#SHUT UP THEY GOT OSSANS LOVE TOO????

[yioh]

thai drama industry was doing so damn well ALL these years creating interesting original content but boom all of a sudden we need to be making all these remakes 😐

[invisiblegarters]

GMMTV 2024 Part II Thoughts

Okay watched all the trailers now and here is how I fall:

Fully Seated:

Re-Vamp. this looks like it could be the tragic romance type and honestly, here for it. The last time I had a good tragedy was Eternal Yesterday I am ready to be broken again. Plus as I said when the first mock trailer aired the whole aesthetic really suits everyone. This is tied for my most anticipated show of 2024 with

Us. Oh my god I am so here for this it looks so delicious give it to me now. I love everything about the trailer, no notes, if we get this and Pluto in 2024 this will be the best year ever. I assume we'll get this more towards the end of the year (if not the beginning of next year) but that's fine, just please don't change too much of it because what we have looks great. And it's not highschool! Look I'm loving 23.5 but I also want some messy lesbians on my screen please.

The Heart Killers. I can't pretend that this doesn't look like a hot mess but I also won't pretend that the type of mess isn't right up my alley. God help me I love a good honeytrap, and if we have First's character honeytrapping Khao's to get him arrested or whatever but also getting Dunk's character to honeytrap Joong's so that he can commence with the first honeytrap...yep. My kind of mess. Plus I just genuinely want to see First being the one chasing for once. I want him all flirty, I know he's got it in him, and I'm tired of the usual configuration with Khao (I say after two shows, lol. What can I say I get bored quick).

Friendshit Forever. Speaking of toxic. Pat is amazing and I love her and that alone would have me seated, but Mook too? I'm there. Also pleased to see Boun in one of these already although in my heart of hearts what I want to see most is him in something with First oh shut up the heart wants what it wants

Hide & SIs. Jan and Lookjun being awful? Toxic families and fucked up relationships and someone (or several someones) doing a murder? Like, come on. Of course I'll be tuning in.

Half Seated:

Leap Day. Let's actually call this one three quarters seated. My butt is almost completely on the chair but I haven't settled into it yet. Mostly it's because right I want to watch just for Gun, and I'm not sure it's worth that yet. The plot itself isn't making me excited at the moment.

Ossan's Love. This looks ridiculous. I have never seen the OG and I have also not heard good things but well. I like Earth and Mix and I like seeing Earth playing a goof. We'll see.

Heart That Skips a Beat. I don't know. The trailer looked good and I love a good two people from different worlds collide sort of story, and I also like when shows tackle some of the issues of the industry, in this case the weird rules around idols and having, you know, lives. That said, I wasn't grabbed to the point that I know I'll be showing up, so it's on my tentative list for now.

Sweet Tooth, Good Dentist. I love Mark and that will probably be enough to make me tune in but the only thing I remember about the trailer is the beginning with the vlogging and while my found footage loving heart adores that out of horror flicks, it's not really for me in BL. I have tried Gameboys and See You After Quarantine and that other one from the Philippines and while they were fine they were not my bag. But Mark. So yeah I'll probably wind up watching regardless but in terms of grabbing me, no. Sorry.

In the Same Room, at Least:

(Meaning that sure, if I'm bored or the official trailer looks good I might binge it later)

The Ex Morning. Look. I love Singto and Krist grew on me in Be My Favorite. That said I hated SOTUS. SO this doesn't even get the nostalgia factor for me. If I hear a lot of good things maybe.

Perfect10 Liners. Looks like too much to cover so it'll probably wind up being a mess in the bad way. I like all the couples but yeah. It just looks like We Are part II. Not for me although I can't say I won't eventually watch the whole thing some lazy Saturday.

TV Firmly Turned Off:

Break Up Service, Dark Dice, Scarlet Heart. There were trailers (except for the last one which was just a concept). I remember nothing (except the last one because it was just a concept). Enough said.

Final Thoughts:

I genuinely can't believe two non-BL shows made my top list but here we are, I guess.

I'm very curious to see which of these actually get made in 2024. If I had to guess, I'd say all the het ones, Revamp, The Heart Killers or Perfect10, and probably The Ex Morning. The rest will go to 2025 or the discard pile.

But please remember that I am not good at this lol.

[potteresque-ire]

🏳️‍🌈 Rec post!! A queer film + a queer TV series from Hong Kong ~

1) Twilight’s Kiss (叔·叔) (Dir. Ray Yeung 楊曜愷; 2019)

Twilight’s Kiss offers a very realistic depiction of two elderly, in-the-closet gays in Hong Kong, who have dedicated their lives building a conventional family before unexpectedly falling in love with each other. It is a quiet film, and the romance is told in the same subtle manner as love is expressed (and not expressed) in their generation. The actors were phenomenal at playing regular Hong Kong men of their age (Pak mentioned he “came to Hong Kong”, ie, he was a refugee from Mao’s China, as the vast majority of his demographics was), which added to the resonance of the story ~ they could’ve been anyone, and anyone could’ve been them. 

The director of the film, Ray Yeung, is an openly gay man.

(Long review: Hollywood Reporter) Streaming link to film (with English subtitles; pls ignore and close the pop-up window)

2) Ossan’s Love (大叔的愛) (2021)

The unlikely (and hilarious) love triangle between Muk (Left), Tin (Center) and KK (Right) in Ossan’s Love.

For those who found the name familiar, it’s because the series is a (faithful) remake of the popular 2018 Japanese series of the same name. The Hong Kong version is longer (15 episodes; ~ 40 min each) compared to the Japanese original, and its mood is cheerier, sweeter, and also ... more BL, with the lead characters Tin (Haruta in the original) and Muk (Maki in the original) played by two idols, Edan Lui 呂爵安 and Anson Lo 盧瀚霆, from the very popular local boy band MIRROR.

(Being idols didn’t prevent them from kissing. Not in Hong Kong, 2021.) (Yes, they kissed, and hugged and fought and bantered...)

Ossan’s Love is culturally significant in that it became the first gay drama to be aired primetime in Hong Kong, and by extension, in China. Beloved by the locals, it was also very much discussed—hk-queers expressed their (surprised) joy that finally, they got to see a respectful, dignified presentation of who they are and how they love. More importantly, they got to see HKers, older generations included, glued to the TV for their kind of love story, rooting for the lead male characters to get together. 

This signifies a broader acceptance of LGBT+ in the city than previously assumed; this is very important and comforting to the community in June, 2021, when the future of LGBT+ rights in the city is very uncertain. After the 2019 protests, pro-democracy leaders have been arrested and jailed in large numbers; newspaper that advocated for freedom has been shut down. Meanwhile, during the airing of Ossan’s Love , the (in)famous pro-Beijing politician, Junius Ho, claimed the series to have violated the city’s much feared, much abused National Security Law—the law that officially aims to catch “traitors”, but has been used as a “catch-all” excuse to arrest political dissidents and suppress the freedoms of the city. Ho was of sufficient prominence that his words could draw the attention of officials who have been sent from across the mainland-HK border to do Beijing’s bidding.

Also, Ossan’s Love was produced not by the powerful, once popular TVB (local TV station), which, with Chinese investors becoming its major shareholders like many other HK press and media companies, has become very pro-Beijing and conservative. The series was produced by ViuTV, a much smaller station preferred by young, pro-democracy Hong Kongers ... which means the future of the series, of its stars (MIRROR’s members are once-contestants of a ViuTV talent show), of even the station itself is also uncertain.

Hence, I’m recommending Ossan’s Love now ... even if the official version doesn’t have the best English subtitles. The full series is on Youtube (links below); the soundtrack is in Cantonese and (Traditional) Chinese subtitles are available, but English is only available via Youtube’s built-in Auto-Translate function. 

For those who would like to catch a short scene of two cute HK boys in love, the last 5 minutes of Ep 11 would be a nice place to watch. You can see how comfortable these two bandmates were with each other—Edan (Tin) had played two supporting roles before this series, while Anson (Muk) had never acted before. Edan and Anson have claimed that being close friends in RL meant their intimate scenes were easy to film (BTW, Anson is gay, Edan isn’t).

Edan Lui (Left) & Anson Lo (Right), Harper's Bazaar HK, May 2021. Edan was a uni student before joining hk-ent. Anson was a dance instructor.

