit pays way better than grinding out wins against aging Free Class pros among the men, after all
    29AnonymousOct 10, 2026 17:39
    A rule that basically exists just to manufacture female pro shogi players
    32AnonymousOct 10, 2026 17:40
    Even if she gets in through the Free Class route, retiring within 10 years is basically a given
    33AnonymousOct 10, 2026 17:40
    Congrats on the birth of pro player Mii-chan!
    34AnonymousOct 10, 2026 17:40
    So is she going to play in both the women's pro tournaments and the regular pro tournaments from now on?
    Thought that'd work her to death… but if she's not entering the Junisen (ranking tournament), it's not that different from now, since she already plays in most tournaments via the women's quota
    36AnonymousOct 10, 2026 17:41
    The thread where it comes out that the 'Chuden' poster and the 'Asahi Net' poster were the same person all along (ISP tags exposing a sockpuppet)
    38AnonymousOct 10, 2026 17:43
    Well, fine I guess
    Let both Nishiyama and that other one — not Satomi, what's-her-name — in
    40AnonymousOct 10, 2026 17:48
    Re: #23
    Are we just going to ignore that there's a women's hiring quota for this?
    42AnonymousOct 10, 2026 17:52
    Is this person also going to get called 'Mii-chan'?
    46AnonymousOct 10, 2026 18:02
    If she'd just posted a winning record in the professional qualifying exam, nobody could've complained
    48AnonymousOct 10, 2026 18:03
    Fujii lost his title and the Fujii boom's fading, so they need a new topic to hype up
    51AnonymousOct 10, 2026 18:05
    It's already been decided, but I bet people who keep posting slander about it are going to start getting arrested from here on
    52AnonymousOct 10, 2026 18:05
    Hmm…
    https://news.yahoo.co.jp/articles/24536ce41082c9000523b7098ea44a2a1b8af381.jpeg
    53AnonymousOct 10, 2026 18:06
    https://news.yahoo.co.jp/articles/24536ce41082c9000523b7098ea44a2a1b8af381/images/000.jpeg
    55AnonymousOct 10, 2026 18:11
    I recall Nishiyama even placed runner-up (jiten) in the 3-dan league once, so if they were going to promote one woman from the women's ranks, she feels like the obvious pick
    58AnonymousOct 10, 2026 18:16


    68AnonymousOct 10, 2026 18:33
    So it's basically like joining BEYOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO without them even holding auditions? (referencing the Hello! Project idol group's audition process)
    69AnonymousOct 10, 2026 18:37
    Re: #68
    It feels even more like getting in through the back door, so maybe it's worse than that

    Background and Key Points of the Debate

    In shogi, the only normal paths to becoming a full professional are winning the apprentice 3-dan league or passing the professional qualifying exam, and this marks the first time a special-exception promotion from the women’s professional ranks has ever been used. In the thread, comments attributing the strength gap between men and women to “differences in how male and female brains are built” drew pushback, with posters arguing that such a claim “can’t explain the existence of women players many times stronger than you” and that “the gender gap in how many people even attempt to become a pro, along with differences in their competitive environment, is a far more convincing explanation.” This reflects pushback against reducing the shortage of female professional shogi players to a simple difference in ability. Some also pointed out that women’s tournaments pay better than the regular professional circuit, suggesting there may be structural reasons making the standard route into the pros less appealing for women.

    ※This article is compiled from excerpts and a summary of the 5ch (Hello! Project board) thread “[Shogi] Tomoka Nishiyama Becomes First-Ever Female Professional Shogi Player, It’s Happeniiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiing.”

  • Nishiyama Tomoka Clears the Path to Become First Woman Eligible for Pro Shogi Status — 5ch Asks: “But Can She Actually Prove She’s Good Enough?”

