Bonus Repeat: Watashi ga Ren'ai Dekinai Riyuu, Episode 10

Let's continue the festive season of Rape-hugMas with a revision of a dorama that surprisingly only had one rape-hug - Christmas themed one. In fact, in the Christmas spirit the awkwardometor has been turned down from four stars to a two-star rating. The original posting can be seen here.

The Actors
 

Rape-Huggist Tanaka Kei ♂
Rape-Huggee: Karina ♀



The Context

This dorama gave Rape-hug Community Watchmen like me a serious case of blue-balls, having to wait until the end of the finale for the first appearance of rape-huggery. The relationship between the two characters is so obviously going to work out in the end despite the fact that neither of them are ever seen smiling in the same scene. So you're just waiting out the other relationships that each of them inevitably have until the moment that one of them announces that they are going to America and the other has until the day before they leave - after a significant event - to decide if they want to join them as if it's some kind of reality TV show. So finally in the final episode when you see them standing 3 metres apart against a backdrop of Christmas Illuminations, he takes the inevitable step.


The Result

I guess this is the result that everybody expected and wanted, but notice how neither of them seems at all happy during the rape-hug. It's as if he is saying "fuck it, I will never be able to get a better wife than this so I may as well...". Call me a romantic, but I believe that it should take at least 6 months after getting married to be this miserable.

The name of the drama translates to "The reason I can't find love", and this is probably the most appropriate title for any Dorama I've ever seen.

The Depiction

The entire dorama series led up to this moment, as both characters work at an event lighting company. This final storyline is that they are co-producing the lighting for a big Christmas party, after which he will pack up and leave straight for the airport.  
Visually, the background is far more interesting than either of the characters or anything they say and do. Other than the sparkles, there a three-metre gap that is shown via a wide-shot, as he strides to embrace the emotionally-lifeless victim. ("Emotionally lifeless" is also a good general description of Karina's acting).

Revised Awkwardometor ☆☆

Although it's a night scene in a park, is a relatively admissable rape-hug. Besides, the park is well-lit and she knows exactly what was going to happen. Both of the characters aren't so much awkward, but just bad at life. It's supposed to be some great happy moment for both of them yet somehow it's one of the most depressing things I have ever seen. The reason the initial rating was a 4-star was the typical Japanese TV closed-mouth kiss which is in fact not a rape-kiss. It's hardly noticable, but Karina actually tilts her head a couple of degrees upwards before impact which in Japan is legally admissable as consent. Sure it kind of looks like she is simply bracing for impact of a blind-man but the law is the law.


Video
Much like the entire series, there's honestly not much more to the video than can be seen in the GIF, unless you like looking at sparkly Christmas lights and hearing crappy J-pop.

Yume no California, Episode 6

The Actors

Rape-Huggist: Nomura Hironobu ♂
Rape-Huggee: Kuninaka Ryoko ♀


The Context
They both work at the same company, although she is a temp-worker who tries her hardest not to look like she hates her job. The two spark up a non-romantic relationship until he eventually asks her out. This event occurs after the date when she runs away when she reveals that she has been divorced. I'm not quite sure what the motivation was for the rape-hug, but I suspect the guy didn't know what else to do in that awkward moment - may as well make it as awkward as possible, right? And when the rape-hug wasn't bad enough, he tries to turn it into a kiss.
 

The Result

What did the five fingers say to the face? Glorious. Although really she should have slapped him before the hug. You know, you really have to be firm with Japanese people who are interested in you - men and women - because they just aren't used to hearing the word 'no'.

The Depiction

This is a classic night scene in a park, and the camera cuts back and forth with close-ups of their expressionless faces. I find it quite odd that a couple of low-angle shots are shown for no apparent dramatic or symbolic effect. I think even the director felt awkward when in the editing room so he just slapped all the shots together.

Awkwardometor ☆☆☆☆

While I definitely applaud the use of open-palm violence to combat rape-hug, the slap didn't actually result from - or punish the hug itself. But the reason for the awkwardness is the guy's complete inability to read the situation. First of all, usually when a woman is literally running away from you and you do run after her, chances are that she wants a little bit of distance. Then his words preceding his rape-hug are hardly the most romantic: "[knowing you're divorced] only makes me more interested in you". And then somehow after embracing a motionless human being, he thinks that trying to kiss it is a good idea. It's a tough watch, like seeing a skateboarder approach a set of stairs knowing you're watching a programme called "Stupid People Getting Hit in the Nuts".

