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March 17 HYD 2 Finale (O_O)i can't believe it has finally ended. omg. i feel kinda lonely now LOL i mean - no more hyd ... FOREVER (O_O) that's just weird. hyd has become a part of my life LOL. every week i'd wait for it, then i'd anticipate the download, then i'd watch to get my fix hahaah, now that's all gone! i have to start anew again...
but as for the finale. as expected umi is a b i a t c h! i literally swore at my computer LOL but then, again it was predictable what the outcome was going to be like. and yes heheh a very happy ending. so happy that it made my spine tingle XD so sweet!! some would say that it is too cliche, but i loved it. i mean, in my opinion, it had to be cliche lol otherwise you will disappoint A LOT of people out there hahaha. i know for one if it didn't end the way that it did, i would have cursed continuously haha. but now, it has seriously ended =/ i can't express how i feel lol. like it was such a great series (minus the stupid umi character). and even though i knew that they had no more themes to play with, no more ideas to bring to the story, i still wanted it to continue. i still wanted to see more. i still wanted to anticipate the next episode. *happy sigh*
the casting was fantastic as well. i think that's another reason why i'm going to miss it hahaha. i got use to watching these same people act in their roles for two seasons. it was awesome i tell u. it got to the stage where those actors/actresses sunk into their character roles so i started to think of them as the character of the drama, rather than as a separate individual...if that makes any sense lol. it'll be really interesting to see how the cast will fair with other drama roles cos i mean, to me they really fitted the roles of hanadan. it'll be hard for me to see them in other drama roles i think ahaha cos they will always be makino, rui, akira, soujirou and yuki to me <3. as for matsujun, well i can still see him as a separate individual lol, mainly cos i still see him in things that aren't hanadan related ne lol. i see him more as arashi rather than domyouji haha. but anyways, bottom line - great casting haha *going to miss this cast* and the shot of abe tsuyoshi (akira) at the end carrying his two baby sisters was the CUTEST thing ever XD kyyyaaa!! i really never use to think anything of him haha but that has all changed now XD *goes abe crazy*
as for the acting - it was pretty normal. the same as how it's always been. although the part where jun tries to recall his memories was kinda weird hahaha. it just looked kinda fake to me LOL but then again, i guess that was the best that he could do ne hahaha *cheers for jun* although i did love "the eye" that jun gave hahaha. especially when makino threw the saturn necklace back at him and was crying. you could see that jun was feeling her pain, even though that he couldn't understand why at that point. sigh. made me cry too T_T i really wanted to stab umi hahha sigh.
and it was a shame how yuki and soujirou didn't hook up X( i was hoping in the last 30 seconds of the episode that he would finally say "yo yuki u can sit on the backseat of my motorbike now" hahahahah but to no avail, that wish wasn't satisfied. i haven't read the manga so i have no idea whether if they're meant to hook up or not hehe, but it would have been nice ne!!
but the main spine tingler for me was the proposal *kyaaaaaaa* that was so sweeettt awwww <3 much love!! and it was so cute how he was asking makino's father for her hand hahaha, even though he said the wrong thing lol. but that's domyouji for you! saigo made domyouji rashii dane X)
but yes hahah. now i don't know what else to write. i seriously do feel empty now LOL like it's not a bad thing cos it was overall a very good series (season 1 and 2), but again, it's one of those series where i just don't want it to come to an end. now that it has, i have to just accept it and move on lol sigh. so to the author of hanadan - GREAT piece of work!! absolutely fantastic storyline haha. typical but definitely my cup of tea! for the producers - awesome interpretation of the manga into a live action, though i still despise the idea of putting umi into the second last episode hahaha. and lastly, with regards to the whole cast - FANTASTIC!! i'm seriously going to miss watching this cast...especially in these roles. it won't be the same watching them individually in other roles X( but overall, one hell of a good series. it is definitely a series that will always be on my favorites list :D
bye bye HYD *waves and tears* March 10 HYD 2 Episode 10: furiously disappointedeven though this is a raw, people with zero to little japanese can even catch the drift. i did not like this episode at all. i can't express how angry i am. first of all, what the fuck is with adding a -new- character into the freaking SECOND LAST episode?!? i mean yeah ok, they want to create suspense - they have it, but it certainly has lost its appeal. i absolutely loathe the new character - umi. she's the type that thinks she's being all kind and friendly when she doesn't freaking have ANY idea what is going on.
i mean she doesn't even know domyouji!! it pissed me off so much how she acts like she's like known him for ages and shit. who the fuck does she think she is!! god. annoyed me so so so much. i can't even express my anger. then with all that bullshit "it's okay if you don't remember", "maybe the thing that you can't remember wasn't important to begin with" -> W T F !! talking so freaking arrogantly when she has absolutely NO idea who the hell domyouji is, who makino is and what their history is!!! i was so happy when rui told her off. GO RUI. i was cheering for him, literally. what rui said was exactly what i wanted to say! and it gets worse. makino goes and bakes him those cookies. it sparked something in domyouji, but guess who had to be in the room when he ate those bloody cookies. that's right! the mole - umi (-____-) i haven't even mentioned the worse part yet.
domyouji: could it be that, you and i were going out (referring to umi)
umi: silence. smile. goes in for a kiss.
