Saturday, June 27, 2009

100 days, 23 hrs, 58 minutes left! *_*


so the countdown begins!!

100 days left till toma-chan's birthday neeee.


i'm glad i remembered to post up the countdown clock starting f/when there's 100 days left. (last yr i was not as early, it was 80something days left) and the text is purple right now for majosai, but i might change the color later...and again, the countdown clock will have to be 7 hrs early or else it'd be 7 hrs late. cuz it can only countdown to 12am that day instead of 7am PST (12am JST).

i'll post up the TL! bday project i came up with soon... ^_^

i'm back~
and here's a very long post about the bday project(s)!!
i'm a little nervous/confused about sending in fanart, even after
enshinge's translation, but i'll still give it my best shot!!

so~ even though it's still over 3 months away, i wanted to start thinking of something to do for toma's bday. and 100 days is a good number and a long time, during which A LOT of fans will be able to participate if they want to.

of course, last year's first TL! bday project is still at the DearToma blog. =) i think i won't ever delete that post, cuz dunno if toma's seen it, and more importantly, i (and other fans) put a lot of time/effort/and thought into making it/writing messages to toma!

ano...i've started brainstorming about this since a couple months ago!! lol. but only recently did i come with what i think is a really good idea. :) i've thought it over a lot, and this is what i came up with. i hope many of you can participate, but if not, that's alright too. last year it was like that. but this year i think quality over quantity is maybe a better way to go. though of course, the more the merrier!! toniaku (in any case), i think this year's bday project will be better than last year!! toniaku, please take part in it!! yoroshiku~

this year, i came up with several ideas, so u can pick 1 or more to do. if not enough ppl participate in #2, i might have to do it myself...hmm... toniaku~ here they are (in the order easiest to most difficult/time-consuming to do):

1. THE BIRTHDAY CARD FULL OF LOVE!
(deadline to participate: 9/13/2009)

i will buy 2 nice bday cards and send 1 each to toma's winkup and JE fanmail addresses. i will buy some nice tissue paper or some kinda pretty stationary/decorative paper. and i'll cut small hearts out of it. and i'll write on the card "from Kate and your fans...". i'll write "kate" on 1 paper heart. and whoever wants to be included, u can post a comment here, and i'll write your name on 1 heart. =) if a lot of ppl participate, the envelope can be full of hearts for toma-kun neeee!! IT'S A WAY FOR US TO SEND TOMA SOME LOVE, A PIECE OF OUR HEARTS... i'll choose a thin paper if possible, so even if there's a lot of hearts, the envelope won't get too bulky/heavy.

actually, your name, age, and country would be ok, i think...age and country will be optional. maybe i'll write yr name on 1 side, and yr age and country in the back. i can only write in english, so toma might not understand what country, but at least he'll know how old u are.

(edit: u can also write a short message to toma in english, i'll write it on 1 side of the heart. and i didn't think about what to do if ppl have the same names...eh, if this happens again, u can just add the first letter of yr last name. like, if there's another kate, i can write it like: Kate M. or something...)


[credit: http://www.flickr.com/photos/just4pics/2449756110/]

2. THE FANTASY TRIP AROUND THE WORLD!
(deadline to participate: 12am on Oct.6 (japan time))

i've read that toma wanted to go on a trip with his family since last year, but he was too busy, and of course this year there's also no time. so i thought it'd be cool if we could give him like...a fantasy vacation. haha. it's a silly idea, but i really wanted to do something ONLINE for him, so...

i thought that we could find a bunch of really pretty pics from countries all over the world (especially the United Kingdom, cuz toma always says he wants to go to the UK and europe). send me the flickr pic link (preferably a pic with the name of the location so he will know where it is) and i'll favorite it, and then link to the slideshow, so toma can see it. umm...each person can send me 1-3 links. this is to make sure u choose carefully and we only want the BEST OF THE BEST pics for toma. =D i've already made an account for it:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/happybirthdaytoma2009.

if anyone actually wants to upload your own photos of beautiful or cool or interesting places u want toma to see, that's fine too. just create a flickr account and upload it, give me the link, i will favorite it. the good thing about this is u can also write a message to toma if u want underneath it, saying the location's name and happy birthday toma, or whatever u want...

3. THE SUDDEN FLOOD OF TOMA FAN ART!!
this was actually my idea of what the tomalicious forum could do. but then i figure for this idea, it's best if A LOT of ppl participate, so i'll talk about it here too. (and dunno if any1 there is interested in doing this, anyway.) thanks to paige, who thought of flooding winkup with toma fanart, instead of my original idea, which was have a contest at the forum and choose the best 10, and send those in and hope that it's printed in the magazine's bday fan art section.

u see, winkup and potato magazines always have a page full of fan art sent to them, and also a page for bday fan art. i've only got 2 winkup's and 2 potato's, but i've only seen 1 toma drawing. i'm guessing that they don't often get a lot of toma fan art? so wouldn't it be cool if we all sent winkup toma fan art from now until october?? 1st of all, cuz if we wanna send bday fan art, we have to send it at least 2 months in advance anyway (at least this is potato's policy), and 2nd of all, cuz there would be more chances of them printing some toma fan art if we do this. especially if they suddenly see so many ppl sending them in, it would really get their attention!! maybe they'll even mention how they're getting so much toma fan art suddenly!! that would be awesome!!! *__*

it doesn't matter if u live in japan or overseas, u can still try sending fan art (Potato & Winkup don't list any specific location restrictions, but then again, maybe they assume only ppl in japan are sending anyway...)! above is an example of the kinda fan art u can send in. thanks to paige for this! and HERE'S what winkup's bday fan art looks like. they don't say anything in the POTATO instructions, but seems like most of the printed artwork are drawn by hand and not made using the computer...

