Episode 20
Maya may be an acting genius, but she is dumb as a box of rocks. :blink:
I’m also hoping that we’ll get a second season announcement soon. Quite unexpectedly, this has turned out to be one of my favorite shows currently playing on VoD.
I didn’t think this would be as interseting as it is. It kind of reminds me of the soap operas my mom watched when I was a kid. I keep on expecting the announcer guy at the end to say “These are the days of our lives.”
Episode 22 –
spoiler
The auditions for Helen Keller begin with the contenders entertaining themselves as Helen would with some scattered toys in a room with the judges for a period of time. I think Emi did well and Ayumi didn’t even break character when she was hit in the face with a ball, but I think Maya was the most convincing. However, this is only the first round. During the second round, the girls must eat as Helen and they eat as wild animals would. Later, as the girl’s performances are analyzed, it looks like it might be down to Emi, Ayumi and Maya. It also looks like Onodera is pushing for Ayumi and I don’t think that’s very impartial.
For the third round, all the girls must portray Helen searching for her mother after waking from a nap. Again, Emi and Ayumi shine, but Maya notices Masumi is now there as well, observing them, and decides to win the role for her fan alone. She puts on Helen’s mask and envisions finding her own mother, and once again brings something new to the role. Although the judges are impressed, they seem to prefer Emi and Ayumi. However, it will come down to the final round.
This last round seems to be a bit of a trick as the agent tells the girls to wait for the judges “as Helen” and there’s a hidden camera watching them. Suddenly a fire alarm goes off and only Ayumi and Maya do not break character and remain seated, unseeing and unhearing, as the other three girls panic. Now, it’s just between Ayumi and Maya and the judges are leaning towards Ayumi because they feel Ayumi is already a box office presence, and that the role is too important to give a “no-name” like Maya. I’m glad someone spoke up for Maya and I agree when he asked about the whole point of the audition. But it still looks like Onodera will have his way and Ayumi will be awarded the part, with the decision at four to three in Ayumi’s favor. Funny that Ayumi herself is worried about losing to Maya; she knows exactly what she’s up against.
The final vote is taken amongst the judges with Ayumi’s mother having the final say in a three/three tie breaker and voting solely as Annie Sullivan, she makes the only possible impartial choice that she can make. The public announcement is made and both Ayumi and Maya have won the part! I had hoped for this result, but I wonder how this will work. I know they will have to alternate, but I think it will be difficult for the rest of the cast. The cast will have to get used to and play off against two completely different styles.
Masumi later congratulates Maya, but she still kind of snubs him and he reminds her that he is the President of the Daito Theater and her boss, so she should keep her dislike of him in check. Rehearsals begin with both Ayumi and Maya, but Maya still doesn’t feel that she can compare to Ayumi. As she sits in the park one night, doubting herself, Sakurakouji shows up and Maya looks really happy to see him, but he stills feels that the only thing she really cares about is acting. And Ms. Tsukikage feels that Maya’s skills are better when she’s ignored, so she will not be coaching her, just as Ayumi will also not have a coach. I can’t wait to see how both girls do has Helen!
Episode 23 –
spoiler
Ayumi’s Helen was very good, but again Ayumi goes to extremes for her art and even surprises her own mother. Maya is scared to be up against her. She’s still unsure of herself, but acting is life to her. And now it’s her turn to be Helen and she’s suffering from stage fright, but when she is shown a huge display of purple roses from her fan and receives his note, she finds her courage once again and resolves to play Helen in her own way.
Maya ends up surprising Utako too by not playing Helen as they rehearsed it together, but instinctively instead. Utako has no choice but to follow her lead and abandon her own role as she rehearsed it. She is also impressed by Maya’s stage presence and the play becomes reality. In the end, Utako and Maya get a standing ovation, but Maya seems bewildered by all the applause.
