I've been a fan of Japanese popular music for 40 years, and have managed to collect a lot of material during that time. So I decided I wanted to talk about Showa Era music with like-minded fans. My particular era is the 70s and 80s (thus the "kayo kyoku"). The plus part includes a number of songs and artists from the last 30 years and also the early kayo. So, let's talk about New Music, aidoru, City Pop and enka.
Credits
I would like to give credit where credit is due. Videos are from YouTube and other sources such as NicoNico while Oricon rankings and other information are translated from the Japanese Wikipedia unless noted.
It's been well over a year since Season 3 of "Kaguya-sama wa Kokurasetai"（かぐや様は告らせたい...Kaguya-sama: Love is War）, aka "Ultra Romantic"（ウルトラロマンティック）, came and went with the most anticipated kiss in recent anime history finally happening in Episode 13. To preface my feelings on "Ultra Romantic" as a whole, I have to say that as much as I know about that sophomore jinx when it comes to everything in pop culture from a movie franchise's second entry to a professional baseball player's second year in the big leagues, I think that I may have experienced the same thing when it comes to the third seasons in anime franchises.
The third TV season of "Uchuusenkan Yamato"（宇宙戦艦ヤマト）in 1981 seemed like one too many trips to the well, and even with the third season of "Gochuumon wa Usagi desu ka?"（ご注文はうさぎですか？...Is The Order A Rabbit?）in 2020 titled "Bloom", the end result didn't quite strike me as nearly as impressive as the first two seasons although I liked it well enough. And I'm also rather torn on "Ultra Romantic". I didn't really make my feelings clear on Season 3 of "Kaguya-sama" in the articles on the main opening and ending themes when I wrote them up last year, but generally speaking, it was again the situation where I wasn't quite as satisfied with "Ultra Romantic" as I was with the first two seasons. Maybe it was the case that Miyuki and Kaguya were no longer battling each other's wits so much and were simply heading into that collision course of love. I did make my peace with Masayuki Suzuki's（鈴木雅之）"GIRI GIRI" and the ending of Airi Suzuki's（鈴木愛理）,"Heart wa Oteage"（ハートはお手上げ）was further enhanced by that amazing ending credit sequence which looked like something out of "Evangelion" and "Starship Troopers". Usually, I wasn't really a big fan of the ending themes.
My opinion on "Ultra Romantic" is probably a minority one and that's fine. Glad that most other people were very happy with the series. However, I think that we can all agree that Episode 5 where the rap battle took place will go down as one of the highlights for the entire anime franchise. And I have to admit that a lot of the characters had their personalities deepened because of it and other developments in the season. But Student Council Secretary Chika Fujiwara played by Konomi Kohara（小原好美）got launched into the stratosphere. I first saw her as the innocent representative of we viewers in Season 1 who was witnessing the machinations happening between Miyuki and Kaguya and by Season 3, she's become a political schemer who has been openly disdainful of the council president and can rap with the best of them. Her "audition" of sorts in front of Miyuki had jaws (including mine) dropping.
But then, a few minutes later, the viewers get even more slammed into the ground when Miyuki goes on his musical rap tirade against Hayasaka. The animation and the performance were just hilarious and incredible at the same time. I would have loved to have been in the recording studio when Kohara and Shin Furukawa（古川慎）, Miyuki's seiyuu, pulled this off. It was tough love intervention for Miyuki, Hayasaka and Kaguya done in a new unexpected way.
Finally, the showmanship floored viewers once more through a special end credits sequence for Episode 5 as Miyuki and Chika, and a couple of the other student council members, obviously kept up with their hip-hop studies and moves to create "My Nonfiction". Once again, jaws were crashing through the floor due to the song along with the bump-up in the animation budget. The lyrics were provided by rapper and radio personality Akkogorilla（あっこゴリラ）with music by Akkogorilla and music producer/trackmaker Parkgolf.
Violinist extraordinaire Taro Hakase（葉加瀬太郎）is someone that has been mentioned on the pages of KKP because of his work within the musical trio KRYZLER & KOMPANY. I've also noted that I used to see him a fair bit on television in Japan not only for his performances but also as a tarento along with his wife Mayuko Takada（髙田万由子）. What I hadn't known was that both of them could speak English as they are doing above while being interviewed by the BBC several years ago.
I saw him last week, in fact, as a guest on the popular NHK information variety series "Chiko-chan ni Shikarareru!"（チコちゃんに叱られる!...Don't Sleep Through Life!）. He was as charming and amiable as ever, and I was reminded of a song that he composed and performed as a soloist years ago which hit me through the airwaves. I never saw the TBS late-night human interest program "Jounetsu Tairiku" (Continent of Passion) which began in 1998 but I think that its theme with the same title has become even more well-known than the program itself and apparently it has become one of Hakase's most famous pieces. According to J-Wiki, though, the song wasn't used until over half a year into the program's run.
To be honest, I thought "Jounetsu Tairiku" was something that was used in commercials, and it probably was used in the ads for the source program. It's quite the heroic and snazzy number with the salsa and good dollops of jazz solos accompanying Hakase's wicked playing. Perhaps it's safe to say that it can almost be like his own theme tune. "Jounetsu Tairiku" has been placed onto the violinist's album "Songbook" released in 2021.
