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Utawarerumono : Itsuwari no Kamen

October 10, 2015, 3:40 am
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The first Utawarerumono game was a low budget visual novel/strategy RPG that was memorable because it was about a smart dude who had to lead his village in an uprising and become the leader of the country because there was no other way. The ending sucked but I liked the characters and cool and smart heroes are not as common in Japanese games.


I was excited for the sequel and after 19 hours, nothing really happens in the story. No particular exciting scene in 19 fucking hours. Plenty of stupid slapsticks and yawn inducing fan service. Contrast with the first game when Hakuoro decides to lead the rebellion or when Aruru saves the day. Itsuwari no Kamen is basically fucking slice of life fantasy featuring a weak main character who gets beat up by his harem of boring girls.


WTF. Its like whoever made Itsuwari no Kamen was oblivious to why the first game was exciting. Japanese RPGs are fucked. Its like Fire Emblem IF where the stupid moe gimmicks take priority over story and lets not forget way too much useless dialogue in this game. If I had bought the disc instead of downloading the game digitally, I would have snapped it in half.  There's no way the people who made the original game are involved in this abomination. This is truly kusoge. I want my 6000 yen and 19 hours back! Should have known it would turn out this way after the Tears to Tiara 2 demo.
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Tsuki ni Inoru Pierrot SP

October 11, 2015, 1:05 am
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Tsuki ni Inoru Pierrot is a nice little dorama special starring Tokiwa Takako and Tanihara Shosuke and written by Kitagawa Eriko (Long Vacation). Tokiwa Takako is living a boring existence in the countryside with her mother and grandmother when one day she decides to order a book that she read long ago called The Clown who prayed to the Moon.


The seller happened to be Tanihara Shosuke and they start corresponding and we slowly find out about Tokiwa Takako's character and her history. I really like Tokiwa Takako's performance in Tsuki ni Inoru Pierrot. She gives her character enough depth as we slowly find out about her worries and frustrations.


The only negative thing I would say is that Tanihara Shosuke's character is too nice and boring but he's not the main character so its all right. Tsuki ni Inoru Pierrot reminds me of Matsu Takako's April Story. I short and sweet story that would make a nice first episode. Very watchable.
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Kuroi Fukuin SP

October 14, 2015, 2:00 am
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Kuroi Fukuin is a dorama special filled with lots of stars with Beat Takeshi in the lead role and a decent budget but it is also pretty boring. Its your standard 'the best cop in the precinct doesn't follow the Japanese police's rules about work division and thus his colleagues are entitled to overact and shout at him all the time'. The only shows this has worked are Gonzo and Rinjo and that's because the colleagues had good reason.


The second problem is that there is no freaking suspense or rather, tension. The key ingredient in making shows exciting. There is no mystery and the revelations nearly put me to sleep. I somehow made it to the end but this jdorama SP is not staying on my HDD. Meh.
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Arslan Senki 8-25

October 16, 2015, 9:21 am
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Ok, I might have jumped the gun or bow in this case by giving the series a must watch due to expectations from Legend of Galactic Heroes. I now realise that Arslan is no LoGH simply because its a much more straightforward story based on a Persian epic. The similarities are there of course; LoGH was about democracy vs autocracy and Arslan is about corrupt religion vs slavery and both ask the question what makes a good ruler but where it differs is that the characters lack depth and the OMFG moments aren't really there.


That's not saying I didn't enjoy Arslan. It just wasn't as gripping as LoGH or as polished as Guin Saga. The art is really inconsistent. Most of it is sub par and there are times you can tell that they are saving what little time and budget they have for this major scene.


