DORAMA「ドラマ」and Men

(Before you guys all yell at me for such a ridiculous topic, let me just say that I apologize for not posting lately. I have been rather on a dry source for writing inspiration and motivation. Hence the long silence. I wrote this a while back but never posted it. Thought I might as well prove I'm alive. :P)

Following such a long absence of anything of substance, I figured it was high time for me to get my ass in gear and actually write something intelligent, something inspired, and, most importantly, something which will give you a view into my current life in Japan.

I am, course, referring to the current culture here. In other words, drama television, manpurses, and pretty people.

Honestly, what did you expect?

So, let`s start with something I already touched on. DRAMA! Currently, I am blaming one of my best friends (who is currently sleeping beside me in the computer lab at her computer... because she has nothing else to do) who basically got me into this one series. Of course, I actually have no one to blame but myself. This is because, I saw an advertisement, among the hundreds everywhere, for one drama and another drama which is based on a manga I read online back in the States. The first drama, TUMBLING (or "tanburingu" タンブリング), I watched the first episode on my phone. It is entire in Japanese and not yet discovered or piqued the interest of the subbing community. To make things simple, it is about a "yankee" or school punk, who joins a tumbling (sort of like rhythmic gymnastics) team in his highschool and, well, the story just kinda goes from there. Basically, it`s a lot of intense looks, pretty people, over acting, and makes me laugh all the time. Honestly, I can`t watch the show without laughing. Not only is it overdone, but it`s also extremely, in my opinion, gay. Well, by American standards. However, that doesn`t eliminate the fact that I actually enjoy the show. It`s one those experiences where you can actually just let yourself be wrapped up in the drama. The truth is, it`s so over the top and ridiculous that you can`t help but let yourself indulge. It`s the same with another drama I`m watching called Sunao ni Narenakute, which is starring one of my favorite singers in the Asian music sphere Kim Jaejoonng, best known for his part in the Korean group DBSK/TVQK or Tohoshinki. That show is also addictive and incredibly amusing. Even though I feel as if I can predict everything, the acting is sappy, and the whole thing is ridiculously over done, I still find myself enjoying it.




Unlike American drama, which you all might associate with the popular names of Lost, Gray`s Anatomy, Desperate Housewives, etc.. Japanese drama is more along the lines of the soap operas. And everyone follows them. Well, maybe not everyone, but the following of these dramas rivals the rabid fangirls of those boybands from the 90`s lets just say that. Asian drama forms a genre completely its own when compared to Western Drama. The stories are emotional, slightly disturbing, and almost always deal with some sort of relationship in the most intense way possible. After a bit of time, you recognize a familiar theme in all the shows. One character is always being beaten down/misunderstood but people slowly gravitate towards he/she because of his shining hidden personality; a love triangle or two between characters all of which have huge emotional baggage and cannot work out without fighting in some way shape or form; a few hidden secrets which will eventually end in the revealing of old marriages, loves, or past drastic mistakes which people beg for forgiveness from; and anything else you can think up which would make it even more dramatic or "LE GASP!" worthy. Though I am still new to the world of drama and have only experienced the Japanese Drama, I have also heard that Korean Drama is even more over the top. Basically, people either say Korean Drama is the best or the worst.

I`ll let you guys know what I think when I get the chance to check it out. Basically, it brings out the inner fangirl.

Well, I suppose that actually the next topic could also be considered entertaining, but not in the media sense of the word. Here, I am referring to Japanese fashion. I should firstly point out that Japanese fashion is extremely unlike anything I`ve seen as of yet. Sure, you can say that it isn`t that much of a culture shock, but truthfully, when you compare the world here to what I know back in America, it`s pretty astronomical. Everyone, and I mean EVERYONE looks nice all the time. The only people who look even the slightest bit scruffy are the homeless, and even they don`t look nearly as bad as those seen wandering the streets of Boston or NYC. Basically, everyone here is pretty. They`re all fit, they`re all well dressed, and they all look practically ready for a photoshoot. I`ve never in my life felt fat before, nor so utterly underdressed and selfconscious of my clothes. And that`s just the guys.

Of course, you may think I`m kidding on that point. I`m not. They`re all well dressed, well kept, and, to put it simply, pretty. Well, okay, maybe not all of them, but a whole lot of them are definitely easy on the eyes. This was probably the only bit of culture shock which I`ve experienced since my time in Japan. The fact that everyone here is so kept. In the states, this would be labeled as only one thing and without remorse. Gay. Homosexual. Queer. In the states, to be so well kept and attractive, spending almost as much time on ones appearance as a girl, you`d be considered poncy. However, if they`re all poncy, I`ve yet to meet one. Though I suppose this is me just revealing my own stereotypical thinking and ignorance, I suppose it is something which I should have realized. Though I must say, it is extremely nice to have such a nice refreshing change from the image of a man changing from a morning scruff, dirty laundry and baggy pants to a nice hair cut, clean face and body, pressed clothing and a towel nicely hung up rather than lying on the floor.






The culture is most evident in the stars and icons of the media, the majority of whom are all equally as clean and impressive.

Now onto something which I noticed and which never ceased to amuse me for the first few weeks that I was here. Now, it`s just normal, so it doesn`t even catch my attention now, but I remembered it just now and figured I`d write about it. The basic status of men and women in the states is simple; women carry purses, men shove their wallets into the back pants pocket and call it cool. In Japan, everyone carries a bag. And I mean everyone. Men, women, kids, old men, old women, hell, I wouldn`t be surprised if I saw a dog carrying around a shoulder bag soon. But it`s not even just shoulder bags for school, everyone carries bags. What first hit me was how many men, of all ages, carry a bag. And not just the salarymen carrying briefcases, but all the guys here carry the equivalent of a woman's purse. Well, maybe not all of them, but a vast majority of them carry some sort of bag. And not just messenger bags, bags which would rival the purses in the women's boutiques. Basically, they all carry what we in America call a manpurse and here they simply call a bag. Though surprising at first, it really makes a whole lot of sense. I mean, in Tokyo you carry around a lot of crap. Your wallet, your dekiken (train pass because EVERYONE uses trains), your phone with its 500 phone charms equally twice the size of your cell, your ipod (everyone has an mp3 player), the pair of headphones for your ipod, the pair of headphones for your phone, and whatever else you`re going to need for your day. Of course, not all men carry bags, but it`s certainly a fair few that you see. Here, since you walk EVERYWHERE, you carry your stuff with you. And a bags never a bad idea kids. Plus, what with the fashion craze, they certainly are stylish.





Just like everything else in Japan.

And with that, I`ll stop before I begin rambling more and more about the daily life around me. However, know that this is not the end of me! I SHALL RETURN! And with more long winded posts about random.

ja ne