Cultural Divide

[fencer_x]

I was reading some fangirl blogs today (I do this too often, don't I? It's sad, yes, I know), and came across one girl's entry from a couple of weeks ago.

This entry was her response in her personal blog to The Great "HOMG Tuti Is Stopping Smoking?!" Post of 2006. For those of you unfamiliar with all the aftermath of this post (the one with the subject line 'cigarettes'), his frankness and openness--something I think that is prized in the west--was received less than merrily by his native fans.

When he wrote in the entry the following sentences: "I’ve been hanging around with these guys since I was 15 years old, 12 years now. When I was younger, it was kind of a thrill to sneak off for a smoke, and even now passing the intermission in the smoking room is enjoyable," he was soon met with comments from fans seeking not to voice their approval of his decision to quit (or decision to decide to quit rather >_>), as many had--English and Japanese both, but disapproval of what the post seemed to advocate.

"You're a role model," they said, "You need to think about the message you're sending to minors, who do read this blog." Enough comments popped up mirroring this sentiment that he later went through, apologized, and removed the part I quoted above.

It's not something unexpected, really, though it makes me sad. He so obviously wants to write to his heart's content, and tries to--he writes the most inane entries (come on, katakana? THE WATERCOOLER?), deep entries, goofy entries, general entries. He truly is, I feel, himself on that blog. It's eerie how much closer I feel to him now since he started this--kooriyoukai! I was going through old text messages on my phone last night and found the one you sent me when he'd just established it! Brought back so many memories ♥

And yet he still has to maintain his status as an actor. No matter how open he is on this, he can never be the real, complete Tuti that he wants to be, and that's really sad. Always having to think about his image, lest he fall from grace as it seems he's really afraid of. I shook my head in dismay at every comment I read that reproved him for writing so freely and not thinking about his readers, because I feared deep down that this would discourage him from discussing something so important to him ever again for fear of the same reaction.

The hulabaloo has passed, though, for the most part, and I'd nearly forgotten it until I came across this blog entry today, and it spurred me to write this entry. The girl who wrote it had apparently been watching the whole thing unfold, and wrote out her thoughts, which I perused, and I'll now give my thoughts on her thoughts.

予想通りコメントでそのことを批判してる人も何人かいる。当たり前。
ツチは一個人として書いているつもりでも、ファンは役者・土屋裕一として見る。
素の部分を見せてくれるのは嬉しいけど、ツチの発言ひとつの影響を考えてみて欲しいなぁ。
たった一言、些細な発言がファンを去らせることがある。
ファンって言うのは去る時は黙って去っていくもの。
今、とても大事な時期なのだから、それを忘れないでいて欲しかった。
せっかくいいお仕事してるんだからさ。
失言でファンを減らさないでね、トテ。

[As expected, there were many people in the comments criticizing (the comment about smoking as a minor). Of course there would be.
Tuti may have meant to only write in his blog as he himself, an individual person, but his fans see him as Tsuchiya Yuuichi, the actor. I'm glad he's choosing to show such a great part of him to us, but I would like for him to consider the effect a single word he writes can have.
Just one single word, even a seemingly innocent utterence can make fans leave. Fans will just up and leave without a word when they do so.
Right now is a very important time, and I really want him to not forget that. He's finally gotten such a great job after all.
Don't lose your fans over a few poorly chosen words, Tuti.]

---

Like I said before, I understand why they replied to his post in the way some of them did--he did post a little absentmindedly, not thinking of the impact it might have on him personally, or how his words would be taken by his fans.

However, reading this post by this girl...has made me realize just how different our two countries truly are.

Tuti, you should've been born in the west.

What disheartens me most, and spurred me to make this post, is this statement:

"Tuti may have meant to only write in his blog as he himself, an individual person, but his fans see him as Tsuchiya Yuuichi, the actor."

Really? Is that what they really see him as? How is it that I, a random gaijin on the other side of the planet who's never so much as been in the same TIMEZONE as this wonderful man, can feel so much closer to him than them. I don't even speak his same language! I struggle through it to pick out and piece together what he's trying to tell us so I can share it with others, and maybe through that I feel I get closer to him. Is that it?

I may have started out seeing him as an actor--and there are some of the guys I still do see as actors. In fact, I'll even go so far as to say every other Japanese person of moderate or more fame I know of I still think of as '_____-san, the actor.' Nagayan, Kimeru, Tatsuya, MoriEiji, Daiki, everyone.

Except Tuti. Maybe it's this blog. This feeling of openness, his "katte na kanji" that he speaks of, letting him write whatever he wants without worrying too much about how it reflects on *pnish*.

I'm floored that they really do--or really admit they do--feel this way about him. No matter what, he's still standing in a glass case parading himself around for their entertainment, is still 'Tsuchiya Yuuichi, the actor,' and never 'Tuti, that funny guy who writes the weird posts and occasionally does theatre.'

