[J-Drama review] The Kimutaku batch
SMAP's Kimutaku is the Superstar of Superstars in Japan. Whenever he stars in a TV show, monster ratings are guaranteed -- not big, MONSTER -- partly because he has rare crossover appeal with not only girls, but guys, kids, seniors, all ages. I've also heard he has the God-given abilities to change modern pop culture with his style, disrupt radio waves with his mind, deflect missiles from North Korea with his eyes, and crush eggs with a single *bare* hand. Yes, he is a living Japanese legend, but even after watching 25 jdramas, I still have yet to run into this guy (except for his 1 minute cameo as a rooster in Saiyuuki). So I decided to check out his 3 most recent series to see if The Iconic Icon of Japan lives up to the hype.
GOOD LUCK!!
January - March 2003
jdorama page
Story: KIMUTAKU is Hajime, an ANA airlines pilot. SHIBASAKI KOU (of Orange Days fame) is Ayumi, an ANA airlines mechanic who's afraid of flying. WILL IRONY BRING THEM TOGETHER?!
And *what's*the*deal* with his tough supervisor?!
Kimutaku Effect: Japanese airlines saw a dramatic increase in stewardess applications. Oddly no increase reported for female mechanics.
Length: 10
Download fansub @ jtv fansubs
"Good luck" is one of many English words that I think the Japanese have misunderstood. In this series, the pilots keep ending their announcement to their passengers with "Good luck," and I'm thinking, why would you say that? Do you mean as in, "Good luck, cuz you might die on this flight"?
In retrospect, there's some truth to that. There isn't a SINGLE flight on this show that doesn't run into some kinda problem. It started reminding me of Star Trek, where the Enterprise always seemed to attract more trouble than any other starship. But unlike Star Trek, we're just talking about a few hours of domestic flying here, yet somehow something bad is *always* happening to Hajime's plane. I had no idea bad passengers were so common in Japan. =/ Personally, on the dozen or so flights I've been on, I've never seen a difficult passenger . . except for that guy who kept kicking my seat to the beat of his iPod but anyway . .
Another thing that bugged me was the sheer amount of ANA product placement on the show. You CANNOT go 5 minutes in this show without seeing the word ANA . . it's on the planes, on the uniforms, on the clipboard, on the computers, and there's an ANA model airplane hanging everywhere that there isn't an ANA sign in view. At first I thought the producers paid ANA to use its name and bring realism to the show. Now I'm think that it was more likely ANA paying the producers TONS of money to promote its airline and *only* its airline. So you have ANA to add realism, but then you take away the realism by making it the only airline at Narita airport. Wazzupwitdat?!
And not since Densha Otoko have I been this bugged by background music. Whenever Hajime tells his boss off, survives another flight or makes a speech on the PA, this excessively-rousing number plays as if the Allies had just won the Battle of Normandy. -_-; On the other hand, when the plane's in trouble, they use this poor man's interpretation of the Terminator theme in case you were too busy ogling at Kimutaku to realize that there's Danger in the Plane!
Plus the uninteresting characters + uninteresting story + Hollywood conventions . . it just doesn't add up to a watchable show. Ok, maybe, maaaaybe if you're an aspiring pilot, you might enjoy all the airplane technobabble they throw in. And of course, if you're a hardcore Kimutaku fan, I'm probably off your Christmas list now. Otherwise, if you're not in either group and still curious to see it . . good luck. :P
Rating: 2 out of 10
VS.
Pride
January - March 2004
jdorama page
Story: KIMUTAKU is Halu, the captain of a Japanese hockey team (Japan has a hockey league??). TAKEUCHI YUKO (of Ima Ai movie fame) is Aki, an office lady who's been waiting for two years for her boyfriend to return from America, and knows nothing about hockey. WILL IRONY BRING THEM TOGETHER?! And will her boyfriend conveniently return *if* that happens??
And *what's*the*deal* with his tough coach?!
Kimutaku Effect: EVERYone went out and bought that Queen tie-in CD and I had to suffer through "Born to Love You" daily at school for over a year. x_x (Ironically, Pride's insert song is entitled "Too much love will kill you.")
