Bandai Candy’s Tabemas series of Japanese sweets are releasing a fan favorite yet again! Minion-themed wagashi are making a triumphant return to Lawson convenience stores in Japan (excluding Natural Lawson and Lawson Store 100) on August 10, 2021. 

The line-up includes popular characters from the Despicable Me and Minions film series: the childish Bob, prank-loving Stuart, and the leader of the group, Kevin. After a popular release in 2020, it’s no wonder they’re back!

Tabemas, a portmanteau of ‘edible’ and ‘mascot,’ is a series of traditional confections made to look like well-known characters, crafting them out of ingredients such as red bean paste, rice flour, and sugar. Each Minion is faithfully crafted in edible fashion, from the goggles to the hairstyles. 

While the sweets are filled with red bean paste, a traditional flavor in Japanese sweets, each character has a different flavor: Bob is banana (his favorite), Stuart is strawberry, and Kevin is chocolate. As delicious as these treats may be, they’re almost too cute to eat! We’d recommend taking a few snaps for Instagram before digging in. 

The Minions aren’t the only characters the Tabemas series has made into edible creations: other popular releases include familiar faces from Rilakkuma, Sumikko Gurashi, One Piece, Snoopy, Kirby, Doraemon, Yo-kai Watch, Sailor Moon, Detective Conan, and a collection of beloved Sanrio and Disney characters!

Which Minion is your favorite flavor? 

Minions Franchise (C) Universal City Studios LLC. All Rights Reserved.

Nijigen no Mori, an amusement park located on Awaji Island in Hyogo, began a summer event at its Naruto and Boruto-themed zone on July 22 which is set to run until September 30.

Event-exclusive stickers

The event includes a huge water gun event where 25 litres of water will be sprayed to cool down guests during the hot summer event. With themed character panels displayed around the park, join Naruto and the gang, including Zabuza and Haku, for some summer fun. All guests receive a free original sticker too.

© 岸本斉史 スコット／集英社・テレビ東京・ぴえろ

As part of the LINE FRIENDS 10th anniversary celebrations, Illumination Entertainment and Universal Brand Development released the MINIONS X BROWN & FRIENDS collection at the LINE FRIENDS Harajuku store and the online store on July 22. A collection of digital accessories, camping items, and golf goods will also roll out in August. This includes a release at 17 branches of KIDDYLAND on August 7 as part of PLAY LINE FRIENDS.

BROWN & FRIENDS began as a stamp series on the Japanese messaging app LINE. The characters are now featured just about everywhere including as merchandise. See Brown and Sally meet Kevin, Bob, and Stuart from the hit animated films Despicable Me and Minions in the form of digital accessories aimed at tech lovers such as AirPods cases and smartphone clips as well as eco bags, golfing equipment, camping necessities, and more.

As part of the collaboration, Brown & Friends and Minions LINE stickers and Instagram filters will also be released in August. Check out the official LINE FRIENDS social media pages for related promotional videos too.

And for Japanese fans of both franchises, they get some Japan-exclusive merchandise too including a mini towel, hand towel, face towel, bath towel, denim tote bag, denim pouch, eco bag, hat, stationery, bottle, mug, neck pillow, and more.

©LINE/©UCS LLC

Fuji-Q Highland is set to host a summer event in collaboration with the mobile rhythm game BanG Dream! Girls Band Party from August 7 to September 12.

This marks the amusement park’s 4th collaboration with the game which will see newly-illustrated artwork of the characters decorating the attractions, a special talk show hosted by the voice actresses, limited-time announcements on the attractions recorded by the voice actresses, a themed food menu, original merch, and more.

A digital stamp rally will also take place which will have guests locating life-sized panels of seven characters which they need to scan with their smartphone. This will give them a special voiced story. Those who obtain all the digital stamps by scanning all the panels will receive a free novelty as well as an original voiced guide for boarding the amusement park train. The train too will be decorated in BanG Dream! artwork.

©BanG Dream! Project　©Craft Egg Inc.　©bushiroad All Rights Reserved.

Tokyo Midtown’s annual MIDTOWN ART PALETTE has returned again for the summer, opening on July 16 and running until September 5. This year, the event delivers a Digital Art Garden with gorgeous dream-like digital artwork.

Digital Art Garden

Last year’s event

Experience a distinctively Japanese way to stay cool and refreshed on a wooden veranda with light and mist dancing through the outdoor space inspired by traditional Japanese rock gardens. Find yourself bewitched by an enchanting summer evening as the digital art transforms throughout the day.

This year’s event is being held with all proper social distancing measures in place.

Take digital art home with you with AR fireworks

Locate five QR codes dotted around Tokyo Midtown which when accessed via your smartphone will award you with artistic AR fireworks, allowing you to enjoy fireworks with you wherever you point the camera on your screen, including at home.