(You can also see why, when I watched the Gg + Dd Happy Camp episode very, very early on in my turtlehood, I assumed Gg and Dd would have ample opportunities to work together again, to play and be happy in front of the camera ... just like how I remembered on-screen couples from my days in HK—the couples, the CPs of the time, would collaborate repeatedly after having demonstrated chemistry and become commercial success—in film and TV projects, in variety shows, in awards ceremonies as presenting guests etc etc. This multi-project collaboration was, and still is, viewed as a Very Good Thing, and not only for commercial reasons. The inter-personal fate (緣份) to play on-screen couples repeatedly, per the tradition of HK-ent, is something of a blessing, talked about as a small-scale version of having the destiny, the luck to be together across multiple lives, multiple incarnations. Actors treasure this kind of collaboration and the HK audience celebrates it, regardless of the marital status of the actors in RL. Entertainment news dedicate articles about it.) (There’s actually an example of that in Ossan’s Love: Kenny Wong 黃德斌, the actor who played the titular Ossan, KK, and Rachel Kan 簡慕華, who played his wife Francesca, had already played husband and wife three times before. Rachel had retired from acting in 2017 and moved to Canada; she told reporters that she returned to shoot Ossan’s Love primarily so that she could play Kenny’s wife again).

* Below is a small warning for Ossan’s Love ~ *

The humour of Ossan’s Love is often wild and zany, especially where it adapts from the Japanese original. Some of it, i-fandomers may find uncomfortable. Notably, the titular Ossan (Japanese, meaning “Older Man”) was Tin and Muk’s boss; and he and Darren, another superior of Tin and Muk, were also part of the romantic story line.

One can argue, therefore, that Ossan’s Love contains a *very* “Me Too” situation; however, this is also why I find Ossan’s Love interesting beyond being a Chinese-speaking gay drama—it is clear that the production team of this series meant no disrespect, and from the series’ reception, it’s also clear that hk-queers and other more progressive members among the audience didn’t see disrespect in the product. This series therefore offers a glimpse to the answers of some questions I’ve had: how does Hong Kong of 2021 translate respect for queers (as well as for older men and women) into day-to-day words and actions? How do these culturally-specific habits in speech and behaviour compare to the norms in, for example, the United States (that I’m familiar with)?

“Political incorrectness” was also found in some of Tin’s internal monologue. However, I thought, perhaps, that was why the series has proven to be disarming to the general audience both in HK and Japan, places with a tradition of homophobia stemming often not from malice, but from ignorance, from sex being considered taboo for so much of the places’ history. Tin, as someone who haven’t seemed to have spared a thought about homosexuality before the story had taken place, spoke the minds of the audiences who aren’t familiar with homosexuality. Muk, meanwhile, presented the perspective of someone who already understood what being gay was and wasn’t about. Tin, therefore, led the audience towards Muk and his views step by step, all the while without being judgemental—how could he be? He was one of them too during his journey. He was the student, and he was also the protagonist who everyone—and I mean everyone—loved (in a rather funny manner :D). 🌈

(Long review: BLwatcher)

Links to Ossan’s Love, official version uploaded by ViuTV: EP 1 EP 2 EP 3 EP 4 EP 5 EP 6 EP 7 EP 8 EP 9 EP 10 EP 11 EP 12 EP 13 EP 14 EP 15

ETA 2021/09/16: Streaming with English subtitles is available here.

[gofancyninjaworld]

watching ONE write women

One of the joys of following a writer for a while is that you get to follow how their ideas develop.   One of the things that ONE brought up in an interview (annoyingly I’ve lost the link) was that he didn’t think that he wrote women particularly well. 

I was thinking about that.  When ONE says that, what comes across to me is that he has no problem writing a female character as an individual rather than a role.  All the girls and women he’s written so far have their own voices, own their problems, and have something to do within the story that would be noticeable if they weren’t there.  Quite frankly, that alone is over and above what various tests of representation (such as the Bechdel test) ask for.  

What he’s not so good at is appreciating what being female brings to a character’s experiences and outlook.  But he’s not just left it at that.  More on what he’s been doing in a bit (and under the cut).

“...the law forbids rich and poor alike to sleep under bridges...” -- Anatole France

With his sharp eye and talent for exploring the implications of whatever he posits, ONE has brought up some issues are not inherently gendered, but usually are. 

A: Childcare

Metal Bat appears to be the main, if not sole, carer for Zenko.  How it affects him is fascinating.  He’s one of the longest-serving heroes in the Hero Association, being there before Class S was formed, literally within the first six months of its establishment.  He’s been extremely loyal and is highly trusted by the HA -- they put Narinki’s life into his hands without fear.  His battle strength is literally praised to the heavens.

Metal Bat makes Zenko a priority, structuring his availability around her school schedule and being present in her life. He gets very angry if these times are threatened without overwhelmingly good cause.  His reward is to be perceived by the Hero Association as less committed and so they under-recognise him in terms of ranking, and since rank and pay are linked, under-pay him as well.  It’s a story all too many women can relate to.  But that’s not all.

Because ONE writes so simply yet conscientiously, something else comes up and has a peek: intersectionality. It’s the concept that we often have multiple social disadvantages that interact and compound our problems.  The first is sexism.  Regardless of whatever childcare policy the HA has, the sexist assumption that only women care (for the record: this is bullshit) makes it unlikely for them to ask Metal Bat.  Second, social capital. The fact that he’s Zenko’s sole carer means that he has low social capital, that informal network of people around you who can help out -- or tell you where to find help and what things to say in order to get that help. [Aside: this is why programmes to help people, unless they reach out aggressively, tend to disproportionately attract those who need it least.]  Metal Bat doesn’t have the knowledge.  The third is the challenge brought by his being a 17-year old boy.  He’s quick to perceive challenge as threat, and threat as something to be met by anger.  Witness him threatening to smash the HA headquarters if it turns out that he’s missed Zenko’s piano recital for nothing -- completely not useful to anything. [Another aside: the importance of learning to disambiguate emotions and do useful things with them even if it means being vulnerable as a part of growing up as a man is the whole point of Mob Psycho 100.]

What do the Neo Heroes do?  They ask Metal Bat if he wants help with childcare AND HE JUMPS SHIP PRONTO.  If that’s not an indictment of the Hero Association, I don’t know what is.

B: Emotional Labour

Saitama has been delegating more and more of the day-to-day work to Genos.  What started as an act of service to express his gratitude, respect and love for Saitama is increasingly turning into a second job for Genos.  It’s not just the cooking and cleaning and the shopping and the bailing Saitama out if he’s forgotten his wallet again, it’s also the worrying about Saitama, sometimes at inappropriate times.  Has he drunk enough water?  Has he clean clothes in good repair? What sales is he looking forward to? Have they been marked on the calendar?  It’s honestly not doing Genos any good, and it’s one of those things all too many frustrated wives and girlfriends can relate to.  This doing the practical and emotional work for another is not intrinsically gendered, but funny how often it breaks that way.

It’s not doing Saitama any good either.  He’s using this freed up time to fritter his life ever more aggressively away, playing games with King and finding pointless competitions to enter, all while complaining about feeling less and less connected to anything (if you don’t address the problem, it doesn’t get better, duh!).  Worse, he’s started to take that gift of service for granted, witness him airily telling King how he’ll just have Genos go clear up the mess of monsters he’s left outside the flat.  I was heartened to see what happened when Saitama went a little too far and asked Genos to go cook and instead of jumping up, Genos gave him the the evil eye and let the awkwardness hang there.  That was good -- there’s hope for this guy yet.

Speaking of Genos, he also over-functions for something else Saitama struggles with: advocating for himself.  He tends to have Genos be the ugly one so he doesn’t have to be.   You can see just how bad he is at self-advocacy when Forte and friends could invite themselves into Saitama’s house at will despite his protests -- and it stopped the instant Genos showed up.

