Japan Reacts

Latest from Japan

From our other sites

JapanTroveJapan travel & shopping
Kaisendon: Japan’s Fresh Seafood Rice Bowl and Where to Order ItBAPE, Neighborhood & Human Made: A Buyer’s Guide to Harajuku’s Streetwear Boutiques
即まとchJapanese 5ch threads
横浜De、日本シリーズで3連敗　3戦とも延長の末の僅差負けカプコン中間決算、売上49%増　『鬼武者』初動ヒットで絶好調
海外ChOverseas reactions (JP)
Switch2新作マリオ、発売1週間でPC動作に 海外「任天堂は訴えろ」興味ないのにフィードがアニメだらけ、海外Lemmyユーザーが対処法を議論

  • Wolverine’s Metascore Drops from 90 to 78 Right After Launch

    Marvel’s Wolverine’s Metascore on the Western review-aggregation site has dropped from around 90 right after launch down to 78, sparking discussion on 5channel’s hardware/industry (“Geha”) board. Posters pointed out that this makes it the lowest-rated game yet from developer Insomniac Games, whose past titles (the Spider-Man series) scored in the mid-to-high 80s to 90. Meanwhile, users shared that major outlets like IGN and GameSpot were consistently landing around 60. The discussion centered less on the score swing itself than on distrust of the review criteria, with some questioning Metascore’s reliability altogether and others noting that reviews commonly complained the game was “linear” and “lacking in content.”

    6AnonymousSep 11, 2026 00:04
    Isn't it 80?
    50AnonymousSep 11, 2026 00:18
    Re: #6
    If it's 80, that's a solid game.
    Back in the PS3 era some no-name developer made a Wolverine game too, and that one only got like a 70 on Metascore.
    82AnonymousSep 11, 2026 00:45
    Re: #6
    An 80 without NBP is a good game.
    Buy it without hesitation.
    9AnonymousSep 11, 2026 00:04
    Just checked and it's 78 now…

    "Wolverine Metascore 80 lol"
    tps://krsw.5ch.io/test/read.cgi/ghard/1789052515/
    10AnonymousSep 11, 2026 00:05
    A 90 right out of the gate for their first entry? That's insane.
    11AnonymousSep 11, 2026 00:05
    Not sure if the score actually crashed that hard, but please don't put lies in the thread title.
    63AnonymousSep 11, 2026 00:24
    Re: #11
    They're past caring about appearances at this point!
    12AnonymousSep 11, 2026 00:05
    An initial 78 is rough.
    That's one foot in shovelware territory — a mediocre game.
    16AnonymousSep 11, 2026 00:06
    Whether it's actually fun is something I'll decide by playing it myself.
    17AnonymousSep 11, 2026 00:06
    It dropped fast.
    Guess it doesn't have that easy-to-grasp gameplay Spider-Man had.
    20AnonymousSep 11, 2026 00:07
    Metascore's not reliable anymore whether it's high or low at this point.
    21AnonymousSep 11, 2026 00:07
    Watched some gameplay footage and it looked really fun.
    22AnonymousSep 11, 2026 00:08
    Metascore's the same site that gave that laughably hollow Breath of the Wild a 96.
    25AnonymousSep 11, 2026 00:08
    There's already a thread up claiming Metascore 80, and they're padding it out with fake positive replies on purpose. Such a pathetic effort.
    Let's leave it up for the lulz.
    28AnonymousSep 11, 2026 00:09
    "Best-in-class action" (78)

    Isn't that kinda low?,
    29AnonymousSep 11, 2026 00:09
    It'll probably settle back into the 80s eventually anyway.
    31AnonymousSep 11, 2026 00:10
    Checked just now and it's 78?
    So the 90 was just from that early perfect-score review skewing it?
    32AnonymousSep 11, 2026 00:10
    More surprised that Valheim actually got its full release before Wolverine did.
    33AnonymousSep 11, 2026 00:11
    They're probably cutting back on payola to gaming media too.
    Spending less money on games these days.
    34AnonymousSep 11, 2026 00:11
    Apparently Gaming Bolt — known for being super harsh — gave it a perfect score.

    Marvel’s Wolverine Review – “I’m the Best There Is at What I Do, Bub”
    https://gamingbolt.com/marvels-wolverine-review-im-the-best-there-is-at-what-i-do-bub
    70AnonymousSep 11, 2026 00:32
    Re: #34
    Isn't that the site that gave that other game a perfect 100?
    81AnonymousSep 11, 2026 00:44
    Re: #70
    FF16 was actually fun though.
    35AnonymousSep 11, 2026 00:11
    Was expecting around 85, so is this actually a masterpiece?
    36AnonymousSep 11, 2026 00:12
    Theory: games with a Metascore of 90 are usually actually bad.
    37AnonymousSep 11, 2026 00:12
    Re: #34
    That just reads as "someone got paid off," lol.
    40AnonymousSep 11, 2026 00:13
    Re: #34
    To think the money saved by cutting Kojima loose is being spent on stuff like this… kind of makes you tear up.
    42AnonymousSep 11, 2026 00:14
    One look at the gameplay footage and it was obvious something was off.
    45AnonymousSep 11, 2026 00:17
    It says 77 for me — is the site I'm looking at bugged?
    53AnonymousSep 11, 2026 00:19
    Re: #45
    No, it's OP's head that's bugged.
    49AnonymousSep 11, 2026 00:18
    Looking at the reviews scoring around 80, words like "linear" and "on-rails" keep coming up.
    Also getting a "wait, that's it?" vibe like the game's short on content.
    59AnonymousSep 11, 2026 00:21
    Re: #49
    From what I can tell it just feels like a beat-'em-up brawler made 3D.
    87AnonymousSep 11, 2026 00:51
    Congrats, it's Insomniac's lowest-rated game ever.

    Spider-Man — 87
    Miles Morales — 85
    Spider-Man Remastered — 87
    Spider-Man 2 — 90
    Wolverine — 77



    The big outlets are absolutely trashing it, lol

    60 — IGN
    60 — VGC
    60 — GameSpot
    60 — GamesRadar+
    60 — Eurogamer
    60 — Guardian
    96AnonymousSep 11, 2026 01:00
    Re: #87
    Lol, don't you know Eurogamer hasn't given numeric scores for over a decade now?
    97AnonymousSep 11, 2026 01:01
    Metascore's been completely unreliable in recent years.
    100AnonymousSep 11, 2026 01:03
    Re: #97
    Trust in corporate reviews hit zero back around The Last of Us Part II.

    Background and Key Points of the Discussion

    Metascore isn’t a simple average of all reviews — it’s a weighted calculation based on each outlet’s standing, so right after launch the number can swing a lot from just a handful of reviews. In this case, the average was initially pushed up to around 90 by early positive reviews, then dropped to 78 once major outlets like IGN and GameSpot added scores around 60. Opinions in the thread were split: some argued skeptically that “the score depends on how much ad money a publisher spends with a given outlet,” while others felt “the score itself is fair — the linear content just didn’t land well.” Note that the comparison chart of past titles also included some outdated information — for instance, treating Eurogamer as still giving numeric scores when it actually stopped doing so years ago — so it shouldn’t be taken entirely at face value.

    *This article is excerpted and summarized from the 5channel (Hardware/Industry, “Geha”) thread “Wolverine Metascore 90 lol — ‘A Tour de Force with Top-Tier Action’”.

  • ’30-Minute Sleep’ Streamer Daisuke Hori Sparks Controversy After Dozing Off Repeatedly on Day One

    Daisuke Hori, who set out on a marathon livestream under the banner of “30 minutes of sleep a day,” repeatedly dozed off snoring during massage sessions from day one, sparking discussion on a 5ch livestream-commentary thread. Some viewers pointed out that “sleeping for a full 30 minutes straight defeats the whole point,” while others defended him after his smart ring failed to register any sleep at all, arguing “that’s not a nap, that’s passing out” or “the ring is just inaccurate.” Opinions have split, with the thread simultaneously filling up with comments praising the sheer brutality of the stream and others calling out false advertising.

    Looks rough.

