Tuesday, July 29, 2008
Hisaya Got a Job
Had my job interview today and it went very well. My job position details should come in a week so we'll see what happens ^_^ I am excited~! Had to blog it 'cause I'm so thrilled about the prospect of moving down to California ^_^ Ah, it's going to be fun~
Wednesday, July 23, 2008
Binbo Danshi Finale
I never really wrote about this series in my blog, but it's extremely funny. I was a little taken back by Oguri Shun's disheveled look and the beginning of the drama was not exactly interesting to me, but basically after five episodes it just gets so funny. The characters are just ridiculous at times, such as Teru Teru-san and Chagie-san who work for Omu Omu-san, and especially Kazumi (played by Ogurin). The beginning of final episode is just LMAO funny. I cannot stop laughing, even my stomach and sides are getting a workout from all the hysterical funniness that's going on. Though it was a bit of an adjustment for me when watching the series, it really grows on you so I do recommend watching it, though I think it's one of those series that's good the first time through.
太陽と海の教室
One drama that I thought I would not be interested in, but then kind of fell in love with is Taiyou to Umi no Kyoushitsu. I decided to pick up the first episode when checking ratings on it and saw that it was around 20.5% viewership. A lot of times, I choose to watch drama that I know nothing about based on ratings since I rather not waste my time on one that doesn't appeal much to me. For instance, I tried to watch Lotto and Ando Natsu, but both have failed to keep my interest after two episodes so I'm going to have to let both series go. On the other hand, I'm glad that I picked up this series because it has such a nice mixture of stars and the story has a nice, light touch to it. Basically, if one enjoys school dramas then this series is something to consider.
The cast has a nice mix of younger and older actors from series like Proposal Daisakusen, Hanazakari no Kimitachi e, LIFE, Ashita no Kita Yoshio, Mop Girl, Hana Yori Dango, Bambino!, Binbo Danshi, Liar Game, etc. We have Sakurai Sakutaro (Oda Yuuji), age 39, who comes to a high school on the beachside to become the homeroom teacher of class 3-1. He acts a bit like an idiot and the students -- all whom are top students of the school and seniors preparing for college -- do not really take him seriously at all. Shadowing behind him is young teacher in-training, Enokido Wakaba (Kitagawa Keiko), age 23, who is very attractive and does like Sakurai that much as well. Her mother works in the higher-ups of the school and managed to help her get a job there, but because of her disapproval of Sakurai's teaching methods, wants to quit. However, her meeting of Kawabe Eiji (Yamamoto Yusuke), age 18, changes her mind and she decides to stay in order to convince him to come back to the school.
The main character is Sakurai Sakutaro, the main supporting character is Enokido Wakaba, and their group of students are the focus of the story. Sakurai spends time trying to get his students to figure out what they really want for their futures and about life -- which is kind of Gokusen-ish and very typical of teacher-student dramas, and Enokido Wakaba wants to learn how to become a good teacher while working on one troubled student and getting him to come back to school. We have a nice mix of students who are very smart, have lots of goals, loves their friends, and come from very different situations. The first episode focuses on the main student pair, Negishi Hiroki (Okada Masaki) and Shirosaki Riku (Kitano Kii). Hiroki is the ace swimmer for the school's swim team and the deciding factor for the win at Inter-High competition, but a bully forces him to promise that he will lose the competition between their schools since Hiroki's father is in debt to the bully's. Riku does what she can to get Hiroki to not give up Inter-High, but the bullying gets worse until Sakurai steps in. Meanwhile, Enokido may find herself in a compromising situation as troubled teen, Kawabe Eiji, probably may fall for her.
In any case, though the drama is nothing that special, it's still a nice series to watch. At least I'm still feeling hooked to keep watching. The feel of the drama reminds me a bit of the seriousness and touching light-hearted-ness from Bara no nai Hanaya, a little of Galileo, and the student part reminds me a bit of the group of friends from Proposal Daisakusen -- except we have all smart kids in this one. I think this drama possesses the ability to become the next Bara no nai Hanaya, though in a different manner.
So far, no one's performance is especially striking to me, but I like the story.
