this is all i could come up with today (laughs). which means random toma/japan stuff.

[a quiet moment for toma-kun...he must be reading the majosai script? ^^
it's f/the red theater show clip.]

hi hi~
kate desu.

majoSai ep.5 will be airing today (JST time). already almost at the halfway mark, right? ehhh. u can get ep. 4 at TFS already, too! except if u haven't even watched ep.3, like me. haha. (i really will catch up soon, toma-kun! for my lateness~ gomen ne.)

ah, sorry for this random plug, but i'm so excited that conan's back on tv soon, with his new TONIGHT SHOW!!! monday night (june 1) is his first show! i love conan!! he's the best late night show host, and in general, such a funny funny guy!! actually, when he was still hosting the Late Night show, one time they found out a lot of ppl in japan watched the episode where he was singing a rockabilly song...something like that. haha! so he sang the song again, but w/japanese subtitles at the bottom of the screen, for them. lol. this is the show's website with some funny conan video clips there already, check it out!! and please try watching his show, i'm sure it'll make you laugh like crazy!! :D

oh! i found this cool site that explains various things about japanese culture/language!! the description at the top of the page: "Japonophile.com - Articles about Japan, japanese culture, life in Japan, japanese language… Photos of Japan, things to see and do in Japan, in Tokyo, Kyoto and elsewere, in every season!" the owner of the site is from belgium! though they don't update it anymore, but each time u go to a different page there or reload the page, you'll get to see a different kanji character (chosen from the 1945 most common kanji) and see what it means (also shows the pronunciation, but i can't read it)! sugoi! this is the page w/the explanation about the kanji: http://www.japonophile.com/what-is-kanjijuku. check out the other sections though, a lot of cool stuff there. for example, i found out that "konnichiwa" actually means "in this day..."!! isn't that a really cool way to say hello? ^^

(wow! sometimes yuu kinda looks like toma in his pics!!)
just one more non-toma thing 2 say. i was reading yuu's blog translations (with pics and all!! i wish we could see all the pics that toma took and posted to tomagoto!! i've only seen a few...) and these 2 posts, he wrote to his fans! sugeh!!! i wish toma would do that sometime! i know toma often thanks everyone for watching his dramas or his plays or whatever, but that's not specifically directed to just his fans, right? i'd love to see toma write something sweet like yuu did for his fans, especially on White Day!!! heehee. he even especially thanked his OVERSEAS FANS!! anyway, u can read his 2 posts here:
http://yu-shirota.blogspot.com/2008/03/its-really-late-but.html
http://yu-shirota.blogspot.com/2008/02/some-spare-time.html

so~ random toma stuff now. here goes!

THANKS, PAIGE! for telling me about this LJ. xdustbunnys' got a really awesome LJ, where there's a ton of short news or toma mentions...in general, a lot of SCOOP about toma!! about ppl seeing toma in public, other JE guys talking about toma, summaries of toma's appearances on different shows (like shun's ANN), etc!!!! this is the main page: http://xdustbunnys.livejournal.com/. i've even linked to it in my links section. ^_^ but i went HERE to look for ANN summaries, and.....WOW!! i ended up reading so many entries, and found a lot of cool info about toma!

for instance, toma wanted to move out on his own since 2 yrs ago?? he's just been too busy to do it. lol. but i like celebrities that stay with their parents. it makes me feel like someone is taking care of them/they are taking care of their parents properly. =) but in toma's case, it's mainly cuz i like the idea of it being not as easy for him to be secretly dating or having a girl stay overnight. since he still lives with his family. haha.

also, i want toma to come to Recomen more!! yoko is so happy for toma starring in a movie. ^_^ and in general, i love the banter between yoko/hina/toma a lot more than toma/shun. and i love yoko and hina's loud voices. hahaha. toma-kun, please don't just go to shun's ANN all the time!

yappari, here's some stuff i got from LJ:

thanks to janinamedina for linking to this awesome, beautiful + bittersweet nakatsu MV! search for "everything you want nakatsu" at youtube to see asiaever's MV. it's sooooo sweet and got a lot of my fav nakatsu moments! just that there's a lot of fading in and out.

---------

http://community.livejournal.com/ikuta_toma/403418.html
elitejean's toma wallpapers!! awesomeness! i love what she wrote on one of them, that shows toma thinking: "it makes me smile to know i'm a constant distraction in yr daily life." LOL!! this is definitely true 4 me. xD

----------

http://enshinge.livejournal.com/243758.html
may 2009 Wink up interview translation!! i've been waiting for it!! i love how they said "Toma continues to run on without rest, but it seems his feet are no where near stopping yet." it describes his life right now so perfectly!

-----------

http://strawberry-gemm.livejournal.com/47995.html#cutid1
27/05/09 Toma on "The Red Theater". another funny (though super short) dance off! very cute!! ~_~ i love seeing toma dance on shows recently...there was one from april that is really cool. MechaIke! from april 25. he was doing these really graceful ballet-like moves and twirls. *_* u can download the video clip somewhere at the LJ.

i wish it can be 10,000 years!!

konbanonetwo~
kate des.