    Source: youtube.com / Original article here

    5AnonymousSep 10, 2026 22:42
    You straight up passed out for 30 minutes this afternoon too, Hori—quit slacking.
    13AnonymousSep 10, 2026 22:47
    Re: #5
    That's passing out.
    Passing out doesn't count.
    No count! No count! No count!
    40AnonymousSep 10, 2026 23:18
    Re: #5
    That was only 29 minutes, so he's still got 1 minute of sleep left in the bank.
    9AnonymousSep 10, 2026 22:45
    Wasn't the rule that the stream gets cancelled immediately if there's any harassment or slander?
    12AnonymousSep 10, 2026 22:46
    Re: #9
    He banked extra sleep beforehand, so he's not quick to snap.
    18AnonymousSep 10, 2026 22:54
    Re: #9
    Just get a plant to post some slander and he can end the stream whenever he wants.
    140AnonymousSep 11, 2026 00:58
    Re: #9
    He's fine for now, not tough yet.
    Once he hits his limit he'll go digging for "harassment" comments and pull the plug instantly.
    16AnonymousSep 10, 2026 22:51
    Re: #13
    You clearly haven't watched the live stream—he flat-out admitted he fell asleep and announced he won't sleep tonight.
    20AnonymousSep 10, 2026 22:55
    Re: #16
    My bad, I hadn't watched.
    Props to him for owning up to actually sleeping! 👏
    That part makes sense, but the "no sleep tonight" declaration I don't get.
    26AnonymousSep 10, 2026 23:01
    Re: #16
    Lol, imagine following the stream live just to flex on people.
    19AnonymousSep 10, 2026 22:55
    Just leave the guy alone already.
    Hori's probably soaking his pillow with tears over getting dunked on by the internet.
    25AnonymousSep 10, 2026 23:00
    Re: #19
    Hori's the one who'd be in trouble if people left him alone—the more you guys take the bait, the more he earns.
    24AnonymousSep 10, 2026 22:58
    I love the clip where the massage therapist cracks up watching Hori fall asleep.
    41AnonymousSep 10, 2026 23:19
    Re: #24
    The masseuse is like, "(Oh, this is the guy who supposedly doesn't sleep?)"
    And he's out cold instantly—you'd definitely crack up too lol
    30AnonymousSep 10, 2026 23:08
    Forget whether he's sleeping or not—isn't endlessly answering viewer comments one by one the actual brutal part?
    77AnonymousSep 11, 2026 00:04
    Re: #30
    It's basically like the 24-hour interview segment from Gaki no Tsukai (a famous Japanese variety show).
    35AnonymousSep 10, 2026 23:17
    Got home, opened X (Twitter), and saw this—had to laugh.
    https://imgur.com/AUW5Prx.jpg
    42AnonymousSep 10, 2026 23:20
    Re: #35
    Just the text alone is hilarious lol
    43AnonymousSep 10, 2026 23:21
    You've got to give him credit for not pulling some sneaky move like banking sleep ahead of time for this.
    46AnonymousSep 10, 2026 23:22
    Re: #43
    A head massage will make you drowsy even if you've had plenty of sleep.
    72AnonymousSep 11, 2026 00:02
    Honestly, I think what he's done so far is genuinely impressive.
    It's only been 28 hours so who knows how tomorrow goes, but—
    reading and responding to garbage comments while 10,000 people watch your every move, running on two 30-minute sleeps—
    at this point, maybe 1 in 500,000 people could pull that off.
    The people trashing him right now are seriously underestimating the physical and mental toll of this stream.
    73AnonymousSep 11, 2026 00:02
    Re: #72
    "1 in 500,000" still adds up to a surprising number of people.
    104AnonymousSep 11, 2026 00:21
    Re: #72
    Nah, he's just living his normal life—there's nothing impressive about that.
    Cut the anti-fan slander.
    88AnonymousSep 11, 2026 00:10
    Could Hori actually pull off a walk-off grand-slam comeback from here?
    I'd love to see all the trash YouTubers who've been trolling him get down and grovel.
    96AnonymousSep 11, 2026 00:14
    The anti-fans' criticism is missing the point.
    This was never a "30 minutes of sleep a day" challenge to begin with—
    his whole stance is just livestreaming his normal daily life.
    Falling asleep during a massage is completely normal.
    It'd be different if he were insisting he hadn't slept, but he's the one who said he did.
    So there's no problem here.
    101AnonymousSep 11, 2026 00:20
    Re: #96
    Yeah, yeah, sure lol
    103AnonymousSep 11, 2026 00:20
    Re: #96
    His channel name literally says "30 Minutes of Sleep a Day, Short Sleeper Daisuke Hori"—so it was proven he was lying within seconds. Are you not that bright?
    112AnonymousSep 11, 2026 00:29
    AI's explanation of microsleep

    How microsleep works
    State: A few seconds to about 15 seconds where consciousness itself is forcibly cut off.
    Cause: A momentary shutdown caused by the brain hitting its limit.
    116AnonymousSep 11, 2026 00:30
    Re: #112
    Meanwhile Hori was out cold, snoring, for nearly 30 minutes straight.
    121AnonymousSep 11, 2026 00:35
    Re: #116
    Isn't a "short sleeper" someone who sleeps like 3 hours a day?
    129AnonymousSep 11, 2026 00:43
    Re: #116
    This kind of sloppy, inaccurate posting—throwing around words like "out cold" to try to smear him—is exactly why the anti-fans are entering the phase where they get mocked.
    To be precise, he kept his eyes closed during the 30-minute treatment, and snored a few times within that window.
    And besides, he's wearing the ring specifically for moments like this, and it turned out useless, registering zero minutes of sleep—even though Hori himself admitted he'd slept.
    113AnonymousSep 11, 2026 00:29
    It's barely been a day and he's already done for?
    That's about the level of strain an online-game addict feels once they finally get warmed up.
    122AnonymousSep 11, 2026 00:37
    Re: #113
    Exactly, this much is definitely just exaggeration for the camera.
    I've biked 12 hours straight, from Hyogo all the way back to Kyoto.
    134AnonymousSep 11, 2026 00:50
    Re: #113
    Back in school, pulling an all-nighter gaming for 24 hours straight was just normal.
    151AnonymousSep 11, 2026 01:04
    This guy's probably just caught a cold or something.
    Go to sleep, dude.
    152AnonymousSep 11, 2026 01:05
    Re: #151
    He's already used up today's sleep quota, so sleeping again now would be a fail.
    153AnonymousSep 11, 2026 01:06
    Re: #152
    He already rolled out the "zero minutes" theory since the smart ring didn't register any sleep.
    155AnonymousSep 11, 2026 01:06
    Re: #153
    His story keeps flip-flopping, man.
    157AnonymousSep 11, 2026 01:07
    Re: #153
    He was solidly snoring away for almost 30 minutes, and yet somehow it couldn't be measured? 🤔

    Background and Key Points of This Topic

    With this kind of “no-sleep livestream,” the constant flashpoints are the sheer difficulty of staying awake for long hours while continuing to respond to viewer comments, and the fact that verification inevitably has to rely on the streamer’s own self-reporting, making it hard to confirm either way. This time, the debate expanded because the two pieces of “evidence”—the readings from his smartwatch-style sleep tracker (a smart ring) and the visible snoring caught on the stream itself—contradicted each other. In the thread, opinions are split over whether the word “short sleeper” in the channel name amounts to exaggerated advertising, and over whether falling asleep during the massage should be seen as a “nap” or something closer to “losing consciousness”—worth noting this isn’t just nitpicking, as questions have also been raised about the sleep-tracking method itself. Note that posts in the original thread containing slander against real third parties, or baseless attributions of medical conditions, have been excluded from this article.

    *This article is excerpted and summarized from the 5ch (Nandemo Jikkyo G) thread “Microsleeper Hori Is Already Wobbly by Day One.”

  • Non to Reunite With Ai Hashimoto After 13 Years — 5ch: “Glad the Vibe Seems Good”

    It was announced on September 10 that actress Non (33) will be joined by special guest Ai Hashimoto (30) at the Kuji, Iwate Prefecture stop of her anniversary tour this October. The two previously played Aki and Yui in NHK’s 2013 morning drama “Amachan,” and will perform a song from the show together for the first time in 13 years. The 5ch Entertainment/Sports News+ thread was full of congratulatory comments, though some posts veered off into the backstory behind the reunion and past reports involving the pair.

    Non to sing with Ai Hashimoto for the first time in 13 years — reunited from “Amachan” — Non extends offer for October’s Iwate/Kuji concert: “Grateful that Ai-chan agreed”

    It was announced on the 10th that Ai Hashimoto (30) will appear as a special guest at the Kuji stop of actress Non’s (33) anniversary concert tour, “Non Jiyu (10) Tour 2026.”

    At the concert in Kuji, Iwate — the setting of NHK’s 2013 morning drama “Amachan” — the two will sing together for the first time in 13 years.

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

    4AnonymousSep 10, 2026 18:13
    Guess it's fine if it's two women, huh
    8AnonymousSep 10, 2026 18:13
    Re: #4
    Nah, we're not really in that kind of era anymore, so who knows
    5AnonymousSep 10, 2026 18:13
    A senior who's been blacklisted from showbiz for years bonding with a junior who's about to get blacklisted too
    140AnonymousSep 10, 2026 18:49
    Re: #5
    But the agency involved in that has weakened and just got shot down this time, so I think it's the sexual-harassment/power-harassment old guy who's gonna be the one to disappear
    6AnonymousSep 10, 2026 18:13
    Haaaah (massive sigh) gotta hold it in, hold it in
    12AnonymousSep 10, 2026 18:15
    Re: #6
    Pretty sure it's THIS side that's been holding back!
    93AnonymousSep 10, 2026 18:35
    Re: #6
    lol
    Bet he's genuinely bitter about it
    10AnonymousSep 10, 2026 18:14
    The "don't want to be touched by anyone who's not hot" syndrome
    11AnonymousSep 10, 2026 18:15
    If she actually made the offer after all that controversy, that's pretty bold
    15AnonymousSep 10, 2026 18:16
    Wonder what happens if Non brings it up out of nowhere
    20AnonymousSep 10, 2026 18:17
    Women's magazines wrote them up as fierce rival classmates, but
    glad the vibe between them seems good
    25AnonymousSep 10, 2026 18:19
    Best underbite since the Iwana (a char-like fish known for its hooked jaw)
    40AnonymousSep 10, 2026 18:23
    Re: #25
    That underbite screams Takitarou, as always lol (Takitarou = the famous salmon mascot with the huge jutting jaw)
    26AnonymousSep 10, 2026 18:20
    Two high-maintenance women together
    58AnonymousSep 10, 2026 18:26
    Here
    79AnonymousSep 10, 2026 18:32
    Re: #58
    Can't believe something like that actually sold lol
    Amachan's popularity is still a mystery to me lol
    95AnonymousSep 10, 2026 18:36
    If she does the "Shiosai no Memories!" pose (the catchphrase from the show's fictional idol song), I'll definitely tear up with joy
    99AnonymousSep 10, 2026 18:37
    Re: #95
    If Babaa (the grandma character) turned out to be the surprise guest,
    I might ascend to heaven on the spot
    103AnonymousSep 10, 2026 18:38
    Let's get Jiro-san out here as a surprise!
    130AnonymousSep 10, 2026 18:45
    Re: #103
    Would be great if they brought on Ai Hashimoto and Jiro Sato as guests on "Happy Kanako's Killer Life," playing the client and the target.
    106AnonymousSep 10, 2026 18:38
    ■Kumamoto native Ai Hashimoto donates relief funds and supplies to hometown
    "It's truly a small effort, but…" — Yosuke Kubozuka and others also send encouragement
    8/28 (Fri) 21:09

    The official Instagram for the "Kumamoto Recovery Film Festival," to be held October 9–11 in Kumamoto Prefecture, was updated on the 28th to reveal that actress Ai Hashimoto (30), a Kumamoto native, had sent relief supplies and donations.
    Actors Tadanobu Asano (52) and Yosuke Kubozuka (47), among others, also sent messages of encouragement.

