In comedy as a whole, lots of famous comedians have a running gag. Comedian Itsuji Itao's running gag, at least for the purpose of his appearances on Gaki no Tsukai is his "wife". Almost every time he appears on the show he has a different wife that appears to not be a native Japanese, and usually a different child. This usually sends the entire crew into giggles.
However, it's rare that a running gag has it's own running gag. In this case, Itao's Wife has a weapon that has been passed down from generation to generation of Wife. That weapon is the "もちろんそうよ！！！" bomb, which is essentially the trademark of being Itao's Wife. It's just not an Itao Wife without it.
However, there is more than one face that has helped add gems on the legacy that is "Itao's Wife-dom". Today, I would like to pay homage to these brave women, and serve as a historian of sorts.
Itsuji Itao has worked with Downtown on several comedy shows in the past but has gained a lot of popularity for his appearances in Gaki no Tsukai where he tries to weasel money out of Downtown and/or Nihon TV. The concept of "Itao's Wife" comes from a joke that Itao once made with Downtown, saying that he got paid so well when he did an appearance on one of their shows that he should bring his wife and have her perform so they could get double the money. While none of them are Itao's real wife, who doesn't want much attention, the common speculation is that Itao finds them from talent agencies or picks them out on the street. As the joke has progressed, the wives started to take a trend towards foreigners. If there's one thing we know thus far about Japanese comedy, it is that "Foreigner = Instant funny". This is compounded by the fact that the Wife only repeated the same phrase over and over again.
Over the course of a years, these women helped build the long-lasting legacy that is Itao's Wife:
Wife One: (a.k.a.: Kazumi (和実))
Debut date: July 18, 1999
Last appearance: June 11, 2000
Other repeat phrases: (None, really)
Notable Distinctions:
- She was the first.
- Made several appearances on Gaki as a standalone character.
- Has overlap with successor.
In the beginning, there was a car crash. This is the first time that the Gaki members meet with the fictional Wife. They had recently gone to Itao's wedding, and noticed that the "wife" getting out of the car was most definitely a different person.
Not much is known about "Kazumi" as she was the first wife, and most people didn't care enough about the joke at that point to pay her much attention. She is the most "asian-looking" of Itao's wives, but it is not clear whether she is a native Japanese or an immigrant. One might assume that she is a native Japanese because she was given Japanese name, but this assumption may be false as we will see later, as some of the obviously foreign wives also have Japanese names assigned to them.
This wife makes not only makes appearances in an Itao-centered episodes, but comes on the show again to help with other episodes like the "High-Tension" episodes as somewhat of a decoration. She just stands by the entrance door. Nothing really there to note. She does clap from time to time.
One of the earlier wife-focused episodes involves a series of acting challenges, where Itao and Wife came and challenge the Gaki members to act out scenes from famous movies. One scene is from a famous seventies movie where the main protagonist is shot. The acting scene was supposed to feature a fake gun, but was actually a "real" one. This mistake on the part of the crew would "kill" Itao's Wife (again). But she's okay, because she comes back for more episodes.
What makes Kazumi-1 so odd is that she has overlap with Itao's second Wife. Kazumi-1's last appearance on Gaki is about six months AFTER the debut of Kazumi-2. However, Hamada seems to be the only one that notices that the wife isn't the same, when they make the initial switch and only makes a passing comment that the others didn't seem to hear.
Wife Two: (also a.k.a. Kazumi)
Debut date: December 26, 1999
Last appearance: September 15, 2002
Other repeat phrases:
- さすがにだめよ！ ("Truly, that's no good")
Notable Distinctions:
- Again, overlaps her successor.
- Loses her face concealment after a few episodes.
- Has a more developed personal story with Itao.
The second Kazumi is Itao's second show wife. It's believed that she's from Brazil because Itao made statements to that in the show. There is some evidence to confirm this, but it's usually taken as fact due to Itao's forthrightness about his wives and their history (with exception to the fact that they aren't really his wife).
She makes her appearance on Gaki No Tsukai during a Year-end party, helping Itao make off with gifts that were meant to be be prizes for the Bingo games being held throughout the night. By this time, the Gaki members figured that they could trigger the wife to agree with them by trying to get her to speak since she only said "Of course". Itao being as clever as we all know he is, he taught her a counter phrase of "That's really no good". However, with his wife being as unable to understand what everyone is saying, she needed manual prodding to say it. This kinda ruined the gag, but he would try it again later on.
Itao's second wife is one of the few wives who starts out with her face blurred but eventually loses it in favor of her natural face.
Wife 2 in her first appearance, with face concealment.
Kazumi-2 has another distinction of having the most developed backstory with Itao. Besides the usual story of marrying Itao and bringing her kid along, Kazumi also has storyline angle in which she gets pregnant by Itao. Also their older daughter (Itao's stepdaughter) is a prodigy of sorts. This kind of development allowed Itao to give her more lines, but she winds up flubbing most of those anyway.
