How To Stay Noticed, T-Ara Style

 

  In K-pop, it is extremely easy to be left in the dust of new groups constantly debuting left and right. In times like these, singing and dancing will not get you to stand out, and for a group like T-ara, fighting these kinds of problems was nothing short of an uphill battle. T-ara’s had their ups and downs, from their lackluster debut “Lies” to their latest chart topper “Lovey Dovey.” Not only did they had a bad debut song, but their timing and luck was awful as well. Their debut performance of “Lies” was lipsynced and was criticized heavily. That same year, YG’s female group, 2NE1 was killing it with their kick-ass debut song “Fire” and the immensely popular song “I Don’t Care.” Along with 2NE1, ex-Wonder Girl Hyuna and her group 4minute debuted with “Hot Issue” and followed up with “Muzik.” So what did T-ara do to get out of their crappy predicaments?

Come up with a Kick-Ass Song to Get Everyone’s Attention

   I personally didn’t fall for “Lies” and didn’t think much of T-ara at first. T-ara did a joint project with one of their label mates, Supernova, with “TTL (Time to Love).” The word “kick-ass” is, if anything, a severe understatement of how awesome this song is. “TTL” managed to chart to number one, making it be T-ara’s first number one single, and got people’s attention. “TTL” Version 1.0 is an pop track that features Eunjung, Ji Yeon, Hyomin, and Soyeon – pretty much everyone who gets to sing in the group — but the second version of “TTL” features all the members of T-ara. To be honest, the first version is the better version, so if you want to save time, just listen to the first one.

The Pros and Cons of English in K-Pop

   We’ve all heard it, and maybe even made fun of it, but the fantastic elastic fact of the matter is English in K-pop has had its ups and downs. And while it’s safe to say that my perspective is somewhat biased given that I’m a native English speaking person, it’s clear that using English to spread the Hallyu wave is not without its difficulties.

   English in K-pop is a chiefly commendable nod towards K-Pop’s unparalleled global mindset. Not just with English, K-Pop explores many foreign languages, thanks to and as its supporting industry spreads its influence into the international music marketplace. (There aren’t too many music companies that offer more than one language on their homepage, much less four like YG Family does….) Whether it be debuts in Japan or other ventures in surrounding parts of Asia, in just a few short years K-Pop has has been cropping up all over the world. At the very least, the K-pop industry should be commended for its commitment to its heaps of international fans, while most other artists/industries don’t seem to care as much. But as the waves topple over the Atlantic and the Pacific oceans simultaneously, will having to speak and sing English clearly hinder the mega pop machine?

Running Man Scripted??

    It took almost two years and a terrible Big Bang episode for me to officially come to the conclusion that Running Man has lost its spark. The show that normally exemplifies extremely well thought out game play, organic cast interaction, and is second only to the long-established 1 Night 2 Days in Sunday ratings, has become a lackluster chore to watch. Running Man is a mere shell of the mind-blowing game show that it used to be. And the reason for that? Excessive scripting.
   When it comes to variety shows, mentioning the term “script” is kind of like uttering “Voldemort” in a room full of good wizards: no one wants to hear it. But Running Man does not employ the kind of scripting that you’ll find at your favorite drama’s table read. In variety, scripting refers to things like misleading editing, exaggerated persona's, and cast members who pretend they don’t know what’s going to happen in the show when they really do. It is what happens when a show attempts to create a reality that doesn’t actually exist. Not all scripting is bad. In fact, some of it is necessary for the sake of flow and entertainment. But in the case of Running Man, scripting has totally ruined the show for the dedicated viewer.
In Running Man’s early glory days, the main cast members—a hodgepodge of variety veterans and rookies including the “nation’s MC” Yoo Jae-suk, singer and funnyman Haha, and baby-faced cutie pie Song Joong-ki—split up into teams, locked themselves in huge venues, and played epically intense games of hide and seek. You could practically hear the Running Men’s hearts pound as they hid between tiny cracks in the wall, waiting for their opponents to pass by without seeing them. While the Running Men gradually established their characters and built relationships with each other, the show’s writing staff constantly experimented with different ways to make the games more fresh, edgy, and memorable.

E.VIAGRADATION

   Talented female rapper E.Via, known as the female Outsider has returned to the K-Pop scene for the first time in a year and a half with a new mini-album. Her newest release proves that she has tossed aside her youthfulness and has transformed into a alluring, mature woman. Her change is most obvious in the way she raps with her bold new voice, and E.Via proves that she has returned as a much more developed musician.
   MC the MAX‘s ISU is featured in “Crazy Fate“, helping her round out the sound to the title track. E.Via also expresses her own painful breakup experience in the song, and it is being coined her best project yet.
Check out a few of the tracks below!

Title Track: Crazy Fate

 Roses Blooming In the Night

The pot tackles the misery.

The pot tackles the misery.

Lee Sora Diet Part 2

Well it looked like my other post was getting long since the diet is for such a long time ha ha. Well here I brought you the continuation of the last diet entry. Once again I'll keep updating so keep coming back~!

