#osk revue musical

[asakusasisters]

Hi, everyone! This is Asakusa Sisters!!! In April, we went to the show by the Japanese all-female theater OSK Nippon Kagekidan, and in this video, we share our impressions. Shochiku-za Theater, hall, theater merchandise, Top Star's taidan, demachi, and our impressions of the show! We would be very glad to receive your support, likes, and comments! Subscribe to our channel! You can also find us on VK: https://vk.com/asakusasisters Tumblr: https://www.tumblr.com/asakusasisters

[jewlwpet]

TAKARAZUKA FANS

You may have heard of OSK. It's a company based in Osaka that performs Takarazuka-style productions.

What if I told you that their equivalent of Sky Stage (where you can watch productions on TV) was available for subscription overseas for 550 yen a month?

BECAUSE IT IS! You can subscribe to the OSK Channel on Nicovideo for that price, via PayPal.

SADLY there are no English translations of their shows, but you don't really need to understand the words to enjoy a revue imo. Full musicals yes, revues not so much.

They have a couple full shows on their official YouTube channel as well, including their version of Me and My Girl! Just go to "videos" and sort by popularity to see them.

[fuckyeaharthuriana]

I was confused by how many arthurian musicals there were and how many were available... so I did this

(for a text list, here)

[galahadmordred]

Arthur meeting his son Mordred for the first time

[anime-herald]

Earlier today, Sega hosted their fourth live streaming event for Project Sakura Wars. During the show, three cast members were revealed, along with:

Battle gear for Anasatasia and Azami

Details on a new Combat Revue, as well as three characters

Two new trailers

We break the details down below.

Trailers

Two trailers were revealed: A story trailer and a gameplay trailer. A TV spot was also uploaded, which we’ve provided below.

Story Trailer

Gameplay Trailer

TV Spot

Cast

Three cast members were confirmed:

“Yasha”: Chisa Yokoyama

Iris (Berlin Combat Revue): Nana Mizuki

Margaret (Berlin Combat Revue): Rie Kugimiya

Chisa Yokoyama played Sakura Shinguji in all previous entries of the Sakura Wars franchise and related media.

Yasha

Yasha is a mysterious figure who may have a connection to the Imperial Combat Revue’s past. She wields a samurai sword not unlike the legendary Reiken-Arataka, and pilots a black mech known only as “Shinmetsu,” which is written with the kanji for “Divine” and “Destroy.”

Berlin Combat Revue

Iris and Margaret are members the Berlin Combat Revue, who pilot Eisenkleids on the field of battle. Their character designs were crafted by Strike Witches creator Humikane Shimada.

Iris

Margaret

Battle Gear

The battle costumes, as well as the Spiracle Armors for Anasatasia and Azami were both revealed. You can check these out below.

Project Sakura Wars will hit Japanese retailers on December 12. A standard and Limited Edition are both planned for the project. The Limited Edition will include a soundtrack CD and an artbook. The CD will feature more than sixty songs from the franchise’s history, while the artbook will clock in at contain seventy-two pages of art from the series.

Early adopters will also receive a PS4 theme, though details on this have yet to be announced.

The project will be released worldwide in Spring 2020.

Left to Right: Claris, Hatsuho Shinonome, Seijuro Kamiyama, Sakura Amamiya, Azami Mochizuki, Anastasia Palma

The confirmed voice cast includes:

Claris: Saori Hayami

Hatsuho Shinonome: Maaya Uchida

Seijūrō Kamiyama : Yōhei Azakami

Sakura Amamiya: Ayane Sakura

Azami Mochizuki: Hibiku Yamamura

Anastasia Palma: Ayaka Fukuhara

Sumire Kanzaki: Michie Tomizawa

Reiji Shiba: Tomikazu Sugita

Kaoru Rindou: Yui Ishikawa

Komachi Ooba: Ryoko Shiraishi

Yang Shaolong: Yuuichirou Umehara

Yui Huang: Sumire Uesaka

Arthur: Nobunaga Shimazaki

Lancelot: Manami Numakura

Bleach creator Tite Kubo is providing the original character designs, while Jiro Ishii (Nine Hours, Nine Persons, Nine Doors, Under the Dog) is in charge of the story structure. Series composer Kohei Tanaka (Sakura Wars franchise, One Piece, Mobile Fighter G Gundam) is scoring the game’s soundtrack. Other staff members include:

Script: Takaaki Suzuki (Girls und Panzer, Strike Witches)

Setting and Scenario Summary: Takanobu Terada

Development Director: Tetsuya Ootsubo

Producer: Tetsu Kitano

Character Visual Setting: Masashi Kudou

Main Mechanical Designer: Mika Akitaka

Executive Producer: Haruki Satomi

Original Concept: Ohji Hiroi

Project Sakura Wars will be set twelve years after the events of Sakura Wars 5: So Long, My Love. In this new entry, the Combat Revues, which previously protected nations from evil while working incognito, are well known to all.

