In order to write this review, I feel like I have to be clear about the major biases I had while watching. The first bias is that I decided to watch this after just finishing the KDrama remake "The Smile Has Left Your Eyes", which I LOVED, so it's impossible for me not to compare the two. The second bias is that I'm about 16 years late to the party, so this drama is extremely dated at this point. The third strong bias I have is that although I've seen many Japanese films I haven't watched many JDramas at all, and this drama's style is very different from the KDramas I've become so addicted to. "One Million Stars Falling from the Sky" has a gritty look that I appreciated, but a style of storytelling that was more fascinating than engaging. Although there are many scenes, images, and plot points that are taken directly from this drama in the remake, this original version feels almost completely different. It was very interesting watching all the ways these two dramas were different, and yet identical at some points, but with all my biases I can't say that I like this drama as much as the remake or that it lives up to the hype over time.

The one thing this drama definitely has going for it is that it is a memorable story full of shocking elements that aren't afraid to get very dark and twisted. The problem I had is that the melodrama is super sensationalized and completely unrealistic, so I had no emotional connection to any of it. It also ambitiously packs a lot of plot into 11 episodes, so the story felt rushed to me. I guess that's good if you want a quick binge-able story, but I felt like I was impatiently waiting for the next plot twist instead of caring about what was happening, or about any of the characters. So even though this drama felt rushed there were also a lot of moments where the story seemed to drag and felt slow paced. I felt myself getting easily distracted during some episodes too... especially when Yuko was rambling on about love and birds.

Usually, interesting characters are enough for me to forgive a rushed story, but I thought the characters were even more disappointing than the story. The 2 male lead are the only actors who I thought were good. Kimura Takuya is great as Ryo, who I would call an apathetic gigolo. I expected his character to be much more intense, but I found him to be mostly cool and indifferent. I also find it hilarious that both he and Seo In Geuk are Scorpio men... of course, they'd have to be to play a role this mysteriously charming. Akashiya Sanma is also good as Dojima Kanzo, who's character I didn't really like or sympathize much with (he was just too smarmy for my taste), but he played him really well. I like his take on the classic sarcastic and taunting detective role, and he and Takuya played well off of each other.

Unfortunately, I thought all of the female characters were pretty awful. Every significant female role seemed irrationally emotional, super immature, extremely needy, jealous and possessive, and one insult away from a situation worthy of the TV show "Snapped". Not even the older officer came across as mature or rational. This is disappointing since women are such a big part of this story, and I would have liked it much more if they were written better, especially by a female writer (c'mon Kitagawa Eriko, are all women this man crazy in your world?!!). Many of the characters, in general, were not very likable, or relatable, which is interesting in some ways but made it harder for me to empathize with any of them. Fukatsu Eri as Yuko was the biggest disappointment because of how annoying I found her to be, and how little sense her actions made to me. I also didn't feel much chemistry between Yuko & Ryo, contrary to what other reviewers have said, so the ending had much less of an impact on me.

Would I watch this again? Probably not, but it's so short, and the story is so out there, that it may be worth a second viewing at some point. It was mostly my curiosity after watching the remake that made me want to watch this version in the first place. Now that I know the differences and similarities I'm not sure if I would be interested enough to want to watch all 11 episodes again. I also didn't feel hooked on the story the way I expected to be, so watching Ryo's random hookups, the even more random violence, and the detective chain smoking through every scene probably wouldn't be much of an incentive.

Although the music in this drama is pretty sparse, I did like the use of the song "Smile", especially at the very end. However, The ending did feel much longer than it needed to be, and wanting an already short drama to end sooner is not a good thing.

Overall, I know that as much as I loved the remake, this version is the foundation for a lot of what made that drama great, yet I still wasn't as impressed as I wanted to be. Maybe I would have felt differently about it if I saw this version first, but I have no doubt that I still would have preferred the remake. So if you're like me, and just finished wiping your tears over watching Moo Young & Jin Kang, and ended up here for the original story of Ryo & Yuko, my advice is to adjust your expectations for a retro melodrama that is heavy on the shock value vs a thriller with a more romantic focus. I didn't walk away feeling any deep emotions or having a life-altering perspective on life and love, but I'm glad I got to see for myself what inspired this classic drama to be chosen for a remake in the first place.