Japan’s Influence On Millennials & Why So Many Are Obsessed

During the pandemic, it felt like Anime had a sort of “revival” in a way. No, it was never ‘dead’ to begin with, and there were always many active fans, but it felt like it gained more public approval and newer fans in a short amount of time.

While Anime may be hot now, millennials, like myself, have been admiring Japan and anime for over a decade now. Many of us were teased or bullied for our ‘weebish’ interests, and others had to hide it since it wasn’t cool back then. Other’s were considered to be Japanese wannabes or told it was just a phase and that they’ll grow out of it…But suddenly, it’s cool and acceptable to enjoy.

It’s always a little funny when newer fans ask me when I got into anime (as far back as I could remember) or Jmusic (more than half my life, since I was 13), or if I plan to go to Japan (already went in 2019). While I may be building an Japanese/anime cover band now, it’s been something I wanted to do since high school, over a decade ago. I honestly don’t have a whole lot of interests that don’t tie back to Japan.

But could you really blame me? Could you blame us? When I started looking into Japanese culture and inventions, it felt like most things I knew or liked at that point were actually Japanese, or Japanese influenced.

When I realized that, that’s when I gained a deep interest and respect for the little island across the world and grew more curious and how and why they created these things that totally made my childhood.

So today, I wanted to write an article for the sake of us ‘weebs’. For those who don’t understand why we are so intrigued by Japan, or for those assume anime is all we care about. Yes, there are certainly many who have only looked into anime, but then there are many who have found other parts of Japan that they admire.

And the thing is, a lot of these things were bestowed and advertised to us way before we really acknowledged Japan or knew they were the ones making them. Japan has so much influence on my generation, and I felt it should be talked about. So let’s get to it!

Anime & Toys

While I just mentioned it, I’m still going to include it as it’s own category as I’m sure at least 50% of millennials, if not more, first gained interested in Japan through anime. For most of us, it was what we watched on TV and grew up with.

Some of more memorable ones include Pokemon, Digimon, Sailormoon, Yugioh, Dragonball Z, Cardcaptors, Hamtaro, Bdamon, Metabots, Mew Mew Power, and so much more. By the time some of us were teens or early adults, other series started to debut on TV like Inuyasha, Bleach, One Piece, Naruto, Death Note, and ***.

Some series, it was clear they were brought over with the intent of selling games and cards, and they were some of the biggest hits. These include Pokemon and Yugioh Cards, Beyblades (Spinning Tops) which you can customize and buy stadiums for, Sailormoon and Cardcaptor wands and costumes, and much more.

Then, we also got tamogatchis which were a big hit. They were pocket sized divices where you could take care of an animal, new creature or baby. If you didn’t know, the concept of Digimon came from Japanese inventors wanting to make a tamagotchi for boys, and thus the Vpet. That was later turned into the manga and series which later produced the Digivice.

The reason why these shows and games were so popular, was because we got to see kids like us, average, shy, weak, pathetic even, grow throughout the series and eventually achieve their goals (though, I don’t recally seeing the end of most of the series. Regardless, we enjoyed the journey).

The games made us feel like we were one of them, and that we could do big things too. It really didn’t help that there were actually Pokemon, Yugioh, and Beyblade competitons around the world which only encouraged us to train and try to be the best, like our favourite characters. I know my childhood would have been really boring without these shows and toys.

Western TV SHOWS

Yes, I’m considering anime and cartoons as different things. While Anime definitely had the biggest influence on me, there were still cartoons and other shows that displayed Japan or Japanese characters.

Shows like Puffy Ami Yumi, which was about an actual Jpop duo who was touring around the world. I thought it was just fiction, but later found out they’re a real group. They also sang the Teen Titan Theme Song.

We also got many Japanese characters, like Kuki Sanban (Numbah 3) from Kids Next Door, Kimi Watanabe from Rugrats, Stacy Hirano from Phineas and Ferb, and ** from .

