My Fangirling Outlet

Bleach Rock Musical: Generation 1

My Ode to the Burimyu Cast. You will be sorely missed. I can't imagine a Bleach Rock Musical without all of you guys. You really made Bleach come to life for me, you all played the characters brilliant. You were a bunch of dorks, but so good at what you did be it singing, dancing and just out-right acting. You were the best cast any Bleach fan could ask for. I wish you guys would come back but every actor needs to move on right? T-T

Isaka Tatsuya - Kurosaki Ichigo: He grew up with this show. He was probably the biggest Burimyu fan out there, more than us sobbing fangirls. When he started this he was... 18 I believe? And it was amazing watching him grow. His singing (which was terrible in the beginning) grew better and better and I will miss him and his passion. Tat-chan :(

Satou Miki - Kuchiki Rukia: Her singing was amazing. She is reprising her role in the summer, the only one, but I find this more sad than happy as she will be alone without the rest of her supporting cast. It'll be awkard. But on the other hand. I can't imagine another Rukia. She was really brilliant. i can imagine another Ichigo, another Renji, another Aizen but Rukia... Rukia I really can't see anyone doing her justice. I hope she leads the new cast well.

Saito Kumiko - Shihouin Yoruichi: My god she did Yoruichi so well, just like Rangiku. She just had the exact punch for the character. The flirting with Ichigo and then the absolute seriousness. Heck she even sounded like the character. And to boot? The fact that her acrobatics was great.

Sekine Asuka - Soifon: She came pretty late on during the musical but she really did Soifon great. I also found Soifon quite annoying but somehow she managed to turn what I originally thought to be annoying into something hilarious. Again, acrobatic skills were like "whoa". Will miss her :(

Moriyama Eiji - Abarai Renji: He's a hilarious guy. Backstage, onstage, whatever, he pulled comedy, seriousness, and passion. Singing was great as well.

Hayashi Shuji - Kuchiki Byakuya: Osamu-chan, what can I say? This guy is one big DORK. He's hilarious and he plays... Byakuya? But you know what? He does this role so well, it's amazing. Even when he's being a dork ON STAGE (Kuchiki Byakuya does not dance) he somehow manages to say in-character. And also? One of the best singers of the show. Sasuga Kuchiki-ka ne.

Yuuichi Tsuchiya - Ichimaru Gin: HI! TUTI-DESU! There will never be an Ichimaru Gin like you. Ever. You played Gin so well. You got the creepy down, the way he spoke, his mannerisms. Tuti. You are brilliant. and partnered with Nagayan? Even better. Not in the whole Yaoi "you two are so gay sense" but in the "omg dorks!" sense. And holy crap can you move your body. xD

Kitamura Eiji - Kira Izuru: Eiji did Kira so well. he did the seriousness and the absolute fail of Kira to the T. Backstage he was funny, not dorky persay but funny, entertaining and really brought a smile to my face. His singing wasn't bad, not totally awesome but it was constant and therefore a plus. Kira, the character is replaceable but as an actor I like Eiji and I hope to see him in more dramas/TV things.

Kasahara Hiroko - Unohana Retsu: Funnily enough, I think she was the shortest cast member? She came at the same time as Soifon but damn did she play Unohana. She was soft-spoken, kind, gentle but she also managed to convey Unohana's dark side with what looked like minimal effort except for a change of voice. Her singing was great. I will miss her.

Murakami Kohei - Yamada Hanatarou: This guy was adorable as Hanatorou. My god he played Hanatarou so well, another member who in my mind, can never, ever be replaced. No one can play Hanatarou as well as this man did. He even had the whiny weakling voice going on. He was also very funny, and totally cute. I wanted to huge him when he started crying after his first show. Adorable guy, probably a lot older than I think he is but you were Hanatarou to the soul.

Ohkuchi Kengo - Aizen Sosuke: I hate Aizen in the manga/anime whatever but in the musical Aizen is one of my favourites. You rarely see the guy cause Aizen is dead half the time but when he does get face time he places the role so well, and his singing was also one of the best. Behind the stage you rarely saw him but when you did, man this guy laughs and smiles a lot despite looking like a total thug half the time. Sorely missed in Bankai Code 003 - it wasn't the same without you. >.<

Saito Kumiko - Hinamori Momo: KUMIKO! She is adorable. This girl. and her singing is amazing. Along with Tatsuya, she grew up with this musical and she grew up amazingly well. She is cute, great at acting, and her can I say this again - her singing is brilliant. A girl who is packed with talent. I hate Momo in the manga/anime but I love Kumiko as Momo in this musical. Momo itself is an easy replacable character but I will miss how god-damn adorable this girl was. She was totally the little sister/baby of the group while Tat-chan was the little baby brother.

Kuranuki Masahiro - Kaname Tousen: This is a man with a gap, in both personality and in voice. In fact backstage I found it almost impossible to recognize this guy because his voice was so different. In actuality he had a pretty high voice but while playing Tousen his voice was crazy deep and he sang that way too. He was also a total dork too, hilarious guy really. But again, he played Tousen brilliantly. His gap was huge. Love this guy.

Gomoto Naoya - Hisagi Shuuhei: I don't really care about Shuuhei in the manga/anime but I really like this version of Shuuhei. The right amount of seriousness and dorkiness. Backstage he's pretty laid back, not a crazy dork like some cast members but interesting enough. I like his segments in the musical cause he's generaly being made fun of, and this supposedly "cool/hot Hisagi Shuuhei". I really like the actor/character and... actually I think it'll be hard to replace him too. He really did Shuuhei well, I'm sad to see him go.