The cast has a nice mix of younger and older actors from series like Proposal Daisakusen, Hanazakari no Kimitachi e, LIFE, Ashita no Kita Yoshio, Mop Girl, Hana Yori Dango, Bambino!, Binbo Danshi, Liar Game, etc. We have Sakurai Sakutaro (Oda Yuuji), age 39, who comes to a high school on the beachside to become the homeroom teacher of class 3-1. He acts a bit like an idiot and the students -- all whom are top students of the school and seniors preparing for college -- do not really take him seriously at all. Shadowing behind him is young teacher in-training, Enokido Wakaba (Kitagawa Keiko), age 23, who is very attractive and does like Sakurai that much as well. Her mother works in the higher-ups of the school and managed to help her get a job there, but because of her disapproval of Sakurai's teaching methods, wants to quit. However, her meeting of Kawabe Eiji (Yamamoto Yusuke), age 18, changes her mind and she decides to stay in order to convince him to come back to the school.
The main character is Sakurai Sakutaro, the main supporting character is Enokido Wakaba, and their group of students are the focus of the story. Sakurai spends time trying to get his students to figure out what they really want for their futures and about life -- which is kind of Gokusen-ish and very typical of teacher-student dramas, and Enokido Wakaba wants to learn how to become a good teacher while working on one troubled student and getting him to come back to school. We have a nice mix of students who are very smart, have lots of goals, loves their friends, and come from very different situations. The first episode focuses on the main student pair, Negishi Hiroki (Okada Masaki) and Shirosaki Riku (Kitano Kii). Hiroki is the ace swimmer for the school's swim team and the deciding factor for the win at Inter-High competition, but a bully forces him to promise that he will lose the competition between their schools since Hiroki's father is in debt to the bully's. Riku does what she can to get Hiroki to not give up Inter-High, but the bullying gets worse until Sakurai steps in. Meanwhile, Enokido may find herself in a compromising situation as troubled teen, Kawabe Eiji, probably may fall for her.
In any case, though the drama is nothing that special, it's still a nice series to watch. At least I'm still feeling hooked to keep watching. The feel of the drama reminds me a bit of the seriousness and touching light-hearted-ness from Bara no nai Hanaya, a little of Galileo, and the student part reminds me a bit of the group of friends from Proposal Daisakusen -- except we have all smart kids in this one. I think this drama possesses the ability to become the next Bara no nai Hanaya, though in a different manner.
So far, no one's performance is especially striking to me, but I like the story.
Sunday, July 20, 2008
D.Gray-man, Orange Days, ROOKIES
I was left pining for more D.Gray-man after reading this week's installment. The plot is really starting to unravel more and yet still stay an enigma. There's so much left to find out and so much being revealed as well. I really wish I didn't read so quickly and am so up-to-date =_=; Being up-to-date with a series really makes one miserable at times 'cause the wait for the next installment is always such a pain. But, that's what makes the series good, I guess.
Also started watching Orange Days yesterday. I skimmed through the first episode, but from what I see, I like so far. Tsumabuki Satoshi and Shibasaki Kou play the leads in this drama with a few other A-list young stars. If you like classical music, sign language, romance, and slice of life, then this is really the drama the for you. Reminds me of my senior year of college in a way, and I heard lots of good things about this drama so I'm looking forward to watching it.
ROOKIES is coming to a conclusion and it's going to be a 2-hour finale next week. Can't wait~! I somehow got hooked on this drama from last season after checking ratings. I'm not really a fan of baseball, but the story looked good after the first episode so I kept watching it. It's one of those "gambare" drama and I tend to really like those a lot, like Water Boys, etc. I hope ROOKIES ends well, it's not like one of those drama where you expect an angsty ending so I really hope everything goes well.
Also started watching Orange Days yesterday. I skimmed through the first episode, but from what I see, I like so far. Tsumabuki Satoshi and Shibasaki Kou play the leads in this drama with a few other A-list young stars. If you like classical music, sign language, romance, and slice of life, then this is really the drama the for you. Reminds me of my senior year of college in a way, and I heard lots of good things about this drama so I'm looking forward to watching it.
ROOKIES is coming to a conclusion and it's going to be a 2-hour finale next week. Can't wait~! I somehow got hooked on this drama from last season after checking ratings. I'm not really a fan of baseball, but the story looked good after the first episode so I kept watching it. It's one of those "gambare" drama and I tend to really like those a lot, like Water Boys, etc. I hope ROOKIES ends well, it's not like one of those drama where you expect an angsty ending so I really hope everything goes well.
