Believe it or not, drawing children into the world of grooming through cartoons and toys is old hat in America. Twice or three times, my sister and I were taken to an establishment called Fantastic Sam's that operated on the same principle as this Japanese example: keep the juniors occupied with animated shorts, ensure that they go happily out the door with a free toy. The gimmick worked its charm, though it wasn't worth a terrible trim my sister eventually received from a flamboyant stylist named "Skipper." No plaything is worth a bad bob. So my folks returned us to the traditional, austere world of barbers (though the fellow we used at the time, Dave, played some wiseacre games with his photo-identified, wall-mounted credentials).
But of course, she wasn't surrounded by Hello Kitty - which brings us back to the H.C. Studio in Yokohama. Broaden your knowledge of modern hairstyling, snow monkeys, pickles, Koizumis protesting Koizumi, and more in this week's approving glance at the North Pacific's third-level mini-boss.