(i heard toma, hina & some callers saying
"konbanonetwo" on Recomen. i like it!)

gomenasai!
i have kinda bad news.
it's that i will *probably* only post on fridays for now. that's all.
(if there's any BIG BIG NEWS, like toma debuts or he has a girlf, of course i'll post it up ASAP!! :D and anything that has a deadline, like voting 4 toma or downloading something, i'd let u know ASAP.) cuz of certain things going on in my life...i can't spend as much time online. so i'll have to cut down to one post a week, or else i'll completely fall behind with the keeping up w/all of toma's stuff and watching his drama, etc. Haih... but i'll still come here each day, so u can still chat with me by posting messages 4 me at the chatbox on the right ne. ~_~

i'm sorry!
but i used to post only once a week, anyway, in 2007. and recently, i've started to run out of toma things to talk about anyway. haha. if u come here and there's no updates and you're bored, take a look at the LINKS section on the right or check out my old posts.

BUT!
no matter what, u know i'll keep my promise! i won't disappoint you~ as long as i'm around, this blog will continue to be updated!! i won't abandon it, just like i can't possibly abandom toma-kun!! for those of u who don't know what i'm talking about, go HERE to read my post from last summer.

i talked about how i was afraid that toma's popularity is dying down (thank goodness i was wrong, right? haha. i've never been so happy to be wrong before!!) and that no matter what, i'll keep supporting toma and updating this blog. ^_^ and i talked about how my love for toma will never cease, and that "if there must be a time limit to this love, i hope it can be 10,000 years." (this was a famous quote from Stephen Chow's old movie from the 90's, A Chinese Odyssey (I or II)

so~
if there must be a time limit to this blog,
i wish it can be 10,000 years!

yorishiku onegaishimas~
arigatoooo. ja ne.

kate ♥

toma looks awesome with (almost) any hairstyle!! ( <300th post!! )

[credit: http://www.flickr.com/photos/wiggo/2055013812/in/set-72157600222805515/. see the original image here. =)]

THIS IS MY 300TH POST!! ^_^ thank you.
i didn't notice or do anything special for my 100th and 200th posts, but i thought i should do something this time. well, i just want to say a big~

THANK YOU!
ARIGATOU GOZAIMASU!

to everyone for reading my posts!!! especially to those of you who were here from the very beginning until now! (are there any of you still here??) i really love talking about toma and sharing toma info, news, etc. here with all toma fans!!! hounto ni~ so i hope you like it here too. i will keep supporting toma and try to update TOMA LOVE often!! kito. yoroshiku~!

some amazing clocks i found while looking for a pic for the '300' in this post!! ^_^ only in japan ne~

http://www.flickr.com/photos/fongetz/1125620635/
http://www.flickr.com/photos/fredox34/2385909086/in/set-72157601835581028/
http://www.flickr.com/photos/rohidas_gaonkar/3047284913/
[huge digital clock wall near roppongi hills]

http://www.flickr.com/photos/nickewing/119661055/
http://www.flickr.com/photos/paulmannix/286814746/
[A digital clock made of water jets, outside Kanazawa station, Japan]

http://www.flickr.com/photos/billmcintyre/448266183/
[Hiroshima nuclear clock. very meaningful. and it can even destroy itself!!]


umm...

i'm gonna have to continue this post tomorrow, but i'll just start it now. =) oh, for ppl in the usa, happy memorial day weekend!
please enjoy your weekend ne~

since everyone's been talking (and very upset!) about toma's new hairstyle for majoSai, it got me thinking about all of the so much nicer haircuts he has had and how i miss the days where toma's hair is looking so cool, shiny, and soft, instead of the funny-looking, messy bunch of curls he has now. haha... so i spent some time looking thru my collection of toma pics to find cool/interesting hairstyles he's had over the years!! and there's a lot!! i just kept the nicest/most interesting ones, and left out the not so good ones though. but toma's got such nice hair most of the time, so i still ended up with way too many pics. :P so i'll upload them to the gallery later and just choose my favs to post up and talk about here.

toma looks awesome in almost any kinda hairstyle!! but definitely NOT the current one. wavy/curly hair doesn't suit him!! actually, the only guys that i know of that actually look good with a perm is hiro, jun, and yamashita (in that order!). maybe cuz they have a longer face shape. actually, yamashita often doesn't have really great hairstyles, imo!!

(this is why i was looking for jun photos a while back, remember how i mentioned that? except back then i thought i'd post about toma's hairstyles soon, but then it ended up taking a long long time to look thru so many pics...)


but i don't think any of them could even pull off toma's current look!! (though jun's had some really bizarre looking perms & long/curly hair in the past, but he looked really....!! ) i've gotten used to it by now, but still...sometimes it just looks really awful. it's not so bad when it's kinda dark and his hair looks more dark brown like in this scene. but in well-lit scenes, his hair can look so dry and tangled. and the yellow highlights too. =[ but his hair plus his clothes does really make him look like a careless guy that doesn't know any better, so...at least it's good for his character's look.

oh, this pic below has nothing 2 do w/hairstyles, but i found it while looking 4 jun pics and i just think it's a really sweet moment!! kawaii! ~_~

TO BE CONTINUED...

sorry!! no time today.
i'll finish this post tomorrow, definitely!! oyasuminasai!

i'm here!! whew. this post really took a long time 2 finish (choosing/organizing the pics). dewa~ here's the rest of the post ne.

it's almost as if toma had the best hairstyle in VOICE, and now the worse in majoSai...well, sometimes it doesn't look so bad, sometimes his hair looks a little softer and darker. but sometimes it's all poofed up (almost like clown hair!) and makes toma's head look really big. actually, it makes toma kinda look latin, right?? and he already kinda looked european before this!! but it also makes him look a little more feminine. sometimes it makes me think of some actresses from the 80s ne. haha.

