Father of TV 'talent' Rola released due to insufficient evidence
I have to admit I haven't the foggiest notion of how the Japanese justice system works. I just hope never to fall afoul of it. We haven't seen Rola on TV much since the police arrested her father, but we did see him the other day on the news. He grinned and waved and shouted a message to his daughter much to the delight of news photographers and videographers standing across the street from the jailhouse where he'd been for three weeks. Then he got into a taxi.
His daughter favors him. They have similar noses and mouths and nearly identical smiles. He's not a bad looking fellow, but on Rola these features are much prettier. The whole thing reminded me of American celebrities with troubled parents. I'm not going to name them, but you can guess the ones I mean quite easily.
Anyway, three weeks, then released on insufficient evidence. Seems like a long time to me, but, as I've said, I don't know the law here. While I plan never to involve myself in anything with even a whiff of illegality about it, there's always the chance for getting into some serious trouble due to miscommunication and from not knowing my legal rights here. When traveling or living abroad, do not assume that country has the same protections in place for people accused of crimes-- innocent until proven guilty, for example-- as in your home country. So I need to study my rights here. You should, too, if you plan to move to or even visit Japan.
Well, for visiting perhaps this isn't a high priority. No sense in being alarmist. I just hope we don't end up on the wrong side of the chief of police's desk, a la The Big Lebowski. A coffee cup to the head would probably be getting off lightly.
Showing posts with label Rola. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Rola. Show all posts
Sunday, August 17, 2014
Sunday, July 13, 2014
Well, we like her at our house: Rola changing DNA of Japanese pop culture
Rola changing DNA of Japanese pop culture
Having married a Japanese woman, I get a big dose of Japanese TV almost daily. Japanese TV is largely crap. The culture snob in all of us might sniff, "Well, so is all of TV, no matter the country of origin. All mass culture is crap." But Japanese TV is REALLY crap, by just about any standard. Even my wife thinks so, although she enjoys the game shows where celebrities try to figure out the correct kanji before a giant computer graphic ape out of a video game throws bees at them or whatever the hell is happening.
We also both get a big charge out of Itte Q and another show staring Seiji, a big, affable galoot of a guy in loud clothes who drags his roller suitcase all over Africa looking for lone Japanese living in small towns and villages there. I have no quarrel with J-Dramas, either. Or anime. Or the show with the old guy in overalls walking his cute dog around town meeting ordinary people.
What I can't bear, however, are the endless shows about people going to restaurants, or the endless shows where people sit around on a brightly decorated stage and sample ordinary Japanese dishes. Or the shows where celebrities watch videos of other celebrities going to restaurants. Or the shows that just seem to be a group of celebrities shouting at each other while watching videos of other celebrities going to restaurants. Or shows about restaurants.
Many of these shows feature Rola. Rola has a nasal voice that sounds as if she could shatter glass, but just as that article I lined to points out, she has a "carefree" charm. We know to always bet against her in any guessing game, but there's just something appealing about her lack of pretentiousness. Which is the opposite of me, a creature composed largely of pretentions and mistaken assumptions. Granted, I know nothing of the real Rola, but if she has a talent beyond being approachably pretty, it's projecting an honest, open demeanor. Certainly, there's a cloying quality about her, too, but it's largely overshadowed by that apparent honesty. You feel with Rola you're getting a genuine person, beyond the trademark poses and pouts.
Which is to say, if you must air a show where celebrities watch video of other celebrities going to restaurants or talking about food (and if you're a Japanese broadcaster, you absolutely must or suffer the consequences), you could do a lot worse than to add Rola to your cast. And yes, she's pretty much everywhere these days, so you just have to get used to her and not worry so much about all-Rola, all the time. I'm pretty sure she's not losing any sleep over it, except for when she's working, which must be all the time. You know what I mean, though, right?
Having married a Japanese woman, I get a big dose of Japanese TV almost daily. Japanese TV is largely crap. The culture snob in all of us might sniff, "Well, so is all of TV, no matter the country of origin. All mass culture is crap." But Japanese TV is REALLY crap, by just about any standard. Even my wife thinks so, although she enjoys the game shows where celebrities try to figure out the correct kanji before a giant computer graphic ape out of a video game throws bees at them or whatever the hell is happening.
We also both get a big charge out of Itte Q and another show staring Seiji, a big, affable galoot of a guy in loud clothes who drags his roller suitcase all over Africa looking for lone Japanese living in small towns and villages there. I have no quarrel with J-Dramas, either. Or anime. Or the show with the old guy in overalls walking his cute dog around town meeting ordinary people.
What I can't bear, however, are the endless shows about people going to restaurants, or the endless shows where people sit around on a brightly decorated stage and sample ordinary Japanese dishes. Or the shows where celebrities watch videos of other celebrities going to restaurants. Or the shows that just seem to be a group of celebrities shouting at each other while watching videos of other celebrities going to restaurants. Or shows about restaurants.
Many of these shows feature Rola. Rola has a nasal voice that sounds as if she could shatter glass, but just as that article I lined to points out, she has a "carefree" charm. We know to always bet against her in any guessing game, but there's just something appealing about her lack of pretentiousness. Which is the opposite of me, a creature composed largely of pretentions and mistaken assumptions. Granted, I know nothing of the real Rola, but if she has a talent beyond being approachably pretty, it's projecting an honest, open demeanor. Certainly, there's a cloying quality about her, too, but it's largely overshadowed by that apparent honesty. You feel with Rola you're getting a genuine person, beyond the trademark poses and pouts.
Which is to say, if you must air a show where celebrities watch video of other celebrities going to restaurants or talking about food (and if you're a Japanese broadcaster, you absolutely must or suffer the consequences), you could do a lot worse than to add Rola to your cast. And yes, she's pretty much everywhere these days, so you just have to get used to her and not worry so much about all-Rola, all the time. I'm pretty sure she's not losing any sleep over it, except for when she's working, which must be all the time. You know what I mean, though, right?
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