While NEWS' latest releases dominated this week's charts, there were plenty of other familiar artists appearing in the top ten. For example, the #2-ranked single "Aoku Yasashiku" by Kobukuro was the duo's 6th consecutive Top 10 release (7th total), while Kumi Koda's collaboration with TVXQ, "LAST ANGEL," was her 26th consecutive appearance (28th total).

Two spots behind Koda was Ai Otsuka at #5, whose "Pocket" became her 16th consecutive Top 10 showing. Other artists extending similar streaks were Asian Kung-fu Generation at #6 (8th consecutive), Nightmare at #8 (4th consecutive), Koharu Kusumi at #9 (3rd consecutive), and w-inds. at #10 (22nd consecutive).

Aside from NEWS, four new Japanese releases made the top ten in the albums chart: Noriyuki Makihara (#2), HAWAIIAN6 (#5), SoulJa (#9), and NITRO MICROPHONE UNDERGROUND (#10).

Comedian Yakkun Sakurazuka has been given his first starring role in a movie. Although he is best known for his cross-dressing Sukeban Kyoko character, he will play a regular male role for the film, though no details about the character were revealed.

So far, the movie is untitled, but is described as a "very brutal action horror" flick. It is the second directorial effort by action star Tak Sakaguchi and is being produced by Ryuhei Kitamura, who is well-known as an action film director. Kitamura himself selected Sakurazuka for the role.

Filming is set to begin this month, with a theatrical release sometime in 2008. Kitamura is planning for the film to open in the U.S. as well.

47-year-old actress Naomi Kawashima is said to be on the path to marriage. She is expected to announce her engagement by the end of the year.

Her partner, identified only as A-san, is five years younger than her. The pair met two years ago through a television show, though the man is not a celebrity. Because they share several common interests, such as cooking and wine, they quickly became good friends.

The turning point in their relationship came this past June, when a man with a knife broke into Kawashima's office demanding to see her. Troubled at the time, Kawashima found comfort most from A-san, strengthening their relationship. Last month, the two took a trip to France, where A-san reportedly proposed to her.

According to sources, the engagement announcement may occur as early as this month. The dates for their marriage and wedding will depend on their work schedules, but will likely be in the near future.

American R&B artist Ne-Yo has collaborated with Hikaru Utada to release a digitally exclusive single, titled "Do You feat. Utada."

Ne-Yo has been working with top female artists in different countries around the world, such as Mary J. Blige, Natasha Bedingfield, and Sarah Connor.

For this collaboration, the Japanese pop star is going by the name "Utada," the same name she used for her English-language releases. The digital single will be available in Japan on November 21.

Fuji TV's flagship "Getsu 9" drama time slot will feature SMAP member Shingo Katori in a starring role next season. The story, penned by popular screenwriter Shinji Nojima, is described as a "human love story." Katori's co-star will be actress Yuko Takeuchi.

"Bara no nai Hanaya" tells the story of Eiji Shiomi (Katori), the manager of a small flower shop. His wife has passed away, leaving him to raise their daughter Shizuku on his own. The drama depicts their various interactions with the people around them.

Takeuchi plays the female lead as the blind beauty Mio. Other cast members include Yumiko Shaku as Shizuku's homeroom teacher, Shota Matsuda as a young man freeloading off of Shiomi, Susumu Terajima as a cafe owner who falls for Shaku's character, Tomokazu Miura as the director of a large hospital, and Junko Ikeuchi.

The series begins in January, airing on Mondays at 9:00pm.

November 22 has been labeled as a day for celebrating couples in Japan, as the date can be read as "ii fuufu" (literally, "good couple"). One organization runs an annual Partner of the Year campaign, honoring one particular celebrity couple for their happy marriage. This year's winners were talento Hiromi and his wife, singer Iyo Matsumoto, who have been married since 1993.

The campaign also included a public vote for the "ideal couple," in which Hiromi and Matsumoto placed 11th. At the top of the list were George Takahashi and Mika Mifune, receiving more than twice as many votes as any other couple.

"L change the WorLd," the movie spinoff of the "Death Note" franchise, is being released in novel form on December 25. The news was announced through the movie's website on Friday.

The movie, which opens on February 9, covers the final 23 days of L (played by Kenichi Matsuyama), which is not part of the original manga or films. To create the story, producers turned to a well-known author, who at the time had not yet read the original work.

The writer is not attaching his or her name to the novel; instead, it will be published under the name of "M." The name is said to be symbolic, referring to "where those who have used the Death Note go," which is "nothingness" ("mu").

The novel version reportedly includes many scenes that do not appear in the film.