O_O WHAT THE FUCK! first, she's not only taking advantage of a freaking guy who has lost his memory. but she's also showing that she's not so kind and generous afterall. it doesn't take a rocket scientist to figure out that there IS something b/w makino and domyouji. considering that makino goes to see him so friggin often and told him to not give up on the things that he can't remember (which she later confirmed that the thing that he couldn't remember was makino), AND rui even stood up for makino when he told everyone off for not thinking about makino's feelings. even a freaking idiot can put two and two together. so i was absolutely furious when that happened. bitch i tell u, b-i-t-c-h.
after being so bloody disappointed with the turn of the story, i tried to suss out the previews of what is going to happen in the last episode. and i think it's going to be another annoying episode. the impression i got was that umi wasn't keen on telling domyouji the truth. *crosses fingers and hopes to god that the previews were deceiving*
i cant stress how much i hate these types of situations. hyd never use to be such a pathetic drama. i have to admit that part two isn't as good as part one, but it was still up there. now that they threw this crap into episode 10, my satisfaction has dropped immensely. when the subbed version comes out, i'm going to download it for the sake of having a complete series but i most definitely won't watch it. it is that bad for me. anything at the point of being unwatchable is a serious issue in my case. and i know for a fact, if i ever choose to rewatch the whole series of hyd returns, i will -always- skip ep 10 and maybe some of ep 11 depending how the episode turns out to be. i won't be surprised if i freaking skip half of that until the end too. sigh. what have the stupid producers done. they've ruined what is, rather what was such a great series.
.:o w a r i:. November 24 minami-kun no koibitoso i decided to watch this a second time and as expected, it gave me the same warm and fuzzy feelings that i felt when i watched it for the first time hahah. even though there isn't an english subbed version out, i got the jist of things so it wasn't too bad, but i'm still going to wait until a subbed version comes out haha, let's just hope it will come out soon.
but anyways, it's basically about a guy called minami who's a third year highschool student and his girlfriend, chiyomi who suddenly shrinks and becomes the size of about 15 centimeters (he ends up measuring her with a mini ruler so that's how i got the size haha). i didn't really understand the part when they first ate the fortune cookie, which was pretty much the main point of chiyomi's shrinkage. but i read somewhere that the old man was saying something like: if both of your hearts are one you will always be together, but if your hearts drift apart something bad will happen - it's pretty much more or less like that, but don't quote me hahaha. that's how i understood it. anyways, it makes sense though, since minami and chiyomi had like a rough patch and he ends up breaking up with her, which then lead to chiyomi's shrinkage.
after all that, my opinions:
it was such a sweet drama ;_; there's just so many things to list!! at first, it seemed like minami had doubts of being with her, but because of her shrinkage he ended up caring for her and protecting her, and it was a given that they'd both grow to appreciate, value and love each other more. hahaha as soppy as it sounds, it was really sweet! for example, even though chiyomi was the size of a mini ruler, she still managed to secretly make minami a study guide to help him study for his finals, she managed to knit a bookmark(?) i'm guessing it was a bookmark, haha but something along those lines haha, for his mother's birthday, and no matter how evil nomura was, well she wasn't really evil haha but you'll see what i mean when you watch it - but yeah, despite nomura's actions, chiyomi never failed to be the bigger person. chiyomi always told minami to be there for nomura even though it was hard for her to deal with, since she was well aware that at her current size, she can't do or give anything to minami. i thought that was pretty depressing, since chiyomi was saying how she won't be able to marry him, won't be able to do anything for him like give him children, wash his clothes, go shopping with him, or even be introduced to his friends. she really depicted the meaning of a 'pure' person hahaha, well in my opinion anyway.
as for minami - i really loved the way how he cared for chiyomi *cheers for nino* hahaha i think nino did a great job! but anyways haha back to his character, it was just the little things that made me like minami's character more and more - i.e. while she was knitting that bookmark thing for his mother's birthday, he ended up making her two cherry-type knitting needles haha, it was so cute! he ended up buying her doll clothes, a doll bed and a doll house, and he always fed her by cutting up everything in super small portions, i think he ended up making a table for her too out of match sticks and a match box hahaha. and he also helped her to convey her feelings to her grandfather via a video, i.e. the part where he ends up making a super small doll size version of the kimono that her grandfather wanted to see her wear during the summer festival.