In a sense, it’s not surprising that Genos can do that. When you’re differently-abled (and for once, this is not a euphemism) as he is, being able to clearly ask for what you want and need is life-and-death necessary. If Genos was shy about it, he’s long since had to discard that.  But!  Let me point to a nuance the story touches on.  How pushy you can be without being punished for it depends a lot on who you are, intersecting strongly with race, gender, social status, etc (remember my mentioning intersectionality before). What’s called assertive in a man is called bitchy or sharp-elbowed in a woman.  Even taking gender and race out of the equation, there’s still a noticeable difference in the way the world treats Saitama and Genos.  You don’t need to be Sigmund Freud to understand the way the short, ugly Dr. Kuseno sweats making sure that Genos positively radiates youth, beauty, wealth and power. That’s part of his right to ask and be taken seriously.  You can see how drastically different it is for Saitama, even from his middle school days.  Genos notices, and makes sure to leverage his social power for Saitama. 

What I love about these examples are that by not automatically heaving a woman into these characters’ roles, ONE’s brought a less frequently seen angle that illustrates the problems they deal with are not ‘womens’ issues per se but are rather inequities that disproportionately affect women -- which is at the heart of what feminists keep saying.  When you read Makai no Ossan, you can appreciate that ONE could have gone with female characters and done a great job, but his choosing not to has brought a very welcome dimension to the story.

Women proper

“I’m not like other girls”

Still, bit by bit, ONE has been working more women into his stories.  After his interview, the next thing he worked on was the single-volume sequel to Mob Psycho 100,  Reigen.  He took his challenge head-on by making the POV character Tome and putting her in an all-girls’ high school.

Throughout the story, we see Tome thinking of herself as special, better than her fellow classmates, whom she sees as vapid and shallow.  The denouement comes with Tome being humbled as she gets to know her classmates better and realises that  they pursue interests just as varied and weird as hers -- only they’re also practicing being socially adept on top of that.

It’s a gentle story, but it’s still a great side-swipe at self-internalised misogyny, the idea that it’s shameful to be like a ‘girl’ and it’s something to distance oneself from.   Fortunately, Tome can laugh at herself and grow up.

“Ha ha ha”

For a long time, the only (named) women we had in OPM were Tatsumaki and her younger sister Fubuki.   We’ve gotten more women both good and bad: in particular, it’s been very gratifying to find that one of the most dangerous, story-shaping villains in the story is Psykos.

In the webcomic, ONE’s pushed even further.  A recent Tweet featured him talking about how hard he finds it to draw women. And he’s added several.   No same-face for him!    I’ll talk about the new heroines he’s added, but first, let me draw your attentions to something most artists don’t realize they do: massively skew the gender distribution of crowds, even when it is incredibly illogical to do so.   With ONE, even drawing the crowds at the fair who gaggle at Amai Mask, he’s got a far more even balance of women and they’re not all young and pretty -- which is much more true-to-life.  He’s in the business of drawing people.

ONE has featured microaggressions before, particularly in the way Fubuki can have perfectly sound things to say and be totally ignored,  but he brings it properly to the fore with Suiko.  No one calls her incompetent, but the little put downs she gets when she puts herself forward for the hero test in lieu of her brother, oh they’re well-observed The look on her face just makes it.  I love the way she shut the recruiters up subsequently. 

  Let’s conclude this tour with a look at Webigaza’s lonely figure.  We have another mono-manically focused cyborg in the story.  Genos has been called a lot of things -- determined, obsessive even, but crazy? Never. Notice who it’s been reserved for instead.  It’s no slip of the tongue.

Wrapping Up

I’m of the impression that ONE really wants to try to capture as much of the human experience as he can in his stories, however whimsical or fantastical the stories themselves are.  I’m disarmed by his humility in accepting that he’ll never have the lived experience of half the world’s population but he sure as hell can put some effort into learning how to to writing well-realised, believable, female characters.  

I watch ONE’s continued development as a writer with interest.    

[idolish7rabbitchats]

Izumi Mitsuki: Wonderful Octave Rabbit Chat Part 3

3: Sorry to make you wait! I’m fine now!

Tsumugi: Then, it seems like everyone is ready, so I’ll restart collecting the requests. Please continue it!

T: From Mitsuki-san please!

3: My request to myself is “Read one more mail from the fans”!

T: Mail?

3: I know that I can’t help that I can’t read all the mail but I want to read even just one more. Because everyone wrote them with everything they had.

9: You are also thinking about your fans.

3: Because they’re like treasures to me!

3: I mean also I just want to read it to everyone! That “I got this kind of mail! Look!” kind of!

9: The fans would also be happy huh. That he is happy about his fans’ gifts.

T: It’s exactly as Kujou-san says! Thank you for the wonderful request!

T: Next is Yamato-san please!

2: “Please tell us Mitsu’s dark history.”

2: How about it?

3: Eeeeeeh… How about it is… Dark history~?!

3: You definitely typed that with a smug face didn’t you lol

2: Don’t you have anything that would totally change your bright and cheerful image? (lol)

1: Hold on. That’s it.

1: Manager, it’s no good for the agency right.

T: Eh?!

1: Nii-san doesn’t have any dark history, so please stop bringing up his image in a weird way.

2: No way no way, you probably actually have it right?

1: I don’t. Because I’m a perfect highschool student.

4: Eh? Iorin doesn’t? You definitely do.

1: Shut up.

2: Ichi doesn’t wanna hear it?

3: Oooi, Iori. Isn’t your reply late? lol

1: S-Sorry, Nii-san.

T: As an agency, it will depend on what kind of dark history maybe! Yamato-san, Mitsuki-san, please let me consult with you afterwards!

T: So then, next is the request from Yaotome-san please!

8: My turn huh. My request is “I want you to say a message to yourself ten years from now.”

3: Uwaaaaah that’s something super embarrassing isn’t it lolololol

8: Why? Something you want to do, an ideal you have to be or something, Izumi-ani has it right? Please let us hear that on this radio.

8: Childish things, silly things, anything’s fine.

3: Something I’d ideally want to do huh… That, I have but!

3: It’s an embarrassing thing thooooo!

3: I mean, after I got a request about my past, it’s one about my future huh. Even the contents are totally opposite from having a dark history lolol

2: You wanna make it into a heart-moving dark history?

8: What kind of dark history is that? (lol)

T: Everyone really wants to know about Mitsuki-san huh!

3: Even though I’m basically not changing anytime!

3: Well, I’ll think of something. Thanks, Yaotome! And Ossan too!

8: Yeah. Take care of it.

2: Take care.

T: That was a heart-warming request! Yaotome-san, thank you!

T: Next, how about Tsunashi-san please?

10: From me, “I want Mitsuki-kun to give fan service!”

3: W-

3: I laughed and spilled coffee!!

3: Fan service?! Me? To Tsunashi-san?

10: When I see Mitsuki-kun give fan service during a live, I think it’s cool that you respond to each fans’ requests. The fans seem really happy too.

10: I want to learn fanservice from Mitsuki-kun too!

3: No way no way no way…! Tsunashi-san’s fan service is manly and sexy and your fans always almost faint, giving more fan service than you do now would be dangerous?!

10: Is it bad? It’s over the radio and it might be a difficult thing to think about...

100: It’s nice! I want to get fan service from Mitsuki too!

1000: Yeah. Give me some great ones too

3: Great one lololol

3: Wait, Momo-san and Yuki-san too?!

7:Yes! Yes! I want it too!

6: And me of course.

4: Me too.

1: You guys are in the same group aren’t you?!

7: Aaaah…. But if it’s a unit song, it might work!

6: I can’t… :’-(

3: I’ll do it for you guys at the dorms lololol.

6: Thank you. Mitsuki is a wonderful idol with great spirit for service!

7: Yay!

4: [Pudding in Milk Jug Stamp]

5: If you’re going to give fan service, we have to build a stage in the living room huh.

2: That’s hardcore (lol)

10: That’s great you three!

3: To Tsunashi-san and others, I’ll do it when I pick your request right?

10: Thanks, Mitsuki-kun! I’m praying you’ll pull it.

100: (o´з`d)☆

1000: (o´з`d)☆

3: Uwaaaah! That’s somehow embarrassing…….lol

T: It seems like it’ll become a fun corner if you pull Tsunashi-san’s request huh!

T: So then, next is Momo-san please.

100: OKAY! The request from me is “Challenging the cup and ball record”!

100: It’s a little craze between Mitsuki and I recently~. It can be a nice break too, it’s quite fun!

3: We just learned “Around the World” the other day right!