I'm looking forward to the continuation of the story about the boy who would be king and I've learned to accept that Arslan no LoGH. What it is, is a straightforward fantasy epic with interesting themes and inconsistent artwork and no moeblobs. Very watchable.
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The Kingdom of Dreams and Madness

October 19, 2015, 6:00 am
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The Kingdom of Dreams and Madness is a beautiful and sad documentary about one of Japan's greatest contributions to the world; Studio Ghibli and the man and the legend, Miyazaki Hayao. Its beautiful because its fun to watch the last big hand drawn animation studio at work and its sad because you know the end is coming.


+ I enjoyed watching Miyazaki do his storyboards and then time the scenes with a stopwatch while visualising it in his head.

- The level of attrition at Studio Ghibli is alluded to being high but I would like to have seen more about the hard work that the animators have to do.

+ I was surprised to see who ended up being the lead voice actor The Wind Rises.

- Daigo's appearance in this feels kind of pointless.


+ More than a documentary about making animation, it is a story about Miyazaki's viewpoint in life. He talks about nuclear power, war, the environment, children and whether there's any meaning to film making.

+ I really liked the story about the letter that Miyazaki receives out of the blue.


+ The one thing that left the biggest impression on me was the Ghibli producer talking to a bunch of new employees of Nihon Terebi about human relations.

I enjoy Ghibli stuff but I wouldn't call myself a fan (though I love Kiki) and The Kingdom of Dreams and Madness gave me such an appreciation of what they do. I think its better watch The Wind Rises before watching this documentary. Must watch.
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Shinya Shokudo The Movie

October 22, 2015, 11:47 pm
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I watched this some time ago but didn't write up about it because it wasn't bad enough to make fun of nor was it good enough that I had recommend it straight away. Thanks to anon for reminding me about it. Anyways, Shinya Shokudo the movie is 4 episodes of the series in one, the story about the lover of a deceased rich man, Tabe Mikako's story, the story about the volunteer and her stalker and the mystery of the urn that was left at the diner.


All the stories were decent and my favourite was Tabe Mikako's story but I feel that the stories should have been mixed up a lot better instead about bookending the three stories with the urn mystery. Tabe Mikako's story should have bookended the movie instead.


Firstly, she should have been the character which represents the audience's viewpoint and would  have been a great way to introduce all the regulars to people who haven't seen the show. Secondly, by having her interact with the characters from the other three stories, there is more of a continuity to the movie and it would be fun seeing her reactions to the stories as instead of just the master's all knowing nod. (Provided of course her character is not too idealistic) The ochazuke sisters work for the series but they are not enough for the movie.


Shinya Shokudo the movie tastes like a warm and familiar appetizer but if they had arranged the stories a bit differently, it could have been a very sumptuous meal. Watchable but only for fans of the show only IMHO.
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Angel Heart Episode 1+2

October 27, 2015, 2:18 pm
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+ Who would have ever thought that Kamikawa Takaya, the serious white shoe wearing cop from Marks no Yama and Lady Joker would have a good Saeba Ryo?


 + I like Aibu Saki as Kaori. She's less noisy and tomboyish compared to the anime but she's got chemistry with Kamikawa.

- Unfortunate, she has to die cause this is Angel Heart and not City Hunter.

- The three 'ladies' at Cat's Eye are completely irritating and unnecessary. You've already got Umibozu to dispense any information to the audience already.

- Not enough mokkori aka Saeba Ryo perversions.

= Episode two was a flashback episode telling the beginning of City Hunter and it was so freaking awesome. However, it only made it painfully obvious that its what they should have gone for because City Hunter is significantly more interesting.

- Can't we just forget about this Angel Heart crap and use the same actors for a City Hunter series with a lot of mokkori? Need a lot more Aibu Saki as Kaori.

- Who the hell cast the Angel Heart girl? Part of it is the plot's fault but she just puts me to sleep.

- Here's an example of why Japanese directors have no concept of setting things up correctly during action scenes. Girl gets chased down by secret evil organisation (who wear their uniforms in public with logo). Notice they are walking/looking down the corridor and she's just around the corner.

- They turn the corner and she's not there. Where did she go?

