Hikikomori
When the AIDs epidemic began tearing its way through gay communities throughout the world, there was almost no effort made by governments to address the escalating health crisis whatsoever. Even when heat-treated blood became available, pharmaceutical companies were strangely reluctant to offer these newer, safer products, particularly in South America and Asia, but no country was quite as ruthlessly self-defeating than in Japan, which created an extraordinary conspiracy to put corporate profits above the lives of their citizens Today's guest is Hannah Lane! You can find her via her ,...
info_outline #95 - Saya Hiyama, Weather CasterHikikomori
Weather News Live is a 24-hour a day stream dedicated to reporting the weather... sort of. It has gained huge popularity on the internet over the last few years with live shows hosted by "Casters", young women who have attracted huge fanbases. By far the most popular has been Saya Hiyama who, in mid-2023, found herself at the centre of a controversy normally only reserved for those in the Idol industry. Today's guest is Hannah Lane! You can find her via her , and she is also the co-host of our horror movie review podcast that we do together, . Check my new album, , for sale on Bandcamp! It's...
info_outline #94 - The Piranha Family (Part 3)Hikikomori
We end our series on Miyoko Sumida by looking at possibly her most disturbing family invasion with the Oe household, as well as how this eventually led to her accidental arrest and the fall of the Sumida gang. We also find out how the Yakuza hides bodies (allegedly). Today's guest is Hannah Lane! You can find her via her , and she is also the co-host of our horror movie review podcast that we do together, . Check my new album, , for sale on Bandcamp! It's an album of acoustic arrangements of Final Fantasy music. You can also stream the album on Spotify or YouTube Music. Enjoy! You can also...
info_outline #93 - The Piranha Family (Part 2)Hikikomori
We continue covering the disturbing crimes of Miyoko Sumida and her family, as she infiltrates and rips apart two more families. Today we look at how she added her loyal enforcer, Masanori Ri, and her presumed heir, Tanimoto Rui, to her organisation. Today's guest is Hannah Lane! You can find her via her , and she is also the co-host of our horror movie review podcast that we do together, . Check my new album, , for sale on Bandcamp! It's an album of acoustic arrangements of Final Fantasy music. You can also stream the album on Spotify or YouTube Music. Enjoy! You can also find me on Twitter ,...
info_outline #92 - The Piranha Family (Part 1)Hikikomori
Miyoko Sumida was a psychopath with a disturbing ability to manipulate others for her own ends. She was also seemingly obsessed with keeping other people by making them members of her family though marriage and adoption. In a horrifying 25-year career of criminal gang activity and serial murder, Sumida became more cult leader than yakuza. Today's guest is Hannah Lane! You can find her via her , and she is also the co-host of our horror movie review podcast that we do together, . Check my new album, , for sale on Bandcamp! It's an album of acoustic arrangements of Final Fantasy music. You can...
info_outline #91 - Uncle BalloonHikikomori
Yoshikazu Suzuki was a perennially-failing music shop salesman, and in the early 90s his debt had amounted to an astronomical level. His plan to get himself out of this debt was to rise above this, literally, by following in the footsteps of Lawnchair Larry. Today's guest is Hannah Lane! You can find her via her , and she is also the co-host of our horror movie review podcast that we do together, . Check my new album, , for sale on Bandcamp! It's an album of acoustic arrangements of Final Fantasy music. You can also stream the album on Spotify or YouTube Music. Enjoy! You can also find me on...
info_outline #90 - The Rent-a-Family FraudHikikomori
In April of 2018, the writer Elif Batuman had an article published in The New Yorker, titled "Japan’s Rent-a-Family Industry". It explored a cultural phenomenon in Japan, that of agencies where one could hire an actor to perform in a social interaction that would be otherwise awkward or impossible. It became such a popular and celebrated article that it would win the National Magazine Award for that year. Unfortunately, it was also based entirely on bullshit. Today's guest is Hannah Lane! You can find her via her , and she is also the co-host of our horror movie review podcast that we do...
info_outline #89 - The Monster with 21 FacesHikikomori
The Glico-Morinaga Case began in 1984, when the CEO of the Glico Corporation was kidnapped, naked from his home during a bath. While that kidnapping resolved itself fairly rapidly, what followed was a campaign of fear across Japan, as a mysterious organisation began threatening to poison the public's food. Today's guest is Hannah Lane! You can find her via her , and she is also the co-host of our horror movie review podcast that we do together, . Check my new album, , for sale on Bandcamp! It's an album of acoustic arrangements of Final Fantasy music. You can also stream the album on Spotify...
info_outline #88 - The Saitama Dog-Lover MurdersHikikomori
Content Warning: Murder. In the months after the Osaka Dog-Lover Serial Murders ended, but before the perpetrator of that case was caught, a completely separate but weirdly similar case occurred in Saitama. Gen Sekine, a fairly successful dog breeder and utter psychopath, decided that the best way to dig himself out of financial trouble was to kill his way out. Today's guest is Cassie! You can find her via her . Also be sure to check out her Vtuber persona, , who streams on ! Check my new album, , for sale on Bandcamp! It's an album of acoustic arrangements of Final Fantasy music. You can also...
info_outline #87 - The Osaka Dog-Lover MurdersHikikomori
Content Warning: Murder We return to murder with the serial murders that took place in Osaka in 1992. Over a period of 4 months, the ultimate fail-son Yoshinori Ueda used a chemical used to euthanise dogs to subdue and murder 5 people. Today's guest is Cassie! You can find her via her . Also be sure to check out her Vtuber persona, , who streams on ! Check my new album, , for sale on Bandcamp! It's an album of acoustic arrangements of Final Fantasy music. You can also stream the album on Spotify or YouTube Music. Enjoy! You can also find me on Twitter , or you can listen to my other...
info_outlineWeather News Live is a 24-hour a day stream dedicated to reporting the weather... sort of. It has gained huge popularity on the internet over the last few years with live shows hosted by "Casters", young women who have attracted huge fanbases.
By far the most popular has been Saya Hiyama who, in mid-2023, found herself at the centre of a controversy normally only reserved for those in the Idol industry.
Today's guest is Hannah Lane! You can find her via her Instagram page, and she is also the co-host of our horror movie review podcast that we do together, Not Another Film podcast.
Check my new album, Ruined Numbers, for sale on Bandcamp! It's an album of acoustic arrangements of Final Fantasy music. You can also stream the album on Spotify or YouTube Music. Enjoy!
You can also find me on Twitter @sequencepod, or you can listen to my other podcasts Final Fanservice and Not Another Film on any big podcast app.
Sources:
- Japanalysis: Japan’s Ridiculous Weatherwoman Fiasco
- Saya Hiyama clip 1
- Saya Hiyama clip 2
- Japan Times: Weather forecaster Saya Hiyama's viral moments say a lot about fame in Japan
- Oricon News - Saya announces she’s dating
- Parental bonding in retrospect and adult attachment style: A comparative study between Spanish, Italian and Japanese cultures. Hoenicka et al. (2022)
- Japanese national well-being survey shows that living alone results in lower satisfaction and affects other relationships, while social networking service usage is related to life satisfaction: A cross-sectional study. Miyaki et al. (2022)
- Aini: Parasocial relationships in East Asia: A look into obsession
- Time: In Defence of Parasocial Relationship
- Parasocial Interactions and Relationships in Early Adolesence