The Last Things I Watched Part XV - First of 2016!
It's been almost 3 months since I last did one of these!! Oh jesus I have A LOT to catch up on!! So let's crack on!! Other in this series can be found here. The next few of these won't necessary but in 'finished watching' order but more like 'what I watched first and is written in my note book' order. So let's go!!
As always: SPOILER ALERT!
Shuriken Sentai Nininnger [Japan - 2015 4/10]
Oh man where to start with this.... even from the beginning (looking at my notes now) I wasn't sure about this series and boy I was right from the beginning to be wearie. From beginning to end I didn't like Red or Shiro ranger (see I've already forgotten their names! Taka and Chiro or something right?) and while the plot, in the beginning, was good; it just DRAGGED on and in the end, it wasn't even fucking resolved!! There was this whole 'who will be the last ninja' and we were all trying to figure out who'd be best but in the end they were like 'I'll just be the best scietist ninja' or 'the best wizard ninja' what a cop-out!! But I have to say that's a very child-like resolution and this IS a kids show. And the LACK of character development! I cannot tell you much about each other characters cos even during their own solo episodes (which were VERY few) we didn't learn anything about them NOR did we see them grow really -__- Also it felt like it was taking fucking forever to end! And the story fell apart and... this series was just a mess.....
Oooooo! And let's talk about that EPIC twist when Hidechan went DARK!!! OMG it would've been an AMAZING twist in the story and would've made this series a WHOLE lot more interesting but oh no! After 2 episodes he was back to normal! WTF?!?!?!? They threw away something that would've made this amazing!!! And lets be honest; the only redeeming part of this series was Hidechan and Yakumo. Pink was good but she didn't get nearly enough credit NOR spotlight and she was a fairly great character! BUT Baba Ryoma was in an episode <3 and so was Matsumoto Hiroya <3 so they were nice editions. I quite liked the Karuta episode too. Kyuuemon was a semi-decent villain too. But just like omg Kyuuemon and Evil Hide would've been amazing just.... ugh....
Let us move on shall we from that monstrosity....
Yuusha Yoshihiko to Maou no Shiro [Japan - 2012 7/10]
This was great! This made fun of all the video game RPG tropes and it was refreshing to see Yamada as a not so serious person in a role <3 This was very funny for me and I enjoyed it a lot! It was ridiculously hilarious >.< It had some dirty parts in it too which added to the comedy ^_^ And the special guests! All the special guests were very famous and nice surprises, for example: Oguri Shun and Kaku Kento! And omg one guy said his knife was poisonous and to make himself seem more dangerous he licked the knife and of course instantly died xD omg the stupidity of this show! If you enjoy RPG tropes and some silliness, this drama is for you! Also Yamada is always a nice sight to see <3 I hope to get onto the second season sometime this year! Also this show made me want to get back in gaming every single time I watched it. I think this definitely worked well as a short episode version rather than the standard 45 minute length. Very enjoyable!
Kounodori [Japan - 2015 9/10]
I finished this a few weeks back. Actually I cried my heart out every episode! I was either crying from joy or crying from it being SO heartbreaking. As you can tell this is ALL about gviving birth - I've gotten very maternal in my old age these past few years and so watching a show like this, I can't not cry every time a baby is born or in trouble! I really like Oguri Shun's random guest apperances in this and it was even his daughter at the end of the series! She looks SO like him and his wife! But anymore back to our main protagonist which was Ayano Go <3 this was a lot calmer role than I'm used to seeing him in (Saigou no Rikon / CROWS / GANTZ etc.) but I really loved him in this! His character was so great and mysterious and it was nice to not only see him as a doctor but to also see his childhood and what it was like it him and it actually intertwines with a few other the babies in the story. Some of the stories that stood out where: The blind girl who wanted to play piano, Akira's (yes the Akira from Mother Game!) episode was omg! At first I was like 'ah shit he's too young to play this type of role and in this type of dorama' but DAMN it all ended up working and I was like "AKIRA!!!! Don't cry' while I myself was in streams of tears! Another episode was when the parents had had a child born with a rare disease that kills the baby within a few months of being born and just the entire episode omg... ripped me apart! I did have a lot of rage for some of the situations or some of the decisions the characters made but that just helps the drama - no? But the one that REALLY enraged me what the Cleft lip situation. A mother got told her child will be both with a clept/cleft lip and she went completely - she broke down and got angry and I was like 'bitch it's a cleft lip not cancer that your baby has! It can easily be fixed!' and it took her WAY too long to finally be like 'oh yeah it can be fixed and my baby will be "normal" ' that was the only situations that seriously pissed me off and was uncalled for.
