The Circle is Now Complete: Atsuhime Book I

After getting over the initial excitement of getting my ATSUHIME Official Drama album book, It was my friend Car who first pointed out that there were quite a few important characters that seemed to be missing from the book! Her first concern was that actor Ikki Sawamura wasn’t covered, and then it crossed my mind that they’d forgotten to put Kyozo Nagatsuka in it as well, and that was just mystifying, because he was such an important character in the Taiga Drama!

I was to later find out that the book I had purchased was in fact, the SECOND book, released to coincide with the show’s second half, and all the characters and incidents we’d wondered about had been covered in the FIRST release! KUYASHII!

  I went back to Hakubundo, where I’d bought the second book, hoping wishfully that they’d still have some of the first book in stock, but not only did they not have that first book, I was to find that the second book that I’d just bought had ALSO sold out by then! Thank God I picked up those copies when I saw it that first time!

  I figured I had to get used to the idea of not owning the first book, but was suggested I try Amazon Japan, and I was happy to discover that they still had lots of copies of the book in stock, and for only around $10.00! I quickly ordered the book, and was shocked to find the postage was $30.00! Yikes! But I would have paid a lot more for the book on ebay anyway, so I gladly purchased it.

 And guess what? That postage was well worth the price, because my book came in THREE DAYS! Yep, I ordered the book Saturday Night, and the package arrived Tuesday afternoon! I thought I’d scan a few pics to celebrate my completion of my Atsuhime Books at last (unless NHK decides to release one more book, which is pretty unlikely!)

Below: The obligatory "Out of Costume" interview, in the second one it was with Aoi Miyazaki and Masato Sakai, in the first book, it was with Aoi and Eita...Such a nice picture of Ms. Miyazaki, dessho?

One thing I wanted to mention that I didn’t touch on before is that Atsuhime’s mother Oyuki is played by veteran actress Kanako Higuchi, whom I’d fallen in love with years ago when she played the mother (again) of  the show’s heroine in the NHK Morning Drama Amakarashan, (a show that had me running out to try and find her Water-Fruit Shashinshuu!) and it was really sweet to see her in a drama again-She still looks just as beautiful as ever!

When I have the time, I'll have to scan more of the lovely ladies from this excellent Taiga Drama!

A Tale Of Two Aois

So this afternoon I moseyed on down to Shirokiya, that local store that carries japanese stuff  (CDs, Magazines, Food, Electronics, Furniture, etc), to pick up a package of Mikawaya mochi and see what new magazines and CDs they’d gotten in.

Perusing the magazine rack, I thought I spotted Miyazaki Aoi’s eyes peeking out at me from behind the rows of fashion magazines. I pulled the mag out, and, yep! I was right! My lovely Atsuhime/Nana-chan was smiling on the cover of a publication called “Mini”, and I quickly flipped through the pages to see if she was featured in any pictorial!

Well, Ms. Miyazaki WAS in an article, and there were two cute pages of her modelling various outfits, showcasing that Nana grin! When you include the cover, that’s three terrific full-page pictures of Aoi Miyazaki, but how much WAS the magazine, anyway? I flipped the mag over and found the sticker on the back said it was only $4.00!! Yes!

I was already thinking this was a awesome find, but then I turned a few pages and found the very next pictorial featured lovely MissYU AOI!!! That’s two-two-two mints in one! Now this magazine was was even MORE of a deal, with over four gorgeous pages of Yu Aoi posing in various designer outfits, looking as desirable as ever!

The above pic looks like she just dropped by to say "Hi!", and the blouse underneath the overalls looks pure Hagu!

The picture below has got to be my favorite shot of Yu…She looks so darn pretty here! "Unsqueaky" is right!

We’d just been joking about the “Battle of the Aoi’s”, and here was a magazine featuring both of them! I think it’s hilarious and quite telling, too, about the apparent dual admiration these two actresses command. As noted in my last two posts, there are camps that lean towards Yu Aoi more, some give Aoi Miyazaki the edge, and some (like me) who can’t get enough of both of them- but whatever the case is, MINI magazine made sure to cover ALL bases and serve up both girls at one time! YATTA!

