[Review] Sushi Ouji
Reposted from kimi-no-koe.net.
For those who haven't seen this series yet, it can be downloaded from this post at yorokobi_no_uta.
Sushi Ouji (And, for the love of god Kame, it's Ouji, not Oji! >___<) is about Maizu Tsukasa, a sushi chef who has lost his path after witnessing his father and grandfather being being skewered by a giant CG fish. This tragic event left young Tsukasa with Fish Eye Phobia, which... yeah, he sees fish eyes and he goes ballistic. O__O He begins training at the Saotome School of Anything-Goes-Sushi... to overcome his phobia.
(There are no spoilers beyond the cut. However, I do sorta demand some fic. Please?)
The premise of the show immediately reminds me of Kamen Rider Kabuto (because I'll take any chance I get to talk about Kabuto...). Specifically, the episodes (29 & 30) in which Tendou faces off against the rival-chef!Worm and he goes through rigorous and bizarre training to attain the White Knife, but then learns the valuable lesson that it's not about the tools, but the thoughts and care put into making a dish.
The big question here is... who would win in a sushi battle? Maizu Tsukasa? Or Tendou Souji? (Is it too presumptuous of me to demand fic? Yes? *sigh* A girl can dream, eh?)
Like those episodes of Kabuto, Sushi Ouji was a little too cracky for my tastes. It was definitely a good show and it made me laugh, but overall, I think I spent too much of the series thinking to myself, "WTF, Japan?!" That said, the show had a few emotional scenes and I admit to tearing up a bit at the end.
Doumoto Koichi's acting wasn't bad, but nothing spectacular. As I've never seen him in a drama prior to this, I'm unsure if his performance as Tsukasa was indicative of his skills as an actor or not, so I'll save judgment on his overall talent for a later time.
The short time that Nakamaru Yuichi was actually on screen with dialogue, it seemed like he was trying a bit too hard. He was a little over the top, but then... I guess that kinda fits with the rest of the show. I was a little disappointed with his performance, though, and I hope to see him in a slightly less wacky drama at some point so I can get an accurate idea of his acting skills. He was very adorable and smily throughout the series, though, which is a good thing. :)
The subtitles, this time provided by Love Song, are pretty good. The biggest thing that I noticed right off the bat was in episode one, when Burusu is riding on Tsukasa's back, she says, in English, "High-ho Silver." It's subtitled as "Okay, go." Yeah, same basic idea, but when I see things like that, it tells me that either the subbers didn't actually understand what she said and just made shit up based on context or that they don't care that much about accuracy. I mean, I know that it's an old pop culture reference, but I think the fact that this old Japanese woman knew enough to use the reference helps define her character. It adds to her eccentricity. So I think the subbers are doing a disservice to the viewers by not subtitling with the proper dialogue. And if it's a matter of the subbers simply not understanding the reference... that's what Google is for.
Also, not bothering to translate greetings and set phrases, such as "yoroshiku onegaishimasu" and "otsukaresama deshita" is really shitty. I mean, you can't even be bothered to put in a little note for what it means? Not everyone knows these phrases. You're subbing for people who don't understand Japanese, aren't you? So please translate ALL of the Japanese. >__<
Note: I am a subtitle snob. I am very critical of both fansubs and officially released subtitles. I'm also very thankful to those who provide subbed videos because my understanding of spoken Japanese is still all kinds of FAIL and because I know (from experience) that translating and subbing is a difficult, time consuming, and thankless hobby. With that said, if you're a fansubber and I criticize subs that you've done, please take my opinion as feedback and not as an attack. I mean no harm. But since the quality of the subtitles can affect my enjoyment of a show or movie, I feel that my comments of the subs should be included in a review. Please don't bitch at me because I dared to find fault in your subs. It's sad that I actually have to type this out but I know someone's gonna get all wanky about this or future drama reviews. >___<
/End Rant
So, back to the review. Overall, would I recommend this show? Eh, probably not. If you're a Koichi fan or a diehard Nakamaru fan, then yeah, watch this. If you like your dramas with an extra big dose of crack, definitely watch this. Otherwise... maybe try something else first. (Like... Kamen Rider Kabuto!!! *grins*)
It was a cute, entertaining series. Fun to watch, but not a must-see.
