Just to give a quick update, I've got a few things I had been slowly but surely toiling away on. I decided that I should just buckle down and get one of them done, and I'll just devote all of my free blogging time to finishing that up and getting it out the door.
Now with all that taken care of, on to the topic of this month's new poll: License!
License is a comedy team under Yoshimoto, the same agency which manages Downtown. They've sometimes appear on Gaki no Tsukai as hosts, and have appeared in the latest Batsu game as announcers for the "Heipo Channel". They've made a few appearances also during some of the Oogiri and Gaki vs. Tenso episodes as title card flippers, usually wearing short-shorts, as seen below.
One of them has also made a character named "Vacuum Fujiwara" who is an amateur competitive eater. This character comes from the big boom that Japan had revolving around competitive eating and eating massive amounts of food. For a while they have been doing the warm-up act for the crowd before Downtown comes on and does their thing, which is rarely seen on TV, but if you've ever been in the audience for the show, they aren't unfamiliar faces.
As of late, it seems that they are being prepped and preened to have a larger role on Gaki no Tsukai. Perhaps something along the lines of a more frequent semi-regular role or even the big step to a regular, every-week appearance. I guess you could call them semi-regulars by now. So, this month, my question to you is:
"Would you like License to join the Gaki members?"
I personally am a little torn on the subject and I don't think that I myself am ready to give a decision. So, I'll list off my reasoning, and maybe it'll give you some food-for-thought to help you cast your vote.
In support of Regular Appearances: New Opportunities
In support of License being joining full-time, it creates some opportunities for some new characters and new situations. Like I mentioned above, the Vacuum Fujiwara character could become more developed, but it would be hard to imagine how something like that would play out especially considering that the brunt of the competitive eating boom in Japan is over. Maybe they could make him homeless and eat anything for money.
Another reason would be for the sake of Cocorico. I guess mainly for Endou's sake. In the his time on Gaki, Endou has always been the "new guy" in the business, and therefore had to show respect to everyone. However, he's the tsukkomi (straightman) in his group. I imagine it's hard for him to really show his prowess in comedic correction when he's bound by etiquette. It's the difference between "Excuse me, but don't you think that is a little foolish?" and "ARE YOU A COMPLETE MORON?!" All of his breakthrough moments on the show have been in stooge positions (Dynamite Shikoku, his Beat Takeshi impersonations, "Hohohoi", etc.) because he can't be as blunt as he'd probably like to be with maybe the exception of Tanaka. License joining would give him someone to bully around. I know it's kinda mean suggesting that they let License in only to be Endou's punching bag, but they would probably get picked on by Downtown anyways so I don't see what the difference is.
In support of Semi-Regular Appearances: Testing the Waters
Like I said above, License probably isn't new to people who have come out to the shows. They do the warm-ups before Downtown comes on to give their talks. But even so, we don't know just how well they'll be taken by home viewers. The episodes that have featured them so far haven't shown much of their personalities. They are usually just there as tag-alongs, but they do have their moments and they don't ruin the mood, per se. I think it might be best to give them spotty appearances until they can develop a fan base beyond the girls who think Fujiwara is cute.
(I think he bears a slight resemblance to Takashi Fujii, if you ask me.)
In opposition to their appearance: There are better
Until they really earn the right to be on the show every week, I don't think they should just get that privilege just because Yoshimoto likes them. I do understand that in the business there are a lot of things that the agency says, and they may be the ones forcing them to play a bigger role in the show. However, Yoshimoto has a HUGE stable of entertainers, and most of them could bring a ton of personality, wit, and popularity to the show. I mean, try to imagine the five current Gaki members plus Itao and Hosshan. Or even another comedy team like Ame Agari Kesshintai. I would personally throw in Summers, but they have their own shows and are very busy. These would probably destroy the argument I made earlier about putting in some people younger than Cocorico so they can have punching bags, but... meh.
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