Serialization] Surprise comedians’ power map: ⁉︎ Kuro-chan is jealous of “junior comedians” and admires “that legend”.

He was marooned on a deserted island, his home was monitored 24 hours a day with cameras, he was honey-trapped, and he was even subjected to the “Kuro-chan” series, in which he tells the story behind the scenes. Kuro-chan of Yasuda-Daikircus, “Japan’s best surprise comedian” who has survived many harsh surprises, talks about what goes on behind the scenes in the series “Kuro-chan is Tough, Too! Kuro-chan also has it hard! In this series, Kuro-chan tells the inside story of the industry, which is filled with sadness and laughter as only a surprise comedian can do.

The “new surprise star” who is jealous of their success

Hi, it’s Kishin again… This is already the third installment of this series. This time, I’m going to focus on “surprise comedians” who have become the mainstay of my work. Here goes….

The comedy world is a world where new comedians come out quickly and it is very difficult to survive. There are a few comedians in the world that I am currently paying attention to. One of them is Ogata (Takahiro, 48) of Panther.

I have not said much about it in the media, but I like to watch people being caught by surprise. For example, “Wednesday’s Downtown” (TBS) had Ogata-kun do a routine called “Fall into a pit, and if the sun goes down without any news coming out, you will lose your mind. It was interesting. Of course, I was even more glad that it wasn’t me (laughs).

But I was very, very nervous when I saw it. As soon as the …… program aired, Ogata’s favorability rating went up. I was so jealous!　He escaped from the pit by himself, and there were comments on SNS saying, “I wanted to cheer him up because he was trying so hard to be tough. When I was caught by surprise, people would say “disgusting” or “scum” or some such nonsense on ……. In short, I am most jealous of “being liked more than being popular. In this world, likability is more important than anything else, and I’m not likable. ……

Recently, Minamikawa (42) and Takano-kun (Masanari, 36) from “Kishitakano” are popular as reaction comedians. Takano-kun is cute to watch and has a human touch. He is also a very nice guy, just as he is on TV when he actually works with us. The best thing about him is that he has an “old man’s melancholy” about him. He’s definitely not popular, so I can root for him wholeheartedly.

However, when such young men emerge, I am often asked, “Aren’t you impatient with the rise of the younger generation? I am often asked. But to be honest, I am not in a hurry at all. It is not because I am in a good mood or confident. It is simply because the kind of work I do is a little different. Even younger people tell me, “I can’t be Kuro, and I don’t want to be Kuro. They are probably making fun of me, but I don’t feel that kind of impatience because we are in different genres after all. In short, I am going my own way!

In 1919, I appeared for the first time on “Tetsuro Degawa’s Charge, Won’t You Let Me Charge? (TV Tokyo) in 1919, Mr. Degawa (Tetsuro, 61) saw how I was getting beaten up on SNS and said, “Wow, it’s like watching the old me. It won’t take you long to become like me. In the past, Mr. Degawa was synonymous with creepy and men who didn’t want to be held, but now he is a nationally well-liked comedian. I was really happy to hear someone like that say, “You are just like the old me. In reality, however, I am not like him at all (laughs).

Thoughts on Reiwa’s Surprise

This is a bit of a different topic, but I really respect legendary reaction comedians such as Mr. Degawa and the Ostrich Club. Because Mr. Degawa and the Ostrich Club are big names, their staffs don’t try to make reckless surprises. So, basically, any trick that is too risky or extreme physical tension comes to us (laughs). (Laughs.) For a person like me, there are even projects that are on the level of, “If it’s bad, it could be life-threatening. (laughs). But when the legends see it and laugh at it, I think it raises the level of the surprise a little. I think we are able to do our best because of these legends.

When I think about it now, the scene in the Heisei era was really extreme. For example, I was once locked in a shed with an ostrich for a night to test whether female ostriches are aroused by adult males. I heard that the kicking power of an ostrich is one ton. It was too scary to spend a whole day with such a ferocious beast!　Another time, during a live broadcast, I was hit on the head by a saber cat owned by Bob Sapp and bled. At the time, they wouldn’t take me to the hospital, so I just wrapped a towel around my head and went back to work (laughs). (Laughs.) There is no way that would have happened now.

After Reiwa came into power, safety management definitely became stricter. I am often told to wear a protector, and the staff gives me detailed instructions during dangerous scenes. But to be honest, sometimes I don’t like the fact that my protector stands out, and sometimes the people watching me get cold feet. I am the type of person who thinks of injuries as “medals. Scratches and bruises from a surprise are all proof that I did my best. Of course, I don’t want to do anything reckless, but if there is a moment when people think, “Only Kuro could have done that,” I want to accept it all.

So thank you again for reading this issue. I’ll be back next time with a story that only I can tell, so please look forward to it!