Also, much like the relationship between Kazumis 1 and 2, Kazumi 2's final appearance date is after the debut of wife 3. However, as I will explain, there might be a reason behind it.
Wife Three:
Debut date: October 28, 2001
Last appearance: October 28, 2001
Other repeat phrases:
- １００度のお湯だよ ("It's 100 degree hot water!")
- 毒針だよ ("It's a poisoned needle!")
- 毒ヘビだよ ("It's a poisonous snake!")
Notable Distinctions:
- One-hitter Quitter?
- A complete accident?
Wife 3 hails from France and, other than that, very little is known about her. Her debut appearance is also her final appearance. She comes to assist Itao in proving to Gaki and Producer Suga that him battling with his wife would draw far higher ratings than the "Yamazaki vs Moriman" episodes that they do.
I have absolutely no solid facts as to the reason, but I would speculate that she was a last-minute replacement for Kazumi-2.
Reason 1: Kazumi-2 comes back later.
Reason 2: Eye concealment and hair color. Wife 3 has her eyes conceal behind the blur effect, which Kazumi-2 had removed. All other Wives have had the blur removed at some point, and most after this would never even opt for the blur. On the topic of hair color, you will notice that Wife 3 has blond hair. But if you notice the placards and posters made for the battle, you will see that the Wife has brown hair in them.
I assume that if Itao had known that she was going to be playing the role of his Wife for this episode, he would have had this fixed before the time came.
One thing that stands out if you listen to her given lines during the episode, she does have some understanding of Japanese, and it causes her to flub her given lines once or twice, as she substitutes words that are close, but incorrect. For example, during the "Hot Water Flinging Match", her given line is １００度のお湯だよ, meaning "This is 100 degree hot water". At first, she says １００度の水だよ, meaning "This is 100 degree water". When water is heated, the correct word for it becomes お湯, and I believe she realizes this about halfway through the first time she says it and starts over.
The one thing that is very odd is that I kinda miss her. She still stood out to me even though she only appeared for one episode. Luckily Itao's Fourth Wife has a made an impression that no one will ever forget.
Wife Four: ("Sherry")
Debut date: February 8, 2004
Last appearance: July 1, 2007
Other repeat phrases:
- です！
- その発想はなかったわ ("That's not the point"/"That's not the idea")
- ひじき！ (A type of seaweed)
Notable Distinctions:
- Most popular!
- Signature Dancing!
- Batsu Game Appearances.
- Appearances without Itao.
By far the most well-known of Itao's wives, the fourth wife is known as Sherry. Keep in mind, that I don't know if that's the way her name is spelled. Her name is spelled in katakana as シェリー, and that's the only indication I have to go on. So, her name could either be Sheri, Sherri, Sherry, the Cheri that sounds like the other three listed, or anything else for that matter.
Sherry is originally from India, and this fact is kept consistent with the storyline that Itao portrays to the Gaki no Tsukai members.
A young Sheri, in traditional Indian apparelThis fact results in several jokes involving her and usually naan (Indian-style bread). One such episode involves Itao informing everyone that due to the differences in laws between Japan and India, he and Sherry aren't technically married as far as Japan is concerned. So, Itao and Sherry invite the Gaki members to a wedding reception rehearsal where there are many of the "family members" are Indian. To appease his new "relatives", Itao does a bunch of stereotypical things like set out curry-flavored rice crackers on the tables for them to eat. As wedding entertainment, Itao manages to book the "Indian Version" of all Japan's hot stars. (They're really just Indians who look a lot like the celebrities.) It all winds down as they unveil the wedding "cake": a big pile of naan.
It is unknown just how long Sherry had been in Japan, but she seemed to have the most understanding of the Japanese language. This lead to an expansion of her vocabulary to counter some of the Gaki members. In the case of some other wives, the Gaki members figured out that anything what was obviously directed solely at the Wife would be responded to with the signature "Of course!" This had been abused by Matsumoto and Hamada, as they could get the Wife to contradict some of the reasons for Itao wanting money. Sherry started frequenting the line "That's not what is meant" when she thought it was a trap. Of course, her Japanese was still very limited, and she sometimes still fell for the traps or would use her counter line in the wrong situations.
The one thing which she is probably most famous for is her dancing. Sherry used to be a professional dancer, and you can see that her love of movement really shows. She tended to dance to Madonna during Gaki episodes, but was not limited to that. In the episode mentioned above, she breaks out in the middle of reading a loving letter to her parents and jams to "Crazy In Love" by Beyonce. It seems that Sherry will jam out to practically anything. She lists some of her favorite artists as Madonna, Michael Jackson, Phil Collins, Kazumasa Oda, Boney M., and Santana. This love of dance has been used by Itao and others, especially during the two Batsu games in which Sherry has appeared. Not only are her completely wholehearted attempts at sexy dancing funny, but she tends to add Indian dance elements which send the Gaki members into huge fits of laughter. To date, Sherry is the only Wife to appear in a Batsu game.