I also remember shows like Shake It Up and iCarly having a movie based in Japan, and other shows referencing or taking place in Japan as well. I don’t think any other country has been referenced as many times as Japan, besides maybe France or the UK.

Of course, ontop of just referencing Japan, quite a few shows were based on or inspired by Japanese shows and tropes. Power Rangers, for example, are based off Super Sentai. Transformers were based on Microman.

Cartoon Network’s Toonami segment, featured many anime shows and american shows that were highly Japanese influenced, such as Powerpuff Girls, Teen Titans, and Samurai Jack. Avatar, The Next Airbender, is often assumed to be an anime due to the art style and storytelling aspect, as opposed to being episodic. I do find it super cute that, for once, Japan actually took Powerpuff Girls and made the anime Powerpuff Girls Z.

Even The Boondocks, for example, the creator says he was influenced by Anime and Manga, and used shows like like Samurai Champloo and Cowboy Bepop for fight scenes. Point is, Japanese media, or media influenced and inspired by Japan was all over the TV growing up.

Video & Arcade Games

I think…THINK it’s fair to say that for most millennials, their first gaming system was in the Nintendo realm. Maybe their parents had an NES like mine, or they owned a Gameboy Advance or SP. They may have had a SNES or Gamecube. If not Nintendo, they probably had a Playstation. Regardless, both Sony and Nintendo are Japanese brands. And so are Sega, Atari, Bandai and Konami.

This meant many classic and/or household games like Mario Bros, Sonic The Hedgehog, The Legend of Zelda, Big Brain Academy, Final Fantasy, Kingdom Hearts, Resident Evil, Animal Crossing, Cooking Mama, Rhythm Heaven and so on are also of Japanese origin.

While arcades had their peak before we were born, they were still around, and still enjoyed at malls and movie theatres. Some popular arcade games that are Japanese include Pac-man, Street Fighter, Dance Dance Revolution, Space Invaders, Whac-A-Mole, Bomberman, Donkey Kong, and much more.

I know many millennials first online game may have been Neopets. I remember needing dialup to check up on mine. While Neopets is American, the creators were inspired by Pokemon and Tamagotchi, which are both Japanese.

When cellphone games started taking off, Japanese developers created some classic hits like Puzzle & Dragons, Puzzle Bobble (Bust-A-Move). Point is, if you’re a gamer, you’ve definitely engaged with something Japanese.

Music & Instruments

To the surprise of many, Japan actually has the 2nd biggest music market in the world. When asked, it may be hard for the average person to name one, but they may just not realize it yet, like with Teen Titans being sung by Japanse artists. I even remember playing “Sakura” on the Recorder in Grade 1.

If anyone has ever played DDR (Dance Dance Revolution), while the lyrics may sometimes be English like for Butterfly, the remix is Japanese. Speaking of games, I have come across quite a few producers who were looking into Japanese music progressions because they loved the background music and soundtracks of games they played aboe. They were beautifully made and had a way of evoking emotions.

For those who got into anime, they probably took a strong liking to their pop and rock songs, and even grown an attachment to some themes since they connect it to the show. If one couldn’t find any rock music they liked in the West (especially when Hip Hop and Pop took over), there is more than enough in Japan to explore. Live instruments are still popular, so it’s great for musicians like myself as well.

But another thing to note is just how many instrument brands are actually Japanese. The most widely well known one being Yamaha, which was a staple in my music classes for sure. Other brands include Casio, Ibanez, Pearl, Roland, Suzuki, and ESP. I talk about this more in my “Why japan…***”

All in all, Japan has a bit, yet subtle, influence in the world when it comes to music. Now and then, the have an act that surprises the world like Babymetal, and it makes sense why some artists have been inspired by Japan. Some, like Marty Friedman, loved Japanese music so much, they decided to take their whole career abroad.

Automobiles

While I was in high school, my mom’s friend’s son stayed over for some time as he was newer to the country. He’s a millennial but a handful of years older than I. When I mentioned my love for Japan, he was intrigued. He was a big car fanatic, and thus, was a big fan of Japanese brands and models.