Length: 11
Download fansub @ jtv fansubs
Pride is a hockey romance that puts romance first, hockey second. Which is too bad, because the series would've been far better if it was the reverse. Most of the hockey games are exciting and well choreographed, but we only get about 5 minutes of game-time per episode because, apparently, Japanese hockey players prefer to spend more time on discussing love and relationships than on the ice. =/
On the other hand, some games look incredibly fake. Maybe it's easy to deceive Japanese viewers who haven't watched a game of REAL hockey, but for us Canadians, you can't help but notice all the hokey stuff they put into hockey. For example, Team captain gets knocked out? Real. Team captain gets knocked out and proceeds to see a NAKED ICE GODDESS float above him which causes him to awaken his true powers and proceed to dodge around the entire enemy team like Jackie Chan, culminating in a Sailor Moon slapshot where he lets all his teammates touch the puck to give him extra power . . ? Sadly, they don't play it for comedy.
I also get the feeling that the actors weren't casted on their hockey experience, because you only get close-ups of their face when they're falling or not moving. :P
Hockey grumblings aside, Pride is at least a far better series than Good Luck(!!) for a number of reasons like:
- the background music is 100% beautiful, 0% blaring fanfare (though I could've done without Queen ;) ).
- the pace is relaxed, not frantic. Kudos to the director and editor for giving this series a great flow.
- Kimutaku and Yuko act up a storm and have far better chemistry. I even liked how the two tied up the story in the end as improbable as it is. Really great, satisfying ending.
So the romance *sorta* works, though romance and hockey is still a really bizarre combo IMO. I can just imagine the writers pitching ideas to each other:
- "So, we're gonna add hockey to this romance. What do you guys know about it?"
- "Um . . Zamboni machines?"
- "Great! We could have Halu and Aki ride around in a Zamboni machine! At night! It'll be just the two of them!"
- "Very, very romantic! But . . how do they get the keys?"
- "Moron! He's a hockey player! Of course he has the keys to everything hockey! Sheesh."
And of course, you have the conventional Rival-Lover-who-isn't-much-of-a-rival. They just don't make rivals like they used to.
So I'm blaming the writers! . . and the fansubbers! XD Seriously, their subs are *fast* and I probably missed many things because it was hard to keep up with the dialogue and the gratuitous amount of flashing liner notes. C'mon, do you really have to describe every single ingredient of the katsudon Halu is eating? :P
SPOILERific Bonus Points Overtime!
+1 pt!
This time, Kimutaku flies AIR CANADA!
I have that exact same envelope in my room somewhere . .
+1!
Halu ends up playing for the NHL and which team drafts him?
THE VANCOUVER CANUCKS!!! o___OMy jaw literally dropped when I saw this. I have never EVER been this stunned by a jdrama before. Not to mention that Halu helps the Canucks to a 7 game winning streak and apparently we win the Stanley Cup. It would've been the first time in franchise history. This drama is definitely fiction, but I was cheering for a few seconds there. ^_^
-1. :(
Because the writers and even the gaijin reporters don't know much about the Canucks, calling the arena they play at: Vancouver Canucks Place. >_< The fansubbers don't appear to know much about the Canucks either . .
Booooo!
+1!
If I could be weak for a moment, Takizawa Saori, the actress who plays Halu's team manager, is the hottest Japanese actress ever. :P~
-1. :(
She also happens to play the only character with no side story and is nearly always speaking off camera or outta focus. ;_;
+1!
Now I know why all the students started asking me why I always say "Maybe" . . I was using Kimutaku's catchphrase from Pride without knowing it. XD
So that means . .
Rating: 4 + 2 = 6 out of 10
VS.
Engine
April - June 2005
jdorama page
Story: KIMUTAKU is Jiro, a race car driver kicked out of the sport due to misconduct. KOYUKI (of Tom's gf in The Last Samurai fame) is Tomomi, a caretaker at an orphanage that Jiro stays at while he plans his comeback. Now this is where I want to say WILL IRONY . . or WILL THEY FALL IN LOVE . . but there's surprisingly not much romance in this series. o_O
At least I can say: And *what's*the*deal* with his tough ex-coach?!
Kimutaku Effect: Um, I have no idea. Anyone?
Length: 11
Download raws @ d-addicts. English subtitles available separately here.
In Good Luck(!!), episodes were called "Flights." In Pride, episodes were called "Periods." Engine is a racing drama, so . . yup, you guessed it. Kimutaku's next drama is about business, so episodes = "Stocks"? :P
That aside, I was pleasantly surprised by Engine. Just when I thought I had to endure another cheezy romance, Engine goes in a different direction. There's not a lot of romance in Engine; in fact, there's not a lot of racing either . . which is good the races that *are* here aren't that exciting due to the tight budget and speed of the sport.
Instead, the story focusses on Jiro's relationship with the orphanage and vice versa. I've said this before, but when you add kids to your drama, it just naturally gets better. ^_^ And I always have this soft spot for chubby Japanese boys . . the kid called Mo-chan looks like a mini sumo wrestler, and always made me smile. There needs to be a chubby boy in *every* jdrama!!