[sometimes it is too poofed up and big, but sometimes it's not so bad and softer looking]

[it looks better when his hair is less curly/his hair looks darker & the highlights R not showing so much!]

but really~ toma is one of those people...he's cute cuz HE'S CUTE, not that his haircut makes him look cute, like some people. like~ certain ppl can only look good with a certain haircut! cuz their face shape only suits certain hairstyles. but not toma!! he somehow looks good in almost any hairstyle! even with this bad perm, toma is still kawaii, albeit less than before. haha.

AND even in that almost-bald look that japanese men used to have!! even then toma can still look handsome. check him out HERE. that's incredible!! lol. (screencaps f/a period drama toma was in, from 2005)

short hair, long hair, spiked up or just plain,
with thick or light bangs, covering his forehead or brushed to the side, parted in the middle or parted to the side, straight or kinda wavy....toma's hair mostly always looks SO AWESOME!!! *_*

i really LOVE how toma's normal hair, when u see it up close, it looks so nice and soft and full, right?? ahhh... i want to touch it.♥ a lot of shows/interviews, they ask toma what are his best features, and he'd often say his soft lips, soft cheeks, or his butt (all true!!), but why doesn't anyone point out how NICE his hair is?? *_* and toma says he doesn't fuss with his hair much, he usually just gets certain haircuts for certain roles he's playing. but do u notice how toma often fixes/brushes his bangs in place during interviews?? ~_~

(BUT I'VE GOTTA SAY-- TOMA DOES NOT LOOK GOOD WITH FACIAL HAIR!! LAST YEAR, HE DIDN'T SHAVE 4 A WHILE AND HAD A LITTLE STUBBLE ON HIS CHIN. IT JUST DOESN'T LOOK RIGHT ON HIM. u can see a pic of how he looked HERE (though his hair was cool!). even toma knew it, i think he said something on his blog about how it was a mistake. lol.)

and toma's hair looks great all the time, whether it's wet/all gelled up/covered by hats or bandanas (or hoods!). or headbands! kakkoii!!♥ even (especially) when he ties it up/pins it back in a kinda girly way. lol!




and did u notice that toma often has a little bit of his bangs in the middle of his forehead...i noticed this in a lot of other JE guys's pics, too! i've even seen toma fixing his bangs on a show f/the start of this year...he was purposely brushing some of his bangs in the middle. =P i dunno why toma & the other guys do this...it looks kinda cool, though a little funny sometimes. some more examples of this HERE.


and about toma's hair color...
just black was fine when he was a kid, but then later he started dying it brown most of the time. i'm so used to seeing toma with brown hair and i think brown hair color really suits him. =) and it makes him seem more boyish than if he had black hair. my favorite toma hair color is the natural looking chestnut brown that he's had since H&C!

but toma has had lots of different versions of brownish hair color. i really don't like the yellow/brown almost blonde color!! the post-hana kimi hair color he had. also, he kinda had that hair color for the hana kimi special, but somehow it was a little more golden and in certain lighting, it actually looked pretty nice! but between brown/yellow and brown/orange-red, i prefer the orange-y nakatsu-ish color. toma used to have red hair one time!! and he's said before, he'd like to dye it pink like Hide (of x japan) one day. ^_^ i'd love that! he'd look super cute w/pink hair!!

here's MANY more pics of different toma hairstyles thru the years. douzo!! ^_^
http://s508.photobucket.com/albums/s322/ilovetoma2/2006andBefore/
http://s508.photobucket.com/albums/s322/ilovetoma2/2007/
http://s508.photobucket.com/albums/s322/ilovetoma2/20082009/

AND FINALLY~~ *drumroll*
MY 5 FAVORITE TOMA HAIRSTYLES:

#1 the natural, boyish H&C look:

my favorite!! i love how his hair was when he was promoting H&C. simple and not too long in the back. i like takemoto's hairstyle, but it's a little flat. i like toma's hair like that, but just a little more styled and full. actually, his hairstyle in the hana kimi SP was so cool too and similar to this style that i like, except i didn't like the color.

and this is 1 of my fav toma looks, 1 of his while-filming-h&C hairstyles!!♥ i even drew his hair like this 4 one of my toma drawings. :D his hair here is just so PERFECT and cool and i love this shade of brown, too. (it should have been a little darker, but in this light, i guess it looks lighter brown.)

#2 the cool/stylish Voice look:

it's almost the same as #1, but a little longer and more styled. it's really one of his best haircuts ever!! just that i don't like it when the curl up/flare out his hair in the back too much.

#3 the cute/cool Nakatsu look:

NAKATSUUUU!! i love his manga-ish cool hair and the fringe of bangs in front...though his hair color sometimes was a little too orange and soemtimes his hair looked a little too long in the back. i love how his bangs can look soft and thin sometimes, or thicker and sharper at other times. i kinda tried to cut my bangs like nakatsu (also takemoto). haha...i just love guys w/thick bangs covering their forehead in a cool way.

