One of her best dramas in a leading role. Never lost interest throughout the story. So happy to have been able to catch this drama. Lots of interesting info for the viewer to absorb. Strongly recommend it to all.
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Things I liked most:
* The female characters! Although they were still in the minority, they were fantastic! The two main female characters were an equal part of the cast -- in most cases the female forensic doctor was the one who found the deciding clue, even. Both were shown as professionals, with interesting personal lives, own ambitions and well-rounded personalities.
* The team! We get to know all five (hm, six) people of the UDI well, and how they learn and grow together. They start as distant, even uncomfortable colleagues -- and in the end, they work as a well-integrated team. Some of them get some character development, some don't really need it.
* The supporting cast! Even they got a personality, some are more mysterious, some antagonistic, some familial. All of them clearly have their own motivations and goals.
* The acting! The directing! The soundtrack!
* No Romance! Well, over the course of one or two episodes, the male part-timer wonders if the female lead might be interested in him, and it seems he wouldn't have rejected any advances -- but! That fizzles out and is never even thought about again.
(Although, as I read through the other reviews, I see Orangevine's who states that "There is also a love triangle (with the caveat that one must be well-versed in Japanese romance tropes to spot it)". I'm obviously not well-versed, so I don't see it.)
* Minimal gore! We see blood, contusions, discoloration of the skin, some wounds, the occasional part of an organ preserved in formalin. Faces of the deceased are never disfigured, there are a few scenes where we see how the scalpel starts to cut, but never any opened bodies or any inner body parts while the autopsy is in progress.
All in all, it's remarkably respectful of the dead (compared to US productions) and there's never any kind of voyeurism.
* A fascinating insight into Japanese culture! Concerning death, and how the deceased and those who have contact with them are regarded and what it means for the politics around them.
* Last but not least: The cases! Not every case is a crime, but they are all interesting. The first one is noticably from before CoViD. The seventh had me in tears, that one hit close to home for me. The overarching plot was also intense, and was the main focus of the last three or so episodes, and tied all the personalities and their development together.
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Cool Forensics Crime Show with Interesting Cases
The show is relatively PG for most of the season with the more gruesome imagery (largely blood splashes) not appearing until the last couple of episodes. The show was episodic until the last two episodes as each told the story of a different victim. Within each investigation was greater discourse into a societal concern, such as bullying, ethics in journalism, vigilante justice, family relationships, and abuse of employees in the workplace.As with most Japanese detective shows, there is a significant combination of psychological and scientific elements to each investigation. The team frequently is forced to better understand both the victim and the assailant to identify the potential cause of death; then they turn to science to prove it. Or perhaps they identify the cause of death and use this information to provide the families with better insight into why their loved one passed on.
In addition to the main UDI team, there is a wide array of assisting characters including the two lead police detectives who often work with UDI; the funeral director who frequently directs cases their way and assists as needed; and various medical professionals who provide their expertise or access to various public records. The acting amongst the side characters was pretty decent, and the cast as a whole was largely relatable. You come to really, REALLY loathe the main villains, but that is a sign of good storytelling.
I will say that Misumi occasionally got on my nerves with her ‘holier-than-thou’ approach, especially towards Nakado. She puts her nose into things and follows people around when it really goes beyond her professional role which is never attractive to me. She makes demands as the story progresses when she is not his superior and is not in a position to take that stance. While her rigid code of ethics is worth praising, she is also relatively unapologetic when that code of ethics harms her friends. Sometimes taking the ethical stance should also be accompanied with recognition and empathy for how one’s actions impact others.
One interesting ethical commentary the viewers took away from the show was the theory that truth is more important than justice for forensic professionals. Their job was not to be responsible for the outcome of their findings but rather to present the scientific facts for the lawyers to handle. This reminds me of the recent real world case where famous forensic scientist Henry Lee was found to have fabricated evidence in multiple cases. Unfortunately, this now calls into question his testimony at more than 8,000 cases over the years.
The show is short but interesting; the technical effects were decent for its production level. It had some comedy mixed within but was largely a serious drama, little of the over-embellishments or over-acting that sometimes appears in Japanese shows. Certainly was a fun watch for the family of an evening and the crimes themselves were relatively well written. Some loose ends (especially at the end — I won’t go into those because I don’t want to spoil it), but by and large the causes of death and motives were unusual and it offered something new. I think I still like Galileo or Mr. Brain better in terms of ‘scientific-themed’ mysteries . . . but this was still a cool drama to watch.
