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Saturday, October 31, 2020

Happy Halloween from Kasumi Arimura and the Gang in "Nee-San No Koibito"

Was just musing about how there were so few Japanese Halloween related things to post in October, and then happened to come across the new drama “Nee-san No Koibito” which was just FULL of Halloweeny Jack-O-Lantern goodness!
Nee-San No Koibito follows the story of a young woman who works in a Crafts and Hardware Store, and if you've even been to one, you know full well that it is a PERFECT place to have the backdrop of the Autumn Season!
Nee-San No Koibito tells story of a young woman named Momoko Adachi (Kasumi Arimura, simply radiant here) who has been taking care of her three younger brothers Kazuki (Kaito Takahashi), Yuki (Wataru Hyuga), and Tomoki (Ryoka Minamide) even since her parents passed away at a young age.
Despite her past, Momoko is a bright, cheerful and hard-working girl beloved by her manager Hinako Ichihara (Eiko Koike) and co-workers alike! She is diligent in her work, and she is destined to meet the man of her future through this job…
Manato Yoshioka (Kento Hayashi, FINALLY back to playing more gentle characters) is an affable guy working as a Cargo deliveryman under the care of Satoshi Takada (Naohito Fujiki). And of course, one of their main stops is T's Crafts and Home, the very same warehouse that Momoko works at!!!
He is a thoughtful person and thought little gestures (like repairing a broken trinket), he manages to make a nice impression with the wide-eyed Momoko!
All that orangey Halloween wonderment aside, Nee-san no Koibito seems like your average romance drama, but with character you like well enough that you’re willing to take a ride with them!
Bonus points for special appearance by Emi Wakui as Manato’s clingy old Mother (yes, she playing old mothers now, who would have EVER thunk it)...
As well as picking actress NAO for Momoko’s best friend Miyuki Hamano... As you all know, Nao has real experience playing the best friend of the main characters for some time now, LOL. Truthfully, I’m ready to see her in some starring vehicle, but for now it's nice to see here here….
Will continue to see where this drama is heading!
PS: Went looking up Halloween in Japan, and now I can see why I don't see much of in in Nihongo stuff. Apparently it's only recently that they've been embracing the holiday, and even them, only the costume part (you know Japan is Koo-Koo for Cosplay), and not so much the whole "Trick or Treat" and Jack 'o' Lantern thing...
Hmm, The more you know!
Posted by zdorama @ zdoramaagain.blogspot.com

Friday, October 30, 2020

Kono Koi Atatamemasu ka~ "A Warmed-Up Love”

Tomoya Nakamura and Nana Mori in "Kono Koi"
 
Takumi Asaba (Tomoya Nakamura)is the newly appointed chairman for a convenience store chain COCOEVERY which hasn’t been performing well as of late, and he believes it is because the people behind the scenes are cutting corners and making a lesser product.
As he’s about to taste the latest Pastry from the store, he happens to notice that a live-blogger is right next to him reviewing the SAME pastry and has inadvertently recorded HIM as well.
The girl’s name is Kiki (Nana Mori), a modest youtuber focusing on pastries and sweets. Though she has only a small following, her palate is unmatched and they can always rely on her reviews.
Never one good with dealing with people, Asaba rudely storm, even as he hears her remark to her viewers that the latest snack is somehow lacking, perhaps due to cheaper egg product!
They tussle and both phones end up falling to the ground.
“What’s your PROBLEM, old Man???” Kiki barks, as Asaba shrugs her off and goes off to his car!
.
In true j-drama fashion, however, the phones have been switched and Asaba must go to the girl’s workplace to get his back. When he gets there after following her directions, he is stunned to find the loudmouthed girl works for his own company!
"What took you so long? Gimme my phone!"
“You work for Cocoevery and yet you review pastries from other businesses?” he asks, and she tells him she reviews whatever her tastebuds lead her. 
He tells her to check her attitude and creates yet another argument between the two! But she will play a bigger part in his future….
Back at the company, the marketing team appointed to taste-test the new Cocoevery products are trying out the latest release. Led by Ichioka (Mikako Ichikawa) and Kitagawa (Shizuka Ishibashi), they acknowledge the flaws of the product but know it is to cut costs.
They admit that because they had to use lesser eggs, the taste may have diminished. One team member points out that no one would notice such a small thing…But someone did. Kiki!
They are looking at Kiki’s blog review when president Asaba enters. “So, it WAS due to the eggs” he murmurs, remembering the girl in plaza’s comments. Little does he know, the livebloger and the girl he met are one and the same!!!
Desperate for change, Asaba brings on his colleague Shintani (Taiga Nakano) to head the new sweets team and brainstorm new ideas to rejuvenate the store’s goods. He has plans to start things from scratch and needs fresh visions.
But when he relates to a particular reviewer whom he enjoys and shows him Kiki’s blog, it finally clicks with Asaba that that scruffy girl with the big attitude is the SAME youtuber whom so many respect! Just who IS this girl?
Kiki is a girl who is in the crossroads of her life. She had once been a part of an underground idol group, but she was eventually kicked out to make room for the younger girls. Since then, she has had to watch as the group ascends to success, while Kiki has been reduced to working at a Convenience Store. 
Indeed, the only thing she has is her love of food, hence her deep passion for pastries and sweets, resulting in great and eye-opening observation of what is good and bad in a product!
Realizing he needs Kiki for his team, Asaba shows up one day at the store with a proposition for her. At first greeting him with a "What do YOU want, Old Man?", she (and her manager and co-workers) are STUNNED to find this gentleman (who has been having arguments with Kiki on the regular) is none other than the company CEO!!!
Still, Kiki doesn't quite trust this guy and would probably not sit for any proposition he might offer...so he bribes her with pastries from a high-end patisserie while he gives her his spiel!
Asaba tells her of his plans to reinvigorate the company’s policies and goods, and, amid the happy sounds of Kiki devouring her goodies, tells her he’d like to hire her to create a new signature pastry for the company!!!
At first Kiki is plagued with doubt. Her past rejection in the idol group has left her with deep scars and self-doubt. But with the encouragement of her roommate (Shian (Kotone Furukawa), Kiki decides to put her best foot forward!
Making up her mind, Kiki meets up with Asaba, and, given a one day pass, enters the intriguing world of baked goods! Once she sees the set-up, she knows she WANTS to do this!!!
At last she is behind the scenes in the place where the magic happens, and, along with Shintani, put their heads together to come up with that one perfect product that will save the company! Will they succeed? 
Only Time Will Tell!!!!
Ah, after breaking the Hearts of Haru Kuroki in Nagi No Oitoma, Suzume in Hanbun Aoi, and Fuka Koshiba in Akechi Goro, mumbly Tomoya Nakamura is back to play mind-games with yet ANOTHER clueless young girl!
This time his target is Nana Mori, a new actress I’m seeing for the first time but already really like! She reminds me of Koharu Kusume, that one-time member of Morning Musume  who went on to become a very wild girl! Expecting the same kind of sassiness from Nana’s character of Kiki Inoue, a VERY spirited young lass!!!
Oooh, I have such high hopes for this drama, can’t wait to see more!!!!