Yukie Nakama is joining boy band Arashi as one of the celebrity hosts of NTV’s charity program ’24 Hour Television,’ taking place on August 30-31. Part of the show will feature her in character as Yankumi from the ‘Gokusen’ drama series, which is currently doing well in the ratings for its third season.
Speaking of Yankumi and “Gokusen 3,” I’ve been watching the drama and although the underlying story is pretty much the same throughout the series, it’s like I can’t not watch it. I keep telling myself that I know the story already but I still find myself returning to watch the next episode, so what gives? I guess this is my generation’s “Abarenbo Shogun” which is basically the same show: 1) protagonist hides his/her true identity; 2) someone gets into trouble with some bad guys; 3) protagonist reveals his/her true identity; 4) bad guys get their butt kicked.
For me (and the sake of Okinawan pop culture), it’s neat to find Okinawan-references in “Gokusen 3” which I’m thinking are there because of actress Yukie Nakama. (Check out the screenshots below.)
Season 3 started out with Yankumi in Okinawa teaching at an English school. (Yeah, it didn’t quite work out so this scene shows her [luckily] being asked to return to teach in the mainland.)
Here’s another shot of that same scene. Nice, huh?
This one’s interesting. What’s interesting? OK, stop looking at Yankumi and check out the items on her desk. Yup, you see it now, right? A trio of shisa. 🙂