#4 the seriously cool Maou look:

he looks more mature, yet still boyish too. ^_^ at first i really didn't like this short haircut when i saw it only in pics, but it looked much much better and cooler in motion when i watched Maou. and i like it more when it's spiked up, but he's still so cute when he just brushes his bangs down.

#5 the sexy/bad boy Junpei look:

gah!! so freaking cool and fitting for his bad boy image. kakkoii!! i usually don't like guys with long hair, but toma and lots of JE guys look so cute with this kinda long hair style!!


[CREDIT: sorry, too many pics, i can't possibly remember who uploaded which!! but most of the newer scans were uploaded by kawaii_girl17 or strawberry_gemm or hpswf1 at the toma LJ. =) the others are also from LJ, baidu, etc. please forgive me if i used any of your pics without crediting this time! if u want me to credit u, just comment below and i'll add your name right here! =)

by the way, toma hasn't worn THAT necklace during photoshoots since around march, have u noticed? i wonder why...i guess cuz of this new character, he has certain necklaces/bracelets that he wears during photoshoots to keep with that freeter/hippie image.]

majo saiban EPISODE 2 notes (and h1n1 flu in japan & the world, the majo poll)

sorry if i kept u waiting!
there will be a new post today...later.

meanwhile, read the newest news about the sudden H1N1 flu outbreak in Japan!! and other flu news too. =[

http://www.voanews.com/english/2009-05-20-voa9.cfm
Numbers of Swine Flu Cases Surge in Japan

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/8058686.stm
Swine flu vaccine appeal to firms

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/8021547.stm
Swine flu: mapping the outbreak [over 200 cases in japan now!! this map has not been updated with the newest #'s yet.]

i couldn't believe it at first, a couple days ago, seeing the numbers increase so fast in japan!! i thought i was looking at the wrong country on the chart at the WHO website! EHHHH!! doushitte???? i guess cuz it spreads fast among students, and students first brought it back f/canada....maybe also cuz japan's weather or something...it's hot but really humid there now...ppl can easily get sick. well... don't worry too much. it hasn't reached tokyo. yet. and so far, all the ppl who got it are only mildly sick. like regular flu, only.

but look at us, in the usa. we're the worst, with the most infections in the world!! 5000something cases. yet no one's even wearing masks. =0 nande?? the government should be giving out masks and asking everyone to wear them!! cuz u can't just wear it if others aren't wearing it, then they'll think YOU'RE sick and all stay away from you. geez....
ANYWAY, wash your hands a lot and take care (more than usual), everyone-chan!! and don't worry too much, cuz worrying = stress and stress = makes u weaker = easier to get sick! this H1N1 flu! you don't scare me!! (liar!) it's not gonna get me!! it's not gonna get us!!

[don't worry, be happy. =) credit: http://www.flickr.com/photos/koalie/321881997/]

doumo!!
i'm back.

...and u know- japan's economy is really tanking right now too!! so much bad news 4 them right now!!
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/business/8058708.stm
Japan's economy in record plunge

the poll has ended. thank you for voting! 52 votes! yappari, most of u (59%) say it's awesome. but the gap is not as big as in the other drama polls i did, i think?? 59% vs 21% saying it's just ok. 1 of u even said it's no good!! wow. none of my other polls got that result! and lots of u haven't even started watching it yet. well...i'm not surprised with the results. majo is an ok drama so far. but since it's toma's first leading role, i really hope it will get better fast.

oh, the 3rd episode of majo got 8.5%. that's pretty good! it only dropped 0.5. the 1st ep. got 9%, and the 2nd got 7.7, but that was cuz Golden Week was going on.

so~ episode 2.
i can't say that i like Majo more after the 2nd ep., but at least i don't like it less. and episode 3 looks a lot more exciting and at least takes us to a new location. i'm getting bored of seeing the dark/boring courthouse and discussion room all the time. haha.

so here are my notes (no spoilers). douzo!
thanks for reading, everyone. my next post will be the 300th POST!!
~_~ iterashai! (have a great/fun day!)


kate's -EPISODE 2- notes:


-OHH...every ep. is only 36 minutes long. i guess cuz of the shortage of time, so there's no 1 min. OPENING THEME. =[ oh well, that's ok. i like shorter episodes. they are doing a good job so far, of a lot of things happening in each episode, yet it doesn't feel too rushed along.

-damn it, they do live together. o_0 or she often sleeps over. either way...damn it!! =/

-whew, that was such a light, simple kiss. ^_^ i'm relieved, though i expected it wouldn't be anything of a big deal, or else toma fans woulda talked (or screencapped) about it more. even if it's his first kiss with a girl in a drama, i'm glad they kept it short and simple, and sweet. even if it's toma though...a kiss right after he's woken up is probably not a good idea. haha. (bad breath and all!)

[kawaii na!! i love these toma sleeping/just woke up scenes. *_* ]

-i like the part he fake-feeds her food. =P haha. also, the part she said she thinks they should not see each other while the case is going on. YESSS!! =D get away from toma, YOU!!!