Continuing the character park’s 30th anniversary celebrations, Sanrio Harmonyland opened its 30th Anniversary ~Special Summer~ event on July 16 which is running until August 31. There’s a whole bunch of events and shows for Sanrio fans to look forward to this summer.

30th Special Greeting

For the entire duration of the event, lots of characters will come out to greet park guests twice a day. This includes Hangyodon and Tuxedosam, both of who haven’t visited Harmonyland in almost 10 years. Pochacco will be there too in a brand-new costume.

Obake Ondo! DoRoRoNRoN!

The characters will be out dressed in cute summery yukata where they will invite guests to dance Bon Odori with them.

Parade Parallel ~30th Memories~

A special 30th anniversary rendition of the park’s Parade Parallel will take place, taking songs and performances from past runs of this event which has been held since the park first opened.

30th Anniversary Night Party

Hello Kitty, Dear Daniel, Cinnamoroll, Kuromi, and 10 dancers will host a special anniversary night show to give thanks to guests for the past 30 years.

Running: July 17th-18th, 22nd-24th / August 7th-8th, 13th-15th, 21st-22nd, 28th-29th

Character Menu: Hello Kitty’s Cheese in Hamburger Curry – Cinnamoroll’s Beef Stew Rice – Smiling Pompompurin’s Pork Cutlet Curry | ¥1,380 Each

Wish Me Mell’s Heart Korokke White Sauce Omurice | ¥1,400

Acrylic Stand Keyrings | ¥748 Each

Guests can get their hands on exclusive anniversary merchandise and enjoy some limited-time dishes too.

ⓒ 2021 SANRIO CO., LTD.　S/D･G

Sanrio’s popular character duo Kiki & Lala, also known as the Little Twin Stars, are have brought their dreamy, pastel-coloured world to Tokyo Tower with a special summer event titled “Little Twin Stars Summer Night Fantasy Meets Kiki & Lala Exhibition produced by LIDDELL” which began on July 10.

At the event entrance, guests are given a special ‘passport’ notebook which is stamped before entering, allowing access to Kiki & Lala’s world in the clouds above.

Guests are guided by Kiki & Lala’s voice through the rose-coloured “Star & Rose-Coloured Cloud Fantasy Gate” were they are met with five different booths.

At Kiki’s Star Catching booth, visitors can experience one of Kiki’s favourite past times by ‘catching’ stars. The stars that are caught can be taken home as a fun memory.

There’s also the Starry Sky Light Shower booth which is decorated with mirror balls that reflect the light as well as a wall featuring words and phrases said by the twins, the pink and light blue-coloured Kiki & Lala’s Playroom where you can snap cute photos, the Glittering Moviegenic booth which uses your smartphone to watch an animation of Kiki & Lala, and more.

Fans of the twins can enjoy an exhibit of various artworks too, including the 8-meter tall Fantasy Wall which depicts the world above the clouds.

The day before the exhibition began, on July 9, Tokyo Tower was lit up in blue and pink Kiki & Lala colours from 19:30 to midnight. It was a special one-night experience.

If you’re in Tokyo this summer, soar up high into Kiki & Lala’s world at Tokyo Tower.

©‘21 SANRIO 著作（株）サンリオ

YohaS is set to collide the real and digital worlds at Chiba Park with an event titled YohaS 2021 Night Park Gallery which will run from July 6 to 10.

Lightning artwork (*For illustrative purposes only, art will be different for the event)

The event held back in 2019

YohaS is a collaborative project between Chiba City and Tsubakimori Komuna. It was launched to boost and develop the nighttime economy of Chiba, with its first event having taken place as the evening portion of the Ooga Hasu Flower Festival held in Chiba back in 2018. YohaS was unable to be held last year due to the pandemic and so an event was held online. This year sees its return with an event taking on the theme of “Silent Lips” which refers to the current situation with COVID-19 and how we cannot see peoples’ smiles or lips due to them wearing face masks.

The title of the YohaS 2021 event is “Night Park Gallery” which will turn Chiba Park into an art gallery and fuse it with breathtaking lighting and illuminations by Sun Effects. There will be six stages produced by Hiroaki Kumagai, a former member of Cirque du Soleil, each of which will offer equally incredible performances with their own stories from July 6-9. Visitors can also purchase YohaS wristbands, t-shirts, anti-bacterial sprays, and more.

For those still unable to attend in person, YohaS will also open an online version of the event called Virtual YohaS in Chiba Park which can be accessed via a PC or smart device.

Tokyo-based amusement park Yomiuri Land and flower park HANA・BIYORI are celebrating 10 years of Studio Chizu, the animation studio spearheaded by director Mamoru Hosoda, as well as the upcoming release of their new film Belle with a special event that is running from July 17 to September 5.

