Rie Takahashi -- Santa ga Machi ni Yatte Kuru（サンタが町にやってくる）

 

Well, it is November 25th which means on the "Kayo Kyoku Plus" calendar that we're entering the Christmas season on the blog so expect the Yuletide tunes to come out fairly often over the next few weeks leading up to December 25th. By the way, the photo of Santa Claus above was taken in front of Hakuhinkan Toy Shop in Ginza. It's kinda like Tokyo's version of FAO Schwarz.

It was only about two weeks ago that I put up the latest in the "Karakai Jouzu na Takagi-san"（からかい上手の高木さん...Skilled Teaser Takagi-san） articles with main seiyuu Rie Takahashi（高橋李依）as the titular Takagi-san performing a couple of covers of Japanese pop tunes. However, a few days back, I just happened to view Season 3's Episode 9 which was the Christmas episode for the entire franchise. Great timing that. And if viewers had thought that the show couldn't get any sweeter, well, they had a whole bunch of mistletoe thrown at them. 

Of course, the show topped this cake off with a candy cane or ribbon or gingerbread cookie with Takahashi singing "Santa ga Machi ni Yatte Kuru", aka "Santa Claus is Coming to Town", during the end credits. The arrangement was so adorable and old-fashioned that Mariya Takeuchi（竹内まりや）probably turned green with envy. I hadn't mentioned it before, but those Japanese lyrics were provided by opera singer and composer Takao Kanbe（神戸孝夫）, and they were first used on The Peanuts' cover of the song all the way back in 1962.

Yeah, it's got some of that Hallmark Xmas card type of orchestra behind it, but also some of that piano from Mariah Carey's "All I Want for Christmas is You". What's not to love? And of course, for the fans, it's Takagi-san herself at the mike. Along with this version and The Peanuts' cover, the blog also has Tony Bennett's immortal take as a ROY article which ironically began last year's Xmas season on KKP exactly one year ago.

Rie Takahashi -- Gakuen Tengoku（学園天国）/Joyful（じょいふる）

 

Last night, I wrote up an article on "Massugu"（まっすぐ）, the opening theme song for Season 3 of the warmhearted anime "Karakai Jouzu na Takagi-san"（からかい上手の高木さん...Skilled Teaser Takagi-san）, and I figured that I could also take care of a couple of songs from that franchise tonight. As has been the tradition ever since Season 1, seiyuu Rie Takahashi（高橋李依）as the titular Takagi-san has been providing the ending themes every couple of episodes which are covers of kayo kyoku and J-Pop tunes of the past.

Season 3's Episode 6 had the climax of the annual school culture festival in which Takagi-san and Nishikata-kun ended up in a performance of a variant on "Romeo and Juliet". One of the peak moments in the entire franchise occurred there, so of course, everyone involved was more than happy to be over and done with the festivities, which led to the celebratory karaoke session at the end.

Well, Takagi-san chose her song wisely since "Gakuen Tengoku" is a karaoke favourite for everyone to join in. It's also quite the chestnut from 1974 as originally done by the family singing group Finger Five（フィンガーファイブ）and then even more popularized through Kyoko Koizumi's（小泉今日子）1989 cover. Several of the cast also joined in the fun with Takahashi.

Couldn't find the ending credits for Episodes 7 and 8, but for those, Takahashi sang a cover of Ikimonogakari's（いきものがかり）"Joyful" from 2009. I've always had a nice feeling about that one since it was used as the commercial jingle for those Pocky commercials featuring a joyfully dancing Yui Aragaki（新垣結衣）.

Yuiko Ohara -- Massugu（まっすぐ）

 

I'll have to see when I can get my own copy of the cinematic treatment of "Karakai Jouzu na Takagi-san"（からかい上手の高木さん...Skilled Teaser Takagi-san） which had its run in Japanese theatres back in June this year. But until then, I've been getting caught up by slowly making my way through Season 3 which was broadcast earlier in the spring. The pattern is there with Takagi-san still getting the upper hand on Nishikata-kun, but it's obvious that the romance has been heating up some more between the two including in one of the definitive scenes of the show above.