    On the 10th, shogi player Nishiyama Tomoka Hakurei (31) defeated Fukuma Kana, holder of four women’s titles (34), 4 wins to 1 loss in Game 5 of the 6th Hakurei-sen seven-game match held in Kanazawa City, earning the “Queen Hakurei” title for her fifth Hakurei reign overall and becoming the first woman to secure the right to pro shogi player (4th dan) qualification. Nishiyama had risen to 3rd dan in the Shoreikai (the pro training academy) before switching to the women’s circuit in 2021, and had narrowly missed out in the 2024–25 pro qualifying exam, losing 2 games to 3. On 5ch, while many hailed the historic milestone, others debated the difference between the two paths to qualification — passing the exam outright versus earning rights through the Queen title — and questioned the real skill gap between her and actual pro players.

    Shogi player Nishiyama Tomoka Hakurei (31), also a four-time women’s title holder, defeated Fukuma Kana, holder of four women’s titles (34), on the 10th in Game 5 of the 6th Hakurei-sen seven-game match, played at the Hotel Nikko Kanazawa in Kanazawa City. With a match record of 4 wins to 1 loss, she claimed the “Queen Hakurei” title for her fifth Hakurei reign overall, securing the right to pro qualification — a first for a woman.

    Should she choose to exercise that right, she would become a 4th-dan pro in the “Free Class,” meaning she would not compete in the Juni-sen ranking matches that determine challengers for the Meijin title. Nishiyama Hakurei climbed to 3rd dan in the Shoreikai, the organization that trains professional players, before switching to the women’s professional ranks in 2021. In her bid for pro status via the qualifying exam held from 2024 to 2025, she fell just short with a 2-3 record. Now, at last, she has pried open the door of history.

