terebi

i finally hooked up my tv last night to watch the K1 martial arts tournament. okayama only has 6 channels and they are all controlled by the japanese government's media lapdog, NHK. as far as i can tell, there's no distinction between them. japanese tv is dangerously engaging. it holds every ounce of your attention with crazy sound effects, high pitched voices, and a barrage of superimposed subtitles and special effects! even the "talk shows" are like a psychedelic dream sequence. i'm happy to report that every program is unusually preoccupied with amazing food!

guess what's on RIGHT NOW!!

3: a very old school japanese spy drama with an all marionette cast (excepting the shots of real life cars, buildings, and human hands holding guns and stumbling feet)! this is especially funny since the team america movie came out. this art form was clearly perfected in japan.

35: a korean soap opera. it looks just like the awful japanese soap operas (not to be confused with the samurai dramas and the mysteries). everyone watches the korean dramas and assumes that no one does - when my students admit their guilty pleasure in discussion, they are always surprised to find out other people watch korean dramas too! come on, guys - there are only 6 channels - you all watch the SAME CRAP!

5: beautiful panoramic shots of iceland, new zealand, and japan. baby seals and birds fade in and out with slowly zooming shots of flowers and waterfalls. the time is the only thing superimposed on the screen for once. a mans voice describes the beauty for the deaf (maybe?) and provides scientific tidbits national geographic style. i like this program, but it's really just a commercial for high definition television.

9: wow! it's a dubbing of the seinfeild show!! jerry's voice is not nearly aggravating enough.. but george's is spot on! this guy sound's like jason alexander speaking in japanese!! even the laugh! elaine is pretty good too, so is kramer! this is crazy..

11: a just-in-time-for-christmas infomercial for a kick ass vacuum cleaner! the fast talking salesmen will occasionally say entire phrases in almost english! it looks like he's throwing in the air circulator for free!

23: girls a gogo = three girls in their bathing suites are sitting together on a carpet in soft focus. one is reading a children’s book to the other two who are holding a teddy bear and eating cake, respectively. there's way too much reverb on the story reading and there's a periodic man's voice excitedly commenting on the events taking place.. i'm lost, but i can't look away.

25: japanese pro wrestling! pretty much just like american pro wrestling.. but with more (possibly fake) blood. the K1 fight last night was full contact kick boxing and definitely real. it was tournament style and as far as i could tell there was almost no distinction for weight class!