Nagayama Takashi - Hitsugaya Toushiro: Nagayan! You were too tall but it didn't matter because you played Hitsugaya to the life and soul. You got all his quirks, his personality, everything down perfect and pat and above al? You were also a complete dork behind stage to. Your singing itself is not bad but harmony wise you had a few issues but my god man. I can't imagine another Toushiro who isn't you.

Harumi Inoue - Matsumoto Rangiku: She didn't have the balloon sized breasts that Rangiku had but who cares? My god she did Rangiku so well, and her interactions with Gin and Toushiro were brilliant. Her singing was also top-notch. Truthfully i can't imagine another Rangiku aside from Harumi. You think Rangiku would be an easily replaceable character but Harumi had the bubble, the life, the zest that really made up the character and it will sorely be missed. Too bad she was away due to her babies a lot but when she was around it was the best.

Suzuki Shogo - Zaraki Kenpachi: I honestly thought, when I first saw this man as Zaraki, that Zaraki had stepped out of the actual manga and had just come to life right in front of my eyes. He's obviously the oldest member and his voice is quite rough (but that is Zaraki's voice so no complaints there). Honestly he managed to do insanity well but somehow, like Byakuya, he managed to do awkward/embarassing situations without seeming OOC. leave it to the veteran actors. Can't imagine another Zaraki because appearance and personality wise, you really hit the spot.

Usui Takuya - Madarame Ikkaku: This guy was hilarious as Ikkaku. Didn't do much backstage but on stage he was just great. Played the quirks of Ikkaku brilliantly, and played the lap-dog of Zaraki down to pat. Will never forget his "lucky dance". Actor-wise I may not be interested but as Ikkaku you will sorely be missed. Again, irreplaceable.

I didn't include the cast from Saien because... well obvious reasons. I will really miss these guys. They made up a large chunk of my life before Arashi, and currently are also making a large part of my life. They were my doorway into real life Japanese actors, away from 2D animation. I love these guys with all my heart, all the girls, all the guys. They will be irreplacable for me. I can't imagine how the next Burimyu in the summer will be and I hope that even just for a bit, just as a greeting... they'll say "Hi". Their finale wasn't complete with Kengo after all :(

Jun and Sho

I was planning to post this long, long thing about how I feel like fandom misunderstands, or... at least has to move away from the labels they put on Jun, and how Sho is way too over-exposed and fandom needs to stop worshipping the perfect, fail, ground he walks on. Instead i'm just going to summarize the whopping 1500 word essay I wrote. 

For Jun. All this "princess", "diva", "kakkoii-ikemen", and to that certain Lj community "lesbian" stuff is really getting to me. I don't know if it's cause Jun is my favourite or what but he seems to be the member that has the most negative stuff said about him. He can't sing, can't dance, can't act like Nino can, he's not dorky, or fail, or funny, or cute. All he is is a "pretty face". It frustrates me, the amount of times I've seen "Jun used to be my favourite cause of HanaDan but then I then I realized Member-x was more funny/talented/good-looking/etc than him". Or how many times I've seen people say they think he's arrogant, or a drama-queen, or.. just... all that. I know some of these are said as endearments, like how Aiba is stupid, but they seem to be used just as much as negatives. A lot of people are saying "omgosh Jun is changing"... but I don't think Jun is changing. I think Jun is just being himself but no one ever took the time to notice anything past his Do-S persona. You really wanna say Jun wasn't dorky in the past? Remember that DnA where he shoved a clock down his pants?

Actually I used to be really nervous when admitting Jun was my favourite (yes Nino is also, it's complicated) because ... well... no one ever agreed with me.  I would go on about how "nice" he is and his work-ethic and how I admire Jun because he tries so hard, really, really tries even if he's not that great and it's a trait that should be respected. And I feel like a lot of fandom doesn't see this part of Jun, or they don't acknowledge it enough. I don't mean that Jun should be everyones ichiban (because all the other members have equally admirable traits) but I wish people would just realize, more, that despite Jun not having any spotlight skills, behind the stage he deserves a lot of recognition that he doesn't seem to recieve.

and as for Sho. I hope I don't offend anyone but for the past year or so... how much I like Sho is rapidly falling. It's not like I don't like him. It's impossible for me to dislike a member of Arashi. But he is definitely lagging behind all the other members. Why? Two words. Sho Fail. You're probably confused. How can I dislike the one thing that everyone in fandom is absolutely crazy for? ... easy. Because it's so over-exposed it's ridiculous. I'll laugh at a joke once, twice, three times.. but when I see at least one Sho!Fail reference every other day - be it from fans, or through TV, or what.. to be honest? I'm getting sick and tired of it.

I don't want to blame Sho, it's not his fault, it's probably the directors telling him to do it but you know what? Could he stop being so obvious with his fail? Like if you're going to fail, do it the Aiba-way and be 'Tennen" about it. Don't do it so obviously with that face that is pretty much like "I know I'm failing, aren't I so funny?". Maybe it's just me who thinks it but when I watch Sho fail these days, there are the moments I laugh. Then there are the moments I kind of just want to be like "......no". I don't want to admit it but.. lately there have been fans complaining that Sho is looking arrogant and snobby these days........... I can see where they are coming from. I can, I really can. -_-;; I'm sorry. Sho!Fail - in Shukudai-kun it was funny because it was actually quite rare. Now? ...yeaaaah.. no. It's not cutting it for me anymore. For the rest of fandom, sure, obviously fans are still loving watching Sho fail, to me? It's just painful.