Indeed, the Great Combat Reveue World War is more of a global sporting event, in which the Combat Revues from across the globe gather in Japan’s Imperial Capital to compete in a tournament. These disparate groups then compete to determine which country’s kouma-crushing corps reigns supreme. By the time Project Sakura Wars begins, two such events have already taken place, and the nations are gathering in the Imperial capital for the third. What should be a peaceful event, though, suddenly takes a turn for the serious.

Sega’s email communication describes the story as:

The stage is set in a romanticized version of 1940s Imperial Tokyo. 10 years ago, a cataclysm resulted in the devastating loss of the Imperial Combat Revue of Tokyo, the capital’s global defense force operating out of the Imperial Theater. The theater has since fallen on hard times and risks closure. As captain of the new Tokyo revue, it’s up to you to mend the hearts of your troops and restore the Imperial Theater back to its former glory!

Project Sakura Wars was first revealed on April 14, 2018 at Sega Fes, and was originally tentatively slated to launch prior to March 31, 2019. On April 19, 2019, Sega Holdings President and CEO Haruki Satomi confirmed that the project will be “more than a game.”

A western release was not confirmed until March 29, though Japanese Asian releases were confirmed to be in the works.

On March 27, all-female theater troupe OSK Revue announced that they will host a new Sakura Wars musical in Kyoto. The production which will be an operatic adaptation of 2001’s Sakura Wars Kayou Show story The Sea God’s Villa.

Sakura Wars is an original project by Sega CS2 R&D (later Overworks) and Red Entertainment. Ohji Hiroi (Moeyo Ken, Far East of Eden), Satoru Akahori (Saber Marionette J, Martian Successor Nadesico), and Kosuke Fujishima (Ah! My Goddess, You’re Under Arrest!) are listed as the original creators of the franchise.

The first title appeared on the Sega Saturn in 1996. The initial entry, while released only in Japan at the time, was estimated to have a 200,000 lifetime sales goal. The title sold 205,270 units in its opening week, which was roughly 57% of the launch shipment. At the time, the title was seen as having the largest debut for a Sega title to date. It would go on to move 359,485 copies throughout the Saturn’s lifespan.

Since then, the title has gone on to spawn:

Five main-line titles

Fifteen spin-off games

An anime TV series by Madhouse

Five anime OVA series

Seven manga and light novel adaptations

Sixteen high-profile live stage shows

The final main-line title in the series, Sakura Wars V: So Long, My Love was released in North America by NIS America. The title is available on Sony’s PlayStation 2, as well as Nintendo Wii console.

Source: YouTube (Sega)

Thanks to Twitter user @AiddonValentine for the translations on Yasha and the Berlin Revue!

Chisa Yokoyama Plays Yasha in Project Sakura Wars; 3 New Trailers Revealed Earlier today, Sega hosted their fourth live streaming event for Project Sakura Wars. During the show, three cast members were revealed, along with:

[zukadiary]

MESSIAH / Beautiful Garden ~ Flower Troupe 2018

Disclaimer: I’m scraping the bottom of my brain for this one. I saw this show a total of one time a week and a half ago, and when I didn’t have time to write it up immediately I didn’t really plan to review it at all... I don’t love spouting opinions based on spotty information, and Messiah, while not too complicated for me to understand, struggled to hold my attention enough that I didn’t feel super comfortable assessing it after one viewing. BUT, I’ve never not reviewed a Takarazuka performance that I’ve seen live, and I do have specific thoughts about Beautiful Garden, so here we go with an attempt.

Messiah was not a winner for me (though thanks to Wind Over Yamataikoku it’s definitely not the worst thing I’ve seen recently). I actually don’t think it was a bad play, and it portrayed an interesting little slice of Japanese history that I really didn’t know anything about, but I don’t think Takarazuka was the stage on which I wanted to see it presented. I have pretty mixed feelings about Harada; he’s got Sekkashou under him which was utterly fantastic (please do more nihonmono revues, Harada-sensei), and he’s done a few killer small theaters. But I didn’t care for either of his Grand Theater shows that I saw, and between those and the less-than-killer small theaters of his that I’ve seen, I get a vibe that he cares more about his play than the women performing it. All I could think of while watching it was how un-Hanagumi it felt (his second most recent Grand Theater was Hoshigumi’s Berlin, My Love last year, and while I did not see it myself a lot of people who did seemed to think that was similarly a poor fit). Mirio did a solid job making that character look cool, but outside the surface-level pleasure of seeing Chinatsu in an evil mustache and Taso as a prominent bad guy, I can’t think of a single actress who was given a character suited to her strengths. Yuki especially can (and did) act the pants off anything, but I really can’t wait for them to give her a sexier role for a change (looking at you, Ikuta, especially if it turns out to be the last chance). 

