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BrightestStar

Turns out, there's really no place like home

BrightestStar

Turns out, there's really no place like home
Completed
Kill Me, Heal Me
29 people found this review helpful
Mar 14, 2015
20 of 20 episodes seen
Completed 4
Overall 7.5
Story 7.0
Acting/Cast 10
Music 9.5
Rewatch Value 7.0
I actually needed to think for a while until I decided on the rating. There are things that brought me so much enjoyment in this drama, so many screencaps spamming my mdl friends with (I apologize couldn't help myself:D) but there are some things that annoyed me as well, or that I didn't enjoy, or found useless, or even wished it was written out of the story, even if that would shorten it to a 12 episodes drama.

There is two sides to the story. There is your typical chaebol family with their problems and struggle to inherit the company, then there is also the side of the character dealing with a multiple personality disorder meeting a cheerful normal girl, who belongs to a cheerful normal family. The way that lovely family is so perfectly portrayed, and how fun it was to have them on screen, makes me wonder why koreans are so obsessed with chaebol stories. In any case when I look at it in that sense, the story isn't original at all, and I find the disorder was used as a trope rather than being the central key to the story. The reason is, we don't see any real treatment to it, though we do deal with the past, but realism wasn't what the drama was going for. That did not bother me because it made the characters of this drama original, changing the dynamic this drama would've taken otherwise.

The acting is what elevated this drama, made it not only watchable, but one of the most anticipated dramas for me this season. I am ashamed to admit it is my first time watching a Ji Sung drama, and oh boy, saying I'm impressed is an understatement. His distinct portrayal of each personality striking. He had full control of the look in his eyes, his voice, and every nerve forming his facial expression. Then there is Park Seo Joon who is also my first time seeing. He is one of the best his generation, and I'm pretty sure his future is already set. As a loser son, as an amazing brother, as a mysterious writer, and a haunted individual with a bit of darkness, he depicted so many sides of his character you'd this he's the one with the disorder lol. Hwang Jung Eum might've understandably annoyed many viewers but she didn't bother me. I think it's because her character is so frank that I can forgive anything. I liked her in the serious scenes more though. The actors playing Ri Jin and Ri On's parents were also fun, and very natural in their role. Specially the mom always expressing her love, fear, expectations and pride through her facial expression. Choi Won Young as secretary Ahn was also fun. his role was straightforward that I don't think he was required anything more, but he did manage his comedic moments throughout and that I appreciate. Last but not least, the children were also really good in their role. As for the rest of the cast, they might've been good but I didn't notice, because I didn't care and mostly was skipping their scenes. Thankfully the actors/characters mentioned above were onscreen mostly.

I really appreciate the direction here, many things were handle impressively, but some things started annoying me later on in the series. I like the effects used, when blurring the line between reality and illusion. I also really love the effective use to light here. I think it helped Ji Sung in portraying his characters. Basically each of the personalities had a specific light and colours used, emphasizing on their character but sublte enough to not disturb the whole scene. The choice of music was also great and effective, especially that theme song ?? (Auditory Hallucination). I do have a complaint though with this department. The amount of flashbacks used in the last 6 episodes could fill two complete episodes. The same goes with the dragged out scene of a brooding character for the sake of finishing the song. It felt really inefficient and draggy. I am happy that they used this way to drag out the episodes instead of using writing unnecessary events to drag out the story. Still I would prefer that a drama cuts out everything that makes it boring and draggy.

As for the ending, it's hard for me to say if I was overall satisfied or not. The part that I fully enjoyed in the story had a well written and extremely satisfying ending, the side that I didn't enjoy had an even worse ending.

I put a high rewatch value only because I think it'll be fun to go back and watch the personalities of Ji Sung and watch Ri On and Ro Jin bicker, although I wouldn't attempt the whole drama a second time.

To summarize my thoughts, the story itself is actually is actually generic, while the themes and tropes used are original. The main characters are different, written with depth and insight and the acting was through the roof. It was highly entertaining and did not let the melo side drag it down.

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Completed
Aoi Honoo
20 people found this review helpful
Feb 12, 2015
11 of 11 episodes seen
Completed 0
Overall 9.0
Story 8.0
Acting/Cast 9.5
Music 10
Rewatch Value 7.0
This is not only the most hilarious dorama of the year, but most hilarous in the last couple of years. This drama is based on a slice of life manga of the same name by Kazuhiko Shimamoto as he tells the fictionalized story of his time at the Osaka University of Arts. In the most extreme over the top comedy, it provides a commentary about the generation and expectations of that time.