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WHERE’S SEASON 2
I loved how they dived into detailed pathologies, and I was so entertained because this is what we’re currently studying at uni. Before seeing this series, I was considering becoming a pathologist. So cool!! Just sad to know there won’t be a season 2 of this show. I guess I’ll watch the Korean remake: Partners for Justice. aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaWas this review helpful to you?
ISHIHARA SATOMI AS HEALTHCARE WORKERS (FOR THE 2937239 TIME)
the first akiko nogi's work i watched and still my favorite drama of hers. there is a quality in her work that made me wants to stay tune, i don't know, it's probably because i feel like her vision and my vision as a viewer is aligned and we both want the same thing for society. she slipped social commentary here and there but unfortunately, she shied away a little bit on hard topic, which i tolerate, because japan has a very preventive culture towards several topics.Ishihara Satomi is, at this point, a skilled health worker at this point. she has became doctors, forensic doctor, pharmacist, it's crazy how she played the entire hospital at this point. not a shade tho, i just found this funny. and she is always charming in every role she played, so it's just okay. her chemistry with the male chracters are all so funny too! also 'Lemon' as unnatural ost is and will always be my favorite song ever! kenshi yonezu rocks!
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This review may contain spoilers
Bienvenue parmi l'équipe de l'UDI
Pourquoi avoir commencé ce drama ? Je suis actuellement dans une mouvance d'histoires horrifiques ou policières, ce drama suivant des médecins légistes, il m'a fortement attiré (et "Kubota Masataka" m'a convaincue de me lancer).L'histoire est assez classique dans le genre, des personnages torturés aux passés plus atroce les uns que les autres... Un personnage des plus humains malgré son vécu en la personne de Misumi Misato (Ishihara Satomi) & à son inverse un personnage des plus froid (mais qui cache bien son jeu) en la personne de Nakado Kei (Iura Arata).
Nous suivons avec plaisir les aventures de cette petite équipe de l'UDI et les différents cas qui leurs sont présentés.
Le cas que je retiendrai sera probablement le n°7 : Un lycéen qui se suicide dans le but de faire accusé ses harceleurs... à quel point doit-on être désespérer pour en arriver à un acte aussi extrême ?! Il s'agit d'un cas tellement actuel... Le harcèlement scolaire a toujours été présent mais il est vrai qu'on en parle de plus en plus avec la mouvance d'internet et encore plus avec les réseaux sociaux ! Peu d'étudiants ont la chance de réchapper à cette pratique des plus dégradantes... Bien que celle-ci soit plus psychologique que physique (contrairement au drama !).
Quant à la ligne directrice du drama, elle est bien travaillée et remplie de mystères, jusqu'au 2 derniers épisodes, on se demande ce qui est arrivé à Kojiya Yukiko.
En conclusion, c'est un drama que j'ai apprécié mais comme beaucoup du genre, il y a peu de chance que je le regarde à nouveau.
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Um J-drama Diferente
Um drama bem diferente, sobre um tema não muito abordado. Foi o primeiro J-drama que assisti sobre o trabalho de legistas. Achei bem interessante e fiquei bastante surpresa em saber como tão poucos casos de morte não naturais são investigados no Japão.Os casos são bem instigantes e nos deixa curiosos para saber mais, além de exames laboratoriais eles também investigam o local uma espécie de CSI (guardada as devidas proporções ok?).
A Ishihara Satomi é uma ótima atriz, ela não decepcionou em sua atuação neste drama. No geral a equipe toda desempenhou muito bem seus papéis sem atuações exageradas e caricatas.
Um ótimo drama do começo ao fim sem perder o foco e sem enrolação. Super indicado!
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Meglio di molti simili di produzione occidentale.
Diciamoci la verità: ne abbiamo visti tanti, di questo genere. A partire dalle prime serie di CSI siamo stati abituati fin troppo bene, e quel format è diventato un po' la pietra di paragone per tutte le serie successive. Beh, non possiamo dire di essere qui alla stessa altezza, d'altronde gli imitatori raramente sono meglio degli originali, ma questo prodotto si difende benissimo, tanto che sono rimasta molto delusa nel non trovare un sequel.A partire dalla protagonista, una donna forte, una sopravvissuta, che ha mantenuto etica e voglia di vivere, passando per il collega segnato dalla perdita traumatica della fidanzata 8 anni prima, per giungere all'ultimo arrivato, il ragazzino con troppi segreti, i personaggi sono tutti accattivanti, umani, veri. I cattivi hanno una motivazione per certi versi plausibile, anche se non tutti. Ecco, ho tolto mezzo punto perché uno dei boss finali non mi ha convinto troppo ma, per il resto, sono 10 episodi che volano tutti in un fiato e, benché si arrivi alla soluzione del mistero sottostante, si rimane col distinto desiderio di averne ancora.