    Source: news.yahoo.co.jp / Read the original article here

    2AnonymousOct 10, 2026 17:59
    "Guaranteeing her skill level" or whatever
    45AnonymousOct 10, 2026 18:07
    Re: #2
    Good evening, Fujii-kun (sarcastically implying the skeptic must secretly be world #1 Sota Fujii himself)
    74AnonymousOct 10, 2026 18:10
    Re: #2
    Compared to female Go players, she can totally hold her own
    3AnonymousOct 10, 2026 17:59
    Didn't she just lose to a regular 4th dan though?
    41AnonymousOct 10, 2026 18:07
    Re: #3
    Young 4th dans these days are stronger than most pros anyway
    4AnonymousOct 10, 2026 18:00
    That's the exact scene people saw when Sota Fujii was 14
    5AnonymousOct 10, 2026 18:00
    Guess she won't be able to cash in on the women's circuit (lol) anymore?
    8AnonymousOct 10, 2026 18:01
    Well, she's been falling just short lately, so she might scrape together so-so results — but if she loses a ton she'll get roasted for it, that's gotta be a lot of pressure
    9AnonymousOct 10, 2026 18:01
    She clearly has the skill, so I'm fine with her being a pro — but then she should quit the women's circuit
    12AnonymousOct 10, 2026 18:02
    Re: #9
    Wait, is that actually something she'd do?
    15AnonymousOct 10, 2026 18:02
    Re: #9
    She doesn't have the skill — if she did, she'd have made it through the Shoreikai (the normal pro training track)
    10AnonymousOct 10, 2026 18:01
    Funiculì, Funiculà~ Free Class, Free Class~ (singing the old tune as a pun on "Free Class")
    14AnonymousOct 10, 2026 18:02
    Just like university "women-only quota" seats, this just ends up mocking women's intelligence
    16AnonymousOct 10, 2026 18:02
    She's 31, so this is probably peak skill for her and it's downhill from here — qualifying now won't make anyone happy, not her, not the shogi world
    18AnonymousOct 10, 2026 18:03
    If she can post a winning record in C2 (the lowest pro league), then sure, call her a pro
    19AnonymousOct 10, 2026 18:03
    So women's shogi players really are several ranks below the men, huh. Chess doesn't have a female world champion either
    22AnonymousOct 10, 2026 18:03
    If she wanted to be a pro, she should've just aimed for it through the Shoreikai from the start
    28AnonymousOct 10, 2026 18:04
    Re: #22
    She did aim for it, she just didn't make it. She got as far as the final 3rd-dan league
    46AnonymousOct 10, 2026 18:07
    Re: #22
    Nishiyama started at the very bottom of the Shoreikai, made it into the 3rd-dan league, and finished as runner-up once
    34AnonymousOct 10, 2026 18:05
    ?? "Has her skill level actually been guaranteed?"
    67AnonymousOct 10, 2026 18:09
    Re: #34
    Maybe the final exam should just be: beat someone blindfolded and in handcuffs and leg irons??
    43AnonymousOct 10, 2026 18:07
    Oh, her opponent is also named Kana? I recall there being a strong player called Satomi Kana before too — does the name "Kana" just make you good at shogi or something?
    56AnonymousOct 10, 2026 18:08
    Re: #43
    That's Satomi Kana
    57AnonymousOct 10, 2026 18:08
    Also, she's basically a Furibisha (Ranging Rook) player, so she'll get picked apart once she's up against the men. Ranging Rook as the first player (Black) can still work somehow, but as the second player (White) it basically never wins
    64AnonymousOct 10, 2026 18:09
    Re: #57
    Ranging Rook can't win once the opponent sets up the Static Rook Anaguma fortress
    73AnonymousOct 10, 2026 18:10
    Re: #57
    Why do so many women's players favor the "Un-Ranging Rook" style? (a jab pun on 振り飛車/Ranging Rook, swapping in "disadvantageous")
    58AnonymousOct 10, 2026 18:08
    Calling it "the door of history" is a bit much — this is really just a newly created women-only quota. It's like installing a women-only escalator right next to the record of every woman who's challenged the gender-blind pro seat and been turned back over the years. Is that really okay?
    65AnonymousOct 10, 2026 18:09
    Re: #58
    There are quite a lot of people against it — fans especially are against it
    88AnonymousOct 10, 2026 18:11
    Re: #58
    It's kind of like how Choco Ball used to give you a prize for one gold Angel mark, and now they'll also give you one for five silver Angel marks (a reference to the candy brand's loyalty-stamp promotion)
    69AnonymousOct 10, 2026 18:10
    Does this mean more income for her?
    90AnonymousOct 10, 2026 18:12
    Re: #69
    Well, it's making news like this, and with a new title her side income will go up too
    75AnonymousOct 10, 2026 18:10
    If the qualifying exam were against the bottom 5 players in C2, she'd have passed already — why make her play red-hot young players instead?
    84AnonymousOct 10, 2026 18:11
    Re: #75
    Playing someone around the middle of C2 would be the fairest test
    89AnonymousOct 10, 2026 18:11
    Re: #75
    It's to check whether she's on the same level as someone who just turned pro recently — making her play weak opponents is the one that doesn't make sense
    80AnonymousOct 10, 2026 18:10
    Re: #71
    That's exactly the part that feels too cheap
    87AnonymousOct 10, 2026 18:11
    Re: #80
    But can she even maintain the Free Class conditions?

    Background and Key Points of This Topic

    What Nishiyama earned was not a promotion by breaking through the Shoreikai — the academy that trains professional players — but rather the right to a qualifying exam tied to the “Queen” title, earned by winning five women’s titles. Nishiyama switched from 3rd dan in the Shoreikai to the women’s circuit in 2021, and narrowly missed passing the 2024–25 qualifying exam with a 2-3 record. This contrast — falling short via the standard route, yet having the door opened through title-based rights — became the central point of debate in the thread. Comments split between “if she really has the skill, she should just get through the Shoreikai” and “earning the right via the Queen title is itself a result earned by the rules,” with many posts also weighing her skill level based on her run in the 3rd-dan league and her Ranging-Rook-centered style. It’s not widely known that, under the system, exercising this right would make her a 4th-dan pro in the Free Class who doesn’t take part in the ranking matches — and readers may also be confused about how that would work alongside her status as a four-time women’s title holder.

    ※This article is excerpted and summarized from the 5ch (Geinou/Sports News+) thread “[Shogi] Nishiyama Tomoka Hakurei Secures First-Ever Women’s Pro Qualification Rights — A Historic Achievement for the Shogi World“

  • Shizuoka’s premium melon thefts keep piling up — unripe fruit torn off and eaten on the spot; 5ch: “Isn’t this just a bear?”

