The internets went down last night and...
...I'm nursing the slightest of hangovers. *feels gross*
snagged from aoimidori
favorite drama overall = Funny enough, I don't talk about it much because it is one of the first dramas I ever watched, but if we are talking about a drama that I think can do no wrong? Good Luck!!, hands down. :) It's based around one of my favorite modes of travel. It's about overcoming challenges and pursuing one's dreams. It's got Kimura Takuya giving a very down-to-earth and honest performance and Shibasaki Kou playing one of toughest cookies of Japanese drama heroines and adorable at it. Almost the entire supporting cast made it onto my must!watch!dramas!with!these!actors!in!them!list (the glaring exception is Uchiyama Rina). The OST fits the drama like a glove. And every time I go to watch an episode, I can't stop and usually end up watching half the drama in one sitting. *snicker* If that isn't a favorite drama overall, I don't know what is. ;)
least favorite drama overall = Amongst completed dramas (because most of the incompleted dramas are incomplete because they bored me!), probably either Hoshi no Kinka or Love and Eros. Both dramas, by the end, frustrated me because the pairing I was watching for wasn't the OTP of the drama (Aya/Takumi in Hoshi no Kinka and Kasumi/Jiro in Love and Eros) and while the pairings did occur, they were never fulfilled to the end. Also, both dramas gave me the distinct feeling like I'd had something precious stolen from me by the end. *laughs* Probably my time. ;) What made all this worse was the fact that I started out earnestly liking the dramas when I started watching them. *frown*
drama that everyone loves except for you = Beautiful Life. I disliked Tokiwa Takako because Kyoko is SO irritating. >.< I mean, I didn't realize just how awesome and actress she was until I finally gave other dramas she had done a try! I can't even explain why this drama doesn't vibe with me because Kimura gives a pretty good performance and everything. And it's not like I'm against illness!dramas. *points at Ichi Littoru no Namida amongst others* But everyone sings its praises and while I recognize it as a nicely-done drama, it doesn't move me so much. *shrug*
drama that you love though no one else does = Sapuri. OHMIGOD HOW I LOVE SAPURI! *flails* I love the younger man/older woman romance dynamic, I love office dramas, I love Itou Misaki, I love Kamenashi Kazuya, and I love the OST. Oh, and I love the way they filmed this drama in fresh bright colors and such, reflecting the summer season so perfectly. :) A lot of people disliked Minami or found that Itou's acting left much to be desired, but I am not amongst either of those camps. I think it's probably Itou's best drama to date (as well as her most recent) and Kamenashi delivers a beautifully honest portrayal of the boy!baito!puppy!Yuuya. :D And that final presentation Minami gives for Tokimoto gets me every. single. time. *grin*
drama you never thought you'd love as much as you do now = Hands down, Sore wa Toutsuzen Arashi no you ni... When I first watched it, I liked it decently enough, but I thought the performances could've used some work and the lack of a satisfying ending between amongst Takuma, Kozue and Hideo put me off a bit. However, as I watch it once again as SARS is working on subtitling it, I find that that the things that was critical about before don't bother me as much. Particularly YamaPi's performance because I have seen almost all his renzoku dramas at this point and I blame the director for his fault's in this drama. *laughs* And while the home scenes and the office scenes are still kind of sufferable, the moments between Kozue and Takuma just enchant me and I see how they click, whereas before, their physical incompatability tended to overwhelm my judgment on their chemistry.
drama you thought you'd love much more = There are quite a few that fall into this category. Beautiful Life for one. But also Tatta Hitotsu no Koi. I was very critical of the latter drama when it aired because I was expecting a lot from it. Two KAT-TUN members starring, Kitagawa scriptwriting, Oda Kazumasa writing the theme song that KAT-TUN was to sing... It had a lot of big names attached to it. And while I do love it for what it was, there were times when I was just hitting my head at the old-fashioned quality of the storytelling. Yes it was very junsui (pure), but couldn't have it been a little more updated at the same time? That, and the infamous happy ending. Kitagawa leads us on for the entire drama, hinting (well, actually hitting us with a really big sledge hammer *chuckle*) that something bad is going to happen and then poof! Happy ending! I remember thinking (and I still think) the drama would've been brilliant if Hiroto had died. *laughs* And it's not because I hated Hiroto; my feelings are rather the opposite. If he died, it could've been an amazing culmination of the junsui!quality of the drama.