The opening theme for Season 3 is once again created and sung by Yuiko Ohara（大原ゆい子）. "Massugu" (Straight Ahead) kinda slots in between the perky opening song for Season 1, "Iwanai kedo ne."（言わないけどね。）and the more wistful second theme tune, "Zero Centimetre"（ゼロセンチメートル）. But the link among all three of them is that melodic representation of life in that country town where Takagi and Nishikata have been residing and attending school. It's no wonder that the show throughout all three seasons has managed to calm me down on some of the more tension-filled days. Incidentally, maybe it's just me, but the opening credits for this season seem to have less teasing and more amiable walking with the main duo.

This time around, "Massugu" wasn't released as a single but has been placed as the first track on Ohara's July 2022 digital mini album "Island Memories". The album managed to get as high as No. 85 on Oricon.

Yuiko Ohara -- Zero Centimetre（ゼロセンチメートル）

 

I realize that for fans of "Karakai Jouzu na Takagi-san"（からかい上手の高木さん...Skilled Teaser Takagi-san）, I'm considerably late for the party. For one thing, I'm still wrapping up Season 2 which was broadcast back in 2019, and for another, Season 3 finished its run months ago. But I did see the penultimate episode for Season 2 last week which you can see above when Takagi-san, who almost always has the upper hand over Nishikata-kun, got that seasonal critical hit from him (of course, without him realizing it) when he finally asked her out to the summer festival. Cue punches in air and lots of tears.

Yeah, it's been another relaxing slice-of-life romantic comedy season with "Takagi-san" as the relationship between Takagi and Nishikata continues to develop while the extended cast grows slightly in that countryside town or small city. But of course, singer-songwriter Yuiko Ohara（大原ゆい子）is back for the opening theme song. Compared to her contribution for the opening theme of the first season, "Zero Centimetre" is a bit more wistful although the tempo peps up a bit more as we get further into the song.

Written and composed by Ohara, it sounds as if the song is being told from Takagi's point of view without all of the teasing on her future husband; she just wants Nishikata to acknowledge the feelings between them are there. As for the meaning of the title, she no longer wants to have any gap between them in their journey together. However, she's obviously a most patient young lady and the time will come. "Zero Centimetre" reached No. 55 on Oricon.

HY/Rie Takahashi -- AM11:00

 

I've enjoyed the anime "Karakai Jouzu no Takagi-san"（からかい上手の高木さん...Teasing Master Takagi-san） but at this point, I'm only getting started on the second season from 2019. Well, Season 3 just ended several days ago and it ended on a whopper of a scene which probably has had fans punching the air in joy. They don't have to wait so long for the continuation since there will be a movie coming out with teasing Takagi and adorkable Nishikata in June this year. 

As has been the case for the past three seasons, seiyuu Rie "Takagi" Takahashi（高橋李依）has been singing the many ending themes which are covers of various pop and rock hits. This one here was Takahashi singing in character at the end of Episodes 3 and 4 for Season 1 (2018), HY's "AM11:00", and she definitely hits the high notes and the rap mid-tune. The song is a track on the first of the cover song collection albums for the anime.

Considering that it is the 11 o'clock hour Sunday morning that I'm writing this, what better time for "AM11:00"? This was never released as a single but it was a part of HY's 2nd album "Street Story" from April 2003, and it's all about a couple in love luxuriating in a late-morning wake-up and then perhaps hitting the road for a nice drive. Never a bad thing. The song certainly hit a pleasure nerve nonetheless since it got its heavy rotation on the Japanese music channel Space Shower TV, and it was a big hit on the karaoke and cellphone ringtone charts. "Street Story" reached No. 1 on Oricon and stayed there for four straight weeks, finishing the year as the No. 9 album.

According to their Wikipedia entry, HY formed in 2000 with a group of friends covering different types of rock and hip-hop. The name originated from the initials of HY's neighbourhood, Higashi-Yakena in Okinawa. Starting out with five members, they are guitarist/vocalist Hideyuki Shinzato（新里英之）, drummer Shun Naka（名嘉俊）, bassist Shinsuke Kyoda（許田信介）, keyboardist/vocalist Izumi Nakasone（仲宗根泉） and guitarist Yuuhei Miyazato（宮里悠平）. Miyazato left HY in 2019. Naka, by the way, was the composer and lyricist for "AM11:00" under his nom de plume, TUN.

The band has apparently only released albums, 14 of them up to last year, although J-Wiki lists one single "Rail"（レール）from November 2009. HY has also appeared on NHK's Kohaku Utagassen twice in 2010 and 2012.

