Car 13, Where Are You? No Activity 2 is Here!

When we last saw the gang from NO ACTIVITY in 2021, they had just finished the case of the Drug Smuggling run and, whether it be from their enthusiasm (or lack thereof ) all seemed to go well despite them stumbling and bickering through the entire procedure from start to finish!
Well, it is now 2024 and the entire wacky team from the Metropolitan Police Department is back, including Etsushi Toyokawa as Tokita, the lazy detective who tries his very best to NOT get involved with any actual work…

...the sturdy and affable Shiina (Tomoya Nakamura) who, unlike his partner, is dedicated and sharp eyed and, indeed through him is the only reason they get any work done! Getting Tokita  motivated is a full time job in itself, luckily he's up for the task!

Whenever a call comes in, they are quick to avoid geetting involved, yet SOMEHOW they always end up being RIGHT where the action is! What's a lazy cop to do!!!

Back at the station we are once again in the company of those charismatic and OH SO GOSSIPPY  and CATTY gal dispatchers, with the hard-working but stiff and rigid Arira Ohira (Nana Seino) on one end….

…and the brash, big-mouthed and outspoken cougar of the department Satomi Misato (played with unabandoned glee by Yoshino Kimura), on the other! As before, Satomi is a mile-a minute talker, and from the first second of her appearance, she fills every scene with loud non-stop chatter!

Along with the regular cast, we are treated to some new friends and acquaintances with Dai Okabe as Yotsukado, a former-buddist in training and now a rookie detective on the force…

BTW, the scenes with he and Kimura are some of the most hilarious passages ever, I was laughing SO HARD as the mischievous senior dispatcher tries to "break" him!!!

Mai Shiraishi appears as a struggling street musician named Fuyuka Hiiragi, who Tokita takes a fancy to…Unfortunately, his infatuation with her causes her to inadvertently get involved in the latest caper and puts her life in danger! Just hanging OUT with Tokita is hazardous to your health!

And of course we’ve got a brand new big-bad guy, this time played by Takahashi Katsunori as the yakuza mogul Tadato Orihara, aided by his newbie henchman Ren (Hiroya Shimizu). How will THIS villain threat fare against the police?

Already having the time of my life watching this season- as usual for this show, it isn’t the crimes themselves so much as the wonderful dialog and funny scenes that run throughout the show!  Like dramas like Ishiko to Haneo (another Nakamura vehicle), it's more about the characters than the cases- Too much FUN to just hang out with them and listen in on their ridiculous banter!

Just like Season One, No Activity2 is a mere 6 episodes long, just enough time to dedicate to one story, a perfect length, but over all too soon! Gotta make this one last!

Posted by zdorama @ zdoramaagain.blogspot.com

No Activity~Honjitsu mo Ijou Nashi

It's a whole new season of J-dramas and we're starting things off with a BANG with AMAZON Prime's "No Activity", a Buddy-Cop drama based on the American Series of the same name...which was based on an Australian series of the same name!

Starring Etsushi Toyokawa as the "loose cannon" cop Shingo Tokita and Tomoya Nakamura as his straight-laced ex-Driving Instructor new partner Asobu Shiina, who has just been paired with the unpredictable Tokita. So far it feels a lot like Toyokawa's "Bengoshi No Kuzu" drama from way back.

There is a huge Drug Deal going down and every cop is out in the streets, alert and ready for action. But Tokita and Shiina take a much more laid-back approach to things, even leaving the stakeout out of boredom! This is the kind of team they are!

Back at the station, we have the outspoken dispatch women, the seasoned Misato Satomi (Yoshino Kimura) and the newly appointed Arira Ohira (Nana Seino), whose take a no-nonsense approach to dealing with the dawdling detectives!

When not instructing the cops in the field (or breaking the balls of Tokita), the two spend their time trading barbed conversation with each other, to which we learn much about each of them!

While all of this is going on, two thugs have been hired by the baddies to babysit a witness who may have seen too much. But as they talk, we see that both Iwayama (Goro Kishitani) and Ichijo (Amane Okayama) are pretty inept at their job, good thing for them that their captive is a live-blogger named Mari (Yukino Kishi) who, instead of panicking about the abduction, is THRILLED at the viral opportunities the kidnapping can provide!

When I first began watching No Activity, I thought it would be a straightforward crime drama with light-hearted comedy, but as you may have guessed, is more like a flat-out comedy with straightforward crime sprinkled in!

A very WACKY show, I guess we'll have to see where this one goes!

Notes On Hanbun Aoi

Since this drama is from back in 2018, I'm probably the only person who still hasn't seen it already, but just in case, WARNING: This post will be FULL of spoilers!