100: Yeah yeah! That combo technique! But I still fail more than I succeed~.

3: While I was doing it, the ball went a weird way.

3: I think we need to skill up each technique and

3: Oops, sowwy. Lol I somehow got totally absorbed lol

100: We kept talking about cup and ball lol

1000: You two seem like boys huh

100: We are boys, darling lololol

3: I’ll turn back to the conversation about requests but, doing cup and ball on the radio sounds hard. I think they can only hear the sound of me playing it...

100: Fufufu! That’s when Mitsuki’s commentary skills shine!

3: Eh?! Am I going to comment while playing cup and ball?

3: Isn’t that difficult?!

100: So that’s what makes it interesting~! Let’s practice together again before the radio show. (∩´∀｀)∩

3: You should seriously practice with me lol

T: That was an unexpected request but it seems very fun!

T: So then, lastly, a request from Yuki-san please!

1000: My request is “A Cooking Song.”

3: A cooking song?

1000: Like a drawing song but a cooking version I think. Mitsuki-kun is also good at cooking so I want you to teach me a recipe I don’t know through song.

3: Song lololol

3: Why a song? lololol

100: Maybe cuz Yamato’s parody song from his radio got him right? While listening to the radio, he was crouching and shaking for while.

1000: It was so funny I thought I’d stop breathing.

3: Ah that parody song lolol

2: Waaaaaaaaaaaaaaaah

2: Let’s stop talking about that!!!!!!!!!!

1000: Yamato-kun, thank you for the lovely song for my sake. ^ ^

2: You’ll pay for this on your radio...

3: I haven’t made a song before but I’ll try thinking about it lol. I have a recipe for a mountain vegetables dish that was handed down directly from my grandmother, is that fine?

1000: Mountain vegetables are nice. It’s perfect for this season too.

T: I want to try listening to Mitsuki-san’s cooking song too!

T: So then, that’s the end of gathering requests. Everyone, thank you so much for the fun requests!

3: Thank you!

100: Meaning, it’s time for Mitsuki to request something from us★

5: Mitsuki-san, please request anything.

*T: Do you have a request for us?

3: About that, I don’t really have anything. You guys always eat my dishes without leaving it; I love you guys!

3: You guys always taking care of me and letting me have fun is enough!

1000: It’s almost your birthday so, you could say something like “I want to reserve an island and have a party.”

100: That’s something Yuki wouldn’t go to right?!

1000: I’d go? But I wouldn’t step outside.

1: If Nii-san wants to go, we’ll search for an island that we can reserve.

3: Reserving a karaoke room is fine enough lol

1000: It’s a little early but, your birthday. Congrats.

10: Happy birthday! Please work hard on the radio recording!

100: ・:*:・:(*P’v`q) ☆ HAPPY BIRTHDAY DEAR Mitsuki ☆(*P’v`q):・:*:・ I’ll Rabbit Chat you later about the day of practice for cup and ball!

9: Happy Birthday.

8: HAPPY BIRTHDAY! Please take care of me from now on too!

10000: Happy birthday, Mitsuki-kun! Thank you for always being IDOLiSH7’s cheerful moodmaker! I hope it’ll be the best year for Mitsuki-kun!

Okazaki: Happy Birthday!

Anesagi: Happy birthday. Please take care of TRIGGER from now on too.

T: From me too, Happy Birthday, Mitsuki-san!

3: Uwaah! Thank you! I’m seriously happy to be able to celebrate with everyone every year!

3: The new Izumi Mitsuki will go forward with all my might, so please take care of me!

6: Mitsuki, I haven’t said HAPPY BIRTHDAY yet? Please look forward to our special night from now on.

5: Special night… Nagi-kun saying it is somehow heart pounding huh.

4: I’m already used to it thooo

3: Everyone, thanks! I’ll work hard on the radio recording too!

V2:

5: Mitsuki-san, please request anything.

T: Do you have a request for TRIGGER-san?

3: I want to eat with all three of them! We haven’t been together much especially with Kujo and I can be an organizer, so let’s go!

3: You guys always taking care of me and letting me have fun is enough!

V3:

5: Mitsuki-san, please request anything.

T:  Do you have a request for Re:vale-san?

3: Please call me for a show anytime! I’ll think about bringing a project too lol

3: You guys always taking care of me and letting me have fun is enough!

[strongfeelingsaboutsalads]

psst! i wanna hear #s 2, 5, 6, 8, 12, 17, 18, and 20 about the humans! all of them B)

My partner is trying to kill me. Do you see this? Anyway, long-ass belated ask response under the cut.

2. what’s their opinion on Logan Thackaray?

Lynette, Amara, Rasheem, Vesh: He exists.Miguel: Who?Galen: So in canon I suspect he doesn’t have any strong feelings. But commander AU… I’m trying and failing to find a more tactful way of saying that he makes Logan his bitch. I hate my brain. Galen would just really enjoy breaking him.

5. describe their childhood.

Lynette’s earlier childhood was pretty unremarkable. Calm, comfortable. Two brothers, one a twin (fraternal, you’d never know it to look at them,) and one several years younger. Then somewhere in her teens, her mother died suddenly and everything went downhill very fast. Her father took it very hard. A couple years of irresponsible living (and spending) later, he died as well, leaving the twins to try to pull things back together. Some extended family was able to help them a bit, but they were never very high up the noble hierarchy, and in his grief their father nearly ruined them. It’s been a slow, long struggle for stability since.

The Landi siblings are odd to talk about, since throughout her childhood, everyone including Amara saw her as a boy. A particularly effeminate boy that exactly no one was surprised to learn wasn’t straight, but still a boy. (Probably the biggest surprise came in learning that “he” had any interest in girls at all.)

Amara grew up distinctly aware of the series of roles she was expected to fill. Her family ran a textile trade, which she was expected to continue. Nobility came with the expectation that she’d continue the family line by some day marrying and having children. And alongside that, the expectation she didn’t even realize bothered her the most until it struck her there might be an alternative, the expectation she’d do so as a man. She learned to handle pressures from all directions. Mesmer magic ended up coming naturally to a mind that was already trained to carefully manage appearances and keep focus on multiple projects at once. And privately, it allowed some release through fantasy. She got very good at convincingly changing her appearance.

Rasheem’s childhood is marked by an inverse kind of frustration. He’s long felt like the extra, the untalented one that no one really expects to do much. The sad thing is, he’s not entirely wrong. He has a complicated blend of resentment and admiration for his sister, whose talents he tried and failed to emulate. (Though at the time he saw it as his brother he was trying to keep up with. He’s still not entirely used to having a sister.) But he does still love her, because when it’s really mattered she’s been quick to support him.

Galen was a farm boy. An awkward, awkward farm boy who spent entirely too much time doing gods-know-what outside on his own, and who took far too much interest when he saw a priest of Grenth perform some minor necromancy. His family situation was pretty normal; hard working parents, a mother who ran a tight and clean household, and siblings he sometimes even managed to get along with. But he was always a bit detached from most people. Adolescence didn’t help. As a teen he was tall and lanky with the vaguest hints of facial hair that refused to grow in more than wisps, and he was still as awkward and nerdy (I’m not sure Tyria even has that word, but the concept applies) as ever. He grew into his looks.

Vesh’s was not good. Some details are still fuzzy to me. I know she grew up in DR, and her name was originally Eliana. She was only raised by one parent, I’m still undecided which, and she’s not even sure whether or not the other is alive. The one she was raised by definitely isn’t, they likely died when she was anywhere from 9-14. She was always desperately poor, and despite her parent’s insistence on Elonian lineage, obviously of very Orrian heritage. By the time she was a teenager, a certain knack for the more abstract, energy-focused aspects of necromancy was manifesting. That’s when she gave up the struggle to not be the creepy Orrian girl entirely. The persona of Parivesh, witch of the Mists was born. It isn’t the only identity she goes by these days, just the easiest for her to fall back on. She’s developed a few different personas to deal with the constant sense of lack of belonging. Not all of them female, I should note.