So yeah. there you have it. The summarized version of my rant. I hope I didn't offend anyone (especially with the whole Sho thing). If people wanna come running at me with pitch-forks or if you just wanna plain disagree go ahead, please don't try to change my mind though. I've had these thoughts for a while. I actually just didn't say them because.. to be honest... Arashi fandom kind of scares me. Sometime it feels like if I say anything remotely negative people will rip my head off. *shudders*

Actually lately it feels like I never have anything to say about fandom except for complaints and it makes me feel terrible, but then I realize that complaining about fandom is different than complaining about Arashi. I still love the boys, but somehow I feel like I can't fit in with the rest of the fangirls who seem to treat them like Gods who can do no wrong.

Himitsu no Arashi [2011.01.20]

I'm crying. I have tears coming out of my eyes. I haven't laughed so hard in so long. Oh. My. God.

A quick rundown of today's Himitsu no Arashi-chan. The guest was Nakama Yukie, the teacher in Gokusen. The members spent their time "presenting" to her something that she would... eh.. become interested in. Because as she says, she never feels like she's really "interested" in anything because there are probably others who are more obsessed than she is. :P

so yeah. It was pretty interesting actually. Points to look our for
- Nino magic (and it's a pretty easy trick to figure out ;D)
- Ohno fishing xD
- Nakama Yukie changing a girls 10,000yen (roughly $100+ CAD) to a 1,000yen bill (roughly $10+ CAD). :P And then Jun promises to pay the girl 9000yen.
- Jun threatening the camera person? (if you're Jun biased like me).

and then the 2nd section is a special segment where they try to teach Sho some fashion sense... but really it's more just a crack segement to further embarass Sho more. It's kind of painful to watch because omgod some of the things they made Sho wear.. *shudders* - BUT - BUT.. highlights?

THE VERY END.

If you do not have time to watch the full episode - watch the last 2-3 minutes. It's ALL worth it. That last 2-3 minutes made the ENTIRE show. Just remember...

Arashi loves Sho a lot. Arashi loves torturing Sho a lot more though apparently.
And Jun gives the best 'dude wtf" faces ever. (again, bias showing, haha).

anyway - WATCH THE LAST 2-3 MINUTES IS A MUST. This is honestly going down on my list of "EPIC ARASHI MOMENTS". And I can't wait for next weeks Himitsu. ;) You'll know why.

Mother episode 1

See. I heard about Mother before, and it seemed like an interesting storyline, but I didn't really think about watching it until the girl appeared in Himitsu no Arashi-chan, VIP ROOM. And then I decided to watch it.

If I were to sum up episode 1 in one word... I think all I can think is I'm absolutely horrified.

But horrified is not the impression that the drama gives me. This is a legit, sad drama. And I'm not talking One Litre of Tears medical drama sad, I mean sad. It's just utterly sad. I was tearing up at the part where... (omgosh I still don't remember any of their names, I apologize!!!) the women was like "I'll be your mom". The acting, the music, just everything in this drama is just brilliant. My god.

Things I'd like to address. Would you like to know why horrified is the word I chose to sum up episode 1? Because of what Rena's mother does to Rena after she catches her boyfriend about to (probably) sexually abuse her. SHE BEATS HER. SHE BEATS HER OWN FRICKEN DAUGHTER WHO WAS ABOUT TO BE SEXUALLY ASSAULTED BY HER BOYFRIEND. WHAT THE @#$!. Honestly I am utterly sickened, and horrified and sickened and I felt so bad for the girl. That entire montage of him calling her, telling her to dress up, with flashes to the women flipping through her book of "things she likes" was just utterly... horrifying to me. Not in the scary movie sense but in a moral sense. I could feel my heart cracking, yet speeding up and I was honestly terrified because I knew something would happen to her. And something did. And I was utterly, utterly disgusted.

with that being said. The two leads. The girl and the women, so great. So fantastic. I will reccomend this drama and I won't because it's not your typical type of drama. I don't know if it gets lighter (somehow I doubt it) but just judging from episode 1, seems like a sob story. I'm personally not a fan of medical sob stories, but I think I will continue with this one because it seems brilliant.

New Years etc.

Hello. It's been a while hasn't it? I'm still amazed that I actually get page views despite the fact that I never update, and when I do it's nothing really important either. But whoever does decide to come look at my blog, thank you? Or maybe I'm misunderstanding how the whole "page view" thing works? ^^;; Oh well. I'm just happy seeing such a large number.

ANYWAY - way off topic.

So. New Years was a while back yeah? Two weeks ago? Yes I did watch Kouhaku and it was entertaining but truthfully I didn't watch all of it. In short, considering it was the first time and Kouhaku is a MAJOR show and they must have been HELLA nervous, I think they did a marvelous job and I'm very proud of them. If there were any flaws, I felt that there should have been more Matsushita Nao x Arashi discussion because sometimes it felt like she was left out - but I understand why that happened. Writing a script and giving each person an equal number of lines would obviously mean that she would get less lines, but still. Sometimes it was just awkward. But of course this isn't Arashi's fault, so oh well.

In the end my most favourite year end music show was MSSL2010. I nearly cried watching that. Have I mentioned that already? Well anyway, it's the show that reminded me of my time in Japan the most. And I really love that, the nostalgic feeling, the fact that I recognize all the songs and what not. Makes me sad too, but I love it anyway.