Studio Chizu 10th Cross Park in Yomiuri Land

Flowers collide with digital art at HANA・BIYORI

Solve puzzles in an AR rally

Themed food

Exclusive merchandise

The events will celebrate Mamoru Hosoda and Studio Chizu’s entire filmography including The Girl Who Leapt Through Time, Summer Wars, Wolf Children, The Boy and the Beast, Mirai, and their upcoming film Belle which will be released in Japan on July 16. This includes themed attraction, food, merchandise, and more. There will also be a special AR rally where guests will need to locate hidden characters around the park. A digital art show will also take place at HANA・BIYORI which is connected to Yomiuri Land.

More details about the attractions and food will roll out in early July.

The Shinjuku Bird Festival opened on the 11th floor of Odakyu Department Store in Shinjuku, Tokyo on June 30 where it’s running until July 6.

Some of the cute bird products to get your beaks on

Piyo Piyo Gao Poncho-chan: ¥8,250 / Piyo Piyo Gao Goggle-chan: ¥5,500

Ikimono Cookie kurimaro collection Cookies: ¥432 Each

Kisuke Paper: Large ¥3,850 / Small ¥2,750 (Available July 3-4 only)

Hoholala Kobo Oven Glove | ¥2,200

m-pool Glass Necklace | ¥4,950

Wild Bird Paintings | ¥1,980 Each

Hoholala Kobo x Oiue-dou Pouches: ¥2,200
 

Free fan for buyers

Free postcard for buyers

Bird lovers will be able to get their talons on everything from accessories to desserts and more. Many of the items are exclusive to the event, and there’s also some freebies: the first 100 people to spend over ¥3,000 each day will receive an original fan, and the first 300 people to arrive at the festival each day will get a postcard.

Rihga Royal Hotel Kyoto is one of several locations participating in the digital stamp rally that’s being held as part of the The Quintessential Quintuplets ∬ Real Sisters War Again event taking place at Toei Kyoto Studio Park from June 26 to August 31. The hotel is offering food inspired by the series along with exclusive merchandise.

The Quintessential Quintuplets ∬ Real Sisters War Again

Menu inspired by the Nakano quintuplets

Receive an original pin for going to all of the rally spots

Receive one of 7 possible coasters for every menu item ordered

‘For Happy Wedding’ Parfait | ¥1,452

Non-Alcoholic Tropical Cocktail w/Cookie | ¥1,089

Nino’s Seasonal Vegetable & Ham Dutch Baby Pancake | ¥2,057

Miku’s Matcha Soda w/Cookie | ¥1,089

Yotsuba’s Non-Alcoholic Green Apple Cocktail w/Cookie | ¥1,089

Itsuki’s Iced Dessert | ¥1,452

The event taking place at Toei Kyoto Studio Park is based on the Sisters War arc of The Quintessential Quintuplets ∬. Rihga Royal Hotel Kyoto and Fushimi Inari Taisha are both spots for the digital stamp rally. The hotel’s all-day dining restaurant KAZA is serving up the delicious food, drink, and dessert pictured above, along with a special wedding dress-inspired parfait called For Happy Wedding. For every menu item ordered, customers also receive a free coaster.

The digital stamp rally is being held to allow people to enjoy safely walking around Kyoto as the city has seen a major drop in tourism due to the pandemic.

©春場ねぎ・講談社／「五等分の花嫁∬」製作委員会

To commemorate the end of Attack on Titan‘s 12-year saga, the editorial team at Weekly Shonen Magazine launched the ‘Final Survey Corps Application’ project on June 9 which imagines the staff and fans as part of the Survey Corps to express their love for the series. The staff at Animate and TSUTAYA stores in Japan are currently donning Survey Corps uniforms. A special online exhibition will also be held by the magazine to give thanks to fans who have supported Attack on Titan for 12 years.

Fans can use the all-new Survey Corps Maker service where they can upload their own photo or an illustration of themselves or an original character and writes words dedicated to the series. They are encourage to share this with other Survey Corps members around the world.

Survey Corps Maker: How to Use

1. Select a base image
2. Write your thoughts and comments about Attack on Titan
3. Share with the world

Survey Corps Maker Samples

The staff at Animate Ikebukuro

The staff at TSUTAYA　

Attack on Titan Online Exhibition

The online exhibition is a virtual event that was conceived after the COVID-19 pandemic forced the for in-person event in Japan to be cancelled. But this shift is good news to fans outside Japan as it means everyone around the world can join – and it’s free.

The event requires a quick sign-up, after which fans can enjoy looking through displays of official artwork. There’s also a merch shop with exclusive items to get your hands on. Please note that the exhibition features spoilers up to the final chapter.