Ya know, Toyota, Honda, Nissan, Suzuki, Luxus, Mazda, Subaru, Mitsubishi, and there’s other lesser known brands as well. He didn’t really know about Japan’s culture or anything like that, nor was really interested, but he respected their work in the industry.

According to Wikipedia, “The automotive industry in Japan is one of the most prominent and largest industries in the world. Japan has been in the top three of the countries with most cars manufactured since the 1960s, surpassing Germany. The automotive industry in Japan rapidly increased from the 1970s to the 1990s (when it was oriented both for domestic use and worldwide export) and in the 1980s and 1990s, overtook the U.S. as the production leader with up to 13 million cars per year manufactured and significant exports.”

It kinda makes sense why The Fast & The Furious had a movie called Tokyo Drift now, doesn’t it? 😛 It’s pretty much mario kart in real life now that I think about it!

Electronics & Innovations

According to Wikipedia “Japanese companies have been responsible for a number of important innovations, including having pioneered the transistor radio and the Walkman (Sony), the first mass-produced laptops (Toshiba), the VHS recorder (JVC), and solar cells and LCD screens (Sharp).”

“Major Japanese electronics companies include Akai, Brother, Canon, Casio, Citizen, Fujifilm, Fujitsu, Hitachi, JVCKenwood, Konica Minolta, Kyocera, Mitsubishi Electric, NEC, Nikon, Nintendo, Olympus, Panasonic, Pioneer, Ricoh, Seiko Group, Sharp, Sony, TDK, Toshiba and Yamaha.”

With further research, looks like Epson, the creators of Flash memory which so many electronics rely on, is Japanese. While Samsung (South Korea) is credited for making the first phone camera, but the J-Phone by Softbank which was released the same month is sometimes seen as the first ‘real’ camera phone since it alllowed users to send the photo from their phone, instead of needing to connect it to their computer. (Source).

They were also creators of the Jet Ski, Selfie Stick, 3D Printing, Blue Laser, QR Code, Karaoke, Lithium Batteries, Pocket Calculators, Rice Cookers, Bread Makers, Fibre Optic Communication, Androids, Bullet Trains, the list goes on and on!

Creative Arts

One of the first Japaense art forms I participated in without knowing it was japanese, is Origami. I really loved it and definitely knew how to make some cool things out of paper. I even remember taking out a book from the library to learn more, but I was too lazy to keep making square pieces of paper.

But of course, Japan has various art forms that others may like. Calligraphy, Ikebana (Flower Arrangement), Bonsai Sculpting, Amigurumi (Crochet Dolls), Haiku Poetry, Daruma and Mask Painting, Furoshiki Wrapping, and of course Manga!

I feel like every art has some kind of deeper meaning or lesson in place. For example, Kintsugi, which is ‘golden joinery’. Essentially, if a piece of pottery was broken (a bowl, cup, plate, etc), they would use lacquer mixed with gold, silver, or platinum to repair it. The cracks are still visible, but it’s a new, more beautiful piece.

Some say it’s a metaphor for embracing your flaws and imperfections, and that you won’t realize your full potential until you go through hard times (source).

Martial Arts

Common, ‘Karate Kid’ is a given and it definitely had a huge impact on everyone, especially those who were kids around the time it came out, aka millennials.

Outside of karate, Japan also owns many other martial arts Judo, Aikido, Sumo, Kendo (sword fighting), Kyudo (archery) and so on. Many of which are admired and beloved by practitioners and watchers.

Of course, just like the Karate Kid, Japanese martial arts became a basis of other shows and games, like Samurai Jack, Tekken, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, Budokan, The Last Samurai, and more recently, Cobra Kai (Karate Kid’s spinoff).

Anything that included Ninjas or Ninjutsu would also be referencing Japan in some way, and trust me, it felt like ninjas were EVERYWHERE when I was growing up. My favourite reference would be from Prank Patrol, in which Andy, the prankster, had his sidekicks, the ninjas, who would set up the scenes secretly.