  At the halfway mark of the totally endearing Mei Nagano asadora “Hanbun Aoi” and so far it’s been a real hoot! Somehow can't stop watching it to see what happens next!

As you all know, Mei Nagano aside, the main allure for watching this drama was because of all the actresses that appeared in this one, and things start off with a bang with heavy hitters Yasuko Matsuyuki AND Tomoyo Harada leading the front of strong-willed Mothers-to-Be. Both charismatic as heck and both devastatingly attractive in their own ways! And with the birth of their first kids Ritsu and Suzume, the drama is off to its start!

 Been through several "arcs” of the series already, starting with the first arc with Suzume and Ritsu as kids…both kids are great, and though I don't think the girl looks anything like she would grow up to be Mei Nagano, this young actress REALLY sold it! Actually, all the kids are great! 

Arc two: Into the Teenage Years

As usual for these morning dramas, I get used to the child actresses playing the main characters and it’s ALWAYS a jolt when it switches to the adult star. No matter WHO the actress is, I always have a rough time realigning my mind to see the actress as the younger version. Fortunately Mei’s natural warmth buoyed my belief enough that it didn’t take long to see her as the ‘true” Suzume!

The friendship of Suzume and Ritsu (now played by Takeru Sato) grows and I really liked this dynamic of theirs, true friends, not romantic interests per se...

Besides Mei we have our next BIG fave actress of mine, the mononymously named Nao, who, as the aptly named character of Nao, plays Suzume’s best (girl)friend. If I recall correctly, it was because of Nao that this drama was FIRST recommended to me, and she’s been a dear to see. Not as kooky as her later characters in other dramas, but the aura is there!

Rounding up the gang is Yuma Yamoto, whom I will ALWAYS see as Hagoromo’s older brother in Bishonure Tantei Mizuno Hagoromo, as pal Butcher. Ritsu, Suzume, Nao and Butcher, the four of them play off each other so well together and you really feel their camaraderie!

Arc Three: The Manga Years

Then we come to the chapters where Suzume moves to Tokyo to work for Office Tinkerbell under the tutelage of the odd Haori Akikaze (Etsushi Toyokawa). 

Here we meet MORE big fave actresses of mine with Nana Seino as a fellow mangaka Yuko and the beautiful Haruka Igawa as the stoic Hishimoto.

Gotta say, Hishimoto might be my all-time favorite role for Haruka Igawa. She is SO damn COOL as the manager of office Tinkerbell, no one gets by her, not even the arrogant Akikaze! And the dresses she’s always dressed in are so pretty.

Also marks the reappearance of the mysterious Saya Ito. I didn’t even recognize that it was Seika Furuhata when she first appeared earlier in the drama- Only at her reappearance did I say, hey, that’s Seika! Mesmerizing beauty…(and oh, so evil!) LOL!

BTW, This courtyard thingy- I swear that this exact set piece was used in Churasan a few times, or at least a set that looked JUST like it!

Speaking of Jdrama deja vu, LOOK,  there’s that building they used in Zaboga and the Ryo Nishikido drama TRACE, here used as the college library !

We also have the first appearance of Tomoyo Nakamura as a fellow Tokyoite and friend of Ritsu, who becomes a love interest for Suzume. I totally forgot he was in this.

I wonder how I would feel about him being Suzume’s first romance if I didn’t already like Nakamura from Akechi Goro and Nagi No Oitoma. Considering how this relationship turned out, I can kinda see why!

One of my favorite chapters is when Suzume’s Mom comes to visit, I love  her wide-eyed amazement at the big city. I love how you can see she brought a freaking broom with her. I love the interaction between her and Akikaze, the way he elegantly butters her up and how she's wary of him just the same. 

Also should note how pretty she looked even as she was doing all the housework, cleaning up that dingy dorm, though "Housewives love to clean" is probably not PC in this day and age LOL!

My fave scene is when Suzume and Mom are in bed and talking. They have a heart to heart, you can see how much they love each other. I think this was one of the greatest moments in the whole drama so far. Had me tearing up for no good reason at all, just so touching!

As far as the two Soul-Mates go, I thought it was obvious that Suzume and Ritsu were going to end up with each other, and as the show progressed I thought it was well working towards that conclusion... But far from what I was expecting, this show has amazingly been unpredictable, keeping me off-balance and continually guessing with the curves they keep throwing on these two!

Indeed, as the end of this arc comes to a close, I have no IDEA where these two best friends' destinies are going to be heading! 

Keeping me on my toes and on the edge of my seat, it's time to start on the second half of this fine, thought provoking little drama!