 | [JAPAN] TELEVIEWS / This Summer’s dramas |
June 29, 2007 by Dennis Amith · Leave a Comment
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In the latest Televiews from Wm. Penn on Daily Yomiuri, Penn writes about the upcoming dramas for the Summer season in Japan.
Penn writes, ”
“Pity the judges of Za Terebijon magazine’s 53rd Drama Academy Awards. They have to choose a winning drama out of this spring’s selection of spectacular losers. A sadder slate of candidates would be hard to find.”
“Will the new summer dramas be better? Penn’s prime prospects for this first week of the new season include: the father-daughter brain-switching comedy Papa to Musume no Nanokakan (July 1, 9 p.m., TBS network), the scenic Hokkaido excursion Ushi ni Negai o Love & Farm (July 3, 10:10 p.m., Fuji) and Juken no Kamisama (9 p.m., July 7, NTV network), starring Tatsuya Yamaguchi as a single dad with a daughter in need of a glamorous tutor.”
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| [JAPAN][MOVIE REVIEW] “Kissho Tennyo”, yet another J-Horror film… |
June 29, 2007 by Dennis Amith · Leave a Comment
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Daily Yomiuri’s Aaron Gerow writes about the latest J-horror film “Kissho Tennyo”.
According to the Gero’s review, “A desolate Shinto shrine is buffeted by a windstorm. A flash of lightning shatters the night, revealing a mysterious woman lurking on the steps. Another flash and the film shockingly cuts to an extreme close-up of this demonic figure’s eyes glaring at the camera.”
“The opening of Kissho Tennyo is so cliched that one is sure this must be yet another entry in the now increasingly unoriginal parade of J-horror films. This scene, which has no narrative justification, might in fact have been tacked just on to bolster the film’s market potential. But in a film defined by pairs and opposites, one could also say that this excessive representation of malevolence is there precisely to set up its converse.”
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| [JAPAN] Fuji TV news bureau chief fired for scam |
June 29, 2007 by Dennis Amith · Leave a Comment
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Mainichi Shimbun reports that a FUJI TV news bureau chief is in hot water for scamming the company.
According to the article, “A Fuji Television Network (Fuji TV) news bureau chief has been fired for embezzling more than 9 million yen from the broadcaster, officials said.”
“Tetsuo Suzuki, 54, has admitted to the allegations and already repaid the full amount to the company’s coffers. The network is considering whether to file a criminal complaint with law enforcers, accusing him of embezzlement.”
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 | [US] S.K.I.N. rocked out in Long Beach, CA in front of thousands |
June 29, 2007 by rabi · 3 Comments
The highly anticipated worldwide premiere of Japan’s latest rock band “S.K.I.N.” made their debut at Anime Expo 2007 in Long Beach, CA, on June 29, 2007.
Gackt’s powerful voice, SUGIZO’s electrifying guitar, Miyavi’s energetic movements and unique guitar play style, plus YOSHIKI’s mesmerizing drumplay entertained several thousand fans with a total of four new songs, including hardrock pieces and power ballads.
The highlight of the evening had to be the third song, which started out as a full-blown rock ballad that gradually turned into a quartet of acoustic ensemble, before returning to its rock form.
The said interlude began with YOSHIKI switching position to the clear grand piano that was set up next to his drum set, and as his fingers danced on the black and white keys during his piano solo, he was joined by Gackt, who was playing the black piano at the opposite end of the stage, and for a while the piano duet echoed in the Long Beach Arena, until SUGIZO showed up with his violin and displayed his skills on a different set of strings; Miyavi rounded up the ensemble with something that resembled a small guitar, providing the rhythm for the session by hitting the box of the instrument while he was playing it.
The set was overall too short, but the band did drag out the last song by asking the crowd to chant along parts of the lyrics “get back” over and over again.
During the last piece was the band members’ introductions, and each member of S.K.I.N., including support musician Ju-ken, longtime bassist for Gackt, was able to show off their musicianship before the much pumped-up crowd.
Before the show ended, YOSHIKI basically destroyed his drum set by throwing and swinging things at it, while SUGIZO went nuts at the guitar and broke it in half, receiving much cheers from the audience, whereas Gackt warned the fans to expect more of S.K.I.N. in the future.
Based on past experience of most Anime Expo large events, there were usually significant delays, and their first main event of 2007 (not counting the Opening Ceremony) was no exception.
The S.K.I.N. concert was scheduled for a 3:30pm start, but was delayed by more than two hours; the seating process did not even begin until after the scheduled start time has passed, and fans lining up outside the arena were left in the sun wondering when they would get to see the band perform.
Not the entire arena was used, as the upper deck was closed for this event; the floor level was filled up, whereas the middle level was about 90% full.
S.K.I.N. finally took the stage shortly after 5:45pm and judging from the reaction of the crowd during the one-hour performance, the wait was well worth it.
S.K.I.N. merchandise available at the arena included T-shirts of various designs, pins, stickers, and so on.
