Reviews

My first court room based kdrama. Like the others I've seen before it, this one dealt with a lot of serious issues. Is it right to go after someone who wronged you and to what extent? Do people become monsters resulting from personal tragedies? Or do they become strong, get over past traumas and become successful? Murder and murderous characters- this one had a serious villain. Even compared to Signal, which dealt with serial killers and other sordid crimes, ICHYV had a major villain whose story lasted all 18 episodes- so you have an episode or two dealing with individual court room cases aside from an overall arc. This worked for me because I like watching episodic series and my anticipation just kept increasing from watching the main conflict get built up.

Also, just like Healer which I've seen before this, ICHYV is refreshingly light hearted despite its serious themes. The interaction between the characters (and not just the main couple) is probably the most heartwarming I've seen. It was pure joy to watch the alternating rivalry and friendship between lawyers Jang Hye Sung (female lead) and Seo Do Yoon, which was based on opposing ideals related to matters of justice as well as a personal event that happened between them as school girls. It was fun to watch Park Soo Ha (male lead) and Cha Gwan Woo compete for Jang Hye Sung's affections, all the while developing a grudging respect for each other despite being rivals in love. Just was well- the side characters were great. The way respected lawyer Shin slowly learned to respect Jang Hye Sung in return despite coming of a bad start, the way Judge Kim behaved in the court room and in the elevator when caught between their bickering...it was a strange thing for me to cry during a tragic event in one episode, then later burst out laughing at some character's antic in the next. Strange, but not unpleasant :D

There was also a supernatural twist here which explains the series title. The male lead can read minds. I expected this sort of thing to detract from the plot but it thankfully didn't. Instead, it enhanced the story -particularly the way the court cases were handled, as well as the character relationships- the ability was never a secret on guy's part, so it was interesting to watch how the couple worked with and around it.

This is my first noona romance and so far, I really enjoyed it. Normally, I prefer pairings where the guy character is a bit older, or if they're the same age...but Park Soo Ha and Jang Hye Sung were adorable, and I love the connection they had with each other and how it helped them face the villain. Whether or not viewers will appreciate it, or see any chemistry between them- the one thing that can't be denied is that all the characters are so likeable that it doesn't matter if the romance works or not.

Another point in this drama's favor is that the female characters are quite strong. They are far from perfect but their flaws make them endearing. I really admired Jang Hye Sung- who is probably now one of my favorite drama heroines. She started off as this grossly irresponsible, messy creature who only cared for money but she later develops into this amazing lawyer who actually cares for her clients and can deliver a most moving speech. Another character I surprisingly liked was Seo Do Yoon. I normally hate her type of character- the selfish type who tries to justify her behavior based on parental issues (in this case, daddy issues) but the way she was written made her actions believable. I don't think the things she did were right...but I could understand why she did them. Did I think she deserved to go unpunished, plot wise? No...but I rooted for her to atone for what she did and get better. In ways, she could even be seen as more interesting than Hye Sung but I won't do the comparison thing here as both ladies were amazing...and they worked great together as well as opposed to one other.

If there's one thing I didn't like about ICHYV it's how I would have approached some of the court cases. I also didn't understand why the sentencing seemed relatively light for heavier crimes (only 10 years for murder??!) Although the lawyers managed to come up with interesting arguments and win when they needed to, I could think up of better ways to address the jury and argue certain things out. But I don't think we ought to expect the intricacies of a Hollywood court drama anyway- the cases here are relatively basic but I think it's because the focus (the focus here and in kdramas in general) has always been on the love story as well as character growth rather than the complexity of crime and the justice system.

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I will be short with the review.

Story : This drama is mainly about four third rate musicians friendship, group struggles and their individual stories with a little bit of romance in it.

The romance here is very weird . It forms a near cycle missing one link. you will understand when you watch the drama. as far as J dramas go Quartet is a very good drama with slice of life vibes in it. The cinematography is good with snow covered locations. The 4 lead's acting is very good.

Pros :

- Good story
- Good acting
- Music is very good
- end Title song
- Light comedy

As far as cons go, the romance here is little weird and unsuccesful. Not much to say as this isn't a drama which you pull your hair out for, but a very feel good drama you watch on a slow day.

This drama is worth a 8.5 / 10.

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Another Crime drama from Japan, surprise surprise! Okay, I will admit right away, this isn't my personal cup of tea when it comes to drama genres. Despite that, I have seen my fair share. If you have an interest in Japense television it's hard to avoid. So, how was Ishi no Mayu compared to the slew of shows out there? Well, let's get down to it shall we?


Music
Very moody music that in my opinion captures the atmosphere very well. Many tracks had that mysterious sound which helped enhanced the scenes and the more action oriented parts had appropriate it's music. The sound design was for the most parts solid, and I liked that many scenes had a sparing use of music at all. Which in my opinion works great for certain scenes. All in all I would say slightly above avarage music and music design, but nothing you will remember.