Unlike most j-doramas, this drama concentrate with in depth with one character only, and most other characters are seen from his point of view. The story starts with our protagonist's first day at the university. He thinks he's destined for greatness, and everyone else is beneath his capabilities. Little did he know of the hardship and competition he'd need to face to reach anything close to greatness. As much as comedy is at the forefront of everything that is dealt with, it is undeniably a coming of age piece through and through. University time is a tricky time. It's a time where they need to leave their childhood behind and actually take hold of their future to accomplish their goals and fulfill their dreams, but the road is not only bumpy, but also not clear at all. It gets more obscure when you haven't set a specific goal and only dream of the reward. I think most of us go through this phase at one point in our life, but this dorama gives us an exposition of it in an extreme sense through the eyes of Moyuru Honoo.

I have to say, I cannot imagine what this show would've turned out with the hands of a lesser actor than Yugira Yuuya. He acted it out, with every inch of his body and soul. With all the things his character goes through, with all its craziness and patheticness, he still manages to be cute and makes an adorable grumpy face. I can't think of him as anything short of a genius. It isn't surprising that he's Canne's youngest prize winner back in 2004. That guy is to watch out for! Another role that stood out mostly thanks to its portrayal by the actor is Yasuda Ken's Hideaki Anno. He was flawless as the genius workaholic geek with no sense of awareness of what is going on around him. Anno is everything Honoo fails to become, for better or for worse. Another honorary mention is Muro Tsuyushi as Hiroyuki Yamaga, with his - my meal ticket- face he does. All the other characters were pretty normal people, and we don't really go in depth with their personality, but the cast still does a good job in portraying them.

The music perfectly sets the tone of the era, and adds more hilarity to the situation. The direction here had an image and knew exactly what to aim for.

This drama is a must watch for anyone who loves japanese comedies, specially over the top ones, also for anime fan. People not familiar with that type of don't like the over the top slap stick comedy may have trouble accepting it, but if you give it a chance, I'm pretty sure you'll find a gem here.

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Completed
Mulan
3 people found this review helpful
Feb 4, 2015
Completed 4
Overall 8.5
Story 8.0
Acting/Cast 10
Music 7.0
Rewatch Value 6.0
This movie tells the story of Mulan, who disguised herself as a male to take the place of her sick father in battle. The main focus of this movie isn't about a woman becoming a soldier, it is about what war does to us humans, and the sacrifices done to minimize the loss of life, and protect what we believe in. This movie is about human emotions. Ironically, the characters here make it a point not be emotional. before watching the movie, I was wondering why is the movie poster so somber and grim, why can't we watch Mulan's complete face. Now I ca appreciate how appropriate it is, bringing out the movie's theme and sentiment.

The movie is pretty fast paced. The introduction of characters doesn't take long, and is straight forward, but shows enough charisma for us to care about them, and enough chemistry that you get taken by their feelings and brotherhood. It's my second time seeing Vicki Zhao, after Red Cliff. She's very different here. Her character here is solemn and serious. She isn't trying to impress anyone, or show off what girls can do. She starts off a fresh face, but we see her age and mature, her face worn out and exhausted. As for Kun Chen, it was my first time seeing him and boy was he swoon worthy! He had so much chemistry with Vicki Zhao that, they can be in a battlefield surrounded by people and blood, but you feel their intimacy and affection.

The story does require some suspension of disbelief though. It is just too hard to believe that all though of Vicki Zhao as a man. Not only her looks, but her voice too is very feminine. Overall I liked the direction, the cinematography, but some scenes were cut too abruptly when we wanted to see more of what is going on. The use of flashback and explaining to us what is going on was annoying. I was thinking "enough telling, more showing". So we didn't get much war strategy and different methods of fighting. The focus was the sentiment and the outcome. The music was appropriate, though not too varying.

