The first time I flew from Narita to Tullamarine was only my second flight anywhere, and I wasn't especially taken aback by the security (or lack of)...
I had to send my suitcase through an x-ray (they told me to keep my backpack on, "daijoubu"), whilst I got to stand just behind the security bloke and watch the suitcase x-ray on the screen.
I could see the HUGE bottle of sake, the wires for my phone and camera chargers, some other strange shapes ... "Daijoubu! Okay desu!"
Then, they gave the suitcase back and pointed to a line that I had to join.
I could have, at some point during the wait on that line, slipped stuff from the backpack to the suitcase, and nobody would've noticed - they were too busy watching the twat Aussie bloke, who was yelling at the tiny airport ladies about having to pay a surcharge for his snowboard, skis and several oversized bags.

My dad works baggage security at Tullamarine, and when I told him the above story, he had a fit! "Japan's a terrorist target! You could've been carrying a bomb in your backpack! (thanks dad) They let you see the x-ray? What?? And letting bombs onto flights to Australia! Baaahhh!"

This was in Jan 2005 - by Dec 2005, the security was stepped-up considerably - the bastards raced up to me, made me open my suitcase and rustle through my undies, just because a SMALL bottle of sake showed up on the friggin' x-ray screen (which I couldn't watch this time).
(Celerydemon, Sun 5 Mar 2006, 0:03, Reply)