Day 34
(Calories-4hbody)
Weight: 56.5
breakfast:
1 white fish fillet
1 whole egg
spinach

lunch:
1 whole egg
1 white fish fillet
1 pice roasted seaweed
15 cherry tomatoes
11 almonds
5 cashews

dinner:
1 egg
1 salmon fillet
1 white fish fillet
15 cherry tomatoes
2 pieces of roasted seaweed

Progress as of today - 3.5 lbs lost so far, only 11.5 lbs to go! 

Day 35
 (Calories-4hbody)
Weight: 56.1
 did 26min Lee Sora 's Exercise

breakfast:
1 whole egg
1 whitefish
spinach

lunch:
3 palm-sized pieces pork chop
1 serving baked beans
1 fried egg

dinner:
11 almonds
4 eggs
1 whole egg
french beans
carrots
1 batang steak
1 saba
 some pieces of roasted seaweed
30 cherry tomatoes

Progress as of today - 3.9 lbs lost so far, only 11.1 lbs to go!
Day 36
 (Calories-4hbody)
Weight: 56.1
did 30min Lee Sora's exercise
breakfast:
1 salmon fillet
1 whole egg
1 egg white

lunch:
3 palm-sized pieces pork chop
1 fried egg
1 serving baked beans

dinner:
20 almonds
3 saba fish sides
2 eggs
3 pieces roasted seaweed
20 cherry tomatoes

snack:
1 almond
1 piece cadbury dark chocolate

Progress as of today - 3.9 lbs lost so far, only 11.1 lbs to go!

JYP on Details About His Comeback, 2PM and Wonder Girls!

   We would say that JYP Entertainment is about to get busy, but that would sound as if they haven’t been already! After 2 years, Park Jin Young‘s own comeback has arrived, along with more exciting news about his fellow agency artists. J.Y. Park is back!
Over the last few months, J.Y. Park has taken on a number of projects. Between acting ventures The Five Million-Dollar Man (movie) and Dream High 2 (KBS drama), producing mini-albums for 2AM and miss A, US promotions with the Wonder Girls, and judging for K-POP Star (SBS music competition program), he’s made time to go back into “artist mode,” as he called it. How does he find that time, you ask? Check out his mobile music studio, located in his car!
   His me2day went more in-depth with details, revealing that the Wonder Girls’ US album is finally finished, along with the title track for their new Korean album. He also promised a “quick surprise” this summer for 2PM fans who can’t wait until their new album in the fall of this year. A surprise and two new albums? Be still, our Hottest and Wonderful hearts!

 Photo Credit: JYP's Twitter

   According to Nate, JYP’s next mini-album, Spring. Five Songs I’m Sending to a New Love, will contain “styles and music never before heard from J.Y. Park.” Interesting – will he move away from his R&B/Soul/Pop intersection that he’s been grooving to since his debut? We’ll have to wait and find out about the rest of the album, but so far the JYP vibe is still there.  He released the first song from the album, “Someone Else,” a duet with Brown Eyed Girls‘ Ga-In, at midnight on April 22. Midnight on April 29 will bring another track, “You’re the One,” which tells the story of a “flashy-looking male celebrity and a normal girl.”

J.Y. PARK ft. GaIn -– “SOMEONE ELSE” MV
   He expressed a little nervousness about coming back after 2 years in his me2day post, but we see no reason for him to be, what with him being a immensely popular artist as well as a hit-making producer, composer, and lyricist. Are you familiar with JYP: the producer, but new to JYP: the singer? Take a listen to some of his hit singles from past albums and see for yourself why he’s earned the tagline, “the Asian Soul.”

Coming To a Stage Near You!

   There hasn’t been a whole lot of room for new girl groups this year with the hundreds of not so good boy bands that have debuted recently. There is hope though! All that is going to change next month when two of KPop’s well-known labels unleash new girl groups onto the KPop scene.

   GM Contents Media (sister label of Core Contents Media; home of T-ara and Davichi) is set to debut a new 7-member group called Gang Kids sometime next month.  Meanwhile, Pledis Entertainment, home of After School, K-Diva Son Dam Bi, and rookie boy band NU’EST, will launch the six-member Hello Venus on May 9th.
Both groups are already two of the most buzzed about of the year, and with their debuts both set for May, there’s going to be a lot of fun and friendly competition over which group does better, and which group actually is better.
So, let’s take a look at our two contenders!

