Maiko-san Chi no Makanai-san

Just watched the first two episodes of the NETFLIX series “Maiko-san Chi no Makanai-san” (The Makanai-Cooking For The Maiko House) and I am simply amazed at how beautiful and soothing this drama already is~ 

From the show’s very first seconds, you can already tell that this is a Hirokazu Koreeda helmed show, with its gentle lingering on atmosphere, environment and mood, with warm and thoughtful music scored throughout…from the first scenes of a woman lovingly stirring a pot of azuki bean soup, your heart is already swelling with anticipation for what lies ahead!

Maiko-san Chi no Makanai-san tells the story of two eager and excitable young girls who, at age 16, have decided to move from Aomori to Kyoto to become Maiko. Sumire (Natsuki Deguchi) is the more collected of the two, reserved and thoughtful, while Kiyo (Nana Mori) is the more playful and clumsy of the two. Nonetheless, both have dreams of becoming apprentice geisha and making the big city their home!

At first I thought this was going to be strictly a Nana Mori vehicle, but I guess I should have guessed by the NETFLIX promo banner that this is truly an ensemble cast drama, where seemingly every character is someone with faults and desires, and everyone is given their time to shine.  And what a cast this is!  First off, was happily surprised to see Matsuzaka Keiko and Takako Tokiwa as Chiyo and Azusa, the madams of the house the girls live and train out of!

Though the girls take to their new "mothers" well, resident Ryoko (Aju Makita), who also lives there, tells them that they think of the girls as nothing more than live-in slaves!

Undeterred, the girls slowly make their way through the initial training, where we will find that Sumire has a natural elegance and poise which helps her adapt to the refinement lessons, and we see how serious  she takes this profession. On the other hand, Kiyo struggles with the training  and has a hard time paying attention for too long! But she does find that in the kitchen, she has a considerable knack for cooking! These traits will determine the eventual fates of both girls….

???

????

Kiyo's in trouble with Sensei!!!

Finding her knack!

Such wonderful attention tot he food preparation and cooking, this is sure to satisfy foodie fans!

Besides the stars already mentioned, we also have Yukiya Kitamura as the kitsuke (geisha dresser) for the girls, as well as the general handyman for the house...

Momoko Fukuchi, Kotoko Wakayanagi, Kotona Minami, some of the young geisha living at the house..

(cast also lists Mayu Matsuoka but I have not seen her as of yet...)

Ai Hashimoto as the established and elegant geisha Momoko, she of whom is a great inspiration to Sumire...

Watching Momoko perform

She is an elegance to aspire to!

Also featuring Koreeda mainstay Lily Frankly as the proprietor of the local watering hole... (with Ryoko on hand)...

..and Iura Arata as one of Azusa's suitors...

Cannot stress enough how much I’m LOVING this drama! I’ve always loved Koreeda’s work (and notice he’s brought back many of the stars from past projects here), Nobody Knows, Shoplifters and Still Walking, and even the TV Drama "Going My Home...all classics, and with Maiko-san Chi no Makanai-san I believe he’s hit another high!

Can't wait to see MORE!!!

PS: You know what this drama reminded me a lot of, the Haru Kuroki food-based drama Mi wo Tsukushi Ryouricho, where Kuroki played a girl working at a Restaurant while her best friend worked as a top-of-the-line geisha! And as I absolutely LOVED that drama, it makes sense that I love this one so much as well!!!

Hai, Oyogemasen

 Just saw the wonderful, comedic and moving movie “ "Hai, Oyogemasen” (“Yes, I Can’t Swim”), the story of a Teacher named Takanashi (Hiroki Hasegawa) who has an intense fear of water. At a turning point in his life, he decides to take a course in swimming led by the caring and charismatic teacher Shizuka Usuhara (Haruka Ayase).

As he struggles through the lessons, we learn about this man and his past, his strengths and weaknesses, and the reason for his phobia. And through the firm hand of Usuhara, hopefully overcome his fears and address his past...

Besides Haruka Ayase and Hiroki Hasegawa were appearances by Kumiko Aso, Junko Abe and even Kaoru “Midnight Diner” Kobayashi in support roles.

