Japanese Dorama Club

 Annie:

welcome!! your profile design looks so beautiful <3

tysm!! yours is also reallyy pretty

 Narutofan22:

can i please join 

welcome!! have a lovely time discover and enjoy J-cinematic <3

 TimiZero:

I can't quote everyone but to those who just commented to join, welcome to the club!

thanks

updated one of the Emblem badges into a GIF

 Arclei:

Once upon a time someone (@Sakamichi) asked if there was a dorama watch challenge and the answer was no. I've since been thinking about that and would it be possible to organise something like that? I'm fairly new to dramas in general but I'm okay with hosting it if necessary

I love that idea and would totally join the challenge. I'm hosting the Thai Watch Challenge for a couple years now and felt the same as you when I started but can assure you, that you will grow into it. I'm reading manga and watching anime/doramas for years and enjoy to learn more about Japanese culture so a couple things came to my mind that could be included in the challenge. Feel free to include them as you see fit or put them as bonus categories or whatever. ^.^

My suggestions for Dorama Challenge prompts: 

• spot an onsen (the traditional baths in Japan) 
• sakura trees  (cherry blossom festival celebrated by having picknick under cherry trees or cherry flower petals)
• summer festivals (lots of Japanese wear traditional yukata for those festivals) 
• spot a tea ceremony 
• spot a Shinto shrine
• spot a manga / mentions a manga in the drama/movie
• includes a typical Japanese sport like kendo, kyudo (Japanese archery) sumo, judo, karate etc. 
• inclusing traditional music (taiko - drum, koto - zither, shamisen - banjo-like lute)
• watch something set in a specific period  
  • Heian period (794–1185)
  • Kamakura period (1185–1333)
  • Muromachi period (1333–1568)
  • Azuchi–Momoyama period (1568–1600)
  • Edo period (1600–1868)
  • Meiji period (1868–1912)
  • Taisho period (1912–1926)
  • Showa period (1926–1989)
  • Heisei period (1989–2019)
• watch a drama that has a remake of the same country (some dramas have been remade by Japan for example Itazura na Kiss) 
• spot a scene where a a character has fever (it seems to be a thing as it often appears in manga, anime and doramas) 
• spot a scene where one character gives chocolate to another (on couple holidays such as Valentines day, White Day and Christmas) 
• includes yakuza (Japanese mafia) 
• spot traditional drinks/food (sake (rice wine),  sushi, miso soup, ramen, rice) 
• includes Japanese art 
  • ukiyo-e (woodblock prints, paintings)
  • ikebana (arranging flowers)
  • kabuki (classic Japanese theater) 
• spot origami
• spot a red gate (usually found near shrines)
• spot bamboo
• based on Japanese literature (for example The Tale of Genji) 
• includes Japanese mythology (for example yokai = spirits, ghosts and demons such as Tengu, Yuki-onna etc.) 
• spot an izakaya (Japanese bar that serves alcoholic drinks and snacks)
• spot a futon (bed on tatami mats) 
• includes a scene at a ryokan (Japanese inn, is usually visited for short trips and often includes onsen bathing) 
• dorama about geisha and maiko (maiko = geisha in training) 
• spot a scene in a karaoke bar
• spot calligraphy 
• spot a bonsai (small trees) 

 Arclei:

@JulyMoon Thank you so much for the comforting words and all those wonderful prompts/ideas!! Like ohmygod did you deliver!!!! I really appreciate the attention to detail and how unique they are, I could never have come up with something so thorough!! I'll include them right away (lowkey wanna add 'em all)!! ♡ ♡ 

I found the Thai drama later on this year (after I had joined way too many challenges) but was in awe of how thorough it was and just *had* to join!! This makes perfect sense now, haha 

My pleasure. <3 

So happy to hear that you liked them and that you even included a lot of them in the challenge. By the way I've seen Origami is duplicated in #13 and #14. You could replace it in #14 with Spot a Bento Box if you like. 

I'm reading/watching stuff about Japan for around 15 years now so I hope something stuck with me. haha 

I watched my first Thai drama in 2021, the same year as I started with the Thai Watch Challenge. It wasn't originally my idea but the user who came up with it deleted the challenge thread and their account and together with a friend I decided to pick it up and host it. It grew through the years thanks to a couple people who gave great inspiration and support which makes me happy, plus it gave me reason to venture deeper into Thai dramas. :D 

 JulyMoon:

My pleasure. <3 

Thanks for catching that! I edited it and added your suggestion! I also reorganized it a bit and I think it flows better ! 

That's so awesome! Love the community involvement and yeah, these challenges are really great to delve into dramas from lesser-watched/known countries (that mostly being not South Korea and China, lmaaaao)

 Thyella:

@Arclei I love the idea of a Japanese Watch Challenge and at first glance, your categories look great too. I'm all for this. Thank you for making the effort <3

Thank you for the encouragement and enthusiasm! Glad it's shaping nicely so far! Still a WIP but I'm hoping to get it done and posted sometime soon ♡ ♡ 

I would love to join! Although I haven't watched many J-dramas, can I still participate? The ones I remember watching are Silent, Trillion Game, Takara-kun to Amagi-kun, Kieta Hatsukoi, Senpai, This Can’t Be Love, Ameiro Paradox, Minato Shouji Coin Laundry, and Old Fashion Cupcake.

I’m a little embarrassed to admit that most of the Japanese dramas I've watched are bl except for Silent which was my first J-Drama and Trillion game?. 

But I've also seen a few non-bl movies like My Happy Marriage, As the Gods Will (not a romance), Orange, I Will Be Your Bloom, Our Secret Diary, and a few others .