Waseda University freshman pitcher Yuki Saito, known in the media as the "Handkerchief Prince" for the cloth he used to mop up perspiration while mowing down opposing teams' batters, is nationally recognized as the star pitcher on the university's baseball squad.

Japan's child cheesecake market is thriving, but Spa! (10/2) says the borderline kiddy porno business is on the verge of belatedly being busted.

Gargantuan girths among middle-aged men are bringing bloated profits for a pharmaceutical company that has produced an apparently effective fat fighting herbal remedy, according to Sunday Mainichi (10/7).

Japan's exercise industry is going through an unprecedented boom, but the heady times for the workout business have had the unexpected side-effect of sparking a wave of housewives undergoing "fitness flings," according to Shukan Post (10/5).

Sumo Stablemaster Takasago's blanket exposure as the main spokesman explaining troubled Yokozuna Asashoryu's battle with mental illness has been a real eye-opener in more ways than one, with Shukan Shincho (9/27) suggesting the stable boss may have gone under the surgeon's knife to get Caucasian eyelids.

For most Japanese nowadays, Buddhist priests are the people they meet at funerals, but a group of bonzes are trying to change that image through live performances of rock sutras, according to Cyzo (October).

The daring young men and women at the weeklies bravely stare down danger, decency, and sometimes even the truth in the face to bring us the best stories from the stranger side of Japan.

For some years now, the darling of the Japanese sports world has been Ai Fukuhara.

Sex advisors for women have recently changed tack, going from counseling about detailed techniques such as how to achieve orgasm, to recommending they carry out some erotic image training, according to Spa! (9/25).

Those who love popping the air bubbles on protective plastic wrapping sheets will be delighted to learn there's now an item on the market to meet their hearts' desire, according to Sunday Mainichi (9/30).

A couple of geek photographers have found themselves with a hit on their hands upon producing a book advising on how to handle creatures of all sorts from cuddly little bunnies to deadly poisonous snakes, according to Cyzo (October).

Modern day members of the Tokugawa clan -- the xenophobic dynasty of Shoguns that shut Japan off from the world for centuries -- are up in arms because the man set to one day become head of the family has married a non-Japanese, according to Shukan Shincho (9/20).

A disgusting and twisted restaurant in the Tokyo entertainment district of Roppongi is enticing warped rich folk with the opportunity to figuratively have their cake and eat it, too -- with animals, according to Jitsuwa Knuckles (9/25).

In a week of turmoil, scandal and upheaval, trust the weeklies to keep their heads and focus on what really matters: weird stuff and sex.

"A woman who feels she has nothing to lose is capable of anything," Kana Shimada tells Spa! (9/11).

Mystery surrounding the fate of missing women has deepened further after a habitual Sapporo rapist took his own life to avoid capture while in the midst of committing yet another sex crime, according to Shukan Gendai (9/22).

No matter what the workplace, shit happens, to put things crudely.

Mayu Kamei fulfilled her childhood dream of getting a career position at a major wedding planner company only to chuck the job in so she could become a sex worker.

Japan's adult movie fans are shaking in their boots after police raided the organization that blanks out the dirty bits to make sure stick flicks aren't deemed obscene, according to Shukan Bunshun (9/13).

If you've ever wanted to feel like a samurai lord or feudal era princess, the owners of a traditional Japanese-style castle in Nakatsu, Oita Prefecture, have got a deal for you, according to Shukan Bunshun (9/13).