1
1
BrightestStar
Turns out, there's really no place like home
Too much ToDai promotion?
Comparing this drama to its predecessor from 16 years earlier is unavoidable. But since my memory of the first season is vague, the memory of my impression of it will probably be biased. That being said, there are a few angles to analyze as to what worked and didn't work for me in this season.
I'll start with the setting. In the first season, my impression throughout the whole drama was Sakuragi saying it doesn't take a genius to into Tokyo University, just the right tools and tricks to study. ToDai was never presented as this "solve-all" solution. That is the impression I was given in the current season. While students were encouraged to choose their own paths in the end, until they got there all Sakuragi was saying was something along the lines of "if you don't give your all to enter ToDai you will remain a loser. It felt like the whole drama was promoting the university.
Next, while the setting was annoying, I liked how the school was presented. It did not exaggerate it to be all teens rebelling and playing around. It was a normal school. That did make me realize how colourful people were in the early 2ks and how visually dull it is nowadays. I did like how the students were gathered and their individual stories. Some stories were stronger than others. My favourite was Fujii's and the growth he goes through. Suzuka Ouji was great at performing a vulnerable character hiding behind a know-it-all bully.
If anything did annoy me about some of the student backstories, it would be the condoning of all sorts of abuse and not taking any actions whatsoever about it. Some things can be forgiven away, but some require getting people accountable for their actions. While there was more than 1 character abused in the drama, Iwasaki's was the most irrational and ridiculous to not address.
Finally, the biggest detractor of this drama in my opinion is the conspiracy surrounding the school. While it did give the story an interesting angle of not necessarily wanting the special class to succeed, it did consume a lot of time in the drama and was generally written badly. Hayashi Kento was so wasted here, that he barely said anything and spent the whole drama just giving mischievous laughs while his friend and he were too obvious. The characters taking part in the conspiracy were all caricature-like it wasn't even funny.
Overall worth the watch for nostalgia's sake!
I'll start with the setting. In the first season, my impression throughout the whole drama was Sakuragi saying it doesn't take a genius to into Tokyo University, just the right tools and tricks to study. ToDai was never presented as this "solve-all" solution. That is the impression I was given in the current season. While students were encouraged to choose their own paths in the end, until they got there all Sakuragi was saying was something along the lines of "if you don't give your all to enter ToDai you will remain a loser. It felt like the whole drama was promoting the university.
Next, while the setting was annoying, I liked how the school was presented. It did not exaggerate it to be all teens rebelling and playing around. It was a normal school. That did make me realize how colourful people were in the early 2ks and how visually dull it is nowadays. I did like how the students were gathered and their individual stories. Some stories were stronger than others. My favourite was Fujii's and the growth he goes through. Suzuka Ouji was great at performing a vulnerable character hiding behind a know-it-all bully.
If anything did annoy me about some of the student backstories, it would be the condoning of all sorts of abuse and not taking any actions whatsoever about it. Some things can be forgiven away, but some require getting people accountable for their actions. While there was more than 1 character abused in the drama, Iwasaki's was the most irrational and ridiculous to not address.
Finally, the biggest detractor of this drama in my opinion is the conspiracy surrounding the school. While it did give the story an interesting angle of not necessarily wanting the special class to succeed, it did consume a lot of time in the drama and was generally written badly. Hayashi Kento was so wasted here, that he barely said anything and spent the whole drama just giving mischievous laughs while his friend and he were too obvious. The characters taking part in the conspiracy were all caricature-like it wasn't even funny.
Overall worth the watch for nostalgia's sake!
Was this review helpful to you?