http://enshinge.livejournal.com/263159.html
many thanks to enshinge for the POTATO and WINKUP instructions HERE!! check it out...though it might be kinda tough if u can't write in japanese, but u can always screencap and print out those words...maybe i'll post up the scan of the addresses in japanese too...and the corner title, u can write in yourself, "Happy Birthday". =) but i'm kinda confused by winkup's instructions. so don't put it in an envelope, it has to be on a postcard? or just postcard size. eh...probably just postcard size, and IN and envelope, right?

it would be best if you could send a different toma drawing to BOTH winkup AND potato, to double the chances of it being printed. REMEMBER TO WRITE TOMA'S NAME IN JAPANESE OR ENGLISH NEXT TO YOUR DRAWING! (if u can write in japanese, u can write him a very short message, next to yr drawing, too!!) it can be a happy bday toma drawing or a regular toma drawing. actually, it would be best to send 1 regular and 1 bday drawing, probably...remember, u can't send the same drawing to 2 different magazines. but if u can only send fan art to one place, send it to WINKUP!! toma has a monthly journal page in winkup after all, there's more chances that they'll print toma fan art there, whether it's bday or regular drawings. =)

this is the toughest of the 3 things u can do for toma's birthday, and not everyone is good at drawing, so i understand if not much ppl wanna try this. BUT!! IT IS ONE OF THE ONLY WAYS THAT U CAN GIVE TOMA SOMETHING, ESPECIALLY FOR HIS BIRTHDAY!! i think toma probably often looks thru the winkup or potato magazines in his spare time, and he'll probably check out the fan art section to see if there's any toma fan art, right??


DAKKARA~ IF YOU ARE A KINDA GOOD, GOOD, OR VERY GOOD ARTIST, THEN PLEASE PLEASE, DO TRY TO SEND IN FAN ART!! just think of it...if they do print your fan art...that would be SO COOL, RIGHT?? ~_~
the drawing u drew for toma will be in a magazine, and your name and country will be printed right next to it. TOMA AND ALL TOMA FANS AND EVERYONE WHO BUYS THAT ISSUE OF WINKUP, ALL OVER THE WORLD, WILL BE ABLE TO SEE YOUR DRAWING!!!!! TOMA WOULD FOR SURE BE SO HAPPY TO SEE THE DRAWING, ESPECIALLY IF IT'S A BDAY TOMA DRAWING. ^_^

**REMEMBER TO SEND BDAY FAN ART ASAP, SINCE WE'RE SUPPOSED TO SEND THEM IN 1-2 MONTHS BEFORE HIS BIRTHDAY!! SO EARLY AUGUST IS THE DEADLINE. (and remember if u're far f/japan, it might take a week or more for your envelope to get there...at least that's how long it takes from the usa to japan, usually.) SO PPL IN THE USA OR OTHER PLACES FAR FROM JAPAN, PLEASE SEND IT AT THE END OF JULY, JUST IN CASE...but if you're just sending REGULAR FAN ART, probably fine to send it in
end of august/start of sept., too...**

actually, if everyone that is gonna send fanart could scan it/take a picture of it first, before u send it...then upload the drawing somewhere. then i could save all of them and make them into our own page of toma fan art, to share with everyone here. that way, even if your fan art is not printed, i'll post it up somewhere and link to it, so toma and toma fans will still be able to see it!! :D of course, this is optional, u don't have to show it to us if u don't want to.

anyone who wants to do one of these things for toma's bday, u can participate by adding a comment below this post. u can add just your name (and age, country, if u want) if u're doing #1. u can give me 1-3 flickr links if u choose #2. if u choose #3, just tell me how many drawings and what kind (bday/regular) and what magazine u're sending them to. of course, u can do all 3 if u want. yappari, i will definitely take part in all 3, and i'll also scan and post up any fan art i am planning to send in, to share with everyone here.^^

umm...there will be a deadline to participate for #1 and #3, probably around early august should be the deadline...and for #3, the deadline should be 12am on toma's birthday, october 7 (in Japan time).

arigatou!!
toniaku~ i'm looking forward to all your comments. :D
i'll leave it to you!

sore ja, that's all for now. i will update this page later with the scans of the 2 addresses...if u have any questions/comments/suggestions, please also post them in a comment below this post. thanks.

itekimas~

kate


[wouldn't it be cool if toma could see your artwork??]

[so~ let's all pretend we're hagu-chan and draw, draw, draw!! or paint, paint, paint!!]


............................7.14.2009 update:

0) preview of the bday card (ORANGE ENVELOPE!! yappari, cuz toma is orange-san in majosai) and tissue paper 4 the paper hearts that i bought recently. ~_~ i will also buy another bday card, 1 of those really pretty ones at mitsuwa...

i really really love what it says on this bday card. it really describes him so perfectly neeeeee.♥ though i know toma won't understand what it says, but the card is still pretty, right?? (and i'll also write HAPPY BIRTHDAY in both eng. and japanese on the card~) i like the card cuz of the subtle, blue-ish watercolor background and the butterflies on it. TFS's logo has a butterfly on it, so i kinda associate toma w/butterflies now. haha. also, cuz toma and butterflies...both are so beautiful, delicate!!

anyway, here's what the card says:
In a world that does its best to make us a little fuzzy around the edges, some ppl still manage to have bold outlines. they know who they r, what they're about, what they alone can give. and just like them, the gifts they share r bold, bright, beautiful.