I did find the music to be nice, and there was a POWERFUL ensemble number in the middle that genuinely knocked my socks off. Perhaps if Yamataikoku hadn’t existed, Messiah would have at least felt fresh? Since they are visually similar and both on the dull side, I couldn’t help but feel like I was watching something I didn’t want to for a second time. 

Beautiful Garden was a trip. Aside from my unconditional love for UeKumi, I don’t think any Takarazuka director has engendered definitive opinions in me quite like Noguchi has. Maybe it’s because after very swiftly graduating from Bow Hall, he’s only done revues in the Grand Theater, and I demand a base level of enjoyment from revues that forces me to hold them to a higher standard. I personally found The Entertainer to be average, and if you break it down, ALL of it’s value came from Micchan’s ability to pull it off—specifically Top Micchan ft. Nibante Beni, a combi the likes of which I don’t think will appear twice in the entire lifetime of Takarazuka past or future. While there is certainly something to be said for knowing your stars, I think if you give that show to anyone else it’s downright bad... and there’s something to be said for that too. I assessed SUPER VOYAGER to be disappointing at the time of my review, and as it’s ripened in my brain since then, “disappointing” has evolved into WILDLY OFFENSIVE... It’s my least favorite revue of all time, and the fact that it was my favorite’s ohirome was salt in the wound. 

When the pre-opening interviews with Noguchi-sensei suggested that Beautiful Garden would contain AWFULLY FAMILIAR-SOUNDING CONTENT, my expectations were pretty much rock bottom. When I re-entered the theater after intermission to find that the very CURTAIN was one of his much-beloved goddamn projections—pixellated, even!—my expectations drilled through the rock and got even more bottom. However, while the show was, in fact, a hot mess, overall I was pleasantly surprised and hopeful that maybe he’s learning.

Once that pixellated projection took us on an animated journey into a forest and the curtain rose onto an actual set, I was actually slack-jawed for a good 3-4 scenes (however many it took to get through the rainy number). The prologue has a bug/flower theme, and the little dancing bug girls who got to flit around for atmosphere before the real action started were en pointe and I LOVED that. Mirio, like every top star in a Noguchi show will probably do for all time, descends from the ceiling on that dumb swing, trying to sing without letting the fear in her eyes show. Then we have a lovely opening with a very Anna Sui aesthetic (it even! features! the top! musumeyaku!). The kickline comes in early, right after the prologue, centered on Maitii and her muscles dressed as a bee (in fact, the very best thing about this show as a whole was the overwhelmingly prolific use of Maitii and her muscles). She does a one-handed cartwheel! I thought this was a real cute number, although a friend told me it was swiped almost as-is from OSK... I cannot personally confirm or deny that. Maitii feels raindrops and the scene transitions to a lovely Rei-centered rainy Paris dance with umbrellas, just as I was complaining at intermission after Messiah that I felt like Rei hasn’t gotten to show off her dancing skills in a while (IMO her best asset). If you pair these scenes with the lovely lavender finale numbers, you have the bones of a GORGEOUS cohesive revue. Unfortunately, we need a middle... 

After the umbrella number, things start to go off the rails. I forgive the first departure because it was a GREAT SCENE despite being a total deviation from the garden theme (but lord knows every revue has at least one scene out of left field). It’s a matador thing, but Maitii is the BULL, and boy was that a good idea. For some reason whenever I mentally tally the top tier dancers in current Takarazuka I forget Maitii, but never again; I don’t think anyone else right now has her raw power. 

Next we have a series of tropical numbers leading up to the chuuzume (including a ~dramatic reveal~ of Mirio in sunglasses, get out of here Noguchi). It was upbeat and fun and there was MORE MAITII, and I guess if it were surrounded by less nonsensical scenes it would have felt a little more appropriate. However, it was followed by a truly bizarre Greek? Roman?? Golden Desert??? scene that I really wish I could just snip out crumple up and throw away.

