Disclaimer: For those who are big fans of Kamenashi Kazuya or like the drama adaptation of Kami no Shizuku very much, you may wish to give this review a miss. I am stating my honest opinions on the drama which may not be music to the ears for some people. As such, to prevent you from getting upset over my personal views, I really suggest that you can consider whether you want to read further on.
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I have decided to give up on this series after watching the first 3 episodes. In fact, the thought of giving up already crossed my mind before I finished Ep 2. However, I thought of giving this series another chance but Ep 3 failed to impress me. It only strengthened my belief that I should not be watching this anymore. In fact, I should never have started.
Like what I said before, I had my reservations as to whether Kamenashi Kazuya is suited for this role. I did not read the manga so I have no idea whether his potrayal of Shizuku is close to the original. I don't really care for that since I'm not a manga fan anyway. Usually, I will be very upset if the adaptation differs too much from the original but this time round, I do not have a basis for comparision. The problem here is that the drama feels very much like a last-minute slipshod piece of work and Kamenashi's acting plus his combination with Naka Riisa are not helping things either.
First of all, the packaging and overall feel of the series should deviate more towards the elegant and high-class spectrum. Even I can see that the cover of the manga has more effort put into it as compared to most titles. Wine, being a drink which is not consumed that regularly and commonly as compared to juices or even beer, has a air of mystique and elegance to it. However, looking at how these people drink wine makes it not so appealing after all. Gulping is a big no-no and seeing how Tomine (Tanabe Seiichi) acts like a lunatic while munching on the corks just puts me off.
Besides that, Kamenashi simply does not bring out that genius feel of Shizuku. Before the drama started, my impression of Shizuku was that he's an unwilling genius when it comes to wine. He doesn't want to know so much about it yet he has the talent that puts him above the rest. However, what I've seen so far is Shizuku depending largely on the help rendered by people around it. I just don't see how talented Shizuku is supposed to be. At least Kamenashi doesn't show it. He strikes me more like an average guy who happens to hit the jackpot by chance.
However, I must say that Naka Riisa is a bigger eyesore in the series. I hate girls like that. Her character, Miyabi may have some knowledge or should I say trivia for wine but I don't really feel as if she's of much help to Shizuku. Coupled with the fact that I don't like Naka's acting at all (strikes me like a bimbo following Shizuku all day long), I can't bring myself to like this combination. Not even a single bit.
And finally, the theme song is another big irritation for me. I know there's an issue of using theme songs by the lead actor or actress most of the time especially when it comes to Johnny's artistes. However, I cannot comprehend why the producers allowed a song from KAT-TUN to be the theme song. The image does not match at all! It is really a blind decision which I simply think that it's extremely detrimental to the series. A good theme song could have been some saving grace.
Despite boasting of using a bestselling manga as the story base and a pretty good cast, the lacklustre story and acting (the leads) plus that horribly mismatched theme song spoilt the viewing experience for me. Totally. No wonder it is now languishing in the single digit ratings region: 10.3% --> 7.3% --> 6.2% --> 5.0% --> 6.0%. It should be the hardcore fans who are still tuning in to this.
If you are a Kamenashi fan, I'm sure he has better works in the past especially Nobuta wo Produce. The problem is, he's not able to bring out the essence as yet, not so of the fact that he's a lousy actor all the time. He has done better before BUT this role doesn't suit him, clearly. He seems to be at a very awkward stage. He doesn't look that manly yet to be an adult and he's too old to play a kid. So...maybe he should do something about his image like Yamashita Tomohisa. Although I'm also not quite impressed with Yamapi's acting, I think he has a smoother transition to adult roles because of his beefed-up figure and emphasis on masculinity these days. You can't look like a young guy who's immature, hanging around, frivolous etc and expect to get serious roles with substance. It doesn't work.
My last words about this: Don't bother with this drama. It simply isn't worth your time. And I wasted close to 3 hours of my time which I do regret.
Title: Yami no Kodomo Tachi
Title: Yougisha X no Kenshin
Title: Okuribito
Title: Detroit Metal City
Title: Hebi ni Piasu
Title: Climber's High
Title: Ketsugekigata Betsu Onna ga Kekkon suru Houhou
Close your eyes, give me your hand, darling 
Every man has a place
This may seem like a horror movie if you look at the poster or the DVD cover but honestly, other than the image of Ao played by Tanimura Mitsuki, there isn't much horror to speak of. The makeup on her face appears quite horrendous initially but after looking at it for a while, I sort of got used to it. Well, this is not the most frightening or disgusting makeup I've seen on a character in the dramas or movies. Being not very daring as I get older, I usually shun horror movies these days. I'm glad that I gave in to my urge to watch this movie since it turned out to be not so much of a horror movie after all.
Title: Koori no Hana
Title: Triangle
Title: Scandal DVD Box
Title: Team Batista no Eikou DVD Box Set
Title: Code Blue DVD Box
Title: Kaze no Garden DVD Box Set
It becomes apparent in this episode that Fuutarou has a motive for "creating" that accident to cause Midori to knock him down with her car. At first, it may appear that Fuutarou wants to get close to Midori directly but my guess now is that he wants to achieve his aim indirectly through Akane, Midori's younger sister. Akane is a much easier nut to crack than Midori because Fuutarou knows that Midori may not take a liking to him. And he wants the heart of a beautiful person. In order to do that, he has to go through the weakest link in the Mikuni family i.e. Akane. As Akane has an inferiority complex due to a birth mark on her face and the fact that she walks with a limp, Fuutarou's appearance seems like a saviour because he is the only one who understands her feelings towards people who are normal and seemingly perfect in anything. Like what Fuutarou says, they are like those who stand in the dark and look at the sun. On one hand, you desire sunshine but on the other hand, you hate its existence. This contradictory feeling is exactly what Akane has been feeling but nobody has been able to understand. As such, she falls for Fuutarou very easily and clings onto him as if he's the life buoy while she's sinking. And once Fuutarou successfully enters the Mikuni family, I wonder how Akane will be "disposed of" by Fuutarou who would stoop at nothing to achieve his aim.
This looks like a drama which I will watch till the end. Matsuyama Kenichi's first drama as the leading man i.e. Sexy Voice and Robo didn't interest me that much and I gave up on it even before the halfway mark. Critical reviews for that drama were quite divided. It's either you like it a lot or hate it to the core. However, the strong storyline of Zenigeba and Matsuyama's acting skills are strong pull factors for me to continue with it till the end of the season. No doubt the theme may be a bit too extreme and twisted for general audiences, I think it's a pretty engaging plot. Come to think of it, Matsuyama seems to have a pretty strong working relationship with NTV. Death Note was produced by them too and Sexy Voice and Robo was also from them.