    Hashimoto, worried about the severe heat hitting the prefecture, said:
    "I know it's truly a small gesture, but based on information from people who know the situation on the ground,
    I sent as many supplies as I could — drinks and food, sanitary items like menstrual products and diapers,
    clothing and heatstroke-prevention gear, inflatable mattresses, and more."

    "I also donated relief funds to each of the affected cities.
    It's truly a small effort, but I hope it can help even a little in bringing back
    everyone's daily life and peace of mind."
    https://www.nikkansports.com/entertainment/news/img/202608280001576-w1300_1.jpg

    https://news.yahoo.co.jp/articles/0993780ed536df28c33a30f6f035ba198a6595b3
    114AnonymousSep 10, 2026 18:40
    Actress Non (33)
    117AnonymousSep 10, 2026 18:41
    Re: #114
    Looks like some kind of yokai that pops out in a dirt-floor entryway
    137AnonymousSep 10, 2026 18:47
    Can't help but wonder if she's doing stuff like this because her work dried up
    148AnonymousSep 10, 2026 18:50
    Re: #137
    Ai Hashimoto's also appeared in Non-led films like "Hold Me Back" and "A Hotel Worthy of Me," so I figure they've stayed on good terms after all

    Background and Talking Points

    “Amachan” was NHK’s first-half morning drama (asadora) for 2013, and it became a hit thanks to the banter between Non’s character Aki and Ai Hashimoto’s character Yui, along with the show’s fictional idol group “GMT47.” With Hashimoto invited to perform at a concert in Kuji, Iwate Prefecture — the real-life model for the show’s fictional town of Kitasanriku — the two are now reuniting to sing together 13 years after the broadcast. Comments on the thread were largely welcoming of the announcement, though the discussion occasionally drifted into unverified rumors about the co-stars and those involved, political labeling, and remarks bordering on appearance-based insults. This article does not include such unverified claims or posts amounting to personal attacks.

    *This article was compiled by excerpting and summarizing the 5ch (Entertainment/Sports News+) thread “[Entertainment] Actress Non to Sing With Ai Hashimoto for First Time in 13 Years! Reunited From “Amachan” — Non Offers Iwate Concert Slot, “Grateful Ai-chan Agreed”.”

  • Morning Musume。’26 FC Event Set for Zepp Haneda — 5ch Reacts: ‘This Venue Holds 500 Fewer People, LOL’

    Morning Musume。’26’s fan-club-only event “Musume.×FAN×Fun!×Christmas~” has been announced for December 16, 2026, at Zepp Haneda (Tokyo). General admission tickets are ¥5,700 (tax included), with two shows per day. On the thread, fans expressed confusion that the venue is a flat-floor live house with no tiered seating, surprise that its capacity is reportedly smaller than the hall Angerme used, and nostalgia for tiered venues like Nerima Culture Center used in the past.

    3AnonymousSep 10, 2026 18:00
    Morning Musume。'26 FC Event ~Musume.×FAN×Fun!×Christmas~
    ●Performers: Morning Musume。'26
    *Performers may change in part. Please note that ticket refunds will not be issued due to performer changes.
    ●Venue: Zepp Haneda (Tokyo)
    ●Date: Wednesday, December 16, 2026
    [Show 01] Doors 16:00 / Start 16:45
    [Show 02] Doors 18:45 / Start 19:30
    ●Seat types: General seating, Elementary school seating (all reserved)
    ●Ticket price: ¥5,700 (tax included)
    ●Purchase limit: 1 general seat and up to 2 elementary school seats per show
    50AnonymousSep 10, 2026 18:50
    Re: #3
    Wow, what an insane place to hold it…
    Feels like 5-6 years ago they did a two-day thing there — Sayumi's birthday live and a birthday talk live.
    Back then this place felt as far away as Yokohama or Makuhari.
    6AnonymousSep 10, 2026 18:04
    Wait, what?

    [15,000 points] Notice for two-shot photo & autographed signed board reception

    Wednesday, December 16, 2026, Tokyo
    Nonaka Miki / Okamura Homare / Yamazaki Airi / Sakurai Rio / Inoue Haruka / Yumikuwa Akoto (Morning Musume。'26)
    10AnonymousSep 10, 2026 18:07
    Re: #6
    Staff always forgetting to add the new members
    7AnonymousSep 10, 2026 18:04
    They probably swiped this from Karin's tour budget. Bastards.
    41AnonymousSep 10, 2026 18:41
    Re: #7
    You had empty seats and you're saying that?
    9AnonymousSep 10, 2026 18:06
    It's normal for 18th gen not to be in the two-shot photos.
    14AnonymousSep 10, 2026 18:08
    No Exe (executive-tier) photo session means no point-based photos either?
    15AnonymousSep 10, 2026 18:14
    Nearest station is Tenkubashi, via Tokyo Monorail or Keikyu Line.
    17AnonymousSep 10, 2026 18:15
    MM: Zepp Haneda (1,207)
    Ang: Ichikawa Culture Hall Large Hall (1,768)
    J=J: Ichikawa Culture Hall Large Hall (1,768)
    Tsubaki: Nissho Hall (1,000)
    BEYOO: Nissho Hall (1,000)
    OCHA: Hitotsubashi Hall (802)
    Rosy: Setagaya Egret Hall (933)
    18AnonymousSep 10, 2026 18:15
    A venue with 500 fewer seats than Angerme's, lol
    20AnonymousSep 10, 2026 18:17
    If the Christmas event venue is flat-floor, I lose all motivation to go.
    23AnonymousSep 10, 2026 18:19
    So we've reached the era where Musume. plays live houses and Angerme plays halls…
    24AnonymousSep 10, 2026 18:20
    When's Sugihara's bar event? Is there even one?
    25AnonymousSep 10, 2026 18:20
    Re: #24
    There's Countdown Concert and Hello Pro Con rehearsals, so if it happens it'll probably be after New Year's.
    26AnonymousSep 10, 2026 18:21
    No bar event for Sugihara this year.
    28AnonymousSep 10, 2026 18:22
    Re: #26
    If it happens, I'd guess January next year.
    27AnonymousSep 10, 2026 18:21
    Hold on, wait — Zepp means the floor seating is flat? That's seriously deflating.
    I really liked Nerima the last two years…
    Now I'm torn on whether to even apply.
    29AnonymousSep 10, 2026 18:25
    I don't think Sugihara's getting one this fiscal year.
    She joined earlier than the other three, so it's an awkward case.
    31AnonymousSep 10, 2026 18:27
    There's supposed to be a Suzuki & Yasuda bar event in May '27, and since it'd be Sugihara's last one birthday-wise, I feel like there should be one this fiscal year too.

    Though if Oda graduates in November, Christmas event rehearsals start right after — someone's bound to be worn out.
    34AnonymousSep 10, 2026 18:29
    Re: #31
    Suzuki & Yasuda's is in April.
    32AnonymousSep 10, 2026 18:27
    So 'live house' means it's a flat floor with no incline or steps? You won't see a thing even if the aisle divas come out.
    33AnonymousSep 10, 2026 18:28
    Can't remember who, but some new member in another group did one without it spanning fiscal years, so Musume. could easily manage it too.
    36AnonymousSep 10, 2026 18:32
    I'm an out-of-towner with Exe (executive-tier) membership, but this venue killed my motivation to go.
    38AnonymousSep 10, 2026 18:34
    I'm from Tama, and it's far… Even if I go, there's no way I can do both shows.
    39AnonymousSep 10, 2026 18:35
    1,000 capacity would've been fine — I wish they'd used Nissho Hall like the 18th-gen event.
    40AnonymousSep 10, 2026 18:39


    42AnonymousSep 10, 2026 18:43
    Two girls who look like they could be in Hello!Project — a 19-year-old and a 20-year-old — doing karaoke
    https://live.nicovideo.jp/watch/lv351359497
    44AnonymousSep 10, 2026 18:44
    A cramped dump way out in the boonies — and this is the one and only Musume. FC event of the year? I could cry.
    45AnonymousSep 10, 2026 18:45
    The Homamei (Homare & [an]other 18th-gen member) event had a 1,000-capacity lottery wipeout, so this one should be easy too, right?
    52AnonymousSep 10, 2026 18:51
    Re: #45
    'Easy'? You sure your Japanese is okay?
    46AnonymousSep 10, 2026 18:47
    With Oda graduating, Morning Musume is seriously over. lol
    47AnonymousSep 10, 2026 18:48
    Whenever I go to this venue, it reminds me of J.G. Ballard's novel 'Concrete Island.'
    49AnonymousSep 10, 2026 18:49
    There's no one in the current Morning Musume lineup I actually want to see…
    53AnonymousSep 10, 2026 18:51
    If it were standing-room it'd be fun, but there's absolutely no way Morning Musume does standing for a Christmas event lol
    54AnonymousSep 10, 2026 18:51
    No standing room at Christmas events.
    56AnonymousSep 10, 2026 18:51
    Ranked below Angerme — that's third place in the pecking order, lol
    57AnonymousSep 10, 2026 18:52
    Is it a live house because Oda's graduating?
    58AnonymousSep 10, 2026 18:52
    Even with chairs, it's still flat floor. Not going.
    59AnonymousSep 10, 2026 18:53
    Starting with the spring tour, it's confirmed live houses are the new normal for tours — think of this as a dry run for that.

    Background and Key Points of This Topic

    Zepp Haneda is a live-house-style venue with no tiered seating, meaning that even with assigned seats, sightlines can easily be blocked by the heads of people in front. The complaint on the thread that “a flat floor kills my motivation to go” appears to stem from this structural feature. Capacity comparisons (such as “500 fewer seats than Angerme’s venue”) are based on attendees’ memories and rumors rather than officially announced seat counts, so the exact figures should be confirmed against the organizer’s announcement. The thread also includes multiple mentions of a certain member’s (Oda’s) graduation timing and the scheduling of other members’ individual fan events, but these are all fan speculation rather than official announcements, so caution is warranted.