Maou Episode 02-03
The plot is really thickening and Ohno Satoshi's performance is really impressive. After watching play lots of comedic roles, I wasn't sure if his dark and cold performance would be good, but it turned out to be really good. Also, though it seems as though he shows the same poker face over and over again -- or the one that's just distorted in hatred -- he is able to show this complicated, torn and soft expression in episode three. When watching episode three, it reminded me of volume 13 from Skip Beat when Tsuruga Ren is acting out the role of Katsuki and is able to show cold & brutal side to soft, loving and kind. Though at the moment, I really wonder about Naruse's intentions towards Shiori are. Seeing as she's connected to Hideo as well, I wonder what type of feelings he has towards her then and now. It looks like he may be in love with her as well, but might need to kill those feelings for her because he probably needs to get rid of her due to her powers. If they get too close and really start a relationship, she might get curious and use her powers to find out more about him and ultimately find out everything about him... which will not be good at all for either of them. So I can't wait to see further development on their relationship.
Also... the guy in glasses is really freaky. He looks like a pedophile =_=; The drama is hinting at him being one of the victims (or the primary one) that Serizawa and Co. picked on back during junior high, but now he just looks really stalker-ish and pedo-ish so... I wonder about his relationship with Naruse and how exactly did the whole thing with a teddy bear work out the way it did... Can't wait for the 4th episode!
Also... the guy in glasses is really freaky. He looks like a pedophile =_=; The drama is hinting at him being one of the victims (or the primary one) that Serizawa and Co. picked on back during junior high, but now he just looks really stalker-ish and pedo-ish so... I wonder about his relationship with Naruse and how exactly did the whole thing with a teddy bear work out the way it did... Can't wait for the 4th episode!
Saturday, July 19, 2008
Always Running in My Dreams
I wonder why that is... I had another dream last night, it's like the fifth or sixth one now in a row for this week. I don't think there's been a night that I haven't had some dream, but the last five or so I've been able to remember quite well. The one from last night was really odd and stood out to me 'cause Kimura Takuya, Mogami Kyoko, and Irie Yuuki were in my dream =_=;
I had just finished watching up to episode 11 or 12 from Itazura na Kiss when I decided that I just wanted to sleep 'cause I was tired. I had also read volume 13 from Skip Beat yesterday as well, but I haven't watched CHANGE in a while so I wonder why Asakura Keita (played by Kimura Takuya in the drama) was in my dream. Except rather than the Prime Minister, Asakura Keita was an assassin-like character dressed up like Raiden from Metal Gear Solid 4. So imagine Raiden, but with Kimura Takuya's face @_@; (Talk about weird).
Anyway, there must have been some sort of war going on or people were camping out 'cause the scene zoomed in from above like in a movie and there were all these children sleeping in sleeping bags within the same place. Reminded the outside of a military camp or something, and the seasons kind of changed as we continued to zoom in until it reached summer. Mosquitoes were biting these children and we see Irie Yuuki (from Itazura) sleeping and the bugs are biting his arm, while Kyoko (from Skip Beat) is lying on her stomach and her tank top has hiked up a bit so her lower back is exposed and there are lots of bites there.
Suddenly, Asakura Keita drops in from nowhere and the outdoor camp zone becomes the inside of a crumbling building. (What is it with me and crumbling structures, earthquakes and shaking caves?) Then he rouses up the children and tell them that they have to move it, and then I'm in there somehow, I'm not sure which role I am, but I was pretty sure I was seeing things from Kyoko's perspective, that or my perspective 'cause I had to protect some of the children. Anyway, apparently the area was guarded by some military-looking men and while Asakura Keita was sneaking kids out, I had to stay behind and make sure that the one guard on duty didn't realize what was going on.
Irie Yuuki clung to me and we pretended to be asleep while I watched the guard. And when most of the other children were out, I grabbed my laptop -- which just so happened to be nearby, and grabbed Yuuki and we bolted out of the place following after Keita who was holding onto a bunch of kids that clung to him like little monkeys. Yuuki couldn't run very fast so I had him piggyback on me, but then I drop my computer. I'm not sure why I ran back to get it, because I think while I was watching the guard, I was setting something up on the laptop and couldn't turn it off. It might have been for a bomb or something...? Not sure what, because I woke up after that. Yes... strange.
