Quick Review #151: Ikusagami Season 1- Autumn 2025

Title: Ikusagami イクサガミ　　　　　　　

Rating: 7 / 10

Recommended for: 

Those who want to watch a samurai action movie with a modern take and smooth action scenes and/or are fans of the cast especially Okada Junichi

* Potential spoilers ahead!

Liked:

- While I tend to shy away from period works mainly because of the slow pacing and overly complex and indirect speech which hampers the flow of developments at times, this drama offered a very refreshing way of presenting this genre. This was probably made possible due to the time setting of the story -  at the cusp of Japan's modernization in the early days of the Meiji era - so that would have given some room for newer elements to be introduced as compared to a typical period work set in an era far further back. As a result, the pacing of the developments was speedier and the transition between older and newer elements turned out to be smoother than expected. 

- The thing about the action scenes in samurai-themed dramas and movies is that they can appear to be underwhelming for today's audiences because we have been spoiled with lots of aesthetics, CG and grand-scale action scenes to date. In contrast, the fighting scenes in period works tend to look like slow-motion comical moves based on today's standards. Of course, that can't be helped because the old days wouldn't have modern weaponry or advanced fighting techniques like what we have now. 

Nonetheless, what worked well for this drama was having Okada Junichi as the action planner and joint producer. This was where his martial arts background and training all these years really helped to lift the quality of the action scenes in this drama. Not only did the motions flow in a sleek manner, they were such a joy to watch on screen and very unlike what you would expect from a samurai story which tend to focus on swordsmanship rather than incorporate them along with close-contact combat.

- The cast lineup was better and more impressive than I thought initially. Given that some of the actors only appeared from the middle or towards the end of the series, there was hardly any mention of their involvement in this project prior to the release of the show. As such, you should be in for a surprise to see some of them onscreen. And for those who were "known" from the start, some of them delivered eye-catching performances which were quite unlike their images to date e.g. Ito Hideaki and Kiyohara Kaya. 

Disliked: 

- The biggest issue I had was the story being nothing more than a prologue or introduction to what is to come in future. Soon after this series was released on Netflix, they announced that Season 2 was coming (that's a given since the story is definitely unfinished). I wasn't expecting this to be a multi-season title prior to watching it so obviously, it was disappointing to find out that this season merely laid the groundwork. I really think that it is best for things to be wrapped up at one go rather than drag endlessly and across multiple seasons for most stories. These days, it's almost a given that OTT drama series can never end at one go in one season so I'm really sick and tired of "never seeing the end" of a story. And we don't even know if this series will end in Season 2.

- If this show had been launched before "Squid Game" became an international phenomenon, I think this could have enjoyed more attention and fame. Although I do not think there was deliberate copying of the K-drama which was said to have started planning and production in 2019 and released in 2021, the fact remains that the J-drama came later (based on an original novel first published in 2022) so this  inevitably led to some coining this as Japan's analogue version of Squid Game. While I didn't care which was better (we all have our preferences anyway), I did find myself trying to look for similarities and differences between both versions unconsciously in my mind. As such, I think I would have enjoyed this drama a bit more if there wasn't this unwelcome distraction. 

- What was good about the strong cast lineup also turned out to be its failing. Given that there were so many big names who were roped in to act in this series, the "blatant wastage" of such a strong talent pool by killing off people so easily and randomly e.g. Tamaki Hiroshi or Iura Arata left me quite bewildered and annoyed. In Tamaki's case especially, I was expecting that his training in martial arts could come in handy this time but the way his character "died" - what did I just see??? He hardly fought and the next scene simply showed that he "died"?

As more yet-to-be-explored-in-detail characters and last-minute addition at the very end were revealed, I shudder to imagine how the body count would be like in Season 2 (or even more seasons ahead). I know, this is a deadly survival game where people have to "die" but considering how there's been a lot of talk that the big names are now hogged by the OTTs with deep pockets, it feels terribly wasteful to gather all these people but let them "disappear" almost instantly. Then why cast them in the first place when their name values nor acting skills didn't seem to be needed in the first place?

Quick Review #150: 366 nichi (movie)

Title: 366 nichi / ３６６日　　　　　　　

Rating: 6 / 10

Recommended for: 

Those who want to watch a love story featuring very compatible-looking leads set in gorgeous Okinawa with a nice OST BUT don't mind the clichés and some unreasonable developments 

* Potential spoilers ahead!

* I have not watched the drama version in its entirety (one episode only).

Liked:

- Despite my initial reservation about how Akaso Eiji and Kamishiraishi Moka were actually going to pull off looking like a couple with just a year's difference in age (even though their age gap is actually much bigger), I guess I was worried for nothing after all. It did seem like their previous experience of working together in "Pending Train" helped in improving their chemistry on the whole.

Thanks to the fact that Akaso can still look like a high school guy with his youthful looks and the proper styling plus he and Moka do look very compatible on screen, it was easy to forget their true age gap or not be bothered by it. I also liked their onscreen chemistry especially during the days when the lead couple was still in love - it was as if I could feel their happiness seeping through across the screen.

- I was particularly impressed with Moka's acting - be it as a young high schooler to an older version of herself in university and later when she became a mother. The breadth and depth of her acting was truly brilliant despite the story being quite meh at some junctures. I also liked her interaction with Inagaki Kurumi and was pretty surprised to find that they do look similar enough to pass off as mother-and-daughter in this movie.

- The scenery in Okinawa was definitely a sight to behold. Given that HY hails from Okinawa, this location was a natural choice and a good one after all. Along with HY's songs (not just "366 nichi" which is the motif of this movie), the actual theme song for this movie "Koi wo shite" was also a great fit with the visuals and story. It was nice to see that these elements complemented one another to make this movie more memorable and enjoyable to watch.

Disliked: 

- The biggest problem for me was the story i.e. how predictable this was heading (the couple was never going to end up together in the end) and how some developments were so unbelievable or didn't make sense. Just to name one - would you have allowed your junior school daughter to fly all the way from Okinawa to Tokyo on her own to find someone? While the father did get someone to "accompany" her in secret, it was somewhat bothersome to me.

One other problem I had was the similarities this had with another movie of a similar plot/genre i.e. "Ito" - also based on a song (albeit by Nakajima Miyuki), spanned 18 years, featured Okinawa (although Hokkaido was the "main" location for "Ito") and described how a couple couldn't be together for one reason or another. It got me comparing both movies unconsciously from time to time even though the circumstances facing both couples were truly different and the songs had vastly different vibes. 

Last but not least, I felt a generation gap with the lead couple in this movie - the MD player featured prominently in their younger days but my childhood and teenager days were more in the cassette tape-to-CD-player era. Frankly speaking, I hardly had any exposure to the MD because I moved on to portable MP3 players straight from CDs.  As such, it was no wonder that the MD plot device didn't really resonate with me.

Quick Review #149: Rokunin no usotsuki daigakusei (movie)

Title: Rokunin no usotsuki daigakusei / 六人の噓つき大学生　　　　　　　

Rating: 2 / 10

Recommended for: 

Who like the cast and don't mind the predictable and at-times yawn-inducing storyline 

* Potential spoilers ahead!

