Though the ‘Asia Extreme’ moniker has only been around since 2005, Asian cinema, particularly from Hong Kong and Japan, has a long and illustrious history with cutting edge genre fare, and has been producing and distributing envelope-pushing films for nearly fifty years. While these films rarely found a home outside of their native countries, their taboo-busting efforts were not unnoticed at home where they had loyal and dedicated followers.

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This video for Japanese ukulele duo, U900’s cover of “Walk, Don’t Run” originally by The Ventures features the cutest animated amigurumis or crocheted creatures ever. This is an improvement on the instrument which my sixth grade elementary school teacher used to strum while forcing, I mean leading us in a singalong. Also, check out this video recording of the The Ventures performing it back in 1960! If you like this ukulele business then enjoy the Ukulele Orchestra of Great Britain. Here’s their highly acoustic cover of “Smells Like Teen Spirit.”

If one were to survey Japanese films that have been distributed in America over the last thirty to forty years, certain patterns would form. Works from the great masters, historical epics, dramas, monster movies and of course horror have certainly been well represented for decades. But one genre that’s severely lacking is comedy. In 1985, Juzo Itami’s noodle-western TAMPOPO became a smash hit, playing to sell-out crowds for months. However, since that time there haven’t been many Japanese comedies to find their way into the cultural zeitgeist, but that’s not for lack of material.

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Though not quite a household name, prolific auteur Takashi Miike has made quite a splash outside of his native Japan, both within the fanboy community as well as the cinephile set. Then again, when you’ve completed nearly eighty films in only eighteen years, you’re bound to get recognized.

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Last week Design Observer republished an online slideshow of photographs, 100 in all, of the destruction left after the bombing of Hiroshima. The gallery originally appeared last November and I missed seeing them then. They’ve resurfaced to commemorate the 64th anniversary of the bombing.

The images are haunting. They show the destruction of a city wiped off the map. Total annihilation.

As compelling is how the images were found. DO writes “one rainy night eight years ago, in Watertown, Massachusetts, a man was taking his dog for a walk. On the curb, in front of a neighbor’s house, he spotted a pile of trash: old mattresses, cardboard boxes, a few broken lamps. Amidst the garbage he caught sight of a battered suitcase. He bent down, turned the case on its side and popped the clasps.

He was surprised to discover that the suitcase was full of black-and-white photographs. He was even more astonished by their subject matter: devastated buildings, twisted girders, broken bridges — snapshots from an annihilated city. He quickly closed the case and made his way back home.”

The US government strictly limited distribution of these images. So these photos are even more unique due to their scarcity. In a world where war still rages I was left with a pit in my stomach.

Every now and then earth gets a little lonely, but on Tuesday this week people in Asia were able to turn around (with protected eyes) and view a total solar eclipse. Huffington Post collected some video recordings of this total solar eclipse, the longest of the twenty-first century. I found this video from Iwo Jima, Japan to be particularly breathtaking.

Is your pillow talk growing stale? Do you long for some new phrases to spice up your conversations between the sheets? Why not add a little Japanese flavor to your carnal acts?

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In this gorgeous ad for the watch company Citizen, buildings implode and explode, lights dance in complex arrays, and shadows engulf entire parks. The ad was created by the Japanese agency WOW for a watch- and jewelry-industry trade show called Baselworld.

Coming to us via Japan, this little piggy runs away from a wolf who loves pork in an incredible and fun must-watch video that combines photography with stop-motion animation.

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Maru, a Japanese pet cat with a personality to match his paunchy size, has become a feline phenomenon on the Interwebs with legions of fans and millions of views of his antics on YouTube. Furthermore, he is also the recipient of a 2008 YouTube video award. Why? Among other zany tendencies (like walking around with bubble wrap and brown paper bags around his head), Maru likes stalking and diving into empty boxes. I know, it doesn’t sound that compelling when explained, but like bowling it’s a lot more fun than it sounds. If you don’t believe me, just watch the original video that “cat”-apulted him into global stardom:

I’m deathly allergic to cats, but Maru is so freakin’ cute that I just want to pick him up and bury my face in his fur. The red eyes, runny nose, swelling in the throat would be almost worthwhile!

You can follow Maru on his own blog and on his always popular YouTube page.

Jero aka Jerome Wright Jr, 27, is an African American singer from Pennsylvania who won the Best New Artist award at the Japan Record Awards show, the Japanese version of the Grammys.

His style is “a melodramatic genre of Japanese music called enka” a form typically more popular with older generations. Jero was first exposed to this form of music through his Japanese grandmother who had met his grandfather, an African American serviceman during World War II. Since his fresh appearance on the Japanese stage, Jero has helped revitalize this genre. He recently performed at the Cherry Blossom festival in Washington DC.