Engine is just filled with heart, with many genuinely funny and heartwrenching moments (Episode 8 got some man tears outta me ;_; ). The characters and story are just far more interesting and engaging to follow than Good Luck and Pride combined. Another thing I liked better was the soundtrack, which I'm still humming a week later. Aerosmith's "Angel" was a perfect song choice, reflecting Jiro's role as the orphanage's reluctant angel. That reminds me . . THE SYMBOLISM!! That's another thing I love! There's so many of them and thankfully, they're not too hard to pick up on . . I just wish all my University texts were as clear. :P
But while the children strengthen the series, they also weaken it because their acting is more miss than hit. Here you have Kimutaku and Koyuki doing some first-rate acting with kids who can barely deliver a single line convincingly! So yeah, lots of emotional scenes get ruined as a result. Oh well, at least there was ONE light among these kids, that being Ueno Juri who plays "Misae." Keep an eye on her, she's one of the rare young actresses who can act and is very close to Inoue Mao level.
Two other things that bugged me:
- The kids could've been "blended" together better. The show follows the formulaic "Focus on one kid" per episode pattern, but once they solve the kid's problem, he/she nearly disappears story-wise from all episodes that follow. With some better writing, they could've gotten all the kids involved even when they weren't the focus.
- I hate "Where are they now?" endings!! Not to mention that they also tack on an abrupt, open-ended final minute that I know the Japanese love but I personally can't stand loose ends and lack of closure. >_< Actually, if they had just ended the show 5 minutes earlier, it would've been a picture-perfect ending. ;)
- EDIT: Oh yeah, and one other thing: Kimutaku, please learn to keep your shirt ON! Good God, there's kids watching! And me! :P
Otherwise, Engine is a solid show without a single bad episode, something not even most of my 10 out of 10s can claim.
Rating: 9 out of 10
Winner: Engine!
I've always felt that Kimutaku was the most talented singer and dancer in SMAP, and now I believe he's the most talented actor, too. You can tell just by what he does with his eyes, fingers, legs . . things that are not in the script that great actors just naturally pick up because they're so into the character.
The problem is not with his acting, but with the scripts he chooses. If he really wants to challenge himself and prove that he's versatile, he should try to distance himself from the romance genre and constantly try new things (like Engine). Kinda like how George Clooney went from heartthrob to serious Oscar contender just by constantly choosing indy films. Does he even do anything mainstream these days outside Oceans?
Music Video Ticker: RADWIMPS - Setsunarensa PV . . oh how the Japanese love making gaijins do silly things. ^_^
GOOD LUCK!!
January - March 2003
jdorama page
Story: KIMUTAKU is Hajime, an ANA airlines pilot. SHIBASAKI KOU (of Orange Days fame) is Ayumi, an ANA airlines mechanic who's afraid of flying. WILL IRONY BRING THEM TOGETHER?!
And *what's*the*deal* with his tough supervisor?!
Kimutaku Effect: Japanese airlines saw a dramatic increase in stewardess applications. Oddly no increase reported for female mechanics.
Length: 10
Download fansub @ jtv fansubs
"Good luck" is one of many English words that I think the Japanese have misunderstood. In this series, the pilots keep ending their announcement to their passengers with "Good luck," and I'm thinking, why would you say that? Do you mean as in, "Good luck, cuz you might die on this flight"?
In retrospect, there's some truth to that. There isn't a SINGLE flight on this show that doesn't run into some kinda problem. It started reminding me of Star Trek, where the Enterprise always seemed to attract more trouble than any other starship. But unlike Star Trek, we're just talking about a few hours of domestic flying here, yet somehow something bad is *always* happening to Hajime's plane. I had no idea bad passengers were so common in Japan. =/ Personally, on the dozen or so flights I've been on, I've never seen a difficult passenger . . except for that guy who kept kicking my seat to the beat of his iPod but anyway . .
Another thing that bugged me was the sheer amount of ANA product placement on the show. You CANNOT go 5 minutes in this show without seeing the word ANA . . it's on the planes, on the uniforms, on the clipboard, on the computers, and there's an ANA model airplane hanging everywhere that there isn't an ANA sign in view. At first I thought the producers paid ANA to use its name and bring realism to the show. Now I'm think that it was more likely ANA paying the producers TONS of money to promote its airline and *only* its airline. So you have ANA to add realism, but then you take away the realism by making it the only airline at Narita airport. Wazzupwitdat?!