but besides from the i guess materialistic side of things, even though he had doubts and questioned that what he was doing was wrong (i.e. hiding the fact that he knew where chiyomi was even though her grandfather was extremely worried), he continued to lie to everyone, his family and friends, in order to protect her. i also loved the part how he took her on a date together which never took place before her shrinkage, how he asked her grandfather for her hand in marriage (bearing in mind that she is still the size of a doll), and even though he asked for her hand in marriage in front of her, he still managed to -properly- ask chiyomi to marry him - i thought that was the sweetest thing. and how he was saying stuff like there are married couples that can't have children, housewives that can't do the cleaning, but they are still happy etc *dies* and thats not all! he also carries on saying that if ever she can't do something on her own, he wants her to tell him straight away and never leave his side (referring to the first time that she decided to leave him to be independent since she didn't want to cause him anymore trouble). at that point, it just really showed me how genuine minami was toward chiyomi - that he truly worried and cared for her. although this might not sound like much, and to a certain degree pretty cliche, i don't know how else to describe it. from an audience's view point, throughout the 11 episodes i felt like i could see the growth in value shared between the two as each event took place, it was just amazing. very fairytale-like but still amazing haha, it just showed the extremes of unconditional love :)
oh~ and i almost forgot hahaha i particularly loved the part during the scene when chiyomi first left minami to establish independence and how after minami's race, he ran to the shop to see if chiyomi was still there, blah blah he eventually found her trying to climb up a step that she couldn't reach hahaha she was so cute there - but anyways that's not the point. what i liked was how he said something like "if i don't have chiyomi, there wouldn't be a reason to run" hahaha i thought that was the sweetest thing. she gives him the strength to not only run well, but also strengthens his desire to want to run even more. i just had to add that in haha.
i also absolutely adored minami's mother! she was -the- coolest person, i swear haha. it's like she was one of those characters who knew what was happening underground, but never freaked out, and never jumped to conclusions. especially, during the time that nomura stayed over at their place. it was as if the mother's sixth sense came into play and it gave me such a warm feeling. a feeling of understanding, and a feeling that she is the type of person who would always accept people regardless of the, i guess "surface" impression that they might display. for example, she pretty much found out on her own about chiyomi's shrinkage secret, but never let on that she knew to anyone, nor did she freak out. i also loved how she'd make subtle comments to convey her advice to minami and chiyomi - i.e. while they were taking the family portrait, and how she'd -always- seem to particularly emphasize "everyone" whenever she was calling them to go eat dinner, and even during the family photo. and on her birthday, she deliberately told the story of her best friend so she could subtly convey to minami that "it doesn't matter if you have to lie to the whole world, that kinda thing doesn't matter if you are protecting the person that you love". the timing was absolutely perfect, since it was during that time that minami and chiyomi were worried about the whole lying and betrayal to everyone close to them in order to protect their secret. so i really loved the mother!
she also managed to see right through nomura and again, subtly let nomura have her way and in the end finally told her that she is not alone, that her friends and everyone at that house would always look out for her. ahhh~~ you have to see it to, i guess to feel the warmth and respect that i feel for the mother haha.
but there were things that i found a little rushed haha, and this happened 3/4 into the last episode. fair enough, chiyomi and minami used their wish to save chiyomi's grandfather and i would've been satisfied if it left it at there, but they had to throw in another incident - the stupid car crash. i mean with the inclusion of the car crash, the ending wasn't too bad - but it was kinda pointless. it was as if the scriptwriter wanted to get rid of the grandfather's character really badly haha and i don't or can't see why. to exchange one life for another; that is fair enough, but it wasn't as if chiyomi returned to being a normal size human being. in the end, chiyomi was still a doll size person and minami was alive. the only difference was, the grandfather is now nonexistent. i don't know if you can see my point haha but to me, i just thought the exchange of lives was quite pointless. it didn't change anything in the end. it only gave the opportunity to give, i guess one last emotional kick. i mean it was a sad event and the letter did spark some emotions, but i still think it was unnecessary.
and again, i didn't really understand the whole thing with sei-chan and chiyomi's mother. they were cousins, yet it seemed like he was in love with her, blah i don't know haha. i didn't catch the dialogue. i tried to replay it a few times but i still didn't get it. so i don't really know the history behind that. but anyways hahah, i think that's why i never warmed up to sei-chan's character haha.