 Gang Kids

   Our first contender is Gang Kids! Really?? Gang Kids? Well so far we know that the group is made up of three actresses, two models, and two trainees. They’re currently being overseen by CCM CEO Kim Kwang Soo, who you may know as the evil genius behind T-ara. They’re much older than your typical rookie group. Five of the girls' ages have been confirmed with the eldest coming in at 29, the youngest 22, and the other three three somewhere in-between.
Gang Kids’ first single is produced by Shinsadong Horang (Hit songs for B2ST, 4minute, T-ara), and CCM has made the hefty claim that the song is, “an upgraded version of Roly-Poly and Lovey-Dovey with a mature concept.” On top of the musical comparisons, the group will also follow in T-ara’s footsteps by releasing a ridiculously long music video for the song, which was shot with T-ara in Europe and comes in seven different parts. My gosh that's a lot of parts..
   There’s been a lot of criticism about the group’s name ‘Gang Kids’ since it was first announced, and they’ve already become a bit of a laughing stock across the KPop blogosphere. I despised the name at first too, but now it’s really grown on me, kind of. It’s not supposed to be taken so literally, and given the group’s bad girl, rough-around-the-edges look, I’d say that it’s just about capturing the rebellious nature of youth and never letting go of it — even when you’re pushing thirty like some of the Gang Kids are.
    Gang Kids have really caught my interest so far. There’s a big opening in the KPop market for more older female groups like Nine Muses and Brown Eyed Girls, so it’ll be nice to see some actual women debuting with a mature concept, rather than the typical young girls who like to play grown-up. I’m not expecting Gang Kids to be terribly talented on the music front given their backgrounds in modelling and acting, then again singers become actors and models later on, but I think they’ll follow T-ara by being very conceptually strong, which should definitely prove interesting.
    The biggest problem with Gang Kids is that they could end up being too similar to T-ara, just like EXO is to SHINee/Super Junior/TVXQ, so hopefully Kim Kwang Soo has something exciting up his sleeve to set them apart.

 Hello Venus

   Let’s take a look at Hello Venus (stylized HELLOVENUS). The six-member group has already been courting major media attention after being officially billed by Pledis as After School‘s ‘sister group’, as well as by unveiling a very eye-catching teaser photo. I have no idea what the exact image they’ll debut with will be, but the concept in their flowery teaser picture reminds me a bit of A Pink combined with BoA’s arty look for the Hurricane Venus album. It’s unique, distinctive, and I love it.
    So far we know that three of the Hello Venus members are 19-years-old, and that one is 24. Three of them were Pledis trainees who featured on After School’s Virgin album under the name Pre-School Girls (I always wondered who the hell the Pre-School Girls were!), and the other three are actresses from a different agency who were picked up by Pledis to join the group. Also, Hello Venus’ leader Ara, who was one of the Pre-School Girls, almost joined After School instead of E-Young at one point! She was featured on the After School’s Happy Pledis single-album back in late 2010.
    There’s no specifics details on Hello Venus’ first single yet, but according to reports, it’ll be a dance song helmed by a famous producer. Ooh interesting!
One of the most interesting aspects about both Hello Venus and Gang Kids is that half the members of each group are actresses, and not wannabe musicians, dancers, or artists like you’d expect. Given the huge success that T-ara has had by having half of their members being popular actresses, Eunjung, Jiyeon and Hyomin, it could be that many new groups are now trying to repeat the winning formula.

 (Screenshot of Eungjung as Baekhee and Miss A's Suzy as Hyemi in Dream High)

   So many boy bands have debuted recently, and only a few like B.A.P. have actually impressed me, so it’ll be nice to get a break from all that with some new girls to listen to. Both Pledis and Kim Kwang Soo have put a lot of money into their respective new groups, as well as a lot of time and energy on pre-promotion, so I’m expecting BIG things next month. Especially since CCM seem to have learned from their prior mistakes with Co-Ed, 5dolls, and most recently, SPEED, not that I don't like them, they do have some good songs.
So, which group do you think will do better? And which one has captured your interest the most? Gang Kids or Hello Venus!

Lee Sora Diet

 

   So I see diets are the most read posts haha. I decided to share a diet that seems to work for quite a few Idols and models. Throughout the diets remember to stretch, exercise, keep busy and don't wonder off the diet. Though, do have snacks so you won't go insane with the plain flavor you might get at times. Here is someone's days of the diet. Some of the food are Asian dishes or snacks. If you want to know what some of them are ask away. I'll keep updating it everyday so be sure to check on it.

Day 1

(Calories-restricted)
Weight: 57.5 
 Lee Sora's Diet exercise
Hula-hoop 5 minutes

Ate:
2 steamed chicken drumsticks
2 egg whites
150g sweet potato
120g potato
60g brown rice
2 slices corn bread
corn
3 cashew nuts
1 Hershey's kiss
1 serving cai fan(rice + broccoli+spinach++carrot)
1 slice banana cake with mango on top
1 1/2 slice chocolate cake
Gaah too many birthdays and I can't control myself :/


Progress as of today - 2.5 lbs lost so far, only 12.5 lbs to go! 

