Just a quick update on the J-dramas I'm watching right now...
Right now my favorite drama HAS to be the Ayase Haruka/Issei Takahashi thriller "Tengoku No Jigoku”, the crime drama where a serial killer and the determined detective bent on capturing him switch bodies.
Wasn’t too sure I was going to believe the actors in their new personas, but WOW, after just one episode, I was able to see Takahashi as Ayase and Ayas as Takahashi! Kudos for both of them for doing such a great job!
Throw in an incredibly twisting plot of Cat-and-mouse between the tow misplaced people and the law, that keeps you guessing,and i’m on the edge of my seat throughout! Can’t even BEGIN to guess how this one will all wrap up!
Still at the halfway mark for the awesome mystery “Kiken Na Venus”. It is slow going regarding subtitles for the Yuriko Yoshitaka drama, but whenever they DO upload a new episode, it reminds me why I wait with bated breath for each chapter! 
A gripping story of a diabolical family fighting over a fortune which they will happily kill each other for, with the mysterious Kaede and the estranged son Hakuro (Tsumabuki Satoshi ) caught in the middle!
Another incredible Yuriko Yoshitaka performance which once again remind sme why I love her so much.
Three episodes in to the Fuka Koshiba drama “Mokomi” about an odd girl who speaks to inatimate objects and her attempt to grow out of her introverted shell. SO far a good drama though much more melancholy than I was expecting from such an eccentric set-up.
Fuka is a darling as usual as the shy Mokomi, I wish that there was a way for them to show how wonderful she is without having to paint the others in a bad light, especially the Mom, who I fell they are really unfairly painting as a nagging tyrant when she seems to truly worry about everyone’s well-being.
Also halfway through "Koisuru no Haha", which, as I said in a previous post, I like mostly for the Yoshino Kimura storyline. The Yoshida Yo storyline of a section chief having an affair with a young charge in her department is OK, but I REALLY can’t stand the Risa Naka character.
We’ll see where this one goes.
Still watching the drama “Shitteru Wife”, which, though it started off promising, has become a very frustrating affair. The plot of a guy who is unhappy in his marriage and then goes back in time to change things sounds interesting enough, but MAN, Okura’s character of Kenzaki has GOT to be the most unlikeable, selfish JERK ever put to screen!
This is a guy who bemoans his marriage to Mio (Alice Hirose) while leaving her to deal with a part time job, two squealing kids AND a Mother with dementia, all so he can sleep in and play video games.
He always wished he’d married his dream girl Sayaka (Miori Takimoto) instead, and when a chance miracle happens and he is able to go back in time and marry her, instead of loving her, he decides he wants Mio after all…and spends his time making SAYAKA miserable instead!
When he realizes he is stuck, Kenzaki gives a half assed attempt to make it work with Sayaka, but he still ends up lying to her, ignoring her and leaving her alone so he can be with Mio.
And of course, instead of reflecting on it, the drama starts painting SAYAKA as the evil, manipulative b*tch, so you can root against her. Great.
I REALLY can’t stand the way Kenzaki is treating Sayaka. VERY frustrating to watch, right now I am hanging on SOLELY for the wonderful Alice Hirose goodness and hoping this show smartens up.
In other news, I’ve finished up Beshari Gurashi, the Manzai Comedy drama which was OK, I guess. Seems like every episode where the duo begins to make headway, there’s yet another lame reason for them to fight, til I was just waiting for them to get on with it.
Also finished up Toshi No Sakon, and though my earlier gush about the show might have you thinking i’d be singing its praises, sadly, after episode 3, it drastically changed its style, focusing not on the couple but Maiko’s arrogant and slimy boy friends who want nothing more than to break them up, Thought it would be only for one episode but this lasted for the REST OF THE SERIES. Really ended on a bummer of a note.
Oh Well. We've got a whole SLEW of new dramas coming up...hope these end up being winners!!!