ok well i've typed quite alot ne~ i don't even know if anyone reads this stuff. oh wells haha, for my personal enjoyment neee~! but this is definitely one of my favorite (nino) dramas haha i just had to add that in, and it is something that can be rewatched as many times as i can count. it is a series that shows the growth between two lovers, friendship and loneliness. and as far fetched as the plot is from reality, and as cliche as some of the events that happen are, it still is truly a touching drama. someone needs to sub this!! onegaishimasu! October 20 anego: WHYYY!!ok this is going to be a quick one. will elaborate when exams are over T_T
the drama is engaging - so engaging that it makes you want to keep watching it to find out what happens in the next episode. sadly, this is where the drama fails to produce. the ending...THE ENDING!!! ...it was one of the most frustrating endings ever. some people may be cool with open endings, but seriously - i think the only reason why it frustrated me so was because of the constant engagement that it kept promoting at the end of each episode. i wasn't satisfied with the first 10 episodes because of that. and the SP was even worse. not only did the stupid SP spend OVER 1 hour showing recaps of the original series, but it also gave ANOTHER open ending. although, it didn't have subtitles, i pretty much got the jist of it, except the part where jin didn't want to hear what was happening next year. i couldn't tell whether it was going to be something good or bad. all i understood was the doctor saying "with my abilities i can't say" - and i assume that was he was unable to predict what will happen next year for the both of them. jin was cho-kakkoi. he was so hot hahah *flutters* at first i didn't think much of his acting because i couldn't tell whether that was how his character was meant to be, or whether jin just lacked the ability to interpret his character's personality. nonetheless, he did portray a matured, young man though. but one thing i noticed is he doesn't move his lips much when he talks hahaha kawaaaii~~ but i have to say, his kissing scenes were probably one of the best ahaha, he actually moulded his lips into a *chuu* form when kissing, unlike the typical, conservative kissing japanese scenes. i can't really remember how the first kiss was, but at the end of the SP, the chuu was pretty good! his ability to show the adorable sides of kurosawa also needs to be paid attention to as well. i found myself rewinding it just to see random comments/gestures hahah. just to name a couple: the way he says "hai" after being brushed off, his awkward/stiff like movements when he's shy - just too adorable neee~! shinohara ryoko was so pretty! her acting was also pretty good too. i felt her loneliness after she proposed to jin in the original 10 episodes. the only thing that pissed me off about shinohara's character (noda) was that she treated jin like crap hahah i mean i would've liked to see a little bit more chemistry. i did love how she portrayed a working woman in their mid 30s though. it was nerve racking to see the types of issues she was placed with and the ridiculous amount of emphasis being placed on marriage just made me uneasy haha. this brings me to my next point - another reason why the ending was so frustrating and why the series/SP was so unsatisfying was due to the lack of chemistry b/w noda and kurosawa. it was kinda there, but not if that made any sense. there wasn't enough i guess "chase" time before they slept together, and after they did, it was kinda pushed to the side. *sigh* you will understand once you watch it...hopefully. absolutely loved the buchou haha if i had a boss like that i'll probably enjoy working haha. though, he lacked some balls and was a sheep at times. i didn't particularly like the work atmosphere - males v females, but that scenario is probably how it is within the work force ne. women doing the odd jobs while men berate them. i'm sure it has changed, but i guess with this drama showing those social issues within the work place got me thinking and to a certain degree, pretty angry haha. i mean they gossip way too much and some of the comments, well - kinda uncalled for if you ask me. although i said this was going to be short, it turned out pretty long huh? but anyways, this drama is definitely worth your time watching - i mean come on, you have to see jin!!! hehe nah, but the story is pretty interesting, awkward and stupid at times, but extremely engaging. the ending definitely blew it for me, and due to jin's hiatus i doubt that there is going to be -another- special or season for that matter. two open endings really isn't my cup of tea ne~ sigh, i guess that's my only complaint - more solid answers are needed dagnammit! and i hope jin comes back too ><" i totally support the fact that he's doing what he wants to do, but it was just the comment he made at the press conference that made me sigh like there's no tomorrow haha. when he was asked if he was returning back to JE and he didn't exactly give a solid answer. "since it depends on the situation, i'm not sure" --> doesn't show alot of confidence ne? *siiiiiggghhhh* so i really do hope it is just bye-bye for now ne... below is a cap from anego sp - i don't know if you can see it, but jin -does- mould his lips hahaha yay!!...though ryoko-chan doesn't mould hers hahah sigh. oh wells, it's their culture. can't blame 'em. was going to upload the other caps i took ahha but i don't know how to rearrange photos on msn space T_T it ends up coming in two colums...it looked ugly so i took it off hehe.
oh oh! and i just thought i should add in: riiiidaaaa LOVE ♥! ohno has seriously become addictive haha, heck i can't choose anymore.