angstiest drama = I think this one goes to Sora Kara Furu Ichioku no Hoshi. Another Kitagawa drama, but this one being so well-done. It's not one of my favorite dramas simply because it is so angsty and tortured. Kimura Takuya turns in a muted and rather dark performance and though I don't think Fukatsu Eri is suited to be his lead actress, she still gives a great performance that just twists the knife in your heart repeatedly as the drama draws to a close.
fluffiest/funniest drama = Looking at my list of complete dramas, the comedies on the list are few and far between, thus Gokusen without a shadow of a doubt. :) Yankumi is just an awesome character and Nakama Yukie has an amazing knack for facial expressions. :D The guys of 3-D are so dorky and so full of heart. :) And the violence is not overflowing and just about a body count (as it sometimes seemed in Gokusen 2).
most melodramatic drama = Three-way tie! Rondo, Karei Naru Ichizoku, Tokyo Wankei. The common thread amongst all three of these dramas? The melodrama was directly family!related melodrama, the best kind I suppose. ;) Rondo and Tokyo Wankei both went the route of Korean dramas, which is no surprise seeing as Rondo starred a Korean actress and Tokyo Wankei was about zainichi (ethnic Koreans established and living in Japan). Karei Naru Ichizoku was just absolutely crazy, but it still made me cry buckets in the end. *laughs*
favorite drama hero = This one is hard, but probably Hana Yori Dango and Hana Yori Dango 2's Doumyouji Tsukasa with Sapuri's Ishida Yuuya a close second. Doumyouji because beneath that hard exterior, there is a heart of pure gold. :D Ishida Yuuya because I strongly identify with Fujii Minami, and I so need an Ishida Yuuya in my life. *grin*
favorite drama heroine = This is easy because they are the heroines that I emphathize with - Anego's Noda Naoko, Sapuri's Fujii Minami, and Kimi wa Petto's Iwaya Sumire. Appearance-wise, strong, loyal, and sucessful female characters who within themselves are really lonely and self-doubtful. Common thread amongst all three dramas are that they are office dramas that deal with a younger man/older woman romance. Not that I want to be dating/reliant on a younger man for emotional support, but they are my favorites because I feel like I can follow their thought processes all the way through even if some of their actions aren't always the most admirable.
drama heroine that would rule the world = Haken no Hinkaku's Omae Haruko! She's just TOO brilliant! *laughs* Quick, sharp tongue that can put any man down! ;) That and with all the certified skills she has, there is almost nothing she can't do! :D
hero i'd take home to mother = Sapuri's Ishida Yuuya. He could make clementine cake. *giggles*
eviliest drama parent = Of course, Hana Yori Dango and Hana Yori Dango 2's Doumyouji Kaede! Though if this category also included craziest parent, I would totally include Majo no Jouken's Kurosawa Kyoko because she really was off her rocker. *snicker*
most awesome drama parent = Why Yanpapa's Mabuchi Yuusaku of course! :D Nagase Tomoya as the young father who constantly risks life and limb to keep the kids of his deceased wife happy and together even when they resist him at every turn? Yes, awesome parent. :)
worst drama outfit = Definitely that woolen, hideously patterned sweater that Yamato so happily bought after the kids were released from Makuhara in Bokura no Yuuki ~ Miman Toushi ~. o.O I swear, I think he coveted it. It was scary. *wibble* Some of Shouhei's "fashionable" outfits from Orange Days also come very close. *chuckle*
craziest drama fashion = What constitutes crazy exactly? *thinks* I suppose some of the outfits that Kurosaki wore when he was out conning people in Kurosagi were a bit out there.
best drama kiss = I'm biased towards the final kiss between Minami and Yuuya in Sapuri just because it was one of the more realistic "culmination" kisses I've seen in Japanese dramas. That is, it wasn't two people simply pressing their lips together. *snicker* And then the atmosphere was totally just there. :)
best rain scene = the rain scene at the end of episode eight of Long Love Letter. Most rain!japanese!drama!scenes are painful love scenes, but this is special and has nothing to do with that. Instead, it's a beautiful reflection of hardships, hope, and rebirth in Long Love Letter. Beautiful in its honesty. :)
favorite drama couple = This question is hard becuase I love so many couples, each for different reasons. Probably Tsukushi and Tsukasa from Hana Yori Dango and Hana Yori Dango 2 though because I really did ship them them the hardest. Honorable mentions are Ogawa Ayumi and Shinkai Hajime of Good Luck!!, Ishida Yuuya and Fujii Minami of Sapuri, and Misaki Yuka and Asami of Long Love Letter.