I initially had no high expectations for this film (watched it solely on the Ayase Haruka luv) , and as it was billed as a comedy, didn’t think it would be too heavy a watch. But it turned out to be a really stirring story, with lots of really gripping and touching moments!

Posted by zdorama @ zdoramaagain.blogspot.com

Mio Imada Makes An Adorable Entrance!

 Been enjoying watching the 2021 drama "Koi wa DEEP ni", the story of Satomi Ishihara as a mysterious woman who comes from the ocean with a message to save the sea. This was a drama that had gotten only to episode 2 before it was dropped by the subbers, and so I was particularly thrilled to find that some subbing team had since picked it up and completed it!

 

Been so long since I'd seen it that I had completely forgotten that Satomi's best friend was played by none other than the uber-cute Mio Imada, who, though she's recently gone on to bigger projects, is TOTALLY in her element as the super-genki and giggly Aika! So much, in fact, that she just about steals the show!

Such a sunny and positive character, in particular, she seems to show up JUST when Satomi's character (also named Mio, LOL) is down in the dumps and needs some spirit lifting and warm hugs! 

"Mio-chan!"

 Look how HAPPY she seems when she sees Satomi Ishihara's character! You can just FEEL how much she adores her. Now who wouldn't cheer up after THAT?!

From here Mio would go on as the svelte newbie broadcaster in OKAERI MONE and eventually helming her own show with the sassy "Waru" series! Gotta say, we all knew she had it in her!

Catching Up On My Murakami...

 

A co-worker who knew I was a fan of Haruki Murakami told me about a new book of his coming out, a fact that I had no idea about! It was called "Novelist as a Vocation" and was essays of his on the subject of writing. I'd actually read some of his shorter writing on the subject before, and knew this was a thing he touched upon frequently!

I went online to put in my order, where I found out that Murakami had actually released ANOTHER book that I'd somehow completely missed, a short story collection called "First Person Singular"!!!

Put in that order right away and the books JUST came in this week! Looks like I'm going to be spending some time in the surreal world of his for awhile...

J-Dramas Recently Wrapped Up!!

The Fall J-Drama Season is over, and finished up a few dramas!

Truthfully, I felt it was a pretty mundane season, but for what it's worth, here are the dramas listed by my personal rankings!

First Penguin!

10/10

You all know how much I love actress Nao and the always spunky and sassy roles she takes, and the part of novice fishmonger in first Penguin might be the BEST character she's played yet! We're at the halfway point of this drama and its been soooo soooo good- can't believe how much i love this show- every episode has me in tears with emotions, and the developments are still coming!

Silent

9/10

Though probably not as much as the overwhelming buzz surrounding this show, I did really like the Haruna Kawaguchi/Ren Meguro drama Silent a lot, and by the show's end, I found I really loved the characters and cared about them! And not just the main characters either, this is a show with a particularly outstanding support cast, not just with the respective ex-partners played by Suzuka Oji and Kaho, but the lesser roles by Hiyori Sakurada and Rihito Itagaki as the caring younger siblings as well as a great role by Shunsuke Kazama as the sign-language teacher who become s the conduit of sorts between the people!

Reibai Tantei Jozuka Hisui/

Invert: Jozuka Hisui Toujoshu

8/10

Well. This show has certainly taken me for a loop! Starting off as the story of a psychic medium who is involved with helping solve a serial killer case, at the halfway point, it completely pulled the RUG out from under us and morphed into an entirely different kind of show!!!

Really loved the fleshed-out characters in the second arc and would love to have seen a whole drama dedicated to this set-up!

First love

7/10

A fairly basic and straightforward story of love found and lost and found again between the two main characters, I think the strength of this drama comes from the wonderful acting of the main leads, ESPECIALLY Hikari Mitsushima, who brings her unique warmth and charm to every role she plays!