(inside the card): u're some1 who doesn't compromise in being the person only u could be, some1 who doesnt hold back on sharing the gifts only u can give. and especially today, i, for one, just want to say thank you, thank you, thank you...
have a wonderful birthday.

(on the back of the card): i'm thankful for the gift of you.


1) ** if u have an artistic friend, try asking them to draw toma for u. lol. only if they are also toma's fan, though. =P **

2) winkup drawings have to be on postcards [read the comments below enshinge's post for more info.]!! this is kinda hard cuz they're not sold everywhere...

if u live in the usa, i searched online, they say u can buy them at JoAnn fabrics or Staples.

or better yet, make one! u can buy a blank birthday card and cut it in half and glue/tape a piece of paper to one side of the half. =) but wherever u live, just in case, check your mail service's website for official, acceptable postcard sizes. for example, in the usa:

http://www.usps.com/send/preparemailandpackages/measuringtips.htm


Postcard:
• Maximum size is 6” long X 4 1/4” high
• Minimum size is 5” long X 3 1/2” high

3) though toma's hair is permed now, by the time it's october, his hair will probably be back to how it was when filming voice, straight and cool. =) so keep in mind, if u draw toma, better to draw him with straight, regular hair. unless u really wanna draw him w/permed hair...it's up to you.

4) i think it's better/faster to write the address of winkup/potato in japanese when u send it. but since a lot of us can't write it, i've uploaded the scans of each magazine's addresses/corners. with enshinge's translation, u will be able to know which corner title to add to the address. u can print it out or try to copy it by hand...
here are the links to the scans:

http://www.fileden.com/files/2006/9/8/209169/POTATO%20info%20img260.jpg
http://www.fileden.com/files/2006/9/8/209169/winkup1%28address%29.jpg

5) remember to draw toma clearly/big, cuz if it's published, the size will be reduced quite a lot.


6) 7.19.2009 update: edited the section about WHEN u should send in fan art above. basically, the sooner the better!! ^_^ but it's best to send bday fan art by the end of july/start of august!! regular fan art, maybe by the end of august/start of sept. is still ok, so that it can be published in the Nov. 2009 issue (which will be released around the start of october).


.........................late night of 8/6/2009 updates:


1) hi there! sorry, i said i'd upload more pics of my fan art drawing process "soon", but i guess i meant "next week"! lol. well, THEY'RE UP!! most of it is in order...wow. it's cool to see the result, all the stages of the drawings, all in one place...please take a look!! u can use the slideshow function and see how the drawings change as i draw more and more of it...

here they are:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/happybirthdaytoma2009/sets/72157621844359047/


and if u haven't seen them yet, i posted pics and talked about drawing the bday fan art here:
http://ikutatomalove.blogspot.com/2009/07/my-toma-fan-art-part-i-2-birthday.html



2) oh, i just thought of this yesterday. WOULDN'T IT BE COOL IF WE ALL WEAR/USE SOMETHING PINK ON TOMA'S BDAY?? CUZ FOR VARIOUS REASONS, THE COLOR PINK MAKES ME THINK OF TOMA. (even though he was orange-san in majosai. well, orange makes me think of him too, but i like pink better!) on toma's birthday, if u can, please wear something pink or use something pink (like a pink cup, post-it, pen, etc). but if you don't have anything pink, then orange, white (toma's favorite color), or red (Maou team's color!) is ok, too. haha. this must be the EASIEST POSSIBLE WAY TO CELEBRATE TOMA'S BIRTHDAY, RIGHT?? i hope you can take part in this. it would be cool to think of how on this one day, toma's birthday, toma fans all over the world are united in this way, wearing the same colors, showing some toma love in this way!! ^-^

3) pics of the bday cards i will use. i love the cool shiny white envelope that goes with the purple/pink card i bought from mitsuwa. ^_^ and i like how the writing of the first card is blue and shiny in the light~!





4) a sketch i sketched before i started to really draw. it only took 1 hr. yappari, it barely looks like toma. haha. all the time, i only used my pink japanese mechanical pencil and my old eraser stick to draw draw draw (and re-draw, re-draw, re-draw!) and erase erase erase. a lot, a lot of erasing going on then...


scans of my drawings, with my notes/scribbles/testing or choosing the colors stuff on the side.
(*CLICK ON THEM TO SEE THEM FULL SIZE.* u can only see it full size here, not at flickr.)




and the back of drawing #1 and drawing #2, back of the postcard and envelope, that i sent off last week.
i used the japanese addresses to make sure it'd get there ASAP. it ended up looking a little, just kinda blurry cuz i got them from the scans from the magazines, but it still should be clear enough!! but next time, i'll edit it more so it'll look clearer. i don't want to include BOTH the japanese and english version of the address, cuz somehow, i think that might just confuse them and it will take longer to deliver...


5) addresses of POTATO and WINK UP in japanese and what u need to write in, the corner titles:


9/17 updates:

-PROJECT #3 D O NE!!! (since sept.8)
go HERE for pics and info. (MORE TO COME DURING MID-OCTOBER!!)

-PROJECT #1 IS D O N E!!! ^o^
go HERE to see pics of the hearts and cards and me talking about them...