In a lovely surprise, Yuki then leads what appears to be the kickoff of the finale, singing S’Wonderful (in a little tailcoat and hot pants, if memory serves). A+ if not for the Pavlovian anxiety that song gives me (my brain expects it to be followed by Kizuna). The otokoyaku dance is an equally lovely parade of top hats and sticks. And then... Oh wait! Gotcha!! It wasn’t the finale at all!! Did you think Noguchi wasn’t going to make you listen to a terrible lip synching boyband?? You were wrong!!

Seriously, get out. The sung solo lines don’t make the recorded chorus any less offensive. If I want to watch boy idols, I have a plethora to choose from. That is NOT WHAT I’M HERE FOR.

And now I’m all hot and angry for the actual finale, the aforementioned lovely lavender one. While the fake-out finale numbers were good in isolation, once I saw the whole picture they ruined the flow. Use one, save the other for your next show.

Upset as I still was at parts, I’ll take the progress... anything that makes the prospect of one of my troupes getting him even an iota less than totally hopeless. Even some of the projections were an improvement, but I wish he’d stick to effects (like rain and falling petals) and eliminate the others entirely. Someone tell him they’re invisible in the spotlight.

[pellicano-sanguino]

Random thoughts while watching...  OSK Revue?

I finally saw my first OSK Revue show (Dracula, 2017), so thought I'd write about it. This is not a proper review, just a bunch of random thoughts. I will be making a lot of comparisons to Takarazuka in this, and please understand that I do not mean to imply that OSK is just a zuka copycat, I simply wanted to compare the two and see what they have in common and what not (also, all opinions are about this production and these actresses only, I'd need to see more shows to form a proper, better educated opinion on OSK's style as a whole.).

First impression was a surprise at how small the production is. I knew OSK isn't as big as zuka, but still, the theater's stage was very small and there were only about ten actresses, many of them pulling several roles, I think. I felt like I was watching a Bow Hall show cut in half both by stage length and actress numbers. Having a small number of actresses causes there to be some slower, quieter scenes, where a character monologues for a while so that everyone else has time to do the costume change.

Even so, it still felt very similar to zuka. Despite the small stage, they do dance, including a post-show minirevue that includes the main otokoyakus dancing in pretty, sparkly tailcoats and a duet dance with the main leads. The makeup is similar but there's some small differences that I'm not expert enough to point out (don't know anything about makeup). There are some stylistic differences in zuka makeup too, so it felt like I was watching a sixth zuka troupe and this was their troupe's personal style.

Minirevue dancing (and look, some parade feathers. Small feathers but feathers none the less.)

Otokoyaku still sing like otokoyaku and musumeyakus sound just like zuka musumes. I liked the leading otokoyaku's voice, it was pleasant to listen. Though she has to do a lot of angry angsting throughtout the musical, which is occasionally bad for her voice, making it sound like she has a bit of a sore throat. The songs were ok, nothing particularly memorable or catchy. A lot of the music is rather simple, like piano music and such.

I admit, when I was putting the disk in the DVD player, I was chanting in my head ”Please follow the book at least barely, please don't be weird and rewrite the story wildly.” Well, no such luck, this isn't a book faithful adaptation. Which unfortunately leads to me not having a clue what the hell is going on most of Act 1. But I am happy that it's not a comedy or a super weird adaptation.

I have to say that seeing a completely serious take on a vampire musical is a breath of fresh air and something I wish zuka could do. Don't get me wrong, I love the lighthearted vampire shows like Seal of Roses (which maybe didn't aim for lighthearted but kinda accidentally became one). Zuka always makes the vampire stories, well...  kinda weird (I've already ranted about the randomness, plot holes and inconsistent vampire lore in my Random Thoughts While Watching Zuka #4). I appreciate them thinking outside the box and surprising me instead of recycling the most generic vampire story plots and tropes, but as a vampire lover I would die for vampire show that actually takes itself seriously. I suppose the Poe Family show is a serious take on the subject (no comedic parts or weird story elements), but that is probably thanks to the source material. Zuka can do cool&dark, they've done Elisabeth, so if they wanted they could make truly awesome vampire shows.

While I said that this is a serious take on a vampire story, there's still a short comedic song number in the beginning of Act 1, where a bunch of reporters try to interview Dracula after his arrival at London, only to have him scream NO COMMENTS at them.

This show uses sound and screen effects a lot. Most of the time they make sense (like hearing the sound of a train in the station) but there are moments where I hear a random noise or see strange images projected on the screens and go ”What the hell was that?”