The MINI magazine also had a nice pictorial of Koizumi Kyoko (which I'm sure Morningberryz would find interesting), as well as an article about j-rock group The Pillows (A favorite group of Dan’s!) What an issue! There's something for everybody!

Comments Fom Original Post:

Yametekudasai wrote:

Didja also see the June issue of HERS magazine on the rack there?

MorningBerryz wrote:

Gorgeous cover!!...and "Unsqueaky" what an interesting title. You have me quite intrigued...a 'nice pictorial' of Koizumi Kyoko? "Beautiful Girls" Kyonkyon? I don't know if you remember but even after you already gave me the tracks from that single I still needed to hunt down the actual single just for the cover! :P

:

I forgot to mention that she's also on the cover of a recent issue of "Switch" magazine which usually has a decent amount of article coverage on the cover celebrity...it's been in my Amazon Japan shopping cart since July 7th...just waiting for more things to order so that the outrageous shipping charges don't seem so much. Having a bit of a Inoue Mao infatuation right now too. :P

zdorama replied to MorningBerryz’s comment:

Scanned the two pages of KyonKyon for you to check out, here and here!

I remember you picking up that box set with the weird lego pieces cover!

Ah, Koizumi Kyoko...that wacky main actress from my beloved Re'nai Kekkon No Rule

MorningBerryz replied to zdorama’s comment:

That's a pretty cool way to design a box set! You were the one who first noticed how the obscured image came to look like her when you stood far away from the set. I just thought it was a freaky funny cover of supposedly her. :P

zdorama replied to Yametekudasai’s comment:

Umm...nope...Nande? Was there someone notable on the cover?

zdorama replied to MorningBerryz’s comment:

BTW, that "Switch" magazine...I think I saw a copy of that Mag with Aoi Miyazaki (!) on the cover of it at Hakubundo. I think that was the title... But it looked like a gamer magazine, so I figured she wouldn't be featured inside, so I passed it by.

Mao Inoue! So didjya see that last Hana Yori Dango movie yet?

Gads, it's after 10:00, what am I doing still up!? gotta get up at 3:00!

MorningBerryz replied to zdorama’s comment:

Ah I'm going to end up spending probably a bit more for it as I just sent in the order yesterday...it might take a little while to arrive though as I don't think they have everything in stock. She's squatting and wearing I think it was a blue dress? Hopefully there's a nice pictorial as Switch customarily does with their cover artist features. I ordered another one with Sakurai Kazutoshi on the cover. :)

I haven't even searched for the movie version yet...what's funny is that my brother can probably find it before I can if I asked him to. He's become amazing at finding things online since his J-Pop/K-Pop/anything cute interest has perked! Ah I was up late too the past two nights and I'm still up now....was having a widget episode just now and for much of the day. :/ Two polls are up...please vote if you get a chance. :) I've had a total of six hours of sleep in the past two days...I don't think I'm going to last much longer....must sleep!

Hula Girls...Finally!

Me and my friend Car are big fans of Johnny’s Jimusho band ARASHI, and when we found out member Sakurai Sho was going to be in a movie adaptation of HONEY AND CLOVER, we really wanted to check it out!

   A friend of ours would regularly get japanese movies for us to watch, and as we have such little time, over time, the discs tended to pile up!  But we made all the time we could spare when a few months later, he managed to finagle us our very own subtitled copy of Honey and Clover! We  put off  a dinner date, and that weekend, treated ourselves to the movie, and we weren’t disappointed!

Starring Sho in an ensemble cast of about five or six other “main” characters, including Masato Sakai, the shogun in Atsu-Hime, ( And yes, I will find a way to mention that drama in every entry I post! har har) the moive followed the lives of several art students, their peers and loves. Oh, and the theme song was Arashi’s “Aozora Pedal”, for those wondering!

