It's a new season and we've got a whole slew of new dramas to dive into! Here's what I've been checking out, listed here in ranking by how much I've been enjoying them!
My BIG Favorites:
Nanba MG5
Nanba MG5
Without a doubt, my hands-down fave of the season HAS to be Nanba MG5, the trials of a delinquent badass who forgoes his yankee family heritage to attend a "normal" school with regular kids and have a simple education. However, the brawler side of his life somehow finds ways to keep dragging him back into battle! A tried and true plot premise (think: My Boss My Hero) done with a lot of fun and spirit as Nanba tries to balance his double life between neighborhood tuff guy and thoughtful student! Oh, and Aoi Morikawa simply steals the show as the dorky, outspoken but sincere Fujita!
Shoujiki Fudousan
With its vibe SO similar to my beloved Ie Uru Onna series, how could I NOT love this show?
Wonderful dynamic between Yamapi as a crooked realtor who suddenly can only tell the truth and Haruka Fukuhara as his naive and wide-eyed kouhai!
A nice set-up each episode with a "bad" agent (Ichihara Hayato) showing a devious example of selling using lies and tricks, and then Nagase (Yamapi) "forced" to do things the honest way, inadvertently SEALING the deal and becoming a positive influence in newbie Tsukishita's growth!
Waru:Hataraku no ga Kakkowarui Nante Dare ga Itta?
At episode 3, I still can't completely shake the feeling that Mio Imada is doing a monomane of Fuka Koshiba in her portrayal of ultra-spastic genki workaholic Maririn Tanaka, but it's been so much fun so far, and one that I just HAVE to watch as SOON as the new episode is subbed!!!
Motokare no Yuigonjo
Motokare ni Yuigonjo~My Ex-Boyfriend's Will tells the story of an able (if utterly money-motivated) lawyer named Reiko Kenmochi (Haruka Ayase) and her affable assistant Keitaro Shinoda (Yo Oizumi) taking on a multitude of high-profile cases with the goal of striking it big. Great characters and interesting stories, but as the aforementioned "Ex-Boyfriend's Will" case was only in the first two episodes and solved quickly, I do wonder why they decided to name the whole series after it...It seems to have nothing more to do with the show...or will it?!
Mental Tsuyome Bijo Shirakawa-san
In theory, this drama is actually almost exactly like Waru:Hataraku no ga Kakkowarui Nante Dare ga Itta: an eternally optimistic OL whose positive attitude helps and transforms all her workers around her- However, Mental Tsuyome Shirakawa-san is a lot sweeter in tone, the wackiness is cranked up and the dramatic self-realizations by the troubled employees at the end are kept light hearted! Hiroe Igeta is a JOY to watch as the super-sunshiney Shirakawa and she's definitely an actress I'll be looking out for from now on!
Kichijoji Losers
After watching some of the more heavy dramas of the season, we need a few dramas that are simply fun and lighthearted, and this drama following the antics of six "losers" who live together in a sharehouse is always a proper tonic!
Almost like watching stand up comedy or rakugo, with a new plot element introduced each episode and then letting the six characters argue and bicker about it, very entertaining!!
Secondary Favorites:
Gossip
Gossip
When Gossip is focusing on the actual cases at hand and Ririko (Haru Kuroki) is in her element, this is one of the most entertaining shows I'm watching right now. But I don't care about the personal problems of her co-workers and whenever they focus on them, I just lose interest.
All I want to see is Ririko's impeccable sleuthing to "crack" the tabloid stories and I find the rest simply distracting. I even see they've introduced "Ririko's mysterious and shady past" backstory, one of those overarching macguffin type thingies that all these detective type shows have to have so that it's not just a show about individual cases....
Mirai e no 10 Count
Another Takuya Kimura drama in the vein of Grand Maison Tokyo with a former celebrated pro who has fallen from grace starting again from the bottom, this time as Kirisawa, a former champ boxer who has now taken on coaching a team of determined high school kids.
An interesting story if a bit joyless. Everyone in it seems so unhappy and truthfully leads to a pretty morose drama. To be fair, Hikari Mitsushima does her best to lighten the mood!
Imadoki no Wakai Mon wa
I don't think it's a coincidence that TWO Haruka Fukuhara dramas are here- she's quickly become one of my BIG favorite actresses, and both Shoujiki Fudousan and Imadoki no Wakai Monwa showcase her attributes very well!
Once again Fukuhara plays a shy newbie OL, this time under the wing of section chief Ishizaki (Takashi Sorimachi), who, though seeming gruff and stern, has a kind side which he uses to guide her through her daily struggles from the sidelines!