If you are looking for a movie about humanity and the harshness war, a movie with strong leads, chemistry, and subtlety then this is the right movie for you. If you're looking for war strategies à la Redcliff and a more entertaining feeling, you may be (just a little bit) disappointed. If you are also looking for this great romance historical movie, this definitely is not it. I leave you with my favourite quote of the movie:

- There are no heroes on the battlefield, only dead men and crazy ones -

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Completed
Golden Bowl
13 people found this review helpful
Jan 8, 2015
11 of 11 episodes seen
Completed 0
Overall 8.5
Story 8.0
Acting/Cast 9.5
Music 8.0
Rewatch Value 7.0
When just reading the synopsis, the first thought that comes to mind is: this isn't my type of drama. I don't watch sports drama, I find them too predictable and repetitive. I don't watch any older-female younger male romance drama, I usually find the romance too forced. I certainly don't watch dramas about affairs, because I don't sympathize with those relationship. With that said, I loved every bit of that drama, with the way they bring all those genre and spin them together to produce such an engaging drama. I would first and foremost credit it to the writing. It is smooth, every episode is easy to watch, and at the end of each episode you want more.

Sports here is used as a way to connect people. The outcome of every episode is predictable, but the last bowl always manages to have enough stake to capture your attention. I like that each episode introduces a split, that is generally related to our bowlers' lives, and the way to beat it. The last episode's bowl was the one time I thought, - nah, this time there won't be too much pressure whether the hero wins the match - until they put all the stakes of the world on it, captivating me and having pray with all the rest of the character that he wins.

As for the romance, it started pretty subtly. The leads had this frank beautiful friendship. They bicker a lot, and they don't shy from mentioning the other's fear, forcing each other to not run away and face their problems. Their conversations, especially those they have during the game are most entertaining and engaging. As things started getting more intense later, that friendship, and those frank conversations continue throughout the drama. Those two were people where the presence of one of them makes the other one a better person. As for the affaires here, the drama neither ignores how wrong it is, nor paints those engaged in those relationships are completely bad or evil. I liked the way it is approached.

I have to say what made this drama more enjoyable is the number of different characters making part of the whole bowling center and those visiting on a daily basis. The prostitute and the bar tender had a sweet side story that you can't help route for. The workers grew on me, and the perverted owner was most entertaining. I think my favourite though is Yakuza who challenges them every week. Not only does he help bringing everyone together (against him) but the way he present himself each episode, with a new song sung by him and his lackeys, is exceptional.

All this wouldn't have been that great if we didn't have such an amazing cast. Leading here is the reason behind me watching this drama, Kaneshiro Takeshi. He's so charming here, and beautiful. Every word he utters sends me dancing with excitement. Especially when says french and english words - Oui, Madame - Oh yeah! - Yea baby - Jesus - I melt! As for the female lead, Kuroki Hitomi is 13 years his senior!! She was already 42 when the dorama first aired. However her character was so cute, fun, full of life, and badass when he plays bowling. The chemistry between the two was nothing short of phenomenal. I haven't seen that often in japanese dramas in recent years so I miss it. The rest of the cast were fun and on spot, at worst they were serviceable.

The theme song used is very dramatic but somehow blends well with the drama.

This drama is a must watch for anyone who wants to watch a drama that has engaging characters, sizzling chemistry, fun and smartly written script, directing that merges all the themes seamlessly and Kaneshiro Takeshi fans. I think this type of drama can be entertaining for the majority of people if given the chance.

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Completed
Lesson of the Evil
3 people found this review helpful
Jan 7, 2015
Completed 0
Overall 8.0
Story 6.0
Acting/Cast 9.0
Music 9.0
Rewatch Value 5.0
Some movies you already know how you feel about them while watching, while others, you need time to have it sink in and truly appreciate it. For me, Lesson of Evil was the latter case. It could be because I generally avoid gore, though I don't like to consider myself faint of heart. I had trouble rating this movie right after watching, my mind was all over the place by the time I finished it.

I was actually more or less okay with gore because it wasn't that much, but it was very bloody, which doesn't bother me. What bothered me was the story. Honestly, I just didn't know what the movie was trying to tell me, or if it was trying to say anything, and I still don't. With that said, there is a lot to say about the gripping directing, keeping me all the way to the end while I knew early on that the story wasn't for me. Talking about directing, we need to mention the pacing, the colours used, and the music, coming together in perfect harmony with the world we are being led to.