- Ok, she went down that grill which was JUST IN THE LINE OF SIGHT OF THE BAD BUYS 10 SECONDS AGO! Forget Abenomics, kickstarting the Japanese economy or introducing My Number in Japan, Abe needs to make me the Minister of Common Sense for Japan. I see this type of lazy/stupid stuff in Jdoramas way too often and its easily fixable by limiting the camera view and creating the illusion of where things are. Sigh.

Angel Heart gets all the City Hunter stuff right that all the Angel Heart stuff pales in comparison.

I'll probably give it another two episodes. They need to introduce a lot more mokkori to keep me watching though.
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Siren Eps 1+2 : Lack of common sense

November 1, 2015, 5:52 am
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Random guy hold crazy serial killer girl hostage in episode 2.

Rest of cops come from the back.

Kimura Fumino is distracting the hostage taker and clearly the cops are behind him as can be seen from this shot.

Guess what happens in the next shot? The cops who were behind and for some reason circled around the hostage taker. Hhhmm, hostage life at stake and hostage taker has his back to you and the police handbook says what?

I've never seen a cop who decided that he's rather point the gun at a hostage taker from the front than directly behind him. For the love of all the used pantsu in Japan, who approved this crap? People without common sense should not be allowed to direct/edit Jdoramas.

I get that the point of the scene is for Kara to save herself but this makes the police look like total imbeciles and the scene does not look cool at all and there are better ways to achieve the same result.

Let's nor forget the Kara hanging scene....

Where she lifts herself up over the bars and strangles the guy with her thighs and manages to untie the noose in 3 seconds.

And when the taxi driver is put into the same position, he doesn't think about grabbing the bar. WTF. That structure looks like it could topple if someone held the bars and used their bodyweight to bring it down. She's not really pulling the guy anyway.Finally, let's not forget the lack of marks on Kara's neck.

Forget about China being a dick about the South China Sea borders. Abe needs to declare a national emergency and declare actions scenes that insult the viewer's intelligence and that neither make sense tactically nor geographically be punishable by imprisonment. I am serious thinking of making a rule that I only watch cop shows by WOWOW or NHK.

I can't give Siren a do not watch rating because it is actually watchable and is different from the run of the mill jdorama cop show especially with the Kara character and the two leads but it just runs into the same problems that so many cop jdoramas run into: lack of common sense.
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Okashi no Ie Eps 1+2

November 6, 2015, 4:12 am
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Okashi no Ie is like a good version of Dokonjo Gaeru. No, it doesn't have a talking frog stuck on a shirt but Okashi no Ie is a showa style dorama about childhood and growing up featuring a main character who likes to sit around all day and a childhood friend who comes back home with a kid.


The best way to describe Okashi no Ie is that it that laid back, feel good story about being nostalgic for simpler times while living in a more complicated world. It is my kind of comedy, understated, subdued and takes it time building up to the punch line. The half hour runtime helps as well as the two episodes are to the point and there are no wasted scenes. I really enjoyed Fujiwara Tatsuya's role in episode 2. Its rare to see him in a comedy. The only thing I don't like is Odagiri Joe and this other guy looking too similar.


Most interestingly, the writer and director is Ishii Yuya, husband of Mitsushima Hikari and director of Sawako Decides and The Great Passage. I'm going to refrain from calling this a must watch since its still early but based on the talent involved, there is a high probability Okashi no Ie ends up being one. Very recommended. You can find the first two episodes here.
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Jmovie review: Meikurumu / Make Up Room

November 8, 2015, 6:15 am
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Make Up Room is a low budget comedy set only in a make up room during the shooting of an adult video.

Its more akin to a stage play on film aka Kisaragi (which also happens to be one of my favourite films).

The central character is this calm and collected make up artist who has to deal with all sorts of demands placed on her.

You will never think of shooting an adult video as simple having two people and a camera after this movie.

