ACTING/CAST: I liked Udomsilp Sutatta in Hormones the Series as Toei, unfortunately she plays the exact same character in this: the girl that is so dense and clueless about boys that she can't tell when he's into her and spends the entire series misunderstanding EVERYTHING.
MUSIC: I liked the music, and it's always fun when they have a concert in these shows.
REWATCH VALUE: Maybe. The hilarious scenes had me laughing hard. But, since this story is recycled into Senior Secret Love: Puppy Honey, I might rewatch that instead.
OVERALL: Romantic, some of it was super funny, can be slow in parts, and frustrating (communication issues), but it was worth watching.
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Based on a true story, the characters are fleshed out people who support and believe in each other. Sato Takeru portrays Tokuzu so well, I can't believe he is the same guy who plays the assassin swordsman in Rurouni Kenshin. I have a lot of respect this actor who can perform such demanding action scenes and then do such a different role so well. Starting off portraying the younger troublesome Tokuzo, he convincingly shows the character's development as he becomes a mature man with great responsibilities during turbulent times.
There is a touching love story, but it is not the focus of the the drama. Foodies will enjoy the attention given to food preparation and the drama and trials of becoming a chef and working in a kitchen. Though it is a historical drama about a chef, anyone can relate to it because really it is about finding your dream, striving for it and the family and loved ones that support you along the way. It reminds you to think about how you are living and working and whether you are putting your heart into everything you do.
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This review may contain spoilers
I may not be made for silly rom-com. Cute rom-com, yes. And unfortunately, due many things, this drama, although it is realistic in some aspects, it is also very silly in the romance section. I have always looked at this drama with reserve yet with curiosity, and after the lovely "We Married as a Job", I wanted to watch another cute rom-com.**SLIGHT SPOILERS**
Story: (5.5/10) on paper, everything looked good. The company was interesting, the fact that the hero is a genious who started from nothing and became this rich, intelligent, powerful president of the company was interesting. I didn't feel the "bromance" of Tohru and Asahina till the very last episode. It is understandable that Asahina was green with envy; too bad he reacted the way he did, but I liked that Tohru forgave him very quickly, and was only hurt in like, 2 episodes. The story of Makoto, on the other hand... that she gave that fake identity (his mother's name) was low but luckily, that was resolved quickly and also, Tohru forgave her pretty quickly. That is the best quality of Tohru, he wasn't a resentful person.
On the other hand, the romance... First of all, i hate love triangles, which there are (2) in this drama. Tohru and Makoto like each other, but Asahina sister likes Tohru and Asahina brother likes Makoto. Fortunately, Asahina sister (Yoko) is not an evil bitch, she is actually mature, nice and likes Makoto. Unfortunately, she kisses him twice, while Makoto gets one kiss only in the entire drama. WHAT.
Asahina brother (Kosuke) isn't really in love with Makoto, thank Heavens. He just likes her, and I think he kind of wants her only because he sees Tohru is interested in her.
About Tohru and Makoto... omg, terrible romance. The same kind that happens in HYD, only that Makoto is not strong nor has any personality as Makino has. Tohru is such a jerk with her! Treats her like an inferior, mocks her constantly, belittles her career, her ability in other stuffs. Thinks of her as "idiot" only because she can't find any job and because she is not the genius he is. Still, she likes him since Day 1. Why? I can't see any redeemable quality about him except maybe for the last episodes. There is one scene (Episode 8 I think) where both Asahina and Tohru yell at her in the meeting room, telling her that she is worthless and won't work with them anyway starting next week. And she just stays there, weeping and not saying anything. Ugh! Made me furious. I almost quit after that.
Seriously, it is HER that does most of the work, trying to get closer to him. And what does he do? Push her aside, most of the times. Laugh AT her, most of the times. Only when he is left in ruin, after Asahina's treason, he sees her value. Bastard!
The last 3 episodes are the best, since Tohru acts more like a human instead of a monster. Same with Asahina. But nevertheless, Tohru still got on my nerves... why the hell he looks for her after she says goodbye to the company and disappears? He goes to her natal town, he runs from here to there looking for her, finally finds her, and what, does he tells her he loves her? Heck no, again to square one. What an idiot.