Utako later compliments Maya and tells her how exhilarating it was to share a stage with her and that she looks forward to the rest of their performances together. Maya secretly credits her fan for her accomplishment. Both Ayumi and Maya receive excellent reviews and now they are rivals in the truest sense. The scenes from the Miracle Worker in this episode were some of the best. If you haven’t seen it, you should. The movie version with Patty Duke and Anne Bancroft was marvelous. I highly recommend it. The true life stories of both Helen Keller and Anne Sullivan are pretty amazing as well.
You know, it strikes me that Maya may be the ultimate “method” actor-but with her it is totally instinctual. I really do hope Sentai picks up the second half of this series.
Episode 24 –
spoiler
Maya’s a star and has autograph hounds! I like how she’s nice to Masumi’s face and then makes faces behind his back – and he knows it too! She also calls him the “Daito Demon” and it’s odd that he keeps showing up to help her.
Maya has also been nominated for Best Supporting Actress, but so has Ayumi. Ayumi knows she played Helen perfectly and just can’t figure out what Maya has that she doesn’t. At the award ceremony, Maya wins! I really thought it would be Ayumi, but I’m happy it was Maya. Maya is in a state of shock and can hardly make it to the stage and doesn’t know what to say when she does. Utako also wins for Best Actress. It was very rude of Ayumi to go to the stage and try to steal Maya’s thunder.
It was even more surprising when Ms. Tsukikage shows up and shocks everyone when she says that both Maya and Ayumi “are worthy of playing the Scarlet Angel”. She then asks Maya if she’d like the part and Maya doesn’t know how to respond. Ms. Tsukikage has to prompt her again and Maya says that she will do her best. Ms. Tsukikage then asks the same question of Ayumi and she answers yes right away. Utako is really disappointed since she’s wanted the part so much and has now been passed over. Ms. Tsukikage makes a formal announcement to the other guests that both girls will play the “Scarlet Angel” but she’ll be watching the see how both girls perfect their craft before deciding which one will be awarded the role.
At the after party, Masumi asks Maya to dance, but she cant and he teaches her. It looks like someone trips Maya on purpose and he catches her. Maya gets a flash of Mr. Purple Roses from the summer house and she almost puts it together, but Masumi pushes her away, saying that it’s “too early for a love scene” and walks away. He must have realized what Maya was thinking, but his secret has been discovered anyway – by his secretary of all people! Masumi looks shocked when Saeko tells him she knows about the purple roses. I guess he wasn’t careful enough after all.
Since they won the awards, both Maya and Utako have been cast in a serial drama called “Heavenly Light”. Maya will be playing the part of Satoko, but the director is not happy with her. It must be hard to make the transition from stage to TV. Ms. Tsukikage visits Masumi and suddenly Maya is to move to the Daito Theater. Ms. Tsukikage must realize that Maya needs the polish that she can’t provide and that Daito will be the best environment for her. But Maya doesn’t want to go even when she’s told that Ms. Tsukikage arranged it. Saeko tells Maya that she’s a burden to Ms. Tsukikage and without Maya around, she will be able to teach again. Maya is devastated and feels betrayed, so she moves. I wonder why Ms. Tsukikage severed her ties this way without even speaking to Maya. It was very cruel of her, even if she’s doing all this for Maya’s own good. Saeko also becomes Maya’s temporary manager.
Maya is very depressed over Ms. Tsukikage cutting her out of her life, but once she sees the set for the drama, she starts to get a feel for Satoko and resolves to become the nobleman’s daughter. But the director still gives her a hard time and she comes to realize that the stage and TV are very different and now Maya isn’t sure she can do it.
Masumi wants her to sign something – perhaps a contract – but Maya refuses and demands to see Ms. Tsukikage. Masumi takes Maya to the school where Ms. Tsukikage is teaching and Ms. Tsukikage publicly rejects her. Maya is heartbroken and signs the paper, but asks to say goodbye to her friends. Masumi consents, but says she won’t be allowed to see them again. From now on, she will only be able to have friends useful to her career. I bet Maya is starting to regret playing Helen; it really is changing her entire life. During this meeting, she receives some purple roses. Since Masumi looks so surprised, I wonder if it was Saeko that sent them this time.