-toma's got on tommy hilfilger underwear?? =P not dolce & gabanna anymore? i think this is the 1st time i've seen his underwear kinda showing in a drama! and i really like toma's cool long,plaid jacket in this ep. ^_^

-manami often has this unusual...blank/uncomfortable(pained) expression when she's not smiling/acting cute!! it's a strange look, right??

-the "k" on the envelope. ehhh?? even though it represents the evil guy, i think it's kinda cool. cuz well, my name starts with a k. haha.

-there's not much interesting background music so far? =/ except the "exciting" or "mysterious" themes, which are ok. and the themesongs' lyrics, now that i pay attention, is not that great. =/ quite generic/no real meaning to it...i rate it my 2nd to least liked toma drama themesong. of course, the one i least like is h&c's Canvas! but at least Canvas's melody was pretty nice...

-actually, in the usa, the jurors only discuss the case at the END of the trial in a very small room (at least that's how it was in my case), not each day after court hearings, and definitely never with the judge. and the 2 alternates don't get to take part in that. just so u know...that's another difference between the 2 jury systems.

-i never watched the movie toma mentioned, so i looked it up:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Reservoir_Dogs Mr. orange is actually an undercover cop in that group of robbers! so it's kinda cool that toma gets to be Orange. =)

-ppl stalking them/taking photos. ppl being blackmailed. daughter kidnapped. very MAOU-ish right?? i keep getting the feeling of "wait, haven't i seen this before?" while watching. lol. i can't be the only one that feels this way! there are a lot of similar plot points!! the dreaded envelopes from the bad guy, the evil lawyer, they're all in danger, toma's trying to protect them/figure out what's going on, etc. etc.

toma: TV Guy! (it's a pun, instead of TV Guide....get it?)

just wanna say real quick,
go get these scans now be4 it's locked (in 2 days)!!
http://kawaii-girl17.livejournal.com/30029.html

thanks to kawaii-girl17!!

i love the pic on the cover the most!
toma in pink & looking so cute.
and i dunno what he's holding, but it looks cool. haha~

the last bunch of screencaptures f/Voice

konbanwa!

this is the last batch of screencaps f/Voice. whew! i'm done.
they're from episodes 8-11. even more screencaps to remember them by!! ah, i miss~ them.

you can find them all HERE. douzo!



nanka~ i really love this moment
when ryosuke turns around in the hospital hallway. so i made this.


and~ i was thinking how neat it is that ryosuke eventually starts on a new path at the end of Voice, and in real life, at the same time...toma, in a way, was too!! i mean...with his first leading role in a drama and now his first time in a movie, being the lead.

anyway~ i think that's really cool. :D

also! WELCOME, NEW MEMBERS
TO THE TOMA FAN MAP!! *__*

fall_out_girl967 [USA],
gaby_sky27 [Mexico],
quintero.christina [USA], and
amendez33 [USA]

eto...that's all for today. really.
sumimasen! i'll write more next time.

ja.

new purple (majo theme) banners!!!

yatta!! i made them~ new banners!
to celebrate toma's movie news! to have a majo theme here!
(and cuz i was getting tired of the old ones)

didn't take very long to find these pics too. whew~
it's a "majo saiban purple, but still spring" theme ne.

by the way, neesan loves the Schlaflied music from Maou's soundtrack and she was wondering what the lyrics mean. i am curious too! searched for them, but no luck. i only know that it the title means "sleep song" or "lullaby" in german. hmm... u can listen to it here.

if any1 knows more, please tell me!! arigatou ne~~

p.s. the color purple represents royalty, good judgement, spirituality, etc. and it's the color of my birthstone! more about the color:
http://www.squidoo.com/allaboutpurple
http://wiki.answers.com/Q/What_does_the_color_purple_represent

GET READY 4 THE HIGHEST-GROSSING JAPANESE MOVIE OF ALL TIME!! (no pressure, toma :P) This is TOMA'S MOVIE REPORT #2!

[the book. credit: www.sasugabooks.com]

YOU KNOW WHAT!
when i saw the title, i thought it'd be futuristic fight-with-robots movie, cuz of the "no longer human" thing. like "our enemies are no longer human". kinda like I, Robot. hahaha! that would be such a cool action movie 4 toma, right??? nah, but there's already too many of those kinda movies, i.e. Transformers or Terminator. actually, the book's plot kinda reminds me of Death of a Salesman. why are most classics tragedies?? *sigh*

(been listening to arashi's Hero a lot. remember that really cool MV a fan made for him, with video clips f/his childhood till around @deep?? they used this song. i think it's really that strong, proud feeling toma fans must feel right now...the feeling u get when u watch that MV, only A LOT MORE SO, OF COURSE!)

YES! toma talked about this movie at tomagoto, here. ^_^
reading the message made me smile ne~~ yappari he is so excited about it!! so much that it makes him shiver! ah, toma, we're all so super excited about this too!!! omedetou, toma-kun! ♥ hounto youkatta!!!! sooo proud of you! i'll definitely watch it. *_*

some movie news:
Popular young actor Toma Ikuta (24) will star in a new movie directed by Genjiro Arato, the producer responsible for the award-winning "Zigeunerweisen" in 1980. The film is "Ningen Shikkaku," based on the Osamu Dazai novel of the same name. Also known in English as "No Longer Human," the book is generally considered to be Dazai's greatest masterpiece.