Video
To truly appreciate just how long a short scene can be, take a look at the video. Also, note how when the guy leans in for the kiss, the intrumental version of California Dreaming jumps in. I don't quite know how this song was relevant to this dorama (apart from a flimsy conversation that worked it into the storyline), but I like the harmonica wailing out the tune as she runs away.  

First Love, Episode 1

The Actors

Rape-Huggist:  Fukuda Kyoko ♀
Rape-Huggee: Watanabe Atsuro ♂


The Context

As you can see in the above GIF, she is in school uniform and he is not. The reason he isn't in school uniform is because he is the teacher. 

This scene is a flashback from several years earlier which moves the entire dorama. She is a quiet student who falls in love with her teacher and this is the moment that she makes her move. They are in a secluded part of school presumably at lunchtime (I presume that it is exam season because the gymnasium is deserted).

The Result

He reciprocates the rape-hug and kisses her back, which would be awesome if he wasn't her teacher. Another student witnesses the event and because he is such a popular teacher she attempts to commit suicide which forces the teacher to "take responsibility" and hand in his letter of resignation and disappear out of her life without saying goodbye.

For those scoring at home, there are several extremely Japanese things about the above paragraph:

1. A relationship between a student and teacher - a disturbingly popular theme in J-doramas.
2. Someone attempting to commit suicide
3. Someone else claiming responsibility simply by leaving their job
4. Someone breaking off a relationship simply by leaving
            - this is heightened by a 'running alongside the train' scene, which is completely ridiculous in a country where a train leaves every 8 minutes.
5. The rape-hug

The dorama continues on several years later when he reappears in her life as the fiancee of her sister.

The Depiction

The rape-hug is definitely in the 'Praying Mantis Style' where the aggressor remains very still until she lunges.  This is where it gets weird. He - and remember - he is a teacher who should immediately bat off any advances from students, instead embraces that awkard moment. He gives a face as if he just creamed his breifs, moves his hand creepily onto her bra-strap-area, puts his hands stiffly on her shoulders like a boxing trainer between the 11th and 12th rounds and leans in for a pathetic closed-mouth kiss. I mean, if you're going to break the law and lose you job, you may as well make it worth your while.

Awkwardometor ☆☆☆☆

This is a strange situation where the fact that both parties are willing participants it does not mitigate the awkwardness of the situation. The dorama tries to present this event (shown in flashback form in most episodes) as a blossoming of first love, when in reality it is about the childish female crush-turned-obsession and a morally weak man. That, and the very long-drawn out scene makes this an easy 4-star rape-hug.

It's such a shame, but Fukuda Kyoko is seemily always cast as someone with extremely unhealthy or depraved sexual attractions. Here she macks onto her teacher, in Strawberry on the Shortcake she falls in love with her step-brother, in Kamisama Mou Sukoshi Dake she is a fan of a 40-year-old music producer and sleeps with him despite being 17 (and having AIDS and getting pregnant), and in Friends she commits the biggest relationship sin a Japanese person could do: fall in love with a Korean.
[I kid. Actually, Friends is probably the best romance Japanese Dorama I have seen - possibly because it is half made by Korean directors/actors/etc.]

Video
As the entire scene was too long for the one GIF, you may want to see the scene in all it's entirety including the reciprocal kiss - you know, in the interest of journalistic integrity.

Ikebukuro West Park Gate, Episode 1

The Actors

Rape-Huggist: Kato Ai ♀
Rape-Huggee: Nagase Tomoya ♂

The Context

This is that all-too-familiar situation where you have your eye on someone but their best friend is throwing themself at you. In this situation, he likes her best friend who is much prettier (at least in the world of J-doramas) and has just called his cellphone. Feeling that her opportunity is slipping Kato Ai grabs away his phone and makes a close-range hug-attack followed by a sloppy kiss.

The Result

As seen in the GIF, he momentarily engages her before throwing her off in a manner similar to when your older brother tosses his dirty laundry on your face.However, later on in the series they do end up together.

Also - and this is definitely a spoiler although I stupidly wasn't aware at the time - her best friend ends up being killed later on in this episode. Yeah, that's the difference between men and women. When two guys like the same girl one will step down honorably, but when two girls like the same man it's a fight to the death.

The Depiction

The moment of impact is only shown for an instant as the shot quickly changes to her attempt to kiss him. Both of their faces are highlighted although there is absolutely no expression in either of their face - primarily because Japanese people still haven't learnt about the open-mouth kiss. A nice touch is when he throws her off, it is shown from a low angle to make him look brooding and tough. Yeah, he doesn't take any crap from anyone even if that crap is a girl hopelessly and completely throwing herself at him.