September 30 yasashii jikanok just going to do a very very quick summary...will edit it and make it lengthy when i have the time
breakdown:
takuro has not spoken to his father since the death of his mother. takuro's mother died in a car accident, in which he was the driver D: his dad ended up quitting his job and moving to furano, the hometown of his wife, to open up a cafe. unbeknownst to his father, takuro also moved to hokkaido, except he lived in a town that was 50km away from furano where he undertook an apprenticeship learning pottery
the good stuff:
nino's crying scenes. superb acting. not only did he cry actual tears, he didnt scrunch up his face to force himself to cry like what other actors typically do, nor did he do that fake sniffing crap either. nino really sunk into his character as takuro. but even though takuro is one of the key players in the drama, i felt that i didn't see enough of him onscreen. though, i can't say that it would've worked if takuro was shown more onscreen either. i guess, his onscreen time in my eyes was minimal - but appropriate. it still carried out the emotional affect perfectly and made the story flow. maybe i just wanted to see more of nino ne hahaha D: but i was really touched with the whole burning the tattoo thing *sigh* really amazing stuff there. deep, emotional, disturbing and painful to watch yet, the desire to continue watching kept growing. i also loved how that domoto dude came in to fill in the gaps for takuro's past. at that point, i felt kinda like: finally!! an understanding to takuro's past is given!! - sorta thing. it really helped me understand takuro's character alot more, and it wasn't done in a way where it was like a dry informative scene either. i mean yeah, it was kinda weird how domoto stumbled upon his dad's cafe in the first place, but at least while they talked about takuro it wasn't like an interrogation kinda thing. it fitted in nicely in my opinion :)
takuro's father - will get the actor's name later - but he who played a key role, did a damn good job at it. his crying and emotional scenes were indeed top notch. i was especially balling my eyes out during the last 15 minutes of the final episode, when father and son finally reunited. the emotions portrayed in that short time was just amazing. it really did feel like a reunion between two family members who finally found the courage to come together again ne :). not only was he capable of showing an emotional role, i found that the 'cold-hearted' aspect of his character's personality was also nicely done too...or maybe that's just the way japanese men are haha. but either way it was a good job in my eyes. he portrayed the cold yet gentle character perfectly.
i also liked "ma-ma" :) i thought she was a really cool character, especially how she looked out for takuro. and i really really loved the dialogue that she had with takuro right after she found out that a girl was visiting his place late at night hahah asking him if he's had sex with her or touched her boobs yet LOL. it was such a speedy question-answer dialogue that was done so nicely with the right facial expression and tone of voice ahaha. i couldn't get enough of it so i rewinded back to that part :P
annoying stuff:
azu-chan. i seriously could not stand her character at the beginning. even though she slowly became more bearable toward the end, i still can't erase the fact that she pissed me off hahah. i mean her pitiful character at the start just got on my nerves - especially the whole 'stealing' thing. i mean, it was either her character that peeved me off or the way the script was written. it just didn't make sense to me =/ she basically counts the till and the accounts never balances. so she adds in her own money to make the account balance and then pockets the extra money when the till is over?!? i mean i can kinda understand her intention of putting her own money in, but not really haha if that makes any sense. if it doesn't balance then it doesn't balance!! but anyway, that wasn't the problem. the problem was the reasoning that she used. i mean if u pocket the extra money then no shit - it practically is considered as stealing. yet all she responded was "i can't believe you! i can't believe that even you would say that" blah blah kinda bs. it didn't exactly make sense to me haha, i mean if she was trying to defend herself by saying that it wasn't stealing, then she could've came up with something better than "i can't believe you, i can't believe you" T_T i think the scriptwriter didn't even know how to defend an action like that hahah, cos yeah that scene was *the* turning point when i really started to dislike azu's character.
and what's her face - mikako. she wasn't all that important but i couldn't stand the way she talked. that whole bubbley persona thing wasn't done nicely in my opinion. almost looked disturbing. and i realized that she had really HUGE ears hahaha. hmmm.
overall
a VERY slow moving drama with some pretty heavy content at times too. though it was slow paced, i was still content and satisfied. maybe it was because of the background music too hahah i felt at ease while listening to it :) but either way, i am in awe with the whole series. the ending was sweet, the acting was amazing and the story was bittersweet. almost felt as though it was real even though it was fiction haha. but, i wouldn't mind having a lifestyle like that though where i could open up a cafe that lets customers grind their own coffee hahah. the cafe environment gave me a very warm type of feeling. as if it was - ha! this is home! - kinda thing. and i absolutely loved father-son relationship - very touching. it is definitely going on my favorites ne :) goooo nino!!