-i edited the 2 main addresses where u can send toma fanmail, a little bit. IF U WANT TO SEND TOMA CARDS OR LETTERS (NO GIFTS OR BULKY ENVELOPES ALLOWED!! AND BE EXTRA CAREFUL IF U DON'T LIVE IN JAPAN. I HEARD Johnny's OFTEN DON'T ACCEPT A LOT OF OVERSEAS FANMAIL/don't give their artists everything sent to them. =[ i think wink up might be more lenient and there's more chance of it getting to toma.), use these addresses. here they are:

JOHNNY'S:

〒150-8550 
東京都渋谷区渋谷1-10-10 
ミヤマスタワーB1F
ジャニーズファミリークラブ
生田斗真

JAPAN

---------------
WINK UP:

Toma Ikuta
Wani Books Inc., Wink Up Henshuubu
[Toma no Ikita Kotoba]
Ebisu Daikoku Biru
4-4-9 Ebisu, Shibuya-ku
Tokyo 150-8482

JAPAN

[for more info, and the 3rd address, go to Dear Toma. i'ved linked to a post where i talk about sending fanmail and listed the addresses. it's at the bottom of the 1st post at Dear Toma!]


-another way to celebrate his birthday!
^o^ TOMA'S BIRTHDAY METEOR SHOWER!!!

go HERE for info on how to see the annual meteor shower on oct. 7, 8, 9!!


.......................[10/5 updates]:

TOMA'S BDAY IS REALLY REALLY CLOSE!!!
toma mentioned his bday is coming in his recent tomagoto post!!
no, no, that would mean i'm 72?! lol.

-some1 said...was it cezie? (pls correct me if i'm wrong!) that she will light a candle for toma on his bday. ii ne!! i think we should all light one candle on toma's bday and maybe make a wish for him be4 blowing it out. ~_~ ALSO, OF COURSE, IF U WANT, EAT A YUMMY PIECE OF CAKE TO CELEBRATE TOMA'S BDAY!! i think i will. :P and u can also have some champagne (or whatever kinda drink u like). kampai!!

oh, here's a list to remind u of all the things u can do to celebrate toma's birthday. douzo!! (for the reasons/more info, scroll up, look at the previous updates to this post!)

1. what i said above: light a cande/make a wish 4 toma, and(or) have a piece of cake and a cool drink.

2. WEAR/USE SOMETHING PINK, red, white, or orange!

3. see if u can see any shootings stars on the nights of oct. 7, 8 the TOMA METEOR SHOWER (the draconids meteor shower).

4. (THIS GOES WITHOUT SAYING, BUT JUST IN CASE U FORGET):
TOMArathon!!! watch a lot of toma video clips/dramas. or just do anything toma-related....look at his pics, listen to his songs, his dramas' soundtracks, talk about/wish him happy bday toma at yr blog, spend some time at toma fansites/forums, etc. etc.!!!


------------PROJECT #2: TOMA'S FANTASY TRIP AROUND THE WORLD, DONE!! check out all 93 pics here:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/happybirthdaytoma2009/favorites/

-almost 100 pics!! from 31 diff countries!
93 pics total. @_@ (3 of those pics, i actually took myself!! but i had to use another account cuz u can't fav yr own pics. haha. but i still have them at this account too. u can see which ones by going to my photostream. it's the Heisler Park set.) EDIT: forgot to say that yuko was the only person who wanted to participate in project #2, so thanks again, yuko!! so, her 2 pics from poland were supposed to be near the start of the slideshow, but i forgot the order would be reversed, so now it's near the end. i'm sorry, yuko!

-backwards slideshow!!
damn, i forgot that the earliest favorited pics will not show up first, it's the other way around. thus, the order of the pics has been reversed. the UK was supposed to go first, cuz toma has said many times be4, the first place he'd like to travel to is the UK, since it's the birthplace of stage plays and a pretty place...BUT u can play the slideshow backwards (check the options above), so that's good...

-HOW I DECIDED WHICH COUNTRIES TO PICK...well, it's the 31 countries from which i get the most visitors to this blog!! ^_^ only the top 10 countries get several pics. the rest (any country with over 100 visits) get 1 pic (except for some countries, that i happened 2 find more than 1 nice pic). most pics are of tourist sites, but some are random pretty places. =) AND they are all favorited in the order of most to least visitors to my blog. EXCEPT, the UK goes first, cuz toma wants to go there. 2nd is okinawa, cuz toma said he wants to go there in a recent interview. though japan is 6th place on the list, only used okinawa pics and not any other japan pics, cuz obviously~ toma lives in japan, so i don't need to show him the different pretty places in japan.

-took kinda a long time to find so many pics, but it was also fun and eye-opening for me to "travel" thru so many countries for this bday project. *_* and i'm reminded anew that toma's got fans all over the world, and knowing that a lot of them have been, are still coming here, to Toma Love!, makes me VERY VERY HAPPY!!! ~___~ imagining that ppl f/so many different locations have come to this blog, picturing a laptop with my blog on the screen, and in the background, is some pretty location in a country far away, i think that's just really cool....*_*


.......................[10/14 update]:

the last 2 toma fan art!! pics and explanation/descriptions here. douzo!
http://ikutatomalove.blogspot.com/2009/10/kates-toma-fan-art-part-ii.html


THIS IS THE REAL LAST UPDATE,
UNLESS MY FAN ART SHOWS UP IN ANY OF THE MAGAZINES THIS MONTH OR LATER MONTHS??? (i doubt it, though...=T)

this has been kate~
arigatou gozaimashita~!



Friday, June 26, 2009

though he's not in the new calendar, here's some toma pics f/last year's calendar (photobook).