Awkwardometor ☆☆
A large part of the awkwardness of a rape-hug is the reaction of the victim, and this guy is simply too tough to care. And in fact, their relationship over the next few episodes is relatively normal as they search for the murderer, and they do begin dating. So, I guess her strategy worked?


Video
Watch the above scene followed by him scolding her for her misbehaviour, and for all her talk of sex and giving him presents. I'm starting to think that this character isn't a very realistic portrayal of a male human being, or perhaps due to seeing so many rape-hugs I have lost all faith in humanity.
 

Haikei, Chichiue-sama, Episode 9

The Actors

Rape-Huggist: Morikami Chie ♀
Rape-Huggee: Ninomiya Kazunari ♂


The Context

 

They are coworkers at a Japanese style restaurant. He is a junior chef and she is a waitress who is at least 15 years his senior and has a child. After a round of post-work heavy drinking, she is completely drunk and he is left to take her home. He finally gets her home, drags her inside and tries to put her to bed. Now, this is a classic rookie mistake - or perhaps a reality only seen on television. Once you get someone home who is that drunk, you'd probably take them into the bathroom first, or dump them ontop of the bed and try to feed them a glass of water. You don't pull up the sheets. Because, I guess that was her cue to rape-hug'n kiss him. But really this is basically the depiction of attempted rape - and he says so in a voiceover as he leaves the apartment.

The Result

He feels very dirty about it, but there is no mention of the event between them when they show up at work the next day, and the event is soon forgotten about.

The Depiction

As mentioned above, there is such a fine-line here between rape-hug and legitimate rape. The ordeal is papered-over quickly enough, but could you imagine how disturbing this would be if the gender roles were reversed?

Awkwardometor ☆
This is - no doubt - an extremely awkward scene. Although not explicitly mentioned, he seems to be a 22-year old virgin who is completely smitten with another girl, so although douchebag males would probably joke that they would love for this to happen to then, to him this was not a welcome surprise. But the portrayal of rape-hug in Haikei Chichiuesama is surprisingly self-aware for a Japanese dorama, and that is all we strive for at JDRH. 



Video
From the GIF, it may be difficult to ascertain who is attacking who especially since he is the one who lifts up the bedsheets, but the video clears leaves any trace of doubt behind.

Watashi ga Renai Dekinai Riyuu, Episode 10

The Actors

Rape-Huggist:  Tanaka Kei ♂
Rape-Huggee: Karina ♀


The Context
They are best friends and she is a tomboy, who realises that after several years she does in fact like him. Over the whole drama, this plays itself out as he gets engaged and all that usual stuff and she is a total bitch unable to be happy for him. Predictably, by the last episode he finally comes around, rape-hugs her, turns it into a rape-kiss and says that he will go to America, and won't she come along? This sets up a dramatic running-to-the-airport scene to end the dorama. 


The Result
[Spoiler Alert]

The thing about these type of dramas that really pissed me off is the sterily of the relationships. Not once do the two of them laugh in each other's presence, as if falling in love is like finding out you have AIDS. She doesn't have to give an answer to his proposal straight away, instead he gives her a plan ticket and says he will be waiting  for her when the plane leaves. Really? Who does this? That is, except for every main male character in one of these ridiculous, predictable doramas. So, although it was disappointing when she declines his offer because of some shitty reason like "I want to help my friends", I though him being dumped at the airport was well deserved for being such a pussy.

The Depiction



The rape-hug takes place in the night-time park filled with Christmas lights and a shitty pop song in the background. They fall silent, he looks her in the eye and says "I like you", and with an extremely sad expression and a sense of duty, he gently goes in for the kill. Despite her being portrayed as 'just one of the boys', in reality she's simply another one of these opinionless female characters that are so popular in J-doramas. There are closeups of both of their blank faces, and they separate. Just in case that wasn't painful enough, he goes in for the combination rape-hug'n kiss. She takes it like a man. The closed-mouth kiss looks like a Barbie and a Ken doll making out, only with less human emotion.

Awkwardometor ☆☆☆☆

In general, the location of a park at nighttime makes for a more awkward rape-hug, but this is slightly reduced by the Christmas lights because to Japanese people Christmas lights are like a table leg to a dog on heat. Also, the winter coats make the contact less awkward. Overall, there is not a very rapey atmosphere and it feels like both these characters are just not very good at being human beings. This is probably due to the fact that this dorama is so sterile, so it feels like you're watching two nerdy 40 year-old virgins figure out how to have a mutual orgasm. Which is truly awkward.