  I was really taken aback by a young actress playing the part of  reclusive artist Hagu. I remember saying to Car, “Man, that actress is REALLY talented! I think she steals the show!, and added “Man, when that chick grows up, she’s gonna be a heartbreaker!” I had guessed at the time her age to be somewehre around 13 or 14, but I didn’t realize the character was supposed to appear younger than her age. We found out her name was Yu Aoi, an actress who we’d later hear in another Arashi-connected movie (starring Ninomiya Kazunori), TEKKON KINKREET, abiet only her voice in the animated show.

 That was around 2006. A few weeks back, I hear about this great movie coming out starring Nagasaku Hiromi, called “Hito no Sex o Warau na”, sort of a latter-day “Graduate” of sorts, with Nagasaku as the Mrs. Robinson-type  character. After seeing some previews of the show, as well as a glowing review by Mark Schilling, boy, after that, I really wanted to see it, too!  Besides all that, the movie also starred…you guessed it, Yu Aoi!

  So we’re talking about the movie recently, and our friend lets us know that the movie HAS come out on DVD, but so far, no subtitled version! DARN! I say, “Man, I can’t wait for that movie to get released! You know, it’s not just that Nagasaku’s in it, and the story looks great,  I really like Yu Aoi, too!”

  A thought crosses his mind, then he asks, “By the way, did you guys EVER watch that “Hula Girls” movie I gave you?” I had barely remembered that he’d given us that! Of course, it was in that growing spindle of movies, still waiting its turn to make it to movie night. “Um, no, we never got around to it. The last movie we attempted was that “Swing Girls” you gave us…”

“Well, Aoi Yu’s in that Hula Girls movie, you know.”

“And was she good in that movie? I really liked her in Honey and Clover.”

“Well, that’s up to you to decide, but there’s this scene, where she’s doing her…whatddaya call it…dance routine?... I think you should see it.”, he concluded.

So after work today, I brought out that pile, with the wacky Tabe Mikako / Shingo Katori movie Saiyuuki” at the very top of the spindle, and dug deep into the stack, and brought out the Hula Girls disc. I realized if I waited for a “proper” time for us to watch it,, we’d never get around to it, so I popped it in and just watched it right then and there…and…

I LOVED IT!

Led by sexy actress Yasuko Matsuyuki (star of some of my fave dramas like Riso No Joshi, Africa No Yoru and Nanisama), I knew we were in for a solid movie, but I wasn’t prepared for how awesome Yu Aoi was going to be. I’d sensed her charisma in Honey and Clover, but here was a movie where she was allowed to dominate the scenes, and she nailed down every one! Mumbly and shy, tough and outspoken, sensitive and heartbroken, she assimilated each role perfectly, and, as they say, “I believed”… Yep, I believed every portrayal!

As one of the four motley coal miner’s daughters volunteering for Matsuyuki’s Hula Lessons, Aoi Yu's character Kimiko seemed so steadfast and composed in contrast with the other women… at first I didn’t realize it was the same girl from Honey and Clover! But as she worked each scene, the “Hagumi” character would shine through, and I’d think “Ah! It IS her!”

She seemed a lot more mature than I remembered, too. Then when I finally got to see her perform  that “dance routine”, she was so damn sexy doing it, I really started to wonder (read:worry) just how old she was…this was no “little kid”!!!She ROCKED!

The closing scene where the group finally appears onstage and Aoi Yu’s character Kimiko goes all out for her solo routine, all dressed in white, well, that just about did it for me. She looked so “kakkoi” performing , and MAN was she gorgeous, just radiating those good vibrations! For some reason she kind of reminded me of Nishida Hikaru, with a bit of Koyuki thrown in for good measure (and I mean GOOD measure)!

Needless to say, right after the movie was over, I hopped onto the computer and checked out her Wikipedia stats, which reassuringly declared: Aoi Yu, born August 17th, 1985…

Hmmm…1985. So she was probably around 21 years old when that movie was shot…

WHEW!

