Toma Ikuta - The underrated talent (And 2 Toma Ikuta wallpapers!)

I've been browsing around for some good Toma Ikuta sites and it really depressed me to realize that there are only a few of them. Toma Ikuta is one of those unique talents who have not gotten such a good break. He has yet to achieve the superstar status that Matsumoto Jun and Kimtaku have achieved.

Knowing this, I am dedicating this post to Toma Ikuta - the underrated talent. I feel that he deserves more publicity than he is getting. He is a versatile actor, with roles ranging from the nerdy Otaku at Akihabara (at) Deep to a man out for a vengeance in Hana Yori Dango.

He has a charming exterior, with an intensity to him that allows him to play passionate roles, and a soft, humorous side to him that helps him play lighter shows. There is something unique with the way he laughs, and it's quite catching. This 22-year old deserves that big break at fame.

I've made two wallpapers for him, hope you like them. I made the theme a little on the white side, since Toma Ikuta's favorite color is white.




And a buddy icon to highlight his laugh:



Click here to see all my Ikuta Toma goodies and posts!

And please: Leave a comment if you're a fellow Toma Ikuta fan.

Hana Yori Dango Wallpapers and Buddy Icons!

Some Hana Yori Dango goodies for you: from Oguri shun icons, Junpei icons (gotta love him despite his evil-ness), Nishikado icons to Makino-Domyouji icons and 1 happy ending wallpaper :) Here go the icons:












And the wallpaper! Now if you haven't watched the last episode of season 2 then this may be a bit of a spoiler:




Hope you like them. Would love to get a comment :)

Hana Yori Dango Wallpaper

The Ebisu Garden Place is where everything began.

It was at that fateful day in the rain where Makino had reluctantly met Domyouji, still unsure of this ill-tempered man and what his intentions were.

It was the symbol of Domyouji's devotion to her - how he waited under the rain, cold and shivering, on the verge of a fever... waiting for Makino. Later on, he would wait again for her... till night fell. It was also the symbol of Makino's love for him - calling him up to meet with him, when she felt all hope was lost and Domyouji had forgotten her. It was her place of solace, where she could drift into her own world, lost in thoughts of him.

And yes, there was much pain attached to this court as well. Misunderstood events, outside forces that wished for the lovers' demise. Words that shouldn't have been spoken, words that could have been spoken.

In the end, however, their life becomes a fairy tale. This place had finally brought them their happy ending, never to be shattered again.

This wallpaper celebrates The Ebisu Garden Place and the memories - all the hurt, the laughter, the love, the sacrifice - that this seemingly nondescript plaza has given way to.



If you love the wallpaper, I'd appreciate comments. Thank you =)

Hana Yori Dango Season 2 Episode 1 Part 2 Photo Summary =)

After the F4's graduation, Hanazawa Rui and Makino manage to keep in touch. During one of their lunch get-togethers, Rui brings up Domyouji, and wonders how Domyouji is, as he hasn't contacted him in ages. Makino, trying to act like he is unfazed by the sensitive topic, humors about it and tells Rui that Domyouji probably found himself a busty American blonde girlfriend by now. Rui is more perceptive however, and points out that Makino must be missing him. Makino immediately dismisses the thought, telling him that she is relieved that she hasn't been talking with Domyouji because she may not be able to concentrate and go through school. Her body language disagrees with her, however.




In truth, Makino did miss Domyouji terribly. She reminisces about him, while she is at Ebisu Garden place on their first date. Yes, Domyouji was a pompous jerk, but she fell in love with him. She had thought their love would last. At first, it seemed that way. After 3 months, however, Domyouji stopped calling and Makino could not reach his cellphone.


At first, Makino was extremely worried that something had happened to him. But one day, an old friend/enemy showed up by the name of Sakurako, with her new Australian boyfriend, and told Makino she had seen Domyouji in New York, still with his curly perms and his pompous attitude. Knowing now that Domyouji was alright, she decided it was time to move on.


And with perfect timing at that. Makino attended a reunion with her old classmates, and was able to catch up on good times and distract herself from Domyouji. She also makes a large realization during the reunion that she had been less ambitious since she came to Eitoku and that she was still unsure of what she wanted to do after she graduates.

Suddenly, a very good-looking guy comes in the restaurant. He is the cousin of one of Makino's friends and he goes by the name of Oribe Junpei. As soon as Junpei met Makino's eyes, he was thrilled. Apparently, he also studied at Eitoku and he knew all about Makino - how he fearlessly confronted Domyouji and how she managed to win 2nd place in the Teen of Japan (TOJ) contest. Junpei tells her that she would make a good defender of justice. Yuki notes that Junpei must have a crush on Makino and Junpei casually admits, much to the shock of Makino.

Later that night, Makino and Yuki talk, and Yuki brings up Makino's potential of becoming a lawyer. This got Makino thinking, and recalling Shizuka, her idol, who is also a lawyer, she decided to give her all to that ambition. With a goal in mind, Makino opened her books and began her intensive studying.