Ikuta has recently had major roles in several television series, but this role will actually be his first time appearing in a movie. Published in 1948, the semi-autobiographical "Ningen Shikkaku" was Dazai's last completed work before he successfully committed suicide. Despite selling millions of copies, the story has never been adapted to screen. However, this year is the 100th anniversary of Dazai's birth, prompting the decision to create a movie.

Filming starts in July, with a release projected for spring 2010.

[credit: http://www.tokyograph.com/news/id-4789,
thanks 2 meoinkie2 4 re-posting at AF!]

BUT, of course, this means toma won't get any time to rest after he's done with Majo Saiban! in fact, if i'm guessing correctly, majo's filming won't be finished till at least mid-july, and there might be a time where toma will have to film for both at once?? wait. that won't work out, cuz then he has 2 keep his hair like that for majo, and i'm sure his hair has 2 be different for the movie! ...ANYWAY, toma will be working non-stop from july till whenever filming for the movie is done. i dunno about japanese movies, but in the US, it usually takes around 3-6 months to film a movie. if it's the same for japan, he might only be done filming for the movie in october (i'm hoping!! cuz then he'll get some time off to celebrate his birthday) or january 2010!!!

still...this is a dream come true for toma & his fans. ^__^
i knew 2009 would be a big year for toma, but it's all happening so fast!! but i can still think of some other things that i hope toma can do next year or soon!! 1) somehow move up from his Johnny's Jr. status (but without debuting as a singer/group, not sure if this is possible!). 2) be in some commercials for some really popular companies/products (and they'll give him free stuff too! yey.). 3) be able to go on vacation overseas with his family. 4) be in a drama with yamashita (and/or his other JE friends)!! ~_~

[the announcement. credit: mido_midori]

---------here's some more translated news about the movie & toma's comments about it (thanks to mido_midori!!): http://community.livejournal.com/ikuta_toma/395079.html

wahhh. read the comments!! every1 in the fandom so HAPPY AND EXCITED!!!!! ^_^
really unbelievable ne...now that i know more about it, i really see that this is a HUGE DEAL, IT'S REALLY SUCH A BIG HONOR FOR TOMA TO BE PICKED TO PLAY THIS ROLE! it's a lot of pressure. but i'm sure toma can handle it. =) THIS IS SO COOL, THIS IS EPIC!! I'M SURE HE'LL BE BRILLIANT (as always) and MORE PPL WILL DISCOVER HOW INCREDIBLY TALENTED AND CUTE HE IS! ♥

I'M REALLY SO SO SUPER SUPER PROUD AND HAPPY 4 TOMA-KUN!!!!!!!! ~_~ things are really going his way, he's really finally appreciated & respected and he is really becoming a big star!! ^o^ he might even get some attention internationally if this movie is really successful/wins some awards??!

AND ALL JAPAN TOMA FANS MUST MUST MUST GO SEE THE MOVIE!!! i wish i could see toma on the big screen (although it'd be w/no eng. subtitles and i wouldn't understand what's going on), but i'll just have to wait and see it on my computer, probably. (AND HIS HAIRSTYLE HAD BETTER LOOK AWESOME THIS TIME!! haha. after this dreadful perm.)

toma's movie!! IT MUST BE A BOX-OFFICE HIT
AND HAVE RECORD-BREAKING TICKET SALES!!!!
(lol, i'm already thinking about things like this)

(i was thinking "i'll definitely buy the dvd!" but then i checked at yesasia, and most japanese movies (even the really popular ones) ARE NOT released in DVD-ALL or don't have a USA vers., only region 2. even when they are, they might not have eng. subtitles and they're EXPENSIVE!! $40-50 for a dvd??! good grief!! so i'll probably just have to wait till it's available online, with subs. in other words it'll take forever, and i'll have to be careful not to avoid spoilers that entire period of time!! aiya.... maybe i'll still buy the HK version vcd later just cuz i want to have some kinda official version of it. ehhh. why do they gotta make it so hard for overseas fans to watch japanese movies?!!)


----------- ABOUT THE DARK PLOT, etc. THOUGH....
here are some fans' comments that i wanna talk about.

orangekiss_es:
"So, we can probably say this: Dazai equals Ōba equals Ikuta."

"a man that becomes more and more weak to women and alcohol."

EHHHH??!!

[kate: "EH!!!" indeed!!! wahhh. then if dazai = ikuta and dazai = greatness, then ikuta = greatness!! haha. of course, us fans already know toma is just so AMAZING, but it makes me excited and happy that even movie directors and all~ are now recognizing toma's talent and brilliance!! they really believe he can pull off this role. (i do too!) wow. the pressure's on!! toma's got a big burden to carry this time. but he'll get through this without too much criticism, i think/hope!]
-----------

mido_midori
2009-05-13 03:27pm:
I think they ment he's kinda the boy next door (I wish I had such a guy in my neighboughood)

I also think he's very good with commedy and such, but I imagine he's willing to challenge himself with different roles.
He doesn't want to be Nakatsu forever.

I'm quite scared about the "alcohol and women" thing going on ç__ç but he's still in JE, it should not be too much.
If I think that we're going to wait a year to know that I feel like I could die.

