Different Doesn't Always Mean Worse
Before I get into my next post, I have to say one thing: Buses are helpful. Exact change is evil.
Anyway, here's a list of the “normal” (read: non-BL) Japanese TV shows I've been watching, featuring a few of the actors I've decided to keep track of. The funny thing about these shows is that you can usually end up playing the Six Degrees of Separation game (based on the theory that everyone in the world can be connected to virtually anyone in six steps.) So I would watch one show because of X actor, then find Y actor from the same show pop up elsewhere, who just happened to co-star with Z actor, whom I'd already seen in another series with X actor...repeat ad infinitum. Even I can't keep up with all the connections, so I may miss a few when describing the shows.
Also, for the record, I freely admit Japanese names confuse me and I can often get the order wrong. Although I'm aware the surname comes before the first name in Japan, I've seen the names below written both ways so I'm not always certain which is which. I'm 100% certain Saito(h) Takumi is correct, but the others are open for interpretation.
There is an order to this, I swear (at least, I think so). So as not to bore everyone with a long post again, I'll probably end up breaking this up into a couple of segments. Let's start with the first three non-BL projects that I watched:
Boys Este
Featuring: Saitoh Takumi as Shikishima Shichiri
Not subbed in English yet, but the general plot involves Akagi Hibiki, a high schooler who starts work at an esthetic salon, and a young girl named Shizuka who lost confidence in her looks when her former boyfriend insulted her. While they struggle with their feelings for each other, Shikishima's eye also lands on Shizuka.
A 12-episode light romance/comedy series, not to be confused with Saitoh's darker and more graphic movie Boys Love. No BL in this show, although it's hinted at least once that Shikishima is bisexual. The humor takes some getting used to, but once you get past Shizuka's overacting in the comedic parts, it's actually an enjoyable series. I had a difficult time locating all the episodes, but it isn't impossible.
Princess Princess D
Featuring: Kamakari “KenKen” Kenta as Yutaka Mikoto; Saitoh Takumi as Arisada Shuya
An all-boys high school (which is apparently a popular setting for TV shows) has established a rather unusual practice: choosing three first-year students every year to dress as “princesses” and be the school's official mascots. A very reluctant Mikoto is coaxed into it by his friends, and discovers a few things about the true power-and trials-of friendship.
KenKen was also Hyotei's Shishido in Tenimyu. I don't know what it is with Japan and cross-dressing, but at any rate Saitoh is practically one of the only actors who don't end up in a dress by the end-and let me tell you, seeing the rowdy and incredibly boyish KenKen dressing in pink lace is enough to give anyone nightmares. There were also hints of BL sprinkled liberally across the ten epsidodes, although not enough to be classified a BL-genre show. Overall, the series was “cute”, but I doubt I'd sit through the whole thing a second time.
Forbidden Siren 2
Featuring: Saitoh Takumi as Itsuki Mamoru
This isn't actually a series, or even a movie-it's a video game for the Japanese PS2, following in the tradition of the survival horror genre ala Silent Hill. 29 years ago the remote island Yamijima was thrown into darkness when an underwater cable snapped. The next morning, all of the island's inhabitants were gone. A group of present-day travelers are visiting the island for their own separate reasons when the boat they're on capsizes--and that's just the beginning of their terror.
Even if Saitoh hadn't lent his voice to the main protagonist, I probably would have been interested in this game anyway. The story seems fairly complex, the developers made the creepiness factor actually work, and apparently one of the main features is the fact you end up playing many different characters by the end. Very much like Alan Wake, light plays an integral role in gameplay, which I find fascinating. Even the violence level isn't all that bad compared to its English counterparts. But Japanese games won't work on American consoles, so I guess I'll just be happy with the cutscenes others have uploaded to the internet.
Up next: Kazuki Kato, Shirota Yuu and how I ended up expanding my search beyond the grads of Tenimyu.
Anyway, here's a list of the “normal” (read: non-BL) Japanese TV shows I've been watching, featuring a few of the actors I've decided to keep track of. The funny thing about these shows is that you can usually end up playing the Six Degrees of Separation game (based on the theory that everyone in the world can be connected to virtually anyone in six steps.) So I would watch one show because of X actor, then find Y actor from the same show pop up elsewhere, who just happened to co-star with Z actor, whom I'd already seen in another series with X actor...repeat ad infinitum. Even I can't keep up with all the connections, so I may miss a few when describing the shows.
Also, for the record, I freely admit Japanese names confuse me and I can often get the order wrong. Although I'm aware the surname comes before the first name in Japan, I've seen the names below written both ways so I'm not always certain which is which. I'm 100% certain Saito(h) Takumi is correct, but the others are open for interpretation.
There is an order to this, I swear (at least, I think so). So as not to bore everyone with a long post again, I'll probably end up breaking this up into a couple of segments. Let's start with the first three non-BL projects that I watched:
Boys Este
Featuring: Saitoh Takumi as Shikishima Shichiri
Not subbed in English yet, but the general plot involves Akagi Hibiki, a high schooler who starts work at an esthetic salon, and a young girl named Shizuka who lost confidence in her looks when her former boyfriend insulted her. While they struggle with their feelings for each other, Shikishima's eye also lands on Shizuka.
A 12-episode light romance/comedy series, not to be confused with Saitoh's darker and more graphic movie Boys Love. No BL in this show, although it's hinted at least once that Shikishima is bisexual. The humor takes some getting used to, but once you get past Shizuka's overacting in the comedic parts, it's actually an enjoyable series. I had a difficult time locating all the episodes, but it isn't impossible.
Princess Princess D
Featuring: Kamakari “KenKen” Kenta as Yutaka Mikoto; Saitoh Takumi as Arisada Shuya
An all-boys high school (which is apparently a popular setting for TV shows) has established a rather unusual practice: choosing three first-year students every year to dress as “princesses” and be the school's official mascots. A very reluctant Mikoto is coaxed into it by his friends, and discovers a few things about the true power-and trials-of friendship.
KenKen was also Hyotei's Shishido in Tenimyu. I don't know what it is with Japan and cross-dressing, but at any rate Saitoh is practically one of the only actors who don't end up in a dress by the end-and let me tell you, seeing the rowdy and incredibly boyish KenKen dressing in pink lace is enough to give anyone nightmares. There were also hints of BL sprinkled liberally across the ten epsidodes, although not enough to be classified a BL-genre show. Overall, the series was “cute”, but I doubt I'd sit through the whole thing a second time.
Forbidden Siren 2
Featuring: Saitoh Takumi as Itsuki Mamoru
Click to viewThis isn't actually a series, or even a movie-it's a video game for the Japanese PS2, following in the tradition of the survival horror genre ala Silent Hill. 29 years ago the remote island Yamijima was thrown into darkness when an underwater cable snapped. The next morning, all of the island's inhabitants were gone. A group of present-day travelers are visiting the island for their own separate reasons when the boat they're on capsizes--and that's just the beginning of their terror.
Even if Saitoh hadn't lent his voice to the main protagonist, I probably would have been interested in this game anyway. The story seems fairly complex, the developers made the creepiness factor actually work, and apparently one of the main features is the fact you end up playing many different characters by the end. Very much like Alan Wake, light plays an integral role in gameplay, which I find fascinating. Even the violence level isn't all that bad compared to its English counterparts. But Japanese games won't work on American consoles, so I guess I'll just be happy with the cutscenes others have uploaded to the internet.
Up next: Kazuki Kato, Shirota Yuu and how I ended up expanding my search beyond the grads of Tenimyu.