Modern Japanese swordsmanship is divided into distinct categories: Kendo for “sparring” with the shinai or bamboo swords, Iaido for sword-drawing, and the various classical Koryu or “old schools” for the study of the ancient forms of swordsmanship passed down from the samurai era. One often hears it repeated that Koryu exponents never spar, and that the practice of sparring is completely untraditional in Japanese swordsmanship.
In the last few decades, Japan has been suffering from a declining fertility rate. While with an overpopulated world this might initially seem to be a good thing, it has many negative repercussions. Since 1975, the number of children born in Japan is insufficient to keep the population stable; meaning the overall population of Japan is shrinking. If the trend continues, it could mean some serious economic issues for the country.
The uyoku dantai, or “right wing groups”, of Japan are an interesting and peculiar form of nationalism. They are most popularly known for their propaganda tactics, which consists of blasting their viewpoint from so-called “noise trucks”, or gaisensha. These are vans, trucks or buses which have been converted to their needs, mounted with loudspeakers and plastered with the names of their groups, nationalistic slogans and other markers of Japanese pride, such as the country’s flag.
13 Assassins is one of the most violent movies I have ever seen. It is chock full of severed limbs and gushing blood, gore-clotted katanas and mounds of lifeless bodies. Not that I think that's a bad thing, mind you. I don't like watching movies where innocent people are hurt or killed, but I find the (fictionalized) sight of professional warriors relentlessly hacking away at each other to be as refreshing as a cup of morning coffee.
The kyabakura, or Japanese hostess club, is a phenomenon that most people in the West are at a loss to understand. Misconceptions range from the belief that these clubs are fronts for prostitution to assumptions about women being treated as objects. While the way women are treated is certainly not what one might call “gentlemanly”, the truth is a little less black-and-white than that.
My parents rented “Seven Samurai” when I was a kid, and watched it over two or three nights. Afterward, they expressed the opinion that it was “good, but really weird.” The first time I watched it was a number of years later, and I'd been prepared by a lot of other movies and books to understand it in context. So, I didn't find it weird at all, just brilliant and a lot of fun.
As everyone no doubt knows by now, good old North Korean leader Kim Jong-il is pushing up daisies. While most of the world may be celebrating the passing of the Dear Leader, the countries of the East, Japan included, are tense with anticipation of what could possibly happen next.
Read more about North Korea and Japanese Tension 
“Lone Wolf and Cub” was originally a manga, but it's also one of the weirdest series of samurai movies out there. “Baby Cart at the River Styx” and the other strange movies in this series tell the tale of a disgraced shogunate executioner who wanders a Japanese Neverland pushing a tricked-out baby carriage with his little son in it.
Read more about Lone Wolf and Cub
“Giri-ninjo” is an important and interesting key to understanding a lot of Japanese literature and cinema, especially stories about samurai and yakuza.
Read more about Giri-Ninjo
Way back in the 80s, at the forefront of the anime craze that has lately swept the U.S., was a cartoon series known as Robotech. I used to love this series as a kid. Giant robots beating the snot out of each other in deep space was all the entertainment I needed. It was the Robotech series that nurtured my own love of anime. It would be many years (and an improvement in internet information searching capabilities) before I found out that Robotech was, in fact, three series strung together to create one American mash-up.