Yes, Tuti's words can have a startling effect on his fanbase. All he has to do is mention a group or a song and we're on that bitch like white on rice. Remioromen? Downloaded liekwhoa. Naussica? Oh yeah, that got watched. And how is it that I actually want to try some of this stuff he takes pictures of just because he recommends it, when I HATE JAPANESE FOOD? umbrellaofdoom went to the LUSH store for crying out loud! The fact that Tuti has a large influence on his fans comes as noooooo surprise, believe me.

But it must be a completely western way of thinking to think, "...So?"

"Just one single word, even a seemingly innocent utterence can make fans leave. Fans will just up and leave without a word when they do so."

Well then they're not really fans, are they? The true fans are the ones who stick by him, who are willing to tell him that he's gone a little too far, been a little too liberal and might want to rephrase his statement, while AT THE SAME TIME supporting him and encouraging him. Not saying, "Don't say that! All your fans will leave!"

Tuti might lose fans, but he won't lose his friends. I've never even met him, and I consider myself his friend. Because of what I want for him, what I cheer for, what I get sad for seeing him write, the closeness I feel through something as cold and emotionless as the internet yet still connects us. For lack of a better analogy, it's like I've friended him on LJ, he just hasn't friended me back. I still care about him, even if he doesn't know I exist.

If not going to his plays or writing him fanletters or buying his swag (I so would by his crap, you know I would, I can't wait for this collab ♥) doesn't make me a fan, then to hell with fans.

If the above is a fan, I'm fine with not being one, thanks. I'm happy being his friend.

Comments

[iverin.livejournal.com]

*hugs* Can I be a Courtney fan, though?

Courtney-san is the best! :D And I completely agree. Openness rocks.

[jubeichan.livejournal.com]

;_; is it sad to say I teared up at this entry?

I have to agree when I first read that he was having trouble breathing I wanted to scream "damnit stop smoking!" because it hit close to home with my Grandfather. But someone reminded me that it's common in Japan and the same way I have to accept my friends who excessivly drink and smoke I have to accept it's who he is.

The reason I like Tuti so much, why he's been my "favorite" is because he's real. His views are funny and corkey, he's like the friend you want around on a Friday night talking about nothing and laughing your heart out. I don't like him because of his looks but how he presents himself through preformence and the part of himself he has revealed.

XD I'm rambling so I'll stop. -hugs for the post.

[kooriyoukai.livejournal.com]

*standing applause*

I've had a lot of talks about this kind of stuff with you in the past, but you just said everything so beautiful in the most perfect way I could have ever asked for.

If the above is a fan, I'm fine with not being one, thanks. I'm happy being his friend.

My feelings lie completely with you on this, and for a long time now I've felt exactly the same, as if I've had the fortune to become friended to this wonderful, funny, talented man who lives on the other side of the world. I haven't received any earth-shattering life changes by him being in my life (besides meeting a lot of other great people who like him too), and really ever since he began his blog I've felt as though I'd found someone I could consider a friend that's letting me have a peek of what life is like on the other side of the world.

There really is a huge difference between fans here and there, and I admit I've become saddened the more and more we unearth about the feelings of the girls over there who seem to be just as interested in him as we are. We all do the same thing, scramble to download whatever he's listening to, want to use the same products, wearing the same kinds of clothes (well, some of us :P), but I have to wonder how many people truly take the next step. When I listen to a song I know Tuti likes, my inevitable first thought is, "Why does Tuti like this song?" I want to know about the man and his mind, and I spend more time wondering at the reasons behind his words, pictures, and choices in music and reading material than I do trying to obtain those things.

Yes he's an actor, yes he has a fanbase, yes he's becoming more famous, but why are we placing him upon this glass pedestal when he clearly doesn't want to be there? Oh he loves the attention, we know that, but I feel as though his entire effort with the blog was because he felt he had things to say, as a person, as a man, and wanted to share those thoughts with the world. It's why all of us are here on livejournal, and maybe we can understand that a little better because of the reasons behind why we write the way we do. It's such a strange paradox really, because I have no doubt that if Tuti had been born in the west he wouldn't be nearly as open and thoughtful a person as he is, and his Japanese upbringing and views on manliness from their perspective is what allows him to be this open in the first place. He'd be a typical man too afraid to get in touch with his feelings here in the west, so I for one am glad that he's there, language barrier and all.

But it makes me sad too, to see that there are probably a lot of fans who feel that way about Tuti, about all of them, as just things to possess. They're not things that you should live your life by. They're people. Grown men who AREN'T just actors and the characters they play. They're real individuals with their own tastes and takes on life, and I find it sad to consider that these people can't even conceive of the plain fact that during the 22 hours a day when they're not on stage, they are probably a completely different person. I want to know THAT person, not the face that gets shown to the audience.

So Tuti, my friend, who I feel I know surprisingly well even though you don't know me, I hope you keep on writing freely, and that even if you fall from your pillar or lose your entire fanbase, you'll still keep writing, because we'll definitely all still be reading here ♥

[nacchi-camui.livejournal.com]

...god.