And not since Densha Otoko have I been this bugged by background music. Whenever Hajime tells his boss off, survives another flight or makes a speech on the PA, this excessively-rousing number plays as if the Allies had just won the Battle of Normandy. -_-; On the other hand, when the plane's in trouble, they use this poor man's interpretation of the Terminator theme in case you were too busy ogling at Kimutaku to realize that there's Danger in the Plane!
Plus the uninteresting characters + uninteresting story + Hollywood conventions . . it just doesn't add up to a watchable show. Ok, maybe, maaaaybe if you're an aspiring pilot, you might enjoy all the airplane technobabble they throw in. And of course, if you're a hardcore Kimutaku fan, I'm probably off your Christmas list now. Otherwise, if you're not in either group and still curious to see it . . good luck. :P
Rating: 2 out of 10
VS.
Pride
January - March 2004
jdorama page
Story: KIMUTAKU is Halu, the captain of a Japanese hockey team (Japan has a hockey league??). TAKEUCHI YUKO (of Ima Ai movie fame) is Aki, an office lady who's been waiting for two years for her boyfriend to return from America, and knows nothing about hockey. WILL IRONY BRING THEM TOGETHER?! And will her boyfriend conveniently return *if* that happens??
And *what's*the*deal* with his tough coach?!
Kimutaku Effect: EVERYone went out and bought that Queen tie-in CD and I had to suffer through "Born to Love You" daily at school for over a year. x_x (Ironically, Pride's insert song is entitled "Too much love will kill you.")
Length: 11
Download fansub @ jtv fansubs
Pride is a hockey romance that puts romance first, hockey second. Which is too bad, because the series would've been far better if it was the reverse. Most of the hockey games are exciting and well choreographed, but we only get about 5 minutes of game-time per episode because, apparently, Japanese hockey players prefer to spend more time on discussing love and relationships than on the ice. =/
On the other hand, some games look incredibly fake. Maybe it's easy to deceive Japanese viewers who haven't watched a game of REAL hockey, but for us Canadians, you can't help but notice all the hokey stuff they put into hockey. For example, Team captain gets knocked out? Real. Team captain gets knocked out and proceeds to see a NAKED ICE GODDESS float above him which causes him to awaken his true powers and proceed to dodge around the entire enemy team like Jackie Chan, culminating in a Sailor Moon slapshot where he lets all his teammates touch the puck to give him extra power . . ? Sadly, they don't play it for comedy.
I also get the feeling that the actors weren't casted on their hockey experience, because you only get close-ups of their face when they're falling or not moving. :P
Hockey grumblings aside, Pride is at least a far better series than Good Luck(!!) for a number of reasons like:
- the background music is 100% beautiful, 0% blaring fanfare (though I could've done without Queen ;) ).
- the pace is relaxed, not frantic. Kudos to the director and editor for giving this series a great flow.
- Kimutaku and Yuko act up a storm and have far better chemistry. I even liked how the two tied up the story in the end as improbable as it is. Really great, satisfying ending.
So the romance *sorta* works, though romance and hockey is still a really bizarre combo IMO. I can just imagine the writers pitching ideas to each other:
- "So, we're gonna add hockey to this romance. What do you guys know about it?"
- "Um . . Zamboni machines?"
- "Great! We could have Halu and Aki ride around in a Zamboni machine! At night! It'll be just the two of them!"
- "Very, very romantic! But . . how do they get the keys?"
- "Moron! He's a hockey player! Of course he has the keys to everything hockey! Sheesh."
And of course, you have the conventional Rival-Lover-who-isn't-much-of-a-rival. They just don't make rivals like they used to.
So I'm blaming the writers! . . and the fansubbers! XD Seriously, their subs are *fast* and I probably missed many things because it was hard to keep up with the dialogue and the gratuitous amount of flashing liner notes. C'mon, do you really have to describe every single ingredient of the katsudon Halu is eating? :P
SPOILERific Bonus Points Overtime!
+1 pt!
This time, Kimutaku flies AIR CANADA!
I have that exact same envelope in my room somewhere . .
+1!
Halu ends up playing for the NHL and which team drafts him?
THE VANCOUVER CANUCKS!!! o___OMy jaw literally dropped when I saw this. I have never EVER been this stunned by a jdrama before. Not to mention that Halu helps the Canucks to a 7 game winning streak and apparently we win the Stanley Cup. It would've been the first time in franchise history. This drama is definitely fiction, but I was cheering for a few seconds there. ^_^
-1. :(
Because the writers and even the gaijin reporters don't know much about the Canucks, calling the arena they play at: Vancouver Canucks Place. >_< The fansubbers don't appear to know much about the Canucks either . .
