Chiizu's Reviews: Please don't take my word for it

This has been rumored to being asked by US producers to be remade for their television and IMO, I think it will work. It is kinda like Heroes(but then again, I haven't seen Heroes -- yes, yes, I haven't. Didn't join that bandwagon, so I can't entirely say to which extent are the shows alike and not) on the fact that the characters here have special abilities which they coin as "SPEC".

I think this is one of Erika Toda's best performances because you have honestly never seen her like this and it is fascinating.

But I must give due credit to Shirota Yuu here because he blew me away here (and I just finished watching Samurai High School so...).

I'd like to believe this is one of the daring plots Japan ever tried to pull off and did great. The twists were brilliant and the acting is superb. Every aspect supported one another well and thus creating an action-thriller that spun movies and drama specials.

You won't regret sitting through this.

It is actually quite tricky to appreciate Japanese comedy dramas as it is full of gags only Japanese people are likely to understand (i.e Japanese puns). Kankuro's works though is incredibly well written that the comedy comes in naturally. The Japanese inside jokes are just a bonus for the trained/acquainted viewer.

We also have Nagase Tomoya who is just a master at this genre. It almost seems ridiculous how brilliant he can actually pull it off every single time! Not to mention that wonderful supporting cast he has beside him. 

Ikuta Toma is a given, but let us not put aside Nishida Toshiyuki who plays Unubore's adorable father and the undeniable presence of Mika Nakashima.

With the addition of Seno into the Buchou-Ahomiya tandem, I do not blame you if you begin to ship Seno and Hotaru somewhere in the middle (and may actually look forward to them ending up together). In retrospect, that kind of emotion is very hard to capture especially when the pair everyone should be rooting for to marry is as adorkable as Buchou and Hotaru.

The second season elaborates further on the relationship of Buchou and Hotaru. Now that they are sort of (and I say sort of because you get that feeling like... they are 'steady' but like 'not official'. Haha!) together, we have Hotaru trying to become the woman Buchou will marry while Buchou continues to learn more of Hotaru and continues to understand why she is such a charming person.

Seno is this plot device that helps Buchou understand that he is living with a wonderful person who sincerely cares for people. She isn't attached to anything material and she isn't superficial. She just genuinely enjoys life and its simplicity. She just loves her porch and her beer and her dried fish.

Though, I will say, Seno was such a formidable opponent.

Please, do watch this.

To be honest, I watched this drama in anticipation of the second season because Osamu Mukai was in it. He was like the hottest actor of Japan at the time and everyone seems to affirms that. Anyway...

This drama, in return, introduced me to the beauty and the talent that is Ayase Haruka. Say what you will about her, but she is truly special (and again, everyone seems to affirm that). The premise is about an OL (office lady) who works diligently during the day then transforms into a sweatpants-dried-fish-eating-beer-drinking woman upon arriving home. The term adoringly used is 'himono onna'.

The question is: Will she ever find love at this state?

We have an interesting setup as we find out that the house she lives in was once owned by her Boss. Here, we are introduced to the dashing Fujiki Naohito's character, Buchou (Boss in Japanese and as Hotaru affectionately nicknames him).

What I love about this drama is its lightheartedness. Ayase does a superb job playing Hotaru. She doesn't shove into your face her klutziness. Hotaru genuinely sees nothing wrong with how she lives her life. She isn't selfish. She just simply wants to reward herself for the work she constantly does in the day.

The chemistry between Hotaru and Buchou is undeniably the best thing about this (and again, everyone will affirm that given that it had a second season and then a movie finale). Their quirky banters at the porch is the trademark scenes of each episode and you see a natural flow of their development as an individual character and as a pair.

The love aspect of this is just purely innocent and genuine. As Buchou helps Hotaru grow into a blooming woman in love, he realizes how the himono onna Hotaru will never be shed off and thus makes Hotaru the Hotaru he soon falls in love with.

Trust me, I believe it is Episode 8 (?) where you begin to realize just how adorable this couple is.

Do watch it.

I am in the process of watching Pride though. And to watch more of his filmography because he is something, huh? Like, KimuTaku has still charm when acting that you can't quite put into words. It is very different and very captivating, which I cannot blame anyone who swoons over him. 

I mean, how can you not?

Anyway, Mr. Brain is a very fast-paced drama. Noting that it is only 8 episodes, its finale felt more abrupt than "right", you know? I should give this another go.

This drama had a lot of star power as if it wasn't enough to have KimuTaku and Ayase Haruka as its leads. Its star power was heavily relied on its guest stars though. The most notable one was Sato Takeru's episode because he certainly blew my mind and he was only playing the piano. You cannot deny the talent this kid has, like seriously, that episode was awesome.