So yeah, the romance is terrible. If I were Makoto I would have stopped crying since Episode 1 (she does cry a lot) and avoid this guy. But well, no wonder I am still single **shrugs** Also, I hate that, after struggling to get a proper job for a long time, she quits it all to be with him. By doing what? Copies. WTH, she has a degree on lab analysis or whatever her career is, and she wastes a couple of oportunities just to be with an asshole who doesn't treat her like she deserves (until the very end). On the other hand, there are no boring, dragging moments. It is easy to watch (except maybe for the occasions where you want to punch the guy and shake the girl)
Cast: (9/10) the cast is good. The match between Oguri Shun and Ishihara Satomi is nice. I like that both of them are black-haired, and that he is so much taller than her (she is no midget). Everybody was good, I can't complain. My favorite maybe me Aibu Saki (Yoko) but that's only because her character was nice, and likeable while being the rival. (I've read bad comments about her only because she was the rival and kissed Tohru twice... like WTH? She likes him too, he likes her, he is single, why can't she try? And once she realizes she doesn't stand a chance, she steps aside... Is she a whore because of that? Ugh)
Oh, and criminal-face Ayano Go has a small role. He is a stupid bastard in this one, no wonder XD Not evil, but a bitch. Suits him so well, once again. I am impressed by this guy, truly.
Music: (6/10) There is only one, and it is repeated over and over and over again, till you can't listen to it anymore. Still, it suits the drama, giving it a fun, girly, anime-ish feeling.
Cinematography: (9/10) the office is so spacious and vibrant, we get to see also the beautiful streets of Tokyo. The colors are nice, catchy, and clothes are pretty (Makoto's style is specially beautiful, very Japanese-like with the neat blouse and big skirts).
Overrated IMO.
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But the plot was very weak. Everything that happened was soooo Latin Soap Opera-like:
- The two main characters don't like each other at first.
- There is a love triangle.
- There is the evil, rich, beautiful rival, who makes the hero believed he slept with her (at least, it wasn't a fake pregnancy, but I think it was only due lack of time).
- The hero changes and realizes he loves the girl.
- He makes sure to tell her in a party, in front of hundreds of people.
- Wedding.
MEH. And sorry Ohkura, but the guy you interpreted was a jerk. He did not know that he actually did not sleep with the "evil woman". But I guess he would never tell Saya about it, and hello, that is cheating. It was not like they took a break and he was a free guy. That bothered me immensely.
Not my kind of "romance".
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I liked the characters so much. The cast was OK, but not perfect. But the characters were very likable! Let's start with Horikita Maki. I don't find her a good actress, to be honest. She is very stiff. Her talent, however, is that she is extremely charming. Maybe she was extra kawaii in this dorama, or maybe she improved in her acting, but I think this was her best role so far -not that I have seen many of her works, mind you.- Chisato was a very likable character: a bit tough, a bit soft, and not annoying at all! So different from her role in HanaKimi. Unlike in other doramas, I understand why the boys ended up loving her.
The boys... At first none of them make a good impression. Takeru (Okada Yoshinori) is a yankee that is hard on Chisato since Day 1. Satoru (Seto Koji) is a hikikomori with the worst kind of hairstyle, which was a shame because he has an adorable face -though a bit feminine-. Akira (the youngest son) was a bit stiff and it seemed like he was going to be a brat. Masaru (Yamamoto Yusuke) is a model who has a woman-phobia, and looked like a drag-queen. Sho (Osamu Mukai) is a playboy who likes money only, and is father of a boy. The older brother takes longer to show, only bits here and there, and at first he looked like he was going to be trouble.
The secondary characters were also charming: from Kyoko, Sinzo-san's (father of the boys and husband of Chisato for a month until he dies) secretary, to the kogal that works at the store. I have to say that the actress who played Kyoko (Takashima Reiko) is so elegant! And looks like an older version of Sawajiri Erica...
It was strange to see Horikita Maki with that guy Yamamato (Sinzo's other secretary), now that they are married. But well, his role was ok and he grew on me. Kind of.
