JDorama review: Tokkyu Tanaka San Go

Title: Tokkyu Tanaka San Go Also known as: Tanaka Express 3 Broadcast date: 4/13/07 - 6/22/07 Number of episodes: 11 Genre: Romantic comedy Cast: Tanaka Koki, Kuriyama Chiaki, Tsukamoto Takashi, Akiyama Ryuji, Kato Rosa, Hiraiwa Kami Plot: Tanaka Ichiro (Tanaka Koki) is a big talker. While he claims to be a "big shot," he is, in fact, a ronin-turned-freshman at a third-rate university. He accidentally meets Meguro Terumi (Kuriyama Chiaki) and declares her his "personal heroine." After befriending two tetsu (train fanatics), the three men find themselves trying their best to romance Terumi and her friends while finding their way in life. What is good: The writing was excellent. You learn a bit about the tetsu way without going completely overboard. What is bad: The first episode is pretty terrible. Letter rating: B+ Overall: This show was recommended to me by a friend. After watching the first episode, I thought maybe she had lost her mind or something. However, from the second episode on, I fell in love with the characters and their personalities. At first, Ichiro is extremely annoying but once you learn why he acts the way he does, it's difficult to dislike the guy. I'd love to really talk more about the show and why I enjoyed it but that really requires a lot of spoilers since the show revolves around the relationships of the three main characters. All I can say is watch it. Don't let the first episode fool you. This really is a great series.

JDorama review: Akihabara@DEEP

Title: akihabara@DEEP Broadcast date: 6/19/06 Number of episodes: 11 Genre: Action and Adventure Cast: Kazama Shunsuke, Ikuta Toma, Himura Yuuki, Hoshino Gen, Matsushima Hatsune, Kosaka Yuka, Honjou Manami, Kitamura Kazuki Plot: A group of otaku come together to form a troubleshooting company. They try their best to solve the problems of the people in Akihabara. What is good: Kitamura Kazuki is an awesome villian What is bad: Maybe it's because the concept of Japanese otaku is so foreign but they seemed to overreact to just about everything. Letter rating: A+ Overall: I went into this series expecting something along the lines of Densha Otoko. However, I think this is so much better because it doesn't revolve around the life of one person. You have six people, each with some sort of oddity. Each of them turned to a website, Yui's Lifeguard, in order to help them live their daily lives. It's through this website that they come together and become friends. It was really awesome to watch these people grow into something more than just otaku. They really become close friends.

On the other side, you have Nakagomi Takashi (Kitamura Kazuki) as the bad guy. Kitamura played the bad guy in the latest Densha Otoko special. I think he may be getting a little too close to his otaku side! While Nakagomi is a creepy character, Kitamura plays him perfectly. He really was my favorite character here.

I would recommend this series to anyone interested in the otaku culture. You may not understand a lot of things if you don't have at least a tiny grasp of what otaku means to the Japanese people. "Otaku" in America is very different from "otaku" in Japan. If you can make that distinction, I think you would really enjoy the series.

Jdorama review: Kimi wa Petto

Title: Kimi wa Petto Also known as: You're My Pet Broadcast date: 4/9/03 - 6/18/03 Number of episodes: 10 Genre: Romantic Comedy Cast: Koyuki, Matsumoto Jun, Tanabe Seiichi Plot: Journalist Iwaya Sumire (Koyuki) has had a terrible day - her longtime boyfriend broke up with her and she got a demotion at work. On the way home, she finds an injured boy (Matsumoto Jun) in a cardboard box. After nursing him back to health, the boy claims that he will do anything in order to stay with her. So Iwaya takes him in as a pet and names him Momo, after the dog she owned when she was a child. What is good: MatsuJun is pretty cute as Momo. What is bad: The "ideal" man that all the girls want (Tanabe Seiichi) is a huge dork, whereas everyone calls him "cool." Letter rating: B Overall: Kimi wa Petto is a very cute show. However, there isn't a whole lot of depth to it. While you like the characters, there isn't anything to make you really feel for them. Iwaya seems to be stuck in this sadness, even when she's supposed to be happy. Takeshi shines when he takes on the Momo personality but is fairly dull as himself. This is something that you'd watch when you have nothing else to watch and you don't want to turn on your brain.