Booooo!
+1!
If I could be weak for a moment, Takizawa Saori, the actress who plays Halu's team manager, is the hottest Japanese actress ever. :P~
-1. :(
She also happens to play the only character with no side story and is nearly always speaking off camera or outta focus. ;_;
+1!
Now I know why all the students started asking me why I always say "Maybe" . . I was using Kimutaku's catchphrase from Pride without knowing it. XD
So that means . .
Rating: 4 + 2 = 6 out of 10
VS.
Engine
April - June 2005
jdorama page
Story: KIMUTAKU is Jiro, a race car driver kicked out of the sport due to misconduct. KOYUKI (of Tom's gf in The Last Samurai fame) is Tomomi, a caretaker at an orphanage that Jiro stays at while he plans his comeback. Now this is where I want to say WILL IRONY . . or WILL THEY FALL IN LOVE . . but there's surprisingly not much romance in this series. o_O
At least I can say: And *what's*the*deal* with his tough ex-coach?!
Kimutaku Effect: Um, I have no idea. Anyone?
Length: 11
Download raws @ d-addicts. English subtitles available separately here.
In Good Luck(!!), episodes were called "Flights." In Pride, episodes were called "Periods." Engine is a racing drama, so . . yup, you guessed it. Kimutaku's next drama is about business, so episodes = "Stocks"? :P
That aside, I was pleasantly surprised by Engine. Just when I thought I had to endure another cheezy romance, Engine goes in a different direction. There's not a lot of romance in Engine; in fact, there's not a lot of racing either . . which is good the races that *are* here aren't that exciting due to the tight budget and speed of the sport.
Instead, the story focusses on Jiro's relationship with the orphanage and vice versa. I've said this before, but when you add kids to your drama, it just naturally gets better. ^_^ And I always have this soft spot for chubby Japanese boys . . the kid called Mo-chan looks like a mini sumo wrestler, and always made me smile. There needs to be a chubby boy in *every* jdrama!!
Engine is just filled with heart, with many genuinely funny and heartwrenching moments (Episode 8 got some man tears outta me ;_; ). The characters and story are just far more interesting and engaging to follow than Good Luck and Pride combined. Another thing I liked better was the soundtrack, which I'm still humming a week later. Aerosmith's "Angel" was a perfect song choice, reflecting Jiro's role as the orphanage's reluctant angel. That reminds me . . THE SYMBOLISM!! That's another thing I love! There's so many of them and thankfully, they're not too hard to pick up on . . I just wish all my University texts were as clear. :P
But while the children strengthen the series, they also weaken it because their acting is more miss than hit. Here you have Kimutaku and Koyuki doing some first-rate acting with kids who can barely deliver a single line convincingly! So yeah, lots of emotional scenes get ruined as a result. Oh well, at least there was ONE light among these kids, that being Ueno Juri who plays "Misae." Keep an eye on her, she's one of the rare young actresses who can act and is very close to Inoue Mao level.
Two other things that bugged me:
- The kids could've been "blended" together better. The show follows the formulaic "Focus on one kid" per episode pattern, but once they solve the kid's problem, he/she nearly disappears story-wise from all episodes that follow. With some better writing, they could've gotten all the kids involved even when they weren't the focus.
- I hate "Where are they now?" endings!! Not to mention that they also tack on an abrupt, open-ended final minute that I know the Japanese love but I personally can't stand loose ends and lack of closure. >_< Actually, if they had just ended the show 5 minutes earlier, it would've been a picture-perfect ending. ;)
- EDIT: Oh yeah, and one other thing: Kimutaku, please learn to keep your shirt ON! Good God, there's kids watching! And me! :P
Otherwise, Engine is a solid show without a single bad episode, something not even most of my 10 out of 10s can claim.
Rating: 9 out of 10
Winner: Engine!
I've always felt that Kimutaku was the most talented singer and dancer in SMAP, and now I believe he's the most talented actor, too. You can tell just by what he does with his eyes, fingers, legs . . things that are not in the script that great actors just naturally pick up because they're so into the character.
The problem is not with his acting, but with the scripts he chooses. If he really wants to challenge himself and prove that he's versatile, he should try to distance himself from the romance genre and constantly try new things (like Engine). Kinda like how George Clooney went from heartthrob to serious Oscar contender just by constantly choosing indy films. Does he even do anything mainstream these days outside Oceans?
Music Video Ticker: RADWIMPS - Setsunarensa PV . . oh how the Japanese love making gaijins do silly things. ^_^