YueofBlueGables
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The characters were excellent played. I liked all 5 main characters, and I found the serial killer so creepy I think I will ever see him (the actor, who also is in variety shows) as a creepy guy. There wasn't any overacting at all, even the children did good. The songs were mostly great, some were American/English, some were Japanese. All cases were interesting, some were sad, and some were hard to watch (the poor students, for example). And I absolutely loved that this was set in Yokohama, one of the most beautiful cities I have ever seen and visited.
I think this is one of those dorama that anyone would like: young people, older people... I am glad they are having a second season.
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The first couple of episodes were painful to watch, since THAT letter was too cruel. I hated Asako, and I didn't like the boy. Actually, till the end, I couldn't figure this boy out. But on the other hand, I felt too sorry for Asako, in spite of all her many mistakes. While Yui was suffering for almost a decade for the lost of her baby boy, Asako's intentions of being a mother were mostly selfish. She wanted a son because of social pressure, because of loneliness... But still, what does being a mother mean? Doesn't it mean to love and raise the child to be someone, to be there for the child, to give him everything the child needs in order to become a better person?
While there were many painful scenes, and scenes that make you upset (like when Asako was telling Yui SHE was the one who raised Kou, SHE was the one who knew him better... thank Heavens for that slap!), there were also many light scenes, heartwarming scenes. This dorama is mostly about family, not only blood-related, but also people who are always there for support and interventions and good and bad moments.
I love the cast, specially the women. I think Sawajiri Erika may be too young to be a mother of a teenage boy, but she was dressed very homely in order to look more mature, with baggy clothes and light-to-zero make-up. Her friend, interpreted by Itaya Yuka, was excellent. She always plays the sweetest and kindest friend to perfection. I think it is her smile. But the one who deserved all awards was, for me, Koike Eiko. Her role, as the woman who raised the boy, was meant to be hateful. But her tears... oh gawd, her tears made ME tearful. For about 8 episodes I had a love-hate feelings for her, but by the end, I pitied her enormously. Poor woman, in spite of everything!
The husbands were good as well, nice sidekicks. But what impressed me the most was Nakajima Yuto. This guy has everything to play a romantic MC; he is tall, young, handsome and can act, and here again we have him, as a serious worker who should be played by someone older. WHYYYY...
The kids were ok, obviously with the least experience and you can tell, especially since the older cast is so good. Still, the boy who played Kou was adorable.
I love the OST! Very moving, and I love the EP, "Just you and I", by Amuro Namie. I am currently listening to it. The lyrics are very meaningful.
The ending was satisfying. I think this is one of those doramas that will be liked by anyone, specially those who like family genre.
The other cover is much better and meaningful that the one here on MDL.
Mini-reunions: "1 Liter of Tears", "Hotaru no Hikari", "Kounodori", "Date".
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First episode was ok; to me, the weakest one. But Ep. 2 and the next, and the next, were all wonderful. Nagase Tomoya was excellent as Hara-chan. He is, in this drama, like a Japanese Jim Carrey. The way he runs, the way he laughs, the way he smiles... He is handsome but at the same time, goofy, which suits the character. The weakest character, for me, was Echizen-san, or "Kamisama", the mangaka. Not only she was a bit bland (but relatable) but the actress, Aso Kumiko, pouts a lot and I hate pouts. On the other hand, she has a sweet smile, and sometimes she looked like an older Gakky.
My favorite episodes were with the manga-characters and their first contact with the world. There was something innocent and sweet in all of these scenes, and the reason why the audience would fall in love with each of them. I loved their thumbs down. And Hara-chan smile :) The setting was lovely, albeit a bit empty. I wonder if there is a meaning for that. And also, what was the meaning of Tama-chan as a manga-character.
I love the OST. Ending song is by TOKIO, and also the nice melody that plays along the scenes. However, and this may sound strange since it is a children's song, my favorite was "Watashi no Sekai". Mostly because it IS the drama; we hear it in the opening song, but also, Hara-chan and his gang love to sing it when they are happy. The song is a bit like "It's a Small World": it is happy but also sad. It is nostalgic and sweet. The lyrics are meaningful, basically "Just let me be. We are all different. This is my life and that is yours". A bit depressing, but real.
