Complaints about Ayase in "Hotaru no Hikari 2"

It seems that actress Ayase Haruka (25) has not been welcomed by viewers in her return as Hotaru in "Hotaru no Hikari 2", which is currently airing in Japan. NTV, the channel which airs the drama, has recieved many letters of complaint regarding Ayase in the drama. Some of the letters have pretty nasty comments.

At least one letter complains about Ayase's relationship with Osawa Takao (42), her co-star from another drama (JIN). Majority of the other letters complain about how Ayase no longer looks the same. Some feel that Ayase does not look as young and healthy as in the first series, which was aired in 2007. Apparently, Ayase now has sunken cheekbones and looks skinny, rather than slim.

Staff at NTV have said that they are not bothered by the hateful letters. After all, it is only natural that Ayase will change, since there has been a 3 year gap between the two dramas. (Entame)

Ayase denies relationship rumors at "Hotaru no Hikari 2" press conference

Today was the press conference for NTV's upcoming summer dorama "Hotaru no Hikari 2" starring Ayase Haruka (25), and many reporters were curious to get a response from Ayase about her alleged relationship with actor Osawa Takao (42). Unsurprisingly she clearly denied the rumors. "There is nothing like that going on (between us)," she said.

"Hotaru no Hikari 2" is the sequel to the popular drama series that aired in the summer of 2007. The story is based on a novel by Hiura Satoru and focuses on the life of Hotaru, a so-called "himono onna". Himono as in "dried fish", because she's a woman who refrains from love and rather lies around at home. The first season started with Hotaru ending up living together with the director at her workplace played by Fujiki Naohito (37). Eventually she experiences what it means to fall in love and this time she even starts to think about marriage.
Yasuda Ken (36), who will appear in the second season again, gave an advice to couples who are currently thinking about marriage. "I think it would be better to start living together before making that decision," he said. Ayase was impressed and responded, "I'll keep that in mind." About filming the sequel she said, "I'm happy that we are filming part two and will enjoy the filming."
Fujiki is happy too and joked about his age, "I'm happy that the drama is returning. It's been three years and the director is still the director, except that I've grown older… That's my personal problem, though."
Usuda Asami (25) also attended the press conference.
"Hotaru no Hikari 2" will be the new Wednesday 10pm drama of NTV and start with the first episode on July 07. The first episode will be 15 minutes longer. (Kawaii Joyuu)

Was announcement of second series of JIN pushed forward because of Ayase Haruka and Osawa Takao's relationship being exposed?!

Last week, FRIDAY magazine caught Ayase Haruka (25) and Osawa Takao (42) together at Osawa's apartment. There has been much speculation about their relationship for a while now. The two were co-stars in the much-loved series JIN, but both their agencies strongly deny any intimate relationship between the two. And just recently, TBS announced that there would be a sequel for JIN, to be released in April 2011.

Now, however, more rumors are surfacing, and it seems that TBS had intentionally leaked out information on the release of the JIN sequel in order to give the impression that Ayase and Osawa share a "friendly co-stars" relationship, rather than anything closer. It is rather surprising that TBS made the announcement so early, since the sequel is almost a year away. Also, it seems that TBS did not expect JIN to be such a hit, and did not make any plans for a sequel until recently. So, why hastily announce a sequel so soon when they have just got everything confirmed? To let viewers think that Ayase and Osawa are meeting up, perhaps to discuss on the project rather than anything more scandalous, that's the most obvious reason.

Moving on, it seems that FRIDAY really went to great lengths to get a photo of Ayase Haruka and Osawa Takao together! A FRIDAY reporter says that to get the photo, they had to do "two to three monthes of continued surveillance" and at one time, had "more than 16 surveillance vehicles" around the apartment. (scary!) Honestly, I thought the entire idea of rushing the announcement was quite weird, but it's mentioned in the article that this has happened before, so... (Entame)

Haha, FRIDAY seems to be so great at exposing all these relationships! Mmmm... Makes me feel like buying a copy from Kinokuniya tomorrow! But it's really freaky though, imagine your apartment being surrounded by cars with reporters trying to get a photo of you and your date together... -.-//

JIN sequel in 2011!

TBS surprised everyone with the dorama "JIN" last fall and its amazing ratings. Many people speculated that we would get a sequel and today it was made official, JIN will return next year in April!


Osawa Takao (42) about the sequel, "I hold the firm belief that this is going to be a lot of fun. The decision to make a sequel was the best decision in my entire career as an actor!" Actress Ayase Haruka (25) will return in the sequel as well. Recently a tabloid spread the rumor that the two of them might be in a relationship, but both of their agencies immediately denied this rumor. Of course they didn't kill the rumor and now that they are going to work together again, there sure will be more reporters trying to reveal what's going on behind the scenes (or not).

Ayase about the sequel, "I could totally feel the huge support for the dorama. So many people asked me whether there will be a sequel. I'm so happy that I will finally be able to reply to all of them!" About her role as Saki she said, "She's a kind and a strong woman, a character that I admire a lot. I will continue to play her role to the best of my abilities!"

Of course most of the cast from the first season are also going to be on board for the sequel, including Nakatani Miki (34) and Uchino Masaaki (41). Nakatani, "I'd like to put a lot of effort into the roles of Nokaze and Miki again!" Uchino's play as Ryoma was one of the many highlights in the dorama. "I can't wait to face the world of JIN and Ryoma again!" He said.

It will be difficult to mess up this dorama. JIN was amazing and everyone is very motivated to film a sequel. The biggest problem will be to survive the wait until April next year. (Kawaii Joyuu)

Ayase Haruka still visiting Osawa's aparment regularly

Remember my previous post on Ayase Haruka and Takao Osawa's relationship here? Ayase Haruka still seems to be visiting Osawa's apartment!

The latest celebrity romance rumor is between actor Osawa Takao (42) and actress Ayase Haruka (25). Apparently Ayase got photographed how she tried to sneak into Osawa's apartment some day in mid-May. The combi-van she gets to ride from her agency stopped at the rear entrance of his apartment and Ayase quickly went inside the building. No more details are known yet since it's still early morning in Japan

The magazine reports that Ayase visited Osawa's apartment multiple times last month, even when Osawa was not there. Sources say that she was driven there by staff from her agency, who apparently kept watch to prevent Ayase from being seen. FRIDAY speculates that the two are partially living together.

Osawa and Ayase first worked together in the 2008 movie "ICHI." They then appeared in the popular drama series "JIN" last year.

Ayase's agency says that Osawa is an actor she respects greatly and that there is nothing more to their relationship. Osawa's agency stated that the two get along well as co-actors, but denied that they are dating. (Tokyograph, Kawaii Joyuu)

Ayase Haruka and Osawa Takao an item!

Earlier this year, Ayase Haruka (25) was spotted at Osawa Takao's (42) apartment and since then a few more sightings have been reported. The two of them had co-starred in JIN, released last year. This information leaked out from the surveillance at Osawa's apartment to the paparazzi. This is sensational news as they are both well-known celebrities. In addition, their age gap of 17years is seen to be quite shocking in Japan. (Entame)