Lady GaGa in South Korea

   US pop diva Lady Gaga arrived in South Korea late Friday, one week before a Seoul performance which will kick off her third concert tour.
The singer, wearing a floor-length low-cut white dress, white gloves and a pearl-encrusted mask, blew kisses to fans at Seoul's Gimpo airport who tried to snap her image on smartphones. Her schedule in South Korea for the coming week was unclear and concert organisers Hyundai Card declined to give details.
   "The Born This Way Ball" tour begins on April 27 at Seoul's Olympic Stadium. From there Lady Gaga will take her hits and extravagant costumes to Hong Kong, Japan, Taiwan, the Philippines, Thailand, Singapore, Indonesia, New Zealand and Australia, and then on to 21 European cities.
South Koreans aged under 18 have been banned from the concert after it was rated unsuitable for younger audiences.
The show had an initial age rating of 12 and older but the Korea Media Rating Board - a state watchdog - adjusted it upwards.
Some religious groups in South Korea have opposed the concert, saying Lady Gaga has advocated homosexuality and performed in an explicitly sexual manner.
   "Our Christian community needs concerted action to stop young people from being infected with homosexuality and pornography," the Korean Association of Church Communication said in a statement last month. Lady Gaga is expected to do 110 shows this year following up the success of her album "Born This Way", which has sold nearly six million copies worldwide since it was released in May 2011. The eccentric star from New York has a record number of almost 22 million followers on Twitter.
   The singer, whose real name is Stefani Joanne Angelina Germanotta, is famous for the hit songs "Bad Romance" and "Poker Face," and has become a strident voice for gay rights and anti-bullying campaigns.

B.A.P Comeback! Yes Sir!

   I have gotten pretty excited about B.A.P’s comeback, even though it only seems a few days ago they were shooting Zelo and teaching us how to spell their name with “Warrior”. As one of the most talented rookie groups in recent years, B.A.P completely stole my heart and I may or may not have made a few small blood sacrifices in the hope their comeback would be equally gritty and bombastic. Hahaha!
   The teaser photos pretty much proved this wasn’t going to be anything near “Secret Love;” there is a distinct 80s Euro-disco flavor that retains much of the intensity and fierceness we fell in love with. The colors, the violence, powerful poses (Bang Yong Guk appears to be able to dislocate his entire jaw and Jong-up seems to be going for a backslap) and threatening stares were the reassurance I needed. Normally, a group doing a similar concept as that of their debut suggests lack of imagination and group growth, but without the teaser video, there is no way of knowing if this will be “Warrior” II. In terms of new hairstyles, Key(Shinee) has competition in the faux-mohawk department a la Youngjae. It’s sad but good to see the wall to wall blonde is gone, giving the boys a better chance of distinguishing themselves onstage. The future looked neon bright for their comeback. No more 'I like the blonde one' comments.
  

Open World Entertainment and Its Ugly Side

   The sexual objectification of women (and increasingly men) in the South Korean entertainment industry or really, in just about any entertainment industry is certainly nothing new or even shocking.  KPop fans in particular have sadly been largely desensitized to issues involving the inappropriate acts against females, and the pervasive influence of so-called “uncle fans” in driving the market for girl groups is hardly shocking and indeed even expected. But consumers of KPop would do well to remember that sexual misdemeanors and crime within the industry itself is a reality that has the potential to destroy not only careers, but lives and just because we don’t see it doesn’t mean that it isn’t happening to an alarming degree.

Possible 'Big' Mistake??

   I’ve waited almost an entire year for the Hong sisters to come out with their newest drama. Just moments after concluding their take on Korean entertainment in Best Love, I was rolling around frantically wondering when their next drama would release. And the writing duo didn’t disappoint; last October they announced that they would be coming out with their eighth drama this year, titled Big. So with 2012 having unequivocally arrived, it pleases me that the Hong sisters have already decided on a cast and a concept. But as always, there’s good news and then there’s bad news. 

Oh My God!

Girl's Day(걸스데이) is back with their new song! Last year when they consecutively slayed many men three times over with “Twinkle Twinkle”, “Hug Me Once”, and “Don’t Let Your Eyes Wander”. Those songs can only be known as Three Punches of Aegyo, which firmly established Girl’s Day as the most adorably charming group in Hallyu.

    it’s been a very long time since Girl’s Day have been active. Their last digital single was in September, but it’s actually been 10 months since they actively promoted a song. After their break,  Girl's Day are finally back with a brand new mini album “Everyday II”, and a whole new sound to go with it.

Going 'One Direction' For You

  Yes! I said it! Well I've seen it A LOT on Twitter trends, E! News, Nickelodeon and SNL. This British-Irish boy band/group seems to have been taking America by storm just like everything else. One Direction is made up of five guys, Niall Horan, Zayn Malik, Liam Payne, Harry Styles and Louis Tomlinson. I honestly don't go out to many places but when I do I can seriously say I can hear their hit song 'What Makes You Beautiful' everywhere! I'm not saying it's a bad thing because I do like the song so don't get me wrong or anything. I can say that I prefer them over Justin Bieber, but I guess I can say it's because I like boy bands/groups more than solo artists.
    Anyways! One Direction, or 1D to some, came out in The X Factor UK. Although they didn't win, they did place third in the 7th season of the show. They then signed with American record label Columbia Records. Their debut single, 'What Makes You Beautiful' was released in September 2011 and reached number one in the UK and charted in the top ten in several international markets. Their debut album, Up All Night, was released in November 2011 and debuted at number two on the UK Albums Chart, with the highest sales for number two album in 2011! Aren't they amazing? Ha ha.
   