So Hula Girls gets a “Thumbs Up” from me, and I’m really going to hard-sell this to Car so SHE’LL make some time to see this, as well! And that’ll be one more great cinematic candidate taken out of the ever-growing movie spindle, and onto the shelf of treasured movies!

Postscript: Argggh, Now, it’ll be even HARDER to wait for that HITO NO SEX O WARAU NA subtitled movie to come out!  It was hard enough when I just “liked” her!

As Travelling Wilbury Tom Petty once  said: “The waiting is the hardest part!”

Miyazaki Aoi / Atsu-Hime

Whenever my friend Car would suggest a new movie or drama to watch, it was always in my best interest to check the show out with her, because if I didn’t watch the show and she DID, she would always make sure to describe the episode or movie to me in great detail later, usually longer than the actual show itself! After about 25 minutes of her “summarizing” a show, I would inevitably say, “You know, If I wanted to know the whole story, I would have just WATCHED IT!” This, however, would not deter her, and she’d continue her storytelling.

Me and Car were big fans of the NANA movie, that one starring Nakashima Mika and Miyazaki Aoi, and when previews began airing for the upcoming NHK Taiga Drama starring Aoi Miyazaki called ATSUHIME, Car immediately decided we’d better check it out. Although I was an Aoi Miyazaki fan, I hadn’t really watched a whole lot of recent Taiga Dramas, and found the idea of committing to a half-year long, 52 episode drama quite a pledge.

Anyway, at some point ( a few weeks later) she asked me, “Hey, have you been watching that Aoi Miyazaki Taiga Drama?” I admitted I hadn’t even realized it had started. She then said, “Oh , you should watch it! In this past episode, blah, blah, blah…” I groaned inwardly and made sure I watched the next episode, if only so I could see the story myself, since I was gonna hear about it anyway.

 I tuned in to Atsuhime just in time for episode 6, so it was still early enough to pick up on what was happening, and characters were still being introduced (more or less). The story followed a headstrong young girl named Okatsu, who would go from humble beginnings as the daughter of a fief lord to the bride of the Shogun himself, all amidst the turmoil of America’s arrival on Japan’s shores.

 I have to say, I was immediately hooked. All the people in the show had strong characters who were allowed to develop along with Okatsu, and they were handled well by both the up and coming actors as well as the seasoned pros.…

  Then there was Aoi Miyazaki! I thought I liked her as Nana! Boy, I just loved her as Okatsu, with her straightforward attitude and sharp intelligence, she played quite a different character than Nana, but one equally as fun and adorable!

 By episode 9, I knew I was in the middle of what would probably become a huge favorite drama for me, and by episode 12, I knew in my heart that this was a special show, and I began to have that yearning in my heart at the end of each  episode, knowing I had to wait a whole week before the next one!!! (you all know that feeling) It was now my favorite show, and a Taiga Drama, at that! I hadn’t loved a Taiga Drama this much since Naoto Takenaka’s HIDEYOSHI from way back in 1996! And I REALLY loved that one, so you can see how much of a chord Atsuhime struck with me!

Part of the dilemma in the story is the fact that the current Shogun seems to be feeble-minded, and certain political parties want certain people to take his place. Okatsu (later promoted to Atsu-Hime, and later Tensho-in) is recruited to marry the Shogun, and secretly move things into place from behind. But she develops a real relationship with the Shogun, and as both sides gear up for confrontation, there is SO MUCH going on in each episode, I can barely take it all in!

A by-product of obsessing over the show of course, is a renewed interest in Aoi Miyazaki. I remember after watching “Nana”, madly searching online for pictures of Aoi Miyazaki, and being quite disappointed when the pics didn’t seem to capture the magic I felt watching Nana… I guess I just really bought into the screen character, and had a hard time seeing her as her “real” self. But If I thought it was hard THEN, Imagine watching Aoi Miyazaki in a kimono and headpiece in a historical setting every week, and then seeing her  all modern and sexy in a Shiseido Ad…it is a JOLT, to be sure!