[kate: me too, i LOVE the nakatsu-like, happy-go-lucky toma characters. but i think toma can really adapt to any role, really! especially cuz of his background in stage plays...i think he likes having some serious roles once in a while to challenge himself. and it'd be boring if he plays the same kinda roles over and over. AND anyone who's seen toma in Maou or Honey and Clover, or some of his past plays, or even as recently as VOICE-- knows that toma is just as awesome at playing the serious/troubled/sad characters as the happy characters!! THOUGH I AM REALLY HOPING THEY'LL LIGHTEN UP THE PLOT/CHANGE THE STORY QUITE A BIT (OR AT LEAST LEAVE OUT SOME PARTS) A LOT FOR THIS MOVIE, CUZ, well, u know, they wanna surprise the audience a little and make it not totally soul-sucking-ly depressing/creepy/sad, right??

it's like with johnny depp, he's so good-looking and talented, yet he has a wide variety of roles, from weird/creepy guy to the fun/cool guy. he doesn't take the easy, good guy roles a lot. =P BUT, I'M A LITTLE WORRIED, CUZ SIMILAR TO JOHNNY, I THINK TOMA REALLY GETS INTO HIS ROLES. he really "becomes" his character in a way, and really feels what his characters feel....and this character HAS SERIOUS PROBLEMS AND IS A REALLY DISTURBED INDIVIDUAL. so....yeah...i'm worried about that! =(

me too!!! very scared!! =0
of the whole women and alcohol + degradation part...please please keep things PG13 and also don't make toma do any bed scenes. even if toma's ok with doing it (i don't think he would though??), i'll FREAK. OUT. if i see him doing it!!! FREAK OUT, MAN!!! o_o In fact, i don't ever wanna see any of my idols (especially toma-kun) do scenes like that. i just don't wanna see them like that. call me old-fashioned, but if they did do it, i'll avoid watching by all means possible. haih...it's just that scenes like that must be awkward to film, and so i always feel sorry 4 them and i end up feeling too embarassed to watch it...


-------------------------- THE BOOK REPORT:

http://www.amazon.com/No-Longer-Human-Osamu-Dazai/dp/0811204812

there are lots of reviews for the book here. check it out! i learned more about the book...for instance, it was written during the post-war era, so it was partly why the depression of the character is more understood, accepted then...i guess. but right now. aren't we depressed enough with all the problems the world has right now?? do they really think this kinda movie can do well in modern (and scary) times like this? mm....that's just what i think.

so he was abused by/abuses women?? mm...i am gonna have a problem with this part and also the wanting to suicide. i especially have strong feelings about characters that want to suicide... =/ so it's like he's a sane person in an insane world?? i'll try my best to like or at least accept him, though he's an antihero and will probably be quite a horrible person. haha. but IT'S TOMA!! he's so adorable, i have a hard time picturing him in this role! ...it's actually dark but can still be funny? in a satiric/witty way? or maybe so sad that it's funny?? i'm not sure what to expect...but it's good to know it can kinda be funny, at least.

ano... don't believe the hype. though it's the 2nd best selling novel, but whether it's good or not depends on the reader. but f/most of the reviews here at least, seems like most ppl agree that the book was great. so that's good.

USOOOO!!! (no way!!! / get out!!!) toma's gonnna be in a movie!!!!

(9 followers now!! yey!
arigatou gozaimashta! ~_~)


TOMA'S STARRING IN A MOVIE!!
TOMA'S STARRING IN A MOVIE!!!
TOMA'S STARRING IN A MOVIEEEE!!!!!

GAH!!
THIS NEWS SO TOTALLY MADE MY DAY!!!!!!!!!!!! ♡♥ ★ ☀ ♪
hounto yokatta!! ^o^ toma-kun....ahhh~ ♥
so very happy for him ne~ ♥

thanks a ton to citzera who broke the news here today:
http://community.livejournal.com/ikuta_toma/394044.html
and many thanks to hpswf1 for the additional info about the novel.

his first ever movie!!!!
"Toma will star in the movie "Ningen Shikkaku" due to be released next spring."

BUT...
BUT.....
BUT.........!!!

the movie's plot (if they follow the book's plot closely) sounds
SUPER DEPRESSING/SAD. aiyaaaaaa. just reading the summary...i thought "why would any1 wanna read such a depressing book??" but it IS japan's #2 selling book ever, so that's
really cool that toma can star in a movie based on this book!

geez...i was so happy, then read the plot summary....*yikes*
here's the wiki page 4 the book: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/No_Longer_Human
why couldn't toma's first movie be a happy one...like a romance or funny or action movie...but i suppose it's good that toma can play a serious role for his first movie, show everyone he's not only good at playing the happy, sunshine boy roles.

i just assumed toma's gonna be the lead character described in the book's plot, but then again, i guess he could also be one of the supporting characters? cuz "starring" doesn't necessarily mean "leading role", right? eh... BUT IT'S REALLY ABOUT TIME TOMA GETS TO BE THE MAIN CHARACTER IN A MOVIE!!!

what's up with all these actors with yellow teeth???