* I have not read the original novel.

Liked:

- The cast of young actors/actresses did a decent job in portraying their characters. Despite being in a "closed room" setting with hardly any variation in the background and the limited developments largely depending on their solo acting and interactions with one another, everyone contributed in keeping things going, albeit in varying degrees.

Disliked: 

- Often, the promotional slogans for suspense/mystery/detective dramas and movies tend to dangle the claim that the viewer will be in for a big shock or the story will be so unexpected so as to attract viewers' attention and interest. However, such claims tend to fall flat especially which is usually due to these claims increasing the viewers' expectations to such a point that there are huge shoes to fill. For me, while I like being pleasantly surprised when the result is better than expected, the disappointment I experience when the actual turns out to be way less than the expected is usually amplified.

In this movie's case, it was somewhat unexpected that even with a novel forming the basis of and supposedly driving the plot, the story didn't come across as coherent and convincing. Not only was the motive of the culprit so ridiculous and trivial, I was flabbergasted and rolling eyes at how someone became the scapegoat and yet didn't clear his/her name despite knowing who had wronged him/her. To begin with, the culprit's motive of taking revenge for someone who he/she had no vested or direct interest in just seemed unbelievable. Why would someone go to this extent at the potential risk of damaging one's career prospects just to get back at that company which didn't really commit a heinous crime or something? 

What was more bewildering was, the scapegoat went through such a great extent to take up the blame for someone who made use of him/her, managed to find proof to clear his/her name and yet did not go the last mile to seek justice for himself/herself? Not to mention the process of the final revelation many years later which hardly felt like vindication for the scapegoat, these developments were such a torture to watch.

- Due to the lacklustre story, the cast certainly could have done better than this but were very much limited by the constraints of their uninspiring characters. Especially since I've seen much better performances from them before in other works, I feel that this movie didn't bring out the best from them which was a huge waste of their potential.

Quick Review #148: "Imawa no kuni no Arisu Season 3" - Summer 2025

* Actually, I finished this a while ago - in fact, soon after it was released on Netflix. However, I have been rather busy so couldn't find time to write this until now.

Title: Imawa no kuni no Arisu Season 3 / 今際の国のアリス シーズン３　　　　　　　　

Rating: 6.5 / 10

Recommended for: 

For those who have been following this since Season 1, like the series so far and the cast members BUT don't mind the lack of a conclusion yet again

* Potential spoilers ahead!

Liked:

- In terms of the scale of the games and intricate visuals, this series had plenty to rave about. Personal favourites for the visuals were the first game which Arisu took part in i.e. "Omikuji" and the final game "Mirai sugoroku". It's evident how big the budget was and how much effort was put into the CG and art direction as a whole in order to showcase all these things in a single drama series.

- Those who are fans of Yamazaki Kento and Tsuchiya Tao and/or want to see Arisu and Usagi together (at long last!) should be satisfied with this latest installment. Although the journey to being together for good (at least for now) was hardly smooth-sailing and they didn't get to spend a lot of time playing the games together.

- The star-studded supporting cast lineup with some surprises here and there should be quite satisfying to watch for most viewers. The part featuring familiar faces from past seasons in somewhat altered settings towards the end definitely stirs up some nostalgic feelings.

Disliked: 

- Given that there were two main plotlines in the earlier part of this season i.e. the Arisu's games subplot and Usagi's games subplot with Ryuji, it was inevitable that some of the games were shown only in "digest" format with hardly any explanation on the rules or the progression/outcome of the game. Coincidentally or not, it was Usagi's earlier games which were featured in this manner.

While Arisu's games tend to be the intellectual type, Usagi's games were clearly focusing on the physical aspect so she seemed to be able to sail through them pretty effortlessly despite being supposedly in a condition where she couldn't or shouldn't be involved in such punishing and strenuous activities. Ironically, her game buddy Ryuji was in a wheelchair so the fact that he survived till the end was kind of bewildering, even with Usagi's assistance.

Honestly speaking, some of the games had some "bugs" or obvious loopholes which meant that they didn't seem quite logical. On one end of the spectrum, the physical games seemed to be so easy to understand but there was also a very complicated one i.e. Zombiegari which was simply mind-boggling. As such, I didn't feel the same kind of engagement with most of the games as compared to Season 1 and even 2.

- Perhaps because the games didn't seem to be the focus in this sequel, that was probably why the pace of the game developments was so uneven. In contrast, there was a lot more time towards the end discussing this "big" issue which I thought was rather meaningless and too lengthy. Coupled with the fact that there was hardly any conclusion and there were still lots of questions to be answered, I couldn't help but feel that the ending was like click bait - looks like the creators are still not done with this series. I can't say for sure whether I still want to continue watching this but something needs to be done about the story and real/substantial answers should be given by now if the games are going to play second fiddle to the main plot going forward.

- I wonder if it was a smart move to keep Arisu and Usagi away from each other for most of the story and introduce a sinister third wheel to stir trouble for them. Personally, I was fine with them being separated since there was a significance to this setting but the third wheel development was somewhat redundant and rather annoying to watch even though I liked Kaku Kento's performance.

Quick Review #147: "Housoukyoku senkyo" - Summer 2025

Title: Housoukyoku senkyo / 放送局占拠　　　　　　　　

Rating: 1 / 10

Recommended for: 

For those who have been watching the "Senkyo" series and don't mind the illogical developments and blatant attempt to stretch this franchise for as long as possible

* Potential spoilers ahead!

Liked:

- Nothing.

Disliked: 

- Much as my expectations had been very much lowered especially after the pretty disappointing Season 2, this was really terrible in more ways than one. There were plenty of ridiculous developments such as someone suffering a seemingly life-threatening injury yet coming back as if nothing happened or that Musashi just seemed to emerge unscathed no matter what happened to him. Even playing this at 1.5x speed was a huge test to my patience and I kept wishing for this drama to end once and for all. Although I could have dropped this halfway, I guess I was being a bit "defiant" as well because I wanted to see how bad this could get and to give myself a strong reason to stop watching this series, if it does have a sequel in time to come.

As I see it, the biggest issue with the story was the motives spurring the criminals who took over the TV station being terribly "trivial and stale". Actually, one common theme across all three installments of the Senkyo series was the injustice that people suffered or rather their loved ones did. As such, to rise against the rich and the powerful for causing those injustices was something I sort of expected to be a motivating factor for the three groups of criminals featured to date. Beyond this aspect, the underlying themes such as people being influenced easily by the mass media which present only one side of an issue (sometimes skewed, twisted or even faked) and irresponsible keyboard warriors who fail to realise the weight of their reckless actions are actually topics which can spur a lot of soul-searching and be analyzed in a meaningful and deep manner. However, this drama "packaged" the story in such a way that the significance and meaning of these issues were superficial at best. For example, the reason why the leader of the group bore a grudge against Musashi was for a reason that was no fault of the latter because he was just doing his job and that it was really a set of unfortunate coincidental circumstances that led to the situation. The lack of a compelling and convincing story to justify the actions of the criminals was really the biggest downfall of this drama. As a viewer, I couldn't care less for the group even when they were rounded up by the police and had to see their scheme fall through right before their eyes.

