Title: Renai Battle Royale / 恋愛バトルロワイアル (Chastity High)
Rating: 7 / 10
Recommended for:
Those who like school romance stories with a suspense angle and/or are fans of the cast
Liked:
- While stories about school rules banning romance or dating in schools aren't exactly new, this drama had a slightly different and updated take on this issue with the students in both camps (pro and against the rule) policing and guarding against each other. As such, the so-called "battle" was more about the battle of wits between the students rather than the school management/teachers vs. the students although you can still say that the students who are in favour of this rule were the proxies for the adults who put this rule into place.
Up to episode 6, there was quite a number of scenes about the battle of wits between the students so this should satisfy those looking for a school romance story which is balanced with some suspense. And since the drama is set in current times where smartphone and social media use is the norm, it adds a modern technological angle to the story with spying and counter-spying being done through mobile phones. Last but not least, I liked that the story did not try to force a happily-ever-after ending because reality doesn't always work out as you wish and what is good for some people may not be what the majority wants or society deems as acceptable.
- The good-looking student cast members included quite a number of up-and-coming young actors and their performances were generally decent. Personally, I felt that Mikami Ai, Toyoda Yudai, Honda Kyoya and Osaki Ichika stood out more than the rest.
Mikami had the advantage of being the lead so had ample room to develop her character and the spectrum of emotions which the lead character Ichika went through. Just this year alone, I have watched at least 3 or 4 works featuring her (some were older ones) so her performance this time has convinced me that she is versatile and has the potential to do even better in future.
While Toyoda, Honda and Osaki had supporting roles, they were able to show the emotions of their characters very well despite the limitations in terms of airtime. I really liked Toyoda's chemistry with Hoshi Moeka in this drama while Honda was such a joy to watch and very endearing on screen. Osaki had a difficult role and the emotional outburst in the early part of the drama compared to the later part when she had come to terms with what she went through was pretty impressive.
As for the adults, I thought that Hoshi and Asaka Koudai were more outstanding while the others were either at their usual standard or had limited room to stand out.
Disliked:
- To be honest, I felt that the title was a mismatch for the content in this drama. It may be true that there was a battle of wits between the two camps of students and/or with the school management but the story ultimately involved more than that. Besides the romance and suspense, the ending part of the drama also discussed issues like privacy, respect for human rights, using the wrong method to do something supposedly right. As such, perhaps the neither-here-nor-there and inaccurate title could be a turn-off for people who don't know or bother finding out what the drama may be about because it doesn't really reflect the true essence of the story.
- The pairing of Mikami with Miyase Ryubi felt off to me, not just in the appearance department. In terms of age, Mikami is 4 years older than Miyase in real life and the latter having a babyface made the age gap look even more obvious. Coupled with the fact that Miyase's character didn't come across as very appealing to me, I thought that the lead couple lacked a "draw" that would make me look forward to seeing them end up together or want to root for them.
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