There are only three big roles in this show: Dracula, Mina and Jonathan Harker. There's also this one lady in black who I suspect to be the spirit of Dracula's dead wife, who he grieves and longs for all the time. So yeah, the beginning of Act 2 reveals to us that this show has taken inspiration from Coppola's Dracula and lifts the vampire's origin from the movie. He was a warlord in medieval times (which means he's dressed in armor and has a sword YES me likey) and somehow a false letter was brought to his wife claiming that he had fallen in battle, which led to her committing suicide. When human Drac got home to discover his wife dead, he was devastated and broken, that is, until he hears that the church refuses to bury his wife because suiciders are sinners who go to hell. There's a literal DUN DUN DUUUUN sound effect as the count builds up rage, then curses God and allows the forces of evil to corrupt his body in order to revenge. He then proceeds to kill all of the priests/monks/whatever the church folks were supposed to be.

This slaughter of innocent unarmed humans would be brutal and super dramatic, but the fight choreography leaves...  much to improve. Yeah, zuka battle choreos can look like they're from the 60's Batman too, with punches that miss by a mile, but here...  the stabs are so lazy it looks like the poor victims are literally walking into his sword.

If Heaven won't accept

my suicided wife

I'll follow her to Hell!

(...and lick her knife.)

Not gonna lie, this is something I haven't seen zuka do. Sure, they've implied licking things, but it's always done quite swiftly and * elegantly * and not, well, like this. Tongue out and all, literally licking the knife prop.

I was curious to see if the kisses are still fake or not, since OSK is free to have their own traditions and don't have to follow rules set by Hankyu. Also, I keep hearing rumors that OSK is supposedly more daring than zuka when it comes to love scenes. Not in this show, at least. The romantic scenes are very chaste and more cute than sexy (also, the blood drinking scene, while definitely romanticized and very nice&dramatic, not any hotter than the blood drinking scenes in zuka). And the kisses are very much fake. Oh well, the actresses are spared of messing up their lipstick.

Speaking of messing up lipstick, I know that stain is supposed to be blood but it looks like a group of amorous ladies gave the count several sloppy kisses.

So, my guess for the plot is that Dracula comes to London in search for the woman who is the reincarnation of his wife. To lure women for him to see, he puts up...   a fashion show or something? Dresses are on display, including dead wife's wedding dress. Which Mina gets to wear, and Dracula is immediately convinced she's the incarnation and for the rest of the musical never calls Mina by her real name, just by the wife's name. Which is...  Elisabeth. I don't remember what the wife's name was in Coppola's movie, but still, the dramatic way Dracula pronounces this name does make it sound like it was lifted from another musical.

In Act 2 Jonathan, on his way to rescue his girlfriend from the vampire's castle, meets an annoying little kid. And yeah, just like in zuka, there are no child actors in OSK, children are played by adult women using cutesy kiddie voice and being super genki. But then the kid finds the knife that Elisabeth used to suicide herself and turns to face the audience while holding it, and I was like ”Great. The annoying kid has turned into a creepy kid.” If the child had turned out to be a vampire and in team Drac all along, that would have been an awesome plot twist. But instead he's actually an angel or something like that, providing Jonathan with the weapon that can kill the vampire.

Dracula has a bunch of vampiric minions at his castle, not just the three brides. I have to ask, what is it with vampire shows having one main vampire who behaves normally and then having a bunch of background vampires/minions who speak/sing like they're high as a kite and lumber around dancing artsy inteeeerpretive dances? It's...   weird. Why are some vampires normal and some complete fruitbats?

This Dracula must be the angstiest version of the character I've ever seen. There's occasionally great moments where he's charismatic, seductive or in rage mode, but the majority of time he is either silently depressed or actively whining (even many of his angry scenes come out as more whiny than aggressive). It's a very dialogue heavy show and because of the language barrier and free adapting of the story, I have no idea what his angsty dialogues are about. But whatever he says, he actually manages to win Mina's sympathy and they dance together. Even if they kiss, I still think Mina's feelings are more pity and less sincere romantic interest. Also, I should point out that I have nothing against depressed, angsty, reluctant vampires in general, it's just that I don't usually associate that kind of behavior with Dracula (depression and angst is more sir Francis Varney's thing.). Dracula is cold, ruthless, cunning and irredeemably evil, not some emotional lovelorn wreck.

I have said this before and will say again: Dracula does not aishiteiru.

Jonathan makes an attempt to save Mina but doesn't get to kill the count. Which is good because while the Jonathan of the book would definitely want and be able to fight the count, this musical portrayed the character as a cute and awkward softie nerd (I approve, not all male heroes need to be tough guys) and avoiding getting his hands wet with blood was a good move. Poor guy would be traumatized for life, even if it would be to save his girlfriend, he's just not a killer. Instead, Dracula decides to let the lovers go free and suicides himself, like he usually does in adaptations where they make him have a romance with Mina.