(toma: doumo!!♥)

sometimes, i would still remember to search online for any toma pics from the JE 2009-2010 calendar. i thought toma was in it (the photobook that comes with it), cuz they said so at yesasia. BUT RECENTLY, I FINALLY FOUNDSOURANGEL'S LJ AND DISCOVERED TOMA'S NOT IN THE PHOTOBOOK AT ALL!!! 0__0
aiya, stupid yesasia. luckily i didn't buy it, then!! no wonder, when i checked at yesasia after a while, they didn't mention toma was in it anymore. well, it's sold out by now anyway, so i guess it doesn't matter. i just hope not too many toma fans bought it for toma and ended up being disappointed. (though a lot of the je jr.s are so cute too. i like yuma nakayama~) even though toma's not in it, if u wanna, go ahead and take a look at what the calendar looks like at the link below. thanks to sourangel!
(can't buy it anymore, it's also out of print here.
http://www.cdjapan.co.jp/detailview.html?KEY=NEOTXJC9-7)

http://sourangel.livejournal.com/522904.html?view=1585304#t1585304
[sourangel: Here are some pictures from the Johnny's 2009-2010 school calendar. I apologize for the bad quality of the pics, but I had to take pictures of the book and calendar with my camera because it's impossible to scan (well, I'm not willing to rip apart the book to scan). Hopefully someone else will properly scan it later.]

all this made me remember that there were some small pics of toma in the photobook that no one seemed to have scanned and uploaded. but since my scanner often messes up when i try 2 scan small pics, so i just took some pictures with my camera. sorry for the not so good quality, but this is the best i could do! sometimes no matter what, i can't get it to focus correctly. blah! but i really tried~! i already posted some of the small pics up before, u can see them at the 2 links below. THIS TIME I TOOK PICS OF *ALL* OF THE REMAINING SMALL PICS OF TOMA FROM THE PHOTOBOOK. =) and there's nice BIG TOMA SCANs of the photobook at the last LJ link below!

http://ikutatomalove.blogspot.com/2008/11/toma-ism-63-toma-kun.html
http://ikutatomalove.blogspot.com/2008/08/my-johnnys-jr-school-calendar.html
http://community.livejournal.com/toma_gallery/8098.html#cutid1

these were taken back in 2008 when his hair was still so cool & perfect ne. sorry, it's kinda funny to see him in winter clothes since it's summer now, though...(2 of the pics are doubles...i couldn't decide which one looked better, so i just put both next 2 each other. and showing them in SMALL version 2 save space here. hope u don't mind la~ as usual, just click on them 2 see the full version. and 1 extra BONUS pic of kazama for u, too!! lol.)

here comes some toma cuteness~~ douzo!











toma's movie might be released overseas?! and more toma stuff....


doumo!

kate desu~

whew! i can post!! no internet connection problems today. =) but i still haven't been able 2 watch ep.7 of majo saiban yet, so i'll just do a double-post on various recent toma stuff and the toma pics f/the 2008-2009 je calender. but i'll really really try to watch ep.7 soon soon soon.

so, here's some cool stuff that i recommend
u check out at the toma LJ:


[gahhh!! this is just SUPER TOMA CUTENESS!!!♥★☀♪ an animation of a clip f/the vanilla kibun hana kimi promo f/2007 that i saw at janinamedina's LJ. IF SOME1 KNOWS WHERE TO WATCH THAT WHOLE SHOW, COULD U PLS TELL ME, CUZ I'VE ONLY WATCHED PART OF IT, AND I DON'T EVER REMEMBER SEEING THE PART IN THIS GIF AT ALL!!!! PRETTY PRETTY PLEASE!!!]

http://xdustbunnys.livejournal.com/41102.html
[about a toma sighting while filming, the movie could be released overseas *__*, and toma talks about his grandpa who likes dazai's novels, etc.]

OVERSEAS RELEASE!!! starryB60.gif maji des?? sugoi!! i wonder if it's possible that his movie is shown somewhere that i could go watch... actually being able to see him on a big screen at the theatre would be...SO awesome neeeeeee.♥ that would be a dream come true!! and an overseas release would mean more ppl in the world will see how wonderful toma is!!! i'm not really hoping this could be a step towards toma acting in hollywood movies, though. i don't think toma would wanna try that, cuz he'd probably be stuck in stupid, stereotypical roles. and also, toma can't really speak english. :P (not that there's anything wrong with that)

toma's grandpa~ that was a sweet mention of him! well his mom is still quite young (43), and his dad is not much older than her (45, xdustbunnys told me. thanks!), so i think his grandpa can't be that old and will be around for a long long time! ^_^

http://tailin-tess.livejournal.com/9073.html
a great VOICE mv! i wish more ppl made MVs for this drama, or at least for ryosuke!

http://enshinge.livejournal.com/263421.html#cutid1
[090618 recomen, guest: toma]
ENSHINGE'S DETAILED, LONG TRANSLATION OF WHAT THEY TALKED ABOUT!! YEY!! i gotta listen & read this soon...some1 posted up the link to dload recomen, but i forgot to save the link...well, it's somewhere at the toma LJ. please look for it ne~

new pretty/cool toma scans!! ^_^ kyaa!! love the toma in pink and happy & cute poses pics!!!!! of course, also the cool looking toma pics. when did his arms get so buff?? *_* ehhh...maybe he's been working out since the start of the yr, but we didn't know cuz his arms are always covered up in Voice. but i have noticed in some photoshoots/tv shows since months ago, when his sleeves were rolled up, his arms looked a little bigger/stronger. =P i hope he doesn't work out too much though, i think how he looks now is cool enough, too much muscles would make him look too bulky/tough!!
thanks to strawberry_gemm again 4 posting them ne~
http://community.livejournal.com/toma_gallery/11438.html#cutid1

(I WAS CATCHING UP ON POSTS I MISSED FROM THE END OF LAST YEAR, AND CAME ACROSS THIS POST!! VERY VERY WELL-WRITTEN SUMMARY/ANALYSIS OF THE HANA KIMI SPECIAL!! and in the last comments thread, she summarizes what happens to the main characters at the end of the manga!! A MUST-READ!!!! ^o^)

http://kipani-mariko.livejournal.com/70174.html
[kipani_mariko: Nakatsu's Thoughts: Drama SP.
I don't know if you happen to recall this thing I did over a year ago called "Nakatsu's Thoughts". I went over each episode in Hana Kimi when it aired and discussed the series through Nakatsu's perspective. I tried to give more insight into his manga character so you can see the comparisons and contrasts between the portrayals of the Nakatsu character...]