It was! Masumi later confronts Saeko and she tells him that she knows he loves Maya. He denies it as ridiculous, but from the tone of the conversation, I wonder if Saeko might have some feelings for him and is jealous. She leaves with a parting shot, telling Masumi that Maya is growing up and will soon be old enough for him. Masumi still denies it to himself and doesn’t think he can possibly be in love.
Yes, Wicca-
spoiler
this episode is an eye-opener for Maya. She is learning more about the business side of acting that I would wager she ever thought she need to know, or wants to know. It’s still pretty heady stuff for a 15 year old girl. She still has a long way to go to learn how to be insincerely sincere-you could hear the edge in her voice even though she was acting nice to Masumi. She also sees Masumi as trying to control her life, as in his chasing away the “producers” who were trying to take advantage of Maya’s naiveté.
Episode 25 –
spoiler
Maya is doing well in the drama and her only complaint is that they call “cut” when she really just starts to get into things. She meets Satomi, an actor that will be playing the part of Takeshi in the drama. There is a press conference at Daito and Maya finds out that Ayumi will also be in a TV drama called “Rainbow Memory” and Maya is worried again about being compared to Ayumi. She focuses her anger on Masumi, standing in back of the room, and causes him to walk out.
The fact that all of Japan will no be comparing her to Ayumi plays on Maya’s mind and starts to affect her acting. Satomi gives her some advice which helps. Maya is very lonely without her friends and it seems natural that she’d get a little crush on Satomi, but his female friends don’t appreciate it and threaten Maya.
Meanwhile, Ayumi’s co-star has found a flaw in her acting. Since Ayumi has never been in love, she can only pretend and it shows in her eyes. Ayumi is very upset to discover this and doesn’t know how to fix it. She meets Susumu Hazama, an actor with a bit part on her show. He looks at her with adoring eyes and she finally understands what her eyes are lacking.
Daito launches an intensive ad campaign to get Maya known by the public. It seems that Masumi’s people have even found her mother, but he’ll be keeping it a secret for later use. Miss Mizuki asks Masumi to make her Maya’s official manager. Masumi questions this and Miss Mizuki tells him that Maya is in love and I think that Masumi is a little hurt to hear it.
Maya can’t figure out what’s wrong lately. She only knows that she loses herself whenever Satomi is around and maybe Satomi likes her a little bit too. Her acting does improve and so does Ayumi’s. Ayumi is now dating Hazama and there is love in her eyes now when she acts.
Maya receives her schedule for the next year and Miss Mizuki tells her that she won’t have much time for school and warns her about Satomi. She tells her that in this world, enemies will surround her and she can never fall in love because once this TV drama airs, Maya will be a star. I think this may terrify Maya.
At one of her press conferences, Maya is shocked when Miss Mizuki makes an announcement that Maya’s mother is missing and begs the public to help find her. Maya gets another lesson in publicity when a fellow cast member’s scenes are cut to give Maya more screen time. Then Maya gets called “junk” by another famous actress. Their car gets trashed and Maya receives a death threat.
Maya only ever wanted to act and she never realized that being a star could be like this. I don’t think she’s cut out for this side of things and she’s really scared. Then it looks like Maya might have been poisoned while filming the drama. I don’t like when the narrator says that it’s a “mere prelude” either. Her bright future isn’t looking so bright right now.
Episode 26 -
spoiler
Argh! What a cliffhanger! I felt sorry for Masumi and Sakurakoji having to sit by and watch Maya get rescued by her new love interest. I don’t trust the new guy at all. The upstager seemed a little too happy about their relationship, so I wonder if they are in league with each other. It seems that the next season will start with Maya getting her heart broken.
I enjoyed this show much more than I thought I would and I really hope that TAN brings us the second season. I’m really going to miss that second ED. “It’s so make it, make it naked!”