"Jounetsu Tairiku" has also been one of the many songs that were ripe for clever parody by composer Kei Haneoka（羽岡佳）for the anime"Kaguya-sama wa Kokurasetai"（かぐや様は告らせたい...Kaguya-sama: Love is War）. Given the unlikely title of "Muscle Queen" due to a new nickname give to the title character herself in Season 3 last year, it's unmistakably a tribute to Hakase, and it's a part of "KAGUYA Music Collection Season 3" which came out at the end of March this year.
However, I remember "Muscle Queen" being played for another notorious scene in Season 3. Sigh...young people these days; no sense of control.😋
I realize that it's just been a few short weeks since the last article regarding Masayuki Suzuki（鈴木雅之）but when the God of Love Songs beckons, I simply cannot refuse the call.
For one thing, his newest original album came out on April 12th. "SOUL NAVIGATION" boasts a goodly amount of collaboration with other artists resulting in songs such as this soul-funk track "Michishirube"(Guideposts). Martin may be 66 years old as of this writing but he's still swiveling like a pro in ways that would have had me reaching for my Salon-Pas within a few minutes. Written and composed by YOASOBI's Ayase (with a bit of Jamiroquai reminiscings), the music video reflects the lyrics of two kids growing up into adults with all of the trials and tribulations expected, and happily they both get together.
Suzuki had actually performed this on "Uta Con"（うたコン）a few weeks ago but when I initially searched for the song on YouTube, it hadn't arrived yet. Patience is indeed a virtue.
Also from "SOUL NAVIGATION" is a love letter to all of those "Kaguya-sama wa Kokurasetai"（かぐや様は告らせたい...Kaguya-sama: Love is War） fans, especially where Martin has left his immortal mark via his opening themes for the first three seasons and a movie including "Love is Show". Sound producer CARTOON + YELLOCK has mashed together snippets of all of the themes to form a funk fest remix.
Well, last night, I finally got to view the latest segment of the anime adaptation of "Kaguya-sama wa Kokurasetai"（かぐや様は告らせたい...Kaguya-sama: Love is War） in the form of a movie that had come out in theatres in Japan just before Xmas last year and just after Season 3. Titled "First Kiss wa Owaranai"（ファーストキッスは終わらない...The First Kiss That Never Ends）, it was basically four extra episodes tied together into a little less than an hour and forty-five minutes and dealt with the consequences of that fateful fully-anticipated kiss between Kaguya and Miyuki. You might say that it was Season 3.33.
Last night for that Portable Rock article, I'd used that Data/Lore scene from "Star Trek: Picard" as a bit of an analogy for Maki Nomiya（野宮真貴）. I think that it would be even more fitting for this article, too. There was an even more pitched battle in the mind of Kaguya with four different aspects going toe to toe with each other. To be honest, I hadn't been all that enthused about "First Kiss wa Owaranai" because Season 3 seemed a bit of a letdown. I'd always preferred it when Kaguya and Miyuki were overusing their intellects against each other to hilarious effect and it was getting pretty obvious that the status quo was evolving rapidly between these two. But of course for the fans of the franchise, I understand that this is indeed a romantic comedy instead of it just being a comedy.
However, I actually did enjoy "First Kiss" even though the comic elements, though still there, were more muted. After all, the thrust of this extended episode was how the two main characters struggled with not only what had happened on top of the clock tower but also their own deeply embedded psychological knots that needed to unravel if a romantic relationship could actually have a healthy chance of working. I think the the fact it all came out into the open rather than being teased a few times over the past few seasons made it more satisfying for me.
Knowing that "First Kiss" had come out around Xmas in Japan, I was wondering when it would show up here on this side of the Pacific. Well, I started seeing videos of the glorious opening credit sequence from around last week and so I figured that the movie was finally seeing the light of day on platforms such as Crunchyroll. Of course, this brings me to another reason that I enjoyed the movie which is the traditional Masayuki Suzuki（鈴木雅之）and friend's funky opening theme.
"Love is Show" is sung by Martin and Momoiro Clover Z's（ももいろクローバーZ）Reni Takagi（高城れに）and has the same fellows backing them up in songwriting, lyricist/composer Yoshiki Mizuno（水野良樹）and arranger Akimitsu Honma（本間昭光）. It still doesn't reach the sublime heights of "Love Dramatic" and "DADDY! DADDY! DO!" for the first two seasons of "Kaguya-sama" but I think that it does edge out Season 3's"GIRI GIRI" which took a while for me to warm up to.
Hearing the whole song and watching the barnstorming opening credits had me thinking that this was a new and happier beginning for the franchise. "Love is Show" seems lighter, bouncier and more hopeful with that good ol' disco intro, and after watching the movie, I was humming it in the shower. Good sign right there!
(Yup, the video has been taken down.)
I saw through one of the comments that the opening credits for the theatrical version were very different from the one that has come out on streaming. Indeed, I did find this one video (which may not be up all that long) that has those early credits showing scenes from past seasons. As such, I prefer the ones for the small screen presentation but the theatrical credits aren't too bad either.
I heard that the original manga finally reached its end last November but another commenter mentioned rather ambitiously that the anime may have around three more seasons' worth of material. We shall see but my feeling is that the first big phase of "Kaguya-sama" has reached its ending, and maybe there will be some intense discussions among the producers about whether that's all she wrote for the anime wing.