    *This article is excerpted and summarized from the 5ch (Hello!Project) thread “★Fan Club Members-Only Event★ “Morning Musume。’26 FC Event ~Musume.×FAN×Fun!×Christmas~” Announced!“

  • Yakitori Chain Torikizoku Raises All-Item Price to ¥410, a ¥20 Hike From October, Citing Soaring Ingredient and Labor Costs

    Izakaya chain Torikizoku has announced it will raise its flat all-item price to ¥410 starting October 1st. This ¥20 increase is its first in one year and five months, since May 2025, and aims to absorb rising costs for ingredients like domestic chicken and vegetables, as well as soaring energy and labor costs. The all-you-can-eat plan “Toriki Banquet” will also rise to ¥4,100. On 5ch threads, complaints that wages aren’t keeping pace clashed with comments noting it’s still cheaper than a hotel buffet or all-you-can-eat yakiniku, while plenty of posts nostalgically recalled the old flat prices of ¥280 or ¥300.

    Eternal Hospitality Group announced on the 10th that it will raise the flat all-item price at its Torikizoku izakaya chain by ¥20 to ¥410, effective October 1st. This is the first price hike since a ¥20 increase in May 2025, a gap of one year and five months. Through the price increase, the company aims to absorb rising costs for ingredients such as domestic chicken and vegetables, as well as energy and labor.

    Torikizoku sells all items, including yakitori and alcoholic drinks, at a single flat price, and operates 696 stores as of the end of August. The price of its all-you-can-eat banquet plan, “Toriki Bansankai” (Toriki Dinner Party), will also rise by ¥200 to ¥4,100.

    Nikkei

    Source: nikkei.com / Original article here

    9AnonymousSep 10, 2026 18:29
    "When are wages ever going to catch up?"
    30AnonymousSep 10, 2026 18:34
    Re: #9
    Bureaucrats' pay is going up just fine.
    19AnonymousSep 10, 2026 18:32
    It's turned into food only nobles can afford now (a pun on "kizoku"/nobility in the chain's name)
    29AnonymousSep 10, 2026 18:34
    Re: #19
    Even after the hike, you can still stuff yourself on chicken-breast skewers plus rice and egg for just ¥820.
    36AnonymousSep 10, 2026 18:36
    Re: #29
    Wouldn't Yayoiken (a teishoku set-meal chain) do just as well…?
    35AnonymousSep 10, 2026 18:36
    Isn't Torikizoku basically doomed at this rate?
    Especially with the 1% consumption tax bump on top.
    89AnonymousSep 10, 2026 18:46
    Re: #35
    As the "cost-ratio guys" love to point out, restaurants typically price things at 300-400% of ingredient cost.
    A 9% consumption-tax difference is basically a rounding error, so it's normal to assume it barely matters — claims that it has a huge impact are just propaganda from people who oppose the tax cut.
    50AnonymousSep 10, 2026 18:38
    Re: #1
    Wish they'd let the all-you-can-eat plan start from just two people.
    65AnonymousSep 10, 2026 18:41
    Re: #50
    Toriki-zoku: "No way. Round up four people."
    52AnonymousSep 10, 2026 18:39
    Back in the Shuntokumichi and Nagase days it was ¥280 tax included.
    I went a lot since it was my local spot.
    56AnonymousSep 10, 2026 18:40
    Re: #52
    The Shuntokumichi branch still runs a ¥250 tax-included flat-price campaign regularly.
    69AnonymousSep 10, 2026 18:42
    Is this tax-excluded? At this price there's no real reason to go out of your way for Toriki.
    74AnonymousSep 10, 2026 18:42
    Re: #69
    Toriki-zoku's price is tax-included.

    Also there's no otoshi (obligatory starter charge), so just multiply ¥410 by the number of items you order.
    73AnonymousSep 10, 2026 18:42
    Re: #56
    Maybe that's the revived store.
    Mine was back in the late 1990s — a loose era when even high schoolers could just walk right in.
    77AnonymousSep 10, 2026 18:43
    Re: #73
    That's the revival's first store.

    Of course, during the campaign a reservation is mandatory —
    people line up for an hour just to book one.
    98AnonymousSep 10, 2026 18:48
    At this price, wouldn't you be better off going to a slightly pricier hotel buffet?
    Well, no yakitori there, but still.
    115AnonymousSep 10, 2026 18:52
    Re: #98
    The Hilton's dinner buffet is ¥9,800 with drinks sold separately, so with alcohol included it'd run more than three times what you'd pay at Torikizoku.
    103AnonymousSep 10, 2026 18:49
    If the banquet plan is ¥4,100, that means it's the better deal once you eat and drink more than 10 items, right?
    While they're at it with the price hike, they should let solo customers just walk in for the banquet plan too.
    They could poach customers from places that won't let a lone diner do all-you-can-drink.
    118AnonymousSep 10, 2026 18:53
    Re: #103
    Toriki-zoku: "No. Round up four people."
    132AnonymousSep 10, 2026 18:55
    The root cause was COVID, and what finished it off was inflation plus customer and staff shortages.

    Look at eating out in America — even figuring ¥100 to the dollar it's absurdly expensive, same in Europe; dining out being crazy expensive is basically the norm there.
    Japan's heading that way too — the low-margin, high-volume model just isn't sustainable anymore.
    141AnonymousSep 10, 2026 18:57
    Re: #132
    Ichiro, which opened a location in New York, starts at ¥800 a plate after all.
    133AnonymousSep 10, 2026 18:56
    Nobody's going to bother going anymore.
    It only got popular because it was ¥300.
    143AnonymousSep 10, 2026 18:58
    Re: #133
    Young customers especially are going to bolt.
    139AnonymousSep 10, 2026 18:57
    You could just grill your own yakitori at home.
    158AnonymousSep 10, 2026 19:00
    Re: #139
    Chicken breast is actually hard to cook so it tastes good.
    This place is perfect for refueling on protein after you've wrecked your muscles doing the Big 3 lifts (squat, bench, deadlift).
    145AnonymousSep 10, 2026 18:58
    Torikizoku is a place you go to eat kamameshi (rice cooked in a small pot).
    150AnonymousSep 10, 2026 18:59
    Re: #145
    Why are kamameshi and katsudon the same price as edamame or cold tofu, are you idiots, Toriki?
    153AnonymousSep 10, 2026 18:59
    Re: #145
    Lol, true.
    Regulars order it first thing.
    169AnonymousSep 10, 2026 19:02
    Yakitori is ¥205 a skewer, right??

    If you buy frozen yakitori at Trial (a discount supermarket) and grill it yourself, it's ¥50 a skewer.
    203AnonymousSep 10, 2026 19:09
    Re: #169
    Guess gas and labor are free then?
    And with frozen ones you probably can't even pick the cut, right?
    174AnonymousSep 10, 2026 19:04
    Say one person orders 7 items, that's ¥2,870.
    Still feels like a cheap amount to me.
    179AnonymousSep 10, 2026 19:05
    Re: #174
    That's not cheap.
    There are plenty of places where ¥3,000 gets you all-you-can-eat-and-drink.
    198AnonymousSep 10, 2026 19:08
    Re: #174
    If I'm paying ¥2,800, I'd rather go to an all-you-can-eat yakiniku place…

    https://www.yakiniku-king.jp/menu_all/lunch/
    175AnonymousSep 10, 2026 19:04
    I mean, is this even really Torikizoku anymore…
    At this point I'd pick Daikichi without hesitation.
    178AnonymousSep 10, 2026 19:04
    Re: #175
    Wait, what are you planning to have bought up there…? (Daikichi is also the name of a pawn-shop chain, hence the joke)
    185AnonymousSep 10, 2026 19:06
    Re: #115
    Still looks better than dropping ¥4,100 at Torikizoku…
    202AnonymousSep 10, 2026 19:09
    Re: #185
    The chicken-tare katsudon at 270g for ¥390 is plenty.
    Even after the hike to ¥410, one ¥500 coin fills you up and you still get change back.
    It's a true friend to the common people.

    Background and Talking Points

    Torikizoku is a major flat-price izakaya chain operating 696 stores as of the end of August, and this ¥20 increase is its first since May 2025. Price hikes at restaurant chains are driven not just by ingredient costs but also by rising labor and utility costs, so this isn’t a move unique to Torikizoku. Opinions in the thread were split on how the consumption tax affects pricing — some posts argued that since ingredient costs run only 30-40% of the selling price, the impact of tax-rate changes is minor, while others debated the tax-inclusive pricing display. Comparisons with other formats, like hotel buffets and all-you-can-eat yakiniku, were also lively, and because of the flat-price format, the per-item increase is immediately noticeable — which seems to be driving the split reactions. For customers who remember the old ¥280 or ¥300 prices, the cumulative size of the increases over time is likely also a factor.

    *This article is compiled from excerpts and a summary of the 5ch (News Express+) thread “Torikizoku Raises All-Item Price to ¥410, a ¥20 Hike From October, Citing Soaring Ingredient and Labor Costs.”

  • King of Cont 2026: Ten Finalists Set — Nanamagari Return After a Decade, Dow 90000 Field a Record Eight-Person Lineup

    The ten finalist acts for TBS’s “King of Cont 2026” (airing October 17) were announced at a press conference on September 4. Nanamagari made the final for the first time in 10 years, while Dow 90000 will compete with a lineup of eight — the largest in the competition’s history. On 5ch’s Geinou Sports Express+ board, posters traded takes on Dow 90000, with some arguing they’re “more of a theater troupe than a sketch act” and others chalking their inclusion up to buzz value, alongside assessments of finals regulars like Nippon no Shacho and Kaeru-tei and comparisons with the Double Impact champions, as predictions and personal favorites flew back and forth over the finalist lineup.

    The finalist press conference for “Kyujin Box presents King of Cont 2026” (TBS, airing October 17) was held in Tokyo on September 4.