K-Pop Diets

 

   Okay, so lately I've been reading A LOT about K-Pop diets and how some seem real simple and how some just seem interesting enough to try. 'Model Idol' group Nine Muses has an interesting diet plan. They use paper cups and fill each one with food. One with fruits, another with mixed grain rice or brown rice, and a third with side dishes. They use this method the whole day for three meals. You can eat different things but with the same restrictions which might help satisfy some. Yes it may seem hard at first, but they did it for four months and got their wonderful looking bodies.

 EATING

Boiled Eggs
    This is one of my staples. It's also an extremely popular part of any K-Pop idols diet! Personally, I don't like the yolk. Which is great, because the egg white is only 15 kcal but fills me up a lot when I have two!

Chicken Breast
     A cooked chicken breast without skin is really healthy and filling, and fulfills protein intake for the day. A lot of females don't get enough protein in their diet, while males take in too much. Idols like Uee, SNSD, and more swear by the chicken breast diet. Just make sure not to add extra oils (some olive oil or dressings like basil are fine though, in my opinion). Remember, a serving of meat is actually the size of a deck of cards! Lean meat is the key, and red meat should be a treat.
 
Sweet Potatoes
    Personally, I like these too much. These are really good for healthy carbs and are very filling. They're also very popular with idols; A Pink ate these a lot while training for debut.

Warriors Orochi 3!!

  Warriors Orochi 3 is an action-fighting game based on characters from the Dynasty Warriors and Samurai Warriors franchises. Players use swords, spears, and magic attacks to kill giant monsters and human enemies in frenetic hack ‘n slash combat. This is the fourth installment of the crossover series Warriors Orochi, being the combination of the Dynasty Warriors and Samurai Warriors series.

Story

  The story begins several years after the events of Orochi 2, with a decisive battle against a multi-headed serpent known as Youja(Hydra). This giant phantom serpent as well as the re-appearance of Kiyomori throw the peaceful world back into chaos. Many warriors are killed, and the serpent appears to be unstoppable. However, the Moon Princess Kaguya(竹取物語 Taketori Monogatari) appears and uses the power of time travel (What!? Haha) to send back the last remaining generals - Takenaka Hanbei, Sima Zhao and Ma Chao to the past to rewrite the future and save their fallen comrades.

An Idol's Life

  The word 'idol' first meant an inanimate object of worship, but it has evolved to include modern celebrities. On the Korean pop music scene, 'idol groups' are bands consisting of boys or girls in their teenage years or early 20s. And in recent years they've dominated the music industry. But  these stars aren't built in a day. To become a member of one of these bands, young children go through years of grueling training - all without any guarantee of success in the end. Being an idol usually calls for tough schedules and dance practices, but many have revealed what they’ve done to go the extra mile and get that distinguished ‘oomph’ in their figure. How far do these idols go to obtain and maintain their sexy and fit bodies? 

Actor Lee Jung Jea ate ginseng chicken soup 3 times day for 4 months to help achieve his amazing core

    

   Remember Kim Ah Joong from 200 Pounds of Beauty? She has the sexy, most desired body of the post-surgery Kang Hanna. She, along with Oh Yoon A and Cho Han Sun jump rope about 3,000 times everyday! I don’t even think I can count or think straight once I get that high.

   To train for Ninja Assassin, Rain hired trainers who trained the actors of “300.” He trained eight hours a day for eight months! As for diet, he only ate skinless chicken breast, raw fish, potatoes and salad. If he wanted spice, he would add some black pepper. Occasionally he treated himself to beef cooked in plain water. He cut his body fat from 12% to 5%!

    After Secret’s Zinger showed off her V-line, netizens began looking for the “Zinger Diet.” A supposed diet plan stated, “Morning 1 piece of toast with fat free milk, afternoon 1 sweet potato, evening 1 cucumber.” The menu varied from apples or chicken meat but most of the foods had very little calories and supplements to an insufficient full day meal. Fortunately, Zinger posted these wise words on her minihompy, “The diet plan that was revealed through media is not my daily meal plan. I definitely did not diet that way. You could ruin your health with that diet plan so please don’t follow it. Please lose weight slowly with constant exercise and food intake control. Through hard practice and diet, I will work to be Zinger who shows her good side.”

Well said, Zinger!

    The Wonder Girls , the girl group whose debut became the first by any Korean musicians to make it onto the U.S. Billboard Hot 100 Singles chart, lost a member to the stress of idol life. Sun-mi announced she was leaving to focus on her studies. The 19-year-old's decision came during the group's U.S. tour in 2009.
 "It was such a happy and precious experience for me to be on the tour of 50 U.S. cities and perform on the stage, but I came to wonder, can I go on living like this?' Sun-mi said in a statement later released by the group's management agency JYP Entertainment.
   Sun-mi's announcement not only jolted fans, but also stirred up controversy about the pressure on idol performers - either yet a trainee aspiring to be an idol star or already such a one - to maintain a schedule some say is too hard for a teenager to bear.