Indeed, Season 3 of the "Kaguya-sama wa Kokurasetai ~ Tensai-tachi no Ren'ai Zunousen"（かぐや様は告らせたい〜天才たちの恋愛頭脳戦〜）franchise, "Ultra Romantic", finished up months ago, although I'm still catching up on the show with Episode 10 to be seen this week. Yup, I'm also approaching the moment of the entire series, and in a few weeks apparently, there will be a special "Kaguya-sama" movie titled in English as "Kaguya-sama: Love Is War – The First Kiss That Never Ends" which will show the consequences of that moment.
"Ultra Romantic" has had its highlights as was the case with the previous two seasons with one of those coming up in Episode 2 where Kaguya and a very reluctant Ai Hayasaka pulled off yet another machination on Miyuki at a local karaoke box. The plan didn't quite go off to plan but Kaguya's jack-of-all-trades major-domo once again displayed another ability which was singing. And unlike Miyuki, Hayasaka showed that she could hold a tune very well which further cemented my impression during all of my times at karaoke with students and fellow teachers that there is always that one singer who can hold everyone's attention with their vocal cords.
Seiyuu Yumiri Hanamori（花守ゆみり）, aka Hayasaka, displayed a brief excerpt of her abilities via "Kanashikute Lu Lu Lu" (My Feelings Lu Lu Lu) as an insert song. But in the months since the broadcast of the episode, I've noticed that the song has gotten quite a bit of coverage via YouTube. Written by "Kaguya-sama" creator Aka Akasaka（赤坂アカ）and Kiyomi Kumano（くまのきよみ）, and composed by Keiki Nishida（西田圭稀）, "Kanashikute Lu Lu Lu" sounds like a 1990s J-Pop ballad, so I instantly got some nostalgia vibes from listening to it. The lyrics also seem to reflect Hayasaka's frustration at her own relationships, either with Kaguya or Miyuki. From what I've read regarding later chapters of the manga yet to be shown on screen, things will get more complicated for everyone involved.
While I'm at it here, I felt like putting in this much briefer insert tune which premiered in Episode 1 where Ishigami tries to save Iino's pride by showing off what he listens to.
Yes, this is the sugary-sweet moe "Anata no 💓 ni Headshot" (Headshot to Your 💓) that pretty much seals Ishigami's fate as a kyun-kyun loving otaku. Once again, the lyrics are by Akasaka with the melody and arrangement by Kei Haneoka（羽岡佳）, the man behind the soundtrack for all of "Kaguya-sama". I'm convinced that he can whip up any sort of music from any genre now, including anything that could be sung by employees at a maid café.
Singing it is vocalist and lyricist Kaon Kokudo（國土佳音）who hails from Saitama Prefecture and began her career in music in 2015. In addition to her main activities, Kokudo has also provided chorus arrangement, narration and vocal direction. Her singing runs the gamut from opera to heavy metal.
"Kaguya-sama" has had all this attention and attraction from the budding romance and comedic misunderstandings for the past few years, but I also think that any of the music attached to the franchise has been top-notch as well.
Well, so far so good. "Kaguya-sama wa Kokurasetai - Ultra Romantic"（かぐや様は告らせたい-ウルトラロマンティック-）, the third season of the popular franchise has been revealing its usual hijinks of misunderstandings within the elite high school academy. The show is three episodes in and the titular character has learned another vital component in foreplay.
A-1 Pictures: So we're going into "Ultra Romantic" now. How much did you need for the budget? Director Hatakeyama: YES.
Yes, that is my snarky imagination at work wondering how much extra yen the folks behind the creation of the series have been getting when they're coming up with ending credit sequences like this one for "Ultra Romantic". I never paid much attention to the end credits for the first two seasons but for the particular sequence this season, it really grabbed me since it looks like it belongs to another anime or maybe that upcoming Doctor Strange movie has provided us viewers with an alternative universe with the "Kaguya-sama" characters. And apparently this universe has merged "Starship Troopers" and "Evangelion".
As a result, I've also been paying more attention to the ending theme that goes with those credits. "Heart wa Oteage" (My Heart Does Not Know What to Do) is performed by Airi Suzuki（鈴木愛理）, and if that name sounds familiar to "Kaguya-sama" fans, it should. Suzuki was working with Masayuki "Martin" Suzuki（鈴木雅之）on the opening theme for the second season, "DADDY! DADDY! DO!".
But this time around, Airi is taking it solo with "Heart wa Oteage" which is indeed the first time that I've devoted an article for a "Kaguya-sama" ender. Up to now, it's all been about Martin's bomber opening themes including the one for this season "GIRI GIRI" but along with the impressive ending credits, "Heart wa Oteage" has won me over for its really upbeat tone but also for the guitar-laden parts of the melody since they sound somewhat like 80s pop from either side of the Pacific.
Suzuki's 2nd single which will be released in June on CD but has already been available on streaming and download since April 22nd was composed by Yoshiki Mizuno（水野良樹）and arranged by Akimitsu Honma（本間昭光）, the same duo behind the Martin melodies while the lyrics were provided by Kumiko Takahashi（高橋久美子）, the drummer for the rock band Chatmonchy（チャットモンチー）.
More characters have been popping up on the show and I'm wondering how "Ultra Romantic" will end in a couple of months. By the way, have a look as well at Airi's other song "Break it down".
