Oh-Oku -the inner chambers-
Oh-Oku 大奥
I've been neurotic all weekend, so instead of showing potential crazy to the choir kids today, I stayed in to read the Oh-Oku manga by Fumi Yoshinaga, also known as the artist for Antique Bakery.
Read it partly because I was curious about Nino's upcoming movie, and partly because my good friend had talked about it as the most recent grand prize winner of the Tezuka Osamu Cultural Prize.
I know there's folks on my f-list who would prefer watching movies without learning about the original text, so DO NOT ENTER THE CUT IF YOU WON'T WANT SPOILERS.
Synopsis:
Oh-Oku is a historical science fiction story that takes place in an alternate history version of feudal Japan, where a strange epidemic has killed off a significant amount of males. This has led to a matriarchal society where women outnumber men by 4 to 1. Thus, the shogun, who is typically male, is now female, while the harem of women (Oh-Oku) has now turned into a harem of men. They serve as "seeds", breeders for the shogun heir.
For most of Volume One (and presumably the movie adaptation), the story follows a pretty, young man called Mizuno Yuunoshin (played by Nino). Although he's in love with his childhood friend, O-nobu, he cannot marry her, because she is the daughter and heir of a drugs store, while he comes from a poor, low-ranking family. In an attempt to bring up his status in life, Mizuno decides to join the Oh-Oku, where he learns the inner chambers is not quite as noble as he thought. In other words: men are bitchy and like to play dirty. He enters the Oh-Oku just as the 7th shogun passes away from an illness and the reign of a new shogun, Tokugawa Yoshimune (played by Shibasaki Kou), is born.
The shogun takes a liking to Mizuno's courage (for daring to look her in the eye and admitting that he laughed at her) and sense of thrift (as the only man in the harem to wear plain black robes), so she chooses him to be her first (Go-naisho no kata = the first confidante). Unfortunately, the shogun is a virgin; this means that Mizuno's penetration will ultimately hurt her, thus the law states that he must be punished by death.
Does he die?
Well. Maybe we can keep that a secret for now.
Oh-Oku hierarchy:
It is said that the shogun owns 3,000 men. In reality, she owns 800. First, the 800 men are divided into two categories: men who are allowed to look upon the shogun and men who are not. Those allowed to look upon her are further divided into:
-Jourou O-toshiyono (Noblemen of the court)
-O-toshiyono (Noblemen)
-Okyaku Ashirai (Guests reception)
-Naka-toshiyori (Middle-class Noblemen)
-O-chuurou (Middle-class Noblemen of the court)
-O-koshou (Pages)
-O-jouguchi (I'm guessing this is like personal servant or something lol)
Those not allowed to look upon the shogun are the clothes designers and the o-hashita, the men in the lowest ranks. They're essentially servants who clean the other men's quarters and serve them food. This is the rank that Mizuno starts with.
Characters:
Mizuno Yuunoshin - You first see Mizuno as a rambunctious guy beating all his peers in Kendo. He's loud, he's wild, and right from the start, the manga reminds you that he is pretty, pretty, pretty. O-nobu even complains that he's so pretty that too many women keep asking for his "seed". And Mizuno is okay with this! In fact, he's hilariously noble about it, believing that he's doing the community a service by helping them bear kids. AND HE DOES IT FOR FREE. My mistake l-lol. Most of the women he sleeps with are poor and can't afford to buy a man.
Then he joins the Oh-Oku. He starts out as you would expect him to - bullied by the men for speaking like a peasant, making silly mistakes like serving food to the wrong chambers and nearly gang-raped by his peers at night (not kidding).
"O-nobu," he thinks, "This place is so dark."
So you watch him grow. He learns to play the game a little more. Act a little more refined and all that. The men in the Oh-Oku begin to respect him more, and the younger boys even fawn over him like fangirls. Mizuno later remarks to a friend, "Look at them giggling like little girls. Now I understand why you are okay with sleeping with these so-called boys."
All this time, he hasn't forgotten about O-nobu at all.
My thoughts? I like Mizuno. He's smart, he's sensible, he's brave, he's kind... the extent of his kindness goes so far as to make him kiss his personal kimono designer on the lips, because the young boy wanted to have a fond memory of him. Mizuno did it despite the fact that he's uncomfortable with the idea of homosexuality. tbh, he's the ideal man, really.