Although the drama's ending definitely hinted at a sequel by throwing up another BIG question, I think I've had enough. I don't think I can stomach another installment even in the name of supporting Sakurai Sho.

- While the concept of having a masked criminal group take over a key facility and the face reveal may have been refreshing and interesting in Season 1, the novelty had already worn off by Season 2 and it would take a lot for Season 3 to build on this predictable formula and introduce some new elements so as to entice viewers again. And I have to say, the cast playing the masked criminals just didn't spike the same level of interest and wow factor with each passing season. Unless you have someone who can really attract viewers' attention or at least have an actor who will make people excited seeing to lead the group, chances are, people won't bother staying on to find out who are the actors behind the masks. While the Internet was abuzz with netizens guessing who played who in Season 1 such as identifying Kikuchi Fuuma from the very first episode, I just didn't see that kind of fervent activity and interest during the runs of the sequels. And with each face reveal, it hardly left a dent and impression because it was pretty easy to guess especially from the midpoint onwards.

To keep bringing Kikuchi's Yamato back but not really giving his character much meaning to his motivations and depth in the story was a bad idea. It felt almost like the series was trying too hard to cling onto this character to be the thread that would string together all the installments in this series besides the lead character Musashi. It might have been better to move on and create a new nemesis for Musashi if all they are going to do with Yamato is just for him to appear periodically as a ghost haunting Musashi.

Quick Review #146: "Grand Maison Paris" (movie)

Title: Grand Maison Paris / グランメゾン　パリ　　　　　　　　　

Rating: 6.5 / 10

Recommended for: 

For those who had watched the drama series and SP and wish to find out what happened next to Team Obana in Paris 

OR wants to watch a story depicting how people bounce back from setbacks and overcome the odds while featuring delicious-looking dishes 

OR are fans of the veteran actors playing key members in Team Obana

* Potential spoilers ahead!

Liked:

- As usual, the story featured Team Obana overcoming the odds and managing to achieve the seemingly impossible goal of getting the elusive Michelin 3-stars honour but this time, at the homeground of French cuisine as foreigners against the incumbents. As I mentioned in my reviews of the drama series and SP before, the fixation on pursuing the glorious but elusive Michelin 3-stars title actually doesn't resonate so much with me, perhaps due to the fact that I know very little about fine dining and French cuisine as a whole although I do enjoy some dishes and their sweets. Therefore, I was a bit concerned initially that the movie would "alienate" me again in this sense because at the back of my mind, Obana's obsession with seeking the 3 stars in Paris just wouldn't resonate with me. 

However, what made the story this time more engaging and palatable was uncovering the reasons driving his behaviour. As such, it became a lot easier to make sense of his stubborn-ness and sometimes blind faith in himself. 

What also worked for me was how the central theme of how "outsiders" are perceived when they make inroads into the territory of the incumbents was depicted. While it's easy to criticize the French featured in the movie for being narrow-minded, elitist and racist due to their reluctance to accept Obana as someone good enough to work with them, there was a line said by the caviar businessman which really showed how this issue would make a lot of sense if you look at it from the other perspective. Just as the French may not welcome nor acknowledge a foreigner for being good enough in French cuisine to earn the three stars, the same kind of attitude would most likely be displayed if you have a foreigner trying to open a sushi restaurant in Japan and claiming to be as good, if not better than a native Japanese. In this current world we live in, much as we aspire for and seek fairness and equality for everyone, the truth is that protectionism for locals or the majority as well as the animosity and distrust towards foreigners are issues which are impossible to ignore and pretend that they don't exist. The drama didn't try too hard to preach but I think this message still came across in a pretty impactful way.

- Being a story about cooking, I thought that the scenes towards the end featuring the menu which Team Obana came up with to aim for the stars were done pretty well. Not only did the dishes look so delectable and pretty, I think there was ample time in these scenes for the viewers to scrutinise the dishes visually as compared to how everything flashed by in the drama series and SP.

- While I won't say that anyone stood out this time, the older members in Team Obana definitely had a stable and self-assured vibe which made them look charismatic, appealing and cool despite the challenges they faced. By this, I mean Kimura Takuya, Suzuki Kyoka, Sawamura Ikki and Oikawa Mitsuhiro. I would have loved to see more of these four in action though.

Disliked: 

- First of all, as a movie which featured cooking, there was comparatively a lot less airtime dedicated to the actual dish development and cooking processes this time. I thought that it was a pity because this was actually one of the key elements which made me like the drama series back then because there was so much effort put into these scenes and they did make the viewers feel more involved in the entire process.

- Unlike the drama series and SP, I felt that Team Obana in Paris didn't really have a stand-out younger generation representative or someone who could become a fixture in the team going forward so it felt like the "succession" element of the story was somewhat lacking. While Ok Taec-yeon's role definitely hogged the limelight for the younger camp, I don't really see him becoming a fixture in Team Obana for future editions of the Grand Maison series (if any) because his character seemed more like someone who should become a top notch patissier on his own with his own shop, not someone working with Obana for the mid or long term.

- For those who have never watched the drama series and SP, it might be challenging to make sense of the story especially the relationships between the members in Team Obana and the experiences they shared together. As such, the storyline might come across as confusing and fail to engage such viewers from the onset.

- Due to the fact that Team Obana boasted an international lineup this time and the location was in Paris, there were at least 4 different languages being spoken in the entire 2 hours. While I can't comment on the accuracy of the English subtitles for French and Korean, the Japanese ones did seem OK as in no blatant translation mismatches and errors. That being said, I think there is a need to delve into the meaning and importance of having subtitles beyond just being a translation medium across languages. 

I think that there is always this assumption that for foreign language films shown in Singapore, they tend to skip the subtitles if the dialogue is in English. Maybe it's the same elsewhere - are there Chinese subtitles for movies shown in Chinese-speaking locations? Or are there Korean subtitles for Korean dialogue in movies?

The problem is, much as English is very much used and understood in daily life and business settings here, the content of the lines may not be easily understandable if there is jargon involved or there are pronunciation, accent or even audio issues. In particular, the part where Linda (Tominaga Ai) was explaining the dishes in Grand Maison Paris' set menu - this was entirely in English with zero subtitles appearing on screen. While I did understand mostly what she said, there were some parts which I wasn't sure of because she used some terms to describe the dishes which were not so commonplace in daily life. I guess people who are gourmets or know more about fine dining may be able to understand these parts better. As such, having subtitles would be good to facilitate understanding of the lines.

I also touched on the point regarding audio above. Sometimes, due to the surrounding noise at the filming location or the actors' diction, it can be very difficult to pick up what they are saying. Moreover, subtitles can also help those who have hearing issues to understand the movie without actually listening to the dialogue. For a large chunk of this movie to have zero subtitles, I don't think that's a good move in terms of being inclusive to the audience at large. Just don't assume that the Singapore audience does not need English subtitles for English dialogue, please? If the OTTs are even having subtitles for actions like close the door, the phone rings, surely movies can provide a similar experience without having to go through parts of the movie without understanding fully.

