"This Works" Actor Called the Japanese Version of 'Master of Living' [Nihonjin Side]

Morikawa Aoi Appeared on Challenge Variety Show
Discovered Talent in 'Cup Stacking' Learned on the Show... Competing for Japan National Team

Do you remember the 'Masters of Life' segment that used to air on KBS's Gag Concert? Everyone was amazed and fascinated by Master Kim Byung-man, who could flawlessly complete any impromptu mission.

Recently, on social networking services (SNS), there have been many videos of an actor who is called the Japanese version of Master Kim Byung-man. He is a celebrity who also became a hot topic in Japan. His name is Morikawa Aoi.

Morikawa Aoi is posing after winning a medal at the sports stacking competition. (Photo by Morikawa Aoi Instagram)

Morikawa was born in 1995 in Aichi Prefecture. He debuted as a model through a fashion magazine audition and later also worked as an actor. In Japan, he is widely known in other fields as well. This is thanks to a variety show he appeared on until March this year. On Nippon Television, he had a regular segment titled "Really? What if you actually try it?" In this show, he demonstrates the ability to flawlessly complete missions given by masters who have accumulated experience in various tasks such as plate spinning, yoyo, darts, and billiards. Each episode features challenges like pulling a tablecloth out from under a table stacked with many glass wine glasses without knocking any over, or spinning yoyos simultaneously in both the right and left hands.

In fact, these are skills that masters have accumulated through endless practice, so they are difficult for ordinary people to succeed at easily. However, Morikawa quickly learns and completes the missions. Sometimes, he even performs the skills more stably than the masters and has even broken Japanese Guinness records.

Originally, such challenge variety shows are supposed to capture the celebrities struggling, but since that doesn’t happen with him, there’s a joke that this is a problem. Because of this, he earned the nickname "Furious Speed Morikawa," meaning he ignores the pace that variety shows are supposed to maintain.

Mr. Morikawa competing in the sports stacking competition. (Photo by Aoi Morikawa on Instagram)

One area where he showed remarkable skill is in the sport stacking known as "cup stacking." He completely discovered a talent for it. This game involves quickly stacking cups into a pyramid and then returning them to their original state within seconds. After setting a new record in Japan, he joined the Japanese national team. The Asian championship was held in Korea, and in his first appearance, Morikawa won three medals: a bronze in the individual event, a silver in the pair event, and a gold in the team time relay event. This reminds one of comedian Kim Min-kyung, who started shooting on a variety show and became a national athlete.

In fact, preparing for the competition was quite a burden. While variety shows end once you learn and produce results on the spot, participating as a national representative comes with a strong sense of responsibility not to let the team down. Moreover, Morikawa had never participated in any competition before. It is said that he practiced holding cups even on the filming set every day. He himself said, "Until I appeared on the program, I didn’t know I had this talent. I found a part of myself I didn’t know."

Aoi Morikawa showcasing plate spinning. (Photo by Aoi Morikawa Instagram)

Thanks to his achievements in the competition, he has done many media interviews. In an interview with Yomiuri, when asked if he had a secret to learning everything quickly, he replied, "I don’t really know. I just think I have excellent concentration and pride." When the reporter asked, "Do you have exceptional dynamic vision or spatial perception?" he bluntly said, "It’s just a matter of mental strength. I don’t want to give up until I can do it, but it’s ultimately about perseverance." Instead, he is good at sensing "this is it." He said he often feels "something is being adjusted" through several attempts.

In June, he also published an essay titled "There Is No Giving Up in Life," which attracted attention. He stated, "I keep challenging things that seem just out of reach and overcome them one by one," adding, "I think humans grow little by little like that."

There is a saying that things others do easily are actually the result of the greatest effort. It seems that behind the thought "Wow, how can he do that?" there was strong determination and endurance.