The charm of Make Up Room are the various characters and the fact that we don't get to see any sex.

There is some nudity but its never gratuitous.

We have of course a newbie, a veteran, a diva and a struggling actress.

They don't seem like they are there just to play a stereotype like how suburban housewife doramas always have one of every stereotype character.

Maybe its just because we don't see characters working in the JAV industry so often.

Plus I really enjoyed the chemistry between the actresses.

Make Up Room is a surprisingly funny show about the challenges of making porn.

It doesn't quite reach the heights of Mosaic Japan but the 1 1/2 hours flew by for me.

I recommend Make Up Room not just for the sukebes but for people who want a feel good movie about a bunch of different people trying to create something which isn't as easy as everyone thinks it is.

I have a feeling this movie might play well to the female audience and that's just not because of all the make up scenes but because of the interesting female characters. Very recommended. I would love to watch a stage play version of Make Up Room.
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Shitamachi Rocket TBS Episodes 1-3

November 12, 2015, 3:55 am
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If you liked Hanzawa Naoki, Shitamachi Rocket is for you. If you're like me and you find the overacting, cartoonish villains and frequent use of soaring music off-putting, Abe Hiroshi does make this TBS version of Shitamachi Rocket slightly bearable but I'd rather watch the WOWOW version.


There is no Dan Mitsu and Ueto Aya to really drag the acting but I just cannot comprehend why the director would tell the actors to act like they are villains in a kids show. Most Japanese like the Hanzawa Naoki acting so what do I know? I might put up with the TBS version just for Abe and to make it easier to watch the WOWOW one and maybe do a comparison down the line.
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Jmovie review: Biri Gal

November 14, 2015, 4:41 am
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The main reason I watched Biri Gal is because Sambomaster did the theme song Kanousei. Ok, and maybe for Arimura Kasumi (Mozu/Amachan).

Biri Gal is the movie version of Dragon Zakura except instead of Todai, the main character is Keio University and the main character is an airhead gyaru with the educational ability of a grade 4 student.

Stupid subtitles blocking my view.

The movie is obviously aimed at girls with its super bright colours, fashion and everything looking too freaking clean.

Ito Atsushi actually does a decent job here.

A lot of the humour comes from Arimura Kasumi's character Sayaka's air-headedness like not knowing Santa isn't real...

or thinking that Abe-chan is the President.

While I am not the target audience for this movie, I kind of enjoyed it not because there's an onsen scene,

but because its a well done teenage underdog movie/star vehicle for Arimura Kasumi.

I have to say, now that students can check their results online, movies can no longer do that tension scene of students scanning the board for their number.

Could Arimura Kasumi be a good actress? Possibly. She's certainly better than those Oscar Agency people like Gouriki. She reminds me of Fukuda Saki.

Watchable movie that I could not dislike and itmade me want to rewatch Dragon Zakura.
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Tetsuko no Sodatekata Eps 1-5

November 16, 2015, 2:59 am
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bframe passed this show to me and claims that I ignored him about it and I do have some recollection of him telling me about some train jdorama.

Its been way too long since I saw Kobayashi Ryoko in Maou.

She's got the most hypnotic eyes in all of jdoramaland along with Konishi Manami.


Its surprising that she never made it big when you have your usual people who can't act getting pushed all the time.

Kobayashi Ryoko plays a female announcer who has failed all of her 47 interviews until she finds a job with tetsudou terebi.

Tetsuko no Sodatekata is a comedy about a ragtag bunch of people and an aspiring announcer making tv programs about trains.

All the stories follow the same plot: Kobayashi Ryoko goes into an interview unprepared, asks for another chance and in the next episode learns more about the train/person and aces the interview. Oh yeah, the interviewee is always some hot chick.

I don't really mind the formula since this is a comedy but taking two episodes to tell one story can be too long especially episodes 4 and 5 with the air train story.

I'm going to keep watching just to stare into Kobayashi Ryoko's deep black eyes.

