Starting March 4, the permanent museum teamLab Forest Fukuoka will transform its artwork into a stunning spring theme. Guests will be able to enjoy gorgeous cherry blossoms for a limited time, and starting March 24, the Catching and Collecting Forest will also be transformed in the same way.

TeamLab’s works are created in real time by procedural generation, meaning that they are always changing and evolving. Each work changes depending on the season.

▼Starting March 4

Both Shifting Valley, Living Creatures of Flowers, Symbiotic Lives – A Whole Year per Year and Animals of Flowers, Symbiotic Lives II – A Whole Year per Year are only available to see during spring. Come and see animals made entirely of cherry blossoms as they roam through the museum!

The work titled Soft Terrain in Granular Topography shows multicolored grains of light pouring from the sky, while Flutter of Butterflies, Ephemeral Life surrounds visitors with brightly colored butterflies

▼Starting March 24

In the Catching and Collecting Forest, visitors can explore with their smartphones and catch various animals made entirely of cherry blossoms.

Starting September 23, teamLab Forest Fukuoka will be transformed for the autumn season! The interactive digital art installation will feature animals made entirely of fall foliage, and guests can enjoy red and orange leaves fluttering through the one-of-a-kind 3D world. 

teamLab’s prolific works are known for changing with the seasons. This autumn version of the popular exhibition will only be on display for a limited time, and visitors can use their
smartphones in the Catching and Collecting Forest to catch and collect the animals on display! The forest and ocean scenery will change as you explore, and starting on September 23, the trees will begin to show off beautiful autumn colors.

In the Forest of Movement, guests can enter the ‘Shifting Valley, Living Creatures of Flowers, Symbiotic Lives’ exhibit, where creatures made of autumn flowers exist in a three-dimensional space. The space is meant to make guests think about the cycle of death and rebirth, as flowers blossom and die each and every year.

The ‘Soft Terrain and Granular Topography’ will display tons of colorful grains raining down on visitors, while the ‘Flutter of Butterflies, Ephemeral Life’ will change the usual butterflies to have autumn colors as they fly around guests. This is a kind of autumn scenery you can’t see anywhere else, so be sure to come to Fukuoka during this beautiful season!

Jewelry brand Tasaki has announced a special collaboration pop-up with the popular manga Chainsaw Man from September 7 until September 13, 2022 at KIRAMEKI BOARD on the first floor of the Iwataya Department Store in Fukuoka. The pop-up is being held to celebrate new items in the ‘danger’ line, one of Tasaki’s new iconic items.

At the venue, guests can peruse a selection of Tasaki’s fine jewelry, including the new ‘danger’ collection which was inspired by the beauty of insectivorous plants. This is a perfect mix with Chainsaw Man, which has captivated audiences around the world with its unique plot, savage content, and one-of-a-kind characters. Special visuals of the main characters wearing jewelry from the ‘danger’ collection will be on display, drawn by the original author of the series Tatsuki Fujimoto. Also on display at the venue will be a special Pochita figure, whose chainsaw will be lavishly set with pearls.

Exterior ©TASAKI 

To celebrate the collaboration, unique jewelry inspired by Chainsaw Man, Pochita, and Power will be on sale exclusively at the pop-up venue. These will only be available in limited quantities.

Fans of the series who are looking for some gorgeous new drip shouldn’t miss this curious crossover event!

To commemorate the 5th anniversary of Sanrio’s avatar app Hello Sweet Days, a cafe collaboration with Sanrio Characters Honey Toast Cafe in Yokohama, the Pompompurin Cafe in Harajuku, and the Cinnamoroll Cafe in Shinjuku will begin on August 20, 2022. This is the first collaboration to take place at all three stores at once.

Collaboration Cafe

Each location will offer a different collaborative drink for a limited time only. Those who purchase these tasty beverages or show the Hello Sweet Days app screen to the staff will receive exclusive goods while supplies last! Music from the app will be played in each cafe, so be sure to check it out!

Collaboration Drinks

Exclusive Merch

Limited-Time Event

The Sugoroku Event is a popular part of the Hello Sweet Days app. This year’s event will begin on August 21 and will take a look at the history of the app, given that it is celebrating its 5th anniversary. Players will be able to take look back on past additions and earn a variety of special rewards!

Running: August 21 – August 30 at 23:59

The Smile Festival SNS Contest will also be going on, inviting fans to participate to win Sanrio goods. More details on how to submit an entry are available on the app. 

There will be many other special events and campaigns both inside and outside the app during the month of August to celebrate the 5th anniversary, so keep an eye out for more!

Ⓒ 2022 SANRIO CO., LTD. APPROVAL NO. L633389　Ⓒcocone

Cinnamoroll, Pompompurin, and Pochakko are the latest to be picked up by the character-inspired Japanese confectionery series Tabemas. These tasty treats will go on sale at Lawson stores across Japan starting August 2, 2022.