You know how in zuka there's the tradition that in the end the dead characters make an appearance dressed in white, to sing and prance around in an afterlife epilogue. Well, not in this show, but there is something kinda similar. In the ending scene the spirit of Elisabeth appears behind the dying count and poses dramatically with him, spreading her cape like white bat wings, taking him with her to afterlife. I think it looks cool.

To end this, let's talk about the blood drinking scene. In all vampire stories, these are the most important scenes, in my opinion. Blood drinking is what vampires do, it's their trademark thing, and if you chicken out of showing it or handle it lazily, then why the hell are you making a vampire story in the first place. You don't make Phantom of the Opera adaptation and fail to have the unmasking scene be the most dramatic and memorable scene, and similarly, you don't make a vampire story and fail to deliver the blood drinking scenes properly. Yes, I have weirdly strong opinions about this, deal with it.

Very early in Act 1 we see Dracula suffer from malnutrition, his hair turning gray and his knees failing, making him slump to the ground, very visibly suffering. For emergency he empties a small vial of blood that doesn't seem to make him get any better. And it is this moment when Jonathan decides to visit him for the first time for work-related reasons (no idea what his profession is in this story. In the fashion industry?). So, we have a thirsty vampire and a nice, cute bloodbag in the same room all alone.

Me: Drink him!

Dracula: Nope. I'd rather suffer. :)

What the hell? In the book he totally noms Jonathan. Is this because he's a male? This Dracula afraid to drink from someone who has icky boy blood? Oh well, he gets better later anyway, so I assume he gets some blood off-stage. But still, it was very confusing to see a starving vampire not take advantage of an opportunity of some easy blood.

Well, later Dracula is introduced to Mina and immediately decides ”This is the One.” And I cheer him on.

Me: Drink her!

Dracula: No. Now is not a good time. :)

Me: Damnit! DRINK SOMEBODY!!!

We have to wait all the way to the end of Act 1, but finally, we get a genuine on-screen blood drinking scene. Just as important as the moment of blood drinking itself is what leads up to it. In this musical it's Jonathan piecing together all the clues and finally getting Dracula's real identity (in a rather nerdy monologue of stuff like ”...Dracul means Dragon, and the A at the end makes it Son of the Dragon...   wasn't there a warlord named like that in Romania hundreds of years ago...”).

Nerdsplaining time!

Terrified with his discovery he tries to save Mina, who Dracula has just kidnapped, spilling the beans for her as well. The revelation of Dracula's vampiric nature scares the two humans and there's plenty of dialogue that goes over my horizon, but I do get that the thing that makes Dracula snap is when Mina confesses to loving Jonathan.

The jealous vampire then starts to torture Jonathan by...   some kind of Darth Vader mind-choking magic. Well, I suppose it's choking, because Jonathan holds his hands around his throat as if struggling against invisible fingers, but the sound effect doesn't suggest choking at all. It actually sounds much more gruesome and painful, a nasty ripping sound, as if the count is telekineticly tearing the poor man limb from limb and simultaneously flaying him alive. Eww, it's a gross sound effect.

Mina obviously can't idly just watch as her boyfriend is painfully tortured to death while she has the power to put an end to it. To save Jonathan, she loudly exclaims that she doesn't love him. And the count, being a little bit of an idiot here, buys it. Strangely, Jonathan seems to buy it too, crying Mina's name in disbelief. The torture ends (thank goodness), and to make sure no harm comes to Jonathan, Mina tells Dracula that if you're really a vampire and if it's blood you want, you can have mine!

Just let me gather this bothersome veil...

...and Behold! Vampire bait.

She dramaticly pulls the veil of the wedding dress on one shoulder and reveals her neck. I love this. And so does Dracula. This is the one moment where his eyes actually light up with passion and while he attempts to stay cool, you can see his chest rise as his breathing gets faster with excitement. Darn right, count. Blood offered by free will is the best stuff there is. And it was about time you finally drank someone.

It's always interesting when humans offer their blood to the vampire out of free will, because there's usually good and complex reasons behind it, and this is no exception. Mina doesn't offer her blood out of sympathy or under the influence of vampiric hypnosis or even being seduced by the pretty blood drinker. It's offered by free will but it's very much not concensual. The offer of blood is the only way she can distract the vampire long enough to let Jonathan escape and get help. By playing along with the count's delusions about Mina being the reincarnation of his wife, she is cleverly buying time, manipulating him. Only, unfortunate for these two, there is no van Helsing or any other member of the book's league of merry vampirehunting men in this show for Jonathan to run to, so all he can do is to follow them to the castle and attempt a lone rescue mission (which fails).

