stencilled

This is my tribute to the KAT-TUN Summer of Love Post. My topic of focus: The 'K' - Kamenashi Kazuya (aka Kame, Kame-chan and Turtle Boy). I've been working on it for two weeks now and it turned out kinda long because character-analysis got in the way, but who cares--where Kame's concerned, more is always less!

If you don't like Kame, then ~~I don't understand you~~ please skip this post.

If you're just curious about Kame or as to why his fans are so crazy ~~in general~~ about him, then be warned to expect flaily, biased fangirling. This is how we Kame stans roll.

If you do like Kame, then you pretty much know how it goes and may proceed without caution.

Part One

20. His TMI moments

I love Kame's too-much-information moments mostly because he's just so unaware that he's giving too much info in the first place. Like when he admitted that he tends to strip off his clothes when drunk or the fact that he likes to sleep naked. And not just indoors in his own bed, but in hotel rooms and outdoor baths. He also doesn't mind signing autographs in the nude. It's moments like these that simultaneously take me by surprise and make me giggle at the O.O expressions of the people around him. The latter reaction should be obvious but former one isn't at seems. I'm not referring to my surprise at the things Kame confesses to ~~(well, at least not entirely)~~, but rather my surprise at him confessing them so casually in the first place. Not many celebrities would admit such things, especially without being probed, since it would affect their image--and that's what shocks me. Even with the many years of knowledge and personal experience in this profession and all his people skills, Kame can be surprisingly naive and trusting. It's fascinating to behold, really.

21. His member-ai

As far as I can tell, Kame gets along quite well with the rest of KT. As Maru once said, they all rely on him to a certain degree and he's usually in charge of gathering everyone's opinions. But aside from their work related roles, Kame's love for KT and its members is really heartwarming. Like how he supported Maru in his first bungee jump attempt with words like "of course you can do it, you're a part of KT," as if, in Kame's mind, KT was a resevoir of strength that could be used to overcome his fear. And when Maru finally jumped in the concert and began to cry, it was Kame who hugged him in support. And then, in their pre-debut days, Kame would always look up to Ueda as the leader even though Ueda would shy away from the title. But group dynamics change and it's not all about fuzzy, warm feelings in KT. It's mostly about 'sadistic love', which is perfect for Kame since he's a huge S. And Maru and Junno being the huge Ms that they are, they make the perfect targets for Kame's snarky teasing. Not that Kame isn't returned the favour, because even though he's an S, he's still the youngest and the others let him know it ~~except for Koki who adores him~~. I love watching Kame's easy interactions within the group because it's nice to know that the members aren't just simply colleagues to Kame, but his friends too--and vice versa.

22. His temper

So Kame's not all about the cute, chubby cheek smiles and smirks. He has a temper and he's not afraid to show it, especially when he loses ~~or when his mom washes his vintage jeans~~. I also find it endearing that Kame has very obvious signals to indicate when he's going to snap; according to KT, Kame starts taking deep breaths and when he's really approaching the danger zone, he'll cross his legs and start shaking them. And it's not only obvious for the members; I think that fans can also tell when Kame's getting angry--the eyes say it all, really. Frankly though, I love Kame's glare. His eyes are so piercing already, but when he puts anger behind them... Let's just say that I pity the person who strikes his nerves. That person would be wise to break eye contact and look away as quickly as possible, like veteran!Junno does here:

23. His work ethic

The fact that Kame's a hard worker shouldn't be a surprise to anyone since it pretty much shows in everything he does. KT has said it, his co-actors and co-workers have said and his fans have seen it. Kame believes in hard work over luck and its shows. Weighing an unhealthy 40kg during NwP, Kame continued to work his hardest to give his best acting and promote KT at the same time. If he didn't get enough sleep, he'd find a place to nap on set. And even if his work schedule was already too demanding, he'd accept all offers anyway in order to further his career. And now, even though Kame has achieved his goal to "become famous," he never slacks off. But what else can you expect from someone who thinks that work is a good way to reduce stress? And then there's the fact that although Kame used to be scared of heights, being the daredevil that he is, he challenged his fear and now flies in the lead role of Dream Boys. I really admire Kame's mentality. As Junno commented in a older interview, "Kame will do everything with his whole heart. No matter if it's work or private." He's always so driven in anything he does, as if he's in a constant competition with himself and we all know how competitive he can be (his personal motto being: I won't lose!). In the past this determination of his to always improve would have side effects on his health, but recently I think Kame has found the perfect balance for himself—he recognizes his limitations. He still gives his all into his work (when it concerns works, I always have this kind of thought: “Since I am doing this, I will have to give my all it till the end”), but he also takes time for himself, lazing around watching animes and eating sherbet, which is so much love and a huge relief as a Kame fan, ~~not that Kame would understand~~.

