The current Fuji TV Fall Getsu 9 is Umi no Ue no Shinryojo (Clinic on the Sea) with Matsuda Shota and Takei Emi. It’s ratings are pretty ordinary and its predecessor Summer Nude with Yamapi, Karina, and Toda Erika (with a cameo role by Nagasawa Masami) didn’t exactly bring in the viewers either despite all the abtastic fanservice thrown in. Even … Continue reading →
To say I’m shocked is an understatement, but its more like I’m wondering what magic sauce was in this J-dorama to create these results. A workplace dorama premiered earlier in the Summer that totally flew under my interest radar as those types always do. Hanzawa Naoki starring the currently on career fire Sakai Masato in a drama about banking turned … Continue reading →
It’s Fall which means time for the annual J-dorama homage to the Crown Prince that is Kimura Takuya. I’ve been meh with all his recent year doramas from Priceless to Nankyoku Tairiku to Tsuki no Koibito, but there is no telling when KimuTaku may pull a rabbit out of the hat so it’s always with a hopeful heart I await … Continue reading →
Everyone has their own favorite flavor of ice-cream, and even the exact same flavor of ice-cream can taste different despite the same basic ingredients of milk and sugar. I look at the various drama adaptations of the Japanese manga Itazura na Kiss (It Started with a Kiss) as basically different ice-cream shops doing their own strawberry ice-cream. It’s sweet, pink, … Continue reading →
It’s been four long years since Yamashita Tomohisa graced the screen in a Fuji TV Getsuku (Monday@9) when he stole my heart in Buzzer Beat, which to this day remains one of the best dramas at capturing the heady days and nights of Summer. He returns next Monday to Fuji TV with Summer Nude, which follows the time slot vacated … Continue reading →
I like to think the higher-ups at Fuji TV took a look at its upcoming line up and realized that Summer was coming and it needed to let loose and have some fun. Right now its Getsuku (Monday@9) time slot is filled by the high profile Galileo 2 (with Fukuyama Masaharu back but the leading lady got sacked for a … Continue reading →
There are dramas that you watch that linger briefly and then pass into oblivion. Very few make such an impact that it transcends the entertainment value and becomes something symbolic in ways that validate its purpose. 2005’s J-dorama 1 Litre of Tears (Ichi Rittoru no Namida) is one of those dramas that seeps into your bones and never really goes … Continue reading →
The upcoming Mokuju (Thursday at 10) J-dorama is the highly anticipated (by me) Last Cinderella starring Shinohara Ryoko, Miura Haruma, and Fujiki Naohito. I’ve noticed for the last few years there has been a spate of old maid dramas from Korea, Japan, and Taiwan, though always starring a truly gorgeous woman we are asked to believe can’t find a man … Continue reading →
OMG, I want, I want, I WANT!!! I heard rumors about an upcoming J-dorama rom-com a few weeks ago but nothing confirmed and then sorta forgot about it until it snuck up on me. Spring 2013 will be having a love triangle rom-com from the land that frankly has mostly forgotten about that genre. Last Cinderella starring Shinohara Ryoko, Miura … Continue reading →
So, raise your hand if you almost had a heart attack when you read the heading for the post. Yeah, that was my reaction when I first heard the rumor. I wouldn’t share it unless there was a chance it’s legit, and this rumor came from the source that first revealed Rich Man, Poor Woman would be having an SP … Continue reading →
Does the world need another drama adaptation of Itazura na Kiss? No, definitely not. Is the world about to get another drama adaptation of Itazura na Kiss? Yes, definitely yes. I thought the next country to remake this story would come from China since it hasn’t been done yet, but lo and behold its from the original granddaddy of adaptations … Continue reading →
It’s raining Rich Man, Poor Woman goodies here. Not that I’m complaining, what with the dearth of K-dramas these days having at least a J-dorama to look forward to helps fill the void. Yes, technically its just a two-hour SP, but I’m choosing to believe that it reduces RMPW to everything that is good about it while discarding all the … Continue reading →
To any fan of Rich Man, Poor Woman or Oguri Shun or Ishihara Satomi and you happen to live in the Tri-State area – go stalk the cast and crew right now in Manhattan! Intrepid fans have spotted the glorious couple of Hyuga Toru and Natsui Makoto filming in Times Square not two days ago! Kyaaaaaaa~ Why don’t I still … Continue reading →