JMovie review: GTO the movie

Title: GTO the movie
Release date: 12/18/99
Genre: School comedy
Cast: Sorimachi Takashi, Tanaka Rena, Kasahara Hideyuki, Fujiwara Norika
Plot: Onizuka-sensei goes to a small village in Hokkaido to teach. As usual, he ends up with a troubled class, thanks mostly to the rich girl, Katsuragi Ayano. He takes it upon himself to fix Ayano and make everyone happy again.
What is good: The acting isn't terrible
What is bad: It is pretty dull.
Letter rating: D+

Overall: Sadly, this franchise has gone downhill. The series was awesome, the special was OK but the movie is on the edge of terrible. Onizuka rescues two students from suicide and, despite being fairly mean to him, ends up as the depressed boy's best friend. As he works his magic to make the lives of these two students better, he's being chased down by a reporter who mistakes him as a serial criminal. While he isn't guilty of the crimes she accuses him of, he does steal, kidnap and get involved in a police chase. (I'm hoping he borrowed the truck he was driving at the time since it isn't stated how he obtained it.) This doesn't feel nearly as light-hearted as the series or the special. Maybe it was the lack of Fuyutsuki-sensei's 'straight man' to Onizuka's comedian. Throughout the entire movie, I was hoping she would pop in at some point to tell Onizuka he's an idiot but she never appears. I suppose if you really love the GTO series it might be worth sitting through the 2 hour movi but I'm sure you could find a better way to spend your time.

Jmovie review: Death Note

Title: Death Note
Release date: 6/17/06
Genre: supernatural drama
Cast: Fujiwara Tatsuya, Matsuyama Kenichi, Nakamura Shido (voice only), Kaga Takashi
Plot: When a human's name is written in a Death Note, that person will die. Light (Fujiwara Tatsuya) finds a Death Note and, disbelieving of its powers, begins writing the names of known criminals in the book. Soon those people mysteriously die of heart attacks. Light deems himself the God of Justice, silently killing any criminals that he can find. The police attempt to figure out why prisoners are dropping dead in their cells when the genuis L (Matsuyama Kenichi) joins them in their investigation. Thus begins the game of cat-and-mouse between Light and L.
What is good: The CG for the Death God Ryuk is absolutely stunning.
What is bad: There may be a few things that could have been explained a bit more to help those who haven't seen the anime or read the manga.
Letter rating: A

Overall: I haven't read the manga version of Death Note but I have seen some of the anime. This made a really good transition into movie form. In the anime, Light flaunts his genius but in the movie, he's a little more subdued about it. He knows that he is outwitting the police yet he doesn't brag about it to Ryuk. I liked the slight changes they made in L's character as well. In the anime, he was a bit more eccentric. In the movie, he seems to be just hopped up on caffeine and junk food. Ryuk's animation is breath-taking. He is a bit jerky when he's laughing but that was probably the intention. One of my favorite scenes with Ryuk was a simple one where Ryuk and Light are walking up a slight hill. Before you can see either character, you see the tips of Ryuk's wings. It shows the amount of thought that went into his animations. I would recommend this movie to just about anyone. While it involves death, there isn't a lot of blood so even those with a weak stomach should be able to handle it.

