Favorite J-pop Singles: Shinohara Ryoko / Heibon Na Happy ja Monotarinai

Me and my friend Car are about halfway through the j-dorama Haken no Hinkaku [ハケンの品格], starring the lovely Shinohara Ryoko as uber-temp Oomae Haruko, and I have to say how wonderful it is to see Ms. Shinohara finally getting the recognition and accolades she deserves for her work after all these years.

  I was first introduced to Shinohara Ryoko in 1995 as the sexy student in the drama Kagayaku Toki No Naka De [輝く季節の中で], and soon after became a fan of her music. As I recall, at the time she was a pretty big deal for singing a Tetsuya Komuro song for Street Fighter II. My favorite song of hers was a tune called Motto, Motto (also penned by Komuro), a song I loved enough that I even tried to sing it at karaoke, with cringe-inducing results! Then came other singles like Lady Generation, and who can forget Dame! The singles just kept on comin’!

  Soon after, she appeared in the drama “Pure” with Wakui Emi as a foiled lover, then a stint in "Nanisama?" with Yasuko Matsuyuki. Aoi No Jidai, Kirakira Hikaru, it seemed like all she’d ever end up doing were these bit-parts in dramas, and after awhile I really didn’t hear too much from her, and I guess part of me thought she’d retired fom the biz or something (Silly Me)

   It wasn’t until 2006 or so when Car started watching a new show called Hanayome wa Yakudoshi [花嫁は厄年ッ！] that I was surprised to see she was still around, and starring in her very own drama, to boot!

 Well, the show was about halfway through so I didn’t bother trying to watch it, but Car said “You should check out this show-that girl is really good!” She was quite  surprised when I informed her that Ryoko Shinohara had been around since the mid-90’s- more than a decade ago! Car said “She doesn’t look that old”, and when I glanced at a random episode, I had to agree… in FACT, if anything, Shinohara Ryoko had gotten even PRETTIER with age!


  So when Haken No Hinkaku started up, we jumped on that drama, and I have to say, Shinohara Ryoko is just WONDERFUL in it!  Playing a role suited for an Esumi Makiko-type of character might have seemed like a stretch at first, but I think she pulled it off magnificently! Smart, Sexy and Tough, she's completely won me over all over again! Going online, I’m seeing that there’s been a huge surge of love directed towards her (at last), and I can’t say enough how happy that makes me!

And speaking of happy, another one of my favorite songs from hers was a peppy song called Heibon Na Happy ja Monotarinai [平凡なハッピー じゃ物足りない], another impeccable pop tune crafted by the incomparable songstress Hirose Kohmi!

 I remember the first time I got to see Shinohara Ryoko perform the song on MUSIC STATION, she was wearing a VERY short skirt, and as the camera crawled up to give a body shot of her outfit, she realized the camera was shooting right up her skirt, and gasped “Aah! Panties!” as she quickly pushed her skirt down! Everyone laughed, including me, but maybe that’s why this song has just a little bit more of a sentimental attachment for me- who can forget an endorsement like that! Ahahaha...