A couple nights ago, I had a dream about great white sharks. A high school kid named Andrew and some guy with glasses... whom I'll dub as Megane, and I were floating and holding onto this half-ball machine that's bobbing about in the ocean. It's not exactly the most stable thing in the world and kind of looks like half of a poke-ball from Pokemon. Anyway, Andrew's controlling the ball and despite there being lots of great whites in the water, he keeps diving and surfacing with the damn machine and poor Megane and I were just freaking out. We were next to a navy base or something, and Andrew was just having lots of fun zipping in and out of the water while Megane and I were just holding on for dear life. Then Andrew decided to go even deeper into the water this time and pop out of the water at full-speed. Least to say that it went badly 'cause when we finally surfaced, I was the only one who managed to stay on the half-ball while Andrew was in the water and now scaling the side of the base. Megane was still many feet below in the water probably freaking out or knocked out and lots of sharks were now circling around him. I was freaked out. I wanted to go save him, but I didn't know how to operate the machine and also that ball is not covered so basically if I'm not lucky, a shark could totally chow on me. Well, I screamed for Andrew to get his ass back onto the half-ball, but he was more concerned about scaling the base and finding some other way to get out of the water. I look back down at Megane and decide to give it a shot, when....
... My mother decided to wake me up 'cause my alarm wouldn't stop going off and I wasn't hearing it so... I never got to finish the dream. I was pretty pissed, I was like "Mom, you just killed a guy in my dream!" And then I snoozed off again. But yeah... I'm always running from something in my dreams. Either on a machine or on my own two legs... not sure exactly why...
I had just finished watching up to episode 11 or 12 from Itazura na Kiss when I decided that I just wanted to sleep 'cause I was tired. I had also read volume 13 from Skip Beat yesterday as well, but I haven't watched CHANGE in a while so I wonder why Asakura Keita (played by Kimura Takuya in the drama) was in my dream. Except rather than the Prime Minister, Asakura Keita was an assassin-like character dressed up like Raiden from Metal Gear Solid 4. So imagine Raiden, but with Kimura Takuya's face @_@; (Talk about weird).
Anyway, there must have been some sort of war going on or people were camping out 'cause the scene zoomed in from above like in a movie and there were all these children sleeping in sleeping bags within the same place. Reminded the outside of a military camp or something, and the seasons kind of changed as we continued to zoom in until it reached summer. Mosquitoes were biting these children and we see Irie Yuuki (from Itazura) sleeping and the bugs are biting his arm, while Kyoko (from Skip Beat) is lying on her stomach and her tank top has hiked up a bit so her lower back is exposed and there are lots of bites there.
Suddenly, Asakura Keita drops in from nowhere and the outdoor camp zone becomes the inside of a crumbling building. (What is it with me and crumbling structures, earthquakes and shaking caves?) Then he rouses up the children and tell them that they have to move it, and then I'm in there somehow, I'm not sure which role I am, but I was pretty sure I was seeing things from Kyoko's perspective, that or my perspective 'cause I had to protect some of the children. Anyway, apparently the area was guarded by some military-looking men and while Asakura Keita was sneaking kids out, I had to stay behind and make sure that the one guard on duty didn't realize what was going on.
Irie Yuuki clung to me and we pretended to be asleep while I watched the guard. And when most of the other children were out, I grabbed my laptop -- which just so happened to be nearby, and grabbed Yuuki and we bolted out of the place following after Keita who was holding onto a bunch of kids that clung to him like little monkeys. Yuuki couldn't run very fast so I had him piggyback on me, but then I drop my computer. I'm not sure why I ran back to get it, because I think while I was watching the guard, I was setting something up on the laptop and couldn't turn it off. It might have been for a bomb or something...? Not sure what, because I woke up after that. Yes... strange.