The message of the dorama is to love yourself, to value your existence. To value your friends and family. Manga is a wonderful world, but eventually you have to live your own life. I wouldn't hesitate to re-watch it, how knows, maybe I would even love Ep. 1 as much as I did the rest. A hidden gem.
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The story was sooo good. In every chapter, something is going on. Koichi getting closer to the family, in order to get the one who ordered Koichi's family to be killed. Getting his revenge on the minions who murdered his family, on the one who almost killed him, on the detective who pressured him when Koichi was just 9 years-old to lie that his father was the one who murdered the whole family. When it looks like the villains are almost catching up with him, Koichi has an ace up his sleeve. I love when the MC is wittier and quicker than the villain. He was perhaps a bit ruthless, but I couldn't help but empathize with him.
Kusanagi was excellent as Koichi. You could feel the rage in him, and if it weren't for that tragic past, he would be a good guy. He was satisfied when he could have his revenge, but with those tears, you can only wonder if he was also a bit sad. Ichimura as the main villain was perfectly cast. He does wonder in this kind of role. And all his children were excellent as well. In conclusion, the Nishina family was perfect.
That ending was O_O WOW. A whole 10/10 for me!
Honestly I don't remember the music, that's why I rate it 9. I was just too engrossed with the story.
I am not sure if this would be a re-watch for me, since you can't compare watching this kind of story for the first time with watching it for a second time. Nevertheless, if someone asked me to watch it with her/him, I'll gladly do it, since I can't recommend this dorama enough.
... I can't believe that this hasn't more viewers and reviewers. This deserves more recognition in MDL, highly recommended.
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There were many heartwarming moments in this dorama. It may look like it is going to be a dark story.. and it was sometimes, but only a little. Mostly of how it was filmed. I love the direction of this dorama. The change of lights whenever Maya was near. I love how it was filmed from below to make her seem more impressive, scarier.
Finally! I watched Amami Yuki in a dorama. She was imposing, elegant, lady-like, yet terrifying. Always mysterious, never cartoonish. The female version of Snape. Is she a bully? Is she a good person? On the other hand, Shida Mirai was by far the best child actor. Her tears were so good. Her cute face so adorable. I believed her character, and I never felt she was acting. It was like she was Kazumi, with that silly yet cute "tee-hee" expression. The other child actress that was very good was the one who played Shindo-san. Looked like an anime-character too. And maybe the top student, Nishikawa, was also good. All the other children were ok, some of them even MEH. Kaho was excellent as the older sister, as always. Made me cry a little bit with all her love for her sister. I love her relationship with Kazumi. A protective teenager of her little sister? Who was always there for her. I think I've never seen this kind of normal, yet heartwarming sibling relationship in a dorama yet.
The ED sequence was so good, I always watched it with a smile on my face. Amami Yuki moves so elegantly, she looked like a 90's Pop Princess.
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Maybe Horikita Maki has retired, but Kimura Fumino looked a bit like Maki (in my opinion) in this dorama. It may be her short hair. It may be her high cheekbones and sweet smile. From certain angles, she looked like Maki.
I don't understand why some people say she was frustrating in the first couple of episodes. I think any girl, especially any girl with bad experience in love, would be wary of any guy, no matter how cute or honest he looks, who approaches her and tells her he is her destiny. It is expected of the girl to be cautious, to be in doubt. If she agreed to be with him from the very beginning, I would have thought she was too naive and easy.
The story has the perfect amount of friendship (Makoto and his "rival", Haruko and Mitsue), good comradeship (Makoto and GOD, Makoto and his boss, Makoto and his coworkers), a nice rival (who is not really a rival, and who is just one of the nicest guys ever), present parents (who are there for their daughter). I liked the different tasks Makoto had to do, since it all served for a reason.
