Nobuta Wo Produce.
Korete DESTINY? [Reccing Nobuta Wo Produce.]
Nobuta wo Produce is perhaps the most beautiful thing you will ever see on screen. Ever. In Your Entire. Life.
Supporting evidence:
- The original version of this post (http://bookshop.livejournal.com/770783.html - friendslocked), is full of clamors of agreement in comments for pages. This show affects people that strongly.
- Soundczech’s review of the show. I second every word.
Nobuta Wo Produce.
Nobuta, as many people will tell you, is one of the slashiest things you will ever see in life; it is not just slashy, it’s sort of buoyantly, exuberantly slashy, which possibly has to do with the two male leads (Kame & Yamapi) being more or less lifelong friends.
(Come on, you’re thinking. How gay can it be? Answer: THIS GAY:
And you’re like, okay, that’s pretty gay.)
However. The slash is really, really not what makes Nobuta special. Not at all. It may be why you start watching (*raises hand*). It may be one tiny part of what you love about it. But Nobuta is so much more than just Shuji to Akira. It’s about love and friendship and loyalty and heart, and forgiveness and trust and faith. This show is full of so much love, and heart, and emotion, that I even got teary just now, typing the last sentence. It stays with you.
It will wring your heart. It will fill you up with love. It won’t let you go.
Ten Reasons to Watch Nobuta wo Produce.
in no particular order:
1. Yamapi.
He giggles, he flaps, he ad libs, he KONS. To quote ![[info]](http://stat.livejournal.com/img/userinfo.gif){kind=small}
darkeyedwolf, “I still can’t believe that this is what I want to have sex with.” You will. Oh god, you will. Oh, Yamapi. To quote Bing, “Akira is my heart.” He will be yours too. :(
2. SUPERNATURAL OLD PEOPLE.
The adults in Nobuta are so hysterical. They perform magic and possess mystic power and throw people out of their bookstores with long cane poles. They’re fabulous.
- Catharine. She’s a backflipping ninja crow lady mystic schoolteacher who knows everything! If Fuji grew up and became a female vice principal, this would be the result. You only think I’m joking. (The actress, Natsuki Mari, was the voice of the witch in Spirited Away, which might tell you a lot. ;) )
- Delphine. He dresses in traditional dress, always wears makeup, has purple hair, and charges ten million dollars for books. He has “No ___” signs handy all around his store so he can throw people out at whim. You can only get away with this in Japan.
- The Truth Man. HE IS MY FAVORITE. The Truth Man runs after you and forces you to tell the truth, and then, when you tell him, HE THANKS YOU AND TURNS AROUND AND RUNS AFTER SOME ONE ELSE. FOREVER. THIS SHOW, IT’S CONSTANT JOY. AND WONDROUSNESS. AND WONDER. joy and wonder, charlieeeee!!!
3. Seishun Amigo.
The end credits of Nobuta, done to this song, were the most extensive CGs in Japanese television history. The sequence of the 2 pigs tells the story of the narrative of this song, which was written in Sweden and which was recorded by Kame and Yamapi (Shuji and Akira).
The video for Seishun Amigo is one of the greatest things I’ve ever seen in my life. The song became not only the #1 song in Japan for all of 2005, but the #3 song in Japan for all of 2006. The Seishun Amigo dance became a national craze. There’s a scene later on in the series where some students are actually dancing it in the background.
I’ve talked about this song and its video many times. But it’s one of those things you just have to see for yourself. The white pants. The flapping laundry. The lyrics, which are basically about two gang brothers swearing eternal love for each other as one of them may or may not be dying in the other’s arms. DAKESHIMETE, INDEED.
4. Episode 4.
More absolutely staggeringly wonderful things happen in episode 4 of this show than I could possibly describe. So I’m not even going to try. It’s got everything. EVERYTHING YOU COULD POSSIBLY WANT IN LIFE PLUS FEMSLASH. seriously. god. so so so so much love i can’t even. *flails and beats things inarticulately*
5. Nobuta Power.
And other Nobutaisms. Best catchphrases ever. Kon!