The characters that Tsukumo deals with here are mostly as interesting and as dynamic as he is. The main antagonist here, by the way, looks so evil and diabolical. It is so wonderful to watch him just glare at the camera. Just seeing him look over the chaos is chills down the spine.

First episode begins from where we were left off. This one of the few detective dramas that actually already set up the finale from the first episode. That is surely diligent writing.

For those who adored Erika Toda in the first season might be disappointed with this since she is only shown for 5 (?) episodes while for those who adored Tamayama Tetsuji's character Katagiri, you are surely going to adore him more in this season.

I personally love this character. He was the dark, mysterious, you-know-heavy-stuff-be-carrying character in the first, but then it had been resolved and now we get to see how he truly adrokable he actually is.

But still kicks ass, okay? Much like Osawa Eriko.

And Hanagata.

And Iwai.

And Yamamura.

Clearly, I have grown attached to the characters. That is how good this drama is.

Although they had stronger punches in this season, its finale was a bit off. Maybe that is just me (or my copy was rudely edited or something), but there was something oddly rushed about it.

But I will overlook that and feel sad that is done.

I think its fans are holding on for hope of a third season (and I am now one of those fans). Unlike the first season which actually gave a definite sign of return, this one laid more along the lines of wishful. It has hints of a third since there are some resolutions to be affirmed, but you can only guess what will the police ask for Osawa Eriko to return.

This is hands down one of the best detective dramas. It has an amazing cast and an incredible set of characters. The crimes are well-paced and the build-up to the finale is well-put-together.

What I like a lot about this drama is how diverse the team is. For one, they have someone in their early to late fifties in the team and two, they actually have a homosexual and it isn't stereotyped!

And yes, the fact of having a woman as a lead is also a point. Correct me if I am wrong, but rarely does a Japanese detective drama have a woman as its lead. If there is, it is either she is a rookie or she is portrayed as demure or she has a senior who is portrayed more competent than her or she is technically the female lead detective but has a male counterpart. But again, correct me if I am wrong.

Osawa Eriko is so badass that no other man should ever think of messing with her, but mind you, the writers did not forget that she is still a woman. The boyfriend aside, she is written as a tough, independent lady who still has a love for shoes and bags. There is good balance.

I will also note the subtle brilliance of Erika Toda's acting and the undeniable chemistry to the cast especially Amami-san and Takenouchi-san.

A must-see detective drama.

He completely blew me away with this role. It could have been noticeably annoying or incredibly forced, but Nakai really nailed it. When I watched the SMAP Bistro for this drama, it felt very weird to see Nakai as himself.When I get that feeling, he got the role right.

Anyway.

ATARU is part of my Top 10 favorite JDramas. I have a soft spot for characters like Chokozai and I love how this story presents the character as such a delicate being without rubbing it in your face that he is "special".

This drama also had a good mix of action and comedy, delivered wonderfully by Kuriyama and Kitamura.

This is kinda like Japan's answer to Sherlock.

If you have been watching a lot of detective dramas, upon the first episode, you will get the sense that this one has a distinct flavor. Abe Hiroshi's Kaga alone should make you feel that you got a good one playing on your screen.

Part of it is likely in the writing. Among all the detective drama, there is always one big case in leads up to and usually it is a two-part episode arc. It will always be hinted throughout the season and often it is a plot device to reveal an aspect of a character (usually the lead or the head detective). In Zettai Reido, this case was presented in the middle of the season which makes it interesting and anti-climactic at the same time.

It is interesting because the writing took a different turn with this plot device, but on the second hand, what else is there to talk about toward the finale? All loose ends had practically been tied together and thus, the finale was a bit bland. It surprised me that this expanded to a special and onto a second season, but maybe... that was the intention? The special maybe was intentional, but again, I have yet to fully review it.

... not a bad thing, but that is how I saw this drama.

I am also being honest when I say that I didn't expect this drama to be so deliciously good. The chemistry between Oguri and Satomi is almost equivalent to MatsuJun and Mao and since this got a SP and a second season, Japan agrees with me.

I remember reading the lineup for the next drama season and I was left wondering why such a title. As you may guess, Toru is a rich man who owns a multi-million (?) company named Next Innovation. Makoto is a graduating student from a prestigious university and is struggling to find work. The two of them meet in a conference for aspiring applicants for Next Innovation.

It seems that the title connotes of how money doesn't make you fulfilled, but it does give you an advantage in society which the "poor" constantly struggles upon. Toru learns this from Makoto and along with that, they begin to open themselves up to one another and start to fall in love.

As romance dramas tend to get stressful as I put my investment on them, this drama is the least stressful because the love story had a natural course. By natural, I mean you understood why the characters would feel that way toward one another and there was no one really going against their love. I was really giddy with this pair. Whenever Makoto smiles, you can't help but be giddy for her.