[credit: NBC. these are screencaps from a scene from Seinfeld where kramer looks terrible and his teeth are all brown, cuz he turned his house into a smoking lounge for a few days. lol. u can watch the video clip of the scene and also the blooper clip where jerry keeps cracking up when looking at kramer at the links below!! ^_^
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ofsljUAUdlc
[seinfeld scene kramer smoke]
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MCFvZLjRPNg
[Seinfeld Blooper]

sorry, this post is only toma-related, but i felt it needed to be posted cuz it's the answer to a question that's been on my mind for a long time.

when i watched hana kimi in 2007, one of the first things i noticed that shocked me was how yellow some of the actors' teeth are!! don't get me wrong, my teeth are not perfectly white, but still...i think celebrities should always have white teeth or at least not so noticeably yellow teeth. i mean, nakatsu's, mizuki's, oscar's, and some other ppl.... EH??? nande?? @__@

i don't mind crooked teeth (toma's is kinda crooked, of course), BUT yellow teeth!! it just looks so....i dunno....dirty/unclean. BUT REALLY~ HANDS DOWN, THE PERSON WITH THE MOST YELLOW TEETH I'VE EVER SEEN IN A DORAMA MUST BE EITA IN VOICE!!! it was just so distracting...and i'd cringe when he smiled sometimes. lol. actually, toma's teeth is not always so bad, sometimes it gets better, like right now, i think it's not bad. i dunno, maybe he did something to it after VOICE finished up, cuz his teeth was still not looking so great in VOICE.

i've heard from other fans that toma smokes, so i guess that's partly why his teeth are like that. but then, i've noticed, lots of other japanese stars have yellow teeth. they can't ALL be smokers. so i did some research. yappari~ there are many different reasons that cause a lot of japanese ppl to have yellow/crooked teeth. seems like the main reasons must be cuz so much ppl smoke and drink tea a lot there, and not enough flouride in their water and toothpaste.

AH HA! now i understand!!
but that explains the why so many ppl have yellow teeth, but it doesn't explain WHY THEY DON'T TRY TO WHITEN/BLEACH IT?? i guess it's a cultural thing, again, that i wouldn't understand?? they don't care? (they should!!) or it's too expensive?? guess they can't easily buy Crest whitestrips there, since they don't even have toothpaste w/flouride f/the usa except in specialty shops.

they smoke like crazy in japan!! 0__o (no wonder toma also smokes!) in fact, check out jamie's post about how annoying/unhealthy it is that ppl smoke everywhere in tokyo: http://blog.jamieism.com/archives/46

i found a lot of ppl talking about the reasons 4 their bad teeth here:
-http://www.jref.com/forum/showthread.php?t=39459
-http://forum.gaijinpot.com/showthread.php?t=1440
-http://nz.answers.yahoo.com/question/index?qid=20060816035727AAhhtRf


[the comments below come from these 2 links:
http://www.jref.com/forum/showthread.php?t=39459
http://forum.gaijinpot.com/showthread.php?t=1440]

"I always filter my tap water before drinking it...tastes and smells much better.

As for the teeth problem, I think it probally due to the diet of soft foods such a rice and fish.
Africans have great teeth due to their diet of meat and hard vegetables."
----------

I reckon the following are the cause of bad teeth in Japan:
Heavy tea and coffee drinking stains teeth, mine included.
A higher proportion of heavy smokers likewise, but you don't see many yellow stained fingers unlike heavy smokers in the UK.
Poor childhood dental care, and for adults- the infrequency of visits to the dentist. I go every six months for cleaning/polishing, but no Japanese i know well (wife included) have been in years.

--------------

- DENTAL CARE
I am surprised as most people here seeing so many dental practices around but people have "crappy teeth". The fact of the matter is, its not that Japanese people like crappy looking teeth, its that its VERY EXPENSIVE (ESPECIALLY
for corrective surgery).

If you look at the dental care products, especially
Toothpaste, there are quite a number of products available
that "don't" have FLUORIDE. As most people know, Fluoride is very useful for protecting teeth not just cleaning it.

- WATER QUALITY
I agree with some of the posters who mention that Japan's water quality standard is one of the highest. Now this doesn't mean that it is same all over Japan since I know from experience that some parts of Japan have better water quality. As a general rule, more rural parts of Japan seem to have less "chemical" taste in their waters. I think there are pro and cons in all situations.

The important issue however, is that Japan don't have same level of FLUORIDE in the water. (maybe they don't actually "add" it at all). Fluoride strengthen teeth.

With all this, you have to add:
- Everyone are big Tea/Coffee drinkers
- Japanese people like junk food
- Japanese people like to drink (alcohol)
- Many popular foods are FERMENTED = acidic

When you consider all these factors, its no surprise
that people get crappy teeth.

The best way to protect yourself in Japan:

- Try to use filters (ESPECIALLY THOSE WITH FLUORIDE supplements)
- Chewing gum (not the candy types)
- Buy toothpaste with FLUORIDE
- Try to not eat fermented products too often.
(pickled stuff, concentrates, miso etc)
----------------------

Yellow teeth are caused by smoking, tea and coffee drinking and to a certain extent genetics.
----------------------

I think Japanese people drink more tea than people do in most English-speaking countries. Also about 50% of men smoke here- again a higher rate than in the main English-speaking countries. All this contributes to the state of people's teeth.