ok sleep time. hopefully i'll edit this post later...though i don't know when haha. i wasted my whole break when i was meant to catch up and -complete- all my assignments ...sigh. BUT you know what! even though i am now officially screwed, i don't regret it!! :D will also try to write about kimi wa petto too :) until then... - o w a r i - June 27 nobuta wo produce; 1 litre of tears[Nobuta wo Produce]
it's basically about the most popular guy - shuji - who teams up with an overly eccentric guy - akira - to try to make the new transfer student to be one of the most popular girls in highschool. the transfer student - nobuko, later known as nobuta - has been bullied all her life and is very antisocial. and at the new school she gets bullied by a group called bando, who makes nobuta's life hell.
i guess what i really liked was how akira, shuji and nobuta came together. each one of them were so different from each other. who would have thought that they would ever become acquaintances let alone friends. but because of their individuality and personal experiences, they were able to teach and learn from each other, which i thought was really sweet. shuji ... the typical popular highschool student who's nice to everyone, akira ... the weird rich guy who doesn't give a rats ass about what anyone thinks and continues to act in an extremely eccentric, drunken-state-like way haha, and nobuta who takes antisocialism to a different level.
the first few episodes were really weird for me and kinda boring. mainly becuase i wasn't use to the character's personality. i mean, akira totally made me go wth?? hahah being eccentric is one thing but the way he laughed just creeped me out. and shuji's "bye bye-cycle" thing was so stupid hahaha, i was like err ok. but i guess i got use to it later when the story became more interesting. i eventually didn't notice these little things anymore and realized that those aspects were parts of the character's personality and accepted it.
my favorite character was indeed akira. his eccentric way of acting and talking was very addictive. the language he used, the hand movements - ie. "kon", the way he leaned his head onto shuji and the way he actually said "shuji kun" was just indescribable. hahah oh and let's not forget his little "nobuta power" trademark and his "akira shock" hahaha that was just so cool to watch. yamapi did a really good job in articulating akira's character. it was just so fun to watch akira. he provided me with something new, something different from the ordinary.
but at times i was confused about the purpose of his character. why was he attracted to shuji in the first place? why did he act the way he did? and i cant remmeber which episode it was, but he said something like, "i'm the one that still isn't saved". i'm pretty sure it was the episode when nobuta finally made a friend and was sitting with akira on the roof eating the moon cake. that kinda got me thinking about the purpose of akira. i mean yeah he was there to try to make nobuta into one of the most popular girls, but he was also there for his own agenda; something that i didn't pick up on. the only thing that i can think of was the pressure from his father to take over the company. akira was placed in a position where he was forced to make a decision that would pan out his future. he was forced to grow up, and because he didn't want to, he acted in such a way that would, i guess allow him to enjoy his youth. i'm not really sure actually, but that's pretty much the only explanation that i can think of. akira clearly had his own issues with his family but also within himself, though these issues weren't really elaborated on, in my opinion anyway.
another thing that i loved was how he developed feelings for nobuta hahah that was so cute!! just the way he acted around her, his shyness and dorkiness was so kawaii!! hahaha i personally wanted nobuta and akira to hook up so badly, but to my disappointment this prayer was not answered -sigh. it frustrated me alot because throughout the whole series there were alot of signs that nobuta preferred shuji over akira. even though nothing definitive came out of it, and it was clear that shuji didn't feel the same way, those hints just really annoyed me. i found myself sitting here going "NO! why why why!" i guess the producers wanted to leave this area open to your imagination. they provided hints that nobuta was into both akira and shuji. it's understandable since friendship was the overriding theme. it just annoyed me because i have a personal perference for akira and was disappointed with how abstract the story was.
shuji on the other hand pretty much showed me the differences between the persona and the real self. his character was such a good example of this concept. the incongruency between his persona and real self was depicited nicely. shuji acted the way he did because he feared being disliked, in contrast to akira who couldn't care less about what other people think, and nobuta who i thought was similar to shuji. she didn't want to be disliked, however because of the trust issues that she endured all her life, it made her believe that she could never be accepted, thus she took it as it was and never tried to change. this is pretty much why i loved the friendship between these three people so much. they are so different, yet so alike. akira and shuji showed nobuta that she could be accepted, that she could be befriended. also, nobuta taught shuji the meaning of loneliness, or i guess, the way it felt to be disliked, while akira taught shuji that it's ok to be yourself. that it was ok to not live by the expectations of others. mmm, now that i'm writing this review i guess i kinda realize why shuji was the main character. he seemed to be the one that needed to be saved - ever more so than akira or nobuta.
oooh and i can't forget the scene where akira punched bando's abusive boyfriend. that was seriously so kakkoi. haha i was like in "nyaaa" mode hahaha. he just did that with such style. sigh, it's just something that you have to watch to comprehend my nya-ness hahaha, if that makes sense.
overall it was a good series. even though the start was a bit weird, you'll get use to it. i honestly did think wth is this crap hahah but the more i watched it, i realized how wrong i was. it proved my intial judgments to be wrong and i enjoyed it alot. i know that i talked about akira alot throughout this review but seriously, he was just so good haha. if i watched it again, which i will, it will definitely to see akira! ahahha he's my new found love <3. but anyways haha, the drama itself was great. the characters were the heart and soul of this drama. the changes that they made and the friendship that they created definitely touched me in ways that can't be expressed.
