SMAP's Kusanagi arrested for indecency

Oh, JAPAN.

It just goes to show that it's almost always the quiet ones.

Tokyograph on 4/22/09 SMAP member Tsuyoshi Kusanagi (34) has been arrested for public indecency after causing a disturbance and running around naked in Hinokicho Park near Tokyo Midtown late on Wednesday night.

At around 3:00am on April 23, residents in that area notified police that a naked man was making a lot of noise in the park. Officers arrived to find a drunken Kusanagi, and after he refused to heed their warnings, they arrested him on the spot for public indecency. Kusanagi is said to have openly defied the officers, answering them with "What's wrong with me being naked?" According to police, a breath analysis test taken 5 hours after Kusanagi's arrest detected a BrAC of 0.8 mg/L, well over the legal limit.

Kusanagi has been part of the super-popular group SMAP since 1988. As he is one of the industry's biggest stars, the incident is likely to have a big impact. He is already being pulled from several advertisements, including commercials promoting Japan's transition to all-digital broadcasts by 2011.

One of the most recent reports says that he has lost his somewhat regular role on NHK's "PythagoraSwitch." Fuji TV will likely have the toughest decision to make, as Kusanagi is a regular on four of the network's popular shows.

Kusanagi also has a starring role with Yui Aragaki in the movie "Ballad: Namonaki Koi no Uta" (directed by Takashi Yamazaki).

Filming has already wrapped up and the picture was scheduled for a September 5 release, putting distributor Toho in a difficult spot. TV
Asahi is also considering their options, as it had planned to run some TV specials about the film on weekends from April 25 to May 18.

I always feel like I need more cowbell.

first off: WTF, Japan, continued: Japan Pays Foreign Workers to Go Home with the caveat THAT THEY NEVER EVER COME BACK TO WORK IN JAPAN, EVER, AND THAT INCLUDES YOUR CHILDREN. SAYONARA, SUCKERS.

Secondly, I am trying to aim for a more serious, thoughtful review of Smile, now that there are subs for it, out by this weekend, and why I have problems with the premise, and why I think it's both a step forwards and backwards, and can it avoid the heavy handed AT social commentary/pandering/exploiting trap? Or as kitsune714 said succinctly last night, "WHY DOES JAPAN HATE THE BROWN MAN?" and also, "Matsujun couldn't pass for HALF OF ANYTHING."

Please bite your tongue on the obvious rejoinder on that comment.

Thirdly, for fans of the Littlest Hobo, pori-chan.com has episode summaries/previews translated as the official website goes live every week, so if you want to know what's going to happen next (mild spoilers/plot outline), just visit there while waiting for GiriGiri/TimeLess fansubs.

Fourth, there is no fourth, only Black Adder Goes Forth.


(also, Maya Miki's husband is SMOKIN' HOT. As if you needed further proof that she is queen of EVERYTHING.)

Now, I am off to make a summer fruit trifle.

ETA: fifth, I may or may not have spent ten minutes in Sanseido Books this afternoon looking at pictures of Kanata Hongo and his TEENY TINY DOG NAMED L'AMIE and making incoherent, appalled noises at how cute boy and dog were.