Miguel was part of a big, reasonably well-off family of half a dozen or so siblings, of which he was one of the younger. He ended up left to his own devices a lot, and got himself into plenty of trouble. Modern diagnostics would say he has a pretty clear case of ADHD that he never outgrew, so “shut up Miguel” is something he heard a lot growing up. From pretty much everyone. But he doesn’t hold any resentment. He’s a big exuberant puppy of a person, and besides, he ended up doing pretty well for himself anyway.

6. do they feel particularly blessed by one of the Six?

Lynette, in-game choice Grenth: This has some canon relevance, as she’s a moderately religious person who’s had a lot of reason to think about death, and had to make peace with it.Amara, Lyssa: There definitely is a sense of appropriateness here. I’m not sure she’s particularly devoted, but it’s difficult not to feel a connection to the dual-faced goddess when she herself has had two very different faces she’s shown the world.Rasheem, Dwayna: Not really.Galen: …I’m not even going to answer that.Vesh, Kormir: She isn’t at all the religious sort, but if any god could earn her genuine respect, it’s the one who was once human. I do think Kormir speaks to her in a way the others can’t.Miguel, Melandru: Um… He likes birds? That’s nature-y, right?

8. do you have an in-game location for their “home?”

Lynette lives in one of the Shaemoor houses. I have a specific one I imagine, but it’s not terribly distinct description-wise, and I like to imagine it a bit bigger and fancier. I figure the whole world would realistically be scaled up a bit, anyway.Amara and Rasheem live somewhere in the Ossan quarter. I know I’ve picked out specific houses at one point, but I don’t quite remember. Pretty sure Rasheem ended up moving in with his boyfriend, but IIRC he’s in the same general area.Galen: There’s a little house in Kweli, one of the few if not the only one with a real interior. And it’s impossible to AFK in because the periodic forged attacks go right by the door and aggro on you.Vesh: …No actually.Miguel has a particular spot in Lion’s Arch, overlooking the harbor.

12. how do they feel about sylvari?

Lynette has had at least one sylvari as a long-term work partner and intimate friend. Generally positive. Occasionally remembers that they don’t have the same concept of class that humans do, and as someone who spends a lot of time worried about class structure, she finds this refreshing.Amara has no strong feelings. She knows some sylvari. They’re nice.Rasheem is much the same.Galen gets the title of resident dendrophile. He’s functionally (perhaps literally by now?) married to one, so… He’s generally had good experiences with them. Though things like the entire race spawning from the same mother and the fact that his husband is technically 14 are still weird if he thinks about them for too long.Vesh strikes me as the one most likely to take an academic interest in how sylvari work, if given the opportunity. The complex magical underpinnings of life as we know it are very much her thing, and she’d probably end up asking a lot of questions about the Dream to any sylvari willing to answer. She’s definitely had some sylvari friends by now, but I’m not sure if she ever got around to pestering them about it.Miguel will likely never get over the weirdness of (theoretically) being able to have conversations with someone who was literally born yesterday. But as people they seem alright.

17. how well does the dance animation fit their personality?

Lynette: Not very.Amara: It could be worse.Rasheem: Ditto.Galen: no

Vesh: Not very.Miguel: In one of his sillier moments, yeah, I could see it.

18. what sort of climates do they prefer, if they care at all?

Lynette is pretty comfy with Krytan weather.Amara is much the same. Though she does like when it’s a bit cooler, because she likes layers of clothing.Rasheem is also comfortable with Krytan weather.Galen likes cold weather. He finds it invigorating. And yet, he ended up living in the desert. Sigh.Vesh has no strong preference, though I think she might favor warmer.Miguel likes it hot. If only because he looks damn good with his shirt open. Or off.

20. what’s your favorite thing about playing them?

Seeing as I don’t actually RP them, answers are skewed toward either the superficial, or just what I generally like most about the characters.Lynette is a power lesbian and makes me cry because I’m gay.Amara is gorgeous and has the best judgmental stares, and I cry because I’m gay.Rasheem has a damn fine ass.Galen “Saltybitch” Blake is the saltiest of bitches, and makes a wonderful avatar for my grumpiest of moods. While somehow managing to be unfairly hot.Vesh’s abs make me cry because I’m gay.Miguel Enrique de Arca Santiago e Pereira is the most extra thing on two legs, and I love having a character like that.

[yotsutama]

Hello Tokyo! (03/20)

Proofread: Sophia (@aseria) (*˘︶˘*).｡.:*♡

Visual Board Tour Event:

Sendai | Sapporo | Hiroshima | Fukuoka | Osaka | Nagoya | Tokyo

Mitsuki: Okay, let’s begin for today! IDOLISH7’s web program…

All: Kimi to ‘Ai'dolish Nai to~!

Sougo: This web program is presented by IDOLiSH7, and it takes place the same time as our tour to seven different cities, “Visual Board Tour.”

Sougo: We started this tour in January, and it felt like it passed by so fast. Thanks to the fans’ warm support, we finally returned back to Tokyo safely.

Riku: Finally…. finally, huh!

Tamaki: Finally.

Riku: Right!? Finally!

Iori: The two of your exchanges do not make sense anymore.

Mitsuki: Leave them be Iori. They’re both happy and sad now, it’s a complex feeling!

Riku: Mitsukiーー!

Tamaki: Mikkiiーー!

Mitsuki: What’s with you two!? Although, it’s so cute!

Nagi: Mitsukiーー!!

Yamato: Mitsuーー!

Mitsuki: What is it!? You two aren’t cute, okay!?

Sougo: Mi, Mitsuki-saaーn……

Mitsuki: Sougo, you don’t have to imitate them! Anyway, why are you doing it after ‘those two’!? And, if you’re going to do it then be more energetic!

Sougo: I, I am sorry…..

Yamato: Sou’s airheadness and Mitsu’s tsukkomi went really nice today too~

Nagi: Sougo, I envy you! I also want to be boke-tsukkomi with Mitsuki!

Mitsuki: not ‘want to be boke-tsukkomi’ but ‘want to play boke-tsukkomi,’ right!? (1)

Nagi: OH! You immediately give me a ‘straight answer.’ (tsukkomi) As expected of Mitsuki!

Riku: Ahaha! Iori looks so proud now!

Iori: Huh!? It, it’s not like I….. Wait, Cameraman-san, don’t zoom in on my face, please!

Mitsuki: Thanks, Iori! Iori is cute too! Well, let’s go to the first corner soon, guys!

Mitsuki: The first corner of today’s final broadcast, “Confess Your Love in Dialect!”

All: Confess~!

Mitsuki: Everyone already knows the rules, but let’s explain it again just in case! Nagi, please!

Nagi: Yes. One member must do a confession using the dialect of the city we’re currently visiting. The confessions are chosen by acquaintances of our staff so the dialect used might be out of date these days, but don’t mind it.

Mitsuki: Thanks!

Nagi: I have a question, does Tokyo have a dialect?

Mitsuki: Undoubtedly!

Nagi: ???

Mitsuki: Ahaha, sorry, sorry. It means, ‘Of course’ in Tokyo’s dialect! Well, it’s rarely used nowadays though. (2)

Nagi: Is that so. Japanese is deeper than I thought.

Yamato: I was worried about Tama’s, ‘Wait!!’ last week, but it really was interesting~.

Mitsuki: Ossan, you’ll worsen Tamaki’s mood if you mention that! The King Pudding you gave to him after will go to waste!

Yamato: Ah you’re right, my bad. I’m sorry~ Tama.

Mitsuki: You don’t look apologetic at all!

Nagi: Yamato, what a terrifying man…!

Riku: Ah! Tamaki is closing his ears!

Iori: Geez, what a childish act….

Tamaki: I’m not going to be deceived by Yama-san anymore.

Mitsuki: That’s amazing, Tamaki! Amazing but, he’s not going to deceive you so don’t shut your ears off in the middle of recording!

Sougo: Look, Tamaki-kun. Everyone is troubled so open your ears.

Tamaki: …………………….

Sougo: It seems like Tamaki-kun can’t hear me. It’s a bit sudden but, I will talk about Tamaki-kun’s embarrassing story when he and I worked as MEZZO" that time…..

Tamaki: Stop ittーーー!!!

Sougo: What, so you actually could hear me, huh.

Tamaki: I didn’t not hear you.

Mitsuki: Huh?

Nagi: What?

Riku: Ahaha! You didn’t know if you should say ‘I did hear you,’ or ‘I did not hear you,’ right? (3)

Tamaki: That’s correct, Rikkun.