    Korean entertainment agencies look out to create idols, which they then also manage, maintain well-ordered training programs. Prospective talents in music or acting register with an agency, then, if accepted, undergo four to five years, on average, of training before their debuts. During that process, the company may require the aspiring star to live in a boarding house with colleagues (or rivals), go on a strict diet with regular weight checks and put in more than 10 hours of practice a day. The trainees under the entertainment label of their choice don't exactly know when they will debut,if that ever arrives

   Jo Kwon(2AM) and Min(Miss A) go way back as they had trained under JYP Entertainment for 8-10 years

 

The Secret Garden in Japanese?!

Ha ha, no, sorry. It wouldn't be a good drama to watch in Japanese, at least to me.
 Himitsu no Hanazono (ヒミツの花園) is a drama about a 28 year old female magazine editor who is tired of working overtime and bossed around by others doing their work. She feels as though sh doesn't have a life and is then assigned to be in charge of a very popular Mangaka (cartoonist) with the most lovely name, Yuriko Hanazono. As she goes to Hanazono's residence/office, she is met by four men who seem to be her assistants. Then it turns out those four men are brothers who form a team named Yuriko Hanazono and took roles to create popular Mangas. In this heartwarming comedy, the exhausted editor may find out the key to be happy while she is being driven crazy by this unique band of brothers.


  Although this drama is from 2007, it is quite the interesting one to watch with only 11 episodes in total. The main character, Tsukiyama Kay played by Shaku Yumiko, goes through the most embarrassing and hilarious situations due to each brother and their problems or questions. Each character within the drama has something they want to experience, but only because it is for their Mangas' characters and because they aren't the typical female who experience a woman's well, experiences. There are also funny love stories between certain characters and how each one sees it. 
  Some people struggle to become a Mangaka and it's not always so easy. The drama can let you see what goes through some Mangakas minds and what they do to overcome writer's block, screw ups, pressure, and decisions. The life of their editor can also be seen, but may or may not be so accurate as the drama displays ha ha. Now then, shall we get started with the star studded cast??
  One more thing! Himitsu no Hanazono is also known as The Secret Garden or Hanazono's Secret. There's also an Anime titled Himitsu no Hanazono that was broadcasted by NHK and a Manga titled Himitsu no Hanazono written by Mihona Fujii. Neither have any relation to this TV series. The Anime series is an adaptation of Frances Hodgson Burnett's children's novel The Secret Garden.

                     Himitsu no Hanazono Cast

• Shaku Yumiko as Tsukiyama Kayo
• Sakai Masato as Kataoka Wataru
  • Mayama Akihiro as young Wataru (15)
• Ikeda Tetsuhiro as Kataoka Osamu
• Kaname Jun as Kataoka Satoshi
• Hongo Kanata as Kataoka Hinata
• Takizawa Saori as Minae
• Maya Miki as Kawamura Ryoko
• Terajima Susumu as Tanaka Ichiro
• Tanaka Tetsushi as Tamaru Shinichi
• Yamamoto Yusuke as Tachikawa Takumi
• Matsuoka Rinako as Sugimoto Misuzu
• Kishi Hiroyuki as Hatanaka
• Daito Shunsuke as Miura
• Jinbo Satoshi as Ryuji
• Yokoyama Akio (横山あきお) as Yokoyama
• Ida Kunihiko as Satonaka Junichiro
• Yamamoto Kei as Kataoka Toru 

  This was a short post but thanks for reading and hope you check out this drama and enjoy it.  Please do look forward to the next post. I promise that it'll be more interesting and maybe longer ha ha.

The Legendary Anime Returns!

  Saint Seiya Omega (聖闘士星矢・オメガ) For all of you hardcore Saint Seiya fans out there, Toei up and made everyone's day today with the confirmation of a new TV series airing this April in Saint Seiya Omega. The series will be the first all new TV anime for Saint Seiya in 25 years and is not based off of Masaki Kurumada's epic manga, instead featuring a brand-new cast of characters headed up by new leader Kouga. It is being directed by Morio Hatano (his debut as series director), with animation character designs by illustrator and animator Yoshihiko Umakoshi, known for performing the same duties on Street Fighter Alpha: The Animation and Casshern Sins. This has also marked Toei's return with its Saint Seiya property since the adaptation to anime of the Hades arc from Kurumada's manga which was completed in 2008. How fun is this?! 

   The story of Omega takes place in the future, 25 years after the Holy Wars of the 20th century narrated in the original Manga and Anime. Goddess Athena is still on Earth, after reincarnating, to cleanse it of the evil as she has done during millennia. Accompanied by her Saints, to fulfill her duty of protecting peace on Earth, after her victories over antagonistic deities, Athena and a new generation of Saints prepare to face a new menace that lurks in this new era, in which Pegasus Seiya, the protagonist of Kurumada's manga, is revered as a Saint of legend.