6. So you’ll know why I made the most incoherent phone post of my life after watching only the first episode.
7. A newfound appreciation for Kleenex.
I normally dislike being made to cry at films and series - it happens but rarely. It makes me feel slightly used to be getting worked up over something on film and especially on tv. I don’t like emotional manipulation. I don’t really even cry at funerals.
Nobuta’s not like that. It’s not like that at all. It makes you want to call up everyone you ever loved and tell them how much you love them. It moves you, so so so deeply. Not only to sadness, either. I think watching Nobuta was the first experience of my entire life where I cried from happiness. And in the end, my sorrow and joy and hope and laughter were all there, all together, at once, the same thing.
I don’t want to scare you away with talk of tears. You won’t be sorry that you watched this show. You won’t be sorry that it moved you this much. And I really, really think it will move most of you. If you let it. Nobuta is a show that asks you to open your heart to what it has to say about love. If you do that, I really think it will touch you, in a truly unforgettable way.
8. Shuji’s Little Brother.
This is Yuto Nakajima, a JJr. who will one day be a J-pop legend like his older brother. ;) At the moment he’s only THE MOST ADORABLE THING IN YOUR LIFE OMG. LOOOOOK.
AWWWWW.9. Girl Power.
All the girls in this show are fantastic. There’s not a token stereotype to be found here; they get as much moments of kickass (and in Nobuta’s case, so many more) as the guys do, and it says a lot that so far, in the tiny but blossoming Nobuta fandom, there’s almost as much femslash between Nobuta, Bando, and Mariko, as there is between Shuji and Akira. The girls are amazing.
I love Bando so much, and she’s maybe the biggest reason why ep 4 is my favorite.
She’s the bully, the token villain, except that she is so much more. And oh. She twists my heart so wonderfully. I adore her.
But god. Mariko. I can’t pick. Mariko is not just your average popular girl. She’s everything you’ve ever been annoyed with in Token Girlfriends and Asian Female Stereotypes, taken and rejected in favor of someone who’s strong, smart, compassionate, resiliant, and a true friend.
And then there is Nobuta herself, who is everything this show is about, all wrapped up in one quiet, mesmerizing package. I defy you not to love her.
10. Kamenashi.
Kame won the equivalent of a Best Actor Emmy for this drama, and when you watch him, it’s really hard to argue with this. He’s so subtle, so constantly searching with his eyes and his voice and his body language - everything that Shuji is, I suspect Kame is a bit of himself. And this role is so quiet and powerful and endearing. I just want to hug him. Anna says I can relate to Shuji, hahaha, but really everyone can. Everyone who’s ever struggled with the fear of being just themselves.
The beauty of this show is that Shuji and Akira set out to “produce” Nobuta, but they never actually do. Instead, Shuji, in a sense, ultimately produces himself: he finds the authentic life he’s been trying to give to her, and she helps him (along with Akira) understand the difference between living to please other people, and living for other people, and yourself. It’s a transition that I don’t know if anyone else could have done quite as smoothly as Kame. He’s so wonderful. I just want to hug him all the time. IRL and as Shuji. :(
So does Akira, apparently. Hee.
In fact, in case you can’t tell, Akira can rarely keep his eyes off Shuji.
(And this, friends, is how you get into the wonderful world of J-pop RPS. Just like this.)
I’ve tried all night to find words to rec Nobuta. Ultimately, all I can say is this: Nobuta is one of the most meaningful things I’ve ever seen. To me, it’s more than just a show. It’s the offering of my heart, for all of you. ♥ <– ko-ko-ro.
=>> akirashock.net/nobutapower <<=
bye-byecycle!
OMG the screencap of Akira making weird faces while the doll is ‘getting her hair cut’ <3 REMEMBER YOU PIMPED THIS TO ME AFTER I FINISHED WATCHING HIKAGO AND I DON’T KNOW IF I EVER TOLD YOU THAT I DOWNLOADED AND WATCHED AND CRIED AND LAUGHED AND FELL IN LOVE WITH AKIRA AND WITH THE TRUTH MAN AND WITH YOU FOR PIMPING THIS <3 Isn’t this the most awesome show ever. I have pimped it to everyone I know, and I think my mum is getting used to the screams of “YAMAPI I LOVE YOU HAVE MY BABIES” and OMG NOBUTA <3
[umarekawareru]