worst drama couple = Katase Ryou and Dojima Yuko from Sora Kara Furu Ichioku no Hoshi. If I say why, I'll spoil the story. ;P But what also factors in is that I just don't think that Kimura Takuya and Fukatsu Eri were aesthetically compatible.
most UST couple = Nakahara Shota and Misaki Youko from Attention Please! and Shinomura Etsuko and Sekino Hiroyuki (Buu) from Ganbatte Ikimasshoi!. Coincidence that in both couples the male is played by Nishikido Ryo? I think not. He has the worst luck with female leads in terms of like following through on the romance! I don't think it has anything to do with him necessarily, but it's a pattern that cannot be ignored! :P
couple you never thought you'd root for before drama = Kusano Kou and Motomiya Yuuko from Tatta Hitotsu no Koi. It had everything to do with the fact that I didn't think Tanaka Koki and Toda Erika could possibly look good together aesthetically even before I saw them on screen together. But they totally proved me wrong because they had great chemistry and just made the couple work. :)
most awesome gang of friends = Probably, the 3-D gangs from both Gokusen and Gokusen 2. Because they were always there for one another, even if sometimes they were violent for no reason. *snicker* Love for Gokusen 2's gang springing Odagiri from his prison in episode nine. *hee*
best guy-girl friendship = Shuuji, Nobuta and Akira in Nobuta o Produce. Do I really need to say more? ;) Honorable mention to F3 and their love for Tsukushi in Hana Yori Dango and Hana Yori Dango 2. *grin*
favorite secondary OTP = Togashi and Koda from Good Luck!!. I loved them when I first watched the drama and I continue to love them. :) Yeah, Togashi is sort of the stereotypical stand!by!your!man!Japanese!woman in a way, but somehow I felt like she was more than that. That she realized how broken Koda really was and simply was waiting to help him heal when he would let her. *fuzzies* And I always felt like as the older secondary OTP of Good Luck!!, they complimented the younger coupling of Ogawa and Shinkai so well. :)
favorite "third person" in a love triangle = Nakajima Satsuki, who was Shuuji's ex-girlfriend in Beautiful Life. It really helps that Satsuki was played by Koyuki. Not only that, but I was watching Beautiful Life on the heels of having just finished Engine, so to see Kimura Takuya and Koyuki play two characters that oozed chemistry was just like, "WHOA." Because Kanzaki Jiro and Mizukoshi Tomomi didn't really ooze anything in Engine. *chuckle* I totally wanted Satsuki and Shuuji to get back together, that was how much I loved Satsuki as the "third person" over Kyoko. *giggle*
least favorite "third person" in a love triangle = dude with no manners aka Saito from Tatta Hitotsu no Koi. Nothing against the actor, but the character was just lame. We all complained about how stiff he was with Nao and the mere idea of Nao choosing him over Hiroto was just blasphemy. So the idea that he should disrupt the pure!love of Nao and Hiroto just made him a bad man. *blah*
favorite drama actor = Kimura Takuya. No question at all. He was like one of the first Japanese actors that I saw after all, as Good Luck!! was my second Japanese drama. :) I will follow him through any drama, especially ever since he did not let me down with Karei Naru Ichizoku. Honorable mentions go to Matsumoto Jun (who I think does wonderful things with his various manga roles) and Yamashita Tomohisa (who has been so amazingly consistent as an amazing actor throughout his career, it's just like whoa).
favorite drama actress = This is a difficult one. But the Queen of Japanese dramas herself, Matsushima Nanako, definitely gets onto the list. :) If you have not seen a Matsushima!Nanako!lead!drama ( GTO or Yamato Nadeshiko are two oldies, but goodies) then you have not lived. ;P Shinohara Ryoko also gets on the list. She only gets better as she gets older. :D Not something you can say about every actress out there. ^_^ I also have great loves for Koyuki and Shibasaki Kou and soft spots for Itou Misaki and Kanno Miho. *grin*
hottest drama actor = Er, that would really be a repeat of all my favorite drama actors because what makes an actor really hot to me is not just their physical appearance, but they fact that they are competent as actors. :)
hottest drama actress = Hmm... I don't think I have a decent answer for this one because it's hard for me to see actresses in a "hot" manner.