Doronjo

5/10

Well, this drama didn't go in the direction I was led to believe it would- FAR from seeing the birth of the conniving and charismatic Yatterman villainess , we were stuck watching the Doronjo character portrayed as this sad sack loser who has to deal with all the bad luck and grief the writers can dream up. Waited for it to pick up but somehow it never really did....

Atom No Ko

5/10

The tale of a gaming programmer who comes out of retirement to help a young woman who has just inherited her family toy company. Was going to pass on this one but after watching the first episode, decided to give it a try. Well, started out OK, but ended up being pretty much what I'd originally thought it would- very rote and chiched story with the team dealing with one tropey problem after another.

Shotengai no Pianist

5/10

A wholesome drama about a former piano prodigy named Ren (Kita Komagine) who has long since sworn off playing but is reintroduced to the love of music through the enthusiastic efforts of a girl named Midori (Yuki Mio) and the family store's street piano.

Another gentle show to watch at the end of a day before sleep.

Koi No Dangan

5/10

Sheer curiosity drew me to this drama starring Fumika Baba as a college student named Yuri who falls in love with a yakuza leader named Oya (Yuta Furukawa), and though it's a lightweight High school rom-commy sort, I gotta admit it's been entertaining enough!

Kaidenshita No Gogh

4/10

Telling the tale of an overworked office woman who finds a renewed passion in painting when she joins an night class full of oddball eccentrics. A rather Ho-Hum affair.

Hokuo Kojirase Nikki

4/10

A lightweight drama about a young girl who is into all things Finland and dreams of someday moving there. Actress Hitomi Honda is cute as the obsessed Shimako, but at a mere 4 episodes at 22 minutes each, it felt more like a secondary spinoff show than a "real" drama proper...

Shinai Naru Boku E Satsui wo Komete

3/10

A story that began with the situation of a mild mannered man who finds out that he has a split personality that may or may not be a serial killer sounded interesting enough, but as the show went on it and they tried to make each episode have a different person supposedly revealed to be the murderer, it began to lose steam, and by the drama's last few episodes, the protagonist's split personality didn't matter ONE. SINGLE. IOTA. to the story. What an unbelievable waste of a good premise.

Also thought I'd add the ANIME shows I'm currently watching as well!

Chainsaw Man

10*/10

* This goes to 11!!!

Wasn't sure what to expect initially from his show about a down on his luck guy who, through fate or by curse, becomes a half-human, half-demon hybrid with chainsaws emanating from his head and arms, but from the GET-Go it's been overwhelming me with its killer action scenes, naughty and bawdy humor and wonderfully flawed and fully developed characters!

There isn't a single character you don't immediately want to know more about, and you are thrilled to learn what you can as you tag along with the Demon Hunting Team as they take down the demonic bad guys!

SPYxFAMILY 2

10/10

 

The continuing story of the Forger Family comprised of Husband Loid, a world renowned secret agent, Yor, the dutiful wife who is secretly a vicious assassin, and adorable Anya, the psychic daughter, who knows it all! 

An anime beloved by so many, half the fun is going online and going onto the reaction channels to rewatch and relive each chapter! 

My Dress-Up Darling

9/10

A story of a shy and sheltered boy who is obsessed with Hina Dolls and making outfits for them gets drafted by the most popular and pretty girl in school in making costumes for her cosplay ventures sounds like a fairly mundane subject to watch but MAN, the FANSERVICE in this drama is OFF the CHARTS and I can't help but tune in week after week! Also some very cute theme songs!

That's about it for now! As far as the upcoming season goes,I have not started anything nor seen upcoming show that really grabs my interest, so right now, save for the Sakura Fujiwara/Taiga Kyomoto drama "Tsukanoma no Ichika", my drama slate is completely clean, and have no urgency to start any up...

Your Monthly Keiko: Welcoming in A Brand New Year!

 It's another year, and you know what THAT means- a brand new Keiko Kitagawa CALENDAR!

As usual CD JAPAN had me sweating with the shipping date so close to the end, but it made it just in time, and was WELL WORTH the wait!

Keiko looks SO WONDERFUL in some of these months, and I can't wait to share them over the course of this new year!!  Starting off with JANUARY 2023!!!