More For The K-Pop Cache...

Ahhh, just received my KARA "PANDORA" New Mini-Album in the mail, along with three beautiful f(x) releases ELECTRIC SHOCK, NU ABO and HOT SUMMER! Mmmm, looks like my Labor Day Weekend's Soundtrack has been pretty much decided!
Posted by zdorama @ zdoramaagain.blogspot.com

"Rich Man Poor Woman" Gettin' GOOD!

Ishihara Satomi and Oguri Shun in Rich Man, Poor Woman

 Wow, is RICH MAN POOR WOMAN getting AWESOME!!!! Just finished watching episode 8 (thanks to all those who sub and release these so fast!) and I can hardly stand how good it was! Maybe it’s predictable at times, but at heart I’m just a guy who loves a story without any hidden meanings or shock endings. All I want to see is a good story with good actors, and they are very good indeed! Satomi Ishihara in fact is one her way to becoming one of my fave actresses of all time, and would already have spawned a “Crush of the Day” entry if I hadn’t ALREADY hailed her as such a while ago, LOL!

    Though I know very well the trajectory of these things where the show “peaks” at about episode 9 and then it sort of simmers down to a good but uninspiring conclusion, I cannot help but hope that this one will continue to knock me out all the way to the end!

Please Stand By...

We interrupt our regularly scheduled blog posting to bring you this picture of 

Toda Erika eating a Mochi Confectionary.

We will resume regular blogging tomorrow. We apologize for any inconvenience this may have caused you.
Posted by zdorama @ zdoramaagain.blogspot.com

Adventures In Cuteness: Gouriki Ayame

Gouriki Ayame

The universal dream for any awkward, geeky guy is the oft used story of the loser/slacker guy who suddenly finds himself being pursued by a pretty, spritely girl, the likes of which would NEVER be seen with a guy like that in real life is alive and well in the mystery/sci-fi drama MIRAI NIKKI-ANOTHER WORLD.

Gouriki Ayame and Okada Masaki

The tale of the pretty girl obsessing over a dorky guy (and having said dorky guy run away from the girl, another not-to-be-believed twist, there) has been used many times , this time the guy is played by Okada Masaki, and the girl is played by a spritely young girl I’ve only recently come to love, Gouriki Ayame!

What guy wouldn’t dream of one day having a beautiful, mysterious girl suddenly drop in on his life by materializing behind him and tapping him on the shoulder one day in class..

Then have said girl latch onto his side and profess that she’s sweet on him (and knows everything about him, cutely listing his favorite foods, habits, etc…) in a genki and energetic demeanor…

And then having this cutie make a point to fawn on you and happily follow you around each day...

…show up late at night outside your house to cheer you up when you’re feeling down…

,,,,and engage you in *ahem* some other things as well?

Well, if you were me, you would think you had suddenly died and gone to heaven, but more levelheaded people would probably have come to the same conclusion that Okada did…

Awww, poor sweet girl! She was only trying to cheer him up and be near him! 

Thankfully, she doesn’t let this admonishment keep her down for long!

I have to say, if the drama was all about Ayame and  Okada, it would be a sure-fire watcher for me, however, this show (actually about a bunch of kids with iphones that tell them the future) is turning into a mixture of LIAR GAME and CLONE BABY all in one- very weird and funkily directed, leaving me less with a mad-on for Ayame and more with a headache! We’ll see how long I can stick with this one…

Edit: Well, It looks like Fukuda Mayuko's also in this drama, so it looks like I'll be watching it for awhile....

Fukuda Mayuko and Okada Masaki

Posted by zdorama @ zdoramaagain.blogspot.com

Favorite J-Pop Singles: Moritaka Chisato / Watarasebashi

  Took a trip down memory lane this past weekend with Moritaka Chisato’s 3CD Collection “The Singles”, and if there’s one thing I realized is just how much I love, love, LOVE her! Starting into the mix  with songs like “Alone” and “Junanasai”, and I was feelin’ good cruising ‘round town, and as the collection entered its second phase I was feeling quite nostalgic as I rocked on with tracks like “Fight!” and “Watashi Ga Obasan Ni Nattemo”, but I wasn’t prepared for how HARD it would hit me once the classic “Watarase Bashi” started!
    As soon as the opening strains began, I instantly got goosebumps all over, thinking “HOLY CRAP, I forgot how AWESOME this song is!!!” and as the song went on, I began to recall the translations to this beautiful song, and before I knew it, I was getting all weepy and blinking back tears!  Once that innocent and sincere recorder solo came in and the song swelled back with the violins (synths?) building up to its sweet finale, I was just completely destroyed! AHAHAHA!

