Hilarious series of images from Japan show even Jason is concerned about COVID-19.
Friday the 13th is a day that’s tied up with some of the most frightening characters from the world of cinema, and one of the most notorious faces to pop up around this time of year is Jason Voorhees, the cold-blooded murderer from the Friday the 13th horror movie series which first debuted in 1980.
Hockey-masked Jason has been creeping into everyone’s nightmares since making his killing debut in the ’80s, and later resurfacing for some more bloodshed in the early 21st century as well. While he’s been keeping a curiously low profile recently, this year Jason appeared in Japan in the lead-up to Friday the 13th, giving a surprise press conference to inform everyone that the coronavirus would be impinging on this year’s activities.
▼ “This month’s Friday the 13th has been called off.”
Jason then appeared to break down after his announcement, with Freddy Krueger stepping in to console him.
With Prime Minister Abe calling for large events and gatherings to be cancelled or postponed, a number of well-known theme parks and tourist sites in Japan remain closed temporarily. Whether or not the lack of crowds to slaughter weighed in on his decision to call off Friday the 13th, it appears that Jason is keeping in line with the Prime Minister’s cautionary guidelines, which includes telecommuting from home too.
Jason and his figurine handler, Twitter user @suekichiii, quickly went viral online, ratcheting up thousands of likes and retweets for their cleverly staged images.
▼ “Oh crap!” says Jason, as he spots himself trending online.
Sweet-tooths from a wide variety of countries offered up their creative suggestions, and while smart-alec proposals for Breast Milk and Big Black Penis were struck off the list, the remaining ideas were whittled down, making way for 21 finalists, which have been revealed below:
Ichigo Tiramisu (Strawberry Tiramisu)
Uji Kintoki (Shaved ice with Uji matcha syrup and sweet adzuki red beans)
Ume Jamu (Plum Jam)
Orange Liqueur
Kuri Yokan (Chestnut Yokan [Yokan is a traditional jellied dessert])
Cream Anmitsu (Anmitsu is a Japanese dessert that usually contains small cubes of agar jelly, red bean paste, soft mochi sticky rice pieces, and fruit)
Shio Vanilla (Salted Vanilla)
Pearl and Lychee (the “pearl” in this case refers to bubble tea)
Nama Shoga (Fresh Ginger)
Chai
Cheesecake
Passionfruit
Fruits Cocktail
Hojicha (roasted green tea)
Hokey Pokey Ice Cream (A New Zealand favourite made from plain vanilla ice cream with small lumps of crunchy honeycomb toffee pieces)
The world-famous Sanrio character wants to welcome you onboard her very own high-speed train.
It was a sad day when the West Japan Railway company reminded us recently that their limited-edition 500 Series Evangelion Shinkansen would be ceasing operation this May. The specially wrapped train, which took its styling cues from the anime Neon Genesis Evangelion, had been shuttling passengers to stations along the Sanyo Shinkansen line from Osaka to Fukuoka since November 2015, becoming a fixture in the landscape of the region.
It’s time to wipe away those tears now, though, as JR West has just announced there’ll be a new animated character tie-up in store for their 500 Series Shinkansen. This time, they’re adding a whole lot of kawaii cuteness to the high-speed model, with Sanrio’s Hello Kitty leading the charge for their next cool train project.
That was a 17-minute roller coaster ride of laughs, tears and head-scratching weirdness! Let’s recap with a rundown of what we just witnessed.
1. U.F.O. Yakisoba Instant Noodles from Nissin introduced us to an intense battle between the U.F.O. Kamen “Yakiso-boy” and his foes to advertise their “extreme” sauce.
2. Sugon Chips from Koikeya (0:46) took us to the Ivory Coast with a jingle that’s hard to forget.
3. Pocari Sweat from Otsuka Pharmaceuticals (1:16) was one of 2017’s most epic ads, involving hundreds of people both on screen and behind the scenes.
4. Hi-Chew Premium from Morinaga (2:16) emphasised the plump, chewy texture of their gummy sweets with lots of cheek-squeezing.
5. Sushi Delivery from Gin no Sara (2:31) used the slogan “Wickedly good, wherever you slice” alongside a hilarious series of glitches in a memorable pillow-talk scene.
6. Instant Curry Meshi (Curry Rice) from Nissin (3:01) showed an instant noodle-loving grandpa flying off to the arms of an angel in heaven after discovering the taste sensation of instant rice.
7. Soft Ice Cream from Akagi Nyugyo (3:31) used the image of a dancing woman with an old man’s head to promote the fact that they serve up nothing but the top part of a soft-serve ice cream.
8. Sakeru Gummi (tearable gummy sweets) from UHA Mikakuto (3:46) pushed the boundaries with a girl asking to touch a workman’s “long” sweet, culminating in her facing him with her mouth wide open, begging for a taste.
9. Kiyora Eggs from Akita Tamago (4:16) featured their well-known rice bear wrapped in an egg blanket, heading out for a picnic inside a bento box.
10. Komatta Kamo Handyman Service from Takada Move Centre (4:46) will help you out in all types of situations, even when you’re changing a lightbulb and your towel drops to expose your body on national television.