    It was announced that ten acts in total will advance to the finals: Yahhoi (Nagai / Izumi), Aishou wa Iiyone (Evi Land / Yadayamukun), Jeradon (Attack Nishimoto / Kamichii), Dow 90000 (Sho Hasumi / Shota Sonoda / Ryoya Iihara / Yuta Uehara / Tamaki Michigami / Momoyoko Nakajima / Ayaka Kutsuna / Reina Yoshihara), Yadan (Long Size Ito / Honma Kid / Toru Nakajima), The Mummy (Yohei Hayashida / Takashi Sakai), Nanamagari (Naoto Morishita / Yuta Hase), Ganso Ichigo-chan (Yuji Uemura / Hyper Perochan), Kaeru-tei (Shuhei Nakano / Iwakura), and Nippon no Shacho (Classic Tsuji / Ketsu).

    ◆ Kaeru-tei’s Iwakura, on making the final for the first time in three years: “I just exploded [with emotion]”

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

    2AnonymousSep 10, 2026 19:25
    I know Hasumi gets a lot of hate, but I think he's putting in the work.
    3AnonymousSep 10, 2026 19:26
    Nanamagari isn't even funny, yet somehow they're always in the final. Mystery act.
    8AnonymousSep 10, 2026 19:29
    Re: #3
    Nanamagari's material just isn't TV-friendly lol
    32AnonymousSep 10, 2026 19:40
    Re: #3
    It's specifically King of Cont that's been 10 years for them
    4AnonymousSep 10, 2026 19:26
    They should bring back King of Comedy too while they're at it (a separate, now-defunct comedy contest)
    6AnonymousSep 10, 2026 19:27
    First time in a major award-race final for Dow, I think?
    9AnonymousSep 10, 2026 19:29
    Haven't seen much of Dow's material, but Hasumi's funny
    11AnonymousSep 10, 2026 19:31
    Dow's more of a theater troupe than a sketch act, honestly
    14AnonymousSep 10, 2026 19:32
    Re: #11
    How are they different?
    25AnonymousSep 10, 2026 19:37
    Re: #11
    Hurry up and explain how they're different then
    19AnonymousSep 10, 2026 19:33
    Re: #8
    People who eat this stuff up on shows like "Enta no Kamisama" (a mainstream comedy variety show) definitely won't get it at all
    31AnonymousSep 10, 2026 19:40
    Re: #19
    I don't even like Enta no Kamisama, but I still hate Nanamagari.
    20AnonymousSep 10, 2026 19:33
    Hyper Perochan's basically filling the "Ranjatai's Kunizaki" slot (the wildcard chaos-agent role)
    21AnonymousSep 10, 2026 19:35
    Kaeru-tei's about the only one that looks worth watching
    23AnonymousSep 10, 2026 19:35
    Dow, Choshinjuku, Jovijoba —
    anyone who calls this bunch funny has bottom-tier comedy taste
    24AnonymousSep 10, 2026 19:36
    Re: #23
    "Comedy taste score" lol
    36AnonymousSep 10, 2026 19:40
    Re: #23
    I could kind of get it if it was just Dow 90000 and Jovijoba,
    but throwing Choshinjuku in there too makes it feel like "oh, it's just the big-group category" lol
    They're way too different in style
    26AnonymousSep 10, 2026 19:37
    Can't help but see it as: Nippon no Shacho isn't satisfied with just winning Double Impact,
    and still wants results in a heavier-weight award race
    28AnonymousSep 10, 2026 19:39
    Re: #26
    Double Impact's got no leg to stand on then, huh
    51AnonymousSep 10, 2026 19:48
    Re: #28
    Magical Love Liars are in King of Cont too though
    61AnonymousSep 10, 2026 19:53
    Re: #28
    Still, Double Impact is the comedy contest that makes the most sense to me —
    not because the same acts do both,
    but because the genuinely funny ones actually win it
    Takion were undeniably funny too
    and Kaeru-tei lost because they were undeniably not funny
    27AnonymousSep 10, 2026 19:37
    Don't need Dow —
    just have Nakajima-san and Hasumi do manzai
    29AnonymousSep 10, 2026 19:39
    I've only seen them individually on Zao (a comedy battle show), so Dow's the one I'm interested in
    37AnonymousSep 10, 2026 19:40
    Re: #29
    They're in the ABC finals too though (the ABC Grand Prix, another comedy contest)
    30AnonymousSep 10, 2026 19:39
    Dow 9000's probably the favorite. And if Nakano goes off and doesn't lose to Iwakura, then Kaeru-tei.

    Nanamagari can't win unless they break out of the parallel-world bit, and I'm getting tired of Mummy's panicking-Sakai routine too.

    Though I do want to keep rooting for Yadan, who never seem to break through.
    34AnonymousSep 10, 2026 19:40
    Guess Magical Love Liars didn't make it, even though they went with a radio-recording bit
    Who knew that among the big-group acts, Dow-90-thousand would get ahead of Plan 9
    42AnonymousSep 10, 2026 19:44
    If Dow's allowed in, then any theater troupe could get in
    Can you even call that a sketch act?
    52AnonymousSep 10, 2026 19:49
    Re: #42
    There are plenty of acts out there who just haven't gotten results, same as Dow 90000
    Loveletters' Tamariguchi is a former theater actor too
    What makes Dow 90000 good at this is probably the whole "this feels different from anything before" image-building that comes with how they're marketed
    57AnonymousSep 10, 2026 19:50
    Re: #42
    There's no clear line there
    Tons of comedians came up through theater troupes
    55AnonymousSep 10, 2026 19:50
    Wait, Dow? Seriously? I thought they were like the poster child for "not funny"
    64AnonymousSep 10, 2026 19:55
    Re: #55
    Don't worry
    They're still just as unfunny as ever
    This is clearly the buzz-value slot
    59AnonymousSep 10, 2026 19:52
    Re: #51
    It's been a while since Magical Love Liars won M-1,
    so I feel like the real reason is just "kinda want to feel that award-race atmosphere again," you know?
    62AnonymousSep 10, 2026 19:55
    Re: #59
    They've kept popping up here and there even after winning though
    65AnonymousSep 10, 2026 19:56
    Re: #61
    Double Impact does feel like the kind of thing where the not-that-funny guy wins though
    Safe, I guess…
    81AnonymousSep 10, 2026 20:04
    Re: #65
    It ends up looking like a "jack of all trades" competition
    84AnonymousSep 10, 2026 20:05
    Re: #65
    It's like a restaurant that serves both Japanese soba and Chinese food — neither one's any good. That, lol

    Background and key points of this discussion

    King of Cont is a long-running TBS sketch comedy competition dating back to 2008, ranked alongside the M-1 Grand Prix as one of the major comedy award races in Japan. The thread’s disagreement centered mainly on how to categorize Dow 90000: some argued that their eight-person lineup and heavily narrative-driven style makes them “more of a theater troupe than a sketch act,” while others held that their inclusion reflects buzz value and marketing savvy rather than competition results. Meanwhile, opinions on Nanamagari split between “not TV-friendly” critiques and fans defending them precisely because they don’t want the act to break out. One point worth flagging: the “funny/not funny” verdicts in the thread are just individual 5ch posters’ opinions — they don’t represent judging results or broader public opinion. The final airs October 17, and the actual rankings will be decided by the performances on the day.

    *This article is compiled and summarized from the 5ch (Geinou Sports Express+) thread “[Entertainment] “King of Cont” Ten Finalists Announced: Nanamagari Back After 10 Years, Dow 90000 Field Largest-Ever Lineup.”

  • Kazlaser Trashes Highly-Rated Soba Shop: “Mushy… Better Off Not Eating It”

    Kazlaser (42), one half of the comedy duo Maple Chogokin, shared on his YouTube channel an episode about visiting a soba shop with glowing online reviews. The soba that came out was only about toothpick-length, cut into ragged bits and piled into a heap, with a texture so mushy he couldn’t even make out the aroma — in the end he had to scoop it up with a spoon. Following this scathing review, 5ch users debated the reliability of online reviews and which chain restaurants actually serve decent soba.

    9/10 (Thu) 19:45

    Kazlaser (42), of the comedy duo Maple Chogokin, appeared in an episode of the YouTube channel “Kazlaser and Shoinji’s Chill Room [Official],” updated by the 10th, where he described being let down at a restaurant that had rave online reviews.

    Kazlaser said he visited a soba shop with high ratings online. The place had the look of a long-established, storied restaurant, and he’d gone in with high hopes — but, he said with a wry laugh, “Every single piece of soba that came out was only about as long as a toothpick. It was cut into ragged little bits, piled up in a heap. It was so mushy I couldn’t even tell what it smelled like, and since I couldn’t pick it up, I ended up just scooping it with a spoon.”

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

    6AnonymousSep 10, 2026 21:24
    I've had this happen too — ate at a ramen place with huge lines and rave reviews, and the flavor was shockingly bland.
    I figured they must've forgotten to add the seasoning and planned to go back and check… but the place went under before I could.
    7AnonymousSep 10, 2026 21:24
    Unrelated, but tell us the name of a soba shop you've been to recently.
    9AnonymousSep 10, 2026 21:25
    Wonder which shop it was.
    Any of you have a guess?
    10AnonymousSep 10, 2026 21:25
    I think he should just stick to talking about the Self-Defense Forces.
    12AnonymousSep 10, 2026 21:26
    Is this popular with inbound foreign tourists?
    I hear they can't slurp noodles, so maybe that's why the soba's cut short.
    14AnonymousSep 10, 2026 21:26
    Given how it looked, maybe he got served the version made for foreigners who don't slurp their noodles?
    15AnonymousSep 10, 2026 21:27
    If it's toothpick-length, that means:
    the flour is old
    it's been sitting a while since it was made
    the water mixing (a key step in working the dough) was botched
    it was overboiled
    it got rinsed too roughly