I have to say I didn't most of the comment foreign fans left on this post, though. I mean, a thousand people saying "ZOMG STOP SMOKING" is not really an agreeable thing, I think. Even if he surely kind of expected that kind of comment. (but then, comments written in english get on my nerves, I don't know why)

But this comment is..who does she think she is ? Like "Tuti, I DO KNOW why you made that blog, I know it better than you, duh, I AM choosing what you should write, dammit". Fuck, what's that ?
Blog are MADE to see the person and not the actor or the singer. We all waited for Tuti or someone else to have an actual blog, to see other things than work related stuff.

Worst, I think this comment might have hurt him. How can you hurt someone you're supposed to like ? Even the ones who said that he should stop smoking were saying that for his good, not because he's gonna "lost all his fans".

....I think I'm irritated for the day.

[nacchi-camui.livejournal.com]

And that makes me forget a verb.:p
"I didn't LIKE most of the comment" ^^;

I really hope this is coherent...

[rhymed.livejournal.com]

Very well said.

One of the reasons I like reading Tuti's blog so much is that it makes it so much easier to connect to him as a person, rather than just some far off figure that I would jump in a heartbeat if given the chance idolize.
Since he started his own blog, I've become even more of a Tuti "fan" (though I'm hesitant to use that word now ^^;), and I was really glad that he was posting so openly (even though the watercooler thing did make me facepalm, and I've made fun of it several times...) and I'm sad that his honest posting was met with such comments, and that people will only see him as "Tsuchiya Yuuichi, the actor," because that's just his job, not all he is. I would think seeing his blog would show that there's more to him than just that...
Despite the feelings people have shown for his maybe "too-honest" blogging, I hope he continues to post so openly.

...and I'm gonna stop rambling now, really ^^;

[subetehoshi.livejournal.com]

Wow...

I have to agree with you on all of this. This is a prime example of the West's highly individualistic point-of-view versus Japan's more collectivistic views...

I always enjoy reading Tuti's blogs, and I feel that his posts allow us to see more of him than most actors would ever allow anyone to see. It's kind of sad how actors like him are forced to wear a mask and made to hide who they really are...and everytime I hear something like "this is for the DVD" on a backstage or something, it breaks my heart. It makes me think "oh, so they are putting up a forefront and being on guard when the camera is rolling?". And then I begin to wonder if the people we see during the backstages are who they REALLY are, or who they want us to see. It's most likely the latter...and that saddens me. I want to see the REAL people...not some fake person who's just trying to look cool for the camera, or trying to save his image (because I do think the TRUE fans would be there through thick and thin, no matter what)...that's why I like Tuti, he may not show us all of his true self (for, obviously, he can't)...but at least he gives us a sneak peak at what's really under the mask.

Aaaand...I wouldn't be able to see all this if it wasn't for you, Fencer...so I want to thank you...so, SO MUCH, for allowing me to experience the wonderful MAN that is Tuti...THANK YOU!!!!!

oops...sorry for the blabbage....

[tomizu.livejournal.com]

Thank you for this post. You wrote about everything that had been in my mind for at least a month. I just didn't know how to name it, but this is what I feel like, the same as you. What I like so much about Tuti is Tuti-the-human being, not that boy (although gorgeous) smiling from photos. I don't give a damn about someone who stops being Tuti's fan just because he is smoking. Smoking is bad, that's right, so what? Tuti knows this, he is not stupid. I was so moved when he wrote that he would stop smoking in order to be able to smell the scent of spring rain...

Your entry made me cry. I somehow realised that even though I am watching *pnish* plays on my PC instead of sitting in a front row in theatre, I am actually closer to him than these so-called fans will ever be. If he (for some reason) stops to be popular, it won't make any difference for me. So I say: "Tuti, smoke if you like it, it's okay. And once you decide to stop, we, nameless fans from various parts of this planet, will be here to support you. Just like real friends."

Sorry if this is confusing, my English is not perfect and my mind is confused itself, so... ^^;

[soraironoinu.livejournal.com]

I totally agree with you...but it's quite sad isn't it?*I mean a feel bad for him*Honestly, I'm a bit pissed off...
"Just one single word, even a seemingly innocent utterence can make fans leave. Fans will just up and leave without a word when they do so."...
....''but his fans see him as Tsuchiya Yuuichi, the actor....."

I can tell you just one thing ...What does he mean for these ''fans''that she mentioned?He's a human being God dammit!Why is so diffucult for these so-called fans to consider him as a human being...!!
I like him in way he is...because he is real and he has never tried to be someone that he isn't...These so-called ''fans'' are the fake ones...

Tuti...my friend keep on writing what you've in your mind **freely**
We'll always support you not matter what!
sorry I'm pissed off,Ive mixed felling about it and english is not my native language*sorry for grammar mistakes*

Tuti

[masochistofset.livejournal.com]

It's a shame to me that I do not understand the Japanese language as well as I do French, but I do enjoy anime with a passion. I love watching the live show of Prince of Tennis, & Tuti does an excellent job. But one must remember, as an actor & as a character he is only human, things happen. And i'm sure he won't have one person ruin how he feels, he must make choices on his own.

--Aya