Ikimonogatari/Rie Takahashi -- Kimagure Romantic（気まぐれロマンティック）

With some of the more insane anime that have come out this summer, it's hard to believe that earlier this year, my anime buddy and I had been watching something as gently humourous as "Karakai Jozu no Takagi-san"（からかい上手の高木さん...Skilled Teaser Takagi-san）. Frankly I wouldn't mind if something similar came out in the soon-to-arrive fall season.

It's been almost 6 months since I put up the last of the multiple ending themes for the show, the gimmick being that they were covers of hit J-Pop songs performed by the seiyuu portraying the titular Takagi-san, Rie Takahashi（高橋李依）. Back in March, just when "Takagi-san" finished its run, I wrote about the adorable final theme, a cover of Every Little Thing's "Deatta Koro no you ni"（出逢った頃のように）.

Well, today I'm going back to the beginning. For the first couple of episodes and the OVA, the ending theme was the cover of Ikimonogatari's（いきものがかり）"Kimagure Romantic" (Capricious Romantic), a cheerful rendition by Takahashi whose lyrics seem to fit perfectly with the overall story arc of "Takagi-san": for Takagi to get young and crabby Nishikata to like her. If I had been the school counselor, I probably would have advised the girl to stop teasing the poor lad, but then there would have been no purpose for the story to air.

In any case, it was definitely one ultra-happy way to end the show.

The original Ikimonogatari version was the band's 12th single from December 2008, and it's no less cheerful and upbeat. Written and composed by Ikimonogatari guitarist Yoshiki Mizuno（水野良樹）, "Kimagure Romantic" is certainly a crowd pleaser as well, judging by the audience response. I haven't been a huge follower of the band but this particular song has struck me as being the most upbeat tune that I've heard so far as voiced by Kiyoe Yoshioka（吉岡聖恵）. 

"Kimagure Romantic" went Double Platinum and peaked at No. 4 on Oricon. The song was also a track on Ikimonogatari's 3rd major studio album "My song, Your song" which came out on Xmas Eve in the same year. It hit No. 1 for 2 weeks and was the 14th-ranked album for 2009.

Every Little Thing/Rie Takahashi -- Deatta Koro no you ni（出逢った頃のように）

Back in 2015, a small part of the anime-loving corner of YouTube had an explosion when the good folks behind "Hibike! Euphonium"（響け! ユーフォニアム）in its first season decided to surprise the socks off the viewers by having the high school band perform none other than "Rydeen" by Yellow Magic Orchestra. The comment "'Hibike! Euphonium' brought me here" underneath videos of the concert or recorded versions of YMO's trademark song should have been given meme status. To be honest, a part of me inside also threatened to squee when I first heard the marching band version of one of my very favourite Japanese songs.

Well, I think the same thing may be happening in 2018 although the phenomenon might be a bit more muted. Although I won't be seeing the final couple of episodes of "Karakai Jozu no Takagi-san"（からかい上手の高木さん...Skilled Teaser Takagi-san） until this coming Sunday, the last scene from the last episode has already gotten onto YouTube and it has already earned an "Awwww...." with so many Ws in it that it would go all the way from my computer down to Lake Ontario. I won't describe what can be seen so easily in the video above but let us say that Takagi-san got her second critical hit (inside joke) and a punch-in-the-air win at the same time.

What put the icing on this swoon-worthy cake was a cover version of an old Every Little Thing hit by Rie Takahashi（高橋李依）, the seiyuu for Takagi-san herself. Just the abrupt way it started when the character made her realization shot a lot of viewers including me right in the heart.

So, unsurprisingly, viewers of "Karakai Jozu no Takagi-san" may be flocking over to the original song by ELT, "Deatta Koro no you ni" (Just Like When We First Met), right now. In fact, I've already seen at least one example of "'Karakai Jozu no Takagi-san' brought me here" in the comments section. Released in August 1997 as the band's 5th single, this was another song that got lots of attention in the mass media. Hearing it once more got me thinking about the 90s again thanks to those punchy synths. Wow! They did sound like that back then.