- I guess the movie chose to focus more on the process rather than the outcome. Getting the three stars was more or less a given since Team Obana was already at the edge of the cliff and needed this to survive. However, for the movie to end just like this without no scene at all about how Team Obana reacted to the win, this was too abrupt and felt sloppy. Perhaps there are plans to talk about this aspect in yet another sequel but it would take a lot more to wow people next time instead of just repeating the formula of win -> fall from grace or suffer setback - > overcome the odds -> all over again.

Quick Review #145: "Yurigokoro" (movie)

Title: Yurigokoro / ユリゴコロ　　　　　　　　　　

Rating: 8 / 10

Recommended for: 

For those who want to see a well-crafted suspense story with intricate elements and great acting from the cast especially the three leads

* Potential spoilers ahead!

* I have not read the original novel.

Liked:

- Although the movie appeared to be just a mystery story right from the start, there was actually more than that. The two storylines which ran concurrently with each other were in fact very closely linked to each other. What I really liked was how the relationships between the characters were revealed in such a way that there were surprises and twists waiting to be uncovered by the viewer at various junctures. As such, the movie which may have been slightly longer than 2 hours, didn't feel boring as a whole. 

It was also commendable that while the story packed some surprises to "shock" the viewers, it also left a number of clues which we could pick up along the way to guess where the plot was likely heading towards. In this sense, when my hunches were proven correct, the gratification felt as a result also contributed to my positive assessment of this film. Layering and strike a balance between dangling clues and revelations was definitely not an easy feat. Often, many mystery or suspense stories fail to get this balance correct - either the outcome turned out to be totally unexpected because there were no clues at all or the outcome became so predictable because the clues were laid out in plain sight.

- The acting especially from Yoshitaka Yuriko and Matsuyama Kenichi was brilliant. Yoshitaka always has a knack for tackling such challenging roles especially those with warped mentalities or twisted characters and she delivered as usual in this movie. I really liked her chemistry with Matsuyama in this movie and their characters were such a joy to watch despite how dark and tragic the story was heading towards because of how their fates were intertwined with each other. Matsuyama may not have appeared until the later part of the story but his impact in the grand scheme of things and his character's "self-revelation" was done in such a compelling manner.

On the other hand, Matsuzaka Toori had a bit of a challenge in comparison because he didn't get the luxury of having a "fixed onscreen partner" like what Yoshitaka and Matsuyama did as his story involved interacting with a number of characters. In fact, he had to search for his "missing" fiancee played Seino Nana most of the time so he was pretty much "alone" in this sense. However, he still managed to show the transition of his character in a believable and engaging manner as he found out about the other storyline and how it fitted in his own life.

Among the supporting characters, I thought that Kimura Tae and Kiyohara Kaya probably stood out the most among them even though they didn't have that much screen time.

- Considering that the storylines were actually from two different periods in time (not explicitly mentioned in the movie at first but revealed later), there were different actors who had to play the same characters for the separate timelines. I thought that the casting was done pretty well in that sense because the actors from the different eras actually resembled one another in one way or another - maybe not so much in terms of looks but the overall vibe so it was not difficult to draw links between them and not feel as if they were totally unrelated. For example, I had never really seen a resemblance between Kiyohara Kaya, Yoshitaka Yuriko and Kimura Tae until this movie so kudos to the casting director for making such good choices. Often, many works fail to get this done properly so I always struggle to draw links between the actors doing the same characters especially if the looks of the actors differ in a big way.

Disliked: 

- While I did like this movie as a whole, I felt that there were some questions which were left unanswered. For example, the origin and background story of the heroine - was there a contributing factor that led to her unique psychological state or was she born like that? Or how about the fact that she was able to kill so easily despite her physical limitations against much bigger and stronger people? As such, the story didn't seem so complete with these minor omissions. Much as I understand that these probably wouldn't affect the movie in a major way, I thought that for the sake of getting a clearer and more complete picture, it might have been better to get some answers.

- The two storylines may have been brilliant in their own ways but I also cannot deny the fact that the current story arc was a tad lacking in terms of emotional tension and excitement compared to the past arc. It felt like the current arc was sort of like the vehicle to keep the past arc going so sorry to say, I was actually hoping to see more of the past arc where the action was taking place.

Quick Review #144: "Daitsuiseki Keishicho SSBC kyoukouhangakari" - Summer 2025

Title: Daitsuiseki Keishicho SSBC kyoukouhangakari / 大追跡　警視庁SSBC強行犯係　　　　　　　　　　　

Rating: 2 / 10

Recommended for: 

For those who are fans of the cast members and don't mind a lacklustre storyline

* Potential spoilers ahead!

Liked:

- What made this drama different from many other police detective stories was the integration of modern investigation techniques tapping on technology. As such, in this regard, it was a refreshing take on approaching criminal case investigations and was a nice contrast with the traditional methods doing so. There were quite a number of interesting technological concepts introduced along the way so I found that there was a bit of educational value amid the entertainment.

Disliked: 

- However, the biggest issue with this drama was the poorly crafted story. Considering that the entire drama spanned 8 episodes, as many as 6 could be considered as fillers which hardly contributed to the so-called hidden conspiracy/background story. And then things got wrapped up so sloppily as if the drama had to be wrapped up in a big hurry. I held out till the end and was anticipating a major twist or some grand conspiracy that could effectively write off the frustration and boredom brought about by the meek and predictable storyline in the first two-thirds of the drama. Not only did it fail to deliver that, how things ended just felt as if the characters went through so much for nothing. To be honest, I was also pretty upset about wasting my time on this title over the past two months or so.

- While I admit that one of my initial motivators for watching this was to support Aiba Masaki, I was also attracted to the fact that Oomori Nao was one of the three leads and the script was by Fukuda Yasushi. Surely this drama would be of a decent quality with these two elements in place? Despite a pretty stellar cast, the actors were indeed let down by the story which did not give much room for the characters' development. Most of them were very forgettable because there were not that many background stories and developments to help them make an impression on viewers. The three leads also did not really get to display a "bond" between their characters or become a trio who became great work buddies over the course of spending a few months together. If it had been that the characters were at least appealing or endearing to watch, I might have been a bit more forgiving in my assessment of the disappointing storyline.

Quick Review #143: "Watashi no otto to kekkon shite" - Summer 2025

Title: Watashi no otto to kekkon shite / 私の夫と結婚して　　　　　　　　　　　

Rating: 8 / 10

Recommended for: 

For those who are fans of the original webtoon and/or Korean drama series OR like time-travel second-chance-in-life revenge stories OR are fans of the main leads

* Potential spoilers ahead!

* I have not read the original webtoon nor watched the Korean drama series.

Liked:

- While I am not a fan of time-travel second-chance-in-life stories and did not want to start watching the Korean series because it had so many episodes, the fact that the Japanese version was much shorter at just 10 episodes definitely lowered the barrier to entry. And as a result, the pace of the story was fast, especially in the first half and in a way, prevented the developments from being too drawn out. Although I was initially a bit concerned about this being a direct copy-and-paste from the Korean version, I'm glad to see that this Japanese version had the typical elements of Japanese-style storytelling and retained the Japanese societal traits so the story was a lot more palatable than I thought.

