What's the deal with the Imperial House of Japan?

Oh they just basically suck out your soul and make you a walking husk.

I'm glad you asked, OP.

One thing i am especially curious about is what happened to thecourtiers in the Imperial Household Agency now that Naruhito has assumed the throne. My understanding was that when she was Crown princess, Masako was pitlessly bullied by the Imperial Household Agency for not being able to conceive a male heir, and that the former empress (Michiko, Masako's mother-in-law) pretty much approved of this. the Crown prince was really upset about this, but since he had no authority over the IHA, he could do nothing (although he did complain about their treatment of her to the press).

Now that Naruhito is emperor and Masako is empress, and Akihito and Michiko have been retired to the imperial glue factory, I would think that the IHA would be answerable to Masako now, and that she and Naruhito would have immeediately forced some of the worst bullies out of the Agency. (Michiko and her husband Akihito, i would think, have no authority there any more since they officially retired.) But I've heard nothing about this. Does anyone know?

The little old man is so cute! I just want to take him home and facefuck him

I've wondered the same, R2. But discretion is the name of the game for the Japanese Imperial family, so we won't hear about any of it. I hope the new Emperor and Empress make some changes to fashion protocol for the entire family. The way the women dress is strange, to say the least. It's a weird mish-mash of British style from the 1940's/50's, but with what seems to be a great deal of upholstery fabric.

You're right, r4. But I will say that soft ivory silk jacket the current Empress is wearing is the most flattering thing she's worn in years.

Masako used to have to wear these frump boxy outfits with padded shoulders, and horrible teen-tiny hats. I would guess these were her mother-in-law's choice, rather than her own, back when she had to do what her mother-in-law insised.

with six you get eggroll

How much do Japanese people actually care about their royal family? Do they hold a big place in the culture?

Wrong fucking country R7.

You'd think they could afford better hairstyling.

[quote] How much do Japanese people actually care about their royal family? Do they hold a big place in the culture?

They used to revere the emperor as semi-divine just a few generations ago and is still considered of immense importance to Japanese conservatives.

After WWII, the Americans wanted to hang the emperor for being a fucking war criminal, but a few of the Japanese people who were not war-mongers convinced them not to.

"OK", said General MacArthur, "but if those fucks set one toe out of line, so help me God I will kill every last fucking one of them."

And they have been well behaved ever since.

Don't knock constitutional monarchies. We haven't had such a great track record with our system of government this century.

I always find Masako to be a rather sad situation.

Smart, Harvard educated (graduated magna cum laude), speaks English and French. She had a promising career, but was pressured into marrying.

The worst part is that Empress Michiko was merciless AFTER having been tortured by her former MIL, the then empress, for being a commoner (the first to marry into the royal family) and catholic. The stories suggest Michiko was even more brutal than her own MIL ever was - which is saying a LOT - that bitch was Hirohito's wife.

The only Imperial House that any true DLer cares about is on East 69th Street.

You should have nuked the shit out of that entire despicable country when you had the chance.

[quote]You should have nuked the shit out of that entire despicable country when you had the chance.

Yes, but what would your fellow neckbeards do all day without the Playstation consoles?

The imperial family has limited power due to the 1947 Constitution (authored by Americans). The Imperial Household Agency is very powerful and controls the family's public image. I imagine that the bureaucrats who work in it come from a small number of families are are groomed by one or two university departments. The press in Japan defers to the government and especially the Imperial Household Agency. It is kept in check by the alliance between ultranationalists and the yakuza. The ultranationalists are actually very closely tied to the ruling party and probably also the CIA going back several decades. They were seen as important partners in the fight against communism in East Asia. Since they all revered the imperial family, they were able to keep a lid on gossip. The Japanese royals are kept far out of public view. No one really cares about them and any attempt to bring them forward is thwarted either by the forces above or people on the left who oppose the royal family for its role in WWII. So the left and the right prefer to keep the imperial family hidden but for different reasons.

Honestly not even that much gossip gets out about Japanese celebrities because of the alliance between the entertainment industry and yakuza and deference of the press to both. Organized crime in Japan wields huge power and makes it hard to get to the bottom of a lot of things. No one thinks of the mafia because everyone assumes Japan and so safe and the Japanese are so docile. But it's the key to understanding Japan. I think that guy Jake Edelstein's writings about contemporary Japan are very good. I think he writes for the Daily Beast.

Do they have tiaras? Asking for a friend.

R13, name one constitutional monarchy besides Japan that isn't a total fucking joke as a country.

Like what’s their deal?

R20 Well...

[quote] You should have nuked the shit out of that entire despicable country when you had the chance.

As a victim of Unit 731 you will be pleased to know that the US exonerated the doctors in charge of Unit 731 in exchange for the medical research they obtained from their experiments on you and the other victims. So maybe the US should also nuke itself for benefiting from the torture and gruesome deaths of US prisoners of war.

R19, I'm not the Tiara Troll, but yes, the royal ladies of Japan wear tiaras, and a few have been featured on DL from time to time. They're always very tasteful concoctions of white diamonds and pearls.

There's a very specific reason why archeological tombs from the Kofun period have been sealed-- studying them would probably totally annihilate the national myth that the dynasty has an order of succession that has been unbroken since 600 BC, whereas in reality there were probably a rise and falls of various kingdoms until one solidified into the Yamato dynasty.

IHA seem terrible, especially for women

Do...not...underestimate the power of the emperor.

R19, YAAAS, Queen!

The Chrysanthemum is my personal favorite:

R20 - DENMARK

[Quote]The press in Japan defers to the government and especially the Imperial Household Agency.

👆The reason why we don't hear much about then. I wonder if the Imperial family has corrupt, degenerate or dissolute members like the BRF or if they're truly circumspect and go about living quietly.