So the challenges that Chisato had to face were silly, so what? I loved the Mother's Goals. Not so much at first, but from #3 or so, when they boys decided to help her, it became funny and entertaining. Slowly all boys started to be nice and sweet. Since they are almost all the time together, it was easy to see and accept their bond. I liked them all, even Akira (it is just that the boy could not act, poor child), but my favorites were Sho and Takeru. Sho because Osamu Mukai looked his best here; he was such a handsome guy! And Takeru because he was damn funny, and his bromance with Sho were just the best. Next in line is, surprisingly, Fuu. He seemed very disagreeable at first, but actually he was a nice guy! I don't know if it was for that, but now I like Kaname Jun more than I used to.
There is a lot of bromance (Sho/Takeru and Masaru/Satoru). There is a lot of fanservice (the guys spent most of their time in their spa, ergo, half naked). There are lot of scenes that could have been cheesy, but were not (all the times that they referred to them being a family. Or Chisato remembering her time with Sinzo-san). There is also a bit of incest, if it can be called like that (Chisato and her father. Three of her "sons" falling for her). Lots of unrealistic moments (Kyoko showing up from nowhere. Inoue the ninja maid. Hidden treasures. The castle itself). A bit of allusions to other doramas (actually, just one that I remember, and it is at the final episode where Yamamoto Yusuke poses as his character in HanaKimi... I loved that part!). And there is actual romance, not just an allusion to it (TWO kisses! and many moments together
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There are a lot of: tears, clenched fists, yells, listening while hidden, fights, overreact. Most of the tears are lame, and in group. The only guy that moved me with his tears was Mizusawa, the gay guy (poor actor, is he fated to play gay roles all his life? First Takumi series, now this...) I liked his story, how he was rejected and how the guys reacted. Not because it was good, but because it was the most real scene I saw in the whole dorama. The guys in the team were scared to be labeled as gays as well, and were a little bit cold towards him. Of course everything ends well, with them accepting Mizusawa and blah, blah, and again, with a predictable scene where all of them are crying and asking Mizusawa to please not quit the team.
The listening behind doors are mostly done by the teachers, more specially the one played by Kuninaka Ryoko. I thought Akira's role was going to be good, but alas, he ended up being the cliched good teacher who touches his student's hearts (why? he didn't spend that much time with them, he wasn't prepared to be their coach. But all of them accepted and liked him enough to shed tears only because he "worked hard" by researching for their performance). It was silly, and he looked even more silly because he looked like Dave Grohl in "Learn to Fly" or any one of his videos where he plays dumb characters.
Overreacts... gawd, these guys liked to throw punches and kicks just because. It was so stupid. Like for example, one of them is walking down the streets, there is a group of yankees, one of them bumps his shoulder and the result? A fight. Most of the chapters ended with some of them with bruises/blood in their faces (the ending involves with ALL of them with bruises).
Yamamoto Yusuke surprised me with this role... in a bad way. He spends most of the time shouting. Most of the time glaring. But so what, he is always the good guy who helps and supports his friends **eye-roll** The villains were so cartoonish, with their "evil" smile and of course, they all redeemed themselves at the end.
Kaku Kento and Sato Jiro... the only two characters who were the comedic relief, so of course that involved A LOT of overacting. Minna, this wasn't an anime. This wasn't a comedy dorama. They looked stupid instead of funny.
Tomiura Satoshi, who played the cute character... yes, he is cute and I wanted to pinch his cheeks a couple of times, but gawd, his voice! Does he really talk like that, like he is 5 years-old? he was like 19 in that time, he couldn't have NOT broken his voice yet.
Seto Koji... I don't have any complains, he (along with Daito Shunsuke) were probably the best. Although he did cry too much for my liking. Gawd, did they have to cry so much??
I am sure that Daito and Kaku Kento were picked for their talent in acting only, since they barely did any tumbling. In general, the tumbling was super amateurish. But overall, since the actors did them all by themselves, it was, if not impressive, at least remarkable.
11 episodes felt too long... I fast-forwarded the last 2 episodes. This wasn't for me.
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And it is... in some ways. First, the school is completely ridiculous. No teachers that we can see of, and the students do what they want. Also, some actors that were in HanaKimi are also in Meichan, like Nanba-sempai, Oscar and Hibari-san.
And there is where the similarities end.
It is true that, like it happened to me while watching HanaKimi, I kept thinking "this is so ridiculous". But with HanaKimi I was thinking this while I was laughing. Instead, with Meichan, every time I had this thought was with a straight face and rolling my eyes.
