Ultra Seven Is Back!

Koji Moritsugu (left) poses with actor Hassei Takano. Photo by Brett Homenick. 

On Saturday, November 10, I attended another event with Koji Moritsugu, the actor who starred in Ultra Seven (1967-68) as Dan Moroboshi. It'd been a year since my last visit, and I was long overdue for a return.

Hassei Takano can be seen in Ultraman Gaia (1998-99) as Hiroya Fujimiya (Ultraman Agul), Kamen Rider Ryuki (2002-03) as Miyuki Tezuka (Kamen Rider Raia), Kamen Rider: The First (2005) and Kamen Rider: The Next (2007) as Hayato Ichimonji, Ultraseven X (2007) as Saku's humanSuperior Ultraman 8 Brothers (2008) as Hiroya Fujimiya once again, among other tokusatsu appearances.

Moritsugu-san, as always, was a lot of fun, and my interactions with him were hilarious. He enjoys mingling with the fans and is always quick with a joke.

I think you can see the evidence in my expression in the above photo, as I was reacting to something he said to me. Suffice it to say, he's a blast!

THE LATEST FROM TOKYO! A Quick Update from the Land of the Rising Sun!

A couple of brief updates: Earlier today I had an English lesson with actor-singer Kazuki Kato. Kato-san is best known in the U.S. for his starring turn in Minoru Kawasaki's kaiju eiga send-up Monster X Strikes Back: Attack the G8 Summit (2008), as well as for his portrayal of Kamen Rider in the film Kamen Rider: The Next (2007), and the TV series Kamen Rider Kabuto (2006-07). More lessons are scheduled for the coming weeks.

On Monday, I attended a seminar hosted by TV personality Hiromi Ikeuchi. Nanako Kaneko (pictured on the right) was also in attendance, and we had a pleasant chat. Thankfully, she speaks English quite well!

ODDS AND ENDS: A Quick Update from Tokyo

Despite being a fairly routine day, there were some cool goings-on that I thought I'd share. First, I completed an English lesson with actor Kazuki Kato. Kato-san starred in Monster X Strikes Back: Attack the G8 Summit (2008), Kamen Rider: The Next (2007), and Kamen Rider Kabuto (2006-07), among many other titles. It was great to catch up with him again. He's a busy actor currently appearing in a popular stage play.

Even before my lesson with Kato-san, I headed to the Toho Cinemas in Shibuya to see the new Godzilla poster. While the movie is already playing in America (as well as many other parts of the world), we in Japan have to wait more than two months for the flick to come out! I just hope I can avoid the spoilers for that amount of time.

Yes, I had to take a photo with the poster. It's pretty much a required ritual for any kaiju fan worth his salt!

KAMEN RIDER OR KAMEN READER? Two Tokusatsu Stars Promote G-FAN Magazine!

Actor Kazuki Kato poses with yours truly following our interview in January 2012.

G-FAN #100 has been published, and among its contents are interviews I conducted with two of the more recent Kamen Rider stars. Kazuki Kato (Kamen Rider Kabuto, Kamen Rider: The Next, Monster X Strikes Back: Attack the G8 Summit) and Keisuke Kato (Kamen Rider Kiva) provided fascinating stories about their careers, but what surprised me most is the amount of interest they showed in me and G-FAN magazine.

In fact, they've even updated their respective blogs with information (and pictures) of the current issue!

Kazuki Kato's blog entry can be read here. I took the photo used on Kato-san's blog. I'm very proud to say that my apartment's carpeting appears on his blog!

Your humble blogmeister shakes Keisuke Kato's hand after conducting our interview in January of this year.

Keisuke Kato's blog entry can be seen here. Naturally, he provided the photo in this blog post himself!

To order your own copy of G-FAN #100, go here.

(Special thanks to Asako Kato of English Avenue Daikanyama!)

Two Kamen Riders! What does it mean?

Yours truly with Keisuke Kato, who played Kamen Rider Ixa on the series Kamen Rider Kiva (2008-09). I interviewed Mr. Kato for G-FAN magazine on January 4.

My trip to Tokyo wasn't just sightseeing and meeting up with friends. I had some business to conduct, as well. A friend of mine put me in touch with not one but two Kamen Riders, both of whom requested to be interviewed by me for G-FAN magazine.

And who am I to turn down a request by Japan's most popular hero?

Standing with Kazuki Kato, who starred in the series Kamen Rider Kabuto (2006-07), as well as the films Kamen Rider: The Next (2007) and Monster X Strikes Back: Attack the G8 Summit (2008). This interview was conducted on January 5.

Suffice it to say, the interviews were entertaining and informative, and I look forward to seeing them published in G-FAN.

Oh, and before I forget...

Kazuki Kato is also a popular singer in Japan. When he was discussing one of his recent concerts, I asked him if he performed the Take-Majin song. Since he wasn't aware that I had even heard of Guilala, he laughed and expressed surprise that I had seen the movie! Naturally, I asked him several questions about the film.