Plus Oguri is such a charmer!

It is interesting (and yet it is a given) how the Japanese men is very careful with their masculinity. I mean, it is important that a Japanese man carries this tough and firm persona. If you bring yourself to liking anything remotely cute or colorful, society begins to doubt you.

Asuka is the prime boy of their school being the leader of the kendo club. He is seen as the role model for the young men in school, but he holds a secret that even his mother may not know off.

He likes feminine things. He sews, he cooks; he eats sweets and he keeps his own stuffed toy. If this is exposed, how will people look at him now?

I adore Okada Masaki. He is well on his way to being one of the prime actors Japan has. He also has undeniable chemistry with Kaho.

I like how Japan just adores of the idea of a girl in an all-boys school. Yes, this is a school and not a factory. Yoshino will never let you forget.

The first episode is always the uneasiest to go through since our main character is one of the three girls in a dominantly male school. You have to witness the ordeal of the girl trying to fit in with the guys, but for the first time, they actually know she is a she and not a pretty boy who is actually a pretty girl.

After that, we meet the class through the protagonist and know who are the quiet and sweet boys, the awkward and good boys and the douche bags of the class. I always do enjoy that and then you start to become invested in a character or the class in a whole.

Then, since it is fully known that she is a girl, it is a given that there will be a love interest or a love triangle. It is more or less always the latter.

Yoshino had it difficult. She was already in a predominant male school and yet her typical school involves machines and tools. Very hands-on machinery. Imagine dealing with that for four years and constantly trying to prove to your classmates that you can just be as good as them. 

You can't blame her for hating her current scenario.

Add on to the fact that her high school is a low ranking one and in a society wherein rank gains respect, people look down on her being an Asuko student. 

But as you may guess, as she gets know everyone in her class, she begins to find a silver lining to her situation.

Now, the reason why I call this a pseudo-prequel to Kyou Koi wo Hajimemasu is because of the Aruto x Nao arc. Toward the end, the love triangle of Tamaki - Nao - Aruto gets put aside and gets a rushed and unsatisfactory ending.

The movie kinda gives fans of would have been.

And by the way, I was rooting for Tamaki!

This is one of the most underrated JDramas and one of its hidden gems. It is so unique that only the Japanese mind can concoct such a story and such characters.

The first episode may start out heavy, almost to a point where this drama is actually not funny and light and it is actually dark and twisted (in the end though, it is truly all of the above). We have Niko, a middle-school student, who somehow becomes involve with syndicates and happens to drag Robo along.

Robo, by the way, she meets through a love hotline or something like that and together, they meet an interesting set of individuals from different walks of life and learn new things about the world and people.

All of that while somehow ending up with the syndicates.

MatsuKen is such a precious character here. This just proves or solidifies his versatility as an actor because he was really an anime character brought to life. 

The ending leaves you with so many questions. You actually question the drama itself; wondering what exactly is the drama trying to tell you.

I don't think that's a bad thing though. In fact, I think we as the viewers are being complimented because they know we are capable of thinking and concluding the drama on our own.

Obviously, God loves you if that happens...

... and you might be accused of kidnapping a national idol or something but yeah.

It was so refreshing to watch Matsumoto Jun in this drama. Sure, he is still full of teenage angst, but he was a pet to Koyuki. He was Koyuki's dog! And even pretended to be one, it was so refreshing.

The premise seems silly, I know. This boy is taken in by an older women and keeps him as his pet -- it is an interesting one though.

Sumire actually lets this kid into her house, nurses it and dubs it her pet like it is typical for anyone in Japan to bring home an injured kid and call its dog. I mean, doesn't that make you want to watch and see how the story is going to be? 

I can't really say if their relationship became unhealthy at a point, but they did form some kind of dependence on each other. I think Sumire and Momo were in a slump and they are supporting each other on their recovery.

And they also wanted something interesting happening in their lives, which probably why they agreed on this arrangement.

Not that it would have been a bad thing, but that was the initial thought.

Anyway, so this My Girl is about Masamune who finds out that he has a daughter with his former girlfriend played by Yuuka. Sadly, the mother passed away and now, Masamune is tasked to raise their daughter. 

Family dramas are always heart-warming. Personally, I like stories that tackle the various relationships that root in families. You get to see yourself in their shoes and in some way, you get see your family in their shoes. Through certain characters, you suddenly get to see how your family members may be dealing with the situation in the household. There is a life lesson that always hits home.

With Masamune and Koharu's story, you see this young adult face the toughest challenge life can bring upon a person and that is undeniably becoming a parent. He begins to understand what a family and what a father is.