I am not satisfied with the ending. I was left with a "this is it??". I think there should be a SP. There HAS to be.
I love the OP and ED sequences. The dance was cute, and the song is pretty. I also like Yamapi's smirk when both of them are sitting in the couch, in the ED sequence. Only that, that same smirk is somewhat bittersweet in the final episode :(
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If I had to choose a drink, it would be HOT CHOCOLATE (warm and sweet).
If I had to choose something edible, it would be COTTON CANDY (fluffy).
I had a smile during all the first 12 episodes, it is that cute. The first 12 episodes were the cutest thing I've ever watched. I disagree with people saying that Naoki was an ass (ok he was, but he wasn't harmful, unlike **coughHyuugafromRMPWandDomyoujifromHYDcough**) and Kotoko certainly wasn't stupid nor stalker, just a teenager in love (if she was a stalker, I think me and hundreds of girls were/are stalkers in HS).
The love triangles that happen throughout the story were well done and not annoying at all, since nothing happens. Kin-chan is the sweetest second lead character I've seen so far, and it was hard not to root for him. But since Kotoko was my favorite character, and everything that made her happy was Naoki, I just had to root for Irie-kun, even if it was hard to do. Like in the final 4 episodes,which were by far my least favorite episodes and the reason I downgraded my rating.
I absolutely ADORED Miki Honoka as Kotoko. Any other actress would have made the character a silly, pathetic one. But thanks to Honoka, Kotoko is the most adorable heroine I may have seen in a dorama. So cute, so bubbly, so charming, so charismatic. Her expressions were so funny, so adorable. Her different hairstyles, her imperfect eyebrows... everything about her scream KAWAII.
Furukawa was good as well, since he didn't have to show much in his expressions, but my, he showed so much in his eyes. I only wished he wasn't that skinny, because he had the perfect height, and of course, a perfect English accent.
The only actor who wasn't so good was Sudo-sempai. He overacted too much, like an anime character. Like Oscar from Hana Kimi, only that in this dorama it looked ridiculous. Naoki's mother overacted a lot as well, but it suited the moment.
I LOVED the OP song and opening sequence. So cute.
As soon as I finished it, I wanted to watch it all over again. I am missing them so much, and it has only been a couple of days! No doubt I'll re-watch this. Very recommended **hearts**
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Then, he suddenly stops and makes a funny expression. "Ah... I am hungry". Zoom out, zoom out, with a funny OST. This happens all the time, and after that, he goes looking for a restaurant/dining, which is mostly a familiar, cozy, simple one. He orders his food.. it is always different, but 99% of the time, one of his side dish would be rice. Goro-san loves rice (there is an episode where he even eats his Neapolitan spaghetti with rice!). Actually, he loves any kind of food. He is the happiest man on Earth when he is eating. While he is eating, internally he is commenting about his food. ""Ii janaika", is mostly his remark XD He loves it, he is so happy to have picked THAT place and THAT food. And how he eats! You wonder how such a skinny man can eat so much and be that thin. Sometimes he orders 2, 3 different things. And he eats so fast, even when the food is super hot.
The last 3 minutes is the author of the dorama going to the same dining and eating almost always the same food. My, how happy his author is! You can't help but be happy with him, he is 100% smiles.
I loved this, I realized I had to have my dinner first before watching an episode, since all dishes are mouthwatering.
Recommended specially to people who is going to visit Japan and are looking for places to eat. The restaurants Goro-san visits are real; the rest are all actors.
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The comedy is minimal but the story was fun. It is more dramatic since the yakuza boss is no joke. But I feel like the actors had a lot of fun filming this movie, they have a lot of chemistry, and I love their friendship. The only one that overacted a little bit was the one playing Kyohei. The other 3 guys are my favorite actors anyway, they are always good. I mean, even I who knows that Ayano Go is NO IKEMEN thought he was pretty awesome here. His "killer glance" was believable, haha. It could be his hair? He looked good here. Suzuki Ryohei looked lovely silly and Koide looked cuter than ever. And Muro playing a student **giggles** All of them, actually. It was hilarious.