The movie starts at a slow pace, and the pace gets picked up a little at a time, until the second half when things started happening at a much faster rate. We start in an apparent peaceful setting, where the danger starts creeping onto you without noticing. The colour used were pretty depressing, highlighting an apparent mundane life. That is until the bloody red colour starts taking over and making everything more lively, secret start getting revealed, and death everywhere. All this while listening to placed The Ballad of Mack the Knife. The lyrics were so the appropriate and the music so engrossing I felt I was being brainwashed. It really sets the tone of the scene.

Last but CERTAINLY not least, the acting. Of course the most prominent role here is that of Ito Hideaki. Lets just say I will NEVER be able to look at him the same way again. He had this detached feeling to him, no matter how nice he was and how much I wanted to trust him at the beginning. The way he's unflinched by anything at all was the scariest of all. Other then him, there were a number of adult actors but they weren't outstanding. The outstanding ones were the students. Each of them was distinguishable to say the least. Oh but I hated the white guy in the show. I don't maybe because his lines here so cheesy? Well he did look creepy but many times he felt out of place.

Do I recommend this movie? I'm still not sure, all I can say is, while watching it, the feeling of hopelessness kept growing more and more, that anyone can put an end to this hell.

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Completed
Sutekina Sen Taxi
18 people found this review helpful
Jan 3, 2015
10 of 10 episodes seen
Completed 0
Overall 8.0
Story 7.5
Acting/Cast 9.5
Music 7.0
Rewatch Value 6.0
This dorama is about the different customers a time-taxi driver meets at a certain turning point of their lives, and takes them back in time to change it. The format is episodic, even when they sometimes tease us with a connection to past episodes, it does not affect the overall turn of events. I like stories like that and generally enjoy watching them, but this one has some aspects that add more to my overall enjoyment and makes want to watch more of it.

One of the biggest attractions of the drama is Takenouchi Yutaka and the way he plays his character the taxi driver Edawakare. Without knowing much of his past, each episode makes us discover a little more of his antics. He's completely awkward and indecisive, and is afraid of what others think of any of his actions. For him, every moment is a turning point, and he has to think over and over, weighing the pros and cons, being honest about himself vs conforming, and so on. Even so he's pretty blunt with his opinion about his clients' decisions, and shows much more confidence in the taxi driver's seat. Then when he smiles I stop really seeing whats going on and get absorbed with that beautiful smile of his. Seriously his smile feels so genuine, and is both cute and sexy.

Another aspect I fully enjoyed is the café he hangs out most of his free time. At first we see him just as a normal customer there, but later he see him getting closer and more involved with them, like a family. That was cute and homey.

Last but not least, our main subject matter, the clients, are very entertaining and distinct. Not all are likeable but you may relate to them. The ending of each episode sometimes go to familiar places and sometimes do something unexpected and surprised us.

Finally I'd like to say this dorama may not be for everyone, being formulaic and episodic, but if you do give it a chance, I'd see to give it at least 3 episodes before deciding to continue or quit. It is a must watch for any Takenouchi Yutaka fan ;)

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Completed
Lost and Found
5 people found this review helpful
Nov 30, 2014
Completed 0
Overall 8.5
Story 8.0
Acting/Cast 7.0
Music 10
Rewatch Value 6.0
Lel me start by saying this movie really put a spell on me. I was absolutely captivated by it I couldn't take my eyes off the screen. I can't really put my hands exactly enchanted me but I guess the whole ensemble worked well for me, and created something magical in the atmosphere. It did help that I didn't know anything about it when I started watching it. I went in without knowing what the movie was about and what it was aiming for.

The story is about a terminally ill girl who is set to her lost love. That may sound cheesy, and I myself am not a fan of terminally ill drama but this movie take a refreshing perspective to it. Instead of it being about a woman facing death, it is more about self-discovery and the magic in life. The movie is narrated by the protagonist, as if reading off her diary. Her voice is monotonous which may sound dull but actually works pretty well with the mood of the movie and her character. While meeting both Ted and Mr. Worm, she was more about looking for something she's been missing in her life, and only after trying to make miracles for others that she managed uncover it. A factor worth mentioning is the use of music here. I think it was cleverly used to elevate the movie and set the mood of the story. It is one of the elements that completely absorbed me.

If I am to evaluate acting, I need to first mention the casting. I'm pretty new to Hong Kong movies so my knowledge of their actors is limited compared to say Japanese and Korean, and even Taiwanese. That is to say, I don't know if other actors and actrices would've fit the roles better than the cast of this movie, but I found that the current cast did fit their roles well. If I were to talk about performance, I'd say other than Kaneshiro Takeshi, the acting did not impress. I'm not saying that because of my bias for Kaneshiro Takeshi, but his character was the only one that felt different, otherworldly, a magician as Lam called him and he was a natural at it. The rest of the cast managed to play their characters, more or less, but none added anything that was noticeable.

