The Japanese government's uninspired response to the coronavirus -- announcing, belatedly, a state of emergency, but carrying out few tests -- may well prove the end of Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's long term. One of the most maligned and mocked initiatives has been Abe's offer to send each household in the country two face masks. This has been criticized as an "epic fail" due to the ineffectiveness of just two masks, delayed distribution, quality of the masks, and their cost. But by far the most novel critique and, simultaneously, striking utilization of the masks has come from idol Amo ...

You remember the Hentai Kamen, the superhero who wears panties over his face? Now behold the wonder of the Brassiere Eye Mask, which covers your eyes with -- you've guessed it -- a miniature bra. Produced by novelty store Village Vanguard, the Brassiere Eye Mask is more of a parody item than a genuine fetish toy, but it's still pretty awesome. Any mainstream appropriation of fetish culture is OK by us. We especially love the way it is marketed with a salaryman-like Japanese man dressed in a suit, whose true desires lie not in spreadsheets and PowerPoint presentations, but in ...

People in Japan like to wear masks, especially in the flu and hayfever seasons. Does it make a woman look more mysterious, hiding half a face? Or is she spoiling her charming looks? We know of a Japanese woman whose face we have never fully seen because she is always wearing a face mask. However, what we can see is always stunning, so the mask is both frustrating and tantalizing. Apparently this is a question serious enough for academics to do research over. Folk from the University of Hokkaido and Nagoya’s Chukyo University set out to find out if wearing a mask made you ...