    Basically every sin a soba shop could possibly commit, all in one bowl.
    16AnonymousSep 10, 2026 21:27
    A place using machines beats a badly hand-made indie shop any day.
    After that it all comes down to the owner's eye for ingredients and the dipping sauce.
    17AnonymousSep 10, 2026 21:28
    He's clearly been on edge ever since he married actress Fumi Nikaido, lol.
    20AnonymousSep 10, 2026 21:29
    Re: #17
    Probably not getting to eat as much meat as he wants.
    25AnonymousSep 10, 2026 21:34
    Re: #17
    He complains about something every single day.
    Maybe he's just frustrated.
    18AnonymousSep 10, 2026 21:28
    Celebrities' talk-show stories are always complaints about restaurants or taxis.
    19AnonymousSep 10, 2026 21:29
    Basically, be suspicious of anything rated 4.5 or higher.
    3.5–4.2 is the safe zone.
    81AnonymousSep 10, 2026 22:09
    Re: #19
    Not a restaurant, but check out this motorcycle shop — it's sitting at 4.9, which is nuts.
    Apparently you get a discount for leaving a good review.
    The comments are blatant about it too, it's bad.
    22AnonymousSep 10, 2026 21:32
    Fuji Soba, Yudetaro, and Hakone Soba (popular standing-soba chains) are all reliable.
    26AnonymousSep 10, 2026 21:37
    Read the comments from people who left 1-star reviews and you'll get a pretty good sense of what the place is really like. Ignore the 5-stars — those can be bought. Some places even hire people through gig-work apps just to leave 5-star reviews.
    29AnonymousSep 10, 2026 21:40
    Does genuinely good soba even exist? I went to one of those trendy soba shops in Matsumoto, and honestly couldn't tell the difference from boiling dried ni-hachi soba (80% buckwheat, 20% wheat noodles) at home. If anything, the dried stuff was better. If you actually know a good soba shop, let me know.
    43AnonymousSep 10, 2026 21:46
    Re: #29
    The stand-and-eat counter "Kasai" in front of Nakano Station.
    The owner has a bad reputation for customer service, but the food's good.
    Lots of repeat customers.
    31AnonymousSep 10, 2026 21:42
    Just reading this makes it sound like they did it on purpose — what a terrible shop.
    32AnonymousSep 10, 2026 21:43
    Maybe they just didn't like Kazu?
    Well, even if they didn't like him, a shop that tanks its own quality out of spite has no pride and is trash. (^_^;)
    Though places like Gyoza no Ohsho (a chain) really can vary wildly depending on which cook is on duty.
    34AnonymousSep 10, 2026 21:45
    Not sure if he's stressed out or what, but lately it's been nothing but complaints and nitpicking from him.
    36AnonymousSep 10, 2026 21:45
    Has Kazu's personality changed? He never used to be the type to say stuff like this.
    38AnonymousSep 10, 2026 21:46
    But hey, his wife Fumi Nikaido must have fallen for him including this side of him, right?
    39AnonymousSep 10, 2026 21:46
    Isn't Kazu supposed to be able to judge quality? The guy's nicknamed "Hyakushiki" (walking encyclopedia) for his trivia knowledge, after all.
    41AnonymousSep 10, 2026 21:46
    He used to have such a positive-talk image — what happened to Kazu?
    42AnonymousSep 10, 2026 21:46
    A lot of city shops with long lines really aren't all that great.
    The udon place in Umeda I went to today charged ¥1,450, but I'm sure Marugame Seimen or Sukesan Udon (popular udon chains) taste better.
    79AnonymousSep 10, 2026 22:07
    Re: #42
    Udon's such a simple food, it can't be that different no matter where you eat it.
    44AnonymousSep 10, 2026 21:47
    This guy only ever complains or badmouths stuff.
    46AnonymousSep 10, 2026 21:48
    Any line in Tokyo — if there's a low-tier college ("F-rank" university) nearby, you'll get a line of college girls no matter what the place is.
    47AnonymousSep 10, 2026 21:48
    I like Donbei tempura soba (the instant cup noodles) better than what actual shops serve.
    https://video.fc2.com/ja/content/20220228U77Wdv4z
    48AnonymousSep 10, 2026 21:48
    The ownership probably changed hands, started prioritizing profit, and stopped putting effort into making the soba properly.
    And then started using fake reviewers (sakura) to boost the ratings.
    50AnonymousSep 10, 2026 21:50
    Former Takeo mayor Keisuke Hiwatashi — the guy behind that Starbucks-in-a-library project — his café is rated 4.9 lol
    53AnonymousSep 10, 2026 21:53
    Other countries don't have a noodle-slurping culture, so even instant cup noodles overseas come cut into short pieces, right?
    54AnonymousSep 10, 2026 21:53
    Toothpick-length noodles — at that point it's basically sobagaki (buckwheat dumplings, not even shaped like noodles).
    72AnonymousSep 10, 2026 22:04
    Chain restaurant soba that's surprisingly good:

    Tendon Tenya
    Nakau
    Komoro Soba
    76AnonymousSep 10, 2026 22:05
    Re: #72
    What about Ogisoseifun?
    Their operations are a mess
    Not tasty
    The only good part was the free sobayu (the soba-boiling water you drink at the end).
    77AnonymousSep 10, 2026 22:07
    As someone from western Japan, I've never really gotten this whole "soba aroma" thing.
    I assume it means something like the smell of soba tea, but if so I'd just drink soba tea instead — and you season sobayu with the dipping sauce before drinking it anyway, right?
    I don't get it, I'll just have zaru udon.
    85AnonymousSep 10, 2026 22:10
    Re: #77
    The noodles themselves don't need to smell like anything.
    What matters is the texture and the flavor of the dipping sauce.

    Background and Key Points of This Topic

    Online reviews typically run on a 5-star system, but in recent years there have been reports of businesses nudging ratings upward — offering discounts for good reviews, or having part-time staff post favorable ones — which has made many consumers wary of shops rated 4.5 stars or higher. The “soba cut to toothpick length” described in the thread points to specific failures in the cooking process itself — stale flour, poor dough-mixing technique, improper boiling — and is hard to write off as mere personal taste. On the other hand, the theory floated in the thread that the noodles were cut short to suit inbound tourists who supposedly can’t slurp noodles is pure speculation from commenters, with no confirmation from the shop itself. This article also leaves out baseless comments tying the story to Kazlaser’s married life, and is instead framed around the broader discussion of online restaurant review reliability.

    *This article is excerpted and summarized from the 5ch (Entertainment/Sports News+) thread “Kazlaser Visits Highly-Rated Soba Shop… Ends Up Trashing It: “Mushy… Seriously Unbelievable. Better Off Not Eating It.”“

  • Wolverine’s Metascore Announced at 80 — Now Sliding Into the High 70s

    The Metacritic score for Marvel’s Wolverine, the new action game from Insomniac Games, has dropped from around 80 at launch into the upper 70s — sparking discussion on 5ch’s Hardware/Industry (Geha) board. Major outlets like IGN, Eurogamer, and GameSpot all scored it in the 60s, cited as a key factor behind the drop. The thread saw a mix of reactions, from distrust of big review sites’ scoring standards to comparisons with past titles from other Sony-owned studios.

    1AnonymousSep 11, 2026 00:01
    s://www.metacritic.com/game/marvels-wolverine/
    3AnonymousSep 11, 2026 00:02
    Wait, how old was Spider-Man again?
    4AnonymousSep 11, 2026 00:02
    Shitsony lmaooooooo (a mocking portmanteau of "shit" + "Sony")
    7AnonymousSep 11, 2026 00:02
    Guess graphics alone couldn't carry it to a high score
    11AnonymousSep 11, 2026 00:04
    Sony, you've got no taste left — just quit making games and let third parties carry you
    12AnonymousSep 11, 2026 00:04
    Oh, the arm-hair game from that State of Play a while back
    14AnonymousSep 11, 2026 00:05
    Ugh…
    how much more bad news is coming…
    16AnonymousSep 11, 2026 00:05
    If it were Vega (the claw-wielding Street Fighter character), it would've sold — who even is this D-lister?
    17AnonymousSep 11, 2026 00:05
    Without the SBP boost it'd probably be sitting around 70
    20AnonymousSep 11, 2026 00:06
    If it's already like this at launch, the final score's gonna slide into the low 70s
    Insomniac really screwed this one up
    21AnonymousSep 11, 2026 00:06
    Day 4 of the "Direct"? (joking that the bad news keeps dropping like a scheduled event)
    How long is this festival gonna go on
    22AnonymousSep 11, 2026 00:06
    Save us, Death Strike Auntie! (a 5ch in-joke figure invoked when a thread's going badly)
    24AnonymousSep 11, 2026 00:07
    One outlet bumped their score from 60 to 66, and the overall still dropped to 78 — lmaooo!
    25AnonymousSep 11, 2026 00:08
    Re: #13
    If even IGN the yes-man gave it a 60, that's bad
    27AnonymousSep 11, 2026 00:09
    IGN, Eurogamer, GameSpot
    all gave it 60
    29AnonymousSep 11, 2026 00:09
    The outlets handing out 100s and 90s… are they just getting paid?
    39AnonymousSep 11, 2026 00:11
    Re: #29
    Bit late to be saying that now
    30AnonymousSep 11, 2026 00:09
    This is bad
    that's genuinely a shovelware-tier score
    32AnonymousSep 11, 2026 00:09
    The pre-release gameplay footage really only worked as negative PR
    guess even the outlets hesitated to score it high
    34AnonymousSep 11, 2026 00:10
    Says it all that the non-shill sites are the ones scoring it low lol
    37AnonymousSep 11, 2026 00:11
    At this rate it'll end without even leaving a mark! (a pun on "claw marks," fitting for Wolverine)
    38AnonymousSep 11, 2026 00:11
    Re: #37
    Give that man a cushion! lol (a TV variety-show gag for a good joke)
    40AnonymousSep 11, 2026 00:12
    Re: #37
    That was good — here, have some arm hair as a reward
    53AnonymousSep 11, 2026 00:14
    Already down 2 points lmaooo
    78 is rough lmaooo

    that's like a 7/7/6/6 in Famitsu terms (Famitsu's four-critic review format)
    82AnonymousSep 11, 2026 00:17
    Re: #53
    Wonder what Famitsu would've actually given it lol
    56AnonymousSep 11, 2026 00:15
    Not enough arm hair? (´・ω・`)
    91AnonymousSep 11, 2026 00:18
    Re: #56
    Should've given him butt hair too
    60AnonymousSep 11, 2026 00:15
    Guess they wanted it to be like some fight-choreography scene where he just claws through anything, no matter the setting
    84AnonymousSep 11, 2026 00:17
    Re: #60
    Making a game actually hold together with voxels that brutal on performance takes real technical skill and design sense
    67AnonymousSep 11, 2026 00:16
    Slap a high score on a shovelware game and you turn into Famitsu and lose all your credibility
    74AnonymousSep 11, 2026 00:17
    Re: #67
    Too late for that already, as usual
    72AnonymousSep 11, 2026 00:16
    It's already down to 77!
    79AnonymousSep 11, 2026 00:17
    Re: #72
    It went from 71 to 78, and somehow still dropped a point 😭
    73AnonymousSep 11, 2026 00:17
    Didn't expect it to fall into the 70s


    Looks like they've already picked who's getting laid off next
    90AnonymousSep 11, 2026 00:18
    Re: #73
    Ha, I can't wait
    for the PlayStation faithful to turn on them
    PlayStation fanboy: "I always thought Insomniac was no good. SIE isn't wrong. Trash studio."