JDorama review: GTO special

Title: Great Teacher Onizuka Drama Special
Broadcast date: 12/98
Genre: School-related drama
Cast: Sorimachi Takashi, Matsushima Nanako, Kitamura Soichiro, Katase Nana, Shimizo Chika, Asami Reina, Hosokawa Shigeki
Plot: Onizuka is substituting at an all-girls school. Just when he's thinking this could be the perfect job for him, three of the girls in his class blackmail him into becoming their "Genie of the Lamp." That is when he finds out one of the girls is deeply troubled. While he is helping her, he also has to make a good impression for Fuyutsuki-sensei's father so he can marry her properly. What is good: Sorimachi-san is still awesome as Onizuka
What is bad: This probably would have been a lot better as a second season instead of just a special.
Letter rating: B-

Overall: From what I hear, a lot of people didn't like this special. I thought it was pretty good, albeit a bit rushed. The subplot with Onizuka trying to get Fuyutsuki's father to like him was cute but this was a really good example of how things were cut short to fit into a two hour special. It definitely would have been a lot better if this was expanded into a full-fledged plot of its own. As for the class Onizuka is teaching, we don't get to see a lot of them as a whole class. The special focuses on three girls and, again, this is rushed as Onizuka is able to "transform" them into good girls within a half hour. GTO is a better show when Onizuka is able to work with the students one-on-one in order to help them get past their problems. Oh and for those fans of the series, no worries, the group of students from the old school do show up and hang out with Onichi for awhile. It was nice to see them still interacting with their teacher, even if he isn't their teacher right now. While this isn't a great show, it isn't terrible either. I'd recommend it to someone who enjoyed the GTO series.

JDorama review: Bambino

Title: Bambino
Broadcast date: 4/18/07 - 6/27/07
Number of episodes: 11
Genre: Cooking drama
Cast: Matsumoto Jun, Fukiishi Kazue, Karina, Sato Ryuta, Uchida Yuki, Kitamura Kazuki, Sasaki Kuranosuke
Plot: Shogo Ban is a college student with dreams of becoming a professional cook. After working at an Italian restaurant in his hometown, he is sent to Tokyo in order to learn more. Once there, he learns that realizing your dream is not always as easy as one might think.
What is good: Kitamura Kazuki steals the spotlight as the head of the dining room at Trattoria Baccanale
What is bad: It would be nice if Ban (Matsumoto Jun) had more than two emotions.
Letter rating: B-

Overall: A lot of MatsuJun's roles revolve around his prettiness. This isn't an exception. The show is filled with close-up shots of him licking his lips or being contemplative. Once in awhile, we're treated to a genuine smile. The role of Ban (aka Bambinp/Bambi) doesn't require a lot of work on his part. He is either really excited or really depressed with little to nothing in between. While the older characters in the show chalk it up to being young, it gets old after awhile.

Yet it's still easy to get swept up in the magic of the restaurant. Yonamine Tsukasa (Kitamura Kazuki) spends his time dazzling the ladies in the dining room while the kitchen workers manage to get through a long busy day without even getting a spot of sauce on their white shirts. Adding to that magical feeling is the lack of time progression. There is only one point in the show where the audience is filled in on how much time has passed. The rest of the time we are left to assume this is a daily grind for the characters.

I found Bambino to be a decent show that is mostly carried by the secondary characters. There is little reason to care about Ban beyond "you're supposed to." It's definitely more fun to watch the interactions between the eccentric dessert chef and everyone else or the three managers of the restaurant. Even though I know the main theme of the show was "work hard to follow your dreams," I felt somewhat unfulfilled at the end. I would have liked to see Ban grow a bit more, not only as a person but also as a professional chef. Hopefully there will be a special showing that Ban can really transform into a master chef.