In the end, we have an ordinary story about ordinary people written smartly, with great music and interesting character all put well together to make such an engaging movie by the director. I guess that is what they mean by the sum is greater than the parts.

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Completed
Wu Xia
4 people found this review helpful
Nov 18, 2014
Completed 2
Overall 6.5
Story 6.0
Acting/Cast 10
Music 7.5
Rewatch Value 5.0
I want to start by saying I really enjoyed that movie overall. The acting was topnotch, the action reawakened my love for the genre (it's been dormant for a long while now, after series of dull action movies), and the movie is engaging. Yen Donnie and Kaneshiro Takeshi had nice chemistry. Their scenes together were most amusing.

However, the movie had many aspects that kept it from being outstanding in my view. First of all, I felt the movie had an identity crisis. It wouldn't settle for one and go through to the end. The first half was purely a scene investigation done brilliantly and, as a mystery junky, I was totally absorbed by it. During the end of the first half, it started leaning towards horror type which, though not my type, I understand that many mysteries use it to add more thrill. Then suddenly, just halfway through, all the secrets get revealed and nothing is left to be uncovered. It becomes a pure action movie. The problem here is, instead of incorporating the two genres in a complementary way, it felt that they just pasted together, without mixing it at all. At that point, all the character development and exploration get thrown out the window.

Another thing I cannot get over is the music here. Overall I mostly enjoyed how sound and music have been used here. That is except for one scene. It marked the beginning of the action sequence and starts with this guitar soundtrack. It only lasted seconds but it was a mood destroyer.

One last complaint is the death of one of the characters in the end. I wonder if I was supposed to laugh but that is what I did. I laughed at it though, not with it.

Again, despite my complaints, I was delighted to watch this movie. Well, my delight was mostly to watch Kaneshiro Takeshi but neither he nor Yen Donnie disappoints.

;)

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Completed
Petero no Souretsu
7 people found this review helpful
Nov 12, 2014
11 of 11 episodes seen
Completed 2
Overall 9.0
Story 9.0
Acting/Cast 8.0
Music 10
Rewatch Value 6.0
I just want to start by saying this is an excellent dorama. ! We have an intriguing mystery blended in the drama with a great showcase of human emotions, mainly the human weakness. The theme of this season is as mentioned in the title about Saint-Peter being the symbol of repentance. Sugimura would say we all are Peter, as in we can mend our ways and start anew. As a sequel, this season is superior on many levels. The first season covers two separate mysteries while this one covers only one mystery extensively. The case affects many of the characters' lives more than the previous ones ever did.

Acting is another aspect that is superior season as well. They all not all exceptional actors, but each did their character justice at the most needed moments. This season is more dramatic that's for sure. We actually have a vast cast here and the show manages to give us just enough to look into most of the characters. Many characters subtly proceeds in some unexpected way.

The aspect that is constant and exceptionally brilliant is music. That piano soundtrack carries your emotions swiftly from one scene to the next.

I've got so much to say but I don't want to say more because it is the type of drama that is better to dive in like I did, without even reading any synopsis. The only thing I knew about it was that it is Namonaki Doku's second season. One thing I have to disclose is that this drama can be very slow paced. Each episode has many actions happening, but in a more laid-back way which many may it find to slow.

That is all for now so I just want to end it using my favourite quote from the whole drama.

- Everything that ends is a genesis for the next event. -

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The Three Musketeers
7 people found this review helpful
Nov 5, 2014
12 of 12 episodes seen
Completed 2
Overall 8.5
Story 8.0
Acting/Cast 7.5
Music 8.0
Rewatch Value 5.0
The rating here is really on a personal level to me. I do acknowledge it has some flaws, some questionable actions, some acting issues and some of the actions taken. I do understand some viewers' frustrations with the drama but I enjoyed it to the fullest. I was always a fan of the original novel - Les Trois Mousquetaire - and most of its franchises. I love how it was transposed here in Korean historical setting and throughout the whole drama I felt the spirit of the original story was there. At the same time I have to admit I lack a lot of knowledge about the history of that setting and its era but it did peak my interest to read up on it.