    In Kikugawa, Shizuoka Prefecture, the premium branded melon “Aroma Melon” was stolen in a string of incidents between August and September. In some cases unripe fruit had been forcibly torn from the vine, and some scenes even showed melons eaten and left scattered on the spot. While reports noted growers expressing concern for the foreign workers who work alongside them, 5ch users floated all kinds of theories about who was behind it. The discussion ranged widely — from suspicions of wild animals, to criticism over the lack of security cameras, to calls for tougher penalties for crop theft.

    “While other Vietnamese workers are out there working so hard” — premium melon “Aroma Melon” theft keeps happening, growers’ anguish; unripe fruit forcibly torn off… some scenes show melons “eaten and left scattered” = Shizuoka

    10/10 (Sat) 10:00 — Shizuoka Broadcasting System

    In Kikugawa, Shizuoka Prefecture, the local specialty premium branded melon “Aroma Melon” was stolen in a series of incidents between August and September.

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

    3AnonymousOct 10, 2026 15:01
    Clean cuts like this usually get people saying it's probably a fellow grower's doing, but…
    isn't this just a bear?
    9AnonymousOct 10, 2026 15:03
    Compared to 20 years ago,
    crime committed by foreigners has actually dropped sharply.
    130AnonymousOct 10, 2026 15:53
    Re: #9
    That line only works on Japanese people from about 20 years ago.
    Japanese people these days aren't that naive anymore.
    In other words, it backfires.
    10AnonymousOct 10, 2026 15:03
    Not making an effort to avoid getting robbed is on you.
    Personal responsibility.
    That's just common sense in Japan 😠
    12AnonymousOct 10, 2026 15:04
    Way too good a deal
    57AnonymousOct 10, 2026 15:23
    Re: #12
    "This isn't a small one. The small ones are sold out."
    18AnonymousOct 10, 2026 15:06
    The theft itself is bad enough, but there's also a chance someone brings a virus into the field with them — that's the really scary part.
    197AnonymousOct 10, 2026 16:41
    Re: #18
    Strawberry anthracnose sounds scary too (a fungal blight that can wipe out a strawberry patch) — if someone with bad intentions brought in an infected plant during a strawberry-picking event, that would be the end of it.
    19AnonymousOct 10, 2026 15:06
    No security cameras installed even in this day and age?
    20AnonymousOct 10, 2026 15:08
    If it's loaded on a truck and being dumped cheap on the roadside, that's stolen goods.
    51AnonymousOct 10, 2026 15:21
    Melons from western Shizuoka are seriously high-end — never mind Aroma Melon, a Musk Melon alone goes for over 10,000 yen apiece.
    58AnonymousOct 10, 2026 15:23
    Forcibly torn off

    99AnonymousOct 10, 2026 15:40
    You guys again?
    109AnonymousOct 10, 2026 15:43
    Re: #99
    We only ever show up buck naked in the street.
    124AnonymousOct 10, 2026 15:49
    There are already 4 million [foreign residents] at the entry point now, with another 8 million on the way — what are the farmers supposed to do?

    Background and key points of this discussion

    Aroma Melon is a premium branded melon grown as a local specialty in Kikugawa, Shizuoka Prefecture, with each one fetching a high price. What stands out about this round of thefts is that it wasn’t just fruit being carried off for resale — in some cases, unripe melons were found picked and eaten right there on the spot. Because of this pattern, the thread saw two competing theories emerge side by side: one that “the cuts are too clean, so it’s probably a fellow grower,” and another that “this looks like damage from a bear or monkey” — with no single theory winning out. Since the fields apparently had no security cameras installed, some commenters also pointed to a lack of precautions on the growers’ side. The original article does mention foreign workers, but since there’s no solid evidence tying anyone in particular to the thefts, this piece leaves out responses that could amount to slander against a specific nationality or individual.

    *This article is compiled as an excerpt and summary of the 5ch (News Flash+) thread “Premium melon thefts keep happening, growers’ anguish; unripe fruit forcibly torn off… some scenes show melons “eaten and left scattered” = Shizuoka.”