Binbo Danshi (2008)

Loved: The opening credits (the cast in adjoining toilet cubicles)! Oguri Shun is amazing as usual - totally in character. For someone so unique-looking he always manages to create characters that are so different from each other in both appearance & personality. I also love Miura Haruma in this role (it's the one that made me a big fan) - he is so shy and tentative; so completely unlike his previous character in Gokusen 3 (yes, I really watched it).



Didn't Love: It's possible that Shun's hair in Binbo Danshi compares unfavourably with Matsumoto Jun's in Kimi wa Petto: an impressive feat indeed! The money lender's goons can get a bit tiring after a while (why do evil sidekicks never have even one brain between them?!)



Binbo Danshi features a rag-tag group of people with a common enemy (money) which brings them all together despite their differences in background and character. The result is an appealing mix of humour, friendship and feel-good moments. A wacky and lighthearted look at the struggles of ordinary people - definitely worth watching.



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Overall [9] - I started this series specifically because of Oguri Shun but I ended up really enjoying the whole thing. This series has a light feel to it, despite the subject matter, so it won't depress you if you are looking for something happy. I'd recommend this series to anyone looking for something just a little more "grown-up" than your average high school drama.

Story [10] - While a bit ridiculous at times, the story in this series was one of hard times, failures, and successes. It's not exactly a deep story, yet it still manages to cover some important lessons while progressing at a nice pace. The common theme in this story is one I feel many people can relate to in our times.

Acting/Cast [9] - To start, Shun was absolutely adorable in this series! I enjoyed seeing him in a role very different from what I've seen of him thus far. His ever positive attitude kept this series alive. There were a few characters I didn't care for personally yet they all fit together well and balanced one another.

Music [8] - I can't comment much on the music, as nothing really stood out in a way to make me remember it specifically. Though I can say what I do remember of it, the music was well placed and fitting of the scenes.

Rewatch Value [9] - I'll definitely be watching this series again. I loved the never-depressing feel of this drama. Shun was able to make every part of this drama enjoyable.

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This drama's main theme is about a poor guy, who even though he has no money to pay for his bills, he is borrowing freely and lending money to people with a smile on his face. No matter what he doesn't let money get in between his friends and he always keeps an optimistic attitude. On the other hand it is also bout the 'evil' money lender who keeps bringing obstacles to the poor boy. Generally this drama's story was rather different, though the feel was similar to "yamada taro's" .

The acting of shun was as always outstanding, followed by haruma's. Riisa and yamada were not that great. The evil guy did a very good job though at being evil. Generally th acting in this was good, with shun's being the best.

i watched this some time ago, i have no memory of the music so i suppose, i'll leave it at 6.

It was a good drama with an inspiring message about money... I will say no more. I think that watchign this, is not a waste of time.

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This story is best described as sweet, silly, with a little wisdom and a lot of warmth thrown in. I enjoyed the actors (especially since the last Oguri Shun drama I watched was Juui Doolittle, and his role is basically the exact opposite in this one, which gave me a laugh) and found it a good watch for a bad day.

There are definite quirks in this show, however, that I am guessing a lot of people won't like. The characters are somewhat spastic, especially the villains and his goons and the main character (by so, so much). If you like really straight acting this will probably annoy you, but if you aren't bothered by their absurdity you will probably find it incredibly adorable. About the only other con I can think of is that the music is sort of non-memorable, which is kinda disappointing since I love good soundtracks, but its not the worst out there either. I would definitely recommend it.

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THIS DRAMA IS WHERE MY STANDARDS LAY

I feel like this drama is very specific regarding the people who like it. You either hate it or you love it. Luckily I'm part of the latter, and God I do think we should have more dramas or movies like these!

The plot it's very simple, Shun Oguri plays Kazumi Koyama, a young man who's to nice to say no to people, specially friends. The story revolved around friendship and being nice, at times lots of people question how he can still be nice while he's struggling, I personally would too; I love it because this is surely how the world should work, being nice should be the default, and expect the best from people too.

Sadly we live in a reality very different from this movie, which makes the drama way more conforting than it already was. For me specifically, it's an special drama because, if I'm not wrong, this is probably where Shun Oguri met Yu Yamada (one of the most beautiful women in the world in my opinion), who is now his wife and I personally love this couple so much, all of that besides having Haruma Miura paying a cute, shy student it's all I need in a drama, I genuinely think it's perfect for me and the comedy is so well written I can't help but like it.

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