Acting & Cast
In my opinion this is where the show shines brightest. Kimura Fumino stars as Detective Toko Kisaragi, a rookie cop. She does a very solid job in portraying this insecure yet proud girl who enters working enviroment filled with strong willed men. Since the show is very short, characters are not very fleshed out. Despite this Fumino delivers a performance that makes us care about her character. Aoki Munetaka plays her "cold on the outside" partner and he is just outstanding. A more believable cop you have to search a while to find on the small screen. Even though his character also lacks much backround and characterization. Solid supporting cast, a few missteps though here and there. Special shoutout to Watanabe Ikkei who also does a great job. Would have loved to see more women in the cast.


Story
This is where the show misfired big time for me. Premise wise it sounded very interesting and after the first episode I was a bit intrigued. However it fell flat on it's face with a very predicatble and unoriginal conclusion. I would like to go into detail but there would be too much spoilers. For some parts the show held very tightly to realism but then other parts where really silly and over the top. It clashed in a very bad way. However the execution of the predicatble storyline was pretty competent for the most part, otherwise my story score would have fallen even lower.


So would I recommend this show? Actually, yes. But ONLY if you already like crime dramas. With 5 episodes it is very short for one thing. The cast manages to make you care for what's happening to these underwritten characters. And it has decent music. Don't expect anything you haven't seen before though in terms of story and character motivations etc.

My final score for this show will be 6,5/10. Slightly above avarage. Many Japanese crime dramas are very predictable and unoriginal story wise, just like Ishi no Mayu. But here they had a great cast of characters that I would not mind revisiting. Will I watch the sequel? Yes. But ONLY because I really like Kimura Fumino.

*This is not a bad score! I base my scores like this. 1/10 is garbage, 5/10 is avarage and 10/10 is a masterpiece.

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Pink and Gray is an amazing movie that sadly, is also very underrated.
I watched this movie months ago, and I still can't stop thinking about it. It's one of those movies that really make you more conscious of what's surrounding you.
This movie contains one MAJOR plot twist which is what made me love this movie. To be specific (no spoiler ahead), until the first 40-50 minutes it was fairly interesting but after that, it became mindblowing, to the point where I started screaming and jumping around non-stop.
The actors did their job so splendidly that I felt like I was part of the movie myself.
Watch it and you'll love it, trust me.

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I wanted to love this show so much, I really did, but there were parts that I just couldn't reconcile myself with, unfortunately. What I did love was So Jung Suk, who has very quickly become one of my favourite Korean actors, and his character Kang Sun Woo was in turn gruff and heart meltingly sweet. I thought Park Bo Young turned in an excellent performance as the introverted Na Bong Sun, as well as possessed Na Bong Sun, switching characters so seamlessly as to make the viewer never in doubt as to who was in control. The show did have a bit of a 'Coffee Prince' vibe, which I did like to a point, until it was almost a rip off at the end. I liked the supernatural elements, and villian was sufficiently creepy, and there were definitely a lot of fun moments as well. The chemistry between the leads was lovely as well, and I was rooting for San Woo and Bong Sun the whole way. My biggest issue was mainly in the first bulk of the show, was with ghost Shin Soon Ae herself. She was incredibly annoying, and I hated that even after Na Bong Sun agreed to the possession, she still had very little agency. Worst of all, was that Sun Woo himself never realises that he is actually dealing with two women. I feel that the show danced the line of informed consent, and even though the show tries to resolve the issue towards the end, unlike Sun Woo, I never got past it.

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A bad Taiga. I was actually really looking forward to it. However the script was horrible and ruined everything for the interesting roles I was looking forward to.

There were some good performances by the supporting cast like Takeuchi Yuko as Yodo and Kohinata as Hideyoshi or Kusakari as Masayuki however the storyline was so uneven.

Kuroki Haru as Ume (based on Hotta Sakubei's sister Nobushige's first wife) and Matsuoka Mayu as Haru (based on Otani Yoshitsugu's daughter, Nobushige's fourth wife) did the best with what was given to them.

Sadly Mayu's role was treated like dirt by the script writers despite playing the most significant and youngest of Nobushige's wives, the daughter of Otani Yoshitsugu, mother of Daisuke and developer of the Sanadahimo. I was so looking forward to Yoshitsugu's daughter since historically her life was full of drama and historically she was Nobushige's support during Kudoyama and Osaka.

There was way too much focus on Yukimura's youth and Nagasawa Masami's largely fictional character based on the second of Nobushige's wives (Takanashi Naiki's daughter) who historically did nothing and wasn't present during Kudoyama and Osaka which ruined a lot to me.
Nagasawa should have been written out before Yoshitsugu's daughter arrived.