The role of the main girl was meaningful, thank God. Usually, in shounen movies, like "CROWS ZERO", seems like they add a female role just to have some pretty girl among so much testosterone. Thankfully, Misa-chan was important to the story. Without her, there wouldn't be any story, more or less.
Mini-reunions: Stresseman, as the father of Masami-chan XD, and Makino with 2 of the F4 (I bet MatsuJun would have loved to be in this movie, if there were any chance), Kai and Maho (from "Orange Days").
I am looking for a copy with better quality. The one I watched was lowsy, I barely could recognize Oguri Shun. The sound was a bit off as well, so I don't remember much of the music, except the one they perform in the last minutes, which was good (Koide can sing, dear boy!)
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I wouldn't call it a comedy where you would laugh out loud, but it was entertaining, very slice-of-life-ish. I wonder if Maki Yoko can truly draw? Her work was very charming. And I also think she was the best in the trio, which surprised me since I thought she was too stoic in other works I've seen before. And this is unrelated to the movie, but I liked her voice as well.
The ending was so funny! I mean the outcome of Mizukawa XD
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All the gang is back except for Kaori (the actress was pregnant at that time), but she is supposed to be there too **giggles**, it's only her voice (is it?) and a picture of a new Kaori, blond and all (it is not the same actress, but it shows so fast so people can only wonder).
I teared up a little bit with Yabushita-san remembering his wife (they loved each other so much **sobs**) and when Yuriko and Taniguchi were in the abandoned little hut. There are only like 3 times in total, counting both dorama and SP, where Yuriko cries, and all these times were touching.
And I don't know if it is because it was the last time I was going to see them, but I kind of liked the song at the end. The OST was so sweet as well.
A perfect sequel for the dorama. Actually, it feels like Episode 11. It is a MUST! for people who loved the dorama.
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Why? Because there is no awkwardness, no blushings, no exciting moments where one of them is thinking "does he/she likes me?". It is about honest love, where both characters get to know each other, like to quarrel and pretend they don't like each other, until someone else point the truth to both of them.
I honestly didn't think they suited each other: Yuriko is too robotic, methodical, and doesn't know when and how to read the mood. On the other hand, Takumi is a nervous hikkikimori. Do I need to add more? The last two people who want to find love, or expect for someone to love them. It took me a while to warm towards them, more specifically, it was episode 6 that changed everything. I find that episode the best, since it moved me to tears. I guess everything that relates to parents is poignant for me. But not only that, it is the episode where both Yuriko and Taniguchi start to change for better. By the end, the changes may not be OH WOW, WHAT A CHANGE, but they were significant, enough to make them more likable but still staying true to their essence.
Some situations were so funny. Like Taniguchi cooking for the family.
Cast: (9/10) Anne and Hasegawa Hiroki were perfect in their roles. I could actually see Anne as a robotic girl, and Hasegawa as a neurotic hikkikomori. I wish their respective other love interests weren't so attractive. How in the world someone as punk and pretty as Kaori (Kuninaka Ryoko) could hold a 15-year crush on someone like Takumi? How in the world someone as attractive and nice guy as Washio-kun (Nakajima Yuta) could fall in love with such a strange girl? These two may have been the nicest love interest both weirdos could find, but I couldn't root for them at all. And ok, Washio-kun may be an "ii-otoko" (as Takumi likes to say) but he was also kind of silly and also a wimp. What the need to cry at the end?? It was too much... not even Kaori cried.
This is the 3rd CURRENT drama I am watching with Matsushige Yutaka, he is like an Uncle to me XD Everything he does, he does it well. He does some funniest expressions without being too slapstick.
Takumi's mother (Fubuki Jun) is the Dorama Mother... I guess because she is perfect for that role.
I found Yuriko's mother (Wakui Emi) a bit annoying in the first couple of episodes, but later on I liked her role. I love that not only Yuriko likes to talk to her, but her father as well. Isn't that cute? She is dead, btw. She plays a ghost-like.
