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Japan Times
LIFE / Digital / NAME OF THE GAME
Dec 30, 2004

An FPS for the thinking man

"Metroid Prime 2: Echoes," a first-person shooter from Nintendo for the GameCube, is both fun and a pain at the same time. It keeps you on your toes, even when it makes you perform the same tasks over and over again.
JAPAN / Science & Health / NATURAL SELECTIONS
Dec 30, 2004

Controversies cloud a breakthrough find on 'once-luxuriant bush'

This year has been a vintage one for biologists interested in human evolution. In a cave on an Indonesian island, the remains of a new species of human were found, a species that lived only 18,000 years ago and hence overlapped with modern Homo sapiens.
Japan Times
ENVIRONMENT / WILD WATCH
Dec 30, 2004

What is behind 'shocking' Hokkaido bid for World Heritage Site status?

Recently I was lucky enough to visit no fewer than six World Heritage Sites (WHS) in northern India. An astonishing cultural, ethnic and biological diversity is well represented in India's array of national parks (NP) and WHS, and, my goodness, they have a huge wow factor.
BASKETBALL / NBA / NBA REPORT
Dec 30, 2004

Rockets' trade of journeyman Jackson is hard to figure

NEW YORK -- Jimmy Jackson got the call yesterday he didn't want to hear, and had no idea was coming.
EDITORIALS
Dec 29, 2004

Catastrophe without warning

The massive onshore surges of seawater from tsunamis triggered by the mega-earthquake that struck off northwestern Indonesia on Sunday have caused heavy damage across southern Asia. They are a deadly reminder of how vulnerable humanity is to the destructive forces of nature.
BASEBALL / BASEBALL BULLET-IN
Dec 29, 2004

Eagles hope to soar in first year with acquisition of Iwakuma

Here is my final column of 2004, the most tumultuous year in the history of Japanese pro baseball.
CULTURE / Film
Dec 29, 2004

In the atrophied heart of America

Super Size Me Rating: * * * * 1/2 (out of 5) Director: Morgan Spurlock Running time: 96 minutes Language: English Currently showing [See Japan Times movie listings] Buffalo Soldiers Rating: * * 1/2 (out of 5) Director: Gregor Jordan Running time: 98 minutes Language: English Currently...
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
Dec 29, 2004

Get 'em fresh

This seemed like an off year for cinema. How bad was it? Well, I write a column for a women's monthly, and some months I couldn't even find one movie to recommend wholeheartedly. As usual, there were plenty of in-your-face junk flicks to wade through, but things like "Van Helsing" or "Catwoman" were...
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
Dec 29, 2004

Come back for more

Upon seeing this list the editor of this page expressed "dismay" that it hadn't included movies that I had raved about, and that instead I included those with a less-than four-star rating. Call me contradictory, if you like. The fact is the obvious choices were so praised and dissected and analyzed to...
JAPAN
Dec 29, 2004

Daiei, Misawa to get IRCJ bailout

The Industrial Revitalization Corp. of Japan made it official Tuesday: It will support ailing retailer Daiei Inc. and Misawa Homes Holdings Inc. in what would be the biggest and probably the last case taken on by the bailout agency.
JAPAN
Dec 29, 2004

11 diplomats punished for embezzling funds in Vienna

Eleven diplomats have been punished for embezzling public money between 1997 and 2002 while they were stationed at the Japanese diplomatic mission in Vienna, Foreign Ministry officials said Tuesday.
JAPAN
Dec 29, 2004

Cabinet OKs Foreign Ministry staff shuffle

The Cabinet endorsed Tuesday a major reshuffle of key Foreign Ministry officials, including the vice foreign minister and chiefs of bureaus handling issues related to North Korea and the United States, effective Jan. 4, the Foreign Ministry said.
JAPAN
Dec 29, 2004

Japan has tentative list of 11 dead

Four Japanese have been confirmed dead in Thailand and seven others are believed to have died in Sri Lanka in the massive tsunamis that hit South and Southeast Asia over the weekend, a senior Foreign Ministry official said Tuesday.
BUSINESS
Dec 29, 2004

FSA chief to hold talks in Europe

Financial Services Minister Tatsuya Ito said Tuesday he will make a five-day visit to Britain and France starting Jan. 5 to meet the heads of the two countries' central banks to discuss financial-sector issues.
BUSINESS
Dec 29, 2004

November tax revenues off 2.8%

The country's tax revenues in November fell 2.8 percent from a year earlier to 6.3 trillion yen, the Finance Ministry said Tuesday.
JAPAN
Dec 29, 2004

Hostage beheading video screened at Chiba rock concert

Video footage showing the decapitation of a Japanese man taken hostage in Iraq this year was shown on a big screen at a rock concert Sunday in Urayasu, Chiba Prefecture, concert sponsor Tokyo Broadcasting System Inc. said.
BUSINESS
Dec 29, 2004

Tokyo consumer prices fall for sixth consecutive year

The key gauge of consumer prices in Tokyo dropped 0.2 percent in 2004 from the previous year for the sixth straight year of decline, due mainly to falls in prices of personal computers and durable home appliances, the government said Tuesday.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Dec 29, 2004

Joetsu Shinkansen back on track after quakes

The Joetsu Shinkansen Line resumed full services between Tokyo and Niigata stations Tuesday for the first time since massive earthquakes struck Niigata Prefecture in late October.
BUSINESS
Dec 29, 2004

MMC inks deal with Taiwan ally

Mitsubishi Motors Corp. said Tuesday it has signed a memorandum of understanding with its Taiwanese affiliate, China Motor Corp., to expand production and sales in mainland China.
BASEBALL / MLB
Dec 29, 2004

MLB settles lawsuit with Morioka

Major League Baseball, which had been the target of a $3.4 million lawsuit by Tokyo native Juri Morioka, charging wrongful termination and overt racism against Asians, has quietly settled the case, The Japan Times has learned.
CULTURE / Art / NEW ART SEEN
Dec 29, 2004

Cheers to contemporary art

The years are passing too quickly for this no-longer-young critic. Lest you think me embittered, let me start this year in review on a high note by trumpeting the star of 2004, a grand old dame who looks as bright and new as the day she was born -- the Hara Museum of Contemporary Art. Built in the Bauhaus...
JAPAN
Dec 29, 2004

Civilian controls over military matters seen in the balance

As Japan prepares to redefine the Self-Defense Forces as a bona fide military, the government will have to address the sensitive question of how much say SDF officers should have in national security.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
Dec 29, 2004

Buy local produce

Japanese films had a good 2004, even if eight of the 10 top box-office slots went to Hollywood. The Japanese exhibition business is coming to resemble the American one, with more multiplex screens and wider openings. This structure favors major Hollywood product -- the latest "Harry Potter" or "Lord...

Longform

Juzo Itami’s “Tampopo” was released Nov. 23, 1985, and though it wasn’t a hit at the time, it has gained a cult following in the years since.
Eat, slurp, love: 'Tampopo' turns 40