Yamato: Watching Tama and Sou’s exchanges made me realize that it’s bad to oppose Sou.

Iori: Me too.

Mitsuki: Case settled! I guess? hey let’s go back to topic guys! Today is Riku’s turn, I pass it over to you Riku!

Riku: Hyies!

Riku: Ah, yes!

Mitsuki: Eh!? you’re THAT nervous!?

Riku: I wasn’t seconds ago, but I suddenly got nervous now! What should I do!?

Sougo: Riku-kun, relax. If you do it smoothly it will feel great after.

Nagi: Do it like you’ve cornered the suspect…..

Tamaki: What the hell, Nagicchi!? That sounds scary!

Mitsuki: Don’t just add the smell of crime here!

Riku: Everyone is funny so it relaxed me a bit! I think!

Mitsuki: Ah! Then do it! Iori, stand in front of Riku!

Iori: Yes….. It ends with confessing to unit member after all…..

Yamato: It’s not you who is confessing so it shouldn’t matter to you, right?

Iori: … If I were to borrow Yotsuba-san’s words, it would be, ‘I’ll definitely kill you.’ That’s what I feel right now.

Tamaki: I understand your feelings, Iorin.

Yamato: High schooler nowadays are scary~

Nagi: Yamato’s smile shows how satisfied he is.

Mitsuki: You never learn, huh Ossan. Riku’s starting to get nervous again, Iori hurry up!

Riku: I wasted too much time before confessing and now it’s made me even more nervous!

Iori: Excuse me, is it fine if I stand here with this much distance?

Riku: It’s fine! Here we go!

Riku: ‘I’m devoted to you!’ (4)

Members: Hyu~! Hyuu~!

Yamato: You actually said ‘I’m devoted to you,’ huh.

Iori: I was a bit nervous before but, he said it with such a straight face, it doesn’t make me embarrassed.

Riku: Why do you look so relaxed now!? Now I’m so embarrassed after I said it!

Tamaki: I understand your feelings, Rikkun.

Iori: Whose side are you actually on!?

Sougo: But really, Riku-kun’s confession had a nice ring to it.

Mitsuki: Ah, a note. What is it…

Mitsuki: “‘I’m devoted to you’ is not used when confessing to someone so we are not sure if we can count it as a confession…..“

Mitsuki: Staff-san, have more confidence, okay!?

Nagi: I will search about it later online.

Mitsuki: Well~ the internet is really convenient, huh! Riku, thanks for a cute confession!

Riku: You’re welcome!

Mitsuki: Okay then, let’s move on!

Mitsuki: The last second corner of today! “Talk About Your Memories in That City!”

All: Talk about it~!

Mitsuki: Nice job. Let’s explain this corner! Yamato-san, I leave it to you!

Yamato: Right. In this corner, we will talk about when we were in the city we were currently visiting.

Yamato: That being said but, talking about our time in Tokyo means talking about our daily life, huh.

Mitsuki: Ahaha, you’ve got a point! But there’s a restaurant we had never visited before in Tokyo, but we were able to because we were touring this time!

Yamato: Aahh, the food there was delicious.

Tamaki: We ate many kinds of food and they were all delicious. I was so hungry waiting for the food to be prepared.

Mitsuki: Talking about food makes me hungry nowー. Ah, it felt so quick but it seems like we should end this soon. Now then, Riku, please announce Tokyo’s detailed announcements!

Riku: Got it! IDOLiSH7’s tour to seven cities, “Visual Board Tour 2017” will take place in Tokyo starting from today, March 20! There will be posters, CM, and merchandise, please check them out!

Riku: Our billboard picture is also up in Tokyo, I think it’s very cool, so if you could see it yourself I’d be very happy!

Iori: In the station, Nanase-san’s message is there as well. If you walk pass it, it would be nice if you read it too.

Riku: If you read my message too, I’d be even more happy!

Sougo: Thank you very much for the nice responses towards our offshots on Twitter. It made us happy that our photos could please you.

Tamaki: Look forward to our photos in Tokyo, too.

Mitsuki: Thanks for your confessions, everyone!

Mitsuki: I’m really glad we can safely finish our tour! Wait, another note came out.

Mitsuki: “We received another request, since you’re all idols please confess to the fans while looking at the camera.”?

All: Eeeeeeeehhhh!?!?!?

Mitsuki: Does this mean we have to confess again!?

Yamato: Mitsu, don’t say it so bluntly.

Mitsuki: Like I have a choice! Ah, they said I was right!

Yamato: Onii-san is a forgetful person so he doesn’t remember his confession in his dialect anymore~.

Nagi: No! It’s unfair if you’re not doing it! And Yamato, you shouted your confession in dialect when you were drinking last night!

Yamato: Wai-Eh!? Seriously!?

Nagi: I’m serious. By the way, Mitsuki and Sougo also shouted theirs too.

Mitsuki & Sougo: Eeeeeeeeehh!?

Mitsuki: Well, I barely remember it. Maybe I shouted it…

Tamaki: Not maybe. You really shouted it.

Riku: I also heard them!

Iori: I heard them too.

Sougo: I’m sorry everyone. For being a no good adult….

Riku: Sougo-san, you don’t have to apologize! It’s good that everyone still remembers their own confession in their dialects!

Iori: Why are you always optimistic about everything?

Riku: Iori is smart so you must still remember it too, right!?

Iori: Ugh…. For today, I regret being a perfect high school student.

Yamato: Ichi has amazing self-confidence, huh. Is it really okay to say that?

Iori: Is that a problem?

Mitsuki: Ahaha! Well, there will be no ending to it if we keep complaining, so let’s do it!

Mitsuki: The last Visual Board Tour special corner! “Confess Your Love To The Fans!”

Members: Oohhー!!!!!!

Mitsuki: There’s was a weird ‘Oohー!’ in there!

Yamato: Onii-san doesn’t care anymore. Let’s just hurry and end this already.

Tamaki: Looking at the camera is so hard….

Mitsuki: Let’s do it seriously! The seven of us will do it, so if one person doesn’t do it, he’ll be the most embarrassed one you know!?

Tamaki: Uuhhー.

Mitsuki: Ok! We only have a few minutes so, let’s start with Iori!

Iori: Fine with me. *cough*

Iori: …Everyone, thank you very much for your support up until now. I love everyone. (4)

Yamato: Ah, so we’re doing it like that?

Yamato: Thanks for always supporting Onii-san and IDOLiSH7. I love you all, everyone.

Mitsuki: To those who watch ‘Ai'dolish Nai to!’, thanks for your support! I love you all!

Tamaki: Thanks for your support. I love you so much.

Sougo: Thank you very much for always supporting us. Everyone, I love you.

Sougo: …. so much.

Nagi: Thank you very much for supporting us, IDOLiSH7. I love you all, everyone.

Riku: Thanks, everyone, for your support!

Riku: I’m really happy I could see everyone in this tour! I love everyone, and I’m dedicated to you all!

Riku: The tour has ended but, it’d be nice if everyone could keep supporting us from now on!

Iori: We will definitely be the IDOLiSH7 that you can be proud of. Do not look away from us, okay.

Mitsuki: That’s right!

Mitsuki: Aahh, I didn’t want to say this but, it feels sad that we can’t tour another city after this anymore!

Nagi: Me too.

Tamaki: We really enjoyed this tour, that’s why.

Sougo: We were really happy doing this tour.

Yamato: Well, an ending means a new start.

Mitsuki: You said it, Ossan! Unlike me, who said it in negative way, my bad!

Mitsuki: Okay then, everyone! See you later! 3, 2, 1!

All: The next “Kimi to ‘Ai'dolish Nai to!”, don’t miss it~!!!

ーーEndーー

T/N

(1) Nagi said 絡まりたい karamaritai (want to get involved). It’s supposed to be 絡みたい karamitai. The meaning doesn’t change overall, but the structure was wrong.

