#takezai terunosuke

Publication: August 20, 2004 (between episodes 29-30) Ryoji Morimoto (Hajime Aikawa) x Terunosuke Takezai (Kotaro Shirai)

"Currently, It appears that the two of you are not getting along within the drama."

Takezai: Hajime is reluctant to reach out, while Kotaro is. Kotaro wants to protect Amane-chan and Haruka-san, but can't even protect himself, and Hajime is the one to always protect us, which frustrates Kotaro……So now, he's taking it out on Hajime?

Morimoto: When he sees Kotaro like that, I feel that Hajime finds it very interesting.

Takezai: There's a part of Hajime that Kotaro admires, but he won't allow himself to feel that way. It's a complicated feeling.

Morimoto: Hajime is uncertain too. Being around Amane-chan makes his heart feel at ease and warm inside, but he still doesn't understand what it means "to be loved," and he doesn't even understand why he wants to protect her. As his human side develops, so too will the number of his problems, and I think Hajime is going to have a much harder time from now on.

"So, apart from your roles, what do you like about each other?"

Morimoto: He has good intuition, can immediately grasp the situation, and he's also very tolerant and considerate.

Takezai: I don't have anything to say about his performance, other than that I've learned quite alot from him. Usually, you act pretty silly, don't you? And when everyone's together, the tension really rises. But, when it comes to acting, he changes completely. I think, "Is this really the same guy?" The range of emotions, and the way in which he switches between them is amazing. I'm usually very reserved.

"Kotaro's becoming more and more quiet…or rather, it's more like he's becoming serious."

Takezai: There's alot of emotional ups and downs. Every time we get a new script, it's something new. I'm like, "Ah, so this time it's this emotion." I used to play Kotaro, but the range has become so narrow, that now, I'm pretty much playing the role of Terunosuke Takezai.

"Would you ever consider switching roles?"

Morimoto: I don't get to smile much, do I? Kotaro is a really cute guy, and he has a charming smile, I'd like to be able to laugh too.

Takezai: I'd like to try being Chalice. I rarely get to show my emotions. If you think about it, we're the complete opposite in terms of personality.

Morimoto: Yeah. I think Hajime is jealous of Kotaro because they're complete opposites. Hajime wants to smile, but his smile continues to be rather awkward. I want to hurry up and become human…..

Takezai: Then you'd be a monstrous human (laughs).

"What's the most interesting part about Chalice?"

Morimoto: Because I don't have many lines, the lack of dialogue makes it much more difficult to communicate through my eyes and facial expressions. That's why I'm looking forward to seeing how I'll show the process of becoming human.

"Come to think of it, have you been working out recently?"

Morimoto: When I watched 555's movie, there's a shirtless transformation scene, so I was worried that something like that would be in our movie, so I just thought......I don't want to look like a matchstick if I have to take my clothes off (laughs). I do think Hajime is strong, even in his human body.

"What about Takezai's role in the film?"

Takezai: The movie takes place 4 years after the TV show, and I've become a stuck up guy after selling my books and becoming rich……

Morimoto: Kotaro seems to be much more active in the movie.

"Do you ever have time to go out drinking together or just hang out?"

Takezai: Now that you mention it, we've never gone out drinking together once, have we?!

Morimoto: We all go out to eat together, don't we?

"Do you share any common interests, like soccer or motorcycles?"

Morimoto: We do. We both like comedy.

Takezai: I like to laugh. Although, I'm better at being laughed at than at making people laugh.

Morimoto: I'm more of Tsubaki-kuns type.

Takezai: I think you're right

Morimoto: It's better if no one notices me doing it. So I try to do it secretly.

Takezai: There are times where the audio crew picks up on it, and then they'll suddenly start laughing. It makes me happy when they laugh.

Morimoto: I can't help but sometimes joke in front of everyone! Sometimes I do it too much and get pulled aside.

Takezai: Lately, no one comments on your jokes, so you've been forcing them.

Morimoto: I'm like, "…wha, hey!" (laughs).

Takezai: That's…it's alittle bit funny.

"You share a similar hobby, but do you have any differences?"

Takezai: Yeah, I love soccer, but I'm more of an indoor type of person. I recently had 3 weeks off, but during that time, I stayed inside for a whole week. It was tiring, but I do like to just space out at home.

Morimoto: I'm about ready to get out of here! (*he can't imagine being indoors for that long)

"Well then, finally, for you two complete opposites, please give a yell of support to each other."

Takezai: Yell? Support? Don't want to.

Morimoto: No (firmly).

Takezai: With Ryoji around, I can focus on acting with a sense of ease. I trust him.

Morimoto: I'm at ease too. I feel he gives off alot of confidence.

