Three shocks left Japan’s media groping for answers at the end of 2016 and the start of 2017. The Trump shock kept playing out after the initial alarm and adjustment in November. This journal covered the first month’s response in detail, so this theme is not a focus here, even as the implications for Asia drew more dire warnings. The Putin shock drew mixed reactions in late November and the first half of December prior to Putin’s arrival in Japan and in the following weeks too as the results of the visit were being assessed—a letdown for many, but plenty of positive spin as well. Finally, the Park shock raised serious questions for the future of Japan-ROK relations, as debate intensified during the last days of November and for much of December with Kim Jong-un looming darkly in the shadows. China and Taiwan and the failure of TPP drew attention at times, often in regard to concerns about Trump.

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