actor/actress you wish would make more dramas = KOYUKI!! After Engine, she totally fell off the drama map! *frown* And MATSUSHIMA NANAKO!! After she had her baby, she's done her guest stint in Hana Yori Dango and Hana Yori Dango 2, but I want a proper drama from her! *stomp* ^_^ As for actors, Akanishi Jin! *giggle* So much potential, I'd hate to see it go to waste with only three real dramas under his belt. Maybe we can hope for a summer drama from him? *crosses fingers*
a couple you want to see paired again (that don’t have an upcoming drama) = Yamashita Tomohisa and Horikita Maki. Yamashita's character held an unrequited love for Horikita's character in Nobuta o Produce. Horikita's character held an unrequited love for Yamashita's character in Kurosagi. Now all they have left to do is actually do a drama where thet get together!! *laughs*
a couple you want to see together for the first time = KIMURA TAKUYA AND MATSUSHIMA NANAKO. PERIOD. PERIOD. PERIOD. *laughs* Seriously. The drama!king and the drama!queen need to work together on a renai! Because you know if they did, that drama would blow all the records for ratings out of the WATER. *giggle* I'd kill to see those two amazing actors against one another; I think I wouldn't be coherent while watching that drama, I'd just be constantly flailing. *snicker*
manga you’d want to see adopted into a drama = Er, the only manga I've ever really read has been because I've seen the drama first - Hana Yori Dango, Nodame Cantabile and Kimi wa Petto - so I'm probably the wrong person to ask this question to. ;P
worst manga-to-live-action adaptation = I'm just going to take this as worst manga-adapted drama, and as I look at my list of completed dramas, I can't think of one. I've enjoyed all the manga-adapted dramas I've seen for the most part. :)
best manga-to-live-action adaptation = Without a shadow of a doubt, Hana Yori Dango and Hana Yori Dango 2. An beautifully faithful rendering of the manga, where even the alterations were in-character with the entire feel of the work. Acting captured the characters perfectly - MatsuJun was Doumyouji Tsukasa and Inoue Mao was Makino Tsukushi. :)
unsubbed drama that you wish was subbed = Hmm... There's only one drama on my list that I've watched and still doesn't have subtitles - Bokura no Yuuki. It's a decent drama that is a Johnny's!vehicle from the late 1990's. I enjoyed for what it was (that is to say, don't think to hard when you watch the drama) when I saw it and adore chibi!MatsuJun. It should be subtitled if only so that more people can love on the chibi!MatsuJun. *chuckle*
favorite drama soundtrack = This is difficult to choose. I'm very partial to OSTs done by Kanno Yugo - Sapuri, Engine, Haken no Hinkaku, Bambino!, etc. I also love Nobuta o Produce and Tatta Hitotsu no Koi's OSTs, done by Ike Yoshihiro. An oldie, but a goodie is also the OST for Tokyo Love Story.