Next - Arashi promoting the 3Ds is terrible for me because I want it so bad. I mean the actual commercials wih Arashi are kind of lame (if I didn't know Arashi and i saw that on TV in Canada I'd be like 'wtf?') but the actual DS is SO COOL. And seeing Arashi with one just makes me think "WANT". Such fail. I"m not gonna get it though, not until it a) comes out in Canada and b) has been out for long enough that there are more games and it's more reliable.

Onto Movies - excited for Nino going to Hollywood again. That's my boy ;) Too bad i don't live in America, why does Japan always forget Canada? Sigh. We're such a forgotten country. I'd kill to go see the movie, dubbed or not, but maybe it'll come out in DVD here instead? Or something? Come on... please...? And then of course the latest news about Kaibutsu-kun! That is seriously awesome. I don't really care about 3D movies but Ohno just being in a movie. Kaibutsu-kun or not is awesome. I'm happy for him, hope he doesn't tire himself to much.

Onto Dramas. I kind of admit.. I don't think I'm going to watch Bartender. It just doesn't look like my kind of drama to watch. Love Arashi and all but ^^;; I'm still picky about my dramas okay? So instead I will watch Mother (which a lot of people have been talking about) and Keizoku 2: SPEC. Both apparently very underrated dramas? They seem interesting though, so I'm looking forward to watching them. I just finished watching Nihonjin no Shiranai Nihongo which was interesting to watch while doing homework (cause I didn't really need to pay attention). It was amusing and I admittingly did learn some interesting facts, all in all it's just amusing. Brainless humor. Not the best drama, not the worst. *shrug* You know.

eh.. what else? I guess that is it?

oh... I may or may not start translating random Arashi songs. I'm not sure if I'm gonna post them here. I started posting them up at my tumblr. The thing is my tumblr has morphed into some random blog that I just throw all my.... random "garbage thoughts" in. I like putting my song translations there though, but... hmm.. I dunno. Should I move them here too *contemplating*

all I've done is Arashi's Futari no Kinenbi and V6's Only Dreaming and a snippet of Snowflake though. ^^;; Maybe when I've done more?

Tensai Shimura Doubutsuen

This was one of those shows I watched on occasion whenever I happened to be back at home on Saturday Nights while I was in Japan. In saying this, I have to admit I really like those show. It's adorable. <3 Forget Aiba for a second, the ANIMALS!! And then of course you mix Aiba (or any Arashi member) in and it's just ASDFDSDFDS OVERKILL!

and so yeah. Watching the Christmas special and I can't flail on twitter, and I can't flail out loud (lazy family still sleeping :P haha) so I need to do it somewhere and what better place than my fangirl blog? Oh and by flail I mean like.. in coherent short sentences and don't really add up together. So yeah. Flailing commences now.

OMG BUNNIES! AN BEAVERS! I LIVE IN CANADA AND I'VE NEVER SEEN A BEAVER! Gosh, aren't they so adorable? You know your country is made out of pure WIN when your national animal is a beaver! BEAT THAT REST OF THE WORLD! (Except maybe China and their Panda's....) but seriously. Beavers are so damn cute, and Aiba gets to pick one up... *wibbles* it's just sooo cuuuuuuttee!! (yeah, notice I forgot about the bunnies? xD) and honestly raccoons are so friggen fat and big. It's kind of scary. They can grow REALLY LARGE. Trust me, there was a raccoon lying on my grandmothers lawn that the size of my dad... they're pretty scary things. o_o Cute from a distance but wouldn't really want to get close to one.

and a reindeer! cool! I've never seen one of those either. I've seen moose though. And deer. Never a reindeer.. :D and I think animals might not like that girl xD haha. Oo... reindeers are so lenient. I'm kind of surprised, they're like horses ne?

yay! Masaki.com! OMG MASAKI.COM! I LOVE YOU!! I have no words for this, no words xD HAHAHA. Aiba is so fricken adorbs!! <3<3 and that reindeer!!!  Gosh I miss Japan. I wanna go back. And watch this on saturday with my friends. And squeal at the cute animals!! >.<

yeah okay, end of my flail. Again, wish everyone a Merry Christmas and again - hope you had lots of good food ^^

Happy Birthday Aiba and MERRY CHRISTMAS!!

First of all - Happy Birthday Aiba-chan!! I hope your cake was super delicious (it certainly looked like it!).

 

and of course - to everyone else. Merry Christmas! I still have two hours to go, but before I forget ne? I hope you all have had a great holiday season, spent wonderful time with family and the most important thing of all..... (no, it's not about presents) - ATE LOTS OF GREAT FOOD!!! :D:D

 

Let's look forward to the New Year and Arashi's Kouhaku hosting okay?

V6

Seeing V6 on FNS and Best Artist has honestly revived my utter love for them. Like honestly.

 

and Sakamoto - such a good singer. How could I forget about this? I'm appalled at myself. Then again, my HD crashing and deleting a majority of my V6 (and TOKIO) stuff may have been the reason... Aggh.

 

Sempai groups <3 

NTV Best Artist - aka - More Jun-Hair flailing

omgosh. Jun. His hair. Normally when i watch performances i tend to look at all the members. I like to see if they dance in-sync or not, and what each member is doing, but this time? I just couldn't stop staring at Jun. My eyes were just glued to the guy. I don't know. He just looks so... *sigh*... 

