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| in Zettai Reido 2010 |
One of the more interesting things about watching Japanese dramas for such a long time is that you get to see your favorite actors and actresses when they’ve just started out and can watch them as they grow and become better and better at their craft. This is even MORE amplified when it’s a child actor that you’re watching because their growth is both professional AND literal as you’re watching these kids grow up into teenagers seemingly right before your eyes! And one whose growth seem to be advancing with leaps and bounds is one of my favorite child actresses, Fukuda Mayuko- it seems like every time I see her in a new drama or movie, she’s advanced at least a grade up!
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| Zettai Reido |
The first drama that I really took notice of her (though at the time mis-believing that she was Karen Miyama) was in dramas Joou No Kyoushitsu (2005) and Byakuyakou (2006), where she already was impressing me with her fine acting, and by the time she did “Enka No Joou” in 2007, I was a big fan of hers and couldn’t wait to see what she’d be doing next!
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| In Enka No Jouu 2007 |
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| In Byakuyakou 2006 |
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| In Joou No Kyoushitsu 2005 |
By the time she starred in movies “10 Promises To My Dog” in 2008 and “Heaven’s Door” in 2009, Mayuko was already fully on her way to “teenager” status, but somehow that still didn’t prepare me for HOW MUCH SHE’D MATURED when I saw her in the latest episode of ZETTAI REIDO! I almost didn’t recognize her, but then she started talking, and there’s only ONE girl with that gravely voice, yup, I INSTANTLY knew it was her!
Funny thing about that Zettai Reido storyline- After seeing the preview for the episode, Car said she wanted to know the identity of the young actress playing the “Suspect” in the next chapter. While talking to me on the phone, she looked up the credits, and said “Oh My God!!! I can’t believe that’s HER!” I said I didn’t want to know who it was, so I could be surprised when I watched the show. She then said, “Wow, I didn’t recognize her…she grew so much!” “Well if you say THAT, the girl MUST be Karen Miyama!” “Maybe not”, she demurred. And of course, it WASN’T Karen Miyama, but the OTHER child-actress-turned-teenager MAYUKO!
In an ADDITIONAL twist t my following of Mayuko Fukuda’s career, going onto Dramawiki, I was amazed to find that she’d been around a lot longer than 2005. Looking at her credits, I saw that her j-drama debut was in 2000 in none other than the Ryoko Hirosue/Domoto Tsuyoshi drama Summer Snow! Popping in the drama, I was beside myself with laughter watching a chiisana Mayuko Fukuda as little in-patient Yukari who was hospitalized along with Yuki. Little though she was, when she started talking, she STILL SOUNDED JUST LIKE MAYUKO FUKUDA!!!! AHAHAHAHA!!
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| In Summer Snow 2000 |
After the Zettai Reido episode, both Car and I had to agree- this actress is gonna go places! As a matter of fact, she was just about the best thing in that particular episode, a lackluster story saved by Mayuko’s awesome acting! We’ll definitely be keeping an eye out for her future endeavors!
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| With Yamaguchi Sayaka and Ueto Aya in Zettai Reido |