Athena & Her Saints

Warning! Some of these characters have not appeared in the Anime! Proceed at your own will!

  Pegasus Kouga:  A 13 year-old boy, who is destined to become the Pegasus Bronze Saint in the future era. He is the main character in this series, trained since his early childhood to become a Saint, Kōga is rebellious but also compassionate. He is still unaware of the purpose of having become a Saint in an era of peace, and has yet to discover his destiny. His name means Light Fang in Japanese.

    Athena: The greek goddess of justice, wisdom and heroic endeavor, who always returns when evil consumes Earth. As in Kurumada's manga, she appears as Saori Kido (城戸沙織) during her incarnation in the 20th century. She took care of the orphaned Kōga as his foster mother.

    Orion Eden: An enigmatic young man, the Orion Saint in the future era. Eden is 15 years old. Mysterious and distant, Eden believes in the dominance of the strong and disregards the weak, putting his faith in his own strength. Unlike in Kurumada's mythos, in which the Orion Saint belongs to the Silver Saint ranks, in Omega, the Orion Saint is ranked as a Bronze Saint. (Here's' your hot headed character, or so it seems. Don't know yet ha ha!)

     Wolf Haruto: The young Bronze Saint of the Wolf constellation. Descendant of shinobi, a smart and knowledgeable 13 year-old boy. Stoic, Haruto aims to become a strong Saint. With a calm personality, he blends the shinobi arts with the ancient fighting style of the Saints. His name means Glorious Battler in Japanese. (Doesn't sound so interesting but we'll see how it goes with him.)

     Aquila Yuna: The female Saint of the Eagle constellation, a 13 year-old girl. Departing from Kurumada's manga, the Aquila Saint is ranked as a Bronze Saint in Omega. Yuna aims to become a true and strong Saint, but strongly opposes the implied rule that female Saints should remain in a life of secrecy. (Interesting! Finally a female Saint into battle!)

     Dragon Ryuho: A 13 year-old boy, friend to Kōga, who considers him almost his brother, the Dragon Bronze Saint in the future era. Very caring of others by nature, Ryūhō suffers from a frail health. Calm and polite, he has a natural talent for becoming a formidable Saint, but he is affected by his condition. He received the Dragon Cloth from his father. His name means Dragon Peak in Japanese.

      Lionet Soma: A 14 year-old boy, Kōga's best friend and trusted partner, the Lionet Bronze Saint of the future generation. With a bright and cheerful personality, Sōma is also emotional and prone to lose his temper. His name means Blue Mark in Japanese.

  So far we seem to have your usual main characters. This is Saint Seiya though. Although Seiya and his friends don't come out, let us all hope that this series is as good as the originals. I won't really reveal the whole list of characters as it might be a spoiler to some. To those who are going to watch it and are new to the Saint Seiya fandom, prepare to be hooked! Ha ha! I've seen all the Arcs/Chapters and even specials, not in one sitting of course. Over the course of their releases ha ha ha! ALSO! There will be a 3DCG movie coming out. No release date yet or story but it's a movie! So look out for it. Once again, thanks for reading.

Anime: Accel World (アクセル・ワールド)

 Plot Summary: One autumn day in 2046, Haruyuki has an encounter with Kuroyukihime, the prettiest girl in his school. For the middle school boy who is often bullied, the meeting changes his life. Through a mysterious piece of software from her, Haruyuki learns of the existence of the virtual Accel World. In that moment, the lowest of the "school caste" becomes "Burst Linker", a knight defending a princess. 

 The main character, Haruyuki, is short and chubby and not your typical tall, fit and cool looking Anime guy. That is something I didn't expect, but really found interesting and took a liking to it. Writer Reki Kawahara and illustrators HiMA,Hiroyuki Aigamo, and Ryuryū Akari really caught and got my full attention. The feel of this Manga/Anime is really exciting, but I'll get to that in just a bit. First off is this virtual world called Accel World. 

 It is the year 2040 and Neuro-synchronization, a technology system that allows humans to access the internet through their five senses and enter a virtual world, has become widespread and used for everything. Everyone has this object on the back of their necks which acts as if it were a computer. Everything seen through the eyes of people pretty much looks like as if they are staring at a computer screen with all the icons. Sounds like something anyone would love to have ha ha.

SPOILER ALERT!!!

The following contains spoilers of the first Chapter/Episode of Accel World!