Out shopping for magazines with pictures of Aoi Miyazaki to accompany this planned blog entry about my love for the show, I happened to come across the official NHK companion book for Atsuhime(!), a book I had forgotten they did for ALL of their Taiga Dramas! Snatching it up, I pored through pages and pages of lovely Aoi in her different kimono and head pieces, plus color pictures of almost every major character in the series!! I thought it couldn’t get better, then I came to a photo shoot of both Aoi Miyazaki and Masato Sakai (the Shogun) out of costume and looking very dapper, Aoi cute as hell! OK, I had to have this! I picked up a copy for me as well as one for Car, $22.00 apiece, and If the lady at Hakubundo was surprised to see me drop $44.00 total for two copies, she didn’t show it!

I ran home, and started scanning away, oh MAN were there a lot of great pictures!!!!

I’ve selected a few to share with you all here, take a gander at Aoi Miyazaki in all her glory! See how great it can be when you are forced to watch something? Sometimes, these things turn into obsessions!

Atsuhime has just hit episode 24 here, just about approaching the half-way mark, and I have to say I am still amazed at how fresh and unpredictable the show is. Every time I think one thing is going to happen, it knocks me for a loop, and advances to a different stage!  Another few months to go, then! Ikoso! 

Comments from Original Post

MorningBerryz wrote:

I was kicking myself in the head (if that's possible :P) when my mom was actually watching this Taiga drama and I was oblivious to it. Ah it seemed much too late to jump in so I've conceded defeat here...to bad for me as it sounds like an awesome drama to have to look forward to every week! I was looking at an one of her shashinshuus and it was like $100!!! :O Yikes but I still want it! :P I'd get one of those books from Hakubundo but then each time that I look through it it would remind me of my stupidity of missing this great show. :P One word of advice though....steer clear of Miyazaki Aoi's movie titled "Suki da,"...and while the double allure of both Aoi and Nagasaku Hiromi's presence in it seems great....the movie is sooooooooooooooooooooooo oh sooooooooooooooooooooo painfully booooooooooooooorrrrrrrriiiiiiiiiiiiiiinnng! o__O How is that possible with such talent and beauty on the screen?!! But if you're ever curious in a morbid way...to sadly quote myself in this circumstance...YES it sucked I have the Limited Edition release to prove it. :P

zdorama wrote:

Strangely enough, BOTH leads in "Sukida" are main characters in Atsu-Hime! Both Aoi Miyazaki AND Eita are featured in the NHK Taiga Drama!

Everyone I've talked to says Sukida is melodramatic and moody, so Ill keep that in mind! I have to say, I'm not thrilled about Aoi Miyazaki playing a non-peppy character.

MorningBerryz replied to zdorama’s comment:

If you out of morbid curiousity want to borrow "Sukida," let me know...but I warn you it's one of the most boring movies that I've ever watched and I wouldn't have even finished it if I had not paid for it. :P UGH! They must be sooo much better in "Atsuhime" I imagine!! Not their faults though as that movies' screenplay was just slow slow slow and through about 85% of it nothing was really happening. My mom (who didn't pay for it :P ) even left the room and never came back refusing to finish it. :P Not even the Ribbon/Nagasaku Hiromi ties could save it and I think that speaks volumes as she was a large part of the incentive of checking out this movie in the first place. You may want to stay with the image of an animated Miyazaki Aoi...but the offer still stands if you're interested. :) Sorry I didn't reply earlier but I usually rely on VOX notifications for replies...if you click on the reply to button VOX will e-mail those you reply to directly. :)

zdorama replied to MorningBerryz’s comment:

 just got a copy of the movie, I'll have to work up my courage and watch it, although I DID see some of it on Youtube already, the two kids, Eita and Aoi walking around humming tunes. Everything looked shot in blue filter.

