May 2009

Nagase Tomoya, lead vocalist of Johnny's Entertainment band TOKIO, will be starring as a superspy in a new upcoming drama next season.

Nagase is not only a popular J-Pop icon but also an accomplished actor who has starred in more than 30 Japanese dramas. Some of the dramas he's starred in include Ikebukuro West Gate Park, Mukodono, Tiger & Dragon and My Boss My Hero.

Nagase will play Yoroi Kyosuke, a swindler who is serving time in jail after being caught for more than a dozen cases of fraud. The government decides to use his skills by recruiting him to become a spy that will fight against terrorists. This premise actually reminds me of that Vin Diesel movie, XXX.

In typical spy fashion, he'll be equipped with a variety of gadgets including a ring that turns into a gun and a shoe that doubles as a cell phone. Get Smart anyone? He'll also be in disguises where he'll act as a pilot, doctor and a Korean actor resembling Bae Yong Joon. He'll even have a "Bond girl" character named Dorothy.

As you can see, this drama is going to spoof alot of spy movies and with Nagase's excellent comedic timing, this show sounds like it's going to be full of laughs.

NTV will start airing this series in July, putting it on the network's Saturday 9 P.M. time slot.

SOURCES:
DramaWiki
Tokyograph

AnimeSuki.com Forums also list down the upcoming Anime for Summer 2009 with links to series descriptions.  You can read them HERE.

100-yen shops are dry good shops that sell various items including household utensils, office supplies, and even arts & crafts for a low fixed price of 100 yen. 100-yen shops can be found almost everywhere in Japan because of the convenience in buying everyday items at an affordable price. They are gaining popularity around the world with similar shops like dollar stores and one pound shops popping up everywhere as well.

Here in the country, we even hae our own version of the 100-yen shop called Japan Home Center, selling cheap slightly lower quality goods. Imagine my delight when an original 100-yen shop makes it way here and puts up a branch in Manila.

Daiso is the largest franchise of 100-yen shops in Japan, owned by Daiso-Sangyo Corp. They opened a new branch on the 3rd floor of Robinson's Galleria. Saizen, as they call the branch here, covers 800 square meters of shop space with thousands of different items that you might see in a typical Japanese 100-yen shop and every item in the store are at a low fixed price of PhP85.00.

I personally enjoy spending time in office supplies, stationary, and arts & crafts shops so it was a big treat for me to go there. They are like a supply store that you can find a lot of items you may need for your home, school or office and for the low price of PhP85.00, you can really find a bargain.

Whether its for your own personal needs or to give as gifts to your friends and family, Saizen has a little bit of everything for everyone. You are also guaranteed quality as all the items come from Japan and are even branded. Even celebrities shop at Saizen. I had the opportunity to catch a glimpse of Donita Rose as my friends and I were leaving.

With the recent uproar caused by the proposal and passage of what is now known as the "Hentai bill,"  another member of the house representative has seen fit to attack online games.

"DOTA, or any role-playing game for that matter, may be fun, but it won’t be able to teach you the skills you need for your first job, or for higher education."  This was an excerpt from the recent speech made by AKBAYAN reprentative Risa Hontiveros-Baraquel during the commencement excersises of University of the Philippines Cebu College. 

In her speech, she actively voiced her opinion against online games and that it should only be treated as something addictive.  She goes on further to state that unless you are on the verge of game development, that we won't learn from them and should simply keep it in moderation.  She even stressed the need to be physically fit as opposed to playing online games.