Only other really negative is that I wish the doctors themselves had had more development and more relationship building behind them and wish we'd seen more of their lives more but that's all. Nothing majorly wrong with this show - hence the 9 out of 10 rating!
Overall I cried like a bitch at this: It was both heartbreaking AND heartwarming. I cried every damn episode and this was SO good! I marathoned pretty much 8 episodes in a day cos I could not stop watching this! So many emotions. This dorama is beautiful! If you haven't watched it yet, please do! I tend to stir away from hospital dramas but this one hooked me hard!
Zyuden Sentai Kyouryuuger [Japan - 2013 8/10]
I ended up enjoying this A LOT more than I expected! When this first aired I didn't even contemplate watching it. I saw the transformation dance and went 'thats the shittest way to henshin ever' and never looked at it again. BUT I decided to finally give it a try and yes, I enjoyed this!! I really like the story and the plot and I fell in LOVE with Green ranger <3 (who I then went to see on stage in Bazara back in Janruary!) He was so sexy and great and ugh why is he younger than me. Obviously Ryusei Ryo is a darling <3 and it was strange seeing him do a sentai cos normally sentai is like the debut platform but he's been acting for years also! (But I guess Mahiro was the same too so I shouldn't complain). I am actually a huge dinosaur lover so the theme fits my tastes perfectly! I really enjoyed the crush episode which was one of Green's central episodes <3 it was cute! But I don't ship Pink and Red at all and the tv show was trying so hard to! Daigo (Red) and Ian (Black) took their time but they grew on me. Uchi is just soooo adorable and so good! I really like how he was introduced and I love his personality <3 AND!! There is a purple female ranger!! I've ALWAYS been the purple ranger in my head and it was great to finally, actually see a purple (and female!) ranger! <3 Also her love for Daigo was very relatable for me cos she had bromides of him and everything >.< such is a fangirl! The sleep episode was enjoyable too. And omg just everything that happened with Thorin was a ROLLER. COASTER. RIDE! It was completely crazy and messed with my emotions so hard! The fishing enemy towards the end was funny too. And the body swap episode!! xD They did a great job imitating each other. Also Human and Deboss love <3 It was great seeing the bad guys turn good. And when that one bad guy died, it was so upsetting!!
As you can tell, I enjoyed this a lot! I don't know if it's because it actually was good or because my expectations were so low... so whatever! It was funny, some great episodes, great story! I loved all the characters and the twists were shocking!! If you want a fun Sentai; this one!
Bad butt shot xD
RYUSEI!!!! o_O =O
Arakawa Under the Bridge: The Movie [Japan - 2012 2/10]
This was a disappointment. I remember watching the TV show and finding it random and weird as fuck but liking it. Unfortunately this movie (it seems) felt like it spent 90 minutes putting those dorama episodes into one 90 minute catch up segment and then saved 20 minutes at the end to finish the story off. I had so much dejavu that I wasn't sure if I'd already seen the movie or they were just reusing ALL the drama footage! I just ugh... this was not satifying at all. And maybe a bit too weird in all honestly... Which is a shame cos it's a start stooded cast! It's Oguri, Yamada, Shirota, Kiritani etc... But.Don't waste you time on it?
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And there's the first five! I seemed to have a mix of complete disappointment and complete love in this review... how about you?
Have you seen these doramas/movies? What did you think? Have a persuaded you to try any?