Le indagini sono condotte in maniera tale da non perdere suspense, ci sono diversi momenti molto tesi ma, per contro, anche situazioni divertenti che stemperano la tensione, in un mix ben concepito e realizzato.
Vengono affrontati temi anche di interesse sociale, come il bullismo, e la storia fila liscia fino alla fine senza noia e senza dare l'idea di essere affrettata: sono riusciti a fornire le necessarie informazioni col tempismo necessario, e non è da tutti.
Ambientazioni e musiche sono più che sufficienti, considerato il genere di prodotto, molto piacevoli le OST.
Gli attori hanno dato tutti prova di ottima professionalità, sotto una direzione artistica che non li ha costretti ad esagerare la recitazione, che è rimasta molto naturale.
In sunto, drama promosso su tutta la linea.
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Satomi Anatomy
Difficile pour moi d'être honnête sur la critique de Unnatural, tant le casting de rêve que nous offre la production peut supprimer toute objectivité. À commencer par le premier rôle Ishihara Satomi, son joli minois et sa moue bien naturelle pour le coup, peu faire fondre tout homme, même confortablement installé en chambre froide et cela à chacune de ses apparitions dans les dramas. Accompagnée de Kubota Masataka ultra-populaire auprès des demoiselles et bien plus encore auprès de moi-même, depuis que j'ai eu la chance de le rencontrer à la JapEx (qui me manque tant), et qui joue toujours aussi impeccablement le jeune bleu un peu benêt. Si on rajoute en collègue exécrable en la personne de Iura Arata (qui d'autre ?) ou un chef de bureau largué mais sympa comme Matsushige Yutaka (qui d'autre aussi ?), nous avons des rôles secondaires qui donnent à eux seules envie de se plonger dans la série. Et quel bonheur de revoir l'ancien duo pére/fils de Death Note (2015) réuni, même si les interactions sont moins importantes, évidement.Au départ, j'étais un peu déçu de retrouver une fois de plus ses acteurs dans un milieu médical, même s'il faut dire qu'ils portent bien la blouse. Mais j'ai vite compris que cette fois-ci il ne valait mieux pas être un de leur patient et pourtant dieu sait que c'est le rêve de beaucoup d'entre nous. On suit, en effet, les aventures d'un laboratoire privé de médecine légiste. J'étais passé à côté de la série à sa sortie venant juste de visionner Sign (Jap) et ne voulant pas me replonger dans cet univers, disons ... plutôt frisquet. Mais loin du sérieux du susnommé, Unnaturel aborde dès le début les autopsies de manière assez, voir trop, légère. Ça rigole, ça plaisante et ça joue la compétition au-dessus des cadavres, nous faisant ainsi partager le même malaise que Kubata, tout juste débarqué dans le métier.
Manque de respect ou manière de se protéger contre les 7K (à découvrir dans la série, mais évidement il y a kusai), on le découvre bien assez vite, d'autant plus que nos héros ont tous un lourd secret à cacher. Ce qui fait évidemment le sel de ce genre de série. Chaque épisode tourne autour d'un mystérieux meurtre, d'une maladie ou d'un accident qui comme toute enquête bien écrite vous tiennent en alêne jusqu'à leurs résolutions. Mais c'est la vie de nos acteurs préférés qui se dévoile, au fur et à mesure des 10 épisodes qui vous fera les enchainer sans vous arrêter. Même si à la fin du second on commence à imaginer facilement la tournure un peu trop classique des événements futurs. Mais avec autant de persos secondaires, comme le jeune croque-mort ou les collègues du labo qui nous donnent envie de connaitre ce qu'ils cachent également, il y a de quoi rester accrocher. Quand on repense en plus au premier épisode qui nous glace le sang à telle point il raisonne de manière affolante avec les événements de 2020, je me dis qu'il faudrait les prescrire à nos ministres de la Santé.
Production impeccable, suspense bien mené, secrets bien cachés et vie privée bien merdique, Inutile d'aller plus loin dans la dissection de la série, car tous les ingrédients sont réunis pour en faire un excellent drama d'enquête. Juste avant de refermer le corps pour le rendre à la famille, un dernier détaille me titille. Avec un tel Ending, comment se fit-il que la série n'est pas encore eu plus de succès. Jusqu'à en faire un film, ou des séquelles. On parle quand même de Kenshi Yonezu. Mais peut-être que justement, le succès phénoménal (et justifié) de Lemon a complètement embaumer la série. Une disparition, complètement unnatural, due à un Serial Tuber. Affaire classée, donc.
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