Thursday 30 May 2013

Have a break, have a Kitto Katto! 「キットカット」







Nestle Japan have released an Adult Sweetness 「オトナの甘さ」line of KitKats which includes a Matcha Green Tea flavour. I happened upon these very KitKats while browsing the shelves of my local Asian Grocer here in Melbourne and being the Matcha enthusiast that I am, I couldn't resist sampling them.

This particular KitKat owes its flavour to Matcha from the Uji region of Kyoto, famous for their green tea. 「〜こだわりの 宇治抹茶〜」As the name suggests, the level of sweetness has been moderated to suit an adult palette and is marketed to us grown ups. 

The Kitkats I bought came in a pack containing 12 individually wrapped KitKats. They are perfect as omiyage (souvenirs) or just for sharing with friends. 

I really liked the level of sweetness but I found the Matcha green tea flavour a little too subtle. The green tea flavour is more of an aftertaste and the outer chocolate is really creamy.

お試しください !!


[Adult Sweetness Kit Kat TVCM staring Manami Higa who you may recognise from Tokyo Zenryoku Shoujo]

Wednesday 29 May 2013

Itazura na Kiss ~ Love in TOKYO「イタズラなKiss~Love in TOKYO」Episode 8 Recap

Itazura Na Kiss ~ Love in Tokyo (Naoki kisses Kotoko's cheek!)

Itazura Na Kiss ~ Love in Tokyo (Kotoko Sandwich with Naoki and Kin Chan


Itazura Na Kiss ~ Love in Tokyo Character chart


Another Spring13 Japanese drama I have really been enjoying (along with Last Cinderella which I mentioned here is Itazura na Kiss ~ Love in Tokyo. Based on the highly successful Japanese manga written and illustrated by Kaoru Tada, the popular  series has been previously adapted into various live action dramas. The remake stars Miki Honoka as our charming lead, Aihara Kotoko and Furukawa Yuki as her brainy boo, Irie Naoki. Itazura na Kiss ~ Love in Tokyo is currently airing on Fuji TV.

Not having seen the previous Itazura na Kiss or its various adaptations (South Korea’s It Started With a Kiss or Taiwain's It Started With a Kiss and They Kissed Again) I am completely in the dark about what unfolds in the series. Aside from the obvious (Kotoko and Naoki get together) happy ending.

Lets recap on Episode 8. Screen shot spam and possible spoilers after the jump. 

Monday 13 May 2013

Last Cinderella「ラスト シンデレラ」Episode 5 Recap


Last Cinderella J-Drama


Last Cinderella Character Chart


Japanese Drama makes a comeback with Last Cinderella


I have always enjoyed the work of Hauma Miura so I was particularly curious when I stumbled across the new Japanese drama Last Cinderella. Last Cinderella is currently airing Thursday evenings on Fuji TV. 

Before I begin, I must mention I have been a little disappointed with Japanese dramas of late. Just how many crime dramas can one nation produce? Countless... apparently.

Now, I'm afraid of my own shadow so the horror, crime and thriller genres are definitely out from me and I really don't really care for tear jerkers either (With the odd exception) so I had turned to the talents of South Korea to fill my drama void.


However, I am pleased to see Japan is finally making a comeback and one drama I am currently enjoying is Last Cinderella.

The series centers around Sakura Toyama (Ryoko Shinoharaand her clumsy attempt to find true love.  Sakura works as a hair stylist and thus far there are two possible love interests - Hiroto Saeki (Haruma Miurathe younger BMX bandit come playboy and Rintaro Tachibana (Naohito Fujiki) a co-worker she shares an amusing love/hate banter with.

So lets recap on episode 5. Images and potential spoilers after the jump!