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Entertaining. If you let it to be.
It feels like you're watching an anime. And not a drama based on one.Everything is exaggerated. Which, even not being an anime kinda guy, I really liked. That trick they use to slightly change the eyes of the actresses, change their facial expressions completely. It is a very cool effect that gives a very stylish, distinctive look to the more tense scenes. It gives a more dark tone to the performances. Just like an anime.
It is nice to have those over the top performances. Since there isn't a single character with a trace of personality. So, the actors don't have much to work with.
A hat tip to Morikawa Aoi, who plays Saotome. She really embraced the "animesque" style of acting. With a very well balanced performance within what the series proposes. She found the perfect timing between being over the top and knowing when to "slow-down" a bit. It was really fun to watch her going full-throttle on her scenes.
The games were what attracted me to this series. But they're nowhere as clever as the ones you would find in Liar Game, for example. The characters don't use their wits to win the games. It is all luck, cheating and Deus-ex-Machina.
But the games, most of them at least, are played and finished within the episode. And the episodes themselves are short. About 22 minutes each. Which makes for a pleasant experience. Since there isn't much substance to keep the episodes going for more than that.
Also, the number of episodes is short. Add the short running time of each episode. And you can watch it in one sitting if you want. And that's a big plus for me. Someone who hates over stretched, draggy and filler full dramas.
Things happen fast. The pacing of the drama, alongside the exaggeration and absurdity of it all, is one of the things that kept me watching it to the end. Start to finish in one afternoon.
About the plot. There isn't one. At least not on this first season. We don't know anything about the main character. We don't know about her motivations. We don't know where those kids get all that money to play with. We don't know who the bad guys are and what they want. We don't know anything really. Except that they like to play games.
The first seven episodes are the most formulaic and repetitive. But, also, the most fun. After the series drops the formula, it loses a lot of momentum.
I still recommend it. And I would add. If you can wait for the second season to watch the whole thing at once. Maybe, it will be an even better experience. Since this first season cuts right in the middle of (what seems to be) the conclusion of this arc of the story.
There's some negatives in it. But, you'll have fun if you just let go of the details and just go along with it.
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The anime was great and so was this.
OverallI recommend if you liked the anime and want to see the same story in a different visual medium.
Story
Starting off with the fact that I have watched the anime but not read the manga. This live-action adaptation is the most accurate storyline I have seen when comparing it to its anime counterpart. Very little minor details are changed but the rest is exactly the same. If you liked the anime storyline then you will like this storyline.
The biggest difference between this and the anime is that they decided to keep an important character that stayed in the background for most of the first season out of the story and teased the character for later on, while at the same time giving that screentime from the beginning to other characters that didn't show up till later in the first season of the anime. I'm actually okay with that.
Characters/Acting/Cast
It is clear that the directed wanted the overacting that all the actors give out in this performance. They are very good at their job and overact most scenes in great ways.
Hamabe Minami as Jabami Yumiko was great. She really knows how to play an innocent girl that does a 180 and becomes a maniac. At times she really reminded me of the way she played Menma and then she completely scares you with her addiction induced maniac episodes. Morikawa Aoi as Saotome Mary was also great. She really showed herself to be ambitious and cunning when she needed to be and also at the very low points, she showed it off.
Takasugi Mahiro as Suzui Ryota was the biggest deviation. While the anime had his character more grounded and as a point of relatedness to see ourselves in the situation, this version of Suzuki was just as wacky as the rest of the characters. It serves some great comedic scenes at times but I would have like a more grounded version.
Music
I really enjoyed the OP song a little too much. I was actively waiting for the OP just to listen to the song.
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This review may contain spoilers
The Difference Between the Live Action and the Anime
Story:The story is similar to the anime but some were not in the live action, Yumeko didn't fight with Manyuda Kaede and Yumemite Yumemi(this will probably be in the 2nd season but it's weird to have Yumemi in the cast when she's not here in the live action). Yumeko was rescued by Midari in the anime, unlike the live action when Suzui rescued her. Kaede was the one asking Mary to join the student council, not Kirari(due to her absence Kaede replaced her). For Sayaka, she was given more screentime in Season one compared to the manga or anime. Sometimes she is shown while she's working: for example, Runa and she carry a ladder before Yumeko meets Yuriko Nishinotouin and challenges her. When Itsuki Sumeragi is fired, she desperately asks Kaede Manyuda to reconsider; because he ignores her, she tries to beg Kirari instead but is immediately tased by Sayaka. Sumeragi didn't pull her fingernails unlike in the anime. Kirari didn't watch the fight between Yumeko and Yuriko
Acting/Cast: (will only point out the differences)
-Yumeko. Hamabe Minami did a great job portraying her. The hair was on point, the expressions and her craziness was perfect, but i realized that her sexual elements were toned down. Her eyes glowed red when gambling, just like in the anime, so props to that!!
-Suzui Ryota. He still tends to be in the background, he is more talkative and often comments the events, usually speaking to the viewers directly.. Mahiro Takasugi did an excelent job!
-Kaede Manyuda. He's less subtle than his manga and anime counterparts and his desire to rule over the school has always been evident.
-Yuriko Nishinotouin. She opened her eyes in the live action, which was surprising because she didn't open her eyes unlike in the anime
-Midari Ikishima. Her hair color was brown and her tongue was not pierced, other than that Midari's design was faithful to her manga counterpart. She was in a cell unlike in the anime where she roams and likes to hide in the bathroom while playing with her gun
-Nothing really changed in other characters beside the hair color.-
Music:
The opening was catchy and short unlike other drama's where the openings are at least 2-3 minutes long
Overall i love this live action, 10/10
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