Takezai: The truth is that I have alot of work to do. And yet, everyone says it doesn't look that way…..

Morimoto: I can see you're nervous. Your tongue tends to do this, right? (he licks his lips)

Takezai: Yeah (laughs).

"Well, we're looking forward to it!"

Takezai: Please look forward to watching Chalice this August!

First off, let’s make sure we know what all the installments are, and that we’ve watched what we’ve needed to get to the movie. We have:

1) 2018 -- The Novelist: the original meeting between student Kuzumi Haruhiko and adult author Kijima Rio

2) 2019 -- Mood Indigo: a prequel depicting the sexual engagements between Kijima Rio and his classmate, Kido Shirou 

3) 2021 -- The Pornographer: Spring Life: a very short vignette set 2 1/2 years after Kuzumi and Kijima first met. They’re now in a long-distance relationship, and Kuzumi visits Kijima in the countryside at Kijima’s sister’s house, where he’s living as he continues to write.

(The first three works are all available on Viki.)

So I was BEYOND THRILLED to get to watch the movie and see all of this wrap up. If most of y’all only watched up to Mood Indigo, you saw Kijima re-meet with Kuzumi. Kuzumi, at that time, was just becoming a successful employee in the advertising business. 

Spring Life hints that things are still going well for Kuzumi, and that he was looking forward to spending a summer break with his long-distance boyfriend. Most notably, the piece ends with Kuzumi jumping from honorifics, by asking Kijima if he (Kuzumi) could call Kijima “Rio-san,” which we know indicates intimacy. Kijima’s like, whatever you’d like, and the smile on Kuzumi’s face takes up the whole screen, it seems.

So then we finally get to The Pornographer: Playback, which begins during the same summer break. Continuing with the theme and mood that I like to call melosexual (the music alone of this franchise is SO INTENSE, let alone the heaty sex scenes), the guys head to a love hotel and do their thang. At the end of the night, as they’re getting dressed, Kijima finds a business card in Kuzumi’s wallet for a hostess club that Kuzumi is forced to go to with work colleagues. 

Without divulging a tremendous amount more about the plot at this moment, the movie is basically structured around the push-and-pull of Kijima’s inability to move authentically closer to people -- not just Kuzumi, but also his sister, who Kijima disappoints repeatedly by backing out of family events. 

Kijima’s essentially paralyzed by fear and insecurity that he is a terrible person -- one that is not worthy of love. His sister is so overwhelmingly angry about it that she essentially kicks him out of the house, and blames their mother for never calling him out on his namby-pamby bullshit (at least, that’s in her eyes). At another point in the movie, he frustrates Kuzumi so much that Kuzumi walks out on the relationship and heads back to Tokyo, a surprising move for the otherwise always-devoted younger companion. 

It takes a serious scolding by a hospitalized and flirtatious owner of a karaoke snack bar (you read that right) for Kijima to get his damn head back on straight and fight for his relationship with Kuzumi. (And, HILARIOUSLY, I was cackling -- in the process of this, Kijima has KIDO -- KIDO OF ALL PEOPLE -- call Kuzumi on Kijima’s behalf, to get Kuzumi to talk to Kijima to reconcile. KIJIMA used KIDO to call KUZUMI. Lord.)

Okay, so what I’m really getting at here is that the movie showed that the whole franchise was missing two KEY elements that the first three parts did not have: comedy and authentic emotional connection. There was actually a little comedy in this! Besides the whole Kido thing (which I’ll get back to in a minute), there were a couple of bumbling moments that were designed to elicit some lightness, mostly with the snack bar owner, a flighty gal with a lovely son who tries to hook up with takes Kijima under her wing.

About the other element: we FINALLY, FINALLY SAW KIJIMA SHOWING SOME EMOTION ABOUT SOMETHING. He really regretted letting things go to shit with Kuzumi. Kuzumi called Kijima out for wasting Kuzumi’s time to leave work in Tokyo and visit the countryside. Kuzumi felt like Kijima wasn’t taking him seriously, and was constantly pulling back. I mean -- Kijima was living away from Kuzumi.... for what, exactly? It’s not ever clearly explained. And Kuzumi got angry and left.

This is a great time to mention the excellent post by @emotionallychargedtowel on pursuer-distancer dyads, because the Kijima-Kuzumi push-and-pull in this movie perfectly defined this dyad dance. When Kuzumi got fed the fuck up and pulled way back -- Kijima finally stepped into his emotion and owned his desire to be with Kuzumi. 