His hair makes him look so boyish and young but really handsome and manly and just downright COOL and friggen HOT. Like, I dont' know why, but for some reason I just started wondering what he would look like shirtless. I NEVER picture Jun shirtless because truthfully? I don't really like the guy shirtless -_-;; But for some reason, short hair seems to make it seem like if he takes off his shirt he'll be really buff. Dont' ask. (I don't mean like Sho, but he won't be a stick anyway). haha. Don't ask how my mind works.

Not but seriously. Jun's hair. oh my god. *hugs him*. 

and yeah. Onto best artist... seeing Monster being performed is always awesome. <3 But Happiness? Kind of random. Believe, not so random but yeah, Happiness was random. And odd. and I kind of didn't like it. I guess they needed a fast song though - wait.. why didn't they just do STORY or some other equally awesome song? *pouts*. I wanna see them perform STORY damn it! And their costumes were alright. Although Sho's pants look like they were painted on his legs -_-;; and everyone else.. .um.. ooh, Ohno was really cool in monster. Kind of didn't pay attention to Nino and Aiba (I"M SORRY). Ironically Nino is my second favourite, so this has nothing to do with biases but for the life of me I just kept staring at Jun. 

I think I finally understand this whole "omg he's so hot *stare*giggle* thing that girls do. Before I never understood. Like how can a guy be THAT good looking, but DAMN. Okay - i get it. I finally get it. *re-watches performance*. Jun is just damn fine. Omygod. I can't wait to see him when he's just wearing like suits and stuff on Himitsu and on VS Arashi. *squeals* BEST CHRISTMAS EVER!!

haven't seen the entire show yet so can't say anything about the other guests. Will do so later when I have time~ 

Jun's Hair :P

omg, Jun's hair! I heard he cut it short but not THAT short! I'm SO HAPPY. If none of you know, my most favourite hair from Jun was during the ONE album in 2005, and this is pretty damn close.

AGGHH.. I'm trying not to scream watching the video (cause I'm in school, and I already look weird cause I'm sitting alone) but it's like watching crazy hair porn xD Hahah.

*fans self* so good looking, he looks so young and boyish ^^

Happy Birthday Ohno!

Happy Birthday Ohno!! I wish I could say more but it's snowing REALLY hard outside and i need to shovel the driveway before my dad gets home so he can actually drive into the garage.

but - Ohno, Happy Birthday.
30? 30? Seriously?
*shock*
You still look like a baby.
Haha.
I hope you never change.
Eat cake, go fishing, do whatever you want.
:)

My favourite old man.

Again with the Freeter Flail

aggh.. Freeter. :( I swear i've made a post (or have wanted to) after every episode of Freeter that i watch. This drama just drives me crazy.

What really got to me this week?

When Seiji's dad was confessing to the girl (forgot her name) about Sumiko's depression and his kids and all that. Made me sad. I didn't get 100% of it but I got enough. But just the situation.

I really like how this episode seemed to show.. like.. how it's sometimes hard for people to say things to those closest to them and that sometimes this leads to miscommunication, and problems and what-not. It applies to my family too, but I don't think we've, as of yet, solved our problems yet.

Freeter Flail [MAJORLY LONG POST]

This is going to be a long, slightly emotional, and kind of random post that will go on very many different tangents but somehow all revolves around my love of Nino's drama, 「フリーター、家を買う」. So yeah. Honestly? This is mostly a personal post that only vaguely relates to Freeter to be honest. ^^;; But read away.

So, I just watched episode 4 of Freeter and... I cried. I don't cry for a lot of things. I rarely cry for anything. The last time I cried watching a drama was when I watched "One Litre of Tears" which was 2 years ago and I only cried one TISSUE. Not a box, not a package. One tissue, that's it. Nothing more. So i guess you can imagine how hard it is for me to cry and yet I cried watching Freeter. Episode 4. The minute Seiji said "Ore shika ha nai" and the tears just started flowing down my face and I couldn't stop them.

I really don't know what it was about this scene. Actually the entire episode I really felt like crying. Or I had the urge to. This entire drama is a roller coaster for me. My heart breaks in every episode as I watch Seiji struggle with his family's problems. This episode... watching Seiji break like that, I just couldn't help but start sobbing. I didn't even know WHY I was sobbing. I didn't feel sorry for him, I don't know, somehow.. I ... I empathsized with him even though I've never been in his situation before in my life. Maybe it's Nino's acting, I'm not sure but when I saw Seiji crying my entire heart just broke for him.

I love my mom. I really do. My mom is to me, like Seiji's mom was to him. She is my support. I'm not as FAIL as Seiji was, I mean I get straight A's and study hard and what not, but even then, I'm not the proud, confident, 'nerd' that most Straight A'ers are. And so I have my mom there to be my pole to lean on. She's there, every step of the way saying "you can do it, you're fine" she is the person that asks me "Are you okay? Can you handle it?". She is there to tell me when I can take a break, when it's okay for me to break down, when it's okay for me to take a step away and just... relax. And so seeing Seiji's mom like that, in such a depression. It breaks my heart. It really hurts me and as I watch Seiji struggle it hurts me more because i know, I KNOW, if that was me in that position, I would break. I would just crumble into pieces and fall apart. Especially if Seiji's dad was my dad.