Video
Watch the "romantic" moment among the pretty Christmas lights to the sounds of the shitty J-pop song.

Nisennen no Koi (Love 2000), Episode 2

The Actors

Rape-Huggist: Kaneshiro Takeshi ♂
Rape-Huggee: Nakayama Miho ♀

The Context
There is somewhat complex situation behind this rape-hug'n kiss. He is an international assassin who has taken a common citizen on a date to the opera as a cover as he will attempt to assassinate his father. He is about to pull out his gun and blast the crap out of his dad when the girl gets in the way. She doesn't notice that he was about to spray the building full of bullets, but some undercover bodyguards do and they start walking towards him. That's when the above animated GIF begins, as he presumes that noone would expect an international spy to also be good at seducing women... right? I can't think of any international spy who is good at bonding with the other sex... And of course, the ploy works because Japanese people are so embarrassed by public displays of affection. "He might be a spy who is about to kill the person we are protecting," they think "But on the other hand I don't want to embarrass myself."

The Result
It's very complicated. On the one hand, he is using her only as cover for his assassin duties, but gradually falls in love with her. But on the other hand, she simply sees this as an extremely mixed message. I mean, the mixed messages start after just a few seconds when he downgrades from a rape-kiss to a rape-hug.

The Depiction
This is an extremely tense dorama -  and this is probably the highest point in the entire series. You're waiting for some gunshots, bloodsplatter, all that good stuff. And then Boom! It's an incredibly awkward rape-hug which he only employs when he realises he is a terrible kisser. It's like when somebody trips up and they try to turn it into a dance-move. We also have two great close-ups of his shifty-eyes, and her deer-in-the-headlights face as she gets violated and appears to look around for help. If only there were a policeman nearby...





Awkwardometor ☆☆☆☆
There is a moral dillemma here, as to whether a rape-hug is worse or lesss bad if it is done for ulterior motives such as not being shot in the back of the head by armed bodyguards. This ultimate depends on whether you think if the victim actually wants it but doesn't yet know it. However, the evidence for awkwardness is far too strong here. First, his premeditated action and the shifty eyes. And the fact that he freaks out when he kisses her so goes in for the hug instead [while there are many examples of rape-hug'n kisses, it's rare for a rape-kiss to turn into a rap-hug]. I think this is compounded by the fact that Kaneshiro is portrayed in this dorama - as in every role he takes - as an extremely suave man, and he totally flubs this moment.

Then, her scared reaction  is not exactly comforting (probably part of the reason he 2nd guessed his kiss). Finally, combine this with the fact that they are in an extremely public place, the opera - which is not exactly known as a teenage make-out location - in front of people who would otherwise point guns on them and you have a terribly awkward rape-hug. I give this four star-shaped thumbs up!


Video
I think her expression speaks for us all.

Buzzer Beat, Episode 1

The Actors
Rape-Huggist: Kaneko Nobuaki ♂
Rape-Huggee: Aibu Saki ♀



The Context


Neither of these two are the lead actors, instead, she is the lead's girlfriend who everyone thinks is perfect. He is the new teammate on the boyfriend's team. He is also a complete douche (and he can't actually play basketball), and throws himself at her, saying "I think we'll get along just fine". Actually, as you can see, he violently throws her into his arms, but I'm just nit-picking here.




The Result
Their genitals touch and they have an affair, so it was a successful rape-hug. The confidence of this rape-hug reminds me of a Seinfeld quote that "It's not a lie if you really believe it", and sustitute "lie" for "rape-hug" and that's a fair description of this rape-hug. A few episodes later the boyfriend walks in on them kissing and they break up.


The Depiction
The night-scene lends itself even more to the idea of rape, as is the fact that he forcefully pulls her towards him, she screams "Hey,. what are you ..." at which point she can no longer scream because he turns the rape-hug into a combo rape-kiss. And that is the point where she thinks, "Well, it's too late now. As a woman I have no valuable opinion anyway." Then once she has given in to his advances, the peppy end theme song starts playing as if to say 'nothing to see here, carry on'.

 

Notice how she is attemping to pull herself away like a naughty dog on a leash. 

Awkwardometor ☆☆☆☆
This is one of the more disturbing scenes you will see for all the reasons mentioned above, however it falls short of a perfect 5 star rape-hug because she is apparently a slut.


Video
"It's not a rape-hug if you really believe [she wants] it."