Ryōko Mitake

Ryōko Mitake (美竹涼子, Mitake Ryōko) is a popular and multiple-award-winning Japanese AV idol. Throughout her career she alternated between the two AV studios, Alice Japan and Max-A. At the end of her first year in AV, Mitake was given two Best Actress awards in different AV ceremonies, and at the end of her second year she was given an award as second best actress. After two and a half years in the industry, Mitake retired to devote her time to her family.

Early life and AV debut

Ryōko Mitake was born in Tokyo on December 3, 1982.^[2] She was not a sexually precocious youngster, and did not engage in sex for the first time until she was 17, with a 21-year-old boyfriend.^[3][4] By the time of her debut in the AV industry, she had had sex with five men.^[3][4] Mitake wears a Japanese E-cup bra, but says that she is not happy with her breasts, which she believes have a "squashed" look.^[4]

Mitake was scouted to appear in AVs while in Ikebukuro by a bill-poster for the company. Mitake was immediately suspicious when the scout asked, "Would you like to do nude modeling?" She had watched a few AVs with lesbian or "molester" themes, so she decided to give it a try.^[3] Mitake's first AV contract was for twelve consecutive videos to be made alternately for the Alice Japan and the Max-A Samansa labels.^[4]

Mitake appeared in a photobook entitled Rose released in December 2001, and a second, Prick in May 2002.^[5] One of these was photographed in Saipan, and one in Shimoda.^[4] Mitake reported that she did not get a chance to sight-see around Saipan, which was too sunny for the actress. On the other hand, Shimoda was chilly, and she caught a cold there. She did get a chance to enjoy Shimoda's seafood, especially the lobster.^[4]

Filming for Mitake's first video began in October or November 2001.^[4] She was nervous during the filming of her first video, and finds it hard to watch.^[3] Due to her relative inexperience, an actor had to show Mitake how to masturbate when she was to perform this on screen.^[4] When interviewed early in her career, after having filmed nine videos, Mitake named blindfolding as one of the most unusual things she had done up to that point.^[4] Titled Fever or I'm in Heat (発熱してる, Hatsu nesshiteru), this first AV was released in January 2002 through Alice Japan,^[6] and Mitake's debut video immediately became a number one adult rental.^[3] Mitake's inaugural work was re-released on DVD in April 2002.^[7]

First year in AV

Mitake's first video for Max-A / Samansa was the February release, Pride (プライド).^[8] Her second work, this time for Alice Japan, was Ecstasy (エクスタシー) which came out in March 2002.^[9]

Mitake's first experience with sex in a car was also due to a video shoot.^[3] Forbidden Eros (禁断エロス, Kindan eros, April 2002), Mitake's second video for Max-A / Samansa, was a narrative-driven video where Mitake played the role of a runaway.^[10] By now, by rotating studios and continuously reuniting with staff and directors in her AV work, Mitake was becoming more comfortable with her career.^[3] Parfum (パルファム), a Max-A release from June 2002, was an incest-themed video whose story has Mitake's character being raped by her stepfather.^[11]

In a scenario likely inspired by Nobel Prize winner Yasunari Kawabata's novella, The House of the Sleeping Beauties, Sleeping Beauty (スリーピング ビューティー, Alice Japan, July 2002) has Mitake as the victim of molester while she sleeps.^[12]

Mitake's first appearance in Weekly Playboy was in the June 18, 2002 issue. After this four-page feature, she returned to the magazine in August, 2002.^[13] When interviewed in early 2002, Mitake pointed out that she had not done anything very extreme on camera yet. She had engaged in one filmed ménage à trois.^[4] In Sexy Nurse (メスナース, Alice Japan, September 2002), Mitake plays the role of a nurse who is the object of desire of two patients with leg fetishes and an olfactophilic doctor.^[14]

The director of one of Mitake's early videos wanted the actress to be in a physically exhausted state for one sex scene, and he had her run before filming to get this effect. Since Mitake is in good physical condition, and enjoys swimming, she does not tire easily. The running did not give a satisfactorily exhausted look, so Mitake did 160 squats after that, but still did not appear to be very tired.^[4] Zone (Max-A, October 2002) had Mitake in the physically demanding role of a female wrestler. The plot of the video was more extreme than Mitake's previous outings, featuring squats, as well as vaginal training under the tutelage of a lecherous coach.^[15]

In an October 2002 interview, Mitake stated that she had filmed overseas five times—Three in Saipan, once in Bali and once in Los Angeles. She hoped to go to Hokkaido once.^[3] She expressed a desire to do more work in the cosplay genre. She had done nurse and anime cosplay, but hoped to appear as a cheerleader, a bunny or a kitten.^[3] In Beautiful Sex Slave (調教美畜, Chōkyōbichikuken, November 2002), Mitake portrayed a frigid college girl whose boyfriend hires two masked middle-aged men to rape her, thereby introducing her into orgasms.^[16] Dirty Mouth aka Erotic Mouth aka Erotic Holes (淫口, Inguchi) took as its plot the examination of each of the actress' physical orifices, including her ears and bellybutton.^[17]