Tuesday, June 23, 2009

majo saiban: episode 6 notes


episode 6!!
this was a really exciting and fun episode to watch! of course, it also had some really shocking moments, just like toma said. ^_^ i guess all the episodes from now on will be very toma heavy. my hand is gonna be really tired f/all this screencapping!! lol. but i can't help it, gotta capture all those cute toma moments!! yappari, there's SO MANY in this episode as well.^^


even after everything that's happened, i'm not sure if the "witch" is guilty or not. what about you? but i'm still leaning towards not guilty....

and i'm not sure what's gonna happen if kaori really believes that toru is having an affair with izumi. she's not gonna turn evil and try to hurt toru and izumi, right?? though they made her seem so scary/strange in the last episode, and that would be kinda cool and unexpected! and it would make her character a lot more cool/interesting. haha. how can toru make her trust him again except by telling the truth about the jurors being blackmailed?? i guess he'll just have to, and soon...but i'm kinda hoping that toru will be paired up with izumi in the end. ~_^ and i see lots of other fans saying the same thing. but i think there's not much chance that will happen, though. except if izumi's husband leaves her...and kaori does turn evil. haha.

anyway...i'm really looking forward to episode 7!!
though it looks kinda violent and scary. aiya....
toru-kun, gambarre!!!


here are my notes for this time. douzo~
there are some spoilers in RED text, just at the very end of this post.



kate's -episode 6- notes:

-wow...kurokawa sees toru as a worthy opponent, so he actually meets him in person and even tells him his name (well, probably his alias)!! cool!! at least he really sees toru as his opponent now, not just his pawn...only toru gets to see him in person, unlike all the other jurors. awesome.

-i found all the kaori scenes in this episode really boring!! actually, any scene where she's talking with the the witch is usually quite boring/over-dramatized. =/ all the main female characters in this drama....their characters are all so boring, really!! even the "witch". except if kaori has a dark side to her. =P


-that cellphone wallpaper, the pic of toru and kaori is cute, right?? ^^ and they're wearing matching t-shirts too. i'm using it as my cellphone wallpaper right now. haha.

-did u notice a lot of ppl's names in here start with a K? kaori, kyoko, kurokawa. i wonder if they did it on purpose. being a "k" person, myself, it's pretty cool to me, that they did this, though. haha. especially that toru's girlf's name starts with a K!

-haruka, the daughter, she has LARGE staring eyes and a certain blank & cold emotionless face and stiffness to her sometimes...it's like she's robot-like, ghost-like in a way!! again, dunno if they wanted her to act that way 4 her character's sake, or is it just that that's how she is normally?? i wonder if she or any of the other actresses have a crush on toma in real life?? haha. they're so lucky to get to work with him in a drama!!!

http://xdustbunnys.livejournal.com/35590.html
btw, read this translation of a toma fan's blog post, who was an extra in the drama!! she was the girl in the short skirt he was looking at in the first ep!! also interviewed the majo cast (read the comments below the post!).
aw, toma rejected her. =P

-toru should've told izumi that they can imitate the voices of ppl u know to trick u!! and anyway, she should've been more cautious when using the phone to talk to her mom. she shoulda remembered how her mom said that SHE had called her to pick up mai, when she did not!! geez...

-kyaa! when toru tells donperi casually~ "i can help u"!!♥ it's so amazing how he can be cute (drinking w/the straw) and cool (saying he can help & how) all at once!!! ^_^


-totally agree with kaori's boss!! (so glad he yelled at her for us. haha!) she's so biased,
it's as if she's under her spell?? maybe kyoko's not a witch, but she's a hypnotist?? eh...cuz when toru looked at her, it's almost as if she had some control over him too...


-toru's cuteness & pride when they announced the news in the discussion room!!♥ kakkoii!! (and he pinned his juror name tag to his scarf. heehee~)

-trying to help donperi pink, disguising themselves like that...xD toru looks like a more dressed up version of danny f/Grease and izumi looks cute/funny like that!! well, they both look cute/funny!! and donperi pink's fiance is cute, but not too bright. lol. this is random, but i think it woulda been cool if they had donperi pink have a crush on toru. i know she has a fiance, but still, that woulda been cool (and funny) that toru has an admirer in the jury. =P


-poor toru...it's not really his fault, he was just trying to help. he didn't know things would turn out like that. but then again, he should have known that they had more evidence against the jurors than that! but him being able to come up with those plans to help them is pretty cool!! they seemed like good ideas until...

-a kidnapping!! for real??? somehow, it seems unreal, but after seeing the preview of the next episode!! OH NO!!!! well, i guess it was bound to happen sooner or later, though.

spoilers/analyzing the case:

-i'm not sure why kurokawa wants mai to go to a certain school for?? maybe so he can kidnap her? but it's a difficult school to get in, so what if she doesn't. i don't get it...but it's funny how he was talking in that cute/kiddy way to pretend to be mai. lol.


i just remembered....not sure if izumi and her husband are still together? i think he's on a business trip, and they said she was a housewife...but then maybe they are don't get along or they're gonna split up soon, since the way he treated her is so cold, when she called him...hmm...well, i guess it doesn't really matter. it's not like she likes toru, though toru might like her a little. ~_~

-looking forward to seeing how the brown & silver jurors will act when they are blackmailed...especially brown. she's already always so quiet and secretive!!