[1 litre of tears]
based on a true story, a 15 year old girl - aya - is diagnosed with an incurable disease and tries to live her life to the fullest each and everyday. that is basically what this drama is about. it was indeed an extremely emotional bittersweet drama. the pain that aya, her family and friends had to go through to accept and cope with her disease was quite heavy to take in. in a way i could understand the burden that aya felt while troubling her family and friends. even though they were more than happy to help, the feeling of being that burden is not easy to be rid of. it's something that i could relate to.
but at the same time, i respected aya for her efforts when she tried to rely less on others. her disease made it impossible for her to be independently mobile, but her strength and determination to put her family and friends before herself, and the way she was able to brush off the "heartless" stares was admirable. it was all the little things that made me fall in love with aya's character - ie. walking out in public and continuing to go to school even though everyone stared at her, using all her effort to sew "hiro" on her brother's soccer jersey, her decision to move to a school for the disabled truly showed how much she valued others before herself despite her illness. her positive outlook also deserves to be marked down. she always smiled, even when she hit rock bottom, she still tried to smile. her will to continue writing to help others was also remarkable. it was really touching how she wanted to write one last message "arigatou" even when she could no longer hold a pen.
another thing that i loved to watch was the quotes that were taken from her diary. each quote had so much weight behind it. i knew that i took my life for granted. i always tell myself that there are people far worse than i but it was never strong enough to make me go hey, appreciate what i have and be happy with it. these quotes seriously made me think twice. its the simple side of life that i take for granted - ie. to walk, talk, write. to aya, these were things that she could never regain. she illustrated how important it is to treasure and value what you have now, to appreciate the present and take each day as it comes. life may not always work out for the best, especially in her case. though she used every last breath she had to try to make a difference to at least one person, to repay the gratitude that she received.
but back to the drama - the girl who played aya, dont know her last name and too lazy to look it up haha, but it's xxx erika, did a very very good job. her acting was superb. the way that she was able to articulate and express the symptoms was amazing to watch. i loved the doctor, he was so handsome! didn't really like the goatie, but they showed him when he was younger - ie. the scene where he was treating his first patient shouta, and i was like not bad! and amongst the family members, ako was probably the only one that showed the most change throughout the series. maybe it was because her development was emphasized more than others. but either way, the change from being the immature brat to the understanding and affectionate little sister was just indescribable. i loved how she wasn't ashamed of aya, how she wanted to do everything that she could for her older sister, to fulfill the dreams that she could not fulfill. the way this was expressed clearly showed me what sibling love was all about.
as for the mother and father, they remained constant. they didn't change very much through the drama. i guess, the only changes that i did see within them was that they began to have a little bit more faith in aya. it is only natural for a parent to care and protect their child but, at the same time, i guess you have to consider the child's feelings and wishes first. and thats probably why i got annoyed with the parents at the beginning. they were making decisions for their daughter on the basis that it was the "best for their child", when in fact it was only the easiest way for them to cope with aya's illness. i can't argue with their decisions, because again, it's only natural for a parent to do so, however, i don't know it just annoyed me. aya had a voice of her own, she had the ability to make her decisions before she was bedridden. to be able to carry out your desires before it's too late is something that is important in my eyes. and by making decisions on her behalf was in a way robbing aya of the time that she had left. nonetheless, the love that was given to her especially by her mother was phenomenal. that is definitely something that we all yearn for, that care between a mother and child...something that i can never comprehend.
overall, this is definitely something that i will recommend to people of all ages, of all backgrounds. it really does teach you how to appreciate the time that you have left. it certainly made me think about the moments when i worried about things that didn't need to be worried. why do i worry about all those trivial things in life, and why do i constantly dwell on the past? it really made me wonder. there is no time to look back. all we can do is move forward to create our own happiness. just like aya. June 25 gokusen!i just finished watching part 1 and i'm absolutely loving it! it's such an addictive series. it touched me so much ahha, yes i cried but i also had a good share of laughter. even though it's a female-version of GTO, it's still good nonetheless haha.
