A David Lynchian Trip To Atami

Joe Odagiri and Chiaki Kuriyama in Atami No Sousakan

Just like the disappearance of Laura Palmer brought Special Agent Dale Cooper to the eccentric small town of Twin Peaks in the David Lynch classic of the same name, so does the disappearance of four High School girls who were on a bus ride to school send Agents Kenzo Hoshizaki (Joe Odagiri) and Sae Kitajima (Chiaki Kuriyama) of the  “Wide Area” Department (“We’re like the Japan version of the FBI”, says Kitajima) to the odd little town of Atami.

And just like Agent Cooper before, Agents  must deal with the town’s meager police force 

Not even kidding, So much stuff in here is lifted directly from Twin Peaks as to almost seem like a Japanaese reboot! Dancing Waitresses, Red Velvet Curtains showcasing freakish entertainers, quirky townsfolk and of course a heavy does of the supernatural to top it all off!

They even had a riff on Dale Cooper’s signature quote “this is, EXCUSE ME, A DAMN fine cup of Coffee”, with Agent Hoshizaki gushing similarly on a piece of bread.

 They even had Hoshizaki constantly talking on the phone to an unseen woman back home named Motoko, much like Agent Cooper did with a woman named Diane.

Must say, I was THOROUGHLY entertained throughout the show, even in the parts where things got boring or confusing, there was always those crazy characters to elevate any scene into something fun to watch! 
As the show got more and more "out there", somehow I knew it wasn't going to end in any "regular" way, and indeed concluded in just about the same eccentric way that the rest of the show did...still can't say I wasn't entertained!!!

Loved Chiaki Kuriyama as Sae Kitajima in this one, very kakkoi and smart character who didn’t take no guff from no one! In the first episode, she struggles to bring her heavy luggage up into the inn, where she gets there, Kenzo whines, “Hey, where’s MY Luggage? I NEED my suitcase!” I was thinking, “Oh great, this is going to be one those shows where the one guy bullies the young partner”. Bt then she gives him this look and says “You can go get your luggage yerself!!” And I was like, “YESS!!!!”

Also a BIG  thumbs up for Fumi Nikaido’s absolutely delightful character of Remi Amari, the rascally high school girl who spends her time either fawning puppy love all over Kenzo, or rebelling out in school! Easily one of the best characters I’ve seen Fumi play!

 Also was particularly captivated by actress Ayaka Miyoshi who played one of the girls who had disappeared.Very sombre aura about her, she reminded me at once of a young Riko Narumi, surprised I haven’t seen more of this girl in recent dramas. Think the only other drama I saw her in was Angel Heart!

EDIT: In the happiest coincidence, Nao Kanzaki 's LATEST post gives us a wonderful update on what Ayaka's been up to the past few years!
Mmmm, she grew up into quite a gorgeous young woman!!!

Reiko Takashima Lookin' GOOD!

I began watching the slighty science-fictiony and comic-bookish drama “Angel Heart” because of Aibu Saki, but was happily stunned to discover the return of a cool actress from my golden age of jdrama watching, the sultry n sexy  Reiko Takashima!

Kamikawa Takaya and Aibu Saki as Ryo and Kaori

Aibu is private investigator named Kaori with her fiancé Ryo (Takaya Kamikawa) who is struck down and killed when she is rescuing a child playing in the street. Her heart gets placed in the body of a mysterious girl named Xiang (Ayaka Miyoshi) who discovers upon waking up out of her coma, that she has sparks of Aibu’s memory flashing  through her mind. 

Miyoshi Ayaka and Miura Shohei

She is on the run from her former associates who label her as a traitor. Her implanted memories of Kaori's leads her back to Ryo, who helps Xiang get away from her pursuers.
 They get the help of a Police chief, and here’s where Reiko comes in…the first time we see her, she is introduced in a grand scene: heels and stockings emerging from a sleek car, swivelly hips striding up towards the crime scene..and then the awesome reveal: Chief Saeko Nogami is none other than FETCHING Miss Reiko Takashima! OMG, can you get more KAKKOI?

WHOA! I hadn’t seen her for quite some and here she was, looking more pretty and COUGARIFFICALLY gorgeous than EVER! Seems a million years since I first saw her in early 90's dramas like Imouto Yo (pictured below) ...

Always kind of threw off a real femme-fatale vibe even back then, and what I remember her playing is mostly policewomen roles and the like...seems she's continued with that tradition as she make s VERY convincing police chief here!!!

Come to find out she is friends with Kamikawa and Aibu and has been working  alongside them for some time now. But with Ryo's new case of hiding and protecting this mysterious Xiang, she must use her police connections to help fight against the underground ganglands! Yeah, it's as over-the-top as it sounds.

 I’d always thought Reiko was a pretty actress, though admittedly she never stood out for anything more than that attractive face and cool demeanor.... NOW, she is so lusciously curvy and smouldering that each and every scene she's in is driving me to heaven! Oooh, Reiko is DEFINITELY rocking the Kimiko Yo look here, at this point she could give Kimiko’s “Aunty Michi” role a run for the money (except, as you see below, she's bit more on the violent side, heh heh)...

Well, time to get back to the show...good thing Reiko's looking so FINE in this show, because this drama is so exaggeratedly ZANY it's hard to take sometimes!

Ah, with Reiko Takashima in Angel Heart and Mieko Harada in Kekkonshiki Zenjitsu Ni, it seems it's banner time for those more mature ladies I love so much!
Posted by zdorama @ zdoramaagain.blogspot.com