Favorite J-Pop Singles: Chisa Yokoyama: “Ren'ai no Sainou” (Talent For Love)

 
Whenever I ask fellow fans of 90’s idol J-pop what it was that got them into the j-music in the first place, the answer inevitably is through anime shows; most notably shows like Ranma 1/2 and the like, which prominently featured songs from idol acts like CoCo, ribbon, etc. as the beginning and ending songs.

 For ME, the gateway drug into J-pop came through the 90’s Pioneer animated series “Tenchi Muyo~Ryo-Ohki” which was played constantly on the TV monitors of the Tower Video store I worked nights at! Having never watched modern anime before (closest I'd ever got was the 70’s cartoons like Ikkyu-San and Candy Candy), I didn’t quite know what to make of these space-adventuring, demon-god fighting characters and scenarios, but ONE thing that stood out for me was the MUSIC! I loved the songs so much that I couldn’t HELP but gravitate towards the screen whenever it was on and eventually fell in love with the entire series as a whole!

The first song that brought me in was the ROCKING opening number to the second series, called “Boku wa Motto Pioneer” (I’m A Pioneer), which always started the shows out with a BANG, and what REALLY cinched it for me was the awesome ENDING credits to the first series called “Renai no Sainou” (Talent For Love). 

Both songs were sung by Chisa Yokoyama, the voice actress who also supplied the voice for Sasami. Both feature peppy, catchy, hummable songs, both feature great animation, and for MY MONEY, there'll probably NEVER be a BETTER an ending credit sequence than the Talent For Love animated end scene!

Featuring the carrot- obsessed Ryo-oki planting a seed at the beginning of spring, we follow along with him as the music plays, watching him nurse the seedling into a small plant, rake fallen leaves from it during autumn, and protect it from snow during winter! As the song wraps up, we return to spring where, rewarded by his valiant efforts, Ryo-oki pulls up an immense carrot, one which he wastes no time GORGING down…and then immediately PASSING OUT from the overeating experience! LOLOL

 

This captured all the fun, innocence and warmth of the Tenchi-Muyo show, and OH! How I wanted it on CD! Took MONTHS of ordering and purchasing a whole BUNCH of Tenchi collections til I was able to get my hands on the original soundtrack CD featuring the song, and that soundtrack is still one of my BIG all time faves!

Also had to get EVERY Laserdisc in the original series, shown here (though I couldn't find my copy of Vol.4 with Mihoshi no matter how hard I looked)...

...and later, I even got them on DVD!!!

This newly discovered love of anime and j-pop music was all towards the latter half of 1995, and it could not have been better timing. Because just on the horizon was the epiphany of J-pop acts like the aforementioned CoCo, ribbon, Namie Amuro, Chisato Moritaka, etc, and I was ALSO just about to get into J-DRAMAS, with THE CHEF and Aishiteirute to Ittekure” (Say you Love Me) soon to air!! 

From there my life became a completely Nihongo-focused obsession, with Anime, J-Pop and J-dramas dominating my every waking hour! And though my passion has certainly ebbed and flowed through the years, it’s still my MAIN source of entertainment (as anyone even glancing at my blogs can obviously see), and when I happen to take out my old Tenchi-Muyo CDs to listen to, I am taken back to those GOLDEN DAYS of J-pop discovery!!!

Sometimes whenI listen to Chisa’s Renai no Sainou, I’ll be grooving along to it and truly feel “this is where it all began for me!” J-Pop, J-Dramas, J-movies, etc…if not for this sweet and wonderful song as its catalyst, who knows how different my tastes might be today!

More Keigo Higashino in Book and on Film: Silent Parade

 Have mentioned many times before about one wonderful perk of discovering author Keigo Higashino’s works only recently, and that is that almost ALL of his novels and short stories have been made into dramas, TV Specials and cinematic films, so ANY time I fall in love with one of his books, inevitably there’ll be a movie I can then IMMEDIATELY dive into!

And SO IT WAS with Higashino’s compelling murder mystery SILENT PARADE (Chinmoku no Parade), featuring the genius Manabu Yukawa in the 5th installment of the amazing INSPECTOR GALILEO series! Really loved the story and its’ intricately laid out pieces, so complex (and, yes, hard to follow at times) but so ultimately rewarding!

