First Kiss, Hana Kimi & Ushi ni Negai no Love & Farm
Okay, my turn. Three dramas this time. See if you can handle it. ;)
First Kiss featuring Mao Inoue, Hideaki Ito and Yuta Hiraoka
In this romantic comedy, Inoue Mao stars as a selfish girl named Fukunaga Mio. Because of a serious illness, she lives in the U.S. for medical treatment. Before undergoing an important operation, she returns to Japan, where she meets the older brother she has been separated from since her parents' divorce. She finds Kazuki (Ito Hideaki) leading a good-for-nothing life, but he shows his seriousness when he resolves to find a way for Mio to experience her first kiss. Hiraoka Yuuta plays the love interest, a rookie doctor.
Before this drama started, I've had very high expectations for this drama. Not only does this drama feature one of my favourite up-and-coming Japanese actors (Yuta Hiraoka), but also one of my favourite Japanese actresses too (Mao Inoue). Mao's acting in the first HYD introduced me to her, and then her acting in HYD2 simply blew me away. I was so amazed by her range... Did anybody fangirl over her emotional scenes? I certainly did; it looked like her university classes were worth it. She was able to create great chemistry with all the cast members on both shows, even on the original HYD, so I was definitely looking forward to the drama that would follow her HYD success. And then it made me even further interested when I heard Yuta was added to the cast. I mean, they've already been in one thing together, which was Check It Out Yo! and I personally thought that their chemistry there was pretty good too, though they hardly shared any good moments. True, I knew ahead of time that there was probably going to be a lot of expectations placed on these two because well, it's right after the infamous Mao/Jun couplet, but considering the leading/supporting cast, it didn't really matter if the chemistry this time around between Yuta/Mao was bad, because the supporting cast would be worth watching...
Anyways, I wasn't wrong. Absolutely amazing first episode. I didn't understand a word because I was watching it RAW but gosh, amazing episode. Absolutely hilarious. Mao's character is a spunky sort of girl who really doesn't take some things seriously. She's very spoiled and very mischievous; generally, a person would probably dislike her in real life, and a casual drama watcher might even dislike her too, but to me, I absolutely loved her character. She played Mio really well, with the fast talking speeches, the elaborate gestures, the snotty expressions and the fashion... The main reason I loved Mio was that she was completely different from any major drama character that aired recently. I mean, when you look at all the idol dramas lately, they all have similar characters or well, characters that were similar to characters that have already been done. Mio just seems more original. Spoiled brats hardly get leading roles in dramas; they're usually the supporting character, casted for "humour" reasons, and never as the leading role, so it was nice to see a change. So. Basically, Mao's acting really got me into it. By the time I was halfway through the hour-long episode, I hardly even noticed and thought it was rather short. XD It went by so fast!
You guys have to try this drama if you're interested in seeing some hardcore brilliant acting. The supporting characters are absolutely fantastic too - Hideaki Ito and Mao Inoue have great chemistry together, but I think Mao's the real actress/star of this drama. XD
Hana Kimi featuring Shun Oguri, Maki Horikita and Toma Ikuta
The drama is based on the popular manga of the same name by Nakajo Hisaya, which has already been dramatized in Taiwan. Horikita plays the protagonist Ashiya Mizuki, a Japanese girl in the U.S. who one day sees the young athlete Sano Izumi (Oguri) compete in the high jump on television. She begins to idolize him, and decides to move to Japan to attend the same school as him. However, Izumi goes to an all-boys school, so Mizuki disguises herself as a boy to achieve her dream of being with her idol.
Before you go on, note that I've seen the Taiwanese version... Hmmm. Yeah, I didn't like the first episode. I've never read the manga, so I don't know how actually it's supposed to be, but my first impression after watching the first episode was: Isn't Sano supposed to find out?! Instead, he remains to be oblivious. Before I started watching, I was pretty excited and got huge expectations for this drama. I liked the Taiwanese version - despite the terrible ending. Yes, the Taiwanese version didn't have many "hot guys" but I don't know, is this what drama producing is all about now? Hot guys and trying to hook in viewers that way? Wasn't it supposed to be about good storylines, good characters and good directing etc? Yeah, when I found out that the tagline was "Ikemen Paradise", I was just thinking: WTF?! Mind, I'm comparing this to the Taiwanese version, but I also read a few summaries of the manga too, and I definitely do not remember reading anything about a marketing business strategy when the boys are walking from dorms to school, a Hibari4 (sounds like a fudging car), principals and vice-principals nor schools recruiting due to looks. I think all of that is just some bullshit drama production marketing strategy to recruit viewers and get better ratings. But anyways. Yes, I don't like the Japanese version. It's focusing too much on "idol" rather than "drama". I liked the Taiwanese version because it was able to split it evenly between "idol" and "drama", you know?