-EHHH?? KYOKO REALLY IS GUILTY & TRYING TO TRICK THEM?? or is this still all the lawyer's doing and she doesn't know. even if she knows he's got a hidden camera in her room, doesn't mean she's doing all this. but at least the lawyer paid the $1 million yen for toru! =)

well, i still think kyoko did not kill her husband. but even if she did, it's not for the money...there's gotta be some other reason, related to her daughter, maybe...or her daughter was the one who killed him??


but it's kinda cool that kurokawa and toru were both tricked by the witch or the lawyer. it's almost as if they're fighting the same enemy, but in very different ways...and they're definitely not on the same team. but it's kinda like they're equals, at least, toru is really fighting back, won't be threatened by him...

maybe now it'll become like a tug of war, with the lawyer and the blackmailer on opposite sides, pulling on the jurors. who would u rather be blackmailed by?? lol. i think if i was one of these jurors, i'd have to listen to what K tells me, since he is the more freaky and unscrupulous of the 2 of them, and for sure would think of much worse things to do to me or my family if i don't listen to him!

Sunday, June 21, 2009

majo saiban: episode 5 notes


hi there!

sorry, quite late in posting today.

happy father's day!!
(btw, has anyone ever seen toma's dad?? i've only seen his mom when she was on a tv show with him, but when he was a little kid. and a pic of him and his little brother back when he was very very young. umm...to be honest, i thought his mom would be prettier since toma is so cute...but maybe his dad is where he got his good looks from?? :P then his father must be very handsome ne.)

today's also the 1st day of summer. the summer solstice is today. i will change the banners to a summer theme later...

oh, i've noticed that this blog's got over over 40,000 visitors or hits now!! sugoi! minna~ arigatou!! thank you, everyone for coming!! i really appreciate it.

oh, this is related to majosai, kinda. u know toru designs t-shirts. well, now YOU CAN TOO! there's this website where anyone that registers there can enter t-shirt designing contests. winner gets US$2,000!! and some money will be donated to good causes too. http://socialdesigner.com/

i got a ton of screencaps from episodes 1-4 here...will tell u each time i add more from ep.s 5, 6, etc. http://s508.photobucket.com/albums/s322/ilovetoma2/majoSaiban/

majosai's ratings have been going down steadily each week. ep. 7 got only 5.3%. =[ it's a similar to H&C's ratings that kept going down, except at least in that case, it leveled off and stayed at around 8% for a while starting from ep. 5. but maybe majo's ratings is staying at around 5% starting f/ep.6...i really hope it doesn't go down further. though ratings are not that important, if there are still lots of fans supporting the drama. =] they had a fans appreciation event and xdustbunnys said 10,000 ppl entered the drawing, but only 130 lucky ppl were picked to come to the event. wow!! majosai DOES have a huge following! ^_^

speaking of low ratings though, will arnett was joking on the Tonight Show that their show needs a better catchphrase to get people's attention and persuade them to watch the show. and he says it should be something like this, and says in a really creepy/threatening voice: "u better watch-- or everyone u know will die!!" lol. maybe not that extreme/crazy, but majo needs better advertising or something to encourage more ppl to watch. cuz the free "THINK TWICE" t-shirts is not doing a good enough job of attracting viewers. haha.

so.
episode 5! the halfway point. sou des.

ja, it was a pretty good episode. the pace was kinda slow, but a lot of interesting things did happen and it got really exciting at the end!!! and nearly ALL toma scenes for this ep., so i ended up with twice the usual amount of screencaps. lol.

ano...now that i know this drama has 10 episodes, and ep.8 just aired in japan already, i will really try to watch ASAP, the rest of the episodes from now, as soon as it is subbed, so i can hopefully finish not too late after it ends in japan. i've never been able to do that for any of toma's series be4, i hope i can this time...GAMBARIMAS!! and i'll try to post about each episode after i've finished watching. even if i don't really say anything very interesting, at least i can post up some nice screencaps. haha. so please also keep up with me as i'm keeping up with majosai!! onegaishimas.

oh, for those of you that have been watching majosai on streaming sites...please support TFS and download the episodes from TFS instead of watching it online!! actually, i'm also at fault cuz i've often linked to both websites where u can dload and where u can watch it streaming. cuz i know not all of u can easily download and watch it for whatever reasons. but really...if the ppl that stream it are doing it without permission from the fansubbers, then that is not right. though i know it doesn't help much (it's very easy to find streaming sites), but from now on i won't link to them anymore.

ok, here are my notes for episode 5!
ep. 6 notes, i'll post tomorrow or tuesday...
as usual, there are no real spoilers... douzo~



kate's -EPISODE 5- notes:

-a little off topic: now i get it!! after watching 5LDK, i found out manami started out acting in daytime dramas. those serious period dramas. maybe that's kinda why she's used to those really deep stares/shocked looks. haha...it would be fine in those dramas, but here, she often seems so exagerrated and unnatural!! but the real-life manami is more real and likable than kaori, after all. and she has a really cool clock!! lol.

-this is only the 2nd slow sweet/sad bgm i heard in this drama, i think, when toru & kaori talk on the phone...it's nice to have nice music to make these rare quiet moments have a more lovely/melancholy feel to it ne...

