Knowing about Japan¡¯s Imperial Family is considered very important, which is why the Broadcasting Ethics and Program Improvement Organization is recommending young people watch the two-hour special, ¡°Nippon no Princess Monogatari¡± (¡°The Story of Japanese Princesses¡°; Fuji TV, Tues., 7 p.m.).
The main focus of the program is Princess Kako, the second-eldest daughter of Prince Akishino and Princess Kiko.?She is now considered fair game for media coverage since she recently turned 20. When she changed universities in the spring, cameras were on hand to record the process.
In the show, Kako¡¯s situation is compared to her mother¡¯s when she was a student, as well as to that of other Japanese princesses in the past. Reporters who cover the Imperial Family trade anecdotes on the special. They also compare princesses in Japan to princesses in other countries, and discuss what it is a Japanese princess has to ¡°learn¡± in order to be a success.
Southpaws have it tough since the world seems to be designed for right-handed people. That¡¯s one of the topics on this week¡¯s installment of the variety show ¡°Arashi ni Shiyagare¡± (¡°Do It to Arashi¡°; Nippon TV, June 13, 10 p.m.). Kazuya Ninomiya, one of the members of the series¡¯ host, boy band Arashi, is left-handed, and he wants the public to understand how difficult everyday life is for him and others like him, so he assembles a crew of lefty celebrities and goes out into the world to show these difficulties through example.
In another segment Jun Matsumoto takes some very strict lessons on how to make the perfect okonomiyaki, the egg-based dish that everyone loves. This method stresses the ¡°performance¡± aspect of cooking okonomiyaki, which he tries to recreate in the studio.
CM of the Week: Uniqlo
Discount clothing maker Fast Retailing always makes interesting, simple commercials. Its new ads for Uniqlo¡¯s line of tanpan (short pants) features a large contingent of foreign tap dancers hoofing up a storm in a carefully edited montage that just gets crazier and crazier. To add some local flavor to the spot, shots of TV personality Terry Ito and members of female idol collective HKT48 are inserted into the mix, but they are filmed only from the waist up, so we don¡¯t see what their feet are doing. Who are they trying to fool?
With your current subscription plan you can comment on stories. However, before writing your first comment, please create a display name in the Profile section of your subscriber account page.