-Wynne Ip
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| [KOREA] Transformers film gets approval by movie fans in Korea |
June 29, 2007 by Dennis Amith · Leave a Comment
“Transformers” the film from Spielberg, directed by Michael Bay has received a thumbs up from filmgoers in Korea.
According to an AP article, “The graphics were just awesome, truly the best science fiction movie I’ve ever seen,” Oh Kyung-chul, a 21-year-old student, said after watching a morning show in Seoul. “I hope they come out with sequels. I will definitely go to watch them.”
“Based on the 1980s toys and cartoon series of the same name, “Transformers” centers on two robot factions: Decepticons, which strive to dominate the universe; and Autobots, which believe in peaceful coexistence with humans.”
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| [JAPAN] Tamura talks about his role in “Last Love” |
June 29, 2007 by Dennis Amith · Leave a Comment
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Actor Tamura Masakazu was recently interviewed by Daily Yomiuri’s Tsukui Mina in regards to his role in the film “Last Love”.
According to the article, “Before shooting the film, Tamura practiced the saxophone intensively for seven months. He practiced hard not only to act as a professional saxophonist but also to understand the philosophy of a man who loves to play the sax. The hardest aspect of Akira’s psychology for Tamura to understand was his decision to leave his daughter in Japan to go to the United States for his comeback concert even though he was going to die soon, he said.”"I understand his wish to die as a jazz performer in New York and to keep his daughter away from his death. But it’s just hard to understand how Akira could have wanted to end his life like that,” Tamura said.”
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| [MANGA] HK Artist Wins 1st Manga Noble Prize Award |
June 29, 2007 by Dennis Amith · Leave a Comment
Mainichi Shimbun reports that an artist from Hong Kong has won the first Manga Noble Prize Award.
According to the article, “Sun Zi’s Tactics” by Lee Chi Ching, 43, beat out 145 other entries from 26 countries and regions around the world, the ministry said in a statement.”
“Lee’s historically themed adventure series ran from 1995-2006 in Chinese, and has been translated into numerous other languages, it said.”
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| [PR] NINTENDO’S WIIWARE PAVES THE WAY FOR FRESH GAMES, COOL CONSUMER EXPERIENCES |
June 28, 2007 by Dennis Amith · Leave a Comment
Nintendo Sets a New Paradigm: One Game Can Still Make a Difference
SANTA MONICA, Calif., June 27, 2007 – The search for the next ingeniously ground-breaking video game has begun. At a private developers conference this week, Nintendo announced the introduction of WiiWare™, a game-creation service that will allow developers large and small to create new downloadable video game content for sale by Nintendo through the Wii Shop Channel of the hot Wii™ home video game system. WiiWare paves the way for smaller, more creative games to make their way to the public at lower prices, without any inventory risk to developers. The first WiiWare content will launch in early 2008.
“Independent developers armed with small budgets and big ideas will be able to get their original games into the marketplace to see if we can find the next smash hit,” says Nintendo of America President Reggie Fils-Aime. “WiiWare brings new levels of creativity and value to the ever-growing population of Wii owners.”
The possibilities for WiiWare are limited only by the imaginations of developers. WiiWare provides game creators a simple method by which they can get their games to the public. This approach, combined with the remarkable motion controls of the Wii Remote™ and Nunchuk™, will give birth to fresh takes on established genres, as well as original ideas that currently exist only in developers’ minds. The reduced barriers to development provide developers the freedom to create and an inexpensive, clearly defined path to reach consumers who will ultimately determine which game will become the Next Big Thing.
WiiWare will be posted on the Wii Shop Channel. As with current Wii Shop Channel offerings, users will redeem Wii Points™ to download content. It will support a variety of pricing options. Details about that and upcoming projects will be announced at a later date. For more information about Wii, visit Wii.com.
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| [POLL] Transformers the movie is coming to theaters. How do you feel about it? |
June 28, 2007 by Dennis Amith · Leave a Comment
For J!-ENT’s latest poll, 63.8% felt they couldn’t wait and believe it to be awesome!, 18% felt it would suck and 18% felt undecided.
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| [KOREA] How are popular US dramas faring in Korea |
June 28, 2007 by Dennis Amith · Leave a Comment
In Korea, there have been shows that have been catching the attention of Koreans such as “Prison Break” and “LOST” but what about shows like “Ugly Betty”, “CSI” and “Grey’s Anatomy”?
According to an article from Chosun, “U.S. soaps that depict the lives of professionals have become a big hit in Korea. “C.S.I”, “E.R”, “Grey’s Anatomy” and “House” are the prime examples, dealing as they do with the lives and work of FBI agents, police, doctors and lawyers.”
“A staffer with CGV said, “In the most popular U.S. soaps, most of the leading characters are professionals with good educational backgrounds. ‘The Sopranos’, a drama about gangsters that enjoyed huge popularity in the U.S., got little attention from Korean viewers.”
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