The drama starts with the narration of Dal Hyang as we follow him to the big city, a country bumpkin with big dreams and a sense of justice, and he meets our titular characters. I loved their introduction in the first episode, and kept being amused by So Hyeon's character as he makes fun of Dal Hyang's innocence. The choice of making one of the musketeers the prince is a curious one, and I do wonder how the drama would've turned out if they had chosen to make them all into royal guards. I do have a complaint that the two other musketeers, Seung Po and Min Seo, were always used as companions so we don't get much development from their characters. On the upside we get plenty of growth from both Dal Hyang and the prince. Other characters that I appreciated are the two female leads here. They are presented differently here as in not much of first and second lead, but more one that represents the light and the other the shadow. Whats most curious is how each envies the other for what she longs but they recognize each other's pain. I love what they did to Mi Ryeong's character she is filled with Milady's viciousness. I also loved Yong Gol Dae's character and wished to see his bromancery with our leads but time didn't permit much.

I did also enjoy many of the dramas dialogs. I loved the confrontations between Prince So Hyeon and Yoon Seo. Many complain about her being weak but I never saw her this way. We have to acknowledge women status at that time but even with that, she did exude enough courage to keep So Hyeon from taking her lightly. Other dialogs I enjoyed is those involving King Injo. That and Kim Myung Soo's acting were perfect in displaying King Injo's inner struggles and fears resulting in his indecisiveness.

On the acting side, Lee Jin Wook was perfect for the role, as if it was tailored to him. Yang Dong Geun was a joy to have on screen at all time. Jung Hae In as Min Seo did not blow me away but neither did it bother me. Jung Yong Hwa, who everyone had doubt about him did not disappoint. At the introduction, it wasn't a role hard to play but as the story went on and we start seeing changes in his character, you finally get to feel Yong Hwa comfortable playing it and even enjoying it. The most shining light here though was Yoo In Young. Her presence on screen amazes me and her eyes convey all the right emotions. I cannot imagine any other actress doing a better job, and her beauty does Milady justice when usually described.

I did say more than I expected but I just had to mention that some of the songs used were spot on here. I especially loved the one used as theme for So Hyeon and Yoon Seo's relationship. The one used when the three musketeers were in action, though not my type of music, but matches the fun and action happening.

Overall, I cannot say if you're an avid history fan if you'll enjoy this drama, but I assure you as a fan of the original novel and a fan of Alexandre Dumas, I wasn't disappointed at all.

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Suzuki Sensei
10 people found this review helpful
Oct 26, 2014
10 of 10 episodes seen
Completed 0
Overall 10
Story 10
Acting/Cast 10
Music 8.0
Rewatch Value 6.0
If I were to describe Suzuki Sensei in one word, it would be **Refreshing**. That is how I felt while watching it. As other reviewers mentioned, this isn't your typical school dorama. This drama is about open discussion and giving teenagers the chance to express their opinions, perspectives, assumptions and judgement without holding back and free of any restrain.

The story is about our titular character forming a class with chosen students to conduct an experiment. With that we meet his students, the class 2-A and the problems caused that he and other teachers have to deal with. It takes us quite a while to find out what the experiment is about but it does add a bit of a mystery to keep your attention close to whats going on. What is most interesting in what is addressed here is trying to define maturity. Society has set up a certain age to it but from the beginning onwards we do observe how maturity varies from one person to another. Suzuki Sensei's mindset, like most teachers, is not ideal that's for sure, but what distinguishes him from others is his awareness of middle schooler's intelligence and maturity, and his ability to treat them seriously.

On the acting department, oh boy isn't it stunning. It is Hiroki Hasegawa's best role, from his expressions when we hear his thoughts, to his composure when addressing a problem. What's most impressive though are the students. Karin Ono, Honoka Miki, Kaoru Fujiwara, Takumi Kitamura, Yukito Nishii, and Tao Tsuchiya to name a few. That generation sure has a bright future if given the chance. On the teachers side Yasuko Tomita sure was impressive, but generally all did a very decent job.

This drama isn't only for those who enjoy school dramas, it's for everyone. We all can relate to it because we all went through similar phases and looked for a safe place to express our thoughts. Maybe we are all looking for a similar place even now that we grew older so we join clubs or online sites such as MDL for that reason as well. What is discussed here are things that left me thinking about even after watching each episode. It isn't preachy at all and doesn't give us a definite answer which is the beauty of it. The characters and the acting makes it most entertaining to watch.

