Monday, August 13, 2007

Mountain woman, Wall woman (山おんあ, 壁おんあ)

Yes, this is a fan page of sorts for Misaki – at least when I have time. So, I watched the first episode of this new comedy, Mountain woman, Wall woman (山おんあ, 壁おんあ), with Misaki Ito (伊東美咲) in the lead role. I do think it is a pretty funny show. I was very apprehensive about the premise of the show which is about a top, department store saleswoman, Megumi, who is extremely self conscious about her smaller breast size and then is suddenly put into the presence of another saleswoman, Marie - played by Fukada Kyoko (深田恭子), who is well endowed with large breasts.

At first, I thought it would be a gratuitous vehicle for male breast fixation but I see now that it is well intentioned comedy. (I should mention here that this series is actually based on a manga written by a woman who was relating her own experiences). And remember, Comedy gives us extremes of character after all. For instance, Joey and Phoebe in Friends, were ridiculously foolish and their interactions with “normal” people were where much of the comedy occurred. And certainly the premise of humor in South Park is often gratuitous to a fault but it is also a very well-liked show. But no matter your opinion, on the premise in the show, there are a lot of hilarious moments that I think make it worth watching. Still, we’ll have to see how far the writers can continue “milking” this breast complex issue. (I know! – that was really bad! I’m sorry.)

More importantly, for Misaki Ito’s fans, is that I think this role is her best role yet. Her character displays a wider range of emotional states, from anger to humility, making her more like a real person. Many fans of Misaki Ito are still obsessed with her character in Densha Otoko but that’s because, although the character was very sweet, she was also far more pliable and less confrontational. Mo-e. This type of subservient behavior is attractive to many men but, I can guarantee you, is not realistic. So guys, don’t fool yourselves - women have emotional desires and intellectual aspirations like anybody else.

- Just a peasant