favorite tears-your-heart-out angst scene = *thinks* Probably the most recent one that had me crying buckets and buckets is the ending of Karei Naru Ichizoku. Since I cried for thirty minutes straight, I can't accredit a scene and I don't want to either, because I don't want to spoil anyone, but it's a heartwrenching end, just know that. :)
most anticipated drama = Proposal Daisakusen and Bambino. But, turns out I expected too much of Proposal Daisakusen because I'm loving the most on the drama that I expected the least from - Hanayome to Papa. :)
if!you!aren't!listening!to!this!you!are!missing!out!mix
"Hesitate" by Akanishi Jin --> kitsune714 did not know this song existed until yesterday when I told her it did. o.O Poor deprived!KAT-TUN!fangirl. *pat pat*
"Ai no Katamari by Akanishi Jin and Nishikido Ryo --> Akanishi and Nishikido's duet cover of the KinKi Kids' song. I have fond memories of anamuan squeeing over this one in the middle of the night on a bus. *giggle*
"Change" by Monkey Majik and the Yoshida Brothers --> COOLEST NEW SINGLE EVER. So, the guys who did the cool theme song to Saiyuuki ("Around the World") now bring us this awesome collaboration with the Yoshida Brothers, contemporary shamisen players. Too cool. And look! The song is in English! (Their lead singer is Canadian *grin*)
"Sakura" by Kobukuro --> I just recently rediscovered this gem even though I watched N's Aoi last year. It kind of makes me want to rewatch the drama even though Koyama was horrendous in it. *snicker* But the drama's quality does not reflect the quality of the song, so rest assured. ;)
I feel gross. *blech* And I totally had this ready last night and was about to post, but at midnight, the internet totally turned into a pumpkin. Or something. :P
snagged from aoimidori
favorite drama overall = Funny enough, I don't talk about it much because it is one of the first dramas I ever watched, but if we are talking about a drama that I think can do no wrong? Good Luck!!, hands down. :) It's based around one of my favorite modes of travel. It's about overcoming challenges and pursuing one's dreams. It's got Kimura Takuya giving a very down-to-earth and honest performance and Shibasaki Kou playing one of toughest cookies of Japanese drama heroines and adorable at it. Almost the entire supporting cast made it onto my must!watch!dramas!with!these!actors!in!them!list (the glaring exception is Uchiyama Rina). The OST fits the drama like a glove. And every time I go to watch an episode, I can't stop and usually end up watching half the drama in one sitting. *snicker* If that isn't a favorite drama overall, I don't know what is. ;)
least favorite drama overall = Amongst completed dramas (because most of the incompleted dramas are incomplete because they bored me!), probably either Hoshi no Kinka or Love and Eros. Both dramas, by the end, frustrated me because the pairing I was watching for wasn't the OTP of the drama (Aya/Takumi in Hoshi no Kinka and Kasumi/Jiro in Love and Eros) and while the pairings did occur, they were never fulfilled to the end. Also, both dramas gave me the distinct feeling like I'd had something precious stolen from me by the end. *laughs* Probably my time. ;) What made all this worse was the fact that I started out earnestly liking the dramas when I started watching them. *frown*
drama that everyone loves except for you = Beautiful Life. I disliked Tokiwa Takako because Kyoko is SO irritating. >.< I mean, I didn't realize just how awesome and actress she was until I finally gave other dramas she had done a try! I can't even explain why this drama doesn't vibe with me because Kimura gives a pretty good performance and everything. And it's not like I'm against illness!dramas. *points at Ichi Littoru no Namida amongst others* But everyone sings its praises and while I recognize it as a nicely-done drama, it doesn't move me so much. *shrug*
drama that you love though no one else does = Sapuri. OHMIGOD HOW I LOVE SAPURI! *flails* I love the younger man/older woman romance dynamic, I love office dramas, I love Itou Misaki, I love Kamenashi Kazuya, and I love the OST. Oh, and I love the way they filmed this drama in fresh bright colors and such, reflecting the summer season so perfectly. :) A lot of people disliked Minami or found that Itou's acting left much to be desired, but I am not amongst either of those camps. I think it's probably Itou's best drama to date (as well as her most recent) and Kamenashi delivers a beautifully honest portrayal of the boy!baito!puppy!Yuuya. :D And that final presentation Minami gives for Tokimoto gets me every. single. time. *grin*
drama you never thought you'd love as much as you do now = Hands down, Sore wa Toutsuzen Arashi no you ni... When I first watched it, I liked it decently enough, but I thought the performances could've used some work and the lack of a satisfying ending between amongst Takuma, Kozue and Hideo put me off a bit. However, as I watch it once again as SARS is working on subtitling it, I find that that the things that was critical about before don't bother me as much. Particularly YamaPi's performance because I have seen almost all his renzoku dramas at this point and I blame the director for his fault's in this drama. *laughs* And while the home scenes and the office scenes are still kind of sufferable, the moments between Kozue and Takuma just enchant me and I see how they click, whereas before, their physical incompatability tended to overwhelm my judgment on their chemistry.