Well, we knew from about a year ago that the third season of "Kaguya-sama wa Kokurasetai"（かぐや様は告らせたい...Kaguya-sama: Love is War）, aka "Ultra Romantic"（ウルトラロマンティック）, was on its way which got all of the fans nicely simmering for several months. Then as the date drew near, the trailer for Season 3 appeared which displayed the usual nuttiness among the characters although there will be the inevitable dramatic episode. And then, the final piece made its presence known a few weeks ago, and that was the necessary Masayuki Suzuki（鈴木雅之）opening theme. The scuttlebutt has been in place that it wouldn't be a "Kaguya-sama" show without the golden vocals from The King of Love Songs.
OK, now, for the sake of total transparency, when I did hear "GIRI GIRI" with Martin and featured performer Sumire Yoshida（吉田菫）, aka Suu（すぅ）, of the band Silent Siren, for the first time at the beginning of April, I have to admit that I had been a little underwhelmed. I'm not sure what it was but it didn't quite hit right with me like the first opener "Love Dramatic" and "DADDY! DADDY! DO!" did right from the get-go. However, happily (and I figured that it would do so), "GIRI GIRI" has grown on me quickly over the past few weeks, especially seeing the opening credits for Season 3.
Moreover, it certainly appears that I was in the minority when it came to first reactions. Anyways, it's Martin and this time Suu blasting out the soul and funk once more to get folks into their happy dancing place. And as has been the case with the other two openers, it's Ikimonogakari（いきものがかり）leader Yoshiki Mizuno（水野良樹）handling words and music with Akimitsu Honma（本間昭光）arranging everything. I can reassure everyone that the catchiness is back in me and I'm even happier since this time, the full song, which has suddenly proliferated like cherry blossoms in Tokyo in March on YouTube, has a cool sax solo.
According to Suzuki's official YouTube channel which has the music video with him and Suu below, "GIRI GIRI" is available for download as of today. The CD single won't be ready until June 8th. Regardless the fans are funking it up now.
Not sure if this is indeed a thing, but I've noticed that the 7th episodes in seasons of certain anime go into absolute wacky comedy mode. That was something that my anime buddy and I noticed for the first couple of seasons of "Strike Witches" and that has certainly been the case for the first couple of seasons for "Kaguya-sama: Love is War".
I'm not trying to intimate that "Kaguya-sama" is a dour drama. Of course, it's a romantic comedy (for the most part) anime that has become must-see TV along the lines that Marvel's "WandaVision" has been this year. However, Episode 7 of Season 1 with the introduction of Ishigami at last and Kaguya's weiner fetish brought the house down, and then its twin in Season 2 with Kaguya's deep curiosity about underwear and hand massages was another hilarious mishmash of misunderstandings.
Then, Season 2 Episode 7 pulled off another coup. Even with three full segments, it suddenly whipped into the ending credits with several more minutes left on the clock. According to the reaction videos, folks were wondering whether the show had been pre-empted by an emergency broadcast or the studio ran out of budget for the show. It was quite the opposite, actually. The animators apparently possessed a ton of money since they all went crazy and put forth a shojo manga version of "Kaguya-sama" for kicks in the remaining time. Most of the funny if psychologically kinked characters were all smoothed over and given injections of heavy-duty nobility. The reactors had to lift their jaws off the floor.
For months, I had been hoping that the theme song for this shojo manga"Kaguya-sama" would be put up onto YouTube and it looks like my wish came true at the end of October last year, thanks to the uploader Ran Mouri."Yasashisa no Kioku"(Memories of Kindness) by singer-songwriter maimie is perfect for the pink and fluffy take on "Kaguya-sama". It's so happy, optimistic and uptempo that I just want to grab a net, run out and catch butterflies.
Kiyomi Kumano（くまのきよみ）was responsible for the lyrics while Kei Hanaoka（羽岡佳）, the man responsible for the amazing soundtrack behind the show, took care of the music and arrangement.
We "Kaguya-sama" fans are openly excited about the impending arrival of an OVA of the series and then the eventual Season 3.
The very first Author's Picks article in late 2013 belongs to JTM and he chose the opportunity to cover some of his favourite anison, J-Drama and Japanese movie themes. Strangely enough, I realized that I have yet to describe some of my own favourite anison although I have often touched upon the genre in articles going all the way to KKP's inaugural year of 2012.
Well, challenge accepted then! However, when I was dreaming up my list, I also realized that I had forgotten to include some of the very first anison themes that had come to my ears such as the ones belonging to "Space Cruiser Yamato" and other tunes before 2011. So, when it comes down to it, I've decided to make this list under one simple condition: my favourite anison are to be for shows that I've seen over the past decade since returning from Japan in December 2011. I will make a separate list for beloved anime themes pre-2011 at a later date.
Thinking up the list, I believe and I think you will also believe that a lot of my choices for favourite anison have that certain funk and groove, and that is probably due to the fact that my favourite genre in Japanese popular music is City Pop/AOR. But there will be a few exceptions.
Shall we being then? Ah, before I forget, the list isn't in any particular order.
