This is the only drama this season which crossed the 20% mark for its debut episode. In fact, the 2nd episode also made it past the 20% mark. It is no wonder that there is a lot of anticipation for Kimura Takuya's annual drama to scale new heights and quash speculation that dramas cannot bring in high ratings anymore. The fact that his fellow member Nakai Masahiro's drama, "Konkatsu" is languishing in single-digit territory only serves to increase the pressure for "Mr.Brain" to perform well. The funny thing is, "Konkatsu" is doing exceptionally well in the video recording percentage charts and has a lot of good reviews. So does this mean that real-time ratings are no longer an accurate gauge of a drama's popularity and quality? I think when video recording figures of "Mr.Brain" are out, we will then see a clearer picture.Frankly speaking, much as I do not like KimuTaku's style of acting, I've got to admit that the projects he get involved in usually have a certain degree of quality. It is evident that TBS spent a lot of money on this. Just look at the set where the Institute of Police Science is at. All these high-tech equipment coupled with a star-studded cast is enough to send the budget shooting sky high. And imagine using big names like Toda Keiko, Hirosue Ryoko, Ichikawa Ebizo, Takashima Masanobu, Yusuke Santa Maria and even GACKT in just 1 episode! Not many dramas can achieve such a scale. It's the KimuTaku brand name at work that's making TBS pour money into this production. That's why they have a high barrier to cross. If this drama goes below 20%, the investment may not be worth it at the end of the day. For other dramas, even a rating of more than 10% is enough to call for a celebration.
After spending all that money, my conclusion is: almost perfect. I like the story which requires lots of thinking as well as provides little nuggets of information about the brain and psychological manipulation. I won't go into the details on the case here but it's quite interesting, no doubt it stretched too long. Next episode should be even more fun to watch with Gackt playing a psycho serial killer who had been executed but comes back to life and kills more people.Nonetheless, assembling a strong cast doesn't mean strong acting. It's a visual feast to see so many notable names in the cast but if everyone has a very small role, they will find it hard to show their best. Not everyone can be as eye-catching as Yusuke Santa Maria (he didn't appear for a long time but his cameo was very memorable) or Ichikawa Ebizo who exuded that bad guy charm pretty well. Even Gackt who appeared less than 1 minute managed to catch my eye. That is why I think Ayase Haruka or even Mizushima Hiro may find it an uphill task to make this a drama to remember on their resumes. Ayase's role is quite similar to her past attempts (whatever happened to her stellar performances in dramas like Byakuyakou?!) while Mizushima's clumsiness may not go well with his fans who prefer the suave and cool side of him exuded in dramas like HanaKimi or Mei-chan no Shitsuji. To prevent this being a KimuTaku drama, the supporting cast has got a lot to do if they want to stand out from the crowd.
The idea of making Tsukumo (KimuTaku) a host before he turned into a neurology specialist was probably to show the gap in his personality before and after the accident. Apparently, he was crushed by some fallen structures while walking along the street and this caused a serious brain injury. In this case, Tsukumo was not that bright in the first place but rather became a reformed genius because of the injury. The only thing which remains unchanged could be his inability to observe the atmosphere i.e. know what to do at the right time. That's why both versions of Tsukumo are both irritating. I think this setting is more interesting than if he had been a smart guy right from the start. Does this mean that our personalities will change if the way we use our brains are different? Apparently so. And this is the question constantly on Tsukumo's mind as he tries to solve the cases that come along and find out why he has changed to be the way he is now. Well, my only grouse is that I really dislike seeing KimuTaku with long hair. At least, the first hairstyle was more pleasing to the eye if only it was not blonde. I really think someone should tell KimuTaku not to leave his hair long again. I don't know about others but I find it such a big eyesore.
Love your post on Mr. Brain! Well balanced perspective with side information on the japanese entertainment industry. ^^
ReplyDeletei don't know that you resume this blog again.
ReplyDeletelike reading your post....
I just watched the first episode and I really disliked this drama.
ReplyDeleteFirst of all, I thought it did a terrible job in presenting all characters besides Tsukumo. All of them were extremely obnoxious, especially Ayase Haruka which has much potential (as seen in past works such as Byakuyakou and Sekachu) but is badly utilized with a dumb, unremarkable character. Mishuzima Hiro is also really bad.
And to me it's quite a problem they did a bad job in presenting the characters because the episode had 85 FREAKING MINUTES and there was no necessity to be that long.
The case was good but it reminded me too much of American crime shows which I dislike so I was quite bored by it. Also, the comedy in this was just pitiful. I hate this type of cliche Japanese comedy so I was also quite annoyed by it.
And this long hair in Kimura Takuya is just... awful. And also I really disliked his acting in this.
Production-wise, it was very well done but I highly disagree it was almost perfect. In fact, I thought it was full of fail.
But I liked your review though, I just disagree.
Wow! Andre, that was a long comment you made! I'm perfectly OK if you do not agree with what I said. In fact, wait till you see my reviews for the subsequent episodes and you will realize how our views merge in one way or another. My review was based solely on the first episode. In fact, I think my "almost perfect" remark may have caused some misunderstanding. I can see the effort and money put into the production. That area is a perfect 10. However, three problem areas are worth mentioning: the loopholes in the story, the under-utilizing of the large number of characters and sole focus on Kimura Takuya. When we look at it this way, it actualy means that there is a BIG issue with this drama since these areas make or break the drama. Maybe I should make myself clearer in future.
ReplyDeleteAs for the subsequent episodes, I guess hate comments will come my way when I post my views on them. And I'm prepared for that. ^__^ Oh well, I can't please everyone. If it's bad, it is. I won't say that it isn't just to avoid hate mails. Surely people don't expect me to say that I like every single drama I watch.
And keep your comments coming. Don't be worried about disagreement. Such views present new perspectives which I may not even have noticed. Accepting alternative views is one of the reasons why this site exists. If not, I would have just turned off the comment function and write whatever I want instead of opening myself to hate comments from people who disagree with me, right?