drama you thought you'd love much more = There are quite a few that fall into this category. Beautiful Life for one. But also Tatta Hitotsu no Koi. I was very critical of the latter drama when it aired because I was expecting a lot from it. Two KAT-TUN members starring, Kitagawa scriptwriting, Oda Kazumasa writing the theme song that KAT-TUN was to sing... It had a lot of big names attached to it. And while I do love it for what it was, there were times when I was just hitting my head at the old-fashioned quality of the storytelling. Yes it was very junsui (pure), but couldn't have it been a little more updated at the same time? That, and the infamous happy ending. Kitagawa leads us on for the entire drama, hinting (well, actually hitting us with a really big sledge hammer *chuckle*) that something bad is going to happen and then poof! Happy ending! I remember thinking (and I still think) the drama would've been brilliant if Hiroto had died. *laughs* And it's not because I hated Hiroto; my feelings are rather the opposite. If he died, it could've been an amazing culmination of the junsui!quality of the drama.
angstiest drama = I think this one goes to Sora Kara Furu Ichioku no Hoshi. Another Kitagawa drama, but this one being so well-done. It's not one of my favorite dramas simply because it is so angsty and tortured. Kimura Takuya turns in a muted and rather dark performance and though I don't think Fukatsu Eri is suited to be his lead actress, she still gives a great performance that just twists the knife in your heart repeatedly as the drama draws to a close.
fluffiest/funniest drama = Looking at my list of complete dramas, the comedies on the list are few and far between, thus Gokusen without a shadow of a doubt. :) Yankumi is just an awesome character and Nakama Yukie has an amazing knack for facial expressions. :D The guys of 3-D are so dorky and so full of heart. :) And the violence is not overflowing and just about a body count (as it sometimes seemed in Gokusen 2).
most melodramatic drama = Three-way tie! Rondo, Karei Naru Ichizoku, Tokyo Wankei. The common thread amongst all three of these dramas? The melodrama was directly family!related melodrama, the best kind I suppose. ;) Rondo and Tokyo Wankei both went the route of Korean dramas, which is no surprise seeing as Rondo starred a Korean actress and Tokyo Wankei was about zainichi (ethnic Koreans established and living in Japan). Karei Naru Ichizoku was just absolutely crazy, but it still made me cry buckets in the end. *laughs*
favorite drama hero = This one is hard, but probably Hana Yori Dango and Hana Yori Dango 2's Doumyouji Tsukasa with Sapuri's Ishida Yuuya a close second. Doumyouji because beneath that hard exterior, there is a heart of pure gold. :D Ishida Yuuya because I strongly identify with Fujii Minami, and I so need an Ishida Yuuya in my life. *grin*
favorite drama heroine = This is easy because they are the heroines that I emphathize with - Anego's Noda Naoko, Sapuri's Fujii Minami, and Kimi wa Petto's Iwaya Sumire. Appearance-wise, strong, loyal, and sucessful female characters who within themselves are really lonely and self-doubtful. Common thread amongst all three dramas are that they are office dramas that deal with a younger man/older woman romance. Not that I want to be dating/reliant on a younger man for emotional support, but they are my favorites because I feel like I can follow their thought processes all the way through even if some of their actions aren't always the most admirable.
drama heroine that would rule the world = Haken no Hinkaku's Omae Haruko! She's just TOO brilliant! *laughs* Quick, sharp tongue that can put any man down! ;) That and with all the certified skills she has, there is almost nothing she can't do! :D
hero i'd take home to mother = Sapuri's Ishida Yuuya. He could make clementine cake. *giggles*
eviliest drama parent = Of course, Hana Yori Dango and Hana Yori Dango 2's Doumyouji Kaede! Though if this category also included craziest parent, I would totally include Majo no Jouken's Kurosawa Kyoko because she really was off her rocker. *snicker*
most awesome drama parent = Why Yanpapa's Mabuchi Yuusaku of course! :D Nagase Tomoya as the young father who constantly risks life and limb to keep the kids of his deceased wife happy and together even when they resist him at every turn? Yes, awesome parent. :)
worst drama outfit = Definitely that woolen, hideously patterned sweater that Yamato so happily bought after the kids were released from Makuhara in Bokura no Yuuki ~ Miman Toushi ~. o.O I swear, I think he coveted it. It was scary. *wibble* Some of Shouhei's "fashionable" outfits from Orange Days also come very close. *chuckle*
craziest drama fashion = What constitutes crazy exactly? *thinks* I suppose some of the outfits that Kurosaki wore when he was out conning people in Kurosagi were a bit out there.