An anime series doesn't necessarily demand a cookin' theme song to be successful. I've seen some pretty fine shows for which I can't really remember the themes, to be honest. However, a great opening theme can act as a splendid business card for what the show can bring to your senses. Case in point: "Viva Namida"（ビバナミダ）by Prince-ly funk artist Yasuyuki Okamura（岡村靖幸）for the out-of-left-universe show "Space Dandy". As I mentioned in the original article for the song, I knew that I had to get the single when I heard it on Episode 1. Seeing all of the sexy opening credits paired with this sexy song made my choice pretty inevitable. I was getting major Bootsy Collins vibes from Okamura who at the time looked like a buttoned-down company cog until he began hitting the dance floor.
Okamura got all funky? Well, so did Suzuki（鈴木雅之）, and he and his namesake, Airi（鈴木愛理）, added dollops of soul to "DADDY! DO! DO!" to this opening theme for the second season of "Kaguya-sama: Love is War" which will end next weekend, much to fans' disappointment. Folks had been wondering whether Martin would be back to reprise opening theme duties and they were celebrating in the streets when he and his new partner brought a song that may have even eclipsed the amazing "Love Dramatic" from Season 1. Like many YouTube viewers, I've listened to "DADDY! DO! DO!" a ton of times since it was put up and I've yet to get tired of it. Who would have thought that such cool songs would be associated with a rom-com manga-based anime (albeit maybe one of the most popular works ever made)? Now, the pressure is on whether Suzuki can pull off a three-peat with Season 3 (and yeah, there just HAS to be a Season 3).
Getting all sentimental here, but "Joshiraku"（じょしらく）is one of the first anime that I got to see at my buddy's place soon after getting back to Toronto for good. "Kaguya-sama" is the "Frasier" of anime to me, but "Joshiraku" has always been my anime "Seinfeld". The five female rakugo artists simply banter about anything under the sun in their tiny resting room away from the stage. And that raucous opening theme "O-Ato ga Yoroshikutte...YO!"（お後がよろしくって。。。よ！）has had the same effect on me as the theme song for "The Flintstones" did for me whenever I got to see the adventures of Fred and Barney. It's just a welcoming happy tune for each episode while the credits show off the loony mayhem that is to follow. It's just a pity that a second season never came to fruition but at least I got to see the beginnings of Ayane Sakura's（佐倉綾音）career.
4. Petit Rabbit's -- Daydream Café (Gochuumon wa Usagi desu ka? Season 1, 2014)
Speaking of Sakura, here she is as part of Petit Rabbit's, the main cast singing the first opening theme for the franchise "Gochuumon wa Usagi desu ka?"（ご注文はうさぎですか）. "Daydream Café" in its own way is very similar to the opener for "Joshiraku" in that it gives off that welcome shiny and cheery tune basically describing a typical episode of what is basically Girls und Cafés, and the cast perform the tune in character. Although there have been a number of theme songs now for "GochiUsa" in the past six years of its anime existence (including the one that will adorn Season 3 later this fall), I think "Daydream Café" will always be the one theme that fits everyone to a tea...tee.
5. Chinatsu Akasaki, Haruka Tomatsu & Aki Toyosaki -- Wa! Moon! dass! cry! (Joshi Kosei no Mudazukai, 2019)
Since I've been throwing in these comparisons of these anime to American sitcoms that I've known, how about saying that the zany "Joshi Kosei no Mudazukai"（女子高生の無駄づかい）is a mix between "MASH" and "Welcome Back, Kotter"? Discuss! As I recall, there were a few really catchy theme songs in the summer of 2019, but "Wa! Moon! dass! cry!"（輪！Moon！dass！cry！）has come out on top for me because it has been the earworm that has kept on giving all these months leading to the 1-year anniversary since its appearance as an anime. Akasaki（赤崎千夏）, Tomatsu（戸松遥）and Toyosaki（豊崎愛生）who play the main trio in the show must have earned their vocal hazard pay in lunging into this playful sing-song rap with a dance remix rhythm. And the song even gets rather poignantly sweet at the end. It just makes me hope that a second season might come out.
6. Shonan no Kaze -- Grand Blue (Grand Blue, 2018)
Talk about hoping for a Season 2. It's hard to believe that it will soon be two years since the wall-to-wall hilarity of "Grand Blue"（ぐらんぶる）assaulted my funny bone. I still go to the reaction videos from time to time to share in the laughter, and I finally got my own copy of the show. "Grand Blue" the opening theme by Shonan no Kaze（湘南乃風）is the ultimate mood maker for summery good times and dancing on the beach (maybe there can be some actual diving, too!). Like the other themes, it has prepped me into a good mood for each episode.
Great theme (and it's an ending theme this time, too!)...too bad about the anime, though. Frankly, I thought that "Kumamiko"（くまみこ）finished its run somewhat like Roman Polanski's 1965 psychological horror "Repulsion", but on happier news, that ending theme "Kumamiko Dancing" was just oodles of fun along the same lines of "Uptown Funk" by Bruno Mars. Who'da thought that a tune about a relationship between a talking bear and a teenage shrine maiden could be so deliciously danceable? If the show hadn't ended the way it did, I would have said looking at the ending credits that everyone was in a happy place in that village.
Of all of the shows listed here, "Amanchu!"（あまんちゅ！）is the one show that isn't a zany comedy. I mean, it has its examples of gentle humour but really the anime that really focuses on diving is one of the sweetest and most wistful slice-of-life shows that I've ever seen, and it's far away from the "Animal House" that is "Grand Blue". It would only be logical that the opening theme matches that calm coming-of-age atmosphere, and that has been achieved with Maaya Sakamoto's（坂本真綾）"Million Clouds", one very moving theme song that captures the feeling of growing up, making new friends and learning about life.