 Towards to Manga and Anime! Well as I've said before, the story centers around our Protagonist, Haruyuki. Being bullied for being short and chubby and just weak, he escapes reality and goes online to play games. Seeing as how that's his only way to let out his stress and anger. One day he gets demanded to buy lunch to his bully and later goes to the boys restroom and decides to 'Direct Link' into the virtual world and play some games. After a long session he loses a match and his friend, Chiyuri logs on and sees his ridiculously high score of 2,630,000 points. She tells him to 'Link Out' and have lunch with her but he doesn't follow her. Thus! She forces him to Link Out by heading him on the head. Upon being forced to log out he notices that Chiyuri is right in front of him in one of the boys bathroom stalls. After a short talk and walk, Chiyuri offers him lunch but he denies and runs away. Looking back for only a second he runs off to the library. Direct Linking into the virtual world once again, he slightly remembers seeing his friend crying as he ran from her. He logs onto his game and sees that someone has beat his high score of two million. Seeing that he falls onto his knees and cries saying that games are his only strong point. Look above little Haruyuki! The person who beat your score is there! A voice calls out to him, "So you're the guy with that extremely high score?" the person says. He looks up and sees a young girl in a black outfit with big butterfly wings coming out of her back. She tells him to meet her at the school's lounge. The following day he does so and sees that its miss popular, Kuroyukihime. Now you may wonder, 'Why is miss popular wanting to talk to a chubby kid?' Well he is the main character, so.. Anyways, they talk for a bit and she offers him a program, or app. She tell him to install it. IF he can, and that he may fail. Haruyuki goes forth and installs it. SUCCESS! It installed safely! The program is called Brain Burst. Sounds painfully fun huh? 

 Not forgetting, his bully comes to the lounge and starts rampaging about his lunch and how little Haru hasn't gotten it for him. Kuroyukihime then speaks out on behalf on Haru and says that he bad mouthed him to her. The red head blow ups and starts a fight with Haru! Oh no! He makes our little hero stand up and throws a punch. Kuroyuki tells him to say 'Burst Link' and when he does so, time stops around them and they enter the Accel World. Haruyuki's online avatar pops out of his body and so does Kuriyukihime's. She gives him a small and quick explanation of the program and how one minute in reality is 16 minutes and 30 some seconds in Accel World. Kuroyukihime tells him to never connect to the global network with the program, but the next morning he turns on his N-S so his come can send him his lunch money. He forgets to turns it off and steps outside of his house and the program sends him into a different virtual world. New Challenger!? That's right! Brain Burst is a Virtual Reality Massive Multiplayer Online fighting game... That's a mouthful, VRMMO for short. Short fight shorter, Haru loses the match and heads off to school. Kuroyukihime tells him that losing a match makes his Acceleration points decrease, which allows him to enter Accel World, she also teaches him how to fight in the game. She then tells him to go back out and defeat the challenger. After school he goes off with her and enters the world once again. He faces off with the same guy once again and comes out victorious after a long match and whimpering thoughts.

 That's pretty much the first chapter and first episode. If you like fighting, difference, foul language and more, then I recommend this Manga and Anime. The main character is also quite a twist since it's not your typical guy. Although his whimpering and cowardice like behavior can get annoying to some readers and or fans. So far, I think I shall continue to watch and read this. Thanks you for reading and hope you check this Manga/Anime out.

The Hunger Games

 A lot of people have been talking about 'The Hunger Games' and I really am interested. Even though I am, I don't want to watch the movie just yet. I still have to read the books and I am finding the time to read them all. People make it seem as if it were the next 'Twilight' saga. Twilight movies were good and times but the love story is somewhat long and leads in many directions. Out of all of the current movies, I was interested in Breaking Dawn because of the small fight between the vampires and the wolves, as well as Bella being turned into a vampire at the end of the movie. 
  I got slightly distracted, sorry. Anyways, back to the topic at hand. The story contains another love triangle between 16-year-old Katniss Everdeen, Peeta Mellark, a baker's son whom Katniss knows from school and Gale Hawthorne, Katniss' best friend. Fans of the books and movie have already divided into teams, just like in the Twilight saga. The Hunger Games pretty much takes place in a nation known as Panem after the destruction of North America by some unknown apocalyptic event. Panem consists of a wealthy Capitol and twelve surrounding, poorer districts. District 12, where the book begins, is located in the coal-rich region that was formerly Appalachia. As punishment for a previous rebellion against the Capitol in which a 13th district was destroyed, one boy and one girl between the ages of 12 and 18 from each district are selected by annual lottery to participate in the Hunger Games, an event in which the participants or "tributes," must fight in an outdoor arena controlled by the Capitol, until only one remains. Sounds like one hell of a show for the spectators.
 Sounding like an interesting story to follow, the movie is rated PG-13. It shows children being killed off one by one, which can be a lot to take in for a younger audience. I am not one to complain about the rating because the rating itself was decided by parents and such, not the government. Thus, it is a parents' responsibility to make their children understand the difference between reality and fantasy. Even so, the books themselves tackle issues like severe poverty, starvation, oppression, and the effects of war among others, which are good to know about. Wow, fantastic baby. Ha ha, threw in a little Big Bang there.. Well, for a short post, I think I kind of made it interesting. Peace out to my motivation, inspiration, and... I'll get back to you on that last one.