Frankly, the one who eventually defeats Dracula (kinda) is Mina, who manages to win the count's sympathy (making him learn the good old ”if you really love someone, you'll want what's best for them and let them go instead of selfishly trying to force them to stay with you”). And this blood drinking scene is the first time we see that she is aware of the power she has over the vampire. Maybe in the end she didn't exactly intend to make him commit suicide, just trying to make him let them go, but old Drac was living a horribly depressed and angsty unlife anyway, so it doesn't surprise me that he decided to end it. That's why the (kinda). Mina has great influence over Dracula but I do think his decision to die a final death seems to be not a result of manipulation but a genuine decision. Though he still technically makes her do it, by forcibly placing the knife in her hands and then grabbing her wrists, stabbing himself, making her involuntarily deal the killing blow. Kinda dick move (Mina is quite horrified of this, understandably), but at least I'm happy Mina doesn't kill herself too in this one (yes, I'm still angry at that ending in 2011 Wao Youka's Dracula. The count kills himself so Mina can go back to being human and back to Jonathan. And then the dumb woman makes the count's sacrifice completely pointless by throwing away the life he attempted to save.) Dracula ends his unlife but Mina and Jonathan return to the world of the living, where they belong.

Final random thought: Knightly warlord Dracula looks a bit like Lancelot’s long lost, dangerously unhinged brother. (it’s the wig and the silver armor with blue details. The actresses are very different.)

[lightly-salted-nerd]

20 Questions

@bisexualrogerss tagged me and it’s finals week so I’m looking for any excuse to not study,,, here we go,,,

Rules: Answer the questions about yourself and then tag 20 people that you wanna get to know better!

Name: Mason

Nickname: The closest thing I have is my Japanese nickname, Matcha (抹茶). It’s that super concentrated green tea powder that people like to make deserts with. Even though the nickname is based on a shortening of my actual name (Mason-chan to Ma-chan to Matcha) I like to think that I’m a little traditional, a little modern, a little bitter and a little sweet kinda like Matcha is.

Age: 21

Gender: Cis female

Orientation: Straight (but not narrow!)

Height: 5′3″ish (I look shorter, but that’s my official height ala the doctor’s office ruler)

Favourite color: I’m not really sure if I have one anymore? Growing up it was always magenta. When picking out clothes, I prefer red. I avoid white/pastel color palates like the plague.

Book recommendations: This is hard because I feel like books are one of the more personal things someone can recommend, but I think The Hunchback of Notre Dame is good and I’d love someone else to suffer with me and read the thing, dammit. If suffering isn’t your speed, read Freak Show by James St. James. He’s a drag queen who writes books, what could go wrong?

Movie recommendations (not including Marvel lmao): Here’s a little something for everyone- Galaxy Quest, Who Framed Roger Rabbit, Back to the Future, Mononoke Hime, Star Wars VII, Singing’ in the Rain, The Emperor’s New Groove, Kaguya Hime, Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy, Moana, Star Trek IV, Mad Max Fury Road, and Laurence of Arabia.

TV recommendation: I pretty rarely talk about anime on Tumblr, but if you’re looking for the good shit I recommend Princess Jellyfish, One Punch Man, and the original Neon Genesis Evangelion.

Music recommendation: The Gorillaz are my favorite underrated group right now. Give their newest album a listen, it’s really worth your time.

Coffee, tea, or hot chocolate? Definitely tea, all the way. Hot chocolate is good to chill out, but I need a little bit more kick in my morning beverages than just sugar.

Cats or dogs? Definitely cats. I’m not against dogs, but I wouldn’t exactly want to have one myself.

Favorite meme? That’s a really hard one! I think I’m going to go with “HERE COME DAT BOY” because even without any context it always makes me smile. The dog in the room that’s on fire saying “This is fine” is the meme I find most relatable. I am of course also in love with classic memes (the cake is a lie, all your base are belong to us, that kind of thing) as well as RuPaul’s drag race memes so there’s way too many favorites to get into here.

I want to live long enough to witness:  Female president in America. A unified Korea. Gay marriage legalized in Japan.

Weird obsessions: Really love to hear about people’s plastic surgery journeys (like on youtube). 

Tumblr birthday: I’ve only had this blog for about a year. Dunno when I started off exactly, just a way to get my fix of Star Trek, X-files, and other fandom materials ever since DeviantArt fizzled out.

How many sideblogs: Not a one!