"Witchcraft Works" was an intriguing anime although as the episodes moved on, I was starting to lose track of the story. However, what stayed constant was the earworm status of the ending theme by KMM Dan, "Witchcraft Activity", and one of the group happens to be seiyuuNatsumi Hioka（日岡なつみ）who's already represented above. The first time I heard this song whipped up by TECHNOBOYS PULCRAFT GREEN FUND at the end of the pilot episode was all I needed to get that urge to get the CD. The full-speed beats and the rat-a-tat delivery by the group absolutely bewitched me.
10. fhana -- Aozora no Rhapsody (Kobayashi-san Chi no Maid Dragon, 2017)
Another opening theme that welcomed me and other viewers into the world of corporate cogs, elementary school students and magical beings, fhana's"Aozora no Rhapsody"（青空のラプソディ）is trippy and sweeping at the same time. Those opening words and the disco strings had me crying "Uncle!" and what was additionally wonderful was that jazzy guitar bridge in the full version of the song. Now, if only a second season would come for this one, too.
Whew! Got those 10 up there. Hopefully, there are some of them that you like and I realize that there are some that I would have liked to have gotten up here but that's all she wrote. I'm just glad that I could finally get my first anison list up.
Once again, the YouTube comment of "(name of anime) sent me here!" is alive and well. I first saw it applied via "Hibike! Euphonium" when the high school band covered Yellow Magic Orchestra's "Rydeen" and The Square's"Takarajima" in respective seasons. All I had to do was check out the original versions of the songs to see the many "Hibike! Euphonium sent me here!" comments. Then, a mere two weeks ago, Episode 10 of Season 2 of "Kaguya-sama: Love is War" pulled one off when the title character tried out some voguing to find her calming ritual, sending rapt fans off to check out Madonna's "Vogue" and leave those famous comments.
Looks like "Kaguya-sama" scored another point last week as the usually fluffy Chika Fujiwara unleashed Gordon Ramsey fury on choreographically-damaged Student Council President Miyuki Shirogane. It was only a surprise that the lass didn't pull out two slices of white bread and slam them on either side of Miyuki's head. The issue was that the President had two left feet when it came to performing the famous traditional dance of Soran Bushi, and considering that Fujiwara had gone through hell and back to teach him the basics of volleyball and singing, the temper finally snapped.
Happily, within a few minutes of some rather unconventional tutoring and arguing between Chika and Vice-President Kaguya Shinomiya, Miyuki finally found his groove just in time for the dance presentation at the annual sports festival.
Of course, probably within a few minutes of the end of that episode, fans clambered over each other searching for that actual YouTube video of folks performing Soran Bushi, first sung by the fishermen of Hokkaido according to the Wikipedia article. The above video here was posted up on 2012 but I can guarantee that viewership and comments for that video exploded in the last six days, probably all of them having to do with Miyuki's education.
Both Chika and the Wikipedia article describe what Soran Bushi is all about with each move in the dance representing the actions in the raucous environment of catching all that fish (herring from what I've read in the J-Wiki article). The Hokkaidominyo itself may have been around for quite a while longer, but apparently 1974 was the year that Soran Bushi got its due nationwide. If anyone can give me an earlier year for its origins, please let me know.
The "Kaguya-sama" version of Soran Bushi had some good pizzazz but I have to admit that all sorts of singers and dancers and musicians haven't slouched when it comes to bringing the dance onstage. I found this video of enka singers Hiroshi Miyama（三山ひろし）and Kouhei Fukuda（福田こうへい）going for the gusto with a small army of dancers.
Compare Soran Bushi with another traditional song that I've written about, Tanko Bushi.
It should be a most interesting talk with my anime buddy on the phone tonight when it comes to the latest episode of "Kaguya-sama wa Kokurasetai"（かぐや様は告らせたい）which is approaching the end of an eventful Season 2. My impression on the show in general has been that it's been hitting me as a mix of "The Big Bang Theory", "Frasier" and "Family Guy", and Episode 9 which I caught on Saturday has especially struck me as that last show with all of the pop cultural references ("Peanuts", for heaven's sake!). In fact, I think even Seth MacFarlane might have gone "Whoa!".
But as I hinted at the top of the article, a lot of fans of the anime had been wondering whether there would be another cute little dance by one of the characters to level up with or even top The Chika Dance that surprised viewers at the end of Episode 3 in Season 1. Well, what it lacked in length (all of 20 seconds) was more than compensated by the main character's stab at voguing just to get that calming ritual to be able to stand up to Miyuki's perceived advances. Heck, there was no coyness in hiding that it was indeed a parody of Madonna's"Vogue" if the viewers caught that image on Kaguya's smartphone (the feather boas opening the sequence sealed the deal). Lady Donna and "Pose" indeed! Certainly, the reactors in the reaction videos were once again delightfully caught off-guard.
Not surprisingly, the space under the music video for Madonna's"Vogue" on YouTube have been liberally peppered since the weekend with comments about the fact that "Kaguya-sama" had sent the writers there. So, once again, I have another Reminiscing of Youth article.