Another problem I found was Mizuki. Ella is totally a better actress than Maki Horikita. Maki isn't made for comedy roles. Period. A lot of people point out how Ella looks too much of a boy, but then I think: Isn't that the point? Isn't the point to make the girl look like a boy? All I remember from Maki's acting (thus far) was her uniform-yanking and her "yosh"'s. I didn't like how there were so many guys in the classroom too. I found that with that, it was sort of made it a little more difficult for the audience to focus on what was happening and made it more complex than it actually should be. We really didn't need that many actors... Again, banking on "idol" rather than "drama". I'm too sure about the Maki x Shun chemistry either. I just couldn't seem the chemistry working for Shun x Maki, but I suppose I'm judging too early.
However, there are a few things that I really liked about the Japanese version. One being Ikuta Toma. He's making to be a great Nakatsu thus far, and I really enjoyed that shampoo bit. He's a complete natural at acting, I find. Oh, that reminds me, Shun's Sano reminds me of Rui again. It bothers me just a bit that he's pulling off another hunching Hanazawa Rui or something. Mind, I am a Shun Oguri fan. I've been a fan of his since watching Gokusen and HYD last year, and got interested into his non-idol works as well... Another good thing about the Japanese version was that I like the ghost guy. XD I like it that he's having a bigger part and the actor fits him really well too. Much better than the Taiwanese dude. And thirdly, the good thing about the Taiwanese version was the dog. LOL. I'm a big loser for golden retrievers. XD
Ushi ni Negai no Love & Farm featuring Tetsuji Tanamaya, Koide Keisuke, Saki Aibu, Karina, Erika Toda, Kei Tanaka
Six agriculture students travel north to Hokkaido for first-hand training and experience in a farm setting. The story focuses not only on their daily life and their growth as young men and women, but also on the economic situation in the region, which received national attention earlier this year when the national government cut off aid to the struggling city of Yubari.
I admit, one of the reasons I wanted to watch this drama is because of the incredibly good-looking cast. I mean, a bunch of good-looking actors mucking around in mud, increase in self-esteem much? XD Anyways, I didn't expect much out of this drama because the storyline isn't very original and farming? I'm not too enthusiastic about farming, kthnx. XD I first watched it without subs. I was impressed with how to they organized the storyline with the meeting at the airport instead of jumping right in to the farm stuff. The ending, ohmigosh! The ending scenes were really sad. I won't spoil it for any future viewers but the ending was really good. It was actually the one thing that got me to continue to episode 2.
I can't say much else about this drama because if you like good acting and an interesting storyline, you'll like this drama. Also, especially if you're looking for a more serious drama than any of the other idol dramas and such this season, this is the one you should try out. :)
That's all. I probably offended somebody, and I apologize if I did, though really, it's all matter of opinion, yes? ^^;
First Kiss featuring Mao Inoue, Hideaki Ito and Yuta Hiraoka
In this romantic comedy, Inoue Mao stars as a selfish girl named Fukunaga Mio. Because of a serious illness, she lives in the U.S. for medical treatment. Before undergoing an important operation, she returns to Japan, where she meets the older brother she has been separated from since her parents' divorce. She finds Kazuki (Ito Hideaki) leading a good-for-nothing life, but he shows his seriousness when he resolves to find a way for Mio to experience her first kiss. Hiraoka Yuuta plays the love interest, a rookie doctor.
Before this drama started, I've had very high expectations for this drama. Not only does this drama feature one of my favourite up-and-coming Japanese actors (Yuta Hiraoka), but also one of my favourite Japanese actresses too (Mao Inoue). Mao's acting in the first HYD introduced me to her, and then her acting in HYD2 simply blew me away. I was so amazed by her range... Did anybody fangirl over her emotional scenes? I certainly did; it looked like her university classes were worth it. She was able to create great chemistry with all the cast members on both shows, even on the original HYD, so I was definitely looking forward to the drama that would follow her HYD success. And then it made me even further interested when I heard Yuta was added to the cast. I mean, they've already been in one thing together, which was Check It Out Yo! and I personally thought that their chemistry there was pretty good too, though they hardly shared any good moments. True, I knew ahead of time that there was probably going to be a lot of expectations placed on these two because well, it's right after the infamous Mao/Jun couplet, but considering the leading/supporting cast, it didn't really matter if the chemistry this time around between Yuta/Mao was bad, because the supporting cast would be worth watching...
Anyways, I wasn't wrong. Absolutely amazing first episode. I didn't understand a word because I was watching it RAW but gosh, amazing episode. Absolutely hilarious. Mao's character is a spunky sort of girl who really doesn't take some things seriously. She's very spoiled and very mischievous; generally, a person would probably dislike her in real life, and a casual drama watcher might even dislike her too, but to me, I absolutely loved her character. She played Mio really well, with the fast talking speeches, the elaborate gestures, the snotty expressions and the fashion... The main reason I loved Mio was that she was completely different from any major drama character that aired recently. I mean, when you look at all the idol dramas lately, they all have similar characters or well, characters that were similar to characters that have already been done. Mio just seems more original. Spoiled brats hardly get leading roles in dramas; they're usually the supporting character, casted for "humour" reasons, and never as the leading role, so it was nice to see a change. So. Basically, Mao's acting really got me into it. By the time I was halfway through the hour-long episode, I hardly even noticed and thought it was rather short. XD It went by so fast!