BTW, I almost sent this as a new post again. realized it just in time!

MorningBerryz replied to zdorama’s comment:

ZZZZZzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz...oh sorry I was thinking about that movie! :P Forgive me though but I did pay a bundle for the special edition so I may be allowed to be a bit more jaded by it. :P May the force be with you... ^ ^ LOL I'm now imagining you posting later that this was the all time best movie that you've ever watched in your life! And I'll be like... O__o And here I am thinking that I'd rather watch Weekend at Bernies 2.....wait have I even watched that one before...huh?..sorry Bernie I shouldn't judge just yet. :P You know now that I've set it up to be one of the most boring movies ever you may think otherwise. :) Wow you're up late! I'm out sick today and tomorrow otherwise sleepy time would've passed awhile ago....

zdorama replied to MorningBerryz’s comment:

OK, I watched Su-Ki-Da Today!!!

...or at least, tried to.

I really tried! But ultimately, I just couldn't take it.

Watching a dour Miyazaki was rough, and watching Eita doing his mumbling

didn't help. It wasn't even that the dialog was so slow, but the scenes were REALLY abstract, strung together listlessly.

I mean, I GOT it, about how all the little snatches of things you remember about a person and do with that person "is love", demo sa...

When the show shifted to them as adults, after about 20 minutes, it became so boring I had to hit the speed up button, and watched the show at 2x speed and no sound, but I could still read the subtitles. Sorry for those out there that loved the movie and are rolling your eyes that I sped it up, but at that moment, I decided I would rather be watching Michael Phelps break some records, and wanted to finish up as soon as possible.

And guess what? The dialog was so slow paced, it still "read" like a regular speed show!

And I love both Nagasaku and Miyazaki, but having Aoi grow up into Hiromi was hard to accept! In fact, I thought Hiromi looked more like Aoi's sister than Aoi.

I just COULDN'T grasp the two gals as the same character.

In fact, I bet a movie with Miyazaki, Nagasaku and Eita acting out Weekend at Bernie's would have been more interesting, to tell the truth.

Too Bad. I was hoping there's still be something I might dig about the movie, but I didn't succeed. Ah well, at least Aoi looked good.

And speaking of Weekend at Bernie's, here's a Panda Version:

MorningBerryz replied to zdorama’s comment:

LOL! what a great panda picture!! Somehow I kept thinking...something's gotta happen right? Some sort of excitement or dramatic moment? But it never came. Too bad what a waste of talent and film. I'm probably being too harsh on it but it's because I bought it and had really high hopes especially with Nagasaku starring in it. Hmm...thinking about it now....watching it in 2x speed probably couldn't helped back then. :P I was looking at the screen thinking to myself...spit it out say something, do something!! :P

Now you've got me wondering...Eita could be Bernie. It could work.

dayo ne! wrote: Nov 10, 2008 R

Just wanted to say thanks, that because of your glowing praise of the show and being a big fan of the NANA franchise too, I've started watching Atsuhime. though I don't get the convenient broadcast subbed version you get I managed to find up to the 32nd episode subbed. My mom is hooked too. (though she keeps pointing out inaccuracies in the history) I looked around online and found that no one is making an effort to sub the rest of the series. I might give it a shot since I like the material and have access to a native speaker and former history teacher. By the way the show is originally shown as a year long endeavor starting in January ending in December with the condensed reedit shown in late december (about 5 hours), on NHK. Is it shown in half the time there? Did you notice the incredible lighting and composition of every shot? Its mind boggling how well its shot, even the pro photographers I work with admire the quality, absolutely top notch.

"Buckets of tears" thats why I love this show it grabs by those heart strings and never lets go. Probly why it has enjoyed massive popularity in Japan. I do believe that it is one of the highest rated viewership in NHK history hitting 28 percent in October.

zdorama replied to dayo ne!’s comment:

HOLA! Glad You are enjoying this show too!