To be more precise, though, it should be a Reminiscing of J-Canuck's 24th Year since that was how old I was when "Vogue" was released in March 1990. Knowing about her since she came up with her early 1980s hits of "Holiday" and "Borderline", Madonna kept on hitting home runs out of the park throughout the rest of the decade, and she did it again at the beginning of the final decade of the 20th century with this song accompanied by a newfangled hand jive.
I was in Gunma, Japan at the time and naively (capital N) tried to incorporate "Dick Tracy", the 1990 film starring Warren Beatty, Al Pacino and Madonna based on the original comic, into my lessons at the junior high schools that I was teaching at. But, really, it was no dice with the students. It was even hard with "Batman" the previous year. "Vogue" did end up on the soundtrack for the movie, which I think is an underrated work considering how much effort was placed into the setting, costumes and makeup, etc., and yep, along with the CD single of the song, I did buy that soundtrack and it's on the shelf behind me. I will have to listen to that one again this week sometime.
"Vogue" hit No. 1 in Canada, America and even Japan, and ended up as the No. 5 song on the US Billboard Hot 100 for the year.
So, what were the Top 3 singles on Oricon for March 1990 when one of Madonna's most famous songs was released?
A very nice way to finish the weekend last night even during these bad times. I'd been waiting to hear the opening theme for "Kaguya-sama wa Kokurasetai ~ Tensai-tachi no Ren'ai Zunousen"（かぐや様をこくらせたい～天才たちの恋愛頭脳戦）which apparently started up a few days ago as its second season. There were a couple of questions that I'd had: Would Masayuki Suzuki（鈴木雅之）be back to do another anison after his first foray into the genre with the amazing "Love Dramatic", the first opening theme for the show? And would the new theme be even better than or at least on the same level as "Love Dramatic"?
Well, I have to admit that the first time I heard "DADDY! DADDY! DO!", I got a bit defensive for the sake of "Love Dramatic". But then, like a lot of commenters for the YouTube videos that have already popped up, "DADDY! DADDY! DO!" insinuated into my brain along the lines of a Ceti Alphan eel larva into a hapless Starfleet officer, and it quickly got on the same level as "Love Dramatic". The opening credits for the second season, though, aren't quite as flashy as those for the first season. Still, the folks in the first reaction video were quite happy.
As was the case with "Love Dramatic", Yoshiki Mizuno（水野良樹）was on hand again to provide words and music for "DADDY! DADDY! DO!". It still packs a concentrated funky wallop to the ears and I gotta say that Martin can still keep his title as the King of Love Songs. However, this time around, his partner is Airi Suzuki（鈴木愛理）formerly of ℃-ute. And no, they aren't related.
The single will be Martin's 40th when it's released onto the shelves in a couple of days. "Love Dramatic" hit No. 13 on the charts after its release. Let's see how this one does. Will be interested to see if the guy may also end up earning the title of the King of Anime Love Songs at this rate. Plus, I'll be waiting for any videos of stage performances of this theme later on. In any event, for fans of "Kaguya-sama", it won't be just "Oh, Mister!" anymore; it'll also be "DADDY! DADDY! DO!".
April 28 2020: Looks like the song peaked at No. 15 on Oricon as of this date.
May 25 2020: According to TV Tropes in the Season 2 part of the Shout Out section for "Kaguya-sama", the first entry notes that the cute little strut that Ishigami, Fujiwara, Osaragi and Iino do in the opening credits was based on a similar move done in a 1980s Honda commercial. I think I may have found the video. Looks like there was a ska thing going on in there. But hey, it's Madness!
Well, crazy as it sounds, it's been a year since the first season of "Kaguya-sama wa Kokurasetai ~ Tensai-tachi no Ren'ai Zunousen"（かぐや様は告らせたい〜天才たちの恋愛頭脳戦〜）hopped onto the TV screen from the original manga. I mostly enjoyed that first run although I think the last couple of episodes veered a little too drastically into the dramatic and the humour never quite recovered to its earlier manic levels (Kaguya's laugh fit trigger, her prior opinions on the birds and the bees, etc.), but that is just me. There are folks who were completely satisfied with it and have been slavering over a second season which was indeed announced near the end of 2019 for a Spring 2020 launch. Happily, the trailer for Season 2 is out now.
Of course, that opening theme song "Love Dramatic" by Masayuki Suzuki（鈴木雅之）and Rikka Ihara（伊原六花）has been one for the anison memories, and I can only hope that the new opening and/or ending themes will be up there in the cool factor. Meanwhile, I also enjoyed some of the soundtrack that was on display throughout the episodes.
The music for "Kaguya-sama" was provided by veteran Tokyo-born composer and arranger Kei Haneoka（羽岡佳）. He's crafted a goodly sum of soundtracks for both live-action TV dramas and anime, so it's not surprising that he's been able to inject some parodies of drama themes to good effect into this album. For example, there is "Kansetsu Ki..."（間接キ...Indirect Ki...）.
Indeed, as I soon heard this familiar wistful piano in one of the early episodes, I pegged it right away as a variation on the famous theme song for the Korean drama "Winter Sonata", "From the Beginning Until Now". That drama and the song blasted through Japanese pop culture like wildfire around 20 years ago. One of my students even had the actual score for the song opened up on her grand piano.
As for "Kansetsu Ki...", it was used for hilarious effect at the end of the segment in Episode 3 when President Shirogane and Secretary Fujiwara figured out that their impression of what "the first time" and Vice-President Shinomiya's impression were totally different, especially when Kaguya finally understood it all.
