Winter 2009 J-drama Previews

Happy late Chinese New Years! Unfortunately, no one gave me a red envelope this year. =( But I have my dramas to comfort me. =)

Akai Ito

Starring: Minamisawa Nao, Mizubata Junpei, Kimura Ryo
Akai Ito follows the story of Mei and Atsushi (A-kun) who are kind of like star-crossed lovers. They first met as children on their very unusual birthday, February 29 and later unknowingly become high school classmates. And even though fate seems to be bringing them together, it’s also pulling them apart.

This drama also has tie-ins to the movie; the drama starts the story off, and then the movie and drama are intertwined. I don’t know if you have to watch the movie to understand the rest of the drama, though. But so far I have been enjoying this one – it’s a young cast and it’s set in high school, but not crazy like Hana Kimi’s production. It’s a sweet young love story, so if you like innocent love type stories, this would be a good pick.

[Jmovie] Shinku

Shinku

Starring:
Uchiyama Rina as Kako
Mizukawa Asami as Miho
Kohinata Fumiyo as Kako’s father
Ogata Naoto as Miho’s father
Uchida Asahi as Akira
Tsukamoto Takashi as Takumi
Horikita Maki as young Kako

I recently watched a movie called Shinku. It’s about two girls. One is a college student whose family was murdered (Kako); the other is the daughter of the man who murdered the other girl’s family (Miho). Eight years after the murder, he is finally sentenced to death. Kako is now a pretty college student with a boyfriend and plenty of friends. Miho is a tattooed bar owner married to an unfaithful and unkind man. Kako wants to meet Miho and she starts visiting the bar that Miho owns. The two form a kind of friendship, but Kako seems to have something else in mind, a revenge of some sorts.

[Jdrama] Ashita no Kita Yoshio

Ashita no Kita Yoshio

Starring:
Kohinata Fumiyo as Kita Yoshio
Matsuda Ryuhei as Yashiro Heita
Konishi Manami as Washizu Mizuho
Kuriyama Chiaki as Hasegawa Rika
Yoshitaka Yuriko as Yoimachi Shinobu
Namase Katsuhisa as Sugimoto Masaru
Jinbo Satoshi as Washizu Hideto
Maruyama Tomomi as Yoda Ryoichi
Yoshiie Akihito as Yaida
Iwamatsu Ryo as Ebata Tatsuo
Imai Masayuki as Minami Takao
Kaname Jun as Moriwaki Daisuke

Ashita no Kita Yoshio is a Japanese drama that aired during the winter of 2008. It was 11 episodes long and got pretty un-amazing ratings of 7.1%. Despite that, I thought that it was one of the better dramas of the season (and my personal favorite!).

The story focuses on a man named Kita Yoshio. Ever since he was little, he has had this strange connection to the number 11. Generally, he is a very pathetic man and seems to have no friends. He did have one good friend, Minami Takao, but he died 11 years ago. He used to be married to a beautiful nurse, but she divorced him shortly about Minami’s death. After visiting Minami’s grave one day, he slips and scratches his palm, resembling ‘11.’ After seeing this, he decides that he himself will die 11 days later, on the anniversary of his only friend’s death. He sells off all his worldly possessions and plans to live out 11 more days. However on the first day, he meets Yashiro Heita. Through him, Kita Yoshio experiences the most eventful 11 days of his life, meeting all sorts of interesting characters.

Winter 2008 Drama Preview

New season, new dramas, and a renewed spirit! This’ll be my first drama preview post as just my first impressions on the dramas I’m planning on watching and reviewing.

First Impressions

Shikaotoko Aoiniyoshi

A very unlucky man is forced to move his post at a university lab to a girl’s high school in Nara, where the deer roam around freely. Ogawa Takanobu moves into an apartment/inn of some sorts with a bunch of his co-workers. Life in Nara is quite different from Tokyo and Ogawa has probalem adjusting, including a student who seems to hate him. And not to mention that there seems to be someone tailing him and writing telltale notes on his classroom blackboard. So far, I’ve found Shikaotoko Aoiniyoshi to be quite interesting. Even though, it takes place in Nara that’s depicted as mostly slow-paced and not very exciting, the drama is full of life. I also love that the humor is very dry; there doesn’t seem to be any slapstick to be seen. I also have to mention that Tamaki Hiroshi and Ayase Haruka have pretty unflattering hair compared to their previous hairstyles. Maybe it’s supposed to be reflect on their location.