best drama kiss = I'm biased towards the final kiss between Minami and Yuuya in Sapuri just because it was one of the more realistic "culmination" kisses I've seen in Japanese dramas. That is, it wasn't two people simply pressing their lips together. *snicker* And then the atmosphere was totally just there. :)
best rain scene = the rain scene at the end of episode eight of Long Love Letter. Most rain!japanese!drama!scenes are painful love scenes, but this is special and has nothing to do with that. Instead, it's a beautiful reflection of hardships, hope, and rebirth in Long Love Letter. Beautiful in its honesty. :)
favorite drama couple = This question is hard becuase I love so many couples, each for different reasons. Probably Tsukushi and Tsukasa from Hana Yori Dango and Hana Yori Dango 2 though because I really did ship them them the hardest. Honorable mentions are Ogawa Ayumi and Shinkai Hajime of Good Luck!!, Ishida Yuuya and Fujii Minami of Sapuri, and Misaki Yuka and Asami of Long Love Letter.
worst drama couple = Katase Ryou and Dojima Yuko from Sora Kara Furu Ichioku no Hoshi. If I say why, I'll spoil the story. ;P But what also factors in is that I just don't think that Kimura Takuya and Fukatsu Eri were aesthetically compatible.
most UST couple = Nakahara Shota and Misaki Youko from Attention Please! and Shinomura Etsuko and Sekino Hiroyuki (Buu) from Ganbatte Ikimasshoi!. Coincidence that in both couples the male is played by Nishikido Ryo? I think not. He has the worst luck with female leads in terms of like following through on the romance! I don't think it has anything to do with him necessarily, but it's a pattern that cannot be ignored! :P
couple you never thought you'd root for before drama = Kusano Kou and Motomiya Yuuko from Tatta Hitotsu no Koi. It had everything to do with the fact that I didn't think Tanaka Koki and Toda Erika could possibly look good together aesthetically even before I saw them on screen together. But they totally proved me wrong because they had great chemistry and just made the couple work. :)
most awesome gang of friends = Probably, the 3-D gangs from both Gokusen and Gokusen 2. Because they were always there for one another, even if sometimes they were violent for no reason. *snicker* Love for Gokusen 2's gang springing Odagiri from his prison in episode nine. *hee*
best guy-girl friendship = Shuuji, Nobuta and Akira in Nobuta o Produce. Do I really need to say more? ;) Honorable mention to F3 and their love for Tsukushi in Hana Yori Dango and Hana Yori Dango 2. *grin*
favorite secondary OTP = Togashi and Koda from Good Luck!!. I loved them when I first watched the drama and I continue to love them. :) Yeah, Togashi is sort of the stereotypical stand!by!your!man!Japanese!woman in a way, but somehow I felt like she was more than that. That she realized how broken Koda really was and simply was waiting to help him heal when he would let her. *fuzzies* And I always felt like as the older secondary OTP of Good Luck!!, they complimented the younger coupling of Ogawa and Shinkai so well. :)
favorite "third person" in a love triangle = Nakajima Satsuki, who was Shuuji's ex-girlfriend in Beautiful Life. It really helps that Satsuki was played by Koyuki. Not only that, but I was watching Beautiful Life on the heels of having just finished Engine, so to see Kimura Takuya and Koyuki play two characters that oozed chemistry was just like, "WHOA." Because Kanzaki Jiro and Mizukoshi Tomomi didn't really ooze anything in Engine. *chuckle* I totally wanted Satsuki and Shuuji to get back together, that was how much I loved Satsuki as the "third person" over Kyoko. *giggle*
least favorite "third person" in a love triangle = dude with no manners aka Saito from Tatta Hitotsu no Koi. Nothing against the actor, but the character was just lame. We all complained about how stiff he was with Nao and the mere idea of Nao choosing him over Hiroto was just blasphemy. So the idea that he should disrupt the pure!love of Nao and Hiroto just made him a bad man. *blah*
favorite drama actor = Kimura Takuya. No question at all. He was like one of the first Japanese actors that I saw after all, as Good Luck!! was my second Japanese drama. :) I will follow him through any drama, especially ever since he did not let me down with Karei Naru Ichizoku. Honorable mentions go to Matsumoto Jun (who I think does wonderful things with his various manga roles) and Yamashita Tomohisa (who has been so amazingly consistent as an amazing actor throughout his career, it's just like whoa).
