
JDorama review: RH Plus

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Title: L: Change the WorLd
Release date: 2/9/08
Genre: Supernatural, Detective
Cast: Matsuyama Kenichi, Fukuda Narushi, Fukuda Mayuko, Kudoh Youki
Plot: During the final 23 days of his life, L takes the time to solve one more case. This one involves a bio-terrorist group intent on killing most of the Earth's population with a virus.
What is good: Matsuyama is as good as ever!
What is bad: Well...I fell asleep...that can't be a good thing, right?
Letter rating: C
Overall: I really wanted to like this sort-of sequel to Death Note. Like many others, L is one of my favorite characters. Unfortunately, this case seems to be a pretty big waste of his talents. The only reason L seems to be involved in this case is because people just randomly send things (and people) to him. As much as I wanted to watch the movie, I did fall asleep because it was so dull. L deserved a better ending than this.
The show itself is a little weird. Basically, a werewolf, a vampire and a ghost end up as roommates. The werewolf (George) and the vampire (Mitchell) had an established friendship before the show begins. Anna the ghost, however, already occupies the house they are going to rent. It is where she died. George and Mitchell also work together at the local hospital. The hospital had an isolation room where George could spend his "time of the month" and, well, we all know why vampires like hospitals. Though Mitchell is more of the 'I don't drink human blood' type of vampire so he tries to keep the blood-sucking type away from the patients.
While I think the show has a good premise and has potential, the first episode had a bit too much information shoved into it. Instead of taking the time to introduce our main characters and their quirks, they felt the need to introduce all of the side characters up-front. For example, Lauren (another vampire) could have waited an episode or two before coming into the fold. I understand why the writers wanted to shove as much information at us as possible. After all, you never really know how long your show will last. But too much information at once isn't good either. Let the story unfold on its own. If the show gets canceled before everything is revealed, then perhaps it wasn't a very good story to begin with. However, I think this IS a good story and could use the sprinkling of information well.
Title: Uta no Onii-san
Translation: The Singing Brother
Broadcast date: 1/16/09 - 3/13/09
Genre: Comedy
Cast: Ohno Satoshi, Chisa, Katase Nana, Maruyama Ryuhei, Kimura Yoshino
Plot: After his life gets turned upside down, Yano Kenta (Ohno) finds himself working as a Singing Brother on a children's show.
What is good: Everyone acted wonderfully
What is bad: The children's show seemed pretty 'one-note.' We never got to see if they do more than just sing children's songs.
Letter rating: B
Overall: It was a really fun show. Even when you wanted to smack Yano on the head, he was still a lovable character. There's nothing really deep but, if you pay attention, you just might walk away with a life lesson learned.
Title: Hanazakari no Kimitachi e
Also known as: HanaKimi
Translation: For You In Full Blossom
Broadcast date: 10/12/08
Genre: Romantic comedy
Cast: Horikita Maki, Oguri Shun, Ikuta Toma
Plot: Six months have passed since Mizuki has left Japan. During a Valentine's Day contest, Nakatsu tries to figure out exactly when Sano fell in love with Mizuki.
What is good: More HanaKimi!
What is bad: This isn't the special episode that should have been filmed.
Letter rating: C
Overall: I really enjoyed the HanaKimi television series. So why did the producers decide to stick us with this? Instead of a special involving the boys' trip out to California to visit Mizuki, we get a slew of flashbacks. A majority of the special is supposed to take place between episodes 7 and 8. However, someone made a decision to introduce a new character, Julia, to try to get Sano to confess his love to Mizuki. Not only is Julia unnecessary but she is also annoying. I would have preferred a special dedicated to more of the hijinks of the various dorms instead of focusing on something that was already determined in the series - Sano loves Mizuki. There is no need to try to figure out the exact moment that it dawned on him.
Yes, I am a little late on this one. Jekyll is a 6-episode series that aired on the BBC in June and July 2007. It is a continuation of The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde novella by Robert Louis Stevenson. A brilliantly cast James Nesbitt stars as Tom Jackman/"Billy" Hyde. Alongside him are Michelle Ryan (who was in the Bionic Woman remake), Gina Bellman, Meera Syal, Paterson Joseph and Denis Lawson.
At first, I didn't know what to make of the show. A friend recommended my husband and I rent it so we did. By the end of the first episode, I was hooked. I had heard it was like the Showtime series Dexter, however, I don't agree with that. (Though, I should note that I've only ever seen one episode of Dexter.) In my opinion, it's more like My Own Worst Enemy but a lot more maniacal. I don't want to say too much without giving away the major plot points but this is definitely something you should watch. And since it's only 6 episodes long, it really is easy to watch in one afternoon.
Title: Ikebukuro West Gate Park Special
Also known as: IWGP Sp
Broadcast date: ??
Number of episodes: 1
Genre: drama
Cast: Nagase Tomoya, Sato Ryuta
Plot: Taking place three years after the series, Makoto and his mother are currently homeless. She is staying with various friends (like King's father's sauna) while Makoto sleeps in their now-traveling fruit stand truck. One day, a homeless man wakes Makoto to tell him about a rash of homeless beatings. Ken, the leader of the homeless, wants Makoto to find the culprit. Meanwhile, Makoto is feeling restless in Bukuro.
What is good: The last half hour or so is pretty good.
What is bad: Boring!
Letter rating: F
Overall: While I didn't particularly like the series, it was at least interesting on some point. The special is painstakingly boring. There's two full-length songs sung in concert form for no real reason. Yes, both of the musical acts are important to either the storyline or a character revelation but the songs weren't really necessary. Kubozuka Yosuke, who played King in the original, is absent for a majority of the show. In his absence, both of the major gangs from the series have set up ramen shops. There is a sub-plot about which gang makes the best ramen. Now I know why I put off watching this for so long.
Title: Taiho Shichauzo
Translation: You're Under Arrest
Broadcast date: 10/17/02 - 12/12/02
Genre: Police comedy
Cast: Ito Misaki, Hara Sachie
Plot: Based on the best-selling manga, this is the story of Natsumi (Ito) and Miyuki (Hara), two outrageous female traffic police officers.
What is good: The cast had pretty good chemistry with each other.
What is bad: Most of the episodes are boring.
Letter rating: C-
Overall: I watched this show in the hopes that Ito Misaki had the ability to play a character that isn't a shy, submissive Japanese woman. She definitely pulled it off here. Natsumi is the complete opposite of Ito's Aoyama Saori from Densha Otoko. The problem here isn't the acting. It's that the stories are fairly boring. The show starts off well with Natsumi and Miyuki kicking a lot of criminal ass but then it swerves away from that. Yes, they still get into fights once in awhile. They just aren't the same as the fights from the early episodes. And by the end of the series, Natsumi is using guns instead of her fists. Considering there are only nine episodes in the series, the transition from "wild girls" to "sweethearts of the police station" goes quickly.
If you're a fan of the manga or the anime version, you might enjoy this. However, don't expect anything particularly deep to come out of it. We never really get to know the girls beyond their deep friendship for each other. It would have been nice to get into why Natsumi was so violent or why Miyuki likes cars so much. Alas, we are left with the "because this is how they are" type of reasoning for everything. At least the studio didn't try to drag this out for 26 episodes.