Tetsuko no Sadatekata starts off funny but gets a bit tiresome so hopefully it gets better in the second half.

bframe captured the episodes off Japanese tv so it came with ads and that made me very depressed because the only time I usually see Japanese ads are when I'm in Japan.

The episode about air train (making train noises + announcements) reminded me of after my first pilgrimage when I would look up videos of Japanese train videos and audio.

Unfortunately at this point, I can only recommended Tetsuko no Sodatekata to Kobayashi Ryoko fans and of course train maniacs. Tetsuko no Sodatekata looks like its available on direct download on some sites but I am unsure if the links still work.
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Gate Episodes 1-12

November 18, 2015, 5:26 am
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Gate is basically an jietai (SDF) in a fantasy world setting anime. Dragon vs guns! What more do you need? 

The best thing about Gate is the main character Itami, not just because he's not a bland shounen who gets mysterious powers and never gives up. Itami is the reluctant hero thrown into a world where tough decisions have to be made, like the great Yang Wenli from Legend of Galactic Heroes. When Itami actually used the knife to kill the soldier in the pic above, I knew this was the show for me. I am sick of anime with guns and swords where people don't die.

The art is very inconsistent like Arslan and I hate how big the eyes sometimes get. It feels like there are two different artstyles in the anime. I wish they had the budget of Danmachi cause there are a lot of scenes that could have been really beautiful.

 Yes, it is a harem anime (when is an anime not?) but the good news is all the characters have a purpose to the story and are not there solely to cater to every lowest denominator and the story moves at a very good pace. The harem could get way too crowded pretty quick though.

I love the political aspect of this show with lots of people using each other for their own purposes. Gate poses interesting questions like would it be best for Japan to make enemies with the rest of the world just for this world beyond the gate?

Love the Ride of the Valyries scene. Makes me want to play more MGSV.

 I wish Gate had gone for a more realistic Berserk style but its a lot more mature than most anime. The writing really explores the premise in interesting ways. Very enjoyable anime for me. I can't wait to see what happens next.
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Kekkonshiki no Zenjitsu Ni Eps 1-3

November 19, 2015, 6:35 am
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Kekkonshiki no Zenjitsu Ni is basically crying porn for people who like 1 Litre of Tears. Perfect character with a family secret gets brain tumour complete with annoying mother. Boo hoo.

I never felt I was watching Karina play a character, more like a vessel for female viewers to project themselves onto. However, I must say at least it doesn't overdo the crying porn bit as hard as Beautiful Rain which probably holds the non-Korean drama record for most crying per minute.

I managed to last three episodes just for Mano-chan.

Unfortunately, her role is very minor.

 Personally, I would take Mano-chan over Karina any day.

If you enjoy watching a perfectly nice and bland character battle a fatal disease, Kekkonshiki no Zenjitsu ni is the show for you. I can't critisize Kekkonshiki no Zenjitsu ni for being what it is but it doesn't do anything well to warrant watching from non-fans of the fatal disease genre of which Konna Koi no Hanashi is probably the gold standard. (off the top of my head)
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Seiryuu ramen in Shin Koiwa

November 23, 2015, 6:39 am
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Yes, I am back. Spent the weekend catching up with friends and lots of drinking. Anyways new girl at Hotaru, Miho recommended this place. The map on tabelog is easy to follow.

Its good enough to go again but not good enough to go out of my way. If only the soup were a bit thicker and the char siu juicer. Problem is the shop is only open for lunch after 12pm and supper after 12pm. I only go Shin Koiwa at night so I don't want to miss my train.

From right: ramen, half boil egg, everthing, char siu, gyoza and kaedama.

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The Lover Seven Years Ago

November 25, 2015, 2:24 am
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I went to Shimokitazawa to watch this play by Abe Sadawo and Kudo Kankuro's comedy group Otona Keikaku. Actually its more like a skit show held loosely by a thread about two has been idols with one hit.