24. His fashion sense

Kame's a diva when it comes to clothing. He loves vintage jeans and looks so good in them that he's been awarded with the title of Best Jeanist for four years running. He's also Korea's number two fashionista. He's strutted down a catwalk modeling an outfit for Hermes and his fashion accessories are often copied by his juniors. I'm not really drawn to men who are into fashion but with Kame it's different because although Kame's fashion sense appears to be natural, the truth is that he worked really hard to create it. Before he entered JE, he was a baseball fanatic. His life revolved around the sport and nothing more. It's hard to imagine that a scrawny kid who didn't even have an interest in fashion, who auditioned for JE in his dad's outdated track-suit, could become such an influential fashion icon as Kame is now. But if that's what Kame envisioned, it's not all that surprising. Being the person that he is, once Kame sets a goal for himself, he'll achieve it--and I personally think that Kame's acquired interest in fashion reflects this drive to adopt and succeed. Why so awesome, Kame? And now a video to show that Kame looks amazing in any colour ~~as well as partially naked~~:

25. His respect and consideration for others

As the saying goes, I've saved the best for last. This is essentially why I love Kame so much--why Kame is my favourite. I can go on about how he shows his respect in several different incidences, but I think Kame's own words should suffice:

"I think that being a Johnny is hitting back all the balls that come at you. There's no need to be in Johnny's if you say "I only want to do this". I don't want to say "I can't do this", and if I try, something will come into view.
I'm doing various things, having pride in every one of my jobs and facing it properly in my own style, but it doesn't mean I'll ease up on them. No matter what the job is, I want to tackle it with seriousness. Because if you do it halfheartedly, you'd be insulting the people who focus and excel in that one field."

and:

“Comparatively, maybe rather than 'I want to do this', I think more like 'They would be happy if I did this'. For example, even if it's something that makes me go 'Eh?', I might be the type that can endure it if doing so would make the place more fun or make the work go more smoothly so it would be helpful to everyone."

With these two answers alone, Kame has earned my permanent respect and the respect of those around him. If I had read these words prior to knowing Kame--that is, if I didn't know what his voice sounded like, what he looked like or how cute he could be, if all I knew about him were these words, I'd still become his fan in a heartbeat. But since this is a fairly recent interview, I've already had the pleasure of learning Kame's many lovable traits and I'm proud to say that all that I've seen of him is perfectly congruent with his words. It's not that Kame intentionally tries to act professional, or hog the spotlight or raise his rank amongst fans. He's just being his usual, casually considerate self and this inherent trait of his is what makes him appear so professional--not the other way around. His sincerety when interacting with others is why Kame's as well known as he is today. He really, truly is a wonderful person ~~or so I believe~~, not just on the surface, but deep down inside as well.

When it comes to Kame, beauty isn't just skin deep and that's the biggest reason to love him.

Done.

~~~~

Done--not End, because the reasons to love Kame are endless (his tendency to lick his lips when nervous, his insecurity over his tiny nipps, his strut, his arms etc.), but I think that's it's wiser if I stop now while I can still maintain my rep of being a sane fan ~~they exist?~~. But while I may have exhausted my ration of borderline-sane-Kame-flailing, you're free to deplete your own supply in your comments. Tell me you why you love Kame!!!Remember: more is always less.

Note: when I was typing this, I was thinking of the videos I've watched on Youtube, but I hadn't realized that so many of them were removed. So instead I linked to like a gazillion great gifs, 99% of which were made by vandi714 who nice enough to let me use them. :)