Written and composed by ELT keyboardist Mitsuru Igarashi（五十嵐充）, "Deatta Koro no you ni" peaked at No. 3 on Oricon and became the 45th-ranked single for 1997 as it went Triple Platinum. It also got recorded onto the band's 2nd album "Time to Destination" from April 1998. That album hit No. 1 for 2 weeks, was the 3rd-ranked release for 1998, and currently stands as the 11th-ranked album in Oricon history by achieving over 4 million in sales.

Not sure how long the above will stay on YouTube but enjoy the not-so-full version of Takahashi's softer cover of "Deatta Koro no you ni". It is so Takagi-san and there's even a nice little shoutout to the opening theme "Iwanai kedo ne."（言わないけどね。）in the instrumental bridge. Apparently, it's been included in a release associated with the show, "Karakai Jozu no Takagi-san ~ Cover Song Collection"（からかい上手の高木さん Cover Song Collection） that just got on sale yesterday. I hadn't realized it but all 7 ending themes sung by Takahashi are cover versions of past J-Pop tunes. Will have to see whether my anime buddy will be picking that up since there were a couple of those ending themes that I enjoyed hearing over the credits.

Yuiko Ohara -- Iwanai kedo ne.（言わないけどね。）

Being a typical Canadian kid growing up in the 1960s and 1970s, my cartoon fix was always sated through a plentiful menu of "Peanuts" and Warner Bros. fare. Of course, some of the more compelling tropes within those cartoons were the never-ending battles between the main characters. There was Wile E. Coyote versus the Roadrunner and then nasty Lucy Van Pelt going after hapless Charlie Brown via a football.

The Roadrunner and Lucille were definitely trolls even before trolls got their current meaning. The former may have played innocent but the latter could barely contain her glee at whacking Chuck again and again.

Now just imagine a similar scene in a small Japanese town where the troll is actually not doing this out of malice (well, not completely anyways) but in some strange way, doing this out of love. There might have been some conspiracy theories about Lucy doing all that she does against Charlie to hide an actual crush on the round-headed kid but I will leave that be.

To get back on track, I am referring to a show that just finished its run in the Winter 2018 anime season, "Karakai Jouzu na Takagi-san"（からかい上手の高木さん...Skilled Teaser Takagi-san）. It's a mellow slice-of-life show whose basic premise is the titular schoolgirl Takagi-san teasing the heck out of Nishikata-kun in all directions and in all situations. Based on the manga of the same name, after seeing the first episode, I kinda wondered how in the world the show would be able to carry this premise through the usual 12-episode season. Well, crazily enough, it actually entertained me quite well, and a lot of it is due to the voice work of Rie Takahashi（高橋李依）as Takagi-san and Yuji Kaji（梶裕貴）as Nishikata-kun. Plus, along with the main arc of Nishikata eternally trying and failing spectacularly to outwit his so-called rival, I also enjoyed the more subtle part of Takagi trying to get some inkling that her target can actually return her feelings.

What I'm going to say next is gonna positively age me to Victorian times but I couldn't help think of a couple of actors from 60s American sitcoms while I was watching Takagi and Nishikata doing their schtick, and that is Donna Douglas from "The Beverly Hillbillies" and the neurotic Don Knotts from "The Andy Griffith Show". Witnessing those two becoming a lovey-dovey couple would have given us nerds so much to dream for.

The opening theme for "Karakai Jouzu na Takagi-san" has started to grow on me as well. It is "Iwanai kedo ne" (But I Won't Ever Say It) which was written and composed and sung by Yuiko Ohara（大原ゆい子）. I remember her from doing a couple of the theme songs from one of the big anime from last year "Little Witch Academia"（リトルウィッチアカデミア）, and I even wrote about one of her efforts, "Hoshi wo Tadoreba"（星を辿れば）from the series.

Although "Hoshi wo Tadoreba" had a bit of an old-fashioned urban contemporary feeling to it, "Iwanai kedo ne" is a pretty pop song for the countryside which obviously fits the setting for the show. Ohara's lyrics also seem to lay out Takagi-san's inner feelings for the lad and her melody matches the scenes of Takagi riding her bike on the various laneways of the town.

"Iwanai kedo ne" is Ohara's 5th single released on Valentine's Day and it has gone up to No. 43 on Oricon, so far her best-ranking song.

This time last year, a number of us anime fans including myself and my friend were satisfied with someone named Kobayashi-san. Well, it looks like Takagi-san is now representing some of us in early 2018.