Let's start with our heroine, Mei-chan.
While Horikita Maki can't act, and while she was kind of annoying as Mizuki, Eikura Nana was dull as Mei-chan. Maki is a bad actress, but she has charisma. Eikura Nana is a better actress but she was so dull. And her character was exactly like those girls in shoujo manga I hate so much: so nice, so naive. She cries for nothing. She gives up when there is a problem. She constantly runs away. Two nice guys love her, no idea why. The villain of the story tried to ruin her life several times, yet she "forgives" her and wants to be her friend. The sidekick of the villain shot an arrow to her love, yet she "forgives" her. All people that are mean to her, she forgives them. Arggg!
Another thing that bothered me about her, which is not completely related to her, is the lenght of her skirt. Yes, Eikura Nana is tall and has nice legs, but she is supposed to be a nerdy, innocent, kind of silly girl! Instead, she wears the shortest skirt in school.
Her childhood friend, played by Sato Takeru, confesses his love for her. Yet every time he says something like "I will always be by your side", what is her reply? "Mameshiba...." (his nickname). I swear, this happens almost every episode:
- Kento: I will fight for you, I will not give up.
- Mei: Mameshiba....
- Kento: I will always love you. Maybe sometime you will love me too.
- Mei: Mameshiba....
- Kento: I will go to England to become a better butler to be with you forever.
- Mei: Mameshiba....
And when he decides to leave to England, she gets mad. Doesn't say goodbye. But oh wait, she regrets her decision at the last minute, and of course everyone, including her awesome butler, have to do the impossible so she can get to the airport to have the above kind of conversation again.
All I have to say about Sato Takeru is... dude, that orange hair! Seriously, it was awful. Looked like a mushroom or something. And he looks like a 90-year-old man in a boy body. The bags under his eyes! Please, eat more! He was pouting and stomping all the time like a little boy. He did not have a chance against his cool brother, who at least behave like a man.
The headmistress was a joke, and not the good kind. All she did was read manga (really???). Well, the whole school was a joke, actually. What with those four mean girls who were always crossing arms? Who were they to have so much power? And they acted so bad. Like, BAAAAD. Lucia-sama was another cartoonish evil character: supposedly fragile and beautiful, but disguising her mean motives. Yawn, at the end she "redeems" herself. How? Only by trying to commit suicide, but wait! Sweet Mei comes to save her and tell her she wants them to be friends **eyerolls**. The other girls were all 2-dimensional: the tsundere, the fatty, the rich brat, the weirdo, etc. None of them very likeable.
Not one moment I believed the bond between Mei and her classmates. Why would they? Because Mei "helped" them to keep their butlers? There was ZERO chemistry between the girls. And there were some good actresses. But yikes, no friendship at all there. I did not feel like they enjoyed shooting the scenes. The "best" of them (and at "best" I am referring to the most tolerable) was the little girl. The others were mediocre.
I found the idea of a girl and her butler very creepy, not romantic nor funny at all. These girls lived among girls only, except for their butlers. Of course some of them would develop romantic feelings for their butlers (which was prohibited). And how could these young, capable, handsome man be happy serving a spoiled rich girl? Some of them have medical abilities. Yet they were enslaved by these girls. Yes, ENSLAVED. They had to risk their lives for their mistress, they had to give up their own lives to serve their mistress. It was a very weird concept... The butlers did not own their lives; their mistresses did. There is a scene where Mei and Lucia-sama have a duel and the one who wins will keep Rihito-sama, like he is some kind of dog or something. In fact, Lucia-sama claims that she will have him forever and never, that she will own him.... Ehhhhh?
As for Hiro playing Rihito-sama, the perfect butler... While he looked very good as a butler, and he is very handsome with a model-like pose, I wasn't convinced with his acting. He squints his eyes very much (like he did in Kuroshitsuji).
In fact, the only one I think was very good was Osamu Mukai, as the evil butler. He looked good instead of ridiculous in his outfit. Other people, like the evil guy from "Liar Game", can look like he is cosplaying, but not Osamu Mukai. He nailed it in that white suit and white wig.