To be continued...

Hana Yori Dango Wallpaper

2 new wallpapers:


Actually, they're just different versions. Can't decide which is better.
Enjoy :) You can freely use this on your desktop but please if you plan on putting this on your site, let me know first.

Hana Yori Dango Season 2 Episode 1 Part 1 Photo Summary =)

Hey guys! Hope you enjoy the photo summary I have here. I'll be making photo summaries for each episode. =) Special thanks to Sars-fansubs. If you haven't watched HYD, and you want good quality fansubs, go to their site at http://www.sars-fansubs.com/.
You can click on the pictures to view a bigger version and download it to your heart's content.
I'm starting with Episode 1 of Season 2. I might do Season 1 too if you like :)

Episode 1 Season 2 Part 1

The show starts with Makino feeling absolutely lost in New York, trying to find Domyouji. With an inadequate grasp of the English language, she desperately tries to find her way in the crowded streets of New York, overwhelmed by all the people and how they look like famous celebrities (It's hilarious how she pronounces Brad Pitt - Bra-do Pit-to).

As if she wasn't in quite a predicament already, someone manages to snatch her bag, where all her money and essentials were kept.


Even worse, she encounters a group of hooligans. She tries to get into their good nature, with her hilarous English but only manages to piss them off even more. She cries for Domyouji's help and the hooligans could only look in disbelief at this girl claiming to know a high-profiled man like Domyouji.


Lucky for her, her knight in black leather pointy shoes (guess who *wink**wink*) comes to rescue him.



But before we find out who that guy really is, the show backtracks to an ordinary day at Eitoku Gakuen.

Things in Eitoku Gakuen are back to normal now that word is out that Domyouji has been ignoring Makino.

The people are as snooty as ever and are horrible to Makino. Makino does her best to ward them off as usual.

That day also marked the graduation day of the upper batch, which included the illustrious F4 minus Domyouji.

The principal congratulates the F4 (who are in their stylish suits as usual) and announces that the F4 have generously donated money to demolish the current canteen and build an F4 lounge.

Everyone is awestruck, except for Makino, who finds it unbelievable, still, that people could have that much money to spend.

To be Continued...

Hana Yori Dango Wallpaper

My first Hana Yori Dango wallpaper made. Click to view it at 1024X768. Enjoy :) I'd love your comments. I'll be making more soon

The End of Hana Yori Dango Season 2

It's always bittersweet when a TV series I love ends. Somehow, you've been building yourself for this moment, waiting for it at its particular time slot and day, getting mad with anticipation for what is to come next. Are so and so gonna end up together? Is that damn antagonist gonna stop creating so much trouble? Why the hell is he suddenly so cold to her?

Today marks another bittersweet day for me in my TV life. Hana Yori Dango Live Action (HYD), one of the best JDoramas I've watched thus far, finally ended its second season and tied all its loose knots. No more conflicts, b****es who come between Makino and Domyouji. No more of the hurt, those very teary moments, the goodbyes.

Backtrack to few months ago during the first episode of HYD. The show revolves around an elite school called Eitoku Gakuen, where some of the richest and the most well-known families send their children to school. Among the most popular are Domyouji, heir to a huge financial corporation, Hanazawa Rui, owner of trading companies, Nishikado, heir to a tea ceremony school, and Mimasaka, king of the underworld. They are collectively known as the F4 and they are at the top of the school's food chain.

Domyouji, the leader of the F4, played by the great Matsumoto Jun, is the most notorious, being responsible for sending red notices to sutdents who have wronged him in any way, even by just causing some pulp from an orange go to his eyes.

Amidst all the rich snobs is Makino Tsukushi. Her family does not earn anywhere near the millions that her peers' families do. In fact, she hardly gets by and must get a part-time job to survive the tuition fees. She wonders constantly why her family puts her there but they all believe that her future will be much brighter by graduating fr Eitoku.

Knowing that her family puts a lot of effort to making sure she gets good education, she does all that she could to stand all the taunts that her rich peers give and to how they disgustingly worship the cruel F4. She bites her tongue whenever she feels like shouting at these unbelievable people, hoping she could graduate without being noticed.

A chance situation, however, changes all this, when she is forced to stand up to the despicable Domyouji to protect a friend of hers. Now, she must prove that she is the "tough weed" she claims she is (Tsukushi means tough weed) and face the F4 brats. However, is her idea of F4 going to change when she develops a crush on her knight in shining armor, Hanazawa Rui (played by another great actor Oguri Shun), and she spurs romantic feelings in her worst enemy, Domyouji?

The plot in general is "been there, done that", but rather than focusing on the uniqueness of the premise, you will realize how hilarious, heartwrenching, inspiring, interesting, and tearjerking the situations they show are, and how much chemistry exists among the characters. With such great acting and direction, this show will certainly not disappoint.

Please come back soon because I'll be posting screenshots for all the episodes of HYD season 1 and 2 :)