Ore No Kawaii Wa Mousugu
Ture, you are rooting for Maruya's success, but only as it also helps Sanada's character grow and heal from her past! In other words, I care less about what happens to him as much as what happens to her, an odd thing for a support character!
Youkai Sharehouse ~Kaettekita n Kai~
They seem to have written out Mio as a Youkai Research Writer for a Monster Magazine and have changed it to her crossing paths with new youkai while working as an employee for a temp agency, but other than that, it's more of the same: wacky hijinks with Mio and the gang dealing with a new bunch of ghosts and ghouls each week. Always fun and nobody makes those hysterically shocked and stunned faces like Fuka!
Koi ni Ochita Ohitori Sama: Stendhal no Renairon
Though Haru is a master at playing these wallflower type girls who bloom into beauties under the tutelage of a savvy superior, I'm actually having a hard time understanding what they're going for with this role. At one point, you have a mousey girl who is shy and thinks she's ugly and that no man would want her...but then you have like, three guys fighting over her while they reject all the legitimate beauties around them. Now, does that make sense? No, it doesn't. Luckily they go heavily on the zaniness so it's so far still been an enjoyable romp!
Shizuka-Chan To Papa
I mentioned this before, but the thing I love most about Shizuka chan to Papa is how much this story of a teenage daughter and her feisty deaf father feels like "old school" KIKU Japanese dramas. True, a very basic set-up and standard characters, but sometimes it's nice to slip into a comfortable vehicle which you can just sit back and enjoy.
Hoshi Shinichi no Fushigina Fushigina Tanpen Dorama
Sci-Fi Short Stories featuring some popular names. A show kind of like a mini-drama as each episode is only a few minutes long. This feels like those bonus spin off dramas they have on hulu.
Also Watching:
Invisible
Such a mess of a show with a hell-bent investigator (Issei Takahashi) reluctantly working with a snarky mastermind criminal (Shibasaki Kou) to catch other criminals in her network. She insists on playing the "cryptic sage" when sharing information so Takahashi is frequently late to the crimes and the bodies keep piling up. Still somewhat entertaining to watch, though with a huge grain of salt.
My Family
Story of a young entrepreneur whose child gets kidnapped right at the point where his family is breaking apart and his business is failing. Cops are called in but somehow they become the enemies of the family when they decide to solve the kidnapping without their help...
Another drama I don't' quite "get" as the family is supposed to be at such a loss and in such peril dealing with the kidnapping, but yet seem to be outsmarting both the police and the criminals at every turn. Why do they even need my sympathy, LOL
Uketsuke No Jo
Been waiting for this one to "grab" me but so far it hasn't happened. Unfortunate as I really like all the actors and actresses involved with Uketsuke no Jo, but the story of the salaryman who takes on learning the ropes of the reception desk of a huge firm leaves me mostly bored and sometimes irked and frustrated as he infiltrates the Reception Ladies department and gets them into trouble, etc....
I will say that everyone is very likeable in the show, hopefully it will pick up in subsequent episodes!
Cinderella Is Online
Guy and girl meet online and don't realize they are acquaintances in real life. Upon discovery, cue those high school cliche romance dramatics!! Hahaha, well I knew that this drama was gonna be that kinda show, and should have avoided it, but Riho Nakamura was so cute in the role of online gaming enthusiast Ichika Arisawa that I found myself watching all of it anyway despite the tropes LOL!
Nanji No Na
HAHAHA, talk about persecution dramas! I have NO IDEA why I began watching Nanji No Na in the FIRST PLACE as I knew from the GET GO that it was going to be just one sister tormenting the other...but MAN, I just couldn't stop watching it- I HAD to see just HOW CRAZY these two sisters could GET!
Yangotonaki Ichizoku
Ever since the Kyoko Fukada drama "Oni No Sumika", I've had a huge distaste for these "persecution" type dramas, where the lead is thrust into a hostile environment of people who mistreat them to their fullest extent in order to break them, and it looks like Yangotonaki Ichizoku is another one....
I thought there might be something different when heroine (Tao Tsuchiya) first stood up to the dominating Father in law, but in the next scene, she was back being a meek victim. Then when she is tormented by a sister in law, she comes angrily crashing out with a sledge hammer...but once confronted with the family, instantly reverts back to her obedient role. Yes, I know she's "doing it all because she loves her beau", but I could barely get through the last episode and I think it's likely I'll be dropping this one....
OK, I think that's about it for now, aside from a handful of dramas from last season which I am still waiting/ crossing fingers for the subbing teams to complete, as well as a few I'll be marking as dropped or incompleted...