Which brings me to another point. Seiji's dad. I hate him. I don't care what his excuse is, no matter what his problem is, or why he's being such a fucking ass hole, I don't CARE. I don't have a good relationship with my dad. Granted, my dad is actually a good dad, I just... don't get along with him. And my dad actually supports my mom. But seeing Seiji's dad makes my blood boil. Seeing him yell at Seiji, yell at Seiji's sister (who I can't remember the name off), seeing him yell at his WIFE who than has the KINDNESS TO PROTECT HIM just... OH MY GOD. That is half the reasno I wanted to cry. I wanted to cry from sheer ANGER at seeing this man on screen. I just wanted to reach in there and punch him, over and over, and over again until he realized what a RETARD and what a FAILURE of a HUMAN BEING he is. *rantsgrumbleswearkillssomeone*. Yeah. I don't have a good relationship with my dad, and my dad is nothing like this man but I just generally dont' like fathers and seeing a father like this just... ugh. I'm disugsted.

See? See how Freeter does this to me? How I can I NOT love a drama that envokes so much emotion in me? Normally I have as much emotion as a rock - ie - none. I have little empathy for anyone, and the emotional and understanding range of a teaspoon. You could say this is a mental problem but whatever. And yet, to have a drama like this drive me up the wall with anger, frustrating, annoyance, sadness, heartbreak, tears... T-T

and then to move on to just the whole theme the drama seems to be showing of SOCIAL PRESSURE IN JAPAN. Oh my god. I love this drama just for this reason. This is a brilliant theme to show because it's true. This is SO Japanese and Japanese people need to LEARN about how stiffling their social heirarchy is, not just on a business level but just on a regular "neighbourly" level. It's suffocating. It's terrible. You constantly have to be good to your neighbours, your relatives, the people around you, and if you're not your orstricized, rejected. This drama is no exaggeration and I honestly think that the fact that Japan has made a drama like this is just one LARGE step for the country and I'm so glad it's doing well and that people are SERIOUSLY watching this.

Freeter I think, is not only the best drama I've seen all year, but one of THE BEST dramas I've seen so far. And I know it's not done yet so I really shouldn't be saying this so fast (I mean, episode 4 - come on) but honestly... *wibbles*.

Johnny's and Kouhaku

So I just read this article on Asianfanatics.net and... first, I hope it's not true, next if it is, I'm kind of disappointed.

Kouhaku is a really important show in Japan. I know, the ratings are slipping which obviously means it is "losing it's importance" but I don't think that is a reason to just throw it away, nor is it s areason to just abandon tradition and what this concert was first made for. Johnny's trying to force groups into Kouhaku is a big "NO" in my book and a very bad decision. Groups like SMAP and even TOKIO, and recently Arashi (due to their popularity) I can understand. They've been on Kouhaku before. But using Arashi as a MEANS to force OTHER groups in? Not only do I think that is insulting to the show, Kouhaku, but to other artists who DESERVE and WORKED HARD to actually be INVITED. Also I think it's not good for Arashi. I know they don't play a part it in, after all it's the company doing it but somehow ... I just feel if this really happens Arashi might be blamed slightly too. >.<

I know that by default Johnny's idols are pretty damn 'popular' already but there are honestly, so many other artists in Japan that some people tend to forget that it's not ALL about Johnny's Entertainment. There are a lot of really good artists who work hard to get their popularity and their sales and it's because they are actually GOOD artists. (No offense but I wouldn't say that all Johnny's are excellent singers nor dancers). I love JE but I've seen Kouhaku and I feel that if Johnny's does this he is ruining something really traditional and special that should be left untainted.

I also feel bad for NHK because they are so pressured for ratings yet it seems at the same time they don't want to throw away the tradition of Kouhaku either. It's like a catch 22. Bow down to Johnny's and get the ratings, or keep up a long-standing tradition special to Japan and watch the ratings fall?

果てない空 Review

THIS IS IT PEOPLE. THIS IS WHAT I HAVE BEEN WAITING FOR. OMG. O.M.G.

They did it. Quality. I love this single. I don't care what anyone says. I love this. Every. Single. Song. Absolute love. Maybe it's cause they actually have more than 2 songs. Maybe it's cause they have a making of. Maybe it's cause they have a fricken Christmas song. I DON'T KNOW BUT I LOVE THIS.

果てない空：
It's a theme song. I like it. It's not AWESOME but I like it. It's got more speed than Dear Snow so I don't find it boring and it's not too crazy like Troublemaker (which I sadly have a love-hate relationship with). I haven't seen the PV yet and I don't plan too because I don't want to ruin the image of this song in my mind. It's really calming and reminds of Freeter, which I love. <3

STORY:
Eeeks! I love this song. Hands down best song on the single. I wouldn't expect it from the title, but it is. It's so catchy and .. .I don't know, it reminds me of something but I can't remember what. But it's speedy, and smooth. Slick. I kind of want them to perform this because I can imagine the craziest dance being accompanied with this song. And I mean like... fast, hard, dancing. Like even crazier than Believe or Crazy Moon it would be the most awesome dance ever. Ah. This song. Absolute love. This totally beats out Hatenai Sora and the Christmas song. 

Maboroshi:
Ah. The ballad. It's alright. Not one of their best ballads. Although I like it better than Dear Snow, so I guess that says something right? (I'm sorry, I"m sorry but.. I just.. didn't get along with that single very well). It's sweet. It sounds sweet, the music in the background is really subtle but it sounds very nice. Again, like Hatenai Sora it's really calming. And kind of... heart-wrenching in a way for some reason. I'm not really listening to the lyrics so I don't know what they're actually singing about. ^^;;  Truthfully it's not a bad song, and far above "mediocre" but it's over-shadowed by three other GREAT songs that this one kind of looks bland, caught in the middle. But I am sure I will grow to love it as I listen to the single more. (and I'm currently repeating it now and falling more in love with it. LOL). 