;)

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Black President
8 people found this review helpful
Oct 26, 2014
11 of 11 episodes seen
Completed 2
Overall 7.5
Story 7.0
Acting/Cast 8.5
Music 7.0
Rewatch Value 6.0
This dorama was fun from beginning to end. What made it fun is non other than Sawamura Ikki. He is a genuis and hilarious here and I could literarily listen to him for days non-stop and still enjoy it. It's his extreme expressions and not hiding behind pretty words. That is also the difference between overacting and acting a characters that is overly expressive. Overacting is silly and predictable, at worst annoying but here it's it's amusing and unpredictable, constantly bring a smile to my face and makes me laugh at times.

The idea is pretty hilarious. Our black prez, an eccentric CEO of a company decides to go attend university to take out his stress on stupid students. As someone who studied business and found something completely different in the real world, I can't help join him in his amusement in making fun of the system. Of course the story does get preachy at times, we didn't see much business concept and those we saw were pretty basic. Even so all this didn't bother because, again, thanks to the character and how he's being performed.

Other characters did bring things to the table and added more fun. One which is his teacher befriending his secretary, women putting their heads together trying to predict him. The students and his interactions are the most interesting and entertaining. The need of guidance and the generation gap are nicely portrayed. It is also nice to see a dorama about university, it's activities and student worries at that stage in life. Another amusing factor is his family that didn't add much to the story but did bring warmth which was cute.

The acting department doesn't disappoint but I have to admit Sawamura Ikki kinda overshadows most. That is except Kadowaki Mugi who's unusual but endearing character is charming.

To summarize it's a entertainint light drama that I think many will find something they'd enjoy.

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Completed
Office Girls
6 people found this review helpful
Oct 23, 2014
25 of 25 episodes seen
Completed 0
Overall 7.0
Story 6.0
Acting/Cast 8.0
Music 8.0
Rewatch Value 5.0
This drama isn't the most outstanding but it isn't bad either. I found it had more good going for it than bad/boring. Specially if you compare it to today's Taiwanese dramas, which for me was too cartoonish, and unrealistically annoying to watch, this one is pretty decent. Zi Qi and Xing Ren's growing relationship is the heart and soul of the show. I'd say Zi Qi's character specially and mostly because the growth you see in him is the most tangible. The rest of the cast varied from extremely funny to extremely boring.

The story may have had the rich boy meet poor girl, but what I love about it is, the poor girl was independent who has a dream and working hard in making it a reality without shame or whining about it or expecting anything from anyone. It's in line with her personality in keeping a low profile, from the way she dresses up to her interactions and the way she expresses her dream. She meets Zi Qi who's the total opposite in extravagance and spoil. The drama (I. e. his father) puts him in the same level as her in terms of wealth, and this sets their relationship off to a great start. At this point the drama becomes really the story of a bunch of employees working at the same firm. There is the annoying second lead girl, the bore to death second lead guy but somehow they just don't matter. Second lead guy was just written in such a boring way they they just resolved his issues fast and wrote him off. Second lead girl stayed to be the hated one but it doesn't frustrate me the way kdramas do, mainly because our lead's maturity with always facing reality and talking about what bothers them. Other characters I liked was the manager who at first came off as annoying but really grew on me. I specially loved his relationship with Zi Qi. They stay constantly hilarious throughout the whole drama. Another is Le Le who, at times may be annoying, but I love how upfront she was about everything. She didn't care who you were, she'll talk right back at you if you look down at her. The parents were kinda too perfect but the relationships felt genuine.

The story isn't perfect that'st for sure. There were some mistakes that we see Xing Ren do that I found unacceptable with her experience and how she was place in the beginning of the drama as hard working. Zi Qi becoming was too perfect in the last few episodes. His mother magically changing suddenly, and I felt there was a backstory about her that they kinda dropped and decided not to follow.

Acting wise, to no one's surprise Roy Qiu is the star here. From comedy to growth to subtle romance, he's got full control on all. Patrick Li was also amazing in comedy I would laugh in every scene he's at. It's my first time seeing Alice Ke but she did her role justice to say the least. The actrice that plays the role of Mandi was also funny. This drama is maybe Tia Li's best role. She's not great here, but I think being evil suits her more than being good :P

I loved some of the songs used in there specially the song Wanna Fly in Free Fall the guitar playing in that song is addicting :D

Overall a very enjoyable drama.

