I'll be interested in hearing what you've seen, Evil_Rip!I'm coming at this topic from a somewhat different direction, insofar as I've seen next to nothing in the
way of American porn (I only found this forum because I was curious about where the virtual sex game
concept has evolved since Virtual Valerie). I watched a dozen or two titles in the mid-'90s, but about the
only memory I retain of them is Jeanna Fine's vulnerable performance in HOTHOUSE ROSE.
On the other hand, when I had my first taste of Japanese AV about five years ago, it clicked with me
immediately. Being of a somewhat romantic bent, I find the industry's habit of ratcheting up the cuteness
factor and approaching its actresses almost as if they were girlfriends to be quite refreshing! There are a
lot of cues in there which I don't much associate with American porn...tons of foreplay, tender embraces,
many productions that spend time simply talking to the woman rather than following some elaborately silly
fantasy script.
I have seen a few American-released imports, and can't find much to say about them; they simply aren't
anywhere near in the same class as the idol productions. Yes, if you want to see the real thing, you have
to deal with the mosaic...but I've managed to convince myself that many of the aspects of Japanese porn
which I've come to appreciate the most exist BECAUSE of the mosaic. Without the benefit of being able to
show genitals slapping together for minutes at a stretch, the AV producers have had to fill the time in
another fashion, which I believe has widened the focus to the full reactions of the actresses--facial
expressions, body language and the like, thereby tending to provide a more complete experience.
Anyway, for anyone who wants to explore it further, over the past year or so a number of trading websites
have sprung up which offer VCD copies of the real thing for as low as $10 a title. Try a Google search on
"yuki tazaki vcd" to find them. They all offer varying levels of screenshots and content information on their
titles, so cross-reference between them to find the ones you'll like.
My own recommendation for a favorite series which is completely Japanese in conception is "Contrary
Soap Heaven". It's a remarkably simple idea: The actress visits a "soapland" at which, in a gender reversal
of the existing Japanese sex industry, she's waited on hand and foot by a male attendant who sees to her
every need (a couple times over). There's no acting involved--the actress simply plays herself--and more
often than not, she has no idea what's going to happen. But the AUDIENCE knows what's going to happen
(after seeing two or three of these, you can tell they've got the formula down pat), so from there it
becomes a matter of seeing how the actress responds to it. And the response is incredible! Generally it
begins with the actress looking a touch nervous and stiff (the series features only the top AV idols, yet as I say, it's all improvised), but as the program proceeds--through a quick
bout of cunnilingus, a massage, a bath, a rubdown, another soak, and ultimately another massage which
turns into a threesome with the attendant and his female sensei--you can see her loosening up, until by the
final bang all posing and pretense has been completely stripped away. (The fact that hot springs and
bathhouses, sometimes coed, are an interwoven part of Japanese culture no doubt has much to do with
the natural quality of the series...and how many porn productions let you watch the actress brush her
teeth?!) The final third of each program is spent in a more improvisational fashion, simply goofing around
with the actress...whether having her cook up an omlette with a vibrator up her snatch, or being served
an actor who's wheeled in smothered in whipped cream and sliced fruit (that actress shrieked and nearly jumped out the window), or dressing up her attendant in
teddy lingerie and applying his mascara.
The only "Contrary Soap Heaven" DVD out there is a compilation disc, but it's excellent; if you ask for it at J-List, I have no doubt Peter would get it back in stock.
On edit: Screenshots from a typical "Contrary Soap Heaven" session--including toothbrush!
Edited by - kimochi on Aug 26 2001
[Link]