あの日のメリークリスマス:
OMG A CHRISTMAS SONG KYAA~~~ I LOVE CHRISTMAS. And it sounds so fricken jazzy and it sounds like a fricken rip off from Wish which I don't know if I like or not. xD OMG. The chorus. Oh the chorus. <3 Is it bad that when I hear this song I imagine Arashi dressed up as elves prancing up and down and singing this in the snow with Christmas lights and gigantic presents in the snow. Um.. PV NOW PLEASE? CHRISTMAS. But I dunno, for some reason it's not as loud as I thought it would be, but it totally fits the Christmas mood. Oh my god. <3<3. Aggh.. I can tell this is another song I'm gonna have a love-hate relationship with. I mean honestly there are so many better x-mas songs but come on.... it's like full-blown Christmas, how can I not love it? 

Overall: (4/5)

It's a great single. I think overall, as an ENTIRE single (and not just the main song) this is the best single they've released all year. Sure, I liked Troublemaker, Monster, Love Rainbow - but that's it. I didn't like any other song in any of those singles, all I liked were the title tracks. (and don't even bring up Dear Snow - sorry). But this is the one single where I actually like ALL the songs on it. And I mean ALL the songs. Maboroshi is a bit iffy but it has two other songs, STORY and the Christmas song (too lazy to type the title ^^;;) that are just so GREAT that one "okay" song really doesn't matter. Yes Arashi. The end of the year, I knew you guys could do it, and you guys did. I am so happy right now *sobs*

It's not joke, I really did tear up when I heard STORY because it's been so long since I've heard such a great song from them in a single I just felt like I had to cry.. :( (god I'm such a sad fangirl -_-;;)

Closing note: ALL THE SONGS ON THIS SINGLE NEED A PV FOR ITSELF

Freeter~

So it's been a while (since my not-so-happy post) but now I'm back and this time with nothing (really) negative to say :P

 

So yeah, I watched the first episode of Freeter, Ie wo Kau and oh... I don't know how to say this. I love Nino and his acting. I think out of Arashi, and just as a Japanese actor, he is one of the best. It's NOT just because he went to Hollywood either. But when I talk about Nino's "great" acting, I mostly reference his dramas like Yasashii Jikan and Haikei, Chichiue-sama. And from what I've seen in the first episode, I think Freeter may fit into this category as well. It feels like it could but at the same time I do feel there are some elements missing. We'll see, I have high hopes for this drama. (and no, I am not Nino-biased... *cough*maybejustabit*cough*)

 

I'm not going to go into much detail but I really felt for Nino's character Seiji. He's a Freeter sure, but he's trying. And his dad really isn't much help, completely opposite from his mom. Honestly I felt pretty mad when Seiji (Nino) blew upo at his mom, I wanted to reach into my computer and slap him I was so angry. Although I knew why he was like that. And his dad, my god his dad. I can't say anything, I already have issues with my own dad, I don't want to see something like that. *grumbles*. Honestly, I really like Seiji... or is it just that I'm fangirling Nino? Cause the Conbini-scene and when he's video-gaming are so awesome. <3 But my heart broke when he was in the hospital and he realized that he (may) have been the reason for his moms break down... and when he was lying in the mud crying. (T.T) But, just a small comment, the scenes where his mom was going through her little "phases" or "depression", I found those really creepy. Actually, in general I find his mom kind of creepy sometimes. When she smiles and stuff, I don't know. It's not a minus-point for the actor, I just think, appearance wise she is creepy. ^^;;

 

Yeah, I'm not giving a real review on this drama but I may post my small little random thoughts each week, depends on how much I end up liking it. But as I said, I have high hopes for this drama, I really hope it does well. It's almost like a weird mix of both Yasahii Jikan and Haikei, Chichiue-sama. Can't wait for next week. ^^

New Single

NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO.
OMG NO.
W-T-F

ARASHI.
STOP RELEASING SINGLES OMG NO.
>.<
feel free to shoot me for being "unsupportive blah blah blah" I don't care. oh my god. just ... 
.....
god.
are you serious? 
and I saw the PV for Dear Snow?
!@#$
They might as well just stand there with a white background and singe, it wouldn't make a difference. 
I love Arashi. I really do. They give me endless amounts of joy... but I am not blind as to like EVERYTHING they throw at me. I don't mean this as an insult to fans, nor as an insult to them. This is just so I can defend myself before anyone tells me "if you're a fan you should like it anyways blah blah blah stop complaining blah blah blah blah" cause that' just a load of bull. 
aagh..
honestly.
*sigh*

I WANT to be happy for this but... 
on the other hand though - ZOMG OOKU LOOKS SO AWESOME OMG OMG OMG OMG
and I can't wait for Freeter, ie wo kau. ^^ 

Love Rainbow + Other Thoughts

Okay, this is going to be my first post on typepad, after vox and this is also going to be a very long post. Not necessarily a happy one either. I'm still getting used to typepad actually, it's kind of laggy. :( *sigh* And re-categorizing all my old posts is kind of a pain. >.< But we'll see how things go.

