203reallys!? - check this out :D

okay - last time. I've posted this on fb, twitter, lj and tumblr and now finally this.

Everyone, please check this site 203Reallys!? out!

It's a really cool idea/campaign that my sister started where basically she's trying to collect small tidbits of interesting and relatively unknown info from every country in the world to share to other people. You can look through the site now and learn some really cool/random facts that you may not have known before

and (the most important part)

please help contribute.

Obviously my sister isn't a genius and there are some facts that you can't just look up on the internet so if YOU have any interesting facts about your country, your culture, or any country you've been to/visited feel free to share it at the facebook page (or just search 203reallys!? on facebook). You can post as a guest.

and of course (if you find it interesting) - please do share it with your friends and family.

of course if you're not interested or whatever it's fine but I really think this is a cool idea and worth sharing to as many people around the world as possible. People are becoming more and more connected with technology but there are still lots of things that people don't know about other countries and cultures and I think through this campaign/site it will allow people to learn some really great things and become more multi-cultural.

Lotus PV/Song Review

Edit - I also happened to translate the song here at my tumblr

here were my thoughts as I was watching which pretty much will sum up my review and then a short bit about what I actually think of the song (not the single - just the song).

- Set reminds me of Believe

- Dance is kind of weird... dunno what to think just yet.

- oooh, but white suits make them look hot. *drools*

- ooh, dance is looking slightly better. Especially at the "Glass no You ni" part

- WTF NINO OMG HIS VOIC, I thought it was a girl o_o daaaaammnn...

- ah... still reminds me of Believe. Did they just take the set of Believe and recycle it cause that's really what I feel...

- omg.. what is with this annoying video overlaying part? It's done so terribly wtf... can't watch. Would it could to add a bit of a "fade effect" rather than just choppy over-lay and then quick switches? >.< Looks so sloppy...

- again, they look so nice though (not in white suits, in their other costumes) - soooo nice...

- OHNO!OHNO!OHNO!OHNO!

-...okay all this flowers and standing inside a white room with faded colours and all this is now making me think of Ashita no Kioku...

- and back to Believe.... and then Ashita... and then Believe....

-okay, so is this PV just a mix of Believe and Ashita no Kioku then?

- Dance is looking weird again... >.<

- okay more switching of Ashita no Kioku and Believe parts... *cough*

- and of course, you can't forget the classic "stand and sing moments", they really followed the formula perfectly.

- and OMG OHNO!VOICE!OHNO!VOICE... I really want to hear him to that live with just as much emotion as he put into this PV >_>

- okay.. dance looks even more awkward now that they are showing full body.. orz

- .....and I think the part I like least is the ending cause that just... huh. no comment. crazy wrist moments, must admit.. but uh.. okay.

Okay so overall... not my most favourite PV ever. It's better than their Dear Snow, Love Rainbow, CGI'd non-moving PV's so I guess I'll be happy with it for now. ^^ You can interpret my thoughts anyway you want, good or bad *shrug*.

And as for the song...

...it's pretty much like the PV for me. It just feels like a mix of two different things. In this case it's not a mix of Believe and Ashita no Kioku, but it sounds like a mix between Truth and Monster and doesn't stand out very much. *shrug* To be fair I wasn't looking very forward to this single in the first place (i'm sorry for bringing the rain down in the midst of the sunshine/sparkles/hot-white-suits) BUT - I am very eager to see this being performed on Music Station next Friday. ^^

and the other songs I ... yeah. no comment.

 

Shiyagare?

Is it just me or are their guests just getting better and better?

that monomane guy last week, Hatori-san this week and Yuzu next week? I'm keeping my fingers crossed for Ogura-san to pop up any day now, or maybe Kinki Kids o_o

 

*KEEPING FINGERS CROSS SO TIGHTLY IT HURTS!!*

Hallyu Wave

I really wonder what it is about Korean Entertainment that is making (apparently) the Western world so caught up in it. And I specifically mention Korean because really, Japanese Entertainment, outside of anime/manga, has never gotten this much attention.

I'm curious. Why? Because.. well.. too put it bluntly? I don't like Korean entertainment. Not as in "OMG I HATE KPOP IT"S STUPID", that is not true - I have nothing against it, it's just not my taste. (and hey, if Big Bang was paired with Arash i'd be so excited :D:D)

Maybe it's cause Koreans are actively reaching out? But... somehow I feel like even if Johnny's tried the same thing, I honestly feel they wouldn't get as much attention.... or maybe it's just me? I'm just curious. What is it that Westerners see in Korean entertainment. Is it the music, the looks, the dramas, just... what that separates them and makes them shine so much.

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.