Random fact about me: I’ve gotten really invested in the all-female Japanese theater troupe called the Takarazuka Revue (along with one of their competitors, the OSK Revue). I’ve already been to three Revue performances and I think you can expect to see more content from me about them soon!

Goals for 2018: Make it to 2019.

I’m not tagging anyone because I’m wayyyy to lazy but if you would like to do your own take in this, go ahead!

[asakusasisters]

ブギウギ or "Boogie Woogie", a dorama about the life of legendary Japanese singer Kasagi Shizuko, will premiere this autumn on NHK. A Plot: Sets in the 1910s, this is the story of Hanada Suzuko, a young girl who grew up in a family that owned a bathhouse in downtown Osaka. From a young age, Suzuko loved to sing and dance, and joined the Umemaru Girls Opera Company (USK) in Dotonbori. Suzuko continued to show her talent for singing and eventually became a star of the postwar era. Umemaru Girls Troupe is a dorama name for an all-female theatre OSK Nippon Kagekidan, established in 1922. OSK actresses also took part in some scenes of the film.

[asakusasisters]

!NEW! Revue in Kyoto| Go to the Future 2023 This November, OSK Revue will present a new show "Revue in Kyoto" at the Kyoto Minami-za Theater. The performances are from 11th to 19th November.

Starring: Yan Rin, Maimi Rira, Chisaki Emi, Hanazuki Sou, Kazuki Tsubasa.

[asakusasisters]

Unfortunately there are few reviews in the net about OSK Revue, so we decided to change this situation, show our photos and tell something interesting.

We`ve been studying the history of the two theaters OSK and SKD for many years and of course we were eager to see OSK Revue performance in real life.

On November 19, we attended the OSK «Goemon» play for the first time. Starring:  top-star Yan Rin - Ishikawa Goemon, Leo Amaki - Toyotomi Hideyoshi, Yu Ichiya - Ishida Mitsunari, Ryo Tsubaki - Saizo. The performance took place at the Kintetsu Art Theater, located in the tallest building in Osaka. The theater is located on the eighth floor.

In the lobby there were large banners, japanese umbrellas, you could take pictures with them. So we did it *_*

Some words about the staging.

The performance tells about the life of the famous thief Ishikawa Goemon, the Japanese Robin Hood. The scenery, lighting and choreography, everything in the performance were so good! It looks like a cool European play. There were a lot of action scenes, sword fights, of course romance, especially the love scene between Goemon and Chacha... it's just impossible to forget, Yan Rin is a wonderful dancer and actress, probably one of the best in Japan. The way she expresses feelings through movements is delightful.

Chacha's role is difficult, especially if we are talking about a historical figure, but Mihana did her best.

Amaki Leo (Toyotomi Hideyoshi) well conveyed the feelings of the character with her voice and acting, she is already an experienced actress with a «dark aura», so the antagonist role suits her very well.

Ichiya Yu played the role of Toyotomi Hideyoshi's vassal named Ishida Mitsunari. This is the first big role of the young actress. Ichiya looked very convincing and bright, her solo song in the middle of the staging, her beautiful figure and her strong but sensual voice leave a strong impression.

Everyone who is interesting in ancient Japan will love this staging. Lots of action, dancing and amazing music. We were impressed and regret that we visited «Goemon» only once.

[fuckyeaharthuriana]

a gifset for every arthurian opera&musical: OSK Revue’s The Knights of the Round Table

[fuckyeaharthuriana]

perplexingly found out the BIG NEWS GUYS

https://www.nicovideo.jp/watch/1584934442 

this is nicovideo, and this is Knights of the Round Table part 1. If you join the website (it’s a paid subscription) you can watch Knights of the Round Table (by all female theater OSK). It is a PAID subscription. I don’t know Japanese, but it looks like the first month is free, but then you have to careful to delete the subscription. (Month in Japanese subscription websites are counted as calendar months, so if you join the 28 of April, you only have those few days before 1st of May which are free).

[asakusasisters]

Very sensual moments. Nijikake Roman (Salieri) and Kizuki Rei (Katerina) from OSK Revue musical “Salieri&Mozart”, 2019. 

[asakusasisters]

Duet song with OSK Revue actesses Yan Rin (as King Arthur) and Kazuki Tsubasa (as Lancelot) from musical “Knights of the round Table” 2019

[asakusasisters]

Fantastic photos from OSK REVUE musical “Caesar and Cleopatra” with Yan Rin (Caesar), Maimi Rira (Cleopatra) and Kazuki Tsubasa (Brutus).

Oh, they look so awesome! Can`t wait to get a DVD!