-they really kept to the white theme w/white-san! she often wears white, even her flowers are white. i guess it's just a way to make her seem more pure/kind...it's nice to see her in more casual clothes in this ep. too, it makes her look younger and match better with toru.

umm...but both kaori and izumi don't really match with toru. maybe cuz he just seems younger and more fun and rebellious, while both of the girls seem a lot more mature/serious and boring/always follow the rules type of person. and they both look older than him. but of course, izumi is the nicer/kinder of the two. but then kaori is prettier, after all. who does toma have the most chemistry with?? uh...i think it's a tie, actually. if he had a guy friend in the drama, then he'd definitely have the most chemistry with him. haha.

-toma has been doing the talking-with-eyes-closed thing a lot in this drama. haha. i like it!! xD


-yappari. kaori w/the flowers in the hospital, secretly looking at toru in an angry/pained way, wearing that black suit...reminds me of naruse in Maou!

-toma and izumi having lunch together. =) i was looking forward to this scene cuz i've seen a lot of pics of it f/the magazines, it's a pretty location~ but then it's such a short scene, and nothing important happened...oh well.

-purple-san, with his glasses/geeky look, especially when he's got a cigarette....he looks funny, like in a manga character kinda way. haha. i think the bad guy and him look like they could be characters in a manga. such exagerrated looks!

-first time we know about toru's family, well his mom-- and they're not close. his mom doesn't recognize his voice!! or she just doesn't wanna lend him money. haha...

-i like toru's small white car! cute.

-i like his clothes in this ep. too! the scarf/muffler, the bright red, green, yellow shirts. =) toma's bright personality and colorful wardrobe adds much needed brightness to this dark (literally!) drama. and besides, most of his clothes r so stylish and cool!! oh, also love his ring!!

-SUGOI!! that toru was able to protect mai that way!! but then he still owes a lot of $$ and the bad guy can still think of other ways to threaten izumi... BUT STILL, THAT WAS A BRILLIANT PLAN!!! ^_^ GO TORU!!!

-what the..?! was kaori about to kiss her?? it's as if she has been hypnotized...maybe SHE thinks the witch has some kinda psychic powers (her saying they are similar and that's why she'd understand her---predicting she'd be betrayed?)? i guess she sees her as an older sister/mom and feels close to her now since she feels they were both betrayed...but that creepy music makes it seem like she was about to do something weird to her/hurt her???

-shocking!! toru actually SEES the blackmailer (forgot his name) 4 the first time!! maybe he thinks he can use his weird, generic-manga-evil-guy look to more effectively scare toru. lol. BUT that is a really cool scene, especially the shot of them from a distance, looking at each other f/the bridges. and i love toma's determined look at the end!!

Friday, June 19, 2009

*_* about the Ningen Shikkaku press conference... (and other toma stuff)


hi hi!!
ok.gif
after his press conference,
suddenly there's more toma updates!
and i got them all at the tomalicious cbox. ^^
u should check it out often, lots of fans post links to the newest toma stuff there.

thanks to watashiwachiaki, who posted a link to http://hope-rei.livejournal.com/36804.html, where yamashita says he and toma will be in a magazine photoshoot together! and many thanks to zoe_alexiel and gem_gem for posting the RECOMEN
green_happy.gif link and summary/translation!!! go to the chatbox at for the links!

also, please read baka_neko's sweet message
double_hearts.gif to all toma fans:
http://z11.invisionfree.com/Ikuta_Toma/index.php?showtopic=3128

like the link to the official website of toma's movie, i also got f/the chatbox (forgot who posted).
but there's nothing at the website yet.
http://www.ns-movie.jp/

notice i'm using these emoticons!
happy.gif
it's cuz i'm still in hyper/happy mode after watching toma's movie press conference!!! 2hyper.gif

janinamedina has posted another video clip from the press conference. u can get it here:
http://community.livejournal.com/ikuta_toma/421126.html
also, she says the movie will start filming on july 3.

and strawberry_gemm has posted all the hana kimi SP video links here!!
http://community.livejournal.com/ikuta_toma/421892.html


just wanna talk about the press conference for a little bit,
even though we only saw a couple minutes of it...

ahhhh~ really so happy and excited for toma, the press conference for his 1st movie ever! starryB60.gif starryB60.gifstarryB60.gif
it's one thing to read about it in the news, but to see toma at the press conference, i get the feeling "it's really happening, this is the start of it all!!"


seeing him walk out in a tuxedo, with his hair all pinned up and pretty!! blackheart.gif kyaa!! and all the bright flashes of light, all for toma-kun. he looks soooo kakkoii, though a little nervous, of course. and he stands out from the cast, right? i'm so happy he looked just so PERFECT for the press conference-- cool hair, cool tuxedo. just perfect neeee. and i love how gentle/calm toma's voice is when he was talking!! double_hearts.gif i dunno what he said, but probably something about how he'll try his best for this role and help make this a wonderful movie for everyone.

unsure.gif
why is there only 2 other young ppl, the rest are quite older ppl?? eh... has the full cast not been decided yet, and these R the supporting characters?? and why did they show some drama clips, has the book been made into a drama several times before? (i only know kinki kids was in a drama based on the book, but these clips don't look like they R from that one)

the press conference, it's got such a formal/solemn mood, as expected...they even showed where the author is now, his tombstone in the cemetary?

but the moment i love most must be when they were taking pics like crazy, all these continuous bright flashes, and then toma takes a break from his serious look to just look to the side and take a breath, like "whew, when will this be over?? i'm tired~" even though he's a big star now, it's still the same toma we know and love. haha~ he's not afraid to show that he's annoyed/tired/sleepy, etc. on camera at all, right??

toma-kun, daisuki!!!!!♥