Tabemas Sanrio Characters 2022

Cinnamoroll with Ribbons

Pompompurin with Ribbon

Pochakko with Ribbon

Three of the most popular Sanrio characters have been transformed into traditional wagashi sweets! Pompompurin, Cinnamoroll, and Pochakko are dressed in their finest attire, complete with ribbons. Cinnamoroll’s filling is milk-flavored, while Pompompurin is pudding-flavored and Pochakko is filled with banana sweetness. Be sure to take some pictures before chowing down! Honestly, these might be too adorable to eat. 

Kirby Cafe TOKYO and Kirby Cafe HAKATA will begin selling special summer-themed food and drink items on July 7. The Kirby Cafe Summer 2022 event will introduce seven peach-themed goodies to the menu through September 11. 

Menu

Transform! Carby Cake ~WELCOME TO THE NEW WORLD!~

Kirby’s Peach♡Peach Parfait

Summer Souvenir Parfait Glass

Awoofy’s Footsteps in the Desert Pizza

Waddle Dee’s Friendly Rice Croquettes

King Dedede’s Full Tummy! Massive Beast King Plate

Rolling ♪ Peach Soda

(Includes Summer Souvenir Parfait Glass)

Rolling ♪ Summer-Colored Pineapple Soda

Summer Souvenir Acrylic Muddler (3 varieties)

Visitors to the two cafe locations can enjoy peach-flavored treats like Kirby’s Peach Parfait and an adorable cake based on the pink puffball’s Carby form seen in the new game Kirby and the Forgotten Land. Those wanting something more savory can enjoy Waddle Dee’s Friendly Rice Croquettes and the absolutely huge King Dedede’s Full Tummy! Massive Beast King Plate. 

Come enjoy the warmer months with Kirby and friends!

Story

Summer is returning to the Kirby Cafe. Thinking of the warmer months, Chef Kawasaki has created a special menu! As a Waddle Dee, filled with great excitement, wandered through the forest…it saw tons of lush, ripe peaches. 

“Huh? That pink, round peach reminds me of something…” 

Then came Kirby, who was looking forward to the summer menu more than anyone else. 

“Ah, that’s right! The peach looks just like Kirby!”

Happy to have solved the riddle, Kirby smiled brightly at Waddle Dee. Gazing at this glorious summer scene with tons of juicy peaches ready to be eaten, he couldn’t help but imagine tons of tasty treats! Peach parfait, sparkling soda, blue jelly sparkling like the ocean…not wanting to forget these ideas, Kirby and Waddle Dee gathered the peaches and began cooking.

Please come and enjoy this summer with Kirby and his friends under the dazzling sunshine!

©Nintendo / HAL Laboratory, Inc.

The results are in! The annual Sanrio Character Award tallies millions of votes to discover which of the company’s 450 characters is the fan favorite for the year. In 2022, nearly 26.5 million people cast their vote, totaling up to 124% of last year’s turnout.

Taking the top spot for the third year in a row is Cinnamoroll, almost reaching 3 million votes. The character is celebrating his 20th anniversary this year, so it’s fitting that he should take home the trophy!

Pompompurin came in second. The adorable dog has been in the top three for the past eight years and managed to rack up nearly 2.4 million votes. Surprisingly, Kuromi came in third, surpassing her rival My Melody for the first time ever. This was also the first time in the history of the competition that Kuromi has ranked in the top three.

Hangyodon ranked eighth, becoming the first new character in the top ten in 34 years. The fish character has been seeing increased popularity over the past year. 

All rankings are available to view on the official website, so be sure to take a look to find out where your favorite sits!

©’22 SANRIO　　S/D·G　　S/F·G　　SP-M　　著作　（株）サンリオ

NAMJATOWN, a theme park located in Ikebukuro, Tokyo, will be holding a special BT21 event from May 14 until June 12, 2022! The ‘BT21 MerryLand ~Welcome to our Dreamy World!~’ event celebrates the popular LINE FRIENDS characters, and guests can enjoy lots of games and treats!

The event recreates MerryLand, an amusement park in the BT21 member’s dreams. Guests can participate in three unique mini-games inspired by amusement park attractions, along with a stamp rally and riddle-solving game! Original merchandise and menu items will also be available.

Original Mini-Games

BT21 MerryLand Spinning Ferris Wheel / BT21’s  Whirling Teacups ♪ / The Full Stomach Yum-yum Wagon

Mini-Game Prizes

A Prize: Relaxing Cushion (7 varieties)

B Prize: Bandana (7 varieties)

C Prize: Mini Acrylic Stand (7 varieties, random)

D Prize: Character Pin (7 varieties, random)

*The design for A Prize and B Prize will differ depending on the mini-game.
(Guests can choose the design for each game.)
*For C Prize and D Prize, the design is the same for all mini-games.