Then, there is "Kokuhaku"（告白...Confession）. My compliments to Haneoka for getting that perfect keyboard sound from the theme song for "Tokyo Love Story", "Love Story wa Totsuzen ni"（ラブストーリーは突然に）. It even has that familiar electric guitar launch from Kazumasa Oda's（小田和正）masterpiece.
The above is from the notorious Episode 7 and "Kokuhaku" comes on at about 00:57.
But not all of the tracks were parodies of romantic theme songs. One such track from Volume 2 of the soundtrack, "Shippai"（失敗...Failure）, is a blast from the past...specifically from my university days in the 1980s.
It's been used, as have the other tracks, all throughout the episodes, but the one episode that has stood out is truly Episode 7. It may be the most famous one in "Kaguya-sama" due to that segment about that special word which can have Kaguya in absolute stitches, and the use of "Shippai" stands out the most when the narrator does his usual exposition. "Shippai" comes in back in that Episode 7 video at 00:50.
Ahhhh...yes. Dead or Alive's"You Spin Me Round". Haneoka was born in 1977 so he must have been in elementary school when the single came out.
This is maybe one of the tracks that wasn't riffing on some other drama soundtrack but "Chaos Riron"（カオス理論...Chaos Theory） is perhaps a bit ironic in terms of its title since I think it has been used whenever Miyuki and Kaguya have been concocting their overanalyses and tactics against each other. But then again, the song may be describing the destruction of their well-laid plans. In any case, the track does sound like something from a superhero anime or a cop show.
I will be interested in seeing the new season in a few months and also hearing whether Haneoka will be riffing on some other romantic drama soundtracks in addition to the parodies that he's provided here.
As much as folks are getting into the groove for Masayuki Suzuki's（鈴木雅之）opening theme of "Love Dramatic"（ラブ・ドラマティック）from "Kaguya-sama wa Kokurasetai ~ Tensai-tachi no Ren'ai Zunousen"（かぐや様は告らせたい〜天才たちの恋愛頭脳戦〜）, I think just as many folks, if not more, have been falling for the charms of this one song from the anime that had its one-off at the end of Episode 3.
When I saw the closing credits for that episode with the cute and perky Chika Fujiwara（藤原千花）singing the cute and perky "Chikatto Chika Chika", which may be roughly translated as "Flashy Chika" (?), I told my friend, "Well, I guess I know where a lot of that week's budget must have gone!" I later read that the entire Chika dance sequence was rotoscoped instead of CGI'ed which boosted impressiveness levels.
Admittedly, perhaps, but a lot of the squeeing has not just been for the dance but also for the actual song itself, written by Maki Fukushima（福島真希）and composed by Setsu Fukushima（福島節）, both of Ongakushitsu Inc. (a company that seems to come up with commercial ads and jingles) hasn't been too much of a slouch in terms of its earworm status, either. As voiced by seiyuu Konomi Kohara（小原好美）, I'm wondering whether her star is now in the rapid ascendant after being one-third of the hilarious trio on last summer's "Asobi Asobase"（あそびあそばせ）and currently one of the newest Precure warriors.
Although Chika is relating the ballad of the student council, I think "Chikatto Chika Chika" is very much her own theme song that has drawn in complimentary tributes from various folks eager in emulating the Chika Dance. For instance, Airi Suzuki（鈴木愛理）provides her own take through the official YouTube channel for Kadokawa.
Nearly halfway through February, my anime buddy and I have finally gotten into the current Winter 2019 season of anime. Up until yesterday, some of the anison themes have been OK but not spectacular. Then, we saw this show:
Yup, "Kaguya-sama wa Kokurasetai ~ Tensai-tachi no Ren'ai Zunousen"（かぐや様は告らせたい〜天才たちの恋愛頭脳戦〜）, which translates directly as "Kaguya Wants to be Confessed to: The Geniuses' War of Love and Brains" (thank you, Wikipedia) although the official English title is "Kaguya-sama: Love is War", has quickly become my go-to anime of the season. A comedy of errors and misunderstandings featuring two main characters who would make great neighbours in the same luxury condo in Seattle where Frasier Crane lives, the above situation is just one of the highlights. Also, I love the hilarity in the soundtrack lifting riffs from "Tokyo Love Story" and "Winter Sonata".
Then, there is the opening theme. I can now enter another item in my growing list of "Never Saw That Coming". To explain, I had never expected soulful Masayuki Suzuki（鈴木雅之）to contribute one of his own tunes to an anime, but as soon as the snazzy opening credits started rolling, that was indeed Martin's voice singing "Love Dramatic" featuring actress Rikka Ihara（伊原六花）.
Some fellow on YouTube commented that this was quite the surprise in putting in a song that sounds like a theme from some old 1980s J-Drama. And I would agree since Martin does love the old funk/soul, and both commenter and I like "Love Dramatic" very much. The song will become his 39th single (and indeed, according to J-Wiki, this is his first anison) when it's released in a couple of weeks at the end of February, and my buddy has already remarked that he will be picking this up. The song was actually written and composed by Yoshiki Mizuno（水野良樹）, the leader of the band Ikimonogakari（いきものがかり）.
It was good to know that I've got my first anime earworm for 2019. A year ago, the Winter 2018 earworm came to me in this anime. Also liked the opening credits there.