    Background and talking points

    Metacritic’s overall score is a weighted average of scores from participating outlets, and right after launch there are only a handful of reviews counted, so the number can swing sharply as new reviews come in. The “drop from the 80s into the upper 70s” discussed in the thread is largely just this kind of mid-aggregation fluctuation, and the final settled score could still move further. It’s a recurring topic in the gaming industry that big review outlets’ scores diverge from how players actually feel about a game, and this thread followed that same pattern — but the idea floated in the thread that a specific publisher is manipulating scores is pure speculation with no supporting evidence, and should be treated with caution. The background also touches on the large-scale layoffs developer Insomniac Games underwent in the past.

    *This article is excerpted and summarized from the 5ch (Hardware/Industry board) thread “Wolverine’s Metascore Hits 80 wwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww.”

  • Mikuru Asakura vs. Shinya Aoki Set: 5ch Reacts — “Isn’t Aoki Pushing 50 by Now?”

    At the mixed martial arts event ‘Cho-RIZIN.5,’ a matchup was set between Mikuru Asakura and Shinya Aoki, and in the run-up to the fight, 5ch lit up with predictions about who had the edge. Aoki, born May 9, 1983, is a 43-year-old veteran known since his PRIDE days for slick submission grappling. Asakura, by contrast, is a popular fighter who built his name through events like BreakingDown, with some pointing out that ground fighting is his weak point. Predictions split along lines of age and track record, with some calling for an Aoki win and others betting on an Asakura punch KO, and the thread grew lively with talk spilling over into Ren Hiramoto’s judged decision on the same card and the names of veterans like Kazushi Sakuraba and Masato.

    1AnonymousSep 10, 2026 20:20
    Who do the pros think wins this?
    2AnonymousSep 10, 2026 20:25
    Isn't Aoki pushing 50 (araifi, i.e. "around 50") at this point? Mikuru's probably got this one.
    3AnonymousSep 10, 2026 20:26
    Round 1, Asakura TKOs him with punches
    Wish Aoki could win it though

    Main event's Shaidulaev
    4AnonymousSep 10, 2026 20:27
    How old is Aoki anyway?
    10AnonymousSep 10, 2026 20:35
    Re: #4
    Shinya Aoki (43)
    Born May 9, 1983

    Apparently.
    5AnonymousSep 10, 2026 20:29
    Re: #1
    I'm not paying attention to this at all, so "all of Japan is watching" is just wrong.
    Pro wrestling's the only thing I care about — specifically All Japan-style promotions and joshi (women's) wrestling.
    7AnonymousSep 10, 2026 20:32
    Checked their records — Asakura's opponents are all nobodies I've never heard of.
    Aoki's beaten well-known guys, so I'm calling it for Aoki.
    8AnonymousSep 10, 2026 20:33
    Why do I vaguely know the name Shinya Aoki…
    Did he juuust make it into PRIDE?
    9AnonymousSep 10, 2026 20:34
    Don't know much about Aoki, but
    he's the guy whose entrance song is by Ulfuls — always gets the crowd hyped.
    11AnonymousSep 10, 2026 20:38
    Idol-boy Asakura's just been fighting nobodies like that the whole time, huh (M!LK = a jab at his looks, after the boy band)
    13AnonymousSep 10, 2026 20:42
    Ren Hiramoto's up next —
    is this Dautbek guy any good?
    15AnonymousSep 10, 2026 20:44
    Asakura's always losing, so he's weak, right?
    What's there to even watch him for?
    16AnonymousSep 10, 2026 20:45
    It's just that last time's opponent Shaidulaev was too much of a world-class monster,
    and before that, Ren Hiramoto was just too strong.

    Wasn't he winning up until then?
    17AnonymousSep 10, 2026 20:47
    Asakura's flat-out bad at grappling to begin with, so a punch KO is his only real shot.
    If he kicks, his leg's getting caught for sure — he'll get taken down and armbarred before he knows what hit him.
    18AnonymousSep 10, 2026 20:51
    The official highlights are up —
    is Hiramoto actually okay after this…?
    19AnonymousSep 10, 2026 20:51
    Hiramoto getting the decision made no sense.
    However you slice it, that's a unanimous loss.
    20AnonymousSep 10, 2026 20:53
    As a total amateur I was like,
    "wait, THIS counts as a win?"
    Guess the pros thought so too, huh.
    22AnonymousSep 10, 2026 21:02
    Striking's a coin toss.
    Putting 1,000,000 Pelica on Aoki (Pelica = the fictional in-game currency from Monster Hunter, forum slang for a joke bet).
    23AnonymousSep 10, 2026 21:03
    Honestly, for me the real main event was supposed to be
    Don-mai vs. Lord Tomizawa,
    but that got cancelled and my hype crashed instantly.
    24AnonymousSep 10, 2026 21:03
    Aoki's scary 'cause he snaps opponents' arms like it's nothing.
    29AnonymousSep 10, 2026 21:13
    Feels like Aoki's gone from "uncle" to full-on "grandpa" at this point.
    32AnonymousSep 10, 2026 21:17
    Re: #29
    He looks like he'd be totally weak, but
    turns out he's crazy strong lol
    30AnonymousSep 10, 2026 21:14
    Say what you want, Mikuru Asakura really is strong after all.
    36AnonymousSep 10, 2026 21:18
    Re: #30
    He can't beat anyone actually strong, so it's just farming easy wins off a washed-up guy in his 40s lol
    34AnonymousSep 10, 2026 21:18
    Guys with a judo background really don't hold back on wrecking joints.
    Back in the PRIDE days, Yoshida used to pop the opponent's dislocated arm back into place himself lol
    37AnonymousSep 10, 2026 21:19
    Re: #34
    Wait, you can even do that? lol
    35AnonymousSep 10, 2026 21:18
    Seriously though —
    anyone who comes at him thinking "he's just some old man" gets destroyed instantly
    by Aoki.
    45AnonymousSep 10, 2026 21:23
    Re: #35
    If some amateur underestimated him, they'd probably get shoved down easy and end up with a broken arm lol
    40AnonymousSep 10, 2026 21:22
    Saw Sakuraba recently on some other fight-related channel — he's a genuine old man now, don't make him do this lol
    42AnonymousSep 10, 2026 21:23
    Re: #40
    Yeah, I guess you really can't ask Sakuraba to do this anymore.
    44AnonymousSep 10, 2026 21:23
    https://video.twimg.com/amplify_video/2098023633511952384/vid/avc1/1280×720/aEszo0G7SUFqoRe2.mp4
    Didn't think Aoki had slipped this much.
    Why couldn't he finish it even after taking it to the ground?
    49AnonymousSep 10, 2026 21:25
    Re: #44
    Well duh, how old do you think he is lol
    In his prime he might've just wrecked Mikuru standing, easy.
    50AnonymousSep 10, 2026 21:27
    Re: #44
    It's like "noooo stop, pleeeease Mikuru!" 😭
    53AnonymousSep 10, 2026 21:29
    Re: #44
    Aoki's 43, right? Isn't he stopping this a bit too late…
    Guess that's just how it goes at this age.
    48AnonymousSep 10, 2026 21:25
    If Kazushi Sakuraba doesn't have enough time to prep,
    maybe Mikuru Asakura vs. Masato (47)
    could work instead.
    52AnonymousSep 10, 2026 21:28
    Re: #48
    If it's Mikuru Asakura vs. Masato,
    I'm rooting for Asakura — obviously want him to wreck him under MMA rules lol
    64AnonymousSep 10, 2026 21:40
    Half the crowd's old-school fight nerds who've been into this forever,
    the other half's "World's Assassin" die-hards (Asakura's nickname/fanbase) and BreakingDown otaku.
    69AnonymousSep 10, 2026 21:49
    Re: #64
    And that's enough to draw a crowd this big? Weird world we live in.
    81AnonymousSep 10, 2026 22:09
    Mikuru Asakura, who just chases hype with entertainment-style fights,
    versus Musashi, who's gone toe-to-toe with heavyweight monsters from all over the world —
    that gap's never going to close.

    Mikuru Asakura, getting one-sidedly beaten down and KO'd by a retired Floyd Mayweather.
    https://spread-sports.jp/wp/wp-content/uploads/2022/09/1664088933-1843423985.jpg

    Musashi, dropping heavyweight boxer Mercer right from the opening bell.
    https://gonkaku.jp/system/images/attachments/000/027/632/medium/image-1592885890.jpg
    Mercer would later get KO'd by Tim Sylvia in seconds in the UFC.

    Background and Key Talking Points

    RIZIN is Japan’s largest mixed martial arts promotion, with Mikuru Asakura as one of its headline draws, and ‘Cho-RIZIN.5′ is one of its special events. Shinya Aoki is a seasoned veteran who has wielded submission grappling as his weapon since the PRIDE and DEEP eras, and the thread was full of references to his track record of “breaking opponents’ arms.” Opinions split between those who valued Asakura’s name recognition and entertainment appeal and those who rated Aoki as the stronger fighter based on his and his past opponents’ records — with even the age gap (Aoki is 43) read by some as a handicap and by others as a mark of experience. Note that this thread was created before the fight started as a prediction thread, and does not include any posts reporting the actual result.