at first i got annoyed because of the way that each series ended with such a corny line haha but i got use to it later. i particularly liked the characters, they did a really good job in my opinion. everyone suited their character's personality and i didn't really have a problem with it. though again, when i first started watching it, i didn't have much expectations and frankly the characters didn't rub off well on me either. however, the more i watched it, i developed a liking to ALL of the characters. yes thats right haha, all the way until the end, not one character pissed me off haha and that's really good in my books. im usually always pissed off at someone at the end but i didn't feel that way with this drama.
anyways, since i just finished watching it like two minutes ago my thoughts are everywhere haha which is why this isn't making sense because i'm just dying to type it all out at once.
sawada:
this guy didn't really strike me in any way when i first saw him. he looked pretty ordinary and because his character was so reserved at the beginning, he didn't leave a huge impression on me. i think it was in episode 1 or 2 when yankumi, sawada and kuma were in the river trying to look for the money bag, sawada was like screaming unnecessarily to yankumi when he was trying to tell her what he thought hahaha and i was like chotta na...lol it was kinda over the top haha.
but, i started to like sawada as the series progressed. his character made him shine, especially during the episode when he protected his sister. in my opinion, i reckon his character began to develop alot because of this. even though he showed signs of change before this whole sister incident - ie. began to open up a little bit more, showed subtle smiles etc, i still didn't feel like his character was moving forward. but i definitely got that vibe afterwards though and i was more than happy to see that change. it was enjoyable to watch, especially his sarcastic comments to yankumi hahaha that just did me justice. i also liked how he treasured his friends, and how his friends treasured him. it was so touching!
ohh and what i really liked was his feelings for yankumi hahaha kawaii!! yes, i know it's forbidden love between a student and teacher but i still can't help but support him hahaha. i mean, out of shinohara and tetsu, i kinda want yankumi and sawada to hook up hahaha. he's got this aura about him that makes me want to support him. but it was so cute though haha how he tries to act like he doesn't care, or how he made all those little sarcastic comments while bagging yankumi hahah. oh! and i cant forget the ending how he declared that he was the 4th rival hahaha that was so cute! i can't express how much i enjoyed his character. it was truly amazing - the leap from being totally uninterested to being excessively interested hahaha. i can't believe it had that affect on me!
kuma, noda, uchiyama:
these guys were also funnnn to watch. the one thing that stands out from it is definitely the friendship theme. they looked out for each other, supported each other and was there for each other all the time - it was so heart warming. i know that this is just a drama, but i guess it kinda showed me that not all delinquents are losers. i mean, i don't have anything against them, but sometimes i do think that they waste their lives rotting away when they could be doing so much more. i know it's judgmental of me, but after i watched this it kinda made me think. i basically judge delinquents according to my own standards. i mean, the compassion they showed towards their friends and family outweigh everything else. so in that sense, i guess they aren't wasting their lives afterall. ok - enough of the life lesson talking crap.
i found each episode fulfilling and enjoyable. each character got their fair share of development and incorporated alot of laughter with alot of tears. i think the episode that i cried the most in was the whole yuta incident. that was so sad and he was so cute too! that's something that you have to watch to understand. i guess what touched me most about it was his determination to be with his mother and how he wanted to 'master the twirling' just to see her again. oh, and it was also cute to watch how he joined yankumi's class and all of 3-D included him haha they even made him a little new student sign hahah.
and of course another episode that i need to mark down is the ending. even though i havent dedicated a paragraph to yankumi, it doesn't mean that i didn't enjoy watching her or that i wasn't impressed with her. i just found that her character to be really stable, she didn't really change since she was there to change the students, so basically all the changes in character development revolved around the students. she was a passionate teacher with amazingly strong morals to begin and end with. but i do have to say the comical relief she provided is a huge thumbs up haha. she's so dorky it's so funny. especially the whole sports competition day how she promised that if they won she'd "chuuuuuu" them hahahaha and everyone just turned away lol. oh and how she dressed up as a cheer leader LOL. she did a really good job i reckon, she identified with the character really well. and even though she's interested in shinohara i hope she goes with sawada lol - screw the forbidden love! haha he's going to graduate soon anyway!!
but back to my opinion of the ending haha, yes i kinda went off on a tangent. her speech at the end really got me balling hahah just the way the script was written, the way she acted it out and the whole atmosphere was just amazing. im not sure if that's what u call good acting haha but, to me that was superb acting! it realllyyy touched me. sigh. i dont know how else to describe it.
i don't know what else to say haha, im lost for words. if i keep going then i'm just going to be repeating myself over and over again because only three words could summarize how i would describe this - humourous, emotional, heart warming. and now part 1 has come to an end i'm eagerly waiting to get part 2 - i can't wait! so until then, or, until the time that i get my head cleared up and can think of something to add to this blog, mata ne! |
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