- The acting of the 4 main leads i.e. Koshiba Fuuka, Sato Takeru, Shiraishi Sei and Yokoyama Yu was simply brilliant. If not for the four of them, this story might not have been compelling enough for me to finish watching everything in 3 days. Koshiba's transformation, not just in the external sense but also the internal emotions of her character, was believable and extremely interesting to watch. Shiraishi went all out to play such an obnoxious woman throughout most of the drama but towards the end, managed to show the pitiful side of how her character became so warped. Yokoyama definitely showed very convincingly how his character pretended to be smart and had an inflated ego based on empty confidence yet was downright dumb till the end. And for Sato, I'm sure many female viewers will be quite besotted with him not just because his image this time was visually appealing but also because his character was so much in love with the heroine and did so much for her. I also thought that the chemistry between Koshiba and Sato was very good and they did look quite compatible with each other.

- Perhaps due to the fact that this was an Amazon Prime drama with a top production house in South Korea so the production did come across as more polished and refined in terms of its visuals, cinematography and art design (costumes and sets in particular). Guess having lots of resources (or rather money) does help in making things better than the norm. The BGM and songs used in the drama were rather suitable for the story developments as well. If joint productions do bring out the best from both countries, I surely wouldn't mind seeing more of such collaborations. However, that would only work if neither side tries too hard to push for their influences to be highlighted more prominently than the other despite the story not being positioned to accommodate that. 

Disliked: 

- I'm still not a fan of this genre despite the quality of this drama. It will take a lot more novelty and a refreshingly different approach to change my mind about this because I've seen so many of such stories over the years.  And if you are looking for a revenge tale which will be gratifying enough to see the evil being punished for their deeds, I think this drama did end on a rather meek note especially the parts which tried to "redeem" or justify the deeds done by the baddies. They might have certain experiences which you can sympathise with but still, it doesn't make their actions understandable nor forgivable.

- While I do think that Sato's character would be pretty appealing to most female viewers, I felt a bit uncomfortable about him trying very hard to suppress and lower the tone of his voice when he was speaking. Perhaps the script was designed in such a way that he had to act in this way to show the aloofness of his character so as to contrast against the strong love he had for the heroine (he spoke very nicely and often gently to her compared when talking to others). This is just me but I actually prefer a male lead who can be effortlessly kakkoii without having to speak in such a low tone on purpose and coming across as awkward. As such, I think not being swept off my feet by this loving buchou probably lessened my level of enjoyment while watching this drama.

Quick Review #142: Gekijouban TOKYO MER ~ Hashiru kinkyuu kyuumeishitsu ~" (movie)

Title: Gekijouban TOKYO MER ~ Hashiru kinkyuu kyuumeishitsu ~ / 劇場版　TOKYO MER ~ 走る緊急救命室 ~　　　　　　　　　　　

Rating: 5 / 10

Recommended for: 

For those who are fans of the drama series but don't mind the movie's story being rather flat this time

* Potential spoilers ahead!

Liked:

- If you had enjoyed the drama series, you should be satisfied to see the return of most, if not all of the cast members (except the one who "died" in  the series and only appeared in flashbacks and photos) reprising their roles with the addition of new characters. Among them, An stood out most because her character was supposed to be the ex-girlfriend of Otowa (Kaku Kento) and the leader of Yokohama MER which had a completely different mindset as compared to Tokyo MER.

Disliked: 

- What really worked for the drama series did not seem to work wonders for the movie this time. While it may have been exhilarating and gratifying to see the Tokyo MER team overcome seemingly impossible life-threatening situations to save patients with zero casualties all the time, the formula got rather stale this time as I got very put off by some seen-that-done-that developments e.g. shouting loudly to declare that there were no casualties and the predictability of the story. Coupled with the fact that I actually know the Yokohama Landmark Tower pretty well and had stayed at the hotel there before, what I knew about this building kept bothering me as I watched how the characters go up and down that massive building with so much ease as if it was nothing. Perhaps it's just me but the added "reality" angle here by using an actual building actually backfired for me.

- To be honest, Yokohama MER was not a match for Tokyo MER in various ways. Other than An who could have potentially given Suzuki Ryohei a run for his money as the "leader of the opposite side", the rest of the Yokohama team did not have the same kind of name awareness as their counterparts in the other team so it felt like An was leading a group of literally unknowns. And to be fair to them, they also hardly got any airtime to show what their characters were like. Secondly, if it had been that the Yokohama MER team members were given ample time to show their mettle rather than appear as snobs who talked big and did nothing spectacular from the start, they might have come across as serious and credible competition against their seniors in the MER field. Due to these reasons, the Yokohama MER team never threatened the Tokyo MER team in any way at all so it felt like they were just there for no particular reason and purpose other than to emphasize the heroic deeds of the Tokyo team. I felt that it was especially a waste for An's character to be rather forgettable towards the end - there could have been more to show the clash of her ideals with Kitami (Suzuki) or the ex-lovers relationship with Otowa.

Quick Review #141: Terumae Romae 1 (movie)

Title: Terumae Romae / テルマエ・ロマエ　　　　　　　　　　　

Rating: 7 / 10

Recommended for: 

For those who like to watch an entertaining film in a similar style as "Tonde Saitama" but set in the ancient Roman era and/or are fans of the cast especially Abe Hiroshi and Ueto Aya

* Potential spoilers ahead!

* I have not read the original manga.

Liked:

- If you are in the mood for some light entertainment i.e. chuckling rather than laughing out loud kind of humour, this is probably suitable for you. While much of the film was set in the ancient Roman era, the parallels and links between that and the current time in Japan was done pretty seamlessly and provided much comical relief until the tone turned a bit more serious towards the end.

- Abe Hiroshi is definitely very suitable for the lead role of Lucius, not just because of his ability to bring out both the serious and funny sides of the character but also due to his not-so-typical Japanese looks. In fact, if you look at the cast lineup, there were quite a number of actors known for their deep and well-defined features such as Kitamura Kazuki and Ichimura Masachika to play the Romans. As such, this deliberate casting choice helped to make the story flow more naturally so it was easier to immerse myself into the story.

And Ueto Aya was at her best in displaying her cute charm especially when she stood beside the towering Abe. However, those looking for romance between their characters might be a tad disappointed since this part was more or less hinted at but nothing really happened.

Disliked: 

- I thought that the story started pretty abruptly with a full blown explanation on why public baths were such a big thing in the ancient Roman era instead of introducing viewers to the scheme of things gradually. And if you are like me who knows very little about that era, it might not be so enjoyable because I couldn't really see the significance or importance of certain elements in this era or the terumae culture. While I did think at times that the style of this movie was somewhat similar to "Tonde Saitama" i.e. seemingly senseless and exaggerated humour, I actually enjoyed the latter more because I knew more about Saitama and the differences which various regions in Japan had when compared to one another so the jokes made a lot more sense to me. Being clueless about the Roman era probably limited my level of enjoyment for this movie especially the part about building a bathing era for the army engaged in battle for a prolonged period of time.