Honestly, in the first three installments of this franchise -- I felt like Kijima really didn’t talk too much. I felt like he was far more defined by his brooding, his letting the winds take him to where he was at any given moment, ragingly sexual and lonely all at once. He simmered -- he was flinty, defensive, and used his sexual energy to dominate and burn the emotional energy all around himself. 

The movie showed a TOTALLY different side of him. To me, the movie showed that his relationship with Kuzumi, long distance as it was, HAD a softening impact on him -- even to the point that Kijima dropped everything he was up to in the countryside to head to Tokyo and fight for the relationship. Kijima needed to be rendered totally alone, one last time, to come to realize that the connection he had with Kuzumi was worth fighting for.

And, yes, in the process of it, he brought back Kido in the mix -- which was also seriously poignant. 

REALLY SERIOUS SPOILER HERE, y’all, especially if you love/hate/gaaahh that awful devil, Kido!

. . . . . .

Kido asks Kijima if they could have ever had the same kind of relationship as Kijima is fighting for with Kuzumi! AAAAAHHHH! AND! AND! KIJIMA SAYS, no way. We’re too similar.

WHICH IS TOTALLY TRUE! They’re both self-indulgent, selfish assholes! I mean, after that insane sex scene in Mood Indigo, Kido just fucking LEFT -- he just LEFT, and GOT MARRIED, and HAD A KID, and was like, peace the fuck out, I can’t actually be my honest queer self with you, Kijima, because I think that’s actually abnormal (oh, Kido, you internally messed up piece of shit, AAAHHH). 

Whereas, as beautifully analyzed in @respectthepetty‘s review, Kuzumi represents honesty and openness -- the kind of traits that Kijima doesn’t have, but is aspiring to, in order to be with Kuzumi. AAAHHH. 

I was seriously like, WHOA, WHAT AM I WATCHING HERE, at that moment. AND, AND? At the end of that scene? Kido wishes Kijima good luck. And says: “You better keep Kuzumi-kun. He’s a valuable asset.” Of course, what a Kido thing to say -- that humans are assets, commodities. But -- he sends Kijima off with good wishes. 

And then.

Kijima reunites with Kuzumi. He called Kuzumi by Kuzumi’s name, Haruhiko. AND -- holy shit, y’all, my mind was blown. He tells Kuzumi that he loves Kuzumi by saying ichiban aishiteru.

I tell you, I was FLOORED. All throughout the movie, I’m like, “dang, Kijima keeps talking and talking, and I just don’t remember him TALKING all that much before in the other three series.”

And then he DROPS the ichiban aishiteru! And I think BOTH me AND Kuzumi are BOTH LIKE, WHAT THE DAMN, DUDE!

I’ve spoiled a LOT, but I won’t say more after this, except to say the following:

The ending was one of the happiest, LOVELIEST endings of a drama/movie I’ve seen in QL. Oh. my. god. Talk about SATISFYING. EVERY. CHECKBOX. MARKED. Takezai Terunosuke and Izuka Kenta were MAGNIFICENT. I had SERIOUS tears. They got in everything -- they got the heat, they got in FAMILY, LOTS OF FAMILY, GORGEOUS shots, FEELINGS. ALL OF IT. 

@bengiyo made an excellent point recently in one of his reviews of TEOTWWY that it seems like Japan lately has only been doing high heat in stories about death. It’s an accurate point: all of the pieces of The Novelist came out well before TEOTWWY and Eternal Yesterday, the two most recent shows about death that had heaty elements. I kind of wonder about something. I wonder if other directors and screenwriters are like.... The Novelist did it the best. We can’t mess with that standard. 

Because -- Takezai’s and Izuka’s acting in those scenes is BEYOND EXCELLENT. It was NECESSARILY EXCELLENT to end this franchise on such a warm, happy, COMPLETE high note. 

Now that I can look back on all four parts of the whole franchise, what Miki Koichiro did for us by way of Kijima was to show the whole-scale growth of a man vis à vis love. This guy, Kijima -- a brilliant writer who was influenced by a sexually provocative teacher, someone who was left inexplicably behind by a tormented, internally homophobic lover/benefactor -- felt he was deserving of nothing. And then he found his something in Kuzumi. He nearly destroyed the relationship, multiple times. And as he fell and slipped while climbing the hill of happiness, he was able to get a stronger and stronger grip each time he tried harder. And he was supported by people around him, including family and random friends, to give him lift. 

This movie was a lot more straightforward than I had honestly expected. I 100% expected more of the melosexualness of the first three parts of the series. Instead, what I got was a WHOLESOME (I can’t believe I’m using that word, but it’s true!), complete, and uplifting story of a man finding his true happiness in his lover, his companion, his chosen family. All of it certainly laced with heat, for sure, but also very deep, very convincing love.