(2) Mitsuki said あたぼうよ atabou yo (of course). Today, people usually use あたりまえ atarimae (of course)

(3) I did hear you = ‘kikoetemasu.’ I didn’t hear you = ‘kikoetemasen.’ Tamaki said “kikoetemasun”

(4) Riku's confession is in Tokyo dialect (romaji: "Oira, omae ni toon to kita!"). He said ‘I love you’ that usually means what close people say when they’re about to be married, or are already married. In other words, he used an ‘I love you’ that has romantic feelings in it. ioriku

(5) Everyone's 'I love you' here are in their own area's dialects. Romaji: Iori: "Suki daccha". Yamato: "Namara suki sa". Mitsuki: "Buchi suki ja kee". Tamaki: "Bari suitoo yo". Sougo: "Meccha suki ya nen...... desu". Nagi: "Dera suki dagaya". Riku: "Minna ni, toon to kita yo!"

Visual Board tour is over! Thank you IDOLiSH7💕

[kajimotomiya]

Ultraman Orb is finished as of 12/10/2017

When I was a young lad, about the age of 5th or 6th grade or so, the Fox Kids section of Fox was removed and revamped to a new program on Saturday mornings: The Fox Box. It had many shows, mostly licensed by 4Kids (Yu-Gi-Oh, Pokemon, etc.), including Sonic X, Kirby: Right Back At Ya, Tokyo Mew Mew, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (a darker version than what the cowabunga cartoons were), and especially a dub of Ultraman. (Dub, not what Power Rangers, Masked Rider, or Kamen Rider Dragon Knight were...adaptations?) Most specifically, Ultraman Tiga.

How ironic that my first exposure to Ultraman would come back to me in the form of my first Japanese Ultraman series.

Having joined a forum called HJU, I met a friend who was an Ultraman buff (also a bit of an elitist), and learned a little bit more about Ultraman through him. I became somewhat interested in Ultraman Zero and that convoluted named movie he was featured in, especially that Black Ultraman who’s always smiling (I know his name, shut up). But being more of a Kamen Rider fan, I was very reluctant to try other things until I finally started watching some Super Sentai shows. I needed a reason to watch Ultraman, and not for the love of Kaiju people have towards this franchise, or the mechs in Super Sentai. I wanted what I got from Kamen Rider: intense rivalry, an unspoken bond between two warriors bound to forever clash blades. Upon following someone on Tumblr, I asked them about Ultraman suggestions. And while they gave me a lot to try out, they specifically offered me something I could refuse.

Unspoken bromance.

Ultraman Orb is about a wanderer who wasn’t all that he seemed. Having met the Searching Something People (I hate this name still), he eventually bonded with and started living with them. While protecting Tokyo from the threat of the Kaiju and other extraterrestrial terrorists, he would continuously cross paths with a man whose deep history he shared, both good and bad, and protect not just humans, but all of Earth, from his plans.

This guy.

As my first Ultraman series, I truly did love the fights between Gai and Juggulus Juggler (I still love this name). Although their ACTUAL insuit fight was rather anticlimactic and sort of unsatisfying, their offsuit fights were pretty fun to watch. I especially loved that Gai wasn’t this hot head or “teen hero” that Super Sentai and Kamen Rider would always expose me to. I love his cool, mature adultness. On the other hand, I could never get a grip on Juggler’s deal. He would be cool, menacing, calculating, with a voice so deep and sexy I’d question my heterosexuality. But then he starts going on fits of insanity with his voice shooting up five octaves (and his goddamn laugh), and I am immediately brought back to reality. Even now, I STILL don’t know what his deal was with Gai except he wasn’t chosen to be an Ultraman. So what is it? Did he just want to prove he was better? Did he want to kill Gai for taking away a power he believed was rightfully his? Did he grow psychotic from the powers of darkness? And then he’s saving Naomi all the time instead of actually killing her, and while we DO touch upon it, it’s been more than frustrating to see where on the evil spectrum this asshole lies. Speaking of Naomi...

I still hate them.

Maybe it’s just the acting. Normally I can’t tell the difference between English-speaking and Japanese acting, since in English I can TELL when someone is phoning it in. Because Japanese is just my secondary language, I can’t tell the actual inflections that are normally used or just hamming it. In this case, however, these guys were WAY too obvious. It was actually kinda of annoying to listen to. But let me at least get past that.

Naomi has been literally the damsel in distress all series. She gets caught in so much shit, especially with Juggler, that there were times I hoped she would kick some ass (like a certain sword-wielding cutie in the next show). She ended up serving to be Gai’s emotional motivator, when she “died” and when he was at the end of his ropes. Honestly, I didn’t like that about her. Maybe I’m just shallow thinking about it, but I wanted her to be a little more than a potential love interest (they never outwardly stated it, but it definitely was a thing).

Shin is like the smart guy, right? But there were times I just wanted him to just STOP TALKING. When he and Jetta just run off each other in seamless conversation, it’s just NOISE NOISE NOISE. I...I know his light in the series was with the Mecha Godzilla look-a-like, but even then I couldn’t really like him.

Jetta was..............kinda useless. I almost actually forgot his name writing this.

If there was anyone I liked out of this repeating cast, it was Shibukawa. He was your typical stupid ossan who knew how to dish it when needed. If there was a human hero in the story besides Gai, it was him. His episode where he and Gai were fighting their respective alien opponents in perspective shifts was iconically one of my most favorite episodes in the series. The man is hardboiled, but not like Shotaro Hidari “hardboiled”. But even then, I don’t understand his logic, like shooting at a giant alien with his gun. Also his acting sucks.

All in all, I actually really liked this series, though despite being only 25 eps, I actually had to take breaks. Maybe it was because of these guys I felt a little turned off. When you have these guys as the public face of the “hero in the shadows”, it’s...kind of annoying.

So what’s next after this?

I am currently streaming Ultraman Geed with a Discord server I’m in, making it the only time I’m watching it. The guys I’m watching it with have never watched Ultraman, so it’s somewhat educating for all of us, and I think the reactions are more genuine that way.

I also have Ultraman Orb Origin in my HDD, so maybe this will clear up some things about Gai and Juggler I’m missing. I also have X, that Ultraman Zero movie(s), and I THINK Tiga is also there. It’s a little hard for me to go Showa, but I’ll try at some point.

If there is anyone I want to thank for this, it’s @biomic. We’re not friends or anything, and I think I annoy them more  than I want to, but it’s because of them I started watching Ultraman and added another chapter to my Tokusatsu life. I’ve watched their liveblogging of Ultraman since I started following them, and I enjoy every bit of it. Maybe I’ll start Metal Heroes because of them as well?

That said, I enjoyed having a taste of Ultraman, and I can’t wait to rip through Geed as well. Until then,

あばよ

[yotsutama]

Hello Sapporo!

Special thanks to Sophia (@aseria) for proofreading!!

Visual Board Tour Event: 

Sendai | Sapporo

Mitsuki: Let’s start today! IDOLISH7’s web program…

All: Kimi to ‘Ai'dolish Nai to~!

Riku: This web program is presented by the popular idol group, IDOLISH7! It takes place the same time as our new program, “Visual Board Tour”!

Iori: We’ve received lots of warm responses from Sendai. Thank you very much. It seems like there were a lot of people who visited far from Sendai just for I7. We’re very grateful.

Yamato: Starting today, on February 2nd, “Visual Board Tour” will take place at Sapporo. There will be some advertisements and CM there, so, people of Sapporo, please check it out.~(1)

All: Please check it out~!

Sougo: Our tour’s popularity rose, didn’t it.

Yamato: Thanks to Ichi’s hard work.

Mitsuki: Iori, you were so cute…!

Tamaki: Iorin’s face was so red lol

Iori: Don’t annoy me please. Let’s forget it and move on to the next corner soon. *smiles*

Riku: Iori, your smile is scary!

Nagi: Those are the eyes of a man who wants revenge.

Iori: It’s just your imagination. Ok then, let’s do it Nii-san.

Mitsuki: Iori, you’re so pushy today! Let’s go to the first corner then! “Receive A Confession of Love in Dialect!”(2)

Mitsuki: …Wait, what?

Sougo: It’s not confess your love but receive a confession of love…?

Mitsuki: Last week was “Confess Your Love in Dialect!”, right? Did the staff change it?

Nagi: The staff’s faces turned white, huh. It seems like something has occurred here. Is it finally the great detective Rokuya Nagi’s turn?

Riku: The great detective Rokuya Nagi’s assistant, Nanase Riku is here too!