favorite drama actress = This is a difficult one. But the Queen of Japanese dramas herself, Matsushima Nanako, definitely gets onto the list. :) If you have not seen a Matsushima!Nanako!lead!drama ( GTO or Yamato Nadeshiko are two oldies, but goodies) then you have not lived. ;P Shinohara Ryoko also gets on the list. She only gets better as she gets older. :D Not something you can say about every actress out there. ^_^ I also have great loves for Koyuki and Shibasaki Kou and soft spots for Itou Misaki and Kanno Miho. *grin*
hottest drama actor = Er, that would really be a repeat of all my favorite drama actors because what makes an actor really hot to me is not just their physical appearance, but they fact that they are competent as actors. :)
hottest drama actress = Hmm... I don't think I have a decent answer for this one because it's hard for me to see actresses in a "hot" manner.
actor/actress you wish would make more dramas = KOYUKI!! After Engine, she totally fell off the drama map! *frown* And MATSUSHIMA NANAKO!! After she had her baby, she's done her guest stint in Hana Yori Dango and Hana Yori Dango 2, but I want a proper drama from her! *stomp* ^_^ As for actors, Akanishi Jin! *giggle* So much potential, I'd hate to see it go to waste with only three real dramas under his belt. Maybe we can hope for a summer drama from him? *crosses fingers*
a couple you want to see paired again (that don’t have an upcoming drama) = Yamashita Tomohisa and Horikita Maki. Yamashita's character held an unrequited love for Horikita's character in Nobuta o Produce. Horikita's character held an unrequited love for Yamashita's character in Kurosagi. Now all they have left to do is actually do a drama where thet get together!! *laughs*
a couple you want to see together for the first time = KIMURA TAKUYA AND MATSUSHIMA NANAKO. PERIOD. PERIOD. PERIOD. *laughs* Seriously. The drama!king and the drama!queen need to work together on a renai! Because you know if they did, that drama would blow all the records for ratings out of the WATER. *giggle* I'd kill to see those two amazing actors against one another; I think I wouldn't be coherent while watching that drama, I'd just be constantly flailing. *snicker*
manga you’d want to see adopted into a drama = Er, the only manga I've ever really read has been because I've seen the drama first - Hana Yori Dango, Nodame Cantabile and Kimi wa Petto - so I'm probably the wrong person to ask this question to. ;P
worst manga-to-live-action adaptation = I'm just going to take this as worst manga-adapted drama, and as I look at my list of completed dramas, I can't think of one. I've enjoyed all the manga-adapted dramas I've seen for the most part. :)
best manga-to-live-action adaptation = Without a shadow of a doubt, Hana Yori Dango and Hana Yori Dango 2. An beautifully faithful rendering of the manga, where even the alterations were in-character with the entire feel of the work. Acting captured the characters perfectly - MatsuJun was Doumyouji Tsukasa and Inoue Mao was Makino Tsukushi. :)
unsubbed drama that you wish was subbed = Hmm... There's only one drama on my list that I've watched and still doesn't have subtitles - Bokura no Yuuki. It's a decent drama that is a Johnny's!vehicle from the late 1990's. I enjoyed for what it was (that is to say, don't think to hard when you watch the drama) when I saw it and adore chibi!MatsuJun. It should be subtitled if only so that more people can love on the chibi!MatsuJun. *chuckle*
favorite drama soundtrack = This is difficult to choose. I'm very partial to OSTs done by Kanno Yugo - Sapuri, Engine, Haken no Hinkaku, Bambino!, etc. I also love Nobuta o Produce and Tatta Hitotsu no Koi's OSTs, done by Ike Yoshihiro. An oldie, but a goodie is also the OST for Tokyo Love Story.
favorite tears-your-heart-out angst scene = *thinks* Probably the most recent one that had me crying buckets and buckets is the ending of Karei Naru Ichizoku. Since I cried for thirty minutes straight, I can't accredit a scene and I don't want to either, because I don't want to spoil anyone, but it's a heartwrenching end, just know that. :)
most anticipated drama = Proposal Daisakusen and Bambino. But, turns out I expected too much of Proposal Daisakusen because I'm loving the most on the drama that I expected the least from - Hanayome to Papa. :)
if!you!aren't!listening!to!this!you!are!missing!out!mix
I feel gross. *blech* And I totally had this ready last night and was about to post, but at midnight, the internet totally turned into a pumpkin. Or something. :P