Venue Exclusive Project! Rally Game

Rally Game Prizes

Participation Prize: Mascot Rubber Charm (7 varieties, random)
*Prizes are the same for each Rally Game.

Original Merchandise

Original Food & Drinks

Soft Drink with Acrylic Coaster / Fortune Latte (14 varieties) / Icing Cookie (7 varieties)

Those unable to attend the event can head to the Namco Parks Online Store to play some web-based mini-games offering the same prizes! Certain pieces of merchandise will also be available for purchase online.

Following Tokyo, the event will head to HEP FIVE in Osaka from July 2 until July 24 and Canal City Hakata in Fukuoka from August 5 until August 28.

©Bandai Namco Amusement Inc.

Sanrio has announced the top 10 preliminary rankings for the 2022 Sanrio Character Awards! These results reflect those votes cast between April 8 and April 10.

The 2022 SANRIO FES, a one-day special event for Sanrio fans, will be held both in-person and online on Sunday, June 12. This will be the first time the event has been held in three years, and it will feature special panels with Sanrio characters, booths where fans can interact with their favorites, and plenty of other content to look forward to this summer.

The first-place winner in the preliminary results is Cinnamoroll, who ranked #1 last year and is currently celebrating his 20th anniversary. Pompompurin, who ranked at #2 last year, is also coming in second this year, while Pochakko, who ranked at #3 last year, is in third. Sanrio dogs are absolutely dominating the competition! 

Kuromi, who managed to climb into the top five in 2021 for the first time in 11 years, is ranked fourth, while fan favorites Hello Kitty and My Melody also appear. Hangyodon, who ranked at #13 in 2021, is currently ranked at #7, signaling a major jump in popularity.

Who are you hoping rises to the top in 2022?

The voting period ends May 23, 2022. Be sure to stay tuned for the next interim announcement on May 12!

INN THE PARK Fukuoka is the first place in Kyushu where you can spend the night overnight in a public park! No, you won’t be sleeping on a bench or on the ground–this is way fancier. This is the second such location, with the first opening in Shizuoka in 2017. 

Spherical Tent

Glamping

Cabin

Suite

Restaurant

The new facility will be located in Uminonakamichi Seaside Park in Higashi-ku, Fukuoka City. The park is about 6km from east to west and includes a zoo, outdoor swimming pool, aquarium, outdoor theater, and more. Guests can overlook Hakata Bay while enjoying these many fun outdoor activities and delightful accommodations! 

How about staying here on your next trip to Japan?

Mitsukoshi Fukuoka has opened a new exhibition dedicated to the many lovable dogs and cats found in Disney films! The event is taking place at the Mitsukoshi Gallery on the 9th floor until March 27, 2022.

The Disney film Bambi aimed to take on the difficult task of portraying animals realistically. Animals were kept in the studio and artists studied their movements and expressions while creating the film. Audiences were stunned, and since that point, more and more beloved animals have appeared in Disney films. The Disney Cats & Dogs exhibition will also show the evolution and innovation of Disney’s animal animation and the history of the trial and error process in bringing them to life. 

Pluto

Lady and the Tramp

101 Dalmatians

Cheshire Cat

Mochi

Marie

Photo Spot

The lineup will include Mickey’s sidekick Pluto, Lady and the Tramp, 101 Dalmatians, The Arisocats, and more. Figaro from Pinocchio, Lucifer from Cinderella, the Cheshire Cat from Alice in Wonderland, and Mochi from Big Hero 6 will also be appearing!

The exhibition will feature over 300 digitized works of rare art along with dioramas and more materials related to the creation of Disney films. Fans shouldn’t miss this opportunity to see these behind-the-scenes items!

©Disney

Cotomono Marche’s original brand ‘BUTTON&CUFFLINKS’ has released a selection of earrings and brooches inspired by popular Sanrio characters! These are available online and at select Cotomono Marche stores. 

The accessories are inspired by Hello Kitty, Cinnamoroll, Pompompurin, My Melody, Kuromi, and Little Twin Stars, and are perfect for Sanrio fans of any age. 

Earrings: ¥2,750 (Tax Included) / Brooch: ¥1,650 (Tax Included)

Hello Kitty debuted in 1974 and continues to captivate fans around the world. The character peeking out from behind an apple is an original design for the collaboration. 

Pompompurin and Cinnamoroll have been transformed into adorable accessories, while My Melody and Kuromi are featured in two different color palettes: seasonal pastel or vivid. 

The Little Twin Stars accessories are perfect for wearing with a friend, with a different character on each ear!