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Completed
Nazo no Tenkousei
16 people found this review helpful
Oct 19, 2014
12 of 12 episodes seen
Completed 0
Overall 9.0
Story 7.5
Acting/Cast 8.5
Music 9.5
Rewatch Value 7.0
This dorama one of my favourites. Even so it's not one I can recommend easily. It's appeal is on a very personal level for me. It drew me in at first sight, and every element it added increase it's charm for me. If I were it describe it, I'd say is a low profile sci-fi high school drama with subtle romance.

The story starts with a bunch of students that couldn't be any more normal who greet a mysterious transfer student. Afterwards, bit by bit things start getting weirder with people who associated with him. One thing we know, this tenkousei (transfer student) is on a mission. Things get a bit complicated, but the style the direction used made it easier to absorb throughout each episode. There were many interesting characters which could've been nice to explore more. Some of them were pushed to the side to give screen time to additional characters, which was unfortunate but understandable given the time constraint. I love science fiction when sets it's own rules and logic, and operate within those guidelines which was what I found in this drama.

What I liked most in here was the directing. It managed to bring in all those elements that I enjoy watching in my shows and placed them together in such a fitting smooth laid-back manner that made such a complex story easy to digest. I also love the way they filmed the whole show, as if it was back in the 70s which brought this nostalgic feeling to it. Other than the use of cellphones, this dorama could've easily been mistaken for a sci-fi from that time. Whether it's a good or a bad thing is subjective. For me it felt like it came perfectly with the other elements of the show.

As for the acting and performances, there were countless really good ones but of course the one that stood out, and was the heart and soul of the dorama was Hongo Kanata. I cannot begin to describe how awesome he is here. Keeps you puzzled such a long time wondering if he's a human, an alien, a cyborg or some other sort of being. His gestures were flawless and the emotions he releases through his face were heart-rending. Other than him, the ever glowing Sugisaki Hana has been growing on me in every role I see her. She's particularly endearing here, her character being a bit different from previous role I've seen her in. Even with those two performances, Nakamura Aoi wasn't over shadowed for me. The reason isn't because of a bias but more since his character is one I connected the most with. I liked his laid back lazy, sometimes awkward personality. He was a natural in it. I felt Sakurai Minami was the most overshadowed since neither her character nor her performance stood out in any at all. There were many other great performances but it'll be too long to talk about it ;)

The ending they chose wasn't the best in my view but it doesn't bother me either. I think this dorama could've been perfect if given more time (more episodes or even seasons) to be fully explored, but the story needed to come to an end

As for the music it was great. The opening song and the video with it were awesome. I love the ending song. It really is uplifting and cheerful. Even if you don't watch the show, believe me it's worth checking out the song ;)

So to conclude and summarize the whole thing, if you like a laid-back drama who contains interesting elements such as coming of age with sci-fi twist, then that's exactly what you need to watch. If you're a fan of Hongo Kanata, it's also woth checking out ;)

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Completed
Until the Break of Dawn
1 people found this review helpful
Oct 16, 2014
Completed 0
Overall 7.0
Story 6.0
Acting/Cast 9.0
Music 7.0
Rewatch Value 4.0
This movie is about following Ayumi, an apprentice connector (Tsunagu) with his first cases of giving people that one chance to meet with someone who has already passed on. The story itself is sweet, the setting shifting from being realistic to being somewhat mystical.

I wasn't impressed with the writing. the dialogs were too long and the stories bounced from being sweet to being overly sentimental. Some of the stories were pretty standard while others were better. Personally my favourite was that of the two highschool girls. It contained so many complicated emotions and didn't settle to be convenient. There is also the mystery behind Ayumi's parent's death that seems to haunt him, which had an interesting reveal, could've been given a darker more interesting twist.

On the acting department it did not disappoint. I originally wanted to watch this movie for Matsuzaka Tori and he did a great job here + he has the cutest smile EVER! Seeing the heartwarming Kiki Kirin in it brought me so much joy. There is also Hashimoto Ai with weirdly huge eyes blowing me away with her acting. The rest of the cast did a great job with their characters as well.

Overall sweat movie with strong performances ;)

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