First on my list. Love Rainbow PV. Do not like. At all. The only good thing I can say is that it is more visually appealing than To Be Free, in terms of colours and general aesthetics. Aside from that, this PV is just plain boring. I think I've had enough of "Arashi stand and look pretty PV's". But what can we do? They seem too busy to actually stand together and film something properly. Thankfully the Making of to this PV was BRILLIANT. I mean, sure, the entire PV was shot with a green-screen (obviously - I mean the blatant CGI was just killing me inside) but the 'making of' was adorable. My favourite scenes off the top of my head? Ohno giggling, Juntoshi moment, Ohmiya moment, Aiba, when all of them are doing the jacket-cover photoshoot. This 'making of' was hilarious. Oh damn.. so cute. >.< Honestly. But yeah, the PV is just... ew. I have a hate for obvious CGI effects intermixed with real people. This is also why I dislike 'One Love' (although One Love was just.. ew where as Love Rainbow at least looks nice..). I don't like obvious CGI effects, even if that is what the producer was going for. I just don't like it, I hate it when CGI is obviously seen next to real people. And as I said - this PV is just damn boring. I also think it doesn't fit the song very well but I think it's just cause I'm NatsuNiji biased and I really like the opening for NatsuNiji. =P

Next on my list. The recent Arashi textbook that was released in Japan. On one hand, a part of me is like "WANT WANT WANT WANT WANT" because hello, a textbook that is centered around Arashi? That is awesomeness. It's like getting a free photobook supplied by the school. And it is a smart move by the government, since kids like Arashi and putting Arashi in your textbook basically means your kids are going to read that textbook. (Or at least become vaguely interesting in whatever the textbook is talking about). But then another part of me is like *sigh*.. Japan. I mean, don't get me wrong. I think this is totally cool. Although I do not wish this happened in the America's because if any celeb in North America entered my textbook I would burn it. >_> But for Arashi I think it's awesome, especially since they did it voluntarily and the topics they address are actually.. well.. insightful and good to know about (Japanese or not). Now if only they could release a textbook that taught foreigners Japanese. Kind of like "Minna no Nihongo" complete with the listening CD and all =D (basically I love this idea but at the same time I'm kind of like "oh dear god, what is Japan coming to?")

and lastly - the recent 'Arashi Jet' that JAL released. Personally? I don't like JAL very much as an airline, but maybe that's because the last time I rode JAL it was going bankrupt. Who knows? Either way, it's still better than the Chinese airlines :D. But this jet is kind of... uh... I don't know what to think but my first reaction is I'm not too thrilled. Unlike the textbook which is actually helpful and all this JET.. is just kind of.. I don't like it. I know as a fan, I should be supportive and happy becuase "oh  my god they are so popular and everyone wants a piece of them :D:D" but that's why I am not happy. They are too popular and everyone is trying to use Arashi to get some extra crash. Heck, you just stick Arashi on a piece of paper, slap it on a table at a furniture store and I'm sure it'd be sold out in seconds. *sigh* Going back to the Love Rainbow PV - I wouldn't have been surprised if it really did just show them walking in front of a green screen (like Ohno said they might be doing xD). I just feel... I don't know. I don't mind if the boys get more exposure but this is beyond exposure. What Japan is doing now is going past exposure and just out-right USING (and yes - I do mean to sound negative). I understand, Arashi = Popular = lotsa fans = MONEY. But they are just.. being.. OVER-exposed and it's not to boost their popularity anymore. It's just for the sake of using them to get MONEY, they are so popularity and they don't even need to look for it anymore. And somehow it just feel so wrong. They're being over-used, over-exposed, over-worked, milked, stretched and ...

I don't know what I'm trying to say. I'm just ranting now to be honest. I'm just tired... I want my old, stupid, dorky Arashi back. The Arashi that was popular but wasn't being used by everyone in Japan as a means to make some extra money just because they sell. >.< I just want my regular dorky boyband back... :(

Why? T.T

aggh.. why does vox have to close? Albeit I wasn't as active on vox as I was on LJ but vox was the place to put my long fangirl schpiels and what not. *sigh*

This was honestly my fangirl blog. I may not have posted much (nor did I comment as much as I should have) but I still love this place regardless.

I will be moving to typepad though. Don't know how active I will but I guess more or less the same as vox. I don't want to lose all the posts I've made in this blog. They are all special to me... *sigh*

お誕生日おめでとう！

松潤、２７歳のお誕生日おめでとう！！
プレゼントまだできないんだけど。。
この一年にもがんばろうね。
健康もちゃんと気をつけてね！
嵐でも、自分でも、
松本君のしたいことと夢へ行ってください〜
嵐のように、幸せになるように、一生懸命走ろう！！

Happy Birthday MatsuJun, Jun-kun/Jun-chan, JunJun
and all those other nicknames you have.
My most favourite member next to Nino. <3<3<3
You've turned 27 you old man. *laugh*
Keep going one more year, do all the things you want to do,
try all the things you want to try.
Have fun working with Arashi - don't tire yourself.
Continue working out that body of yours :)
Propose to Mao a couple years down the road

:)

Normally I have some sort of present.. currently.. I am still working on Jun's present. *sigh*
This particular thing is giving me lots of trouble.
Honestly, these two....... *shakes fist at a certain couple*

half the reason I'm taking so long is cause I want this to be one of the best drawings I've done, ever, next to that recent picture of Nino I drew for his birthday ^^

*gets working*

(x-posted from my LJ)