    ※This article is excerpted and summarized from the 5ch (Hello! Project board) thread “In just one hour, the fight all of Japan’s watching for — Cho-RIZIN5: Mikuru Asakura vs. Shinya Aoki! Who do you think wins?“

  • ‘The Biggest Crash of My Life’ Looms After the AI Boom — 5ch: ‘The BOJ Will Prop It Up, Right?’

    Mark Spitznagel, founder of U.S.-based Universa Investments and known as a “Black Swan” investor, has predicted that a historic crash will hit after the AI boom runs even further. His fund reportedly keeps buying put options, taking small losses in normal times in order to aim for massive gains when a crash hits. In the thread, commenters debated whether trying to predict the trigger or timing of a crash contradicts the very definition of a “black swan,” while others argued that investors holding stocks through NISA (Japan’s tax-free investment program) have nothing to worry about as long as they don’t sell during a downturn. Stories from those who lived through the Lehman Shock also came up, with the conversation focused less on when a crash might hit than on how to react once it does.

    Once again, the “biggest crash of a lifetime” will come after the AI boom peaks — “Black Swan” investor Spitznagel’s prediction (overseas report)

    Mark Spitznagel, known as a “Black Swan” investor who aims to profit from major crashes, believes the AI boom will collapse after reaching its peak. As head of the hedge fund Universa Investments, he predicts that before the biggest crash of a lifetime arrives, there will first be an “euphoric surge.” Spitznagel described just how grueling it is to keep losing money almost every single day while waiting for a historic crash to arrive.

    Mark Spitznagel warned that while the AI boom will likely continue for now, a historic crash lies in wait beyond it.

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

    4AnonymousSep 10, 2026 20:50
    So what happens to SoftBank Group, then?
    96AnonymousSep 10, 2026 21:28
    Re: #4
    The BOJ will prop it up like always, right?
    7AnonymousSep 10, 2026 20:51
    Re: #1 Isn't the whole point of a "black swan" that the timing and cause are unexpected and unknowable?
    88AnonymousSep 10, 2026 21:25
    Re: #7
    That's why it's a firm running a monthly put-buying strategy — losing money every month, but making a fortune when the crash hits.
    17AnonymousSep 10, 2026 20:56
    It's a given that Japan will be the one to pull the trigger.
    135AnonymousSep 10, 2026 21:43
    Re: #17
    The US-China-Russia triangle needs to destroy each other before anyone pulls that trigger.
    196AnonymousSep 10, 2026 22:10
    Re: #17
    If the BOJ keeps hiking rates aggressively,
    the bubble will burst.
    18AnonymousSep 10, 2026 20:56
    The Lehman Shock was by far the hardest one to stomach.
    64AnonymousSep 10, 2026 21:14
    Re: #18
    It halved temporarily, but I threw every last yen I had into US stocks, and it's quadrupled since then.
    27AnonymousSep 10, 2026 21:00
    When exactly is this "AI boom peak" supposed to happen?
    AI is still evolving as we speak.
    Isn't the unemployment rate the thing we should actually be worried about?
    If anything, stocks will become a scramble, and we'll end up in a world where only those who hold stock get to make a living.
    170AnonymousSep 10, 2026 21:59
    Re: #27
    As an industry, railroads peaked in the 20th century, but railroad stocks peaked in the 19th. Technological progress and stock prices aren't the same thing.
    34AnonymousSep 10, 2026 21:02
    So a massive crash means every NISA investor dies, huh?
    If that actually happens, 5ch is gonna be a party lol
    40AnonymousSep 10, 2026 21:05
    Re: #34
    To be precise, it's the weak-handed folks who cut their losses that die.
    If you can just hold on, you'll be fine as long as the stock market itself doesn't collapse entirely — that's what long-term investing is all about.
    159AnonymousSep 10, 2026 21:52
    Re: #34
    NISA is cash/spot trading, so you just don't sell.
    It's the margin traders, not the NISA crowd, who are actually going to get wiped out.
    35AnonymousSep 10, 2026 21:02
    Re: #1
    So we're finally looking at something bigger than Lehman?
    Apparently even Warren Cromartie is cashing out his holdings to brace for the crash.
    37AnonymousSep 10, 2026 21:03
    Re: #35
    Cromartie → Buffett
    39AnonymousSep 10, 2026 21:04
    It's starting to become obvious that AI isn't generating profits proportional to the investment, and that usage-fee hikes are making it unaffordable to keep running even after adoption.
    63AnonymousSep 10, 2026 21:14
    Re: #39
    If you look even further ahead, won't it pay for itself eventually?
    We're heading into an era where dominating AI means dominating the world.
    51AnonymousSep 10, 2026 21:10
    Re: #1
    As long as people keep saying a crash is coming, it won't come.
    65AnonymousSep 10, 2026 21:15
    Re: #51
    Because buybacks show up to prop it up.
    What's genuinely unsettling is when optimism becomes universal, almost sickeningly so.
    Is it that moment when TV and social media are full of "shoeshine boys" giving stock tips? (a nod to the old Wall Street tale that a market top is near once even shoeshine boys are handing out stock advice)
    52AnonymousSep 10, 2026 21:10
    If the AI boom is ever going to end, it'll be the moment AI concludes that humanity should be exterminated.
    And by then it'll already be too late — humanity will have no choice but to go extinct.
    53AnonymousSep 10, 2026 21:11
    You should also brace for a crash that hits before the euphoria even fully builds, like the last Bitcoin four-year cycle.
    Yep, missed my chance to cash out.
    78AnonymousSep 10, 2026 21:20
    Re: #53
    The thing with Bitcoin is that what backs its value is just way too flimsy…
    55AnonymousSep 10, 2026 21:11
    It all comes down to how much you can buy during the crash.
    If you sell and run at a loss here, your assets are never going to grow.
    History has proven that every past crash was actually a buying opportunity — a rock-bottom bargain sale.
    71AnonymousSep 10, 2026 21:17
    Re: #55
    When successful investors sell before a crash, it's also to build up cash reserves so they can buy more once prices drop…
    68AnonymousSep 10, 2026 21:16
    AI is extremely useful to people who spend huge amounts of money in fields like defense and intelligence that don't get much public visibility, so
    while it might dip somewhat, I doubt it'll actually crash.
    69AnonymousSep 10, 2026 21:16
    Re: #68
    Lol, someone who's invested in AI stocks posting this while shaking in their boots
    70AnonymousSep 10, 2026 21:17
    It's like a wave — a dip now and then is normal. And then it grows bigger again.
    Won't the AI boom end up like the dot-com bubble?
    76AnonymousSep 10, 2026 21:19
    Re: #70
    Amazon crashed too, back then.
    Looking back on it now, it was nothing.
    77AnonymousSep 10, 2026 21:19
    Re: #63
    That's just a tiny handful of companies making money off it — even cutting-edge AI researchers are saying this is realistically how it'll play out.

    DeepSeek researcher pessimistic about AI's future: "It could take away jobs"
    November 10, 2025
    Chen Deli, a senior researcher at Chinese AI startup DeepSeek (WUZHEN AI), voiced a pessimistic outlook on AI's future impact on humanity at the World Internet Conference (WIC) held in Wuzhen, Zhejiang Province.
    107AnonymousSep 10, 2026 21:33
    Re: #77
    Everyone's competing to become one of that tiny handful of companies.
    That's not remotely inconsistent with a pessimistic future waiting for the world.
    89AnonymousSep 10, 2026 21:26
    AI is going to keep growing continuously, so isn't it kind of unlikely there'll ever be a moment you could call its "peak"?
    114AnonymousSep 10, 2026 21:35
    Re: #89
    That's true of basically anything, but it's a separate issue from a bubble bursting.
    Even if a boom fades or a bubble bursts and the industry (or related industries) declines or gets thrown into chaos, that doesn't mean every company or researcher disappears — so technological progress itself won't stop.
    93AnonymousSep 10, 2026 21:27
    What worries me more than a crash is hitting a ceiling, stagnating, bouncing slightly up and down, and then gradually declining for good.
    103AnonymousSep 10, 2026 21:32
    Re: #93
    Well, that particular pattern of decline hasn't really happened much throughout history, has it?
    101AnonymousSep 10, 2026 21:30
    Sure, a crash will come — but returns that outpace it will come too.
    If they didn't, capitalism itself would be over.
    104AnonymousSep 10, 2026 21:32
    Re: #101
    In the end only a handful come out ahead, the rest are just exit liquidity lol
    110AnonymousSep 10, 2026 21:34
    Re: #101
    Actually this whole thing is theater staged to end capitalism…

    The technocrats are gearing up for the Fourth Industrial Revolution, after all

    Background and Key Points of This Discussion

    Universa Investments, led by Spitznagel, is known for a strategy called “tail-risk hedging.” It involves paying a small premium every month to keep buying out-of-the-money put options (the right to sell), taking a loss nearly every single time in normal periods, but recouping it all — many times over — when a crash hits; the thread itself summed this up as “losing money every month, but making a fortune when the crash comes.” The term “black swan” itself originally comes from Nassim Taleb, describing an “unforeseeable, drastic upheaval” — which is exactly why commenters pointed out that “if you don’t know the timing or the cause, isn’t that the definition of a black swan?”, since “predicting” a historic crash arguably contradicts the concept’s original meaning. Meanwhile, NISA (the tax-free investment program used by most Japanese retail investors) is built around spot/cash trading, so there’s little risk of a forced loss-cut even in a crash, whereas investors trading on margin face risks like margin calls. That distinction is what split the thread’s reactions into “NISA investors will be fine” versus “the margin traders are the ones in danger.”

    *This article is excerpted and summarized from the 5ch (Breaking News+) thread “Once Again, the “Biggest Crash of a Lifetime” Will Come After the AI Boom Peaks — Says a Renowned “Black Swan” Investor.”