This week, on Tokyo on Fire:

So much is going on in Japan! Firstly, Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte has made an official visit to discuss relations with Japan and his growing reluctance to work with the U.S.A, favoring instead China. Secondly, as we were about to start filming the death of Prince Mikasa was announced. The prince was the younger brother of emperor Hirohito and was 100 yeof ars old. Lastly, Halloween is upon us! The typically american holiday has grown to become a major hit in Japan - both to the public and corporations catering to the holiday.

Taking a look at by-election on last Sunday, Prime minister Abe has dodged a bullet with double victories in Tokyo and Fukuoka. But as a result of winning in the capital, Koike Yuriko’s popularity and power is continuing to grow at a rapid pace. She has been revisiting promises and terms made by the capital to the olympic committee, which has in return threatened to move some events to South Korea. Will prime minister Abe have enough to call a snap election in January? And will Governor Koike continue to assert her power over the coming months?

Here is a great news! On Monday, Japanese microbiologist Yoshinori Ohsumi won the 2016 Nobel Prize in physiology or medicine for his work on cell autophagy. This process helps the body remove unwanted proteins. Japan has had a steady number of nobelist over the last decades, and it has become a point of pride for the nation. But with young people becoming less and less interested in the hard sciences, will we continue to see world-renowned prizes being awarded to Japanese citizens?