My problem is that a lot of the jokes are based on old pop culture references some of which I got like Wada Akiko and Shomuni but a lot flew over my head. The second half was more situational comedy but its more like Kudo Kankuro trying to get his mates to do disgusting things. Kudo Kankuro could not keep a straight face during the whole thing and was constantly looking down hiding his laughter.

I didn't find it worth my money because its sketch comedy is on tv all the time. Felt like a waste of time especially the money I payed securing the resell tickets. Mano Erina's Better Half was a lot better and I wish I could watch that again.

Now this is a play worth going to Japan for. Matsu Takako, Eita, Inoue Maou and Abe Sadao.

Suiyobi no Campanella! Thanks to bframe for introducing them to me!

I went drinking afterwards and ended my missing the last train. The other regulars were very helpful in looking up cheap places I could stay. One of the places was a nearby sauna and they made jokes about making sure the key is strap is on the correct hand or one could send the wrong signal.

We ended up going to supper with Mama, Miho-chan, Take-san and his friend. Take-san ended up paying and I found out he was the person who gave the very expensive Hyakunen no Kodoku shochu to Mama who gave it to me.

I spend a couple of hours sleeping at a manga cafe for 1200 yen before going back on the first train. Thanks to Miho-chan for making sure I got to the cafe and everything with reception went ok.
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Kokoro ga Sakebitagatterunda review

November 27, 2015, 3:45 pm
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Satomi recommended this to me and all you need to know is that its by the makers of AnoHana.

The Menma is this story is Naruse Jun, who as a little girl saw her father leaving a love hotel with someone and telling her mom.

Naruse's father blames her for talking too much and Naruse gets cursed by a talking egg to have stomach pain when she tries to talk.


Naruse gets involved with three other students with their own stories and it ends in an AnoHana like way woch is spoiled by the above picture.

The most interesting part for me was Naruse realising that her curse only applied to talking but not singing. They should have done a lot of comedy out of it.

AnoHana fans will love this. For others, its watchable but I don't recommend going out of your way unless you are in Japan.
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Sambomaster 15th anniversary Live Final at Zepp Tokyo

November 29, 2015, 6:52 am
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My favourite band has turned 15!

Lining up to get some merchandise.

Finally some decent t-shirts and they overcharge like Onitsuka Chihiro.

Waiting to go inside according to ticket number.

The good thing about Zepp is that you're pretty much guaranteed a decent view as long as you don't have tall people in front of you.

There was a Scandal-like excessive amount of skits but since the show was 2 hours and 45 minutes it was ok. Scandal would have like a 2 hour show with at least half an hour of talking. Still I was expecting them to pack in more old songs in seeing as its their anniversary tour.

I will never be able to listen to Oasis sing Don't look back in Anger but at least I heard my favourite band sing it.
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Meeting up with Shane in Maibara

November 30, 2015, 8:35 am
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So went I from Tokyo to Osaka, checked in at Tenmabashi, back to Shin Osaka to take the shinkansen to Maibara. Finally met up with Shane who is the second person I've met through this blog, the first being bframe.

Shane suggested we meet at Hikone but I preferred Maibara so I could get back to Tenmabashi for some drinking. Air's Clover usually closes at 1 on weekdays if there's no one.

It seemed like a bad decision as there didn't seem to be any eating places around Maibara station!

I found two, first of each was the kurobuta place pictured above. The second was a hakata ramen place called Taifuu pictured below.

I ordered the Taifuu ramen which was a tonkotsu shio ramen that only tasted ok. It was cheap but most of the damage were the beers. The girl at the ramen place really looked like she didn't want to be at work, which is a first for Japan.

We only had an hour and a half but it was great to meet an old school momusu fan who likes Nacchi and Ayaya, (damn you Shane for seeing Nacchi in person!) and talking about the perils of teaching Japanese kids.
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