I think the casting director made an excellent choice with Nino. I don't know, but a lot of Mizuno just screams NINO to me. And Nino has the perfect strong-looking puppy face, if you know what I mean. He looks like someone you can mess with, but you soon find out that he bites back. Hard.
I'm... kind of hoping they'll include the young boy kiss scene just because asl;dkf it was so sweet and the boy's reaction was so, so adorable.
Boy: Ah
Mizuno: [kiss]
Mizuno: ... I'm sorry. I hope... this is enough.
Boy: Yes! No! YES!! I will treasure this for the rest of my life...!!!
Boy: [runs away freaking out]
Can you imagine Nino doing that kiss? Makes my heart go kyun. ♥
Tokugawa Yoshimune - Yoshimune is an excellent shogun. In her very first appearance, she fires an upstart servant:
Servant: What do you think, my Lady? This is an O-kaidori made of black silk with the fine pattern of a hoju.
Shogun: The O-kaidori refers to this outermost robe?
Servant: Yes. Because one walks by taking the hem of the robe in one's hand, we call it the O-kaidori within these walls.
Shogun: --------- how beautiful.
Shogun: However, Manabe, I believe I mentioned that I grew up in my hometown with nothing but a simple cotton garment.
Servant: You have indeed.
Servant: As ordered, we have made you a modest garment. We used black with a rather simple pattern. To make an article of clothing any more crude will surely hurt your reputation, my Lady.
Servant: The palace is not a lowly countryside like your hometown.
Shogun: I see. You leave me no choice.
Servant: Then you understand, my Lady?
Shogun: As of today, your services are no longer required.
Servant: W-What?
Shogun: The government is undergoing financial difficulties and is in dire need of proper rebuilding. The people in our administration who choose to cover their bodies with extravagant clothing are naught but fools in my eyes. It would appear that you are one such fool. I do apologize, but I cannot expect a person such as yourself to shoulder such heavy responsibilities.
Servant: ..........
Shogun: Have you gone deaf!? We have no need for your services! Leave!!
Servant: Yes, my Lady...
Strong woman is strong. And hot. <333 She actually doesn't show up or interact with Mizuno all that much until the very end, so the movie may tweak that a little since the shogun seems to be a lead role?
Also, they don't show this in Mizuno's arc of Volume One, but the shogun hates all the boring, luxurious ceremonial presentations of her harem; she prefers to just jump them while they least expect it. Even worse, she bones the low ranking boys in the harem who aren't supposed to be "seeds" at all, so there's a great panel of the chief going to the shogun's harem advisor and complaining, "PLEASE TELL HER TO STOP. SHE'S MAKING MY MEN VERY JUMPY." XDDD
Shibasaki... mm. I can't say anything about her acting since I don't think I've seen her anywhere, but she's a bit too... femininely pretty. When I saw her profile picture, I actually thought she was playing O-nobu at first. The shogun has this masculine sort of charm to her looks that Shibasaki doesn't quite have. This better not turn into a Mizuno/Shogun thing, because as hot as that could be, that's not how it should go. :/
O-nobu - Such a sweet girl. She loves Mizuno and I love her for being so patient with him. O-nobu is very aware that Mizuno's selling his seed to other women, but she takes it all in stride - though she does complain about it a lot. XD She also waits for him while he's in the Oh-Oku; it's later revealed that she has been rejecting all potential suitors.
Sugishita - He's in the O-hashita, the lowest rank in the harem, but he instantly becomes Mizuno's most trusted friend. He later tells Mizuno about his life, reminding an embittered Mizuno that some of the men join the Oh-Oku because they have nowhere else to go. Even after Mizuno is promoted to Jourou O-toshiyono, the highest rank, Sugishita harbours no jealousy at all and they remain the best of friends.
I don't quite understand why he's in the low rank, since he's actually quite good-looking. In fact, the shogun jumps him - lol she has a cleaner fetish or something - and she asks, "Why are you a cleaner? You look pretty enough to be in the higher ranks." It's possible that he's just too pure and honest - some of the men sleep with the higher ranking guys or the harem advisor (who's male) to get a promotion.
Tsuruoka - A pretty boy in the Jourou O-toshiyono who sleeps with the shogun's male advisors for the hope of greater riches, etc, etc. Mizuno first admires him as a skilled kendo master, but after Mizuno defeats him, Tsuruoka's words causes Mizuno to lose all respect for him.