Over her three-year stint as Itao's Wife, Sherry's popularity really became something of its own. Sherry soon made appearances and did a few shows without Itao. She even got to host a radio show. Here's some pictures of Sherry at work! :D
I don't know if I still have it or not, but I think I remember hearing a radio clip of Sherry on show with other guest. While she wasn't a native speaker, and some things tended to go over her head, she knew enough Japanese to put a few good points and jokes forward. I probably seem to be obsessed with learning just how much Japanese these ladies know, huh?
In 2007, Itao came back to Gaki and gave an episode about Sherry's life (fictional, of course), then the aforementioned wedding episode and that would be the last episode in which Sherry was featured. She later stated that she had returned to India to take care of some personal matters. However, she has promised that she has not given up show business and will one day make her return to the stage, even if not with Itao.
For anyone who might want to keep up with Sherry, feel free to visit her blog and leave her a kind word of encouragement!
Wife Five:
Debut date: June 29, 2008
Last appearance: June 29, 2008
Other repeat phrases:
- もうエロイことしか考えられへんわぁ ("I can't think of anything but dirty things!")
Notable Distinctions:
- Another attempt at dancing!
- Dialect! Whoo!
For Wife Five, Itao gets another catch from Europe, namely Sweden. I believe that her name is "Helen" or "Ellen" or something along those lines. She's been on some show before. I know it, but I just can't remember which one. When I do, I'll go verify the name. Wife Five helped Itao out when he was trying to sell his "Erection King" cream. Another dancer, Wife Five tried to pick up where Sherry left off. While she didn't dance in the solo way that Sherry did, she looks like she dances a lot. I mean first of all, she's wearing those odd, sheer pants. Definitely a fashion no-no. Second of all, she's got the well-built legs of a dancer or fitness instructor.
Probably to honor the memory of Sherry, Wife Five did not dance to Madonna, but to "Girls Just Wanna Have Fun" by Cyndi Lauper. The dance doesn't have the same punch as Sherry's does, probably because Sherry's main point on the dance was to be sexy. Wive Five was more of an aerobics style. That's another point that makes me think she might be an exercise instructor.
While she's got very funny facial expression and such, she's overall very plain and a little disappointing and such. One thing that she has going for her though is the use of dialect in her speech. Her repeat line for this episode, もうエロイことしか考えられへんわぁ, is in Kansai dialect. I believe this is a first for the wives. I would assume that the wife knows just what she's saying, but it makes you wonder if she happens to be able to speak it naturally.
Wife Six:
Debut date: February 1, 2009
Last appearance: (still active)
Other repeat phrases:
- 汗ばむわぁ！ ("I'm dripping sweat!")
Notable Distinctions:
- Spoke English.
- Does not know where her mic is. -___-
Not too much is known about Wife Six yet. A lot of information about these wives surface after they leave Gaki and get work other places. As so, there's a lot of speculation as to the origins of Wife Six. In her most recent episode with Itao, she had to speak to Itao. She spoke back to him in English, leaving many to speculate that she is from a primarily English-speaking country. I personally don't believe it, just because of the awkwardness of it.
The situation in question involves Itao and Wife acting as bodyguards to the Gaki members using only blowdarts. In a routine communication check, Itao speaks into his receiver to verify signal with his wife, but she does not respond. Eventually, she comes through a door and Itao asks her if she could hear him. Wife responds with "I did not listen." I would assume that a native English speaker would say "I didn't hear you" or even "I was not listening".
In her two appearances so far as a "Wife", Wife Six has had some good moments. Especially in her first appearance during the "No Getting Excited Elementary School" episode, where Itao proposes a new format to the yearly Batsu game. We find out that she has a very wide mouth as she deep-throats a roll of makizushi in an attempt to "excite" the Gaki members. She then takes it over the top again as she's supposed to lead the students in a call after eating. She proceeds to do a porn-esque moan for about two minutes in extreme proximity to Matsumoto and Hamada. Very funny standout moments in the episode.
One thing that I noticed is the slight resemblance to Sherry a little bit. Is it just me? At some points she also kinda reminds me of Jennifer Lopez. Just me? Really? I know I'm on cold medicine but I can't be only person seeing it. <_<
One thing that she really needs to work on is her knowledge of microphone placement. The two great moments above required her to not need a microphone or operate a hand-held microphone. During many of her other jokes, she overacts and hits her microphone with her hand, making a big "BOOM BOOM WHIFFWHIFF" sound. This not only drowns out what she was saying, but it kinda ruins the feeling that the viewers are watching a private moment that wasn't meant for TV audiences. Why would she be wearing a microphone if this wasn't staged for us to hear? She wouldn't.
That's about the extent of the knowledge I have to report! I hope this has helped you feel more enlightened and perhaps piqued your interest in Itao's Wife. Plus now you can impress all of your less-knowledgeable friends with your super high IWQ (Itao's Wife Quotient). I will keep an eye out for new developments as well as any new information I can find. Thank you for taking the time to read this... monster... post.
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