Another disappointment was what the writers did to Yoshida Yo's character Ina/Komatsu. Her character similar to Mayu's character was downplayed.

If you want a fair and accurate portayal of Ina and Otani's daughter rather watch Sanada Taiheiki. The writers of Sanadamaru out of some reason did not like them.

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One thing's for sure - you'll get attached!!!!!!!

You will love the cast, the 5 best friends and their respective families. You'll love the neighborhood so much that you'd feel you were a part of it. With a string of romance that will get you on your toes, what more can you ask for from a feel good drama.

Being set in the 80s, you'll feel nostalgic even when you weren't even alive back then - that's how amazing they stitched music, costume, setting and everything!

This is a series that did something to me that any other dramas haven't - make me shocked at the plot twists that i really had to leave the room and regain my composure.

I just finished watching it and I want to watch it again, but I don't want to get too sad. They really felt like a part of my family.

Watch this, you won't regret it!!!!!

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This was the drama that kickstarted my addiction. I wasnt into kdrama that much back then although Kim Rae Won, who I thought was adorable in Attic Cat and My Little Bride, and Park Shin Hye, who is insanely famous in our country, are two names that I remember. The chemistry they had in this series was really good and not to mention that I am partial to age gap and teacher-student stories.

I must admit that the main story did drag on a bit. The pacing noticeably slowed down as the main plot had to give way for the patients' stories to be shown. But while waiting for the main plot to develop, I was rewarded with the discovery of great actors such as Kim Min Suk and of course, Nam Gung Min whose guest appearance was so amazing it broke my heart. There are other supporting and guest performances worth mentioning in this series but I think KMS topped the list.

The OST in this drama was pretty good too. I wasnt into kpop but while watching this series, No Way kept playing in my mind that I had to download it.

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One of the best drama's that I've seen in a long time. Usually I get bored quickly and either skip episodes or just quit it, for this drama I watched it from start to finish. The acting was superb, music amazing, story was beautiful, made me very emotional (like crying my eyes out emotional). But I have to say that the best part of this drama that makes me want to go back and watch it again is the fact that it has a happy ending, not a tragic one. I absolutely hate tragic endings with a passion and will not watch it again if it has a tragic ending. Hope to find more dramas like this!

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I really liked this drama. It's nice and short but it didn't feel like it was rushed.

THE STORY
The story is about an obese guy who decides to undergo plastic surgery to try to win back the girl who left him at the altar. There is a connection between all the main characters. Having a fat turn into a handsome guy is not a common theme you see in most dramas. I'm not a big fan of plastic surgery for myself. I don't really care what others do. The ending was satisfying for me.

THE CAST
I haven't watched too many t-dramas so I'm not as familiar with the actors. But I think the main characters played their roles well.

THE MUSIC
The music was okay. Nothing really special.

REWATCH VALUE
I would totally re-watch this. It was cute and nice and short. Good for getting out of a drama slump.

OVERALL
I gave it a 9. I took a point because they have a bunch of annoying characters.

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I watched Dairanger as study material as I am a filmmaker and have a slight interest towards Japanese film, as of writing this review Dairanger is the only sentai series I have completed and I am more than halfway through Maskman so I also have that as a reference in terms of what I have seen in regards to the Super Sentai Series.

The series starts straight to the point which is great for some people but I personally would have preferred a bit more build up in regards to plot. Dairanger has an overall really great story which would otherwise have been near perfect if it wasn't for some major flaws in regards to the unanswered questions left at the end of the series which really docked some points but the overall story was so good that I can swallow the bitterness of the ending. What I really liked about this series compared to what I have seen from other super sentai series as well as power rangers is that this series is not afraid to do an episode without the megazords and the rather than the megazords feeling like toy commercials they are integral to the plot for the most part and I cannot see this series without them. There are episodes where the rangers are not even in their suits for an entire episode which really breaks the mold when compared to other sentai and power ranger series.

The acting is really great and I was genuinely surprised how the acting complimented with the story leaving me with wet eyes at some points. The adults actors are great aside for maybe a couple and the two main child actors are also really good and when they were on screen I was not rolling my eyes but rather captivated by their performances. That being said, pretty much every other child not a part of the main two are not so great but they are few and far between so it's fine.

The music is some of the best I have heard in a live action series and I have searched the internet for the OST tracks the opening and ending tracks are a bit cheesy though but everything else is genuinely amazing.

The high octane martial arts gives this series good rewatch value if you're really into martial arts films, however as I recently just finished this series for the first time I cannot really comment that much into the rewatch value of the series.

Overall Gosei Sentai Dairanger is a really great series and I recommend it to anyone who is a sentai or power ranger fan or someone looking for a starting point as this was my starting point into the sentai series and has made my a huge fan.

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