"It doesn't matter how great your kendo skills are! The only thing that's important in the Oh-oku is pale skin and flawless beauty! That is the secret to success! So I still beat YOU, because I'M far more beautiful than you'll ever be!!"
Kashiwagi - Another pretty boy in the Jouro O-toshiyono who sleeps with the harem advisor for promotions too. Eh. Not much to say about him. He's... pretty? |D; Out of curiosity, has the rest of the Oh-oku movie cast been announced?
Hisamichi - A loyal, childhood friend of the shogun's, she is quickly appointed as the messenger/middleman between the Oh-oku and the shogun. She seems like a jolly, kind woman, but she can be quite ruthless when required.
Fujinami - The Oh-oku aka harem advisor. Dirty, sly fox, he's the one who manipulates Mizuno into getting chosen by the shogun, thereby leading the poor boy to his death sentence.
Kakizoe - The adorable clothes designer boy who has the largest crush on Mizuno ever.
Kakizoe: It is an honour to meet you, Lord Mizuno. I am the clothes designer who will be in charge of making your robes. My name is Kakizoe.
Kakizoe: ...........
Mizuno: Something wrong?
Kakizoe: I... I'm so HAPPY...!! Everyone in the Oh-oku is infatuated with you, Lord Mizuno! I actually got this job through a lucky draw aaaa what should I do...!!!!
Mizuno: ....
I want to keep this kid under my bed and feed him cookie crumbs every few minutes. <3 If the movie director keeps Kakizoe in the movie and leaves his 'zomg Mizuno-samaaaa ♥' character in, I will respect the man forever.
Finally...
I highly recommend this manga, if only because they totally revolutionized an otherwise predominantly patriarchal society. I'm also super excited about this movie. Wish there was more to the trailer than just a synopsis and silhouettes, but I guess there won't be be a full trailer until much later in the year. Plus, feudal robes! I always like watching feudal dramas just for the outfits. They were so beautiful and big and swishy and ... well, cumbersome. :D;
Haven't watched Sho's drama SP yet. How was it?
[edit] Helping the help_haiti cause Arashi style, as explained here. This is my thread. Offering translations (of anything, not just Arashi!) and crack fic.
I've been neurotic all weekend, so instead of showing potential crazy to the choir kids today, I stayed in to read the Oh-Oku manga by Fumi Yoshinaga, also known as the artist for Antique Bakery.
Read it partly because I was curious about Nino's upcoming movie, and partly because my good friend had talked about it as the most recent grand prize winner of the Tezuka Osamu Cultural Prize.
I know there's folks on my f-list who would prefer watching movies without learning about the original text, so DO NOT ENTER THE CUT IF YOU WON'T WANT SPOILERS.
Synopsis:
Oh-Oku is a historical science fiction story that takes place in an alternate history version of feudal Japan, where a strange epidemic has killed off a significant amount of males. This has led to a matriarchal society where women outnumber men by 4 to 1. Thus, the shogun, who is typically male, is now female, while the harem of women (Oh-Oku) has now turned into a harem of men. They serve as "seeds", breeders for the shogun heir.
For most of Volume One (and presumably the movie adaptation), the story follows a pretty, young man called Mizuno Yuunoshin (played by Nino). Although he's in love with his childhood friend, O-nobu, he cannot marry her, because she is the daughter and heir of a drugs store, while he comes from a poor, low-ranking family. In an attempt to bring up his status in life, Mizuno decides to join the Oh-Oku, where he learns the inner chambers is not quite as noble as he thought. In other words: men are bitchy and like to play dirty. He enters the Oh-Oku just as the 7th shogun passes away from an illness and the reign of a new shogun, Tokugawa Yoshimune (played by Shibasaki Kou), is born.
The shogun takes a liking to Mizuno's courage (for daring to look her in the eye and admitting that he laughed at her) and sense of thrift (as the only man in the harem to wear plain black robes), so she chooses him to be her first (Go-naisho no kata = the first confidante). Unfortunately, the shogun is a virgin; this means that Mizuno's penetration will ultimately hurt her, thus the law states that he must be punished by death.
Does he die?
Well. Maybe we can keep that a secret for now.
