Metropolis

Artist: Yuki Atae
Exhibition: “Showa Memorial”
Concept: Dolls portraying the difficult lives of Japan’s children during the early postwar years.
Venue: Matsuya Ginza
When: September 16-October 4
Admission: ¥1,000 (kids ¥400- ¥700)

Yuki Atae. Showa Memorial. Dolls. Sep 16-Oct 4, free (MS and under)/¥700 (HS, univ)/¥1,000 (adult). 8F Matsuya Ginza, 3-6-1 Ginza, Chuo-ku. Tel: 03-3567-1211. Open daily 10am-8pm. Nearest stn: Ginza. www.matsuya.com

By: Metropolis Editors | Sep 2, 2010 | No Comments | 67 views

Statshot

What nampa techniques do you find yourself falling for?

He points out we come from the same hometown or school
I’m caught without an umbrella when it starts raining; he offers to let me share his
His sense of style matches mine
He gets my attention in a gentlemanly manner: “Sorry to bother you, but…”
He moves right in front of me and says “Hello!”
He tells jokes like a pro and makes me laugh
He compliments my appearance
He says, “What are you having?” and buys me a drink
He wins a prize for me (like in a UFO catcher game)
He pretends to be lost and asks for directions

Survey of 1,159 users of Goo Ranking (http://ranking.goo.ne.jp); July 21-22

By: Metropolis Editors | Sep 2, 2010 | No Comments | 113 views

Editorialized

The news last month that China had overtaken Japan as the world’s second largest economy unleashed a veritable monsoon of media punditry. Here are a few highlights…

Japan was the world’s second-largest economy for 40 years. But the traits that made it an economic powerhouse in the 20th century—easy capital, big companies, rote learning, management by mandarins and stable jobs for male breadwinners—are ill-suited to the 21st century. Today, Japan’s biggest obstacle is itself. Without dramatic reform, it will slip swiftly to number four, number five and beyond.—The Economist, Aug 19

The Japanese are doing lots of soul-searching this week, wondering why they became No. 3. Here’s why. In China, you have 1.3 billion people working hard to circumvent government regulations so they can make a quick yuan. Japan has 126 million complaining about how the government isn’t fixing their lives.—William Pesek, The Sydney Morning Herald, Aug 20

Freshly overtaken by China, Japan now seems to stand at the vanguard of a new downsizing movement, leading the way for countries bound sooner or later to follow in its wake. In a world whose limits are increasingly apparent, Japan and its youths, old beyond their years, may well reveal what it is like to outgrow growth.—Norihiro Kato, The New York Times, Aug 21

What patience with Japan existed when it was the second-biggest economy will not exist when it is the third… Japan now declines at its pleasure. The high-tech trappings are still visible, but its human masters are clocking off.—The Times, Aug 19

China, in reality, has reached high tide, and there are many reasons why it will start falling back… So look for Japan to once again become the world’s second largest economy. China has too many problems—and far too few good policies—to sustain its upward trajectory.—Gordon G. Chang, FoxNews.com, Aug 16

By: Metropolis Editors | Sep 2, 2010 | No Comments | 63 views

RIP

Photo by Jason Gray

At the time of writing, we’re still reeling from the news that anime director Satoshi Kon has passed away at the age of 46, after a battle with pancreatic cancer. One of the most respected figures in the industry, Kon had his first manga published in Weekly Young Magazine in 1984 while still studying at Musashino Art University, and went on to work with influential artist and animator Katsuhiro Otomo (Akira). His debut feature film, Perfect Blue (1997), introduced some of the themes that would come to characterize his work, including complex narratives and a blurring of fantasy and reality. Kon would pursue these further with Millennium Actress (2001) and the 2004 TV series Paranoia Agent, while demonstrating a knack for crowd-pleasing with 2003’s Tokyo Godfathers. However, he may be best remembered for his 2006 adaptation of Yasutaka Tsutsui’s Paprika, a visually dazzling tale of dream-world explorers that was echoed (some might say aped) by recent Hollywood blockbuster Inception. He was working on a fifth film, Yume Miru Kikai (“The Dream Machine”), at the time of his death.

Satoshi Kon, Oct 12, 1963-Aug 24, 2010

By: Metropolis Editors | Sep 2, 2010 | No Comments | 36 views

Suite!

Courtesy of Shangri-la Hotel, Tokyo

You’d be styling if your living space in Tokyo had a walk-in closet, private gym, executive office, Bose surround sound system (in each room), and a bathroom with its own sauna and a jet bath overlooking the Imperial Palace gardens. But all this in a hotel suite? That’s just silly. In the August issue of Elite Traveler magazine, the Presidential Suite at the Shangri-la Hotel, Tokyo was named one of the top 101 suites in the world—the only one in Japan to make the list. Designed by Hong Kong heavyweight Andre Fu, the 269m2 (2,896 ft2) space features such amenities as Baccarat table lamps, Bulgari toiletries, custom-made carpets and two-story-high ceilings. Elite Traveler singled out the “rich palette of burgundy, gold, beige and salmon that lends a true sense of regalness to the decor.” The price for one night’s stay? A cool ¥1 million.

www.shangri-la.com

By: Metropolis Editors | Sep 2, 2010 | No Comments | 34 views

Ad Copy

When keeping up with the Tokyo food and drink scene is part of your job, the endless parade of “dining bars” and “beer restaurants” spouting the same recycled ad copy can get really old. So it’s refreshing to come across a venue that embraces, well, a different PR philosophy. The Guru-navi-hosted homepage for Motsusen (2F, 2-14-12 Akasaka, Minato-ku) proclaims: “A really average motsu-yaki izakaya appears in Akasaka! What flavor awaits from the motsu-yaki grilled by our chef, who doesn’t particularly like motsu…?” The site goes on to boast, “We very politely refuse reservations! And we definitely don’t have any private rooms! We don’t come to work on Sundays and holidays! Our not-particularly-friendly staff await you with straight faces!” House specialties apparently include sashimi (“bought daily from the supermarket next door”), pork kushi (“look, there are sticks stuck in the pork”) and tomato salad (“it looks so red—must be a really talented photographer”). Incidentally, Motsusen is reputed to actually be pretty tasty.

http://r.gnavi.co.jp/e432800

By: Metropolis Editors | Aug 26, 2010 | No Comments | 116 views