You guys have to try this drama if you're interested in seeing some hardcore brilliant acting. The supporting characters are absolutely fantastic too - Hideaki Ito and Mao Inoue have great chemistry together, but I think Mao's the real actress/star of this drama. XD
Hana Kimi featuring Shun Oguri, Maki Horikita and Toma Ikuta
The drama is based on the popular manga of the same name by Nakajo Hisaya, which has already been dramatized in Taiwan. Horikita plays the protagonist Ashiya Mizuki, a Japanese girl in the U.S. who one day sees the young athlete Sano Izumi (Oguri) compete in the high jump on television. She begins to idolize him, and decides to move to Japan to attend the same school as him. However, Izumi goes to an all-boys school, so Mizuki disguises herself as a boy to achieve her dream of being with her idol.
Before you go on, note that I've seen the Taiwanese version... Hmmm. Yeah, I didn't like the first episode. I've never read the manga, so I don't know how actually it's supposed to be, but my first impression after watching the first episode was: Isn't Sano supposed to find out?! Instead, he remains to be oblivious. Before I started watching, I was pretty excited and got huge expectations for this drama. I liked the Taiwanese version - despite the terrible ending. Yes, the Taiwanese version didn't have many "hot guys" but I don't know, is this what drama producing is all about now? Hot guys and trying to hook in viewers that way? Wasn't it supposed to be about good storylines, good characters and good directing etc? Yeah, when I found out that the tagline was "Ikemen Paradise", I was just thinking: WTF?! Mind, I'm comparing this to the Taiwanese version, but I also read a few summaries of the manga too, and I definitely do not remember reading anything about a marketing business strategy when the boys are walking from dorms to school, a Hibari4 (sounds like a fudging car), principals and vice-principals nor schools recruiting due to looks. I think all of that is just some bullshit drama production marketing strategy to recruit viewers and get better ratings. But anyways. Yes, I don't like the Japanese version. It's focusing too much on "idol" rather than "drama". I liked the Taiwanese version because it was able to split it evenly between "idol" and "drama", you know?
Another problem I found was Mizuki. Ella is totally a better actress than Maki Horikita. Maki isn't made for comedy roles. Period. A lot of people point out how Ella looks too much of a boy, but then I think: Isn't that the point? Isn't the point to make the girl look like a boy? All I remember from Maki's acting (thus far) was her uniform-yanking and her "yosh"'s. I didn't like how there were so many guys in the classroom too. I found that with that, it was sort of made it a little more difficult for the audience to focus on what was happening and made it more complex than it actually should be. We really didn't need that many actors... Again, banking on "idol" rather than "drama". I'm too sure about the Maki x Shun chemistry either. I just couldn't seem the chemistry working for Shun x Maki, but I suppose I'm judging too early.
However, there are a few things that I really liked about the Japanese version. One being Ikuta Toma. He's making to be a great Nakatsu thus far, and I really enjoyed that shampoo bit. He's a complete natural at acting, I find. Oh, that reminds me, Shun's Sano reminds me of Rui again. It bothers me just a bit that he's pulling off another hunching Hanazawa Rui or something. Mind, I am a Shun Oguri fan. I've been a fan of his since watching Gokusen and HYD last year, and got interested into his non-idol works as well... Another good thing about the Japanese version was that I like the ghost guy. XD I like it that he's having a bigger part and the actor fits him really well too. Much better than the Taiwanese dude. And thirdly, the good thing about the Taiwanese version was the dog. LOL. I'm a big loser for golden retrievers. XD
Ushi ni Negai no Love & Farm featuring Tetsuji Tanamaya, Koide Keisuke, Saki Aibu, Karina, Erika Toda, Kei Tanaka
Six agriculture students travel north to Hokkaido for first-hand training and experience in a farm setting. The story focuses not only on their daily life and their growth as young men and women, but also on the economic situation in the region, which received national attention earlier this year when the national government cut off aid to the struggling city of Yubari.
I admit, one of the reasons I wanted to watch this drama is because of the incredibly good-looking cast. I mean, a bunch of good-looking actors mucking around in mud, increase in self-esteem much? XD Anyways, I didn't expect much out of this drama because the storyline isn't very original and farming? I'm not too enthusiastic about farming, kthnx. XD I first watched it without subs. I was impressed with how to they organized the storyline with the meeting at the airport instead of jumping right in to the farm stuff. The ending, ohmigosh! The ending scenes were really sad. I won't spoil it for any future viewers but the ending was really good. It was actually the one thing that got me to continue to episode 2.
I can't say much else about this drama because if you like good acting and an interesting storyline, you'll like this drama. Also, especially if you're looking for a more serious drama than any of the other idol dramas and such this season, this is the one you should try out. :)
That's all. I probably offended somebody, and I apologize if I did, though really, it's all matter of opinion, yes? ^^;