     I had barely time to recover before the next big favorite of mines came on with “Watashi No Natsu”, “Kibunsokai” “Natsu No Hi” “Kaze No Fukaurete” and “Futari Wa Koibito”, one after another I was getting hit, and through it all, one thing kept resonating in my mind, and that was how MUCH I REALLY LOVED Chisato Moritaka! Listening to the songs, it came back to me that there was a time when she was the most important artist in my life, and I could feel those old feelings for her coming back in full! 
   Going online later, I was amazed to find that since Chisato’s Watarasebashi came out, several other artists have covered the tune, and I was slightly shocked to find that typing in ‘Watarase Bashi” on Google,  I could scroll through pages of other artists’ info before I came up with any reference to her! Did a double take when I saw the latest cover version described as “A remake of an old Aya Matsuura song” AHAHA! 
    I began to wonder if many people even knew that Chisato was the original singer  of Watarase Bashi, and in fact even co-wrote it, and was quite please when I found this wonderful new video travelogue of Chisato Moritaka going back to Watarase Bridge to celebrate her 25th Anniversary ascertaining this! 

Taking a trip down to the bridge, Chisato (who’s still looking as sweet and pretty as ever) visits the site where she finds a plaque acknowledging the impact and her contribution to the song!

 Next to the plaque, there’s even a button you can press to hear the strains of the tune! Chisato humbly comments; “It’s embarrassing, but it makes me happy, too!” Awww, so SWEET!

 So much fun- she even made time to visit that "Phone Booth next to the Barber Shop" mentioned in the song!

All in all, “The Singles” was one HELL of a NOSTALGIA ride- After all these years, it is nice to have a gentle reminder of just how important an artist Chisato Moritaka is in my life!

Posted by zdorama @ zdoramaagain.blogspot.com

A Quick Note

Just a quick note to say damn, W NO HIGEKI is getting AWESOME! Man, Emi Takei is soooo good performing dual roles as the good twin/bad twin in this drama! I'm halfway through the show and am still amazed how each episode's cliffhanger is blowing me away and keepin' me comin' back for more!!!
Posted by zdorama @ zdoramaagain.blogspot.com

Riko Narumi to Release Photobook

  Looks like cutie pie Riko Narumi's going to be releasing her very own shashinshuu in the near future, and perusing the sample pics on the tokyohive site, the one outstanding question going through MY head is: Exactly how much of that Riko Narumi Book RICO DAYS features her in a BIKINI? THATS the deciding factor! 
Sure, I can see that ONE shot in the promotional press conference pictures (see above), but is that a sign of the book's material or the one "money" shot in an otherwise "arty" (re: boring) shashinshuu like so many others? 
 Edit: Looking over the samples on the SANSPO homepage, those pics (below)are a good sign that the book might actually be worth the $67! Oh MY, our little young girl has blossomed into a young LADY, hasn't she? Sugoi!

Posted by zdorama @ zdoramaagain.blogspot.com

Pure Love FX

f(x): Krystal, Victoria, Luna, Amber and Sulli

Well, It’s official: SMEntertainment’s dance group FX (stylized f(x)) is the latest of my favorite k-pop groups right now and I’ve celebrated by putting in an order with CD Japan for their latest mini-labum ELECTRIC SHOCK as well as the handful of previous releases they’ve had! It only took one viewing of their blistering hot MCountdown Comeback stage performance (of Electric Shock and the awesome JET) to make me stop wasting time and get onboard the wave of FX goodness!

Funny that only a few months ago all I knew of them was that they were “The Group That Jessica’s Sister Is In”, but slowly but surely, they’ve risen to become what I consider to be one of the COOLEST groups out there! Sure you’ve got Jessica’s aforementioned little sister Krystal in the forefront of the band, but you’ve also got the exotic and sultry Chinese Beauty Victoria, the J-pop adorable Sulli, the ultra-kewl tomboyish Amber and the mighty powerhouse vocals of Luna, together uniting to form one of the most kick-ass K-pop dance troupes ever! 

  When I first heard their music, I thought it was good but nothing overly extraordinary, then I got to see the girls in action in the MVs for “La ChaTA and Chu!, and IMMEDIATELY “got it”- the main attraction of this act was their amazing and superb dance moves and choreography- quick, intricate and tight, watching them do their thing  made me fall in love with the songs, and as I watched their PV offerings, I found myself liking everything I heard from them: La Chata, Chu, Hot Summer, Nu Abo, Pinnochio, and on and on, til their latest release Electric Shock finally pushed me over the edge from casual listener to excitable fan!

    Another aspect I love about the group is the individual personalities of the girls in the band, and once again I have to say that awesome variety/reality show RUNNING MAN was really essential in teaching me the who’s who of FX! From Krystal, Sulli, Victoria and Luna, almost all the members have guested at least ONCE on the show (and some like Sulli, even more!); so far, Amber’s the only one who hasn’t made an appearance, but I got to know here even better in the reality show INVINCIBLE YOUTH!

Up on the schedule, f(x) is getting geared up to make their way into the Japanese market, and while I’m not sure if  their music is quite the J-Pop World’s cup of tea, I’m already enjoying the Nihon remake of Hot Summer, and can only wait eagerly for more! Who knows what’s next- A Japan Original? Only time will tell!

