Ferris Wheels and Honey and Clover

While strolling through Tokyo, I encountered three huge ferris wheels. I recognized two because they are important settings in Honey and Clover. The one above is located at Kasai Rinkai Park, right beside the Tokyo Sea Life Park. This one appears in the ending animation. I initially thought it was one I saw at Odaiba because both were constructed on man-made islands.

The photo above wasn’t taken by me. It comes from Panoramio. I thought it was really important to point that out because I totally agree with Danny Choo, ultra famous blogger who emphasizes the importance of creating your own content. I didn’t take a picture of it because on that day I was having some technical problems. I didn’t know how to format my SD card. 😦

Located at Yokohama, The Cosmos Clock 21 appears in Honey and Clover II, 12 episode sequel that concludes the original 26 episode TV series. Geez, what a drop of quality between pictures!

Kabuki-za

On episode 38 of Cross Game, Kitamura takes Akane to Kabuki-za, a famous kabuki theater in Ginza. According to Wikitravel, “The Kabukiza will be demolished in April 2010, with a new, rebuilt version to be ready by 2013.”

And this is a photo I took while strolling through Ginza. I thought about watching a performance just to tell Jessica, who is really into theater, about it. Unfortunately I ended up forgetting about it the second time I went to the district. Probably one of the most expensive places on Earth, Ginza’s main streets is where you can find all of the most glamorous shops of the planet. I only entered the Mac Store located there, but ended up not buying anything. My favorite part of Ginza was the Tsukiji Fish Market. By far, the best sushi I have ever eaten in my life.

Aim for the Ace! (1979 Movie)

I recently re-watched the Ace wo Nerae movie that compiles the whole 26 episodes of the TV series. It’s impossible to edit such a big plot and not expect for it to be worse than the original. Too many crucial points were simply ignored. Kyoko Otowa for example. In the TV show, she is an important antagonist for the protagonist’s character development. In the movie, she became an extra. She is merely there.

I previously blogged about the white tennis balls in the 1973 TV series. I’m just posting to point out that in the movie version, the balls are yellow instead.

Some interesting posters can also be seen. Space Wars is probably a reference to Star Wars (1977), but the image might be a reference to the 2001: A Space Odissey (1968) poster. If you can recognize any of the other posters, please post about it on the comments section.

Fuji TV Building

A famous tourist spot was recently utilized on a TV series I’m currently watching. I recognized it since not long ago I took pictures of it while at Tokyo.

Fuji TV Headquarters as seen on episode 9 of 空中ブランコ (Kūchū Buranko) a.k.a. Trapeze. Fuji TV is the broadcaster of the show.

Above is Dr. Irabu, a peculiar psychiatrist and main character of the TV series. I should probably have written about it on my wordpress post about favorite shows from 2009, but my problem with the show is that it could definitely have been much better. The visual presentation is very distinct, but not impressive. Each episode features a different patient, thus allowing the viewer to watch them in any given order. Some episodes are very good, some barely average. The young director, Kenji Nakamura, worked on one of most impressive series I saw this decade, Mononoke.

This is a picture I took of the building which is located at Odaiba, a huge artificial island. To reach it, most people probably take the monorail which was created just to give access to it. The atmosphere at the island is sort of weird. It feels like a huge amusement park people only go to work or entertain themselves. Reminded me a bit of Brasilia. Maybe Las Vegas feels the same.

Musical Performances on the Streets of Tokyo

Above, a quartet playing When the Saints Go Marching In at Nakano.

A solo artist named 恋 (Ren) playing near Shinjuku Station. She asked the audience to post her blog if we talked about her on the net.

A band playing at Yoyogi Park, but being interrupted by a security person who probably works for NHK. Located at Shibuya, the studio is right next to the park.