Noriko Sakai makes first television appearance since drugs scandal

No clue who that is... Not important then.

pizzatime - no clue who many are huh? Important enough for you to leave a comment obviously. If you read the article you will know, sheesh.

Please do not troll.

Rinsed clean and as good as new. I give her two years before we hear nasty nasty news again.

Sorry you messed up, you are not welcome back.

Do the band appear in the commercial at all, or are they just relying on Sakai's pulling power to get people to buy the CD?

Come on gogogo, we need to have forgiveness. She made a mistake, and I am sorry to say she was crucified for it. She suffered enough and she (as well as the rest of us) have to move on and look to the future. I think its good for her that she had begin to bounce back after doing what she did. This has happened with celebrities before and they have made come backs. I wish her the best of luck.

Good luck to her. If male "talents" can be charged with far more serious anti-social crimes eg. acts of violence against women - and then be allowed back in the public eye (that dreadful Higashikokoburu "comedian" to name one)- then there is no reason Ms. Sakai can't.

She was crucified for something that I am pretty sure some JT posters do a few weekends a month...

I say welcome back and good luck.

Come on gogogo, we need to have forgiveness. She made a mistake, and I am sorry to say she was crucified for it.

She made it worse for herself by running away and turning it into an even bigger scandal.

Well people say: There is no bad publicity!!!

That is correct for I had never heard of her before the 2009. Now she has nationally recognizable face she will probably do just fine!

Well, for 42, she still looks great.

If you compare what she had done with what some Hollywood stars like Paris Hilton, Lohan, Charlie Sheen etc., Noriko is still an angel. she' has done her time, paid her dues for her stupid mistakes. Let her move on with her life. ...I hope she succeeds in her comeback.

So long as you're a celebrity, it's back to show biz while others who do the same crime are still rotting away or doing some low-paying blue-collar job because it's all they can get. Imagine a teacher who was caught doing the same thing she did, and convicted; would he or she get a suspended sentence? Would he or she be welcomed back to the school in their own capacity?

Imagine a teacher who was caught doing the same thing she did, and convicted; would he or she get a suspended sentence? Would he or she be welcomed back to the school in their own capacity?

No. But I'd say that's a bad thing. You do the crime, you do the time and that should be it. Obviously, sex offenders need to be monitored after release, but others should be allowed back into society.

I wouldn't object to either of my kids being taught be a teacher solely on the grounds that he or she had a conviction for taking drugs.

Why is everyone so hard on her? She did some drugs and paid the price. Take a look at Robert Downey Jr., he was way more messed up but made it a stunning comeback. Obviously she is not as talented, but I did enjoy her in some of those Japanese dramas in the 90's. She didn't hurt anyone, but herself so just forgive and forget.

She was crucified for something that I am pretty sure some JT posters do a few weekends a month...

We have posters here that do the vapid TV tarento in real life ? Oh, I feel betrayed.

Why is everyone so hard on her?

Not because she had her drug issues, but because at this point, she is cashing on it. We have this article because her agency has bombed all the news agencies : "Hey look, former convicted makes a come back...". And very soon she'll be on the talk show circuit with hosts whispering " Noriko that had... some bad times a dark past, but we won't discuss it here, just watch the rehabilitated tarento...". Seriously, a comeback that would be if she made a new album or played some role in a dorama. We could discuss if she sung or played well. But for that, the buzz can only be about her biography as there is nothing else.

Didn't she tearfully tell us all a while back that she was gonna go to school, study old age care/ nursing and become a carer for the elderly? Surely she didn,t just say that to get sympathy did she?

Lol!

how can u possibly show up in public? don't deserve seriously.

Come on gogogo, we need to have forgiveness.

Sorry she is a public figure, her only mistake was getting caught and is only sorry she was caught.

What a hypocritical society this is. As if alcohol were not a drug! (by the way I don't condone drug use, any)

'Noriko Sakai makes first television appearance since drugs scandal'.

Sadly, still leaves her clothes on.

She made it worse for herself by running away and turning it into an even bigger scandal.

Well, in her defense, I would run away too considering how the tsunami of paparazzi coverage basically suffocated her and were pushing for her to jump off a building. What the media did is something I cannot condone. It was terrible how she was treated. I understand what she did was a BIG no no in Japan, but her sanity was put through a grinder. I am happy for her that she made it through the other side and is still alive.

Drugs are　悪い　mkay

Good for you Sakai San, hang in there and do your best. We are rooting for you.

everyone should have the right to redemption. we are only human, after all..

For the record I used to like Sakai Noriko a lot. I still wish her the best, but some of the spin agents put on things (like seriously going back to school) are laughable, so I stand by my comment.

Her crime was minor. Just à bit of shame for breaking the law is really about as much as she deserves at this point. We all screw up from time to time. She has to get on with her life sometime. Now is as good a time as any.

YAYYY I'm so glad. I love Nori-P! Poor girl was seriously hounded to a ridiculous extent