American Ninja Warrior? Not only does it straightout have the word ‘ninja’ in it, but it is actually based of the very real Japanese show with the same context called Kunoichi, for the girls, and Susuke, for the guys.

There was also the movie Ninja Assassin. I wanted to see it as I was obsessed with ninjas then. By the time I did, it was I think a weekday evening a few weeks after it’s release so the theatre was empty. My fam saw another movie, but I didn’t care lol I loved it 😛

Food & Drinks

The amount of people who love sushi is crazy! But there are certainly other foods that many have taken a liking to, like Ramen, Udon, Tempura, Yakitori, Soba, Tonkatsu, Miso Soup, Okonomiyaki, Onigiri, Shabu Hot Pot, Gyoza, Taokyaki, Yakisoba, and so on.

Of course, we can’t talk about Japan without talking about tea! They did create the tea ceremony after all! Sencha, Gyokuro, Kabusecha, Tencha, Matcha, Mecha, Shincha, Hojicha, Bancha, Genmaicha, the list of Japanese teas goes on. While Bubble Tea is of Taiwanese origin, Japanese teas seem to be a staple at many shops.

And what is tea without dessert? Some popular Japanese desserts includes Mochi, Dango, and Anmitsu. Japan has also taken and made their own version of popular desserts like Crepes and Cheesecake. Uncle Tetsu, for example, was super popular when they launched in Toronto with their Japanese Cheesecake.

Fashion & Subcultures

For teens who were free and/or had the money to explore their fashion sense in the 90s and 2000s, some may have taken inspiration from Japan, especially those who were most interested in emo, punk, or cuter fashion trends. A couple of those people are millennial pop stars, Katy Perry and Avril Lavigne.

Some Millennials continue to embrace this fashion in their daily lives, and I’ve seen quite a few individuals around the city wearing full out lolita fashion in public with no event going on. There are also many western Youtubers who also explore and partake in the subculture.

I personally always loved Japan’s boldness when it comes to fashion. I know many Westerns couldn’t image being scene in such bold and extravagant outfits, but seeing how normalized and accepted it is in Japan can give one courage. Why can’t you wear big poofy skirts, high combat boots, and cute colourful accessories? Why can’t you wear those all at the same time? It’s definitely a country of inspiration.

(And no, Japanese people do not wear this all the time. Usually, students will be in uniform 6 days a week, so Sunday, the one day they can wear what they want and do what they want, they use it to explore and express themselves, usually in the Tokyo area of Harajuku, thus the name, “Harajuku Fashion”).

I’d also add a note for cosplay. Not so much a ‘subculture’ of fashion, but it’s also not just a costume worn on Holloween. Many millennials are making a full-on living cosplaying online or selling pictures from photoshoots. They don’t just dress up, but they put a lot of effort into emulating that characters with their facials and mannerisms, making them really popular with fans of those shows.

Culture & History

Ask me about World War I….I don’t recall anything I really learned from that term at school. But WWII? Once Japan was involved, I will admit, my interest was peaked. Even though they were the bad guys in this situation (and they did face harsh consequences), history is history. Even without the war era, Japan is certainly in the top 15 most interesting countries to dig into when it comes to their past.

And for those who don’t care a whole lot about history, Japan still has rich culture that is based off of their past. While they may be inventors and be quite advanced in some ways, Japan also tends to be quite old fashioned and traditional in other ways. Their cities may have a lot of tourists, but as a whole, immigrants only make up about 2% of the population, which allows traditions and values to continue on.

One thing I personally admire is how seriously Japanese people take their jobs. Thanks to their beliefs and general thinking, every role and every job is seen as important. There’s many videos talking about how beautifully made their McDonalds hamburgers are made for example, since care is put into that too.

Whether you’re a potter, a janitor, a cook, or a business man, you do your work carefully and diligently, following steps and protocol, and ensuring cleanliness and safety. Even if you’re getting paid minimum wage, your task and your customer is important and should be treated as such. Their pride in their work and their sense of duty is next level.

