Shonen Jump, a weekly manga magazine published by Shueisha, has been a major influence on the development of anime and manga culture in Japan, and has produced many popular anime series such as Dragon Ball, One Piece, and Naruto.

The 1995 Tokyo subway sarin gas attack by the Aum Shinrikyo cult shocked Japan and led to increased scrutiny of religious groups.

Japan has a fascination with mascots, and there are thousands of them representing everything from cities to prisons.