In summary, this dorama failed big as a comedy. Not a comedy, more like a parody but again, failed as one. It is more dramatic, but the silly kind of drama. The villains were cartoonish, the jokes were lame, there was zero chemistry between the actors, the acting was very bad. The dorama was saved by Osaku Mukai and the presentation of the show + the song. Oh, and for fans of the movie "BECK" almost all the gang is here, except the drummer and the rapper XD
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At first I was not impressed with Ryo; he seemed to sullen and with one expression only. Besides, I've read his character was made-up; he did not exist in the real Aya's life. But eventually, I warmed towards him, and the few times he cried, it was impossible not to be moved; by his tears (my, one tear after another; he can really cry) and by this doomed love. Honestly, most of the times, I am never moved by doomed loves, but it was an exception with Aya and Asou-kun. Every time they were together I was thinking "why? why can't they be happy?".
My favorites actresses were (besides Sawajiri Erika, of course) Yakushimaru Hiroko as the mother and Narumi Riko as Ako, the sister. Poor mother, she has to face this disease with a encouraging smile for her daughter, and she had to gave in many things. I can't imagine her pain. She was the first to notice that her daughter had a problem, she was the first to know the terrible truth, and she had to stand up in school against selfish parents.
As for Ako, who is a tsundere, was a supportive younger sister, and the episode where she talks to her brother (who was ashamed to have a disabled sister) was beyond moving (I had a big lump in my throat... to be honest, that lump did not go away for the entire 11 episodes).
I love this story. I love the soundtrack (all songs, including the one that the students sing twice). Each episode ended with the words of the real Aya, taken out from her diary, + pictures of her in school, in bed, in her wheelchair; with her family, friends...
Highly recommended. And be prepared to shed multiple tears.
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So my final word is: This is one of the best drama's ever produced!
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It was refreshing to see the old volley guys inside of an university right now, and their parts always made me laugh. But the main history is boring and its not deep enough.
On the other side, the actors was the reason I keep watching until the end. Their skills are amazing and I will follow the main characters into their new dramas for now on.
This is not a drama I would like to rewatch, but its a good small history when you just want to relax a little bit.
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The first thing that I felt in love with was the music. I am no person that is much interested about a OST but I seriously loved this one! It is a perfect mix between modern and historical sounding songs. It was amazing!
The cast was amazing too. The acting seemed really natural, nothing was out of place and I feeled the emotions they tried to show with their acting. Every scene felt real and not like acting and I was astonished about how good it was.
The story was absolutely fascinating and thrilling, I was not one second bored while watching this drama. I had a few unanswered questions at the end tho, and that is the teeny tiny aspect that bothered me, but aside that it was really, really good.
Maybe rewatching this drama will answer my questions, so that is worth a try.
So you can say that this drama is definitely worth a watch! If you like this kind of genre, it is almost a must-watch in my eyes!
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I loved the chemistry between all the actors and the camraderie of the characters who lived in the Sejong Apartment. There were lots of beautiful food shots, so if you love food and eating you'll be salivating over the dishes. I even thought the dishes that I would never try in a million years looked tasty! LOL!
The characters relationships are the main driving force of the show more than the story itself.
It's a good watch, light on the romance, heavy on the food porn. I don't know that I would watch it again, but I would watch YDJ play Gu Dae Young in another installment again in a heartbeat! :)
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Their relationship was so cringy and cute but at the same time SADDDD????????????. The way they don't know how long they'll get to be together and their heart wrecking bc they don't know what'll happen to each other was just.....*sigh. Unbelievable. The ending....omg!!! U have no idea how sad I was. I literally cried so much.
This was the first drama I've watched with lee Jong suk and I gotta admit....he's pretty good. Han hye joo....this was also my first time seeing her in a drama and idk....she's OKEY??? Idk if it's just in this drama but when she cries......SHE DOESNT HAVE TEARS!!! (She does for some scenes) but still.....I kinda got annoyed. Other than that....she was alg. The supporting leads were the BOMB!!! I just can't not leave them out.
I would love to rewatch this drama. Like srsly....I would. But I usually don't rewatch dramas. This might be the problem for other pp as well.....but bc I don't have enough time!!!! I mean....how many new dramas are coming out right??? I just can't miss them out.
I really liked this drama but idk....why I'm giving it a rating of 8. I can't give my reason but it just seems right there.
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