6-Byoukan no Kiseki: Hanabishi Mochizuki Seitaro no Yuutsu

Under recommendation from hamanosilence, I gave the drama "6-Byoukan no Kiseki: Hanabishi Mochizuki Seitaro no Yuutsu" (The 6-Second Trajectory: Fireworks Expert Mochizuki Seitaro's Melancholy) a peek, and I found it utterly delightful and charming to watch!!

The loose synopsis is the son of a Father-And Son Fireworks business named Seiichiro Mochizuki (Issei Takahashi)  loses his motivation and purpose in life after his Father, Kou (J-drama mainstay Isao Hashizume) passes away, leaving him to take over the failing company.

Before he had passed, Kou had proposed a new idea of offering personal fireworks events for private individuals, an idea which Seiichiro had scoffed at. 

But months after father's death, Seiichiro is shocked to find his Dad had actually gone ahead with his plans before his death, a discovery Seiichiro finds when a young woman shows up at the store's door with one of his flyers for the proposed private fireworks show! 

Her name is Hikari Mizumori (Tsubasa Honda) and she has come to take the business UP on its offer and hire them for a private fireworks show!

Seiichiro is stunned and befuddled by the turn of events...but the BIGGEST shock is yet to come, when he hears fireworks going off from the direction of the factory, and running up to the building....FINDS THE GHOST OF HIS FATHER WAITING FOR HIM! 

Has Seiichiro gone mad? Or is this really his Pops spirit come to guide him? Whatever the case, the client is still waiting for him and, at the goading of his Father's playful spirit who has followed him back home, takes on the task of creating and coordinating Hikari's very own fireworks show...

But there's more on the horizon as the mysterious Hikari soon begs of one more request: to take her in as a LIVE -IN APPRENTICE to the Shop and HIRE HER as an official employee!!! 

Seiichiro can't wrap his head around the concept, but with badgering from both Hikari AND his deceased pop, he gives in! 

And thus this addled young man takes on the multi-task of  teaching his new and quirky apprentice the trade, while dealing with living with a pretty young woman like her...as well as dealing with his rascally rambunctious father's ghost interfering underfoot!

Gotta say, though it sounds like a pretty thin story set-up, I think the real strength of the show is watching how CHARISMATIC and VIBRANT Takahashi and Honda are in their roles- It's almost as if the director told Tsubasa to act her her most quirky "Tsubasa Honda" type character, and told Issei to act in his most eccentric "Issei Takahashi" type character, and then simply let them go at it!!! SO MUCH FUN TO WATCH!

I'm only up to episode 3 of the show, but I already love them DEARLY! Can't WAIT to see more!!!

Posted by zdorama @ zdoramaagain.blogpsot.com

Your Monthly Keiko

 February Keiko just in time for her latest drama Themis no Kyoshitsu: Legal Seishun Hakusho!

Da Capo Shimasenka asks: "Do You Want To Play A Game?"

 Part Liar Game, part Squid Game, DA CAPO Shimasenka? tells the story of a mysterious servant named Ninomiya (Takeda Tetsuya) whom, at the behest of his Master, has found a series of despairing individuals pushed to the edge and about to commit suicide due to crushing debt.

Stopping them at the very last second of their demise, Ninomiya invites all of them to the home of his benefactor, where they learn that they have been invited to participate in a macabre and deadly game of chance.

Called DA CAPO, each individual is told to sign a life insurance policy to the host of the game, an unseen individual named only MR.X. The “contestants" will them participate in a series of dangerous games where each round is ended by the death of a member.

Once that person dies, his life insurance will kick in and there will be a payout. And after a fee has been paid to Mr.X, the rest of the money go to the PARTICIPANTS! The more people that die, the more insurance will pay out and the LESS people there will be to split the money with! That means that the more people that DIE, the more you GET!

Normally no one would even think about playing such a deadly game, but these are people whom debt has destroyed their lives, and for even the chance of paying it off and starting again clean, most won’t hesitate for a second to join! And in the end, ALL EIGHT of them take pen in hand and sign the contracts!

Once the legal papers have all been signed, the first of the "games" is introduced: Champagne glasses filled with water for the contestants to drink. But ONE of them is laced with POISON,  a deadly agent that will KILL the drinker soon thereafter!

...Are the guests brave enough to go ahead with such MADNESS???

The Contestants: Otawara (Makita Sports)

Shimon (Takaya Sakoda)

Sakuragi (Momoka Hasegawa)

Masumi (Kei Inoo)

Maeyama (Atsuko Hirata)

Mihashi (Ryoko Kobayashi)

Inaba (Tetta Sugimoto)

and Nagumo (Arisa Mizuki)

Each of them has their own dark reasons for being in debt, (which we will learn over time) and by hook or crook, each one has a determination to become the one holding the prize at the end!

So RAISE your glasses and make a toast, for the games are about to begin...and one is about to DIE!

CHEERS!

Let the Games Begin...

A truly BIZARRE show, kept loose and FUN by Takeda Tetsuya who plays Ninomiya with a particular ZEST!