Cool Products: Monday, May 26, 2008

Here are today's "really cool products" that I've picked out for you, out of the 30+ new items we've added to the J-List and JBOX.com sites today. Note that some products may be "not safe for work" but that all links will allow you to redirect yourself either to the J-List or JBOX.com websites. To see all the J-List products, check out J-List or the JBOX.com updated products link.

	Rei & Asuka School Swimsuit Figure. Here are two amazing pre-painted figures of Asuka and Rei, re-imagined wearing school swimsuits. Incredibly cute! The figures were designed by popular artist Poyoyon Rock.
	Akira T-Shirt - "OBEY" Girls' Fitted version. Our Lucky Star parody T-shirt featuring the character Akira and the classic "OBEY" message is a hit, so we're happy to announce a fitted girl's tee version , which can be seen on the site now. Also, we've added a 2XL version of the standard T-shirt.
	Handbook for Newcomers, Migrants and Immigrants to Japan. Interested in living in Japan? Not visiting, living, perhaps permanently? If so, then this bilingual handbook published in English and Japanese can help. Written by influential Arudou Debito, an American who took Japanese citizenship, it answers many questions about how to find work and get a visa, how health insurance works here, and even questions about how to get married or start a business in Japan.
	Star Wars Tenugui (Japanese Towel) -- Several Designs. Here's a rare treat for the Star Wars fan in your galaxy: traditional tenugui, which are beautifully printed cotton hand towels from the Edo Period, printed with images from the Star Wars universe. C-3P0 and R2-D2, Yoda, and a cool Japanese bell and Stormtrooper helmet are in stock now.
	Blythe Hawaii Special ~ Na Wahine Aulii. Here's a really cool hardcover photobook featuring the eerliy beautiful Blythe dolls, which were released i 1972 but failed spectacularly in the marketplace, before becoming the most sought-after doll line among collectors. Here's a glossy photobook filled with images of the dolls on a vacation to beautiful Hawaii.
	Newtype Jan 2008. New issue of Newtype, the "Moving Pictures Magazine," which is filled with great images of the hottest anime in Japan now. This issue focuses on Gundam 00, Bleach, Lucky Star, Haruhi Suzumiya, Spice and Wolf, Clannad and much more. You get a full 2008 calendar as well as a Gundam "schedule calendar" free, too!
	TSUKUBAI ~ Japanese Garden Water Spot Display. Wow, here's another really cool traditional item from Japan: a miniature Japanese Water Garden for you to display. Comes with a miniature carp pond with fish and lovely bamboo to move the water around.
	Glico Cheese Cake Collon. Here's a DX (deluxe) large package of Glico Collon, the oddly-shaped (but delicious) round snack from Japan. This box contains six individual bags of cheesecake flavored snacks so they'll always be fresh.
	Hello Kitty ECO Re-usable Silicon Bento Cup. Here's another nice item for your bento life: re-usable cups that keep your bento foods from running together. Made from silicone, so it will last a long time. Plus it's shaped like Hello Kitty!
	Natural Bamboo Skin ONIGIRI Wrapping Sheet ~ 3pcs & strings. Bento has been around since the Heian Period, making it at least 1400 years old, but they didn't always have pretty bento boxes back in the day. A more traditional way to eat out was to wrap rice balls, called onigiri in leaves of bamboo skin. You can give this a try with this super-traditional wrapping set now.
	Japanese Keychain ~ SAKURA & Mt. Fuji. Then: try this cool chromed metal keychain on for size, featuring images of sakura and Mt. Fuji.
	Guts ~ Konjou Headband -- Hachimaki. We love to carry traditional items from Japan, especially products with a wacky bent to then. We've restocked our hachimaki Japanese headbands with various interesting phrases written on them.
	Wa-Gokoro DX Miso Soup (3 Packs) -- Onion & Seaweed. Life is just a little better after a bowl of hot, steaming miso soup in the morning. We carry several varieties including the popular Onion, Seaweed "raw type" soup mix (meaning it's real miso, not dehydrated).
	Tengen Toppa Gurren Lagann -- Nia photobook *Preorder*. This is the gorgeous upcoming artbook for fans of Gurren Lagann, the popular new robot anime from Gainax This art book is dedicated to the character Nia and will be released in June. (As always, preorder items are not charged until the items are in stock and ready to ship from J-List.)
	Evangelion Nerv Beach Sandals 27cm *Preorder*. Have a very Eva summer with these NERV beach sandals, officially released to celebrate the new Rebuild of Evangelion movies. Preorder your pair now.
	Sairenji Haruna 1/8 Figure Animal Cafe ver. ~ To LOVE-Ru *Preorder*. Here's a great cast-off figure for fans of the new series To LOVE-ru about a boy who is visited by an alien princess who falls in love with him. Super cute cat girl version of Haruna that can be partially cast off. Preorder yours now!
	Deluxe Pentel Fude Brush Pen 2way Type. One of the highest quality fude (foo-day) Japanese brush writing pens we've ever carried, this is the deluxe model from Pentel, with both a fat and thin tip built into the pen.
	Sakuma Drops Candy. Taste a bit of Japanese history in Sakuma Drops, the candy used in the Japanese film Grave of the Fireflies, about two children caught in the Great Tokyo Air Raid. Restocked today.
	E Treasure Jumbo ~ Momoka Hime -- Yuko Ogura. Yuko Ogura is one of the most enduring and endearing idols from Japan, and we've gotten in a great item: a magazine + trading card set that fives you a whopping 32 cards to open and enjoy.
	Hitotsudake ~ Just One -- Erina. A fabulous glossy photobook capturing the grace and loveliness of Erina, a popular name in the Japanese gravure modeling world. As usual, the quality of each photograph and the printing of the pages is simply amazing -- how do the Japanese do it?
	Elements by Icarus Comics. A great new English-translated "H" manga from Icarus Comics, this is a collection of stories by artist Tanuki Kamogawa which are all meticulously translated into English for you, and of course all details are there to see (no mosaic).
	School Days LxH Visual Guidebook. I'm a big fan of School Days, the game and anime about a love triangle that turns, well, rather violent towards the end, which caused TV stations in Japan to bizarrely pre-empt the last episode of the show with images of a really Nice Boat. Here's the "Love x Hate" artbook filled with beautiful new images from the show and game.