Once I finished the book, I once again took to the internet and was happily rewarded to discover that there had INDEED been a film adaptation made of it, this one released to the cinemas in 2022 and once again starring Masaharu Fukuyama as the stoic Manaba Yukawa! Along with him was a bevy of stars all brought together to tell this tale of murder and revenge!

On the town of Kumagaya there is a young girl named Saori Namiki (Asuka Kawatoko). She is the elder daughter to Yutaro (Kazuki iio) and Machiko (Naho Toda), a couple running an eatery in town loved by the neighbors and merchants in town, who are such regulars that they are like old friends!  They also have a younger daughter named Natsumi (Natsuki Deguchi), but it is clear that it is the older Saori who is born to be a star!

Singing at a talent show held every year during town festivities following a local community parade, Saori is discovered by a record producer and his wife, Naoki Niikura (Kippei Shiina) and Rumi (Rei Dan). Amazed at her raw talent, they take her under their wings and nurture her into her inevitable star-making debut!

Saori also has a budding love interest with a shy young man named Tomoya Takagaki (Amane Okayama) who is also supportive of her musical dreams even though it may keep them apart….

All of this comes crashing down when Saori abruptly disappears without a trace. Everyone in town, family and friends alike cannot fathom where she might have gone or what might have become of her. She simply vanished off the face of the earth!

It isn’t until much later that Saori's ultimate fate is learned, when skeletal remains are discovered buried under the floorboards of a house which had caught fire and burned down to the ground.  Matching dental records, it is revealed that the deceased is the long departed Saori, and ,judging by a huge gash in the skull, was most likely murdered. Tracking down the owner of the house, they find a man named Kanichi Hasunuma and discover that not only is he a prime suspect, but he has a record of killing a young girl before!

Police detectives Shunpei Kusanagi (Kazuki Kitamura) and Kaoru Utsumi (Kou Shibasaki) are called in to investigate the murder, where we learn that Kusunagi has a personal connection to the criminal as he was the arresting officer in the murderer’s earlier crime.

But not only is this man not apologetic or remorseful in the least when accused of the crime, due to backwards laws he is LET GO from police custody, and even begins HARASSING the grieving Namikis and concerned friends, threatening to sue THEM for their false accusations against him!

Everyone involved is beyond enraged at this mans’ actions and attitude, and something has to give...and give it does.

Finally comes the day of the town's annual Festival and Parade, where people from all parts gather to show off their intricate floats and themed displays.  Even Manabu himself is at the festivities, but little does he suspect some individual is carrying out a fiendish act of retribution for the evil Hasunuma behind the scenes. Amidst all the fun and activity, someone tracks down where Hasunuma lives, and executes him in his room as he sleeps.

Detectives Kusanagi and Utsumi arrive on the scene, but don't know what to make of it. The way Hasunuma has been killed is a mystery, a classic “locked room” scenario where the deceased was killed in a room with seemingly no way the killer could get in or out…

 ...After puzzling over it for some time and unable to come up with a solution, Utsumi goes around Kusanagi and calls on their secret ace in the hole, the eccentric professor Manabu Yukawa!

Interested in the case because of the locked room mystery, there is another reason for Yukawa’s involvement: he HIMSELF was a loving patron of the Namiki’s restaurant and happens to know every person on the suspect list!

Taken to the site of the slain murderer, Yukawa theorizes a few ways a person might have gone about killing this man in his locked room. When his hypotheses prove true, they must begin looking for the suspects...and naturally their eyes focus on the Namikis and their friends and neighbors.

With the professor’s unique skills and the dedication of Investigators Kusanagi and Utsumi, they must dig deep into that turbulent day of the Parade and its festivities to break down what everyone was doing and who, if any, may be involved…and as they do, they shed new light on not only the current murder, but reveal truths about that initial disappearance of Saori on that fateful day she disappeared as well.

A TERRIFIC film all around!

MUST SAY I am REALLY enjoying this Keigo Higashino renaissance of reading his classic books and then digging up the film adaptations and watching them right after! Not only does it make my reading experience so much more full and enjoyable, there are still SO MANY to track down and discover!!!

Posted by zdorama @ zdoramaagain.blogspot.com