Quick Review #140: Rakujitsu - Summer 2023

Title: Rakujitsu / 落日　　　　　　　　　　　

Rating: 8 / 10

Recommended for: 

For those who want to watch a decent suspense story with good acting from Kitagawa Keiko, Yoshioka Riho & Takeuchi Ryoma

* Potential spoilers ahead!

* I have not read the original novel.

Liked:

- Although the drama was very short with just 4 episodes, this length was actually beneficial in helping the story to stay on course and the pace to be maintained at just enough to lure viewers to continue watching without feeling bored but not too fast enough to confuse. It felt as if an onion was being peeled layer by layer as the facts came to light one by one so it was quite satisfying to be surprised at many junctures.

- The acting from Kitagawa and Yoshioka was very good. While their characters may seem subdued at first due to the emotions and trauma they had hidden underneath, the moment when their pasts and vulnerabilities were revealed didn't come across as overly dramatic as they maintained the balance very well. On the other hand, Takeuchi may not have appeared much but he also left a deep impression on me with how he managed to show both sides of his character convincingly.

Disliked: 

- The thing I find about Minato Kanae's stories is, they always start off brilliantly but I always find the endings underwhelming for some reason. Not sure if the problem had to do with bringing her novels to life in dramas and movies though. While I knew that this story would probably not be conclusive or offer any concrete solutions at the end, I thought that the way the ending was presented felt a bit odd and forced to resonate with the title. 

Quick Review #139: Ame ni kieta himawari - Summer 2022

Title: Ame ni kieta himawari / 雨に消えた向日葵　　　　　　　　　　　　

Rating: 7 / 10

Recommended for: 

For those who want to watch a story about family ties and overcoming crime-induced trauma but don't mind the lack of suspense and/or would like to watch Muro Tsuyoshi and Sato Ryuuta's serious acting

* Potential spoilers ahead!

* Disclaimer: I have not read the original novel.

Liked:

- The good thing was that this drama was only 5 episodes long so despite the heavy themes about the difficulties of overcoming crime-induced trauma and how families grapple with their loved ones being victims of crime, I thought that the overall mood was emotional but not too draggy. By showing those who are embroiled in the current case vs. those who had supposedly emerged from the pain of past trauma, it provided a good contrast and conveyed the message that time is the best medicine to cure those wounds but everyone has their own way and timeline to do that.

- Given that Muro and Sato tend to act in more funny or somewhat eccentric kind of roles, it was a refreshing change to see them getting serious in this drama. However, I liked the fact that they didn't seem to be trying too hard to put on a straight face and their balanced acting this time would probably convince viewers that these two are indeed capable of good acting. Might take a bit of time to get used to seeing Muro hardly ever smiling in this drama though.

Disliked: 

- The thing is, the original novel is said to be a mystery story but there was really nothing to deduce especially with regard to the ongoing case featured in the drama. While this is one of the rare dramas which does not take a critical view of the police nor paint them to be unfeeling jerks when dealing with the victims and their families, you can't help but feel that the drama also didn't showcase them in a positive light especially when it comes to the investigation process. Somehow, I felt that the lapses in the process or how analogue their methods were just seemed to be quite illogical so that's why it took them so long to find the culprit and victim. As such, if you don't mind the lack of suspense or rather this element is considered weak in this drama, you might be able to enjoy this for the humanity aspect instead.

Quick Review #138: Nami uraraka ni, Meoto biyori - Spring 2025

Title: Nami uraraka ni, Meoto biyori / playe　　　　　　　　　　　

Rating: 8 / 10

Recommended for: 

For those who want to watch a cute and sweet love story and don't mind the predictability of the plot and/or are fans of the lead actors

* Potential spoilers ahead!

* Disclaimer: I have not read the original manga.

Liked:

- While I never expected much from this drama right from the beginning, it turned out to be way better than I thought. To be honest, the plot wasn't anything new nor did it offer much surprises along the way. However, what made this a gem was really the way the story was presented. Amid the messy and dramatic furin and love triangle/multi-angled stories which are very common these days, there was really nothing much to derail the main couples from their journeys of falling in love with each other. Everything was straightforward yet it was so refreshing and relaxing to see how things were progressing. I guess bucking the trend and going back to the good old-fashioned basics of a love story, also thanks to the fact that this story was sent in the older days, really helped to make this a lot more palatable than expected.

- The cast was simply amazing in more ways than one. For a start, Yoshine Kyoko and Honda Kyoya played their characters so well and managed to convey the shyness, awkwardness and innocence of the lead couple as they "went backwards" by getting married first then falling in love with each other. Surprisingly, it didn't feel like acting because they were so natural in their performances and I have to say, I was really impressed. Likewise goes for Yamamoto Maika and Koseki Yuuta - at one point, I became a bigger fan of the Fumiko-Fukami pairing that I wanted to see more of them and their interesting interactions. Last but not least, Namase Katsuhisa's narration was so hillarious and provided much entertainment for this story which could be a tad predictable at times.

- The theme song by BE:FIRST was such a perfect fit for this drama and it's rare these days that I could remember a song pretty well and liked it enough to add it to my playlist just after watching the first episode.

Disliked: 

- Towards the end, I felt that the story was showing signs of losing steam and wondered if it could be more compact by shedding an episode or two. Much as I liked most parts of this drama, the finale came across to me as rather slipshod because I was expecting more to round things up nicely. However, that prolonged recap of Natsumi and Takimasa's love journey with those flashbacks got on my nerves. To make things worse, I wanted more of Fumiko-Fukami but there was no wedding scene! If not for the poorly-done finale, I think I would have rated this higher.

Quick Review #137: Koi wa yami - Spring 2025

Title: Koi wa yami / 恋は闇　　　　　　　　　　　

Rating: 6 / 10

Recommended for: 

For those who want to watch an engaging and romantic love story with murder suspense as a subplot and/or are fans of Kishii Yukino and Shison Jun

* Potential spoilers ahead!

Liked:

- The romance i.e. koi part of this drama was definitely the highlight, thanks to the great acting of Kishii and Shison. Not only did the two of them look so compatible visually, their chemistry from the early stage of their relationship to when they were so deeply in love with each other was very engaging to watch. 

Disliked: 

- As I mentioned before in a post about my impression of Ep 1, this drama might have initially given off vibes as a romantic version of "Anata no ban desu" but sad to say, it just didn't have the same kind of engaging lure like the latter. One key difference between these two stories was the fact that "Anata no ban desu" did not hesitate to "kill off" key characters and often at very surprising paces and junctures of the story. And that's what kept viewers going on and talking about it online week after week even though "Anata no ban desu" stretched across two seasons and yet didn't feel draggy until the finale was such a huge letdown. However, the victims in "Koi wa yami" were not regular cast members to begin with so the serial murders just didn't have the same kind of "significance" to make viewers care about how the suspense plot would unfold. The only surprise was the death of the police detective Owada who figured out the real identity of the killer way earlier than everyone else. What made things even worse was the whole deduction process came across as "lacking in urgency" and there were so many loopholes in the plot along the way that it felt very anti-climatic by the time the finale came about.

