You know how it is…you get your hands on a new drama, and once you start watching it, the temptation to try and watch the whole 11 (or so) episodes in one sitting is almost more than you can stand! But if you should just happen to do that, it’s over before you can even have time to savor the experience!
As everyone knows, the proper way to watch a Japanese drama is the way it’s been presented to you: one episode per week. This way, you get to think about each episode and really get attached to the characters., and when the drama ends at the end of (around) three months, you really feel like you’ve spend a time in your life with the show.
When I have a bunch of dramas on hand, I try to stagger each drama by watching one episode of each show every day. That way, I usually manage to stretch my time on each drama to at least two weeks! But sometimes, a drama I’m watching is SOOOOOOOOO good, I just cannot stand it and am compelled to watch one …episode…after…another!
It’s kind of a “Catch 22” with j-doramas. The better the show is, the more you want it to last, but the more you like it, the harder it is to stop yourself from watching it all in one crack! I had this problem with Hotaru No Hikari- It was so special to me that I REALLY wanted to slowly enjoy the show like on a weekly, or (more realistically), daily schedule, but BOY, once it hit about Episode 5, there was NO WAY I could have stopped myself!
Case In Point:
“Last Friends”, that acclaimed (and sometimes controversial) show starring Ueno Juri, Nagasawa Masami, Eita, Mizukawa Asami and Nishikido Ryo. Initially, I decided to watch this one simply because I liked Ueno Juri in Nodame Cantabile. But after just the FIRST episode, I couldn’t believe how good it was. Fresh and original, it was a FAR CRY from the Harlequin Romance story I was expecting!
Really, I didn’t know ANY details of the story going in, so it really had an impact on me when I realized what heavy topics they were addressing in this drama. Domestic Violence and Homosexuality hardly seem like the subject matter you would anchor your latest drama on, but they did, and what a moving drama they turned out with.
Blazing through the series, I kept telling myself, “Stop! Stop! Make this one last!!” but my eyes and ears would not listen and before I knew it, I was already up to episode 7, more than HALFWAY THROUGH the show already!!!
I’ve FORCED myself to “take a breather”, if only to jot down this little entry and talk about how fricking terrific this show is. The storyline is as good as it gets, and the direction really winds you up for each episode, but the thing that really made it was the stellar CAST!
First off, there's Mizukawa Asami. The first thing I’d seen her in was the Domoto Tsuyoshi action comedy “33Pun Tantei” as Kurama’s spunky sidekick Rikako, and was charmed when I saw how GOOFY she was in real life (playing cute games during an appearance on Shin Domoto Kyoudai), then I got to see her “get elegant” as Violin virtuoso Kiyora in Nodame Cantibile. Finally, I get to see her play a fun, worldy babe as Eri in Last Friends, and geez, what a looker she is! Like I’ve mentioned many times on this blog, I do love a pretty girl in pretty clothes!
I didn’t really like Eita in the first dramas I saw him in- The very first thing was “Orange Days” where he played a weaselly type of guy, then “Atsuhime”, where I thought his character was irritatingly wishy washy. Then I saw him in that spacey movie “Sukida” and I’m not EVEN gonna PRETEND I understood that one... It just seemed like everything I saw him in, he was this whiny, shleppy guy. Then I saw him as wacky violinist Mine Ryutaro in Nodame Cantabile, and what do you know, I LIKED him in that! But it’s here in “Last Friends” as Takeru that I think- here’s the best character he’s ever played, multi-layered and thoughtful, and WOW- this is some of the best acting I’ve seen from him!
Aside from his double duty in both NewS and Kanjani8, I haven’t seen much acting from Nishikido Ryo. In fact, just about the only thing I really remember Nishikido in was “One Litre Of Tears” where he played caring and likable character Haruto, and I found it hard to get into his portrayal of an abusive, controlling man. But the guys in Kanjani8 have remarked that Ryo’s got a bad temper in real life, so maybe his casting as Sosuke was an inspired choice! And anyway, who can say what an abusive person should “look like”!
I’d already seen Nagasawa Masami in Sekai no Chuushin de, Ai wo Sakebu and Dragon Zakura, so I was used to seeing her playing strong, determined characters and didn’t recognize her AT ALL when she appeared in the “Gallileo Episode 0” Special! The character of Akari Shionoya she played was so cute and girly, and it was QUITE a shock to find out it was her! Then when I started watching Last Friends, I thought to myself, “Oooh, who is this cute, mousey girl they got playing the lead?” Yep, I didn’t recognize her AGAIN! What an awesome performance. From strong and independent Mizuno Naomi in Dragon Zakura to petite, fragile princess Aida Michiru in Last Friends, the range in characters this actress can tackle is astounding! Possibly my fave performance of hers!
And of course, there’s Ueno Juri…what can I say that hasn’t been said over and over…this performance is just unbelievable. I can scarcely BELIEVE this is the same actress playing the lovably ditzy girly-girl Noda Megumi… Ueno’s totally transformed into this strong, gruff Tomboy, in Kishimoto Ruka. When I first saw stills from the show, I wasn’t sure if she’d pull it off- but within minutes, I was COMPLETELY CONVINCED! I know she’s been awarded quite a few things since this drama, trust me, the hype is TRUE!!!
Ah, I've got only about three or four more episodes to go, and I will try, try, TRY to make it last, but if each episode is going to continue getting better and BETTER, I don't think I will be able to control myself!!!! Jya, Mata!