Iori: What on earth are the two of you saying…

Tamaki: Ah, there’s a note from the staff. Umm… “We were bribed by Nikaido-san.”

Mitsuki: Oi oi, Ossan! I thought you were just drinking with the staff after last week’s episode finished, but you actually…!

Tamaki: Yama-san, that’s dirty…!!

Yamato: Calm down Tama. If we keep this up, you’ll have to confess to Sou, you know?

Tamaki: I see?

Iori: Nikaido-san, I didn’t know you were this kind of person… Yotsuba-san too, what’s with that “I see”! (3)

Tamaki: Why are you blaming me!?

Sougo: Calm down, both of you.

Mitsuki: Yamato-san, explain this. Does this mean it’s ok to just receive the confession?

Yamato: Exactly that.

Nagi: For me, confessing to a male or receiving a confession from a male is a No Thanks.

Riku: For me, I’ll accept Yamato-san no matter what kind of person he is!

Yamato: Wait wait Riku. Don’t get the wrong idea. I prefer a cuter person, ok. (4)

Nagi: In this case, it would be me or Mitsuki who will confess to Yamato. But with all due respect, I’ll leave it to Mitsuki.

Mitsuki: I knew it… Well, I’m fine with it, but Yamato-san’s fans has been looking forward to Yamato-san’s confession, right?

Riku: Yamato-san’s confession, I’m sure it’d be so cool~!

Yamato: Eeh…

Nagi: Izumi Iori-shi’s thinking, “Nice, make him give in already.” (5)

Iori: Don’t make a weird narration using my face, please!

Mitsuki: Ahaha! Ossan, give it up already.

Yamato: Onii-san’s heart isn’t ready, though.

Mitsuki: What are you, a girl in love!? Anyway, I didn’t practice Sapporo’s dialect so I can’t replace you! You didn’t say anything about this to me!

Iori: Nikaido-san, we don’t have much time left.

Nagi: Now Izumi Iori-shi’s thinking, “How’s that!”

Iori: I am not thinking that, I am doing my job!

Tamaki: Iorin, you really are stubborn, aren’t you~

Riku: Yamato-san! Fight!

Yamato: Seriously…?

Mitsuki: Ohh give him more support! Sougo, say something!

Sougo: Me..? When you are nervous, you can just imagine that the people around you are delicious potatoes.

Riku: As expected of Sougo-san! Nice advice!

Yamato: Uumm…

Sougo: I’m sorry, was it useless…?

Mitsuki: Oi, Ossan, you made Sougo feel bad so do it already.

Yamato: Ok I’m ready. All of you, form a line there.

Riku: Eh?

Tamaki: Like this?

Yamato: Ohh nice. Here I go…

Yamato: I love you. (6)

All: Oohh~!!

Yamato: This feels like a public execution…

Riku: That’s Yamato-san for you! That was super cool.

Sougo: I’m sure Yamato-san’s fans are pleased

Iori: Now do you understand my feelings? Although, I wanted to keep the rule of ‘confessing to your unit members’.

Yamato: Ichi, nice smile you have there…(scary)

Tamaki: Yama-san, you didn’t look like you had any trouble whenever you act, but you’re weak at this, huh.

Yamato: It wouldn’t be called a variety show if I’m acting now.

Sougo: As expected of Yamato-san. You put your thought into this.

Mitsuki: It would have been more interesting if you blushed there!

Yamato: Shut up…

Mitsuki: Sorry, sorry! It was great! Really! Yamato-san’s fans are definitely satisfied now!

Yamato: Everyone… Onii-san did his best, you know…

Mitsuki: Yamato-san, nice fight! The next corner is “Talk About Your Memories in that City!”

All: Ooh~!

Mitsuki: Just like the previous episode, in this corner, we will have a talk about when we visited this city. Tamaki, do you have any topics?

Tamaki: It’s about Sapporo, isn’t it?

Mitsuki: That’s right!

Tamaki: The snow was amazing. In Tokyo, there’s no snow at all this year so I got excited.

Mitsuki: If there’s too much snow it would be dangerous, but just it does raise our excitement!

Tamaki: The snowball fight that time was also fun! Right Rikkun?

Riku: Ye..Yep!

Tamaki: What’s wrong?

Riku: I accidentally threw my snowball at Sougo-san’s face… (7)

Sougo: Don’t worry about it, Riku-kun. I’m not used to snowball fights so I was surprised. I’m sorry if I made you feel bad..

Riku: That’s not it! I couldn’t throw it properly…

Nagi: I was behind Sougo at the time so I Finished with No Damage.

Sougo: It’s good that I can be Nagi-kun’s shield.

Yamato: Sou is a fighter, huh? Retiring as soon as the fight started was a right choice for me.

Iori: At first, you were drinking hot coffee, right? But suddenly, the coffee disappeared. (8)

Yamato: It didn’t warm up my body at all.

Sougo: I was warmed by the curry soup.

Tamaki: Sou-chan looked so happy while eating spicy food.

Mitsuki: Sougo’s curry soup was so spicy I couldn’t eat it. But since we could choose how spicy we wanted it, it was so delicious!

Riku: Yeah! I rarely eat curry soup so it tasted fresh and delicious!

Yamato: Even after eating curry soup it still felt cold. Was it because I wore a thin muffler?

Mitsuki: Oh!?

Yamato: “Kyonen mo maita mafuraa na no ni na~♪” (It’s the same muffler I wore last year but)

Mitsuki & Nagi: “Naze da ka nukumori tarinai nda~♪” (I wonder why it doesn’t have the same warmth?)

Tamaki: Stop it, it’s embarassing!!/// (9)

Riku: Wow..! It’s “Tsukiakari Illuminate”!

Iori: Really, those three forms a nice unit (allies), in various ways.

Yamato, Mitsuki, & Nagi: Yay!

Sougo: “Tsukiakari Illuminate”. We’re so glad it gained so much popularity. Right, Tamaki-kun.

Tamaki: Ooh. We sang “Samu~i yo~~♪” (It’s cold~~♪) during karaoke together.

Mitsuki: Now that MEZZO”’s new song has been released, I leave Sapporo’s detailed announcements to you Yamato-san!

Yamato: Ok, ok. Starting from today on February 2nd, “Visual Board Tour” will start at Sapporo. There will be posters, CM, and other merchandise that’s designed after Sapporo’s image available there, Look forward to it.

Nagi: There will also be Yamato’s message on the billboard in the Sapporo Station, and our photoshoots in Sapporo will be uploaded on Twitter so don’t miss that either.

Riku: Our picture’s theme in Sapporo is a bit bittersweet. I wonder how everyone will react!

Sougo: That’s right. It would be nice if they’re pleased with it.

Mitsuki: Right. People of Sapporo, please take care of us from now on! Ok then, let’s do the closing together! 3,2,1,..

All: The next “Kimi to 'Ai'dolish Nai to!”, don’t miss it!!!!!

T/N

(1) Yamato said “Yoroshiku” here.

(2) In Sendai, this corner’s name is supposed to be “Confess Your Love In Dialect!” (romaji: “Gotoji no Hougen de Ai wo Sakebanai to!”). But in Sapporo Yamato changed it to “Receive A Confession of Love in Dialect!” (romaji: “Gotoji no Hougen de Ai wo Sakebarenai to!“).

(3) Here, Iori (and the others) find that confessing to their unit member is embarrassing but Tamaki didn’t mind with it, so Iori was like, why??

(4) Riku’s line sounded like what a lover would say to their partner, and Yamato responded with “don’t get the wrong idea, it’s not like I like you or anything, I prefer a cuter person, ok!” (what is him, a tsundere?? and he didn’t say that it must be a girl..)

(5) “-shi” means mister/sir

(6) Yamato said “I love you” in Sapporo dialect. The romaji is “Namara suki sa.”

(7) He’s talking about this

(8) At this part, Iori was saying that Yamato started out by watching their snowball fight, but joined them anyway to keep himself warm since the coffee wasn’t enough.

(9) When Koi no Kakera had just released, everyone teased mezzo and sang “have a nice trip.. just the two of you~ (futari de~♪)” whenever these two were about to go somewhere together.. And now it’s TsukiIllu version.. they’re so cute help

Thanks for reading!!