Hmmm, I'm not sure about if the show is shown faster than Japan, but the Taiga Dramas always tend to run about 50-52 episodes here, if they added condensed re-edits, I suppose it could stretch to a whole 12 months, but usually once the show is over, that's it!

Yeah, I really love the direction of the scenes in this drama! I was saddened to find that in Japan, they broadcast the show in letterbox, but on KIKU, we get the cropped version. Is yours letterboxed?

Hope you get your hands on the rest of the drama! You're right, it doesn't seem like there are a lot of people subbing this show online. Maybe its the Historical content. Ganbatte!

Hope everything is well with you and your family!

Favorite J-Pop Singles: Nakayama Miho / Mirai E No Present

Theme song from the j-dorama Oishii Kankei starring Nakayama Miho and Karasawa Toshiaki, as well as Iijima Naoko, Yamaguchi Sayaka, Morimoto Leo and Kusanagi Tsuyoshi in supporting roles.
The show was about Miho Nakayama working as a waitress in a small French restaurant with an irritable, arrogant chef, played by Karasawa Toshiaki. Although they bickered all the time, they developed a love /hate relationship a la Sam and Diane in Cheers, and you just knew that the two would somehow get together!
I loved this drama SO MUCH when it was airing! One of the dramas I really remember obsessing over, and in no small part because of the theme song / opening credits…titled “A Present for the Future”, with a dreamy montage of some mysterious rendezvous between Miho and Toshiaki that may or may not happen…
I've always loved the way the 5 minute opening sequence would segue into the title credits, and this particular one with Momoe sassily showing off her perfectly peeled potato after getting berated by Oda earlier is my favorite Oishii Kankei opening of them all!

I remember back when NGN was airing this, on weekdays when they'd run out of stuff to show, they'd loop previews for the current dramas over and over again, and I loved watching the Oishii Kankei preview because it always showed clips from this opening! Ahhh, listening to the song once again, it's sooooo natsukashii~!

Favorite J-Pop Singles: Mr. Children / Namonaki Uta

I was part of a nifty little j-pop band that did (or at least TRIED to do) covers of popular japanese tunes, as I’ve mentioned before here, and every time we met, one of us would have a different song he or she wanted to cover.

    So one night, a couple of guys suggested we try the latest single from Mr. Children, a song called Namonaki Uta. I’d heard and loved the group’s previous singles like See-Saw Game and Theme of ES, and was all for it! This was early on in Mr. Children’s career, back when their music still had a very “Beatles-ish” flavor to it, and this song was no exception, with its George Harrison-style guitars throughout- I was immediately hooked!

Mr. Children

 We attempted a few  nights at the studio trying to hammer out the song, and I have to say they handled the difficult vocals of Kazutoshi Sakurai’s “speed singing”  pretty well…Unfortunately for me, the driving beat of the song was a KILLER, and ultimately, I have to say my drumming was the thing that probably kept our group back from performing a better cover!

  In any case, we had fun playing it, and since it’s not like we were playing in front of an audience or anything (with the exception of our friends, who’d drop by the studio), FUN was the one and only reason to do it! And I ended up loving yet another song from the incredible Mr. Children!

  I can't talk about Namonaki Uta without mentioning the J-dorama PURE.  The Mr. Children song was the ending theme song for the show, and I can’t think of too many other shows that utilized the theme song so well.

Starring Emi Wakui as a gentle and sweet autistic girl Yuuka Orihara who excels in sculpture, the show covers her life at the crossroads of her career just as she is discovered by the media, with her friends trying desperately to shield her from outside influences. A callous journal photographer has crossed paths with her, but will he manipulate her or will Yuuka’s sweet outlook reach through to his cold exterior? Also starring Tsutsumi Shinichi as said photographer, Takahashi Katsunori, Saki Takaoka, as well as a young Ryoko Shinohara!