Heck, even if you’re not getting paid, everyone still does their job as a part of the community, cleaning and sorting their recycling, wiping down their table in the food court, paying their fares, and so on. This is greatly due to their community ideals and collectivist mindset. No one wants to stand out by doing a bad job or be excluded due to being selfish. No one wants to be a burden on another as well.

Land Of Cute, Fun & Innocence

If anything, one big part of Japan that attracted me back in middle school was that they embrace childishness and cuteness. The west is so mature, always pushing sex on TV with revealing outfits and provocative dances, but I didn’t care for that. Looking into Japan was like going to an alternate universe.

One thing many will discover first is their idol groups who will wear simple or adorable uniforms, and sing happy songs while doing fun dances that anyone could learn. While people in the West may fetishize school uniforms, to them, it’s just the norm. Japanese will be buttoned up and not show cleavage, but thighs are fine because…everyone has thighs! Thus, short skirts aren’t really as sexual as some assume it to be.

It’s good to also note that idols originated in Japan and many groups continue to go on, making lots of money every years. While Kpop has their own idols, their cultures are completely different, and I talk about this more in my Jpop vs Kpop article.

But essentially, to become a Kpop idol, one has to be super pretty and talented, and very few debut. In Japan though, all that matters it that you have a charm that can attract people and that you’re willing to work hard. Many learn on the job after debut, and thus they may not be the best singers or dancers, but they can gain fans regardless thanks to their charisma. It’s really hard not to smile when watching them.

And Japan’s cuteness doesn’t just stop at idols. They have created an influx of Kawaii (cute and adorable) characters. The most popular being Hello Kitty, but let’s not ignore Pikachu, Gudetama, Rilakkuma, Cinnamoroll, Hatsune Miku etc. A lot of their merch, accessories, and clothing are also bright and colourful.

You may be surprised to know that every district has their own kawaii mascot, along with police or fire departments and other brands. It’s not uncommon to see these characters on planes or in advertisements.

Now, in no way am I saying Japan is completely innocent. They do have their fair share of perverts and sexual content, but as a whole, it is okay and even acceptable to hold on to one’s youth and act younger than they are.

There are many themed cafes, for example, where young adults would dress up (cosplay) and act in a fun and playful manner with their guests. There’s maid cafes, anime cafes, animal cafes, ninja cafes, the list goes on. Unlike the West where you’d be stared at or judged for wearing or participating in certain things, again, it’s normalized over there. It really allows one to just relax and have fun.

And this doesn’t just stop at everyday people and idols. Even artists and celebrities who make it big also partake in fun and cute media. For example, the very popular PPAP which Justin Bieber (a millennial) took a serious liking to, it’s such a simple yet silly song, but it makes your day. It’s refreshing that they don’t take themselves so seriously <3

Conclusion

So, if you’ve been curious why so many people seem to be obsessed with Japan, or why so many have a trip to Japan on their bucketlist, I hope this spreads some light on it. I’m sure there’s other points I’ve missed, but I think this definitely covers a lot of people’s main interest in the country.

I feel like, even after 15 years of digging into Japan and learning what I can about this small island, there’s still so much to learn. Every article gives me another thing to look into and it still feels like I’m just scratching the surface. Not to mention, they’re always coming out with new and unique stuff that is quite intriguing.

While some may find their creations strange and cringy, for example maid cafes, cuddle rooms, or rent-a-boyfriend/girlfriend, it didn’t take long for someone else in the world to adopt it and find a market in their own city. Some things, like capsule hotels and onsens, only work because everyone follows the rules and respects other’s possessions.

It doesn’t surprise me that so many people want to visit Japan. Even those who aren’t that obsessed with them are still interested in visiting. And hey, it’s a great place to visit! It’s literally one of the safest countries and the people are really kind and helpful. It’s rare things get stolen, and the majority of items are returned. Food, culture, beautiful scenery, fun activities, they got it all.

I hope this article has spread some light into the appeal of Japan, not just for millennials, but to many others around the world.

dream job upgraded.