For her first year in the AV industry, Mitake was awarded twice. She was given the award for Star AV Actress at the 2002 3rd Takeshi Kitano Awards.^[18] At the 2002 X City Grand Prix Awards, Mitake was given the Best Actress Award, scoring an upset over popular newcomer Sora Aoi,^[5] and beating Nao Oikawa, the year's winner for Best New Actress, by a wide margin.^[19][20]

Second year in AV

Mitake was featured in Weekly Playboy five times in the year 2003, beginning with a five-page feature in January.^[21] In February 2003, she starred in the fourth entry in Max-A's Taboo series. The video had Mitake experimenting with urination and six-person group sex.^[22] In Witch Hunt 2 aka Witch's Home 2 (魔女の棲み家Ⅱ, April 2003), Mitake plays a mountain spirit who has sex with travelers.^[23] In Lady R aka Histoire D'R (Ｒ嬢の物語, R-jō no monogatari, June 2003)-- another literary AV, this one based on Story of O-- Mitake portrays a sex slave^[24] while Oral Infection (口内感染, Kōnaikansen, Max-A, October 2003) has oral sex scenes with swallowing.^[25] Beautiful Beast (美女が野獣, Bijo ga yajū) put Mitake in the role of a secretary to a company president. Sexual encounters with company employees and the president ensue.^[26]

Ryoko Mitake in Mah-jong Wife (美竹涼子の人妻麻雀, Mitake Ryōko no hitozuma maajan, December 2003) was a computer game which pitted the player against Mitake in a game of mahjong. Mitake, in costumes such as a flight attendant, a housewife, a professor, and a widow, bets articles of clothing. The player travels around Japan during the course of the game with the ultimate prize being access to Mitake's body.^[27] Welcome to Max Café! (ようこそMax Cafeへ！, Yōkoso Max Cafe-e!, December 2003) was another incest-themed video in which Mitake plays a girl in a sexual relationship with her brother. A cosplay theme is also included in the video, with Mitake attired in kindergarten clothing, a bunny costume, and bloomers.^[28] Uniform Doll (制服人形, Seifuku ningyō, March 2004) was a purer cosplay video with Mitake in the costumes of a high school girl, an elevator girl, a waitress, and in Chinese clothing. This video also gave her a chance to fulfill her desire to appear in cat costume.^[3][29]

To an interviewer, Mitake once described the type of man she liked as: "Someone older than me...maybe up to around 45. He'd have to be tall and slightly chubby. Oh, and wears glasses!... older men will treat me better and I bet they're better at sex!"^[4] She became known in the industry as the "Cool Beauty",^[30][31] and throughout 2003 was repeatedly referred to as the top AV idol in Japan.^[27][32] For her second year as an AV actress, Mitake was again awarded by the industry. She won second place in the Best Actress category at the 2003 X City Grand Prix Awards.^[33]

Retirement and legacy

In one of her last video appearances, Silent Letter (Max-A, June 2004), Mitake returned to the blindfolding of her early career. Now an experienced, top AV actress, her performance was noted by one press release to be "lewder than usual".^[34] In August 2004 Mitake announced that she was pregnant and had married, and would be leaving the AV industry.^[35] The weekly Shūkan Gendai picked Mitake's retirement as one of the top 10 stories of the week, editorializing that the actress' return to AV was hoped for.^[35]

Post-retirement, Mitake has been the subject of numerous retrospective collections, as well as a fixture in compilations by Max-A and Alice Japan.^[2] Some of Mitake's collections focus on highlights from her work in cosplay, fellatio or other genres or techniques. Others, such as Max Pink File, Ryoko Mitake (ＭＡＸピンクファイル 美竹涼子, February 2007), are collections of Mitake's work reformatted in accordance with the new, more lenient mosaic standard.^[36]

Partial filmography

2002

2003

2004 and later

Photobooks

Magazine appearances

• Dera Beppin^[41]
  • February 2002 (6 p.)
  • May 2002 (6 p.)
  • July 2002 (5 p.)
  • November 2002 (5 p.)
• Top Ten Mate (トップテンメイト)^[42]
  • February 2005 (vol. 167)
  • July 2005 (vol. 172)
• Weekly Playboy^[13][21][43]
  • 2002-06-18 (4 p.)
  • 2002-08-20/27 (1 p.)
  • 2003-01-01/07 (5 p.)
  • 2003-03-25 (1 p.)
  • 2003-06-03 (1 p.)
  • 2003-08-19/26 (Fukurotoji)
  • 2003-09-16 (3 p.)
  • 2004-10-05 (5 p.)

Bibliography

• "Dokusen! Mitake Ryoko (Exclusive Report!)". XCity. Archived from the original on 2008-05-31. Retrieved 2010-07-10. 
• "Ryoko Mitake Interview". www.jsexnetwork.com. Retrieved 2009-02-19. 
• "Ryoko Mitake profile" (in Japanese). www.alicejapan.co.jp. Archived from the original on 2007-03-13. Retrieved 2009-02-19. 
• "Welcome to Ryōko Mitake's Room (interview) - 美竹涼子の部屋へようこそ - Mitake Ryōko no heya e yōkoso" (in Japanese). Best video. Retrieved 2009-02-19. 

External links

• Official website
• Ryōko Mitake's blog (in Japanese)

References