Originally posted on July 27, 2008.
For those who haven't seen this series yet, it can be downloaded from this post at yorokobi_no_uta.
Sushi Ouji (And, for the love of god Kame, it's Ouji, not Oji! >___<) is about Maizu Tsukasa, a sushi chef who has lost his path after witnessing his father and grandfather being being skewered by a giant CG fish. This tragic event left young Tsukasa with Fish Eye Phobia, which... yeah, he sees fish eyes and he goes ballistic. O__O He begins training at the Saotome School of Anything-Goes-Sushi... to overcome his phobia.
(There are no spoilers beyond the cut. However, I do sorta demand some fic. Please?)
The premise of the show immediately reminds me of Kamen Rider Kabuto (because I'll take any chance I get to talk about Kabuto...). Specifically, the episodes (29 & 30) in which Tendou faces off against the rival-chef!Worm and he goes through rigorous and bizarre training to attain the White Knife, but then learns the valuable lesson that it's not about the tools, but the thoughts and care put into making a dish.
The big question here is... who would win in a sushi battle? Maizu Tsukasa? Or Tendou Souji? (Is it too presumptuous of me to demand fic? Yes? *sigh* A girl can dream, eh?)
Like those episodes of Kabuto, Sushi Ouji was a little too cracky for my tastes. It was definitely a good show and it made me laugh, but overall, I think I spent too much of the series thinking to myself, "WTF, Japan?!" That said, the show had a few emotional scenes and I admit to tearing up a bit at the end.
Doumoto Koichi's acting wasn't bad, but nothing spectacular. As I've never seen him in a drama prior to this, I'm unsure if his performance as Tsukasa was indicative of his skills as an actor or not, so I'll save judgment on his overall talent for a later time.
The short time that Nakamaru Yuichi was actually on screen with dialogue, it seemed like he was trying a bit too hard. He was a little over the top, but then... I guess that kinda fits with the rest of the show. I was a little disappointed with his performance, though, and I hope to see him in a slightly less wacky drama at some point so I can get an accurate idea of his acting skills. He was very adorable and smily throughout the series, though, which is a good thing. :)
The subtitles, this time provided by Love Song, are pretty good. The biggest thing that I noticed right off the bat was in episode one, when Burusu is riding on Tsukasa's back, she says, in English, "High-ho Silver." It's subtitled as "Okay, go." Yeah, same basic idea, but when I see things like that, it tells me that either the subbers didn't actually understand what she said and just made shit up based on context or that they don't care that much about accuracy. I mean, I know that it's an old pop culture reference, but I think the fact that this old Japanese woman knew enough to use the reference helps define her character. It adds to her eccentricity. So I think the subbers are doing a disservice to the viewers by not subtitling with the proper dialogue. And if it's a matter of the subbers simply not understanding the reference... that's what Google is for.
Also, not bothering to translate greetings and set phrases, such as "yoroshiku onegaishimasu" and "otsukaresama deshita" is really shitty. I mean, you can't even be bothered to put in a little note for what it means? Not everyone knows these phrases. You're subbing for people who don't understand Japanese, aren't you? So please translate ALL of the Japanese. >__<
Note: I am a subtitle snob. I am very critical of both fansubs and officially released subtitles. I'm also very thankful to those who provide subbed videos because my understanding of spoken Japanese is still all kinds of FAIL and because I know (from experience) that translating and subbing is a difficult, time consuming, and thankless hobby. With that said, if you're a fansubber and I criticize subs that you've done, please take my opinion as feedback and not as an attack. I mean no harm. But since the quality of the subtitles can affect my enjoyment of a show or movie, I feel that my comments of the subs should be included in a review. Please don't bitch at me because I dared to find fault in your subs. It's sad that I actually have to type this out but I know someone's gonna get all wanky about this or future drama reviews. >___<
/End Rant
So, back to the review. Overall, would I recommend this show? Eh, probably not. If you're a Koichi fan or a diehard Nakamaru fan, then yeah, watch this. If you like your dramas with an extra big dose of crack, definitely watch this. Otherwise... maybe try something else first. (Like... Kamen Rider Kabuto!!! *grins*)
It was a cute, entertaining series. Fun to watch, but not a must-see.
Originally posted on July 27, 2008.