JDorama review: GTO

Title: GTO (Great Teacher Onizuka)
Broadcast date: 7/7/98 - 9/22/98
Number of episodes: 12
Genre: School comedy
Cast: Sorimachi Takashi, Matsushima Nanako, Kubozuka Yosuke, Nakamura Aimi, Kirari, Ikeuchi Hiroyuki, Oguri Shun
Plot: Onizuki Eikichi dreams of being a teacher. He is finally hired by a strange director to teach a class of troublemakers at Seirin Gakuen. Of course, his antics always get him into trouble but he'll always believe in his students.
What is good: Sorimachi Takashi is awesome as Onizuka
What is bad: A lot of people will compare it to Gokusen
Letter rating: A

Overall: After watching the first episode, I said "So this is Gokusen but with a male teacher?" I was wrong. It is similiar to Gokusen but only because both are set in a high school class filled with troublemakers. Once you look past that, the two series are completely different. In Gokusen, Kumiko becomes friends with her students by keeping them from fighting and pretty much forcing herself into their friendships. Onizuka becomes friends with his students just by being himself. While he does protect his students, he has "They'll make the right decision" type of attitude when it comes to trying to get them to do the 'correct' thing. GTO is a really good series that I would recommend to anyone.

JDorama review: Tantei Gakuen Q

Title: Tantei Gakuen Q
Also known as: Detective School Q
Broadcast date: 7/1/06
Genre: Detective Drama
Cast: Kamiki Ryunosuke, Shida Mirai, Yamada Ryousuke, Matsukawa Naruki, Kaname Jun, Nakao Akiyoshi
Plot: Junior high student Kyuu (Kamiki Ryunosuke) wants to be a detective. In order to fulfill his dream, he must get into DDS, the Dan Detective School. While taking his entrance exams, he joins up with some other potential students his age.
What is good: It's interesting to see these kids puzzle through crime scenes.
What is bad: There were some changes made to the characters.
Letter rating: B+

Overall: I loved the Tantei Gakuen Q anime series. While I haven't read the manga that both the anime and this live action special, this did follow the entrance exams of the anime pretty closely. There were some changes made though. Minami Megumi (Shida Mirai) was turned from a junior high student into an elementary school student while Narusawa Kazuma (Matsukawa Naruki) looked more like a junior high student instead of an elementary school student. (It is not specifically stated what grade Kazuma is in.) Luckily, none of the changes detracted from my enjoyment of the show. It would be nice if there was a little more suspense but the special is only 90 minutes long. I'd recommend this to anyone that enjoys detective shows.

JDorama review: Ikebukuro West Gate Park

Title: Ikebukuro West Gate Park
Also known as: IWGP
Broadcast date: 4/14/00 - 6/23/00
Number of episodes: 11
Genre: drama
Cast: Nagase Tomoya, Kato Ai, Kubozuka Yosuke, Sato Ryuta, Yamashita Tomohisa, Watanabe Ken
Plot: Majima Makoto (Nagase Tomoya) tries to live a quiet live in Ikebukuro West Gate Park, a place infamous for gangs. One of his best friends from high school, Takashi (Kubozuka Yosuke), is the leader of one gang - the G-Boys. When he tries to solve the murder of a friend, Makoto finds himself solving everyone else's problems. Gang tensions begin running high in IWGP putting Makoto, who refuses to join any gang, directly in the middle of it all.
What is good: Kubozuka Yosuke is very entertaining as the king of the G-Boys.
What is bad: The show loses direction almost immediately.
Letter rating: D+

Overall: I spent the entire first episode trying to figure out what was going on. There were these murders but no one seemed to really care about them. Sure, the cops said they were looking for the killer. It just didn't seem to go anywhere beyond talking about it. From the second episode on, the series goes in an entirely different direction. Makoto, who is supposed to be trying to find who murdered his friend, spends all his time helping just about everyone in Ikebukuro. The yakuza, the prostitute from the sex shop across the street, his own mother....the list goes on. About two-thirds of the way through the series, another gang is introduced - the Black Angels. The end of the series brings us back to solving the original murder and adds in the tension between the G-Boys and the Black Angels. I think that the final episode was the only thing, besides Kubozuka's antics, that saved the show from a lower rating. As a whole, the series is very violent. I wouldn't recommend this to anyone who couldn't handle gang violence and the blood that goes along with it.