   At the end of each episode, the show would build up to its “cliffhanger” shock closer, and then the guitar and drums from Mr. Children would kick in, as if to add an exclamation point to the ending, and as the ringing chimes of the chorus would come in, the screen would fade in to the ending credits, with an adorable Emi Wakui tossing feathers into the air, as the credits slowly started scrolling up. I cannot tell you what IMPACT this ending song had to each episode, but if you are one of the veiwers who saw Pure, you already know what I mean! (wipes away tears)

Below: The wonderful closing credits to Pure, complete with a misinterpreted translation, referring to the Mr. Children song as “Namonaki Shi”!

In this closing scene, the Photographer, Toru, is ridden with guilt for exposing Yuuka's eccentricities, while innocently oblivious Yuuka continues to work on her creations...

Comments From Original Post:

MorningBerryz wrote:

I remember you mentioning that your band was working on this amazing Mr.Children song!! This is such an intricate and advanced song in their catalog to attempt!!...and yes Sakurai's rapid vocals coming out of the middle break is just amazing! I always thought that only a true "nihonjin" could pull it off perfectly!

"Pure" really did blend perfectly with Namonaki uta" as a theme song and it just gives you goosebumps doesn't it when she throws up the feathers in the perfect moment matching the song. "Pure" definitely a top favorite J-drama of mines too! ^-^ I did a little fandom gushing over here on Mr.Children earlier this year just in case you'd like to read. ^-^

zdorama wrote:

Just read your Mr. Children entry...I remember you always were the biggest fan.

I remember one time, you printed up for me the romanized lyrics for three of my favorite Mr. Children songs, "Theme of ES", "Namonaki Uta", and "Hana~Memento Mori"...these were really cool, they were color-coded, and also showed a little thumbnail of the CD single cover. In fact, I think I still have them tucked away somewhere.

Yup, "Pure" is definitely one of the top jdoramas in MY listing, too! The song matches the images so well. There were even some endings where the song would start with a drum beat, and they'd show Yuka examining her feathers, and then it would go into the song and she'd throw them up in the air!

BTW, for those who are wondering, Yuka's fixated with wings because her father has died, and she's always dreamed of being a bird so she could fly up to Heaven and visit him. Hence the obsession with feathers, in her art sculpture, and of course the ending credits!

MorningBerryz replied to zdorama’s comment:

All thanks to DW!! :) He was playing their album "Atomic Heart" which was their latest at the time in his car and from then I just had to have it!!...luckily the Kahala location had it in stock!! as I was helping with inventory there. So great that even back then you could find so much J-Pop related stuff on the internet! I'm glad that you kept those...I have them in a folder too still.

Just hearing that melody after awhile would bring tears to your eyes...they just don't really make J-dramas quite like this one anymore it seems. I just haven't cried like that recently it seems...the imagery was so perfect with the song and the viewer really connected the two together within just a few episodes.

Ah your memory's much better than mine!!...I've been finding a lot of older J-dramas on DVD lately with subtitles (sometimes the subs aren't the best but you can still follow them okay especially since we already know what's going on) including "Hitotsu yane no shita." I'm guessing that "Pure" may also be available too...as they seemed to have covered a lot of the classics.

Anise & Cloves wrote:

Wow~ I totally remember this series.. In fact, I just went to dig through my old junk at my Grandma's house a couple weekends ago and found my old video tape recordings of PURE and other J-dramas that played around that time. XD; I unfortunately, didn't have the full series so I ended up tossing them.

I thought this was such a great song to compliment the series~ I remember being surprised by how the cover of the single looked.. considering Mr. Children had always appeared so "clean cut" previously. XD

zdorama replied to Anise & Cloves’

1996 really seemed like a golden age for terrific japanese dramas, didn't it?

A few of the shows I recall airing that year almost read like a "best of":

"Long Vacation"

"Aishiteiru To Ittekure" (Say you Love Me)

"Second Chance"

"Hoshi No Kinka" (Heaven's Coins)

"Pure"

"Kagayake! Rintaro"

"Mada Koi Wa Hajimaranai"...

Pretty Amazing, ne!