Oh-Oku hierarchy:
It is said that the shogun owns 3,000 men. In reality, she owns 800. First, the 800 men are divided into two categories: men who are allowed to look upon the shogun and men who are not. Those allowed to look upon her are further divided into:
-Jourou O-toshiyono (Noblemen of the court)
-O-toshiyono (Noblemen)
-Okyaku Ashirai (Guests reception)
-Naka-toshiyori (Middle-class Noblemen)
-O-chuurou (Middle-class Noblemen of the court)
-O-koshou (Pages)
-O-jouguchi (I'm guessing this is like personal servant or something lol)
Those not allowed to look upon the shogun are the clothes designers and the o-hashita, the men in the lowest ranks. They're essentially servants who clean the other men's quarters and serve them food. This is the rank that Mizuno starts with.
Characters:
Mizuno Yuunoshin - You first see Mizuno as a rambunctious guy beating all his peers in Kendo. He's loud, he's wild, and right from the start, the manga reminds you that he is pretty, pretty, pretty. O-nobu even complains that he's so pretty that too many women keep asking for his "seed". And Mizuno is okay with this! In fact, he's hilariously noble about it, believing that he's doing the community a service by helping them bear kids. AND HE DOES IT FOR FREE. My mistake l-lol. Most of the women he sleeps with are poor and can't afford to buy a man.
Then he joins the Oh-Oku. He starts out as you would expect him to - bullied by the men for speaking like a peasant, making silly mistakes like serving food to the wrong chambers and nearly gang-raped by his peers at night (not kidding).
"O-nobu," he thinks, "This place is so dark."
So you watch him grow. He learns to play the game a little more. Act a little more refined and all that. The men in the Oh-Oku begin to respect him more, and the younger boys even fawn over him like fangirls. Mizuno later remarks to a friend, "Look at them giggling like little girls. Now I understand why you are okay with sleeping with these so-called boys."
All this time, he hasn't forgotten about O-nobu at all.
My thoughts? I like Mizuno. He's smart, he's sensible, he's brave, he's kind... the extent of his kindness goes so far as to make him kiss his personal kimono designer on the lips, because the young boy wanted to have a fond memory of him. Mizuno did it despite the fact that he's uncomfortable with the idea of homosexuality. tbh, he's the ideal man, really.
I think the casting director made an excellent choice with Nino. I don't know, but a lot of Mizuno just screams NINO to me. And Nino has the perfect strong-looking puppy face, if you know what I mean. He looks like someone you can mess with, but you soon find out that he bites back. Hard.
I'm... kind of hoping they'll include the young boy kiss scene just because asl;dkf it was so sweet and the boy's reaction was so, so adorable.
Boy: Ah
Mizuno: [kiss]
Mizuno: ... I'm sorry. I hope... this is enough.
Boy: Yes! No! YES!! I will treasure this for the rest of my life...!!!
Boy: [runs away freaking out]
Can you imagine Nino doing that kiss? Makes my heart go kyun. ♥
Tokugawa Yoshimune - Yoshimune is an excellent shogun. In her very first appearance, she fires an upstart servant:
Servant: What do you think, my Lady? This is an O-kaidori made of black silk with the fine pattern of a hoju.
Shogun: The O-kaidori refers to this outermost robe?
Servant: Yes. Because one walks by taking the hem of the robe in one's hand, we call it the O-kaidori within these walls.
Shogun: --------- how beautiful.
Shogun: However, Manabe, I believe I mentioned that I grew up in my hometown with nothing but a simple cotton garment.
Servant: You have indeed.
Servant: As ordered, we have made you a modest garment. We used black with a rather simple pattern. To make an article of clothing any more crude will surely hurt your reputation, my Lady.
Servant: The palace is not a lowly countryside like your hometown.
Shogun: I see. You leave me no choice.
Servant: Then you understand, my Lady?
Shogun: As of today, your services are no longer required.
Servant: W-What?
Shogun: The government is undergoing financial difficulties and is in dire need of proper rebuilding. The people in our administration who choose to cover their bodies with extravagant clothing are naught but fools in my eyes. It would appear that you are one such fool. I do apologize, but I cannot expect a person such as yourself to shoulder such heavy responsibilities.
Servant: ..........
Shogun: Have you gone deaf!? We have no need for your services! Leave!!
Servant: Yes, my Lady...
Strong woman is strong. And hot. <333 She actually doesn't show up or interact with Mizuno all that much until the very end, so the movie may tweak that a little since the shogun seems to be a lead role?