- The same issue with "Anata no ban desu" was replicated here - the motive of the killer, modus operandi and Shitara Hiroki's involvement in the whole scheme didn't make sense or you could find lots of illogical stuff to find fault with. Pardon me for saying this but the motive just came across as terribly senseless and trivial for the killer to unleash so much hatred against the female victims over such a long period of time. And if Hiroki had been in cahoots with the real killer for as long as a decade, what happened to the murders that happened before the current string of 5+1 murders (1 survived the attack) was linked to one another by the police and media? And Mikuru's animosity towards Makoto initially - it was not as if she had romantic feelings for her half-brother so why did she behave like that at first? Why would Hiroki have knowingly let his father take the blame for him with regard to Hiroki's mother's murder (well, it turned out that the father went to jail actually not for his son but the real killer)?

Frankly speaking, it was not difficult to guess from the start who the real killer was because he already looked so suspicious in many ways. However, I find it hard to be convinced by his rationale so I couldn't help but roll eyes as I saw the part about his confession.

- NTV is up to its Hulu antics again - in order to find out why the killer behaved the way he did and possibly some new titbits in the romance department, there is a spinoff/special that's on Hulu exclusively. So if you are like me who only watched the full drama and have no intention to pay for Hulu just to watch this spinoff, you'll probably not be able to make much sense of the killer's mentality and possibly change your perception of him. Makes me wonder why NTV just cannot learn its lesson from the criticism it got some years ago by doing the same. Is it really that hard to tell the story in its entirety within the drama series instead of resorting to spinoffs that contain critical parts of the plot? 

Quick Review #136: Mamono - Spring 2025

Title: Mamono / 魔物　　　　　　　　　　　　

Rating: 7 / 10

Recommended for: 

For those who fancy the fatal attraction-type of romance involving an older woman and a younger man and/or are fans of Asou Kumiko, Shiono Akihisa and Kita Kana

* Potential spoilers ahead!

Liked:

- As the drama was only 8 episodes long, the story didn't take too long to ignite the sizzling and fatal romance. At least for the first 3 episodes, this felt like a really mind-blowing rollercoaster romance until the deadly parts of this intense attraction surfaced as quickly in the second half of the drama. The ending was handled pretty well too especially the part of who-killed-the-guy making more sense than what was hinted at initially. I may have been concerned about this drama being draggy before I started watching it but thankfully, my worries were unfounded.

- The onscreen chemistry between Asou and Shiono was absolutely sizzling right from the onset and way better than I expected initially. As the romance soured due to the domestic violence inflicted by the guy, the tension between them changed and was very compelling to watch. Even the love-hate marriage which Shiono and Kita's characters were stuck in was interesting to observe from the sidelines.

While Shiono may not have left much of an impression on me with his past works which I saw before, I think this drama made me remember him in a good way. Likewise for Asou, I've seen her works many times to date but this was probably the first time that I thought she looked and acted very different from her past roles. Kita was pretty good at showing the multiple facades of her character and I thought she balanced these aspects well enough to make it believable.

Disliked: 

- This being a Japan-Korea joint production, I can understand if there's a need to include Korean influences and elements into the drama. However, inserting the names of Korean dishes into the sub titles for each episode just felt out of place and sometimes did not really gel with the main developments of that episode. As such, while I don't see an issue with featuring Korean elements in the story (despite this being set in Japan), it is best not to try too hard and end up spoiling the vibe in the drama.

- As the story was heavily centered on the two pairings i.e. Ayame-Iteya and Kanon-Iteya, the other characters felt more like an afterthought and didn't make as much of an impact, at least to me. I would have thought that the relationships between the Nada family members would be quite interesting to delve into but the story barely scrapped the surface of that aspect.

- While this was supposed to address the important question of who killed who that resulted in Ayame becoming the accused in a murder trial, I thought that the police's investigative work was slipshod. Ultimately, it depended on someone's confession for the truth to be out rather than the police doing what they were supposed to do. I would have expected the police to be able to force Ayame's side into a corner with more compelling evidence and facts to prove her guilt but alas, this didn't happen.

Quick Review #135: Caster - Spring 2025

Title: Caster / キャスター　　　　　　　　　　　　

Rating: 2 / 10

Recommended for: 

For those who don't mind watching a messed up story promising too much but delivering too little

* Potential spoilers ahead!

Liked:

- While I do not have very nice words for most of this drama, some cast members did try their best to deliver their best despite the limitations they faced especially Otoo Takuma and Tsukishiro Kanato. 

- The production team's courage to pick up and cover some controversial real-life examples in the earlier episodes.

Disliked: 

- The biggest problem was with the story. As I wrote before, the fact that this drama had as many as 6 scriptwriters, the illogical settings and developments were the root cause that resulted in the story losing focus and going in various directions but lost its way at the end. Not only were the loose ends not tied up properly, the ending and so-called truth/revelations were just so slipshod that I wondered why I wasted three months on this. It felt like the production team couldn't wait to wrap up this whole thing even though the big topic in the end could have been dealt with in a deeper and more thoughtful manner. And to think that the ending hinted at the possibility of a sequel! I'm sorry but I don't think I can watch anything more from this series.

I really should have given up much earlier like what I did with "Get Ready!" which had a similar problem. 

And TBS does need to be more careful about using keywords like unconventional, break out of the norm or shocking in its promotional slogans. The sense of disappointment gets bigger when the actual product turns out to be much less than promised.

- To be honest, some may argue that the inability by many viewers to enjoy the drama arose from Nagano Mei's two-timing scandal which was exposed soon after the first OA. To be fair to her, the fundamental cause of this drama's failure was still the poorly-structured story. However, the fact that her character Sakikubo Hana was two-faced and had double standards when it came to dealing with issues dear to her or detached from her situation made her lines and behaviour in the story very difficult to resonate with. Her scandal only served to amplify how hollow her words and actions came across because they were like boomerangs that went straight back to her as thinly-veiled criticism towards her real-life actions (whether intended or not). As such, to see a heroine go on and on as if she is some righteous person on a crusade to take down the lead character - that just came across as nonsense and downright hypocritical.

- Although Kim Mu-jun's significance in this story wasn't big to begin with and I am not a fan of him, I felt that how he was effectively erased from the drama without a trace after the scandal broke was distasteful to say the least. 

- I watched this for the sake of Abe Hiroshi but sad to say, this really wasn't one of his best performances to date. My biggest grouse was, Shindo came across more as an investigative journalist rather than a newscaster and he simply didn't behave like a newscaster especially when it came to his posture and way of speaking on air. I get that he was supposed to be unconventional but the basics of being the lead caster weren't even there. Compared to his co-caster played by Tsukishiro who looked extremely convincing, the contrast was even harder to ignore.

Quick Review #134: Taigan no kaji - Spring 2025

Title: Taigan no kaji / 対岸の家事　　　　　　　　　　　　

Rating: 7 / 10

Recommended for: 

For those who want to watch a meaningful story about respecting one another's life choices and lifestyles with a heartwarming vibe but do not mind it for being a tad slow at times

* Potential spoilers ahead!