Music: (5/10) OMG, the OP song was ridiculous, but guess what, it totally match the dorama. It is silly and olfashioned, just like the characters of Yabushita and Taniguchi. The ED song was better, though.
I absolutely love that this was set in Yokohama, such a beautiful city! In Christmas time it looks sooo pretty. BEAUTIFUL.
The ending was good, but for anyone who wants more -like me-, the SP is a must.
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This review may contain spoilers
I wish I could un-watch this so I could watch it again, but after crossing out some of my to-be-watched doramas in my list. I don't think I have ever or will ever seen a more wonderful dorama as this one. Everything was perfect (the cast -my, that cast!-, the story, the setting, the soundtrack).**POSSBILE SPOILERS BELOW**
I don't feel like this was a 2nd season. It was pretty much like an extension of the 1st season, so it is kind of hard to rate them separately. Maybe the only and biggest difference is that in 2nd season, Jin-sensei is not struggling so much with medicine and it repercussions in history. Since the photography has vanished, and his actions don't affect Miki's life anymore, he doesn't have any worry about the "what will happen if...". He is happy living in Edo period, he is happy with the Jindo-you (?), he is happy being friends with Ryoma-san. If he can save Ryoma-san from his assassination, he will do it, without a doubt, no matter the consequences.
Only in that aspect I prefer the 1st season to the 2nd. JIN has more medical cases, there were more surgeries and wow, awesome scenes that looked, if not entirely realistic, very good to the point of make me feel boneless. I love how Jin-sensei was so much aware of every one of his actions and what would happen if he did XX thing. 2nd season is more about political issues than medical ones. While 1st season is about penicillin, 2nd season is about battles and revolutions.
There is also a stronger bromance between Jin-sensei and Ryoma-san. Talk about bromance! Because Ryoma-san's assassination is around the corner, Jin-sensei is thinking about his welfare almost all the time. The love triangle between Jin-sensei, Nokaze and Saki-san is almost non-existent. Nokaze finds out the truth about Jin-sensei and Miki, she meets a foreign guy and is married in an episode (out of nowhere). Nokaze encourages the love between Jin-sensei and Saki-san, despite loving him as well.
I've read some reviews where people complained about Saki-san rejecting him. To me it made sense. She did not know when or if he would disappear to go back to the future. She decided to be a good doctor first, which was her dream. On the other hand, I've never felt that Jin-sensei truly loved Saki-san. Cared for her, yes. Loved her as a friend, yes. Loved her as a lover, no. I wouldn't want Saki-san to have Jin-sensei' heart half-arsed. And in a way, it is good, because Jin loved Miki, but he also loved Saki.
Which leads to... isn't their love story almost the same as Inuyasha and Kagome? The love triangle Jin/Miki/Saki = Inuyasha/Kagome/Kikyo. Jin/Inuyasha cannot forget their first love (Miki/Kikyo) which I admire because that is what loyalty is about, but at the same time, I pity Saki/Kagome for loving this fool guy so much and for never been able to have their hearts at 100%.
I don't know yet how to feel about the final chapter. The romantic in me is screaming internally in despair. I have to admit I got a bit tearful (who wouldn't?). It was a touching scene, that part where Jin is reading the letter from the past. And also when he was reading these books and found the photographs of the doctors in Jindo-you. I also wanted to say "minna..." with tears in my eyes...
On the other hand, the practical me says that it couldn't have ended in any other way. It was good, it was convenient (the thing about Miki). It was a bittersweet ending (more bitter than sweet).
About the acting. Ayase Haruka is truly a wonderful actress. She has "the vein" that only exceptional actresses have (like Angie). When she is struggling with her feelings, or when she is suffering, "the vein" (on her forehead) appears. She can cry so nicely, and she can smile so angelically as well. It is impossible not to feel empathy with her.