11. C-HR Crossover from Toyota (5:01) drove through a number of Japanese scenes, including an appearance in the "Street Fighter" game.
12. Tada Gakuwari (Free Student Discount) Campaign from Y! Mobile (5:30) used the “YMCA” tune in a school environment to encourage students to sign up for their service.
13. Bingo 5 Lottery from Takarakujinet (6:00) showed how the word “Bingo” has the power to stop a riot at a cancelled live concert.
14. Mercari Flea Market App from Mercari (6:30) introduced us to an excited man who purchased a set of nunchucks online…for an unusual purpose.
15. Tires from Toyo Tires (6:45) combined cars with soccer players in real-life and animated environments to promote their tyres in a variety of driving conditions.
16. Neorest toilets from Toto (7:15) attracted our attention with a couple of anthropomorphised germs lamenting the fact that they have nowhere to hide, thanks to this new toilet’s “tornado flush” and modern cleaning systems.
17. Summoner’s War: Sky Arena RPG from Com2uS (7:45) didn’t need much time to create a memorable ad for their action-packed fantasy RPG.
18. Cup Noodles from Nissin (8:00) made waves around Japan in November with this instalment in the “Hungry Days Sazae-san” series of commercials, which pays homage to "Sazae-san," Japan’s longest-running anime.
19. Aqua Crossover from Toyota (8:31) showed us the beauty of night scenes around Tokyo, with Tokyo Skytree as the star of the show.
20. Sasebo Keirin Cycling Race from Saasebo Keirin (9:00) presented a touching scene where an older man is able to enjoy all the excitement of the cycling race from a smartphone.
21. D-Card/Apple Pay Electronic Payment Service from NTT DoCoMo (9:14) used a pair of hilarious puppets to capture the sense of awe that comes with using their service.
22. Rulo Robotic Vacuum Cleaner from Panasonic (9:45) took us into the drama of a miniature world of men running away from the cleaner’s powerful suction.
23. Mouse Laptops from Mouse Computer (10:15) also used mini humans, this time in the form of little mouse girls who run away from a big black cat predator.
**24. Onmyoji RPG from NetEase**(10:29) introduced us to the beauty of the Heian period, which is the setting for the game.
25. au Star Member Promotional Campaign from KDDI (11:00) used a star called Santaro to promote Santoro no Hi (Santoro Day) on the 3rd, 13th, and 23rd of every month, which also comes with a free gift from the Daiso 100-yen store retail chain for members.
26. Fami Chiki Fried Chicken from Family Mart (11:30) had us laughing out loud as a beauty salon worker spruced up a piece of FamilyMart fried chicken piece with a massage and a dash of pepper.
27. Life Insurance from Japan Post Insurance (11:45) used the slogan “Life is Filled With Dreams” to show how one girl might not have existed were it not for the chance meeting of her parents.
28. PS4 from PlayStation (12:45) turned the tables on typical family roles when a father threw a huge tantrum inside a store, only calming down when his young son tells him he can buy the new "Dragon Quest XI" game.
29. Puzzle & Dragons from GungHo (13:00) showed a young player practicing to defeat an intimidating foe with Combos in the hugely popular puzzle video game.
*30. Smartphones from DoCoMo (13:29) were given a boost in sales with the Namie Amuro x DoCoMo ad, which marked the 25th anniversary of their first joint collaboration, with the Japanese pop icon singing and dancing her way through 25 years of fashion and dance trends at the famous Shibuya scramble crossing. Coinciding with the release of Amuro’s album "Finally*," customers who purchased the album online were gifted with an original Amuro dPoint card from DoCoMo for a limited time.
31. Bingo 5 Lottery from Takarakujinet (13:59) featured famous doll Rika-chan and her friends out on a drive before getting swept up in the joy of Bingo.
32. Tobacco from Japan Tobacco (14:14) refrained from using the word “tobacco” anywhere in this ad, which features a touching performance from two of the most well-known stars from Japan’s music world: concert pianist Nobuyuki Tsujii, who was born blind from birth, and Sayaka Yamamoto, a popular member of the Japanese idol girl group NMB48.
33. Town Work Job Finding Site from Recruit Jobs (15:44) featured Japanese comedian Hitoshi Matsumoto and Nogizaka46 idol group member Rina Ikoma promoting the Town Work site in an amusing coffee shop scene.
34. PlayStation VR from PlayStation (16:14) created an extravagant song and dance to show that “we can do whatever we really wanna do”.
35. Don Bei Udon Noodles from Nissin (16:42) featured Japanese musician Gen Hoshino (who swept us up in the “Koi” Love Dance craze last year) and Japanese actress Riho Yoshioka in a wintery Christmas scene for the instant noodle brand.
Dramatic scenes were captured on film today as specialist teams and truckloads of equipment were sent to the busy station in Tokyo.
At 11:00 a.m. this morning, a busy station entrance at JR Akihabara Station was cordoned off by police as specialist teams were called to the scene to deal with a suspicious object discovered in the public toilet near the Showa Dori turnstiles.
According to news reports, a staff member came across the strange object in the unisex multipurpose toilet (a restroom designed for use by mothers, seniors, and the disabled) and alerted the Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department.
The police department responded immediately by sending their bomb disposal unit to the station to deal with the situation.