Posted by zdorama @ zdoramaagain.blogspot.com

Some TLC for TTS

 When I first got into SNSD, I was busy trying to get ahold of all the current and back-related albums within the Girls’ massive catalog, and only barely paid attention to their latest Sub-Unit group that had just come out, Girls Generation TaeTiSeo or TTS for short.
 Comprised of Girls Generation’s “Hard Hitters” Taeyeon, Tiffany and Seohyun, their mini-album “Twinkle” focused more on the strength of the girls vocals than the decidedly more idol-centered SNSD projects, a move that was made pretty clear for me when I saw the MV for the title track.

  I have to say that although I liked the song Twinkle well enough, I REALLY didn’t care for the girls’ look, aside from bangs, curly permed hair is the style I simply abhor, and though Seohyun wisely avoided the look, Taeyeon and Tiffany looked almost unrecognizable to me in that video with those crazy hairstyles, and I have to admit I didn’t have a whole lot of interest in getting it, allocating it to a “side project” that wasn’t part of the real SNSD discography.   With that mindset, getting the Twinkle album was kind of put on the backburner and might have stayed that way for awhile, but by chance a friend of mine made a copy of the album for me, and wouldntchaknowit, that first night driving around listening to it, I was just blown away by it and it immediately became a regular album in my CD player in my car, and within a month’s time, knew that this was one mini-album I just HAD to have! I ordered it immediately!

When you think about Mini-albums or EPs in general, they’re usually presented in a CD sized digipak or jewelcase with little else, and I was totally expecting the TTS album to follow suit, but I’d forgotten one thing, and that was that when it comes to their Mini-Albums, K-pop releases are second to none!

Opening up my package, the first thing I was presented with was a big white folded up paper, which turned out to be a 18x24 folded up poster, MAN, though I didn’t care for the TTS hairstyles much, I couldn’t deny how BEAUTIFUL the poromotional pictures were! And and Billy Mays would say, but WAIT…there’s MORE! 

Taking out the poster, I was next presented with this beautiful 5x7 package with a glossy mylar sleeve around it… when removed you got an overlay picture card and a pretty box…

Inside the box was an amazing 15 postcard set that featured pretty and colorful shots of the girls on both sides..

Postcard Set

And by the time I got to the collectible random member card (mine was of Seohyun) and the fold-out lyric booklet, I was so overwhelmed with goodies that when I came upon a silver seriographed object inside the booklet, I didn’t recognize what it was at first…THE CD!!!!  LOLOL, I’d unpacked so many goodies from the package, I completely FORGOT the reason the package was FOR!

Yep, ultimately, all that extra stuff was all just enhancement to the actual point of purchase- the ALBUM, and Man, what an album it was! A MINI Album, to be sure, but so chock full of goodness! From the opening strains of the uber-funky title song “Twinkle” to the passive song “Baby Steps” through to the Hard Rockin’ “Checkmate”, this one ran the entire gamut, and even managed to introduce me to three new FAVORITE songs,  actually the three middle songs, OMG, Library, and Goodbye Hello!   First we’ve got OMG (Oh My God) that sounds like it could have come straight from the HOOT sessions, so brassy and full of punch, this retro-jazzy tune even reminded me of the old classic Hikaru Nishida stuff, for some reason!

Next we’ve got the sweetest track on here, the marshmallowy gentle “Library”, I’d already fallen in love with the song by it’s insanely catchy verses and chorus, but when I saw a Tiffany fancam and I got to see the song with her doing her absolutely adorable hand gesture- dance moves during the chorus, it sent it to the next level of LOVE!

And to top it all off we’ve got the amazing feel-good masterpiece Goodbye Hello, which is probably one of my very favorite SNSD tunes right now. How good is this song? Well If I had to sum it up I’d say that if Andy Sturmer and Roger Manning of Jellyfish ever wrote a K-Pop song, it might sound an awful lot like this song, full of bright McCartneyish piano chords, sweet choruses and an achingly heartbreaking story (of a girl who can’t believe her boyfriend would leave her), listening to Taeyeon, Tiffany and Seohyun harmonizing on the choruses sounds sooooo awesome, bittersweet never sounded so good!

 Since the time Twinkle has been released, SNSD has so far released one Japanese Single already (and are preparing for another one), but I’m holding out for their next album proper- if it’s ANYTHING like TTS’s Twinkle album we’ll have one HELL of an album on our hands!!!
Posted by zdorama @ zdoramaagain.blogspot.com

Ishihara Satomi Strikes back....

Oh My GOSH, this new Oguri Shun /Ishihara Satomi drama Rich Man Poor Woman is SO FREAKIN" GOOD!!!! Satomi Ishihara is SOOOOOO freakin' PRETTY and ADORABLE and her character  is so SO unbelievable SWEET and Cuddly!!!!!

Knew I was going to enjoy this one from the moment I saw her adorably peeking out from the doorway at a spastically energetic  Oguri Shun in the opening credits....Awww, so cute!

There will DEFINITELY be a follow up here after I've caught up to the current episodes airing right now...HOW could I have MISSED this one....? More Soon...

Posted by zdorama @ zdoramaagain.blogspot.com