While in season 1 the acting of Miki (Nokaze) impressed me, her role in 2nd season is less prominent and she pales somewhat with her previous acting. Although I admit that she was superb when her baby was born. I don't think in real life anyone would have endured such a painful experience but her tears and determination to have her baby made me remember the Nokaze I fell in love with in Season 1.
Other actress that impressed me was Saki's mother. This actress, Asou Yumi, has such the face of a mother who had to go through so many painful things in her life. She looked a bit tough, especially on her children but also always on the verge of tears. The episode where she was sick was excellent, and she deserved an award for her performance.
My favorite actor has to be, maybe again, Kiritani Kenta. He is so funny without being a comedy character. His accent -the way he lisps-, his bulging eyes when he is shocked. I also love his character, how much he was into medicine, as well as all the other fellows in the little clinic.
No doubt it is the best dorama I've seen so far. True, I have others I liked as much as this one (probably I love Nodame Cantabile a bit more) but in terms of quality, clothing, setting, story, acting, this is the best there is. The kind of show all people should watch. I don't think there will be one single person who wouldn't love this dorama. It has medicine, politic, good battles, a bit of romance, friendship, family matters, Japan history (not sure of the accuracy but overall I learned a lot).
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I realize that many rom-com dramas have kinda the same plot, which is: marriage. Dramas that I loved, like Nigeru wa Haji da ga Yaku ni Tatsu (Married as a Job) or Kazoku no Katachi, or the classic Kekkon Dekinai Otoko. But this one was so exhausting! The girls think and talk about men only, and they have the worst taste in them. Not only one of them, Kaori (Eikura Nana) is the Other Woman of her ex-boyfriend (who proclaims he loves both of them) but also Koyuki (Oshima Yuko) is the mistress of a married man. I thought Koyuki would have been the most sensible one in the trio, but this tells you that you can judge by the cover.
The most bearable one of the trio was Rinko, played by Yoshitaka Yuriko. At least she has different boyfriends to find out what she really wants. But the final episode made me hate her, grrrr. What a stupid girl, but I guess this kind of decision is expected in a tv show. Good, goofy guys never win in cinema/tv :((
I liked Sakaguchi Kento (KEY-san or Kinpatsu), but unfortunately, in this drama, his character was insufferable. Why did he have to be so meddlesome? Why did he have to be patronizing the girls, who just wanted to have fun? Why was he always judging the girls? He was also a "what-if" guy, and I didn't care about his past and his wife, he was the worst and I hated him. And his stupid hair.
I can't believe that with such a colorful cast, the drama was so mediocre. The girls were likable as friends (as women, they were the worst, and the most childish. Make up your mind, girls! And stop acting so immaturely!). There was a good chemistry between them. I liked Oshima Yuko, first time I see her acting. Eikura Nana was ok, I guess, always dull, poor girl. She is so pretty though, and after reading she was pregnant in real life, I couldn't help noticing her bump (and in the final episodes, she has the habit to touch her belly). Yoshitaka... i never liked her, to be honest. As an actress, she is ok, but in real life she is insufferable, thinking she is sooo open-minded and fun. BLEH.
The guys, though... Why in the world Suzuki Ryohei and Sakaguchi Kento were in this messy drama! Although it was cute to see them reunited, after "Ore Monogatari" (My Love Story!)... but that's another story... How in the world Tanaka Kei agreed to played the role of a married man who has an affair!
The final episode... omg, so bad. Awful. Kaori didn't learn her lesson, and Rinko makes the stupidest decision ever. I think the first part was a bit good, since any 30-year-old single woman can relate to the girls (being invited to weddings and still being single, etc). Oh, and another con: at first it was cute, but then it got on my nerves: the stupids talking-vegetable. So lame!
What redeems this crappy show? The setting: beautiful, gorgeous Tokyo. The clothes: very Japanese-like. The fashion: I paid extra attention to the nails (and currently, I am painting my own nails more or less like Kaori and Rinko did). The ending song: a catchy song by Perfume. The opening song: cute and fun.
All the other: terrible. I don't have any doubt to remove this file from my computer, for good!
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