ThatJapaneseDramaGuy

What Japanese dramas do best aside from being creative with their plot is how they incorporate societal issues without feeling forced. In fact if done right it makes the writing better overall, put more layer to the characters, give them more motivation, but the best when it completes the drama, revisits incomplete plot points, weave those loosely threads into a  beautiful, masterful narrative. This year there are 3 dramas that execute that perfectly, 2 written by Nogi Akiko and 1 produced by WOWOW. Those 3 are equally masterpiece worthy in my eyes so it is a tossed up which one should take the number 1 spot. Having said that this year is still a bit weaker than last year where I had 8 great dramas I can one hundred percent recommend ( check my 2019 list here ), this year I only had 6. There are few factors for that, 1. This pandemic, producers pushed some potentially great dramas to 2021 and some dramas that ended up getting released suffered from episode cuts because of it 2. Man...

Drama: Cursed in Love (English title) / We Are Not Ourselves (literal title) Romaji: Watashitachi wa Douka Shiteiru Japanese: 私たちはどうかしている Director: Naoko Komuro, Ryuichi Inomata, Hiroto Akashi, Itaru Mizuno Writer: Natsumi Ando (manga), Rin Eto Network: NTV Actors: Minami Hamabe, Ryusei Yokohama, Mahiro Takasugi, Yukino Kishii   I'll go straight to the point If you like doki doki type of romance with taste of mystery, revenge and a bit of soapy melodrama then you'll end up loving this drama. It would also help if you love both actors, Hamabe Minami is gorgeous and Yokohama Ryusei is like a dashing, snobby prince. They also have great chemistry and the acting is kind of good.   Having said that the drama felt experimental to me, at one point it looks like your normal Japanese drama, slice of life vibe with typical manga-ish reaction from the actors then suddenly it feels like you are watching a Telenovela, ultra soapy development just to drive the plot, and I don't like tha...

Drama: Furo Girl Romaji: Furo Girl Japanese: ふろがーる！ Director: Junichi Ishikawa Writer: Yukio Katayama (manga), Yosuke Masaike, Yukari Nakamura Network: TV Tokyo Actors: Hinako Sakurai, Sakurako Konishi   Most people know Japanese dramas for their unusual plot, but in recent years I noticed they got even more creative with these plots, and this drama could be one of the best examples of that. Just who would have thought that taking a bath can be this epic, fun and philosophical.   The main lead Sayoko Oyumino only joy in life is taking a bath, she can really get creative with it and his approach is very philosophical. There are times where I keep nodding to whatever she said, it sounds stupid at first but then I realized that it makes sense. This drama presents you these creative ideas like the use of fruits, turning your bath into a sauna by using an umbrella and lastly the most peaceful bomb ever created AKA bath bombs.   The direction is superb, the execution even more...

Drama: Youkai Sharehouse Romaji: Youkai Sharehouse Japanese: 妖怪シェアハウス Director: Keisuke Toyoshima, Daisuke Yamamoto Writer: Yumie Nishiogi, Brazily Anne Yamada Network: TV Asahi Actors: Fuka Koshiba, Marika Matsumoto, Katsuya Maiguma, Nobue Iketani Youkai Sharehouse is about a girl named Mio who is very unfortunate in life. She lost her job, her boyfriend dump her and her landlady forced her to leave because she can't pay the rent. She is in the lowest point of her life until she ended up in a sharehouse, a place where mysterious yokai live.   You will love this drama more if you are a fan of Japanese folklore, it is by no means scary drama, Yokai only serves as comic relief which is a really fun idea. This drama is refreshing in a way that I haven't seen this concept before. They use this one thing Yokais hated the most which eventually makes them help the main character or people around her.   Definitely carried the actress Koshiba fuka, she is cute, fun to watch, but mos...

He Won't Kill, She Won't Die Cast: Shotaro Mamiya, Hinako Sakurai It's either a fluffy marshmallow sugar fest movie or a bleak teen angst driven film those are the vibes I expect watching this so I was surprised to see a well executed meaningful movie. I love the whole pacing, those 3 story bits are cleverly woven together and don't forget brilliant writing. Likable characters supported by good to great acting, I was surprised I love Sakurai Hinako's character here, I think she's a good actress it's just that most of her characters in the past are either dumb or boring. Mamiya Shotaro is great too, most complains says he looks too old to play a student but I think the fact that he looks older works for the character. I love this eccentric pair and I would like this story to have a drama version and both of them should reprise their roles. They got great chemistry, it fun watching them interact, the dialogue between them are witty, clever ...