I could not let Ep. 26 be my last Glass Mask episode so I watched the rest of the series this past weekend. I sincerely hope Sentai picks ut up and gives it the treatment it deserves. If i had the bucks, I’d pay out of my pocket to have the series done with a classic ADV-style dub! Guess I need to start playing the lottery…
We should all chip in and buy Mega-Millions or PowerBall tickets! Then we can have all the Sentai shows dubbed, except Indian Summer (cause that was terrible…lol)
I’m glad I’m not the only one who thought that!
I too, am currently finishing up the series on CR, I just couldn’t leave off at ep. 26.
Sadly, this series is kind of a catch 22 for me.
Without more sales, they’ll probably never release the second season set, but without a guarentee of finishing the DVD set, I just can’t bring myself to buy the first set, since there’s quite a few things on my to-buy list that I want more and are complete.
[quote=TheCoffeeGod]
I too, am currently finishing up the series on CR, I just couldn’t leave off at ep. 26.[/quote]
Where are you at in the “second season”, Coffee? I just could not seem to stop. I tried to limit myself to four episodes at a time but by Saturday all restraint was out the window! :ohmy:
[quote=Newshawk]
Where are you at in the “second season”, Coffee? I just could not seem to stop. I tried to limit myself to four episodes at a time but by Saturday all restraint was out the window! :ohmy:[/quote]
I finished up ep. 27 a couple hours ago, still kinda shaken by that one, so I’m taking a break.
I thought about marathoning it, but it’s going to take me a little while to finish it, since I have jury duty this week (or possible jury duty anyways, since I didn’t actually have to go in today).
I’m in the same boat as far as a purchase.
I still have some catching up to do on VoD this week, but will also be making my way over to CR. It’s just too engaging not to finish.
Good move, Coffee. It’s gonna get a lot rougher from there! :blink:
Episode 26 –
spoiler
Maya is faced with the stark realities of the acting world. When another “accident” befalls her, Satomi rescues her and I think she falls more in love with him. But Maya also shows how a real actress can work around “accidents” and that should show her enemies a thing or two. Some of her enemies even end up apologizing to her and can respect her for the actress she is.
It looks like Ayumi’s show is a success as well. Not surprisingly she was only using Hazama and I had to feel bad for him when she blew him off. Sakurakouji decides to say goodbye to Maya and concentrate on his own acting. It was very sad to see this and it looked like it really affected Maya too.
“Heavenly Light” did really well and Maya is a household name now. The papers still say her mother is missing and I have to feel for Maya especially since Masumi could so easily put Maya out of her misery and tell her where her mother is. But Maya is starring in a movie now and can only hope her mother is watching over her.
It looks like that older actress, Miss Yamazaki, still resents Maya and continues to bad mouth her. I like how Masumi buys her off by putting her in a commercial and lining her up for a movie deal as well. Masumi turns to speak to Maya at the wrap party, but Satomi is already by Maya’s side, publicly announcing his feelings for her. However, when Maya said she was in love with him too, I thought Masumi was going to lose it and Miss Mizuki is determined to break them up. I’m sure Satomi did this for publicity and doesn’t have any real feelings for Maya, although he tells her that he’s happy when he’s with her.
Now, Norie wants to be her personal assistant and Maya agrees. I don’t like or trust this girl and I notice that she’s always pushing Maya and Satomi together. I wonder what she’s after and that question is soon answered when Masumi finds out that her real name is Suzuko Tashiro and it looks like she’s after Maya’s role in “Heavenly Light”. Maya better open her eyes and watch out for herself!
I can’t leave it at this either and will be making my way over to CR for the rest at some point.
Yes, I wonder if there’s any other option besides CR? A dial-up won’t handle that.
Unless Sentai picks up the rest, CR is the only place availible legally.
I did a mini marathon and I’m really enjoying the second season so far. It’s been just as addictive as the first and I’m already half way through it. I couldn’t limit myself either!