Liked:

- The drama stayed true to its central theme of showing understanding for people in different circumstances and one another's life choices and lifestyles. As such, the vibe of the story was thoughtful and meaningful yet it didn't prescribe a single solution to the problems featured nor push one school of thought over the other. I think this approach would resonate well with a wide audience regardless of your life situation and the feeling of being understood and heard made it enjoyable to watch this. And it was good that the drama did not try to push for a happily-ever-after and expected ending especially the part when Nakatani (Dean Fujioka) wanted to have time to think about when he was ready to forgive his mother.

- The casting was quite unconventional in the sense that Tabe Mikako was paired with Ichinose Wataru while Dean Fujioka played a couple with Shimabukuro Hiroko. While their acting was good and brought out the signature traits of their characters, I found Eguchi Noriko's character to stand out more as she managed to display the struggles and vulnerabilities of a working mother very well. 

Disliked: 

- The side plot which dragged on for a few episodes i.e. the threats against Shiho (Tabe) for being a housewife was terrible and totally redundant. I get that the issue featured was important in a sense but the mis-directed anger towards Shiho for nothing was hardly convincing. The so-called resolution to the situation was even more ridiculous.

- As a former SPEED fan during their heydays, much as I was surprised to see Hiroko act in this drama, the amount of airtime she had was simply too little and hardly satisfying even though the character had the potential to be quite interesting.

- To be honest, the story lost steam in the second half and I was getting a tad bored with the slowness especially when they spent so much time on the threats made towards Shiho. If the drama had dragged on for another episode or two, I might have given up before the finale.

Quick Review #133: Kuuhaku (movie)

Title: Kuuhaku / 空白　　　　　　　　　　　　

Rating: 7 / 10

Recommended for: 

For those who want to watch a story featuring different perspectives on who's at fault and who's the victim and/or are fans of the cast especially Furuta Arata and Matsuzaka Toori

* Potential spoilers ahead!

Liked:

- This story will invoke changing emotions and interpretations as the movie progresses with regard to the topic of who's at fault and who's the victim in the case of an accidental death of a junior high school girl caught for shoplifting. I liked the fact that there was no standard answer given and showcasing different perspectives was a good way to highlight the dilemma of how difficult it is to view an issue objectively especially when emotions and our values come into the picture.

- The cast boasted quite a number of good actors with Furuta Arata and Matsuzaka Toori hogging the limelight as characters on opposite sides of the spectrum. Furuta's portrayal as a father who kept looking outwards to justify and make sense of why his daughter behaved the way she did and the reason she died instead of reflecting on his own actions was very convincing. On the other hand, Matsuzaka managed to show the complexity of his character who was filled with conflicting emotions as he faced criticism and pressure from what he supposedly did rightly but ended with the wrong consequences. Likewise, the supporting actors like Terajima Shinobu, Shuri, Ito Aoi, Tabata Tomoko, Fujiwara Kisetsu and Kataoka Reiko all pulled their weight to make their characters come to life.

Disliked: 

- While the individual parts of the movie were good, I felt that the story lacked a strong central theme or rather, was weak in trying to convey it. The title which literally means "blankness" can indeed be interpreted in a variety of ways such as how the father-and-daughter who hardly knew and understood each other despite living under the same roof, the emptiness and isolation which the daughter felt both at home and in school or the supermarket owner whose life revolved around the supermarket but he never realised the value of it to himself, the employees and customers until it was too late. While this multi-pronged approach might give viewers the freedom to develop their own conclusions, this also diluted the power of the movie's messaging. I felt like I went through a pretty emotional and painful journey but with no tangible or obvious outcome just like how the supermarket owner got a very belated and ambiguous apology for the father who finally acknowledged that his late daughter did do something wrong which contributed to the accident. Perhaps this hollow feeling is meant to resonate with the title and make everything come full circle but I would have preferred a clearer delivery of any central theme which the director or scriptwriter had in mind.

Quick Review #132: Tsuki no michikake (movie)

Title: Tsuki no michikake / 月の満ち欠け　　　　　　　　　　　　　

Rating: 6 / 10

Recommended for: 

For those who want to watch a love story but don't mind the illogical and harrowing reincarnation concepts in the movie and/or are fans of the cast

* Potential spoilers ahead!

* I have not read the original novel.

Liked:

- The love stories of the two couples i.e. the Osanais (Ooizumi Yo and Shibasaki Kou) and Ruri x Akira-kun (Arimura Kasumi and Meguro Ren) were depicted pretty well with the former being the heartwarming and brings-a-smile-to-your-face type of subtle love and the latter being more of passionate and somewhat intense kind of love. I actually prefer the Osanais' story especially the parts where they talked about how they fell in love with each other and eventually got married. Such a warm and fuzzy vibe and very blissful kind of love to watch. 

- The acting of the four leads were definitely quite spot-on and very enjoyable to watch except for the scene when Ooizumi's character Tsuyoshi was crying at the sight of his loved ones' bodies after the accident where his cries sounded a bit odd. While Shibasaki may not have appeared a lot, I thought that the ending moments of her character Kozue telling her side of the love story were extremely well done. Fans of Meguro Ren would be quite happy to see him as a lovelorn chap but may not be so excited to see the bed scene with Arimura Kasumi (not explicit though since they were mainly long shots from a distance and there was a blanket covering the actors).

Much as I don't feel like praising Tanaka Kei, I have to give him credit when it's due - he's really suited to play this kind of obsessive/abusive husband and lover with a seemingly harmless and nice face.

Disliked: 

- This is my personal preference though but I am really not a fan of 転生 / reincarnation stories to begin with. While I understood that this was necessary for the purpose of this story, the loopholes and illogical execution of this concept made it impossible for me to like the movie. To be able to choose at will how or who you will be reborn as - that's already quite unbelievable. Not to mention waiting for the reborn version to grow up (which will take at least more than a decade) before resuming your love story from the last life - that just comes across as a horror and rather repulsive thing to happen and I certainly don't find it, romantic at all. Especially the final scene showing who Kozue was reborn as - that really killed any remaining positive feelings I had for the movie. This was quite a pity though because I did like specific parts of the movie as outlined above but it ended on such a sour note that I am not even sure if I want to finish reading the original novel which has been lying around since I bought it a while ago.

- Given that the story spans quite a number of years, I was surprised to see that there wasn't any attempt to distinguish between the 80s and 90s more distinctively. As such, in terms of clothing, the sets, surroundings and character images, they didn't feel that different from each other in the two timelines. That could be a bit confusing for viewers though so that's probably why the years kept appearing on screen to indicate the time when the development happened. 

- In relation to the above point, while Ooizumi and Shibasaki's characters did appear different in the two timelines, both in terms of mannerisms and appearance since the couple did evolve from newly-weds to parents of a 18-year-old senior high school kid, Meguro's character didn't really show the progression of time. He may have dressed more maturely as a guy in his 30s when he met Ooizumi's character for the first time but it felt like he was stretching it a bit too far and didn't come across as too convincing in this sense. On the other hand, his scenes as the university student-version of Akira-kun were definitely more natural since that's close to his actual age.