Also, they don't show this in Mizuno's arc of Volume One, but the shogun hates all the boring, luxurious ceremonial presentations of her harem; she prefers to just jump them while they least expect it. Even worse, she bones the low ranking boys in the harem who aren't supposed to be "seeds" at all, so there's a great panel of the chief going to the shogun's harem advisor and complaining, "PLEASE TELL HER TO STOP. SHE'S MAKING MY MEN VERY JUMPY." XDDD
Shibasaki... mm. I can't say anything about her acting since I don't think I've seen her anywhere, but she's a bit too... femininely pretty. When I saw her profile picture, I actually thought she was playing O-nobu at first. The shogun has this masculine sort of charm to her looks that Shibasaki doesn't quite have. This better not turn into a Mizuno/Shogun thing, because as hot as that could be, that's not how it should go. :/
O-nobu - Such a sweet girl. She loves Mizuno and I love her for being so patient with him. O-nobu is very aware that Mizuno's selling his seed to other women, but she takes it all in stride - though she does complain about it a lot. XD She also waits for him while he's in the Oh-Oku; it's later revealed that she has been rejecting all potential suitors.
Sugishita - He's in the O-hashita, the lowest rank in the harem, but he instantly becomes Mizuno's most trusted friend. He later tells Mizuno about his life, reminding an embittered Mizuno that some of the men join the Oh-Oku because they have nowhere else to go. Even after Mizuno is promoted to Jourou O-toshiyono, the highest rank, Sugishita harbours no jealousy at all and they remain the best of friends.
I don't quite understand why he's in the low rank, since he's actually quite good-looking. In fact, the shogun jumps him - lol she has a cleaner fetish or something - and she asks, "Why are you a cleaner? You look pretty enough to be in the higher ranks." It's possible that he's just too pure and honest - some of the men sleep with the higher ranking guys or the harem advisor (who's male) to get a promotion.
Tsuruoka - A pretty boy in the Jourou O-toshiyono who sleeps with the shogun's male advisors for the hope of greater riches, etc, etc. Mizuno first admires him as a skilled kendo master, but after Mizuno defeats him, Tsuruoka's words causes Mizuno to lose all respect for him.
"It doesn't matter how great your kendo skills are! The only thing that's important in the Oh-oku is pale skin and flawless beauty! That is the secret to success! So I still beat YOU, because I'M far more beautiful than you'll ever be!!"
Kashiwagi - Another pretty boy in the Jouro O-toshiyono who sleeps with the harem advisor for promotions too. Eh. Not much to say about him. He's... pretty? |D; Out of curiosity, has the rest of the Oh-oku movie cast been announced?
Hisamichi - A loyal, childhood friend of the shogun's, she is quickly appointed as the messenger/middleman between the Oh-oku and the shogun. She seems like a jolly, kind woman, but she can be quite ruthless when required.
Fujinami - The Oh-oku aka harem advisor. Dirty, sly fox, he's the one who manipulates Mizuno into getting chosen by the shogun, thereby leading the poor boy to his death sentence.
Kakizoe - The adorable clothes designer boy who has the largest crush on Mizuno ever.
Kakizoe: It is an honour to meet you, Lord Mizuno. I am the clothes designer who will be in charge of making your robes. My name is Kakizoe.
Kakizoe: ...........
Mizuno: Something wrong?
Kakizoe: I... I'm so HAPPY...!! Everyone in the Oh-oku is infatuated with you, Lord Mizuno! I actually got this job through a lucky draw aaaa what should I do...!!!!
Mizuno: ....
I want to keep this kid under my bed and feed him cookie crumbs every few minutes. <3 If the movie director keeps Kakizoe in the movie and leaves his 'zomg Mizuno-samaaaa ♥' character in, I will respect the man forever.
Finally...
I highly recommend this manga, if only because they totally revolutionized an otherwise predominantly patriarchal society. I'm also super excited about this movie. Wish there was more to the trailer than just a synopsis and silhouettes, but I guess there won't be be a full trailer until much later in the year. Plus, feudal robes! I always like watching feudal dramas just for the outfits. They were so beautiful and big and swishy and ... well, cumbersome. :D;
Haven't watched Sho's drama SP yet. How was it?
[edit] Helping the help_haiti cause Arashi style, as explained here. This is my thread. Offering translations (of anything, not just Arashi!) and crack fic.