TOKUSATSU TONIGHT! Meeting Actress Hitomi Miwa!

Actress Hitomi Miwa. Photo by Brett Homenick.

Tonight, I was privileged to meet actress Hitomi Miwa for the first time. While her name may not be very familiar to Western tokusatsu fans, her acting credits ought to be. She has appeared in a wide variety of movies and TV programs (genre and non-genre), and she continues to act to this day.

She guested on Ultraman Tiga (1996-97) episode 37 as a Manon alien and Ultraman Cosmos (2001-2002) in episodes 13 and 14 as Leni. She was also a semi-regular on the Super Sentai series Ninpuu Sentai Hurricaneger (2002-03) as Lady Gozen, as well as Kamen Rider Kabuto (2006-2007) as Rena Mamiya. She also acts in the horror movie Eko Eko Azarak: Misa the Dark Angel (1998) as Mami Mizushima. Other credits include the movie Mirrorman Reflex (2006) ... and many more!

I met Miwa-san at the Tokyo-area restaurant-bar Bonne Eau, and I found her to be a very open and friendly person. She truly enjoyed herself, and all the folks in the restaurant did, too. Many thank to Miwa-san for her generosity!

MORE SHOTS! Ultraman Festival 2017!

For your viewing pleasure, here are even more shots I took at Ultraman Festival 2017. Enjoy!

ULTRAMAN FESTIVAL 2017! Celebrating 50 Years of Ultra Seven!

If it's July, and if it's Tokyo, that means it's time for the annual Ultraman Festival held in Ikebukuro's Sunshine City. This year's Ultraman Festival just opened, and today I made my way over to Ikebukuro to give it a look-see. As far as I'm concerned, Gomes stole the show. Have a look for yourself. Enjoy!

ULTRA SEVEN IN CONCERT! From the Eye Slugger to Chanson!

Actor Koji Moritsugu performs chanson live. Photo by Brett Homenick.

On the evening of July 22, I was fortunate to see actor Koji Moritsugu (who starred as Dan Moroboshi on Ultra Seven) perform chanson at his restaurant. Moritsugu-san really threw himself into his performance.

I recognized a few of my friends and acquaintances at the event, and even was able to say hello to another actor, Hiroyuki Takano, who was in attendance for the chanson performance.

Afterwards, I was able to greet Moritsugu-san and exchange a few words with him. But, given his enduring popularity and all the other fans vying for his attention, it was difficult to do more than that. Still, I enjoyed getting a glimpse of the other side of Ultra Seven!

POWER RANGERS HITS JAPAN! Go, Go, Power Rangers!

The recent Power Rangers movie is currently playing in Japan. Photo by Brett Homenick.

While in Ikebukuro today, I passed a theater that is showing the new Power Rangers movie. To this day, I've never seen an entire episode of the original Mighty Morphin Power Rangers TV show (or any of its spinoffs), but since the subject matter is (slightly) related to the topics I cover here, I figured I'd share the photos I took.

It's certainly not the type of movie I'd see on my own, so its tangential connection to Japanese special effects isn't enough for it to separate me from my money, I'm afraid.

I Was There in Spirit ... So Where's My Cut of the Money?

Yours truly with Otius Gojius and ... uh, that's all. Why, does it look like there's someone else in this picture?

So this is funny. I recently discovered that a photo taken on my camera and shared on this blog was offered to purchasers of a Japanese guest's autograph at a convention (emphasis on "con") over the weekend.

The only problem? Permission was neither sought nor granted for the use of my photograph. In fact, I was poorly photoshopped out of my own picture (movie posters were cheaply inserted over my likeness), though you can still see a bit of me in the pic standing next to the guest. The picture at the top of this blog post gives you an idea of what it looked like.

It was so shoddy that when I first saw it, I figured it was something a fan made for himself right before he walked out the door. (Oh, if only...)

Interestingly enough, a similar situation arose last year with this same con promoter, as his website (surprise, surprise!) reproduced a snapshot I took one of his convention guests in order to advertise his appearance there, and of course no one from that group thought it might be appropriate to seek permission first.

You know, folks, it takes more than a collared shirt and long pants to give you class.

The fans who paid to meet the convention guest in question sure deserved a lot better than what they got. I'm not sure if this was some misguided attempt to settle some imaginary old score; if so, the only ones who suffered were the show's customers. Meanwhile, I'm just thankful to be thousands of miles away from this kind of nonsense. I mean, this is the type of childishness I expect from Minya's Place!

REVISITING TOHO STUDIOS! Paying My Respects to the King of the Monsters!

Earlier today, I stopped by Toho Studios to photograph the area. I hadn't been by the studio in a long time, so it was overdue. Enjoy!