A couple nights ago, I had a dream about great white sharks. A high school kid named Andrew and some guy with glasses... whom I'll dub as Megane, and I were floating and holding onto this half-ball machine that's bobbing about in the ocean. It's not exactly the most stable thing in the world and kind of looks like half of a poke-ball from Pokemon. Anyway, Andrew's controlling the ball and despite there being lots of great whites in the water, he keeps diving and surfacing with the damn machine and poor Megane and I were just freaking out. We were next to a navy base or something, and Andrew was just having lots of fun zipping in and out of the water while Megane and I were just holding on for dear life. Then Andrew decided to go even deeper into the water this time and pop out of the water at full-speed. Least to say that it went badly 'cause when we finally surfaced, I was the only one who managed to stay on the half-ball while Andrew was in the water and now scaling the side of the base. Megane was still many feet below in the water probably freaking out or knocked out and lots of sharks were now circling around him. I was freaked out. I wanted to go save him, but I didn't know how to operate the machine and also that ball is not covered so basically if I'm not lucky, a shark could totally chow on me. Well, I screamed for Andrew to get his ass back onto the half-ball, but he was more concerned about scaling the base and finding some other way to get out of the water. I look back down at Megane and decide to give it a shot, when....
... My mother decided to wake me up 'cause my alarm wouldn't stop going off and I wasn't hearing it so... I never got to finish the dream. I was pretty pissed, I was like "Mom, you just killed a guy in my dream!" And then I snoozed off again. But yeah... I'm always running from something in my dreams. Either on a machine or on my own two legs... not sure exactly why...
Drama English Subbing Groups...
I swear... watching a lot of these new drama with some of these groups subbing them has not been a pleasant experience. At times the translation will be right on the mark and then there are times when I'm sitting there going ... "Um... exactly how fluent is this translator?" or "They seriously need a better proofreader." I mean, I'm not great with translations by any means if the terminology and dialogue gets more advanced, but sometimes with the simplest lines the translations get all weird. Right now, Nawidy and SBK are not my fave groups, because I've caught more than just a few mistakes in their first release already. STORMY has been around since Yamada Taro Monogatari and they are subbing Maou at the moment, which they are doing a decent job and with few mistakes. TimeLesSubs is one that I prefer at times, though I was not too fond of their Cantonese subbing into English with The Seventh Day -- mainly 'cause I'm Cantonese and I'm kind of picky when I really understand what's going on. Right now, if I have to say terrible subs for Japanese drama, SBK next to the sfv files translated by whoever does it are some of the worst translations I've ever seen. I'm not the best translator in the world, but I can distinguish good subs from bad -- like good performances to bad performances for concerts even if I'm not the best instrumentalist. At the moment, some sub groups that I like include:
Towards the end of the list I'm pretty partial with these groups like Nya has really pretty typesetting, but can really use a proofreader for grammatical errors. But grammar is one of those things that every group has some dips now and then, so that's forgivable. And then there's just plain bad hard subs =_=; Really bad subbing makes me feel edgy for some reason... not sure why.
- Love Song
- SARS-FanSUB
- Kioku
- Querbeet
- DoReMii
- BON
- Massuki
- TimeLesSub
- STORMY team
- Nya
- Skewed-S
- Japan-TV
Towards the end of the list I'm pretty partial with these groups like Nya has really pretty typesetting, but can really use a proofreader for grammatical errors. But grammar is one of those things that every group has some dips now and then, so that's forgivable. And then there's just plain bad hard subs =_=; Really bad subbing makes me feel edgy for some reason... not sure why.
Friday, July 18, 2008
Chatting With Bethany
I decided to drive to school today to seek some career advice, but most of the career advisors were out of the office. James was on vacation, Jessica was up in Portland for a workshop, and Bill was running errands so it was just Bethany. We chatted up a storm since it was just the two of us and I haven't really seen her in a while so there was some catching up to do. It was nice being able to find another person to talk to about my job-search issues, thoughts, and such. Always nice to get as much input as possible. So after chatting with Bethany, I decided to go with my gut instinct and do the right thing by not passing up the Portland opportunity by writing back before office hours end to tell them that I'm free next week for a phone interview... though I'm really nervous about this one too. You just can't read people's expressions on the phone @_@; But I think if I practice a bit this weekend, it should go fine. Hopefully...
Anyway, after gathering all the advice I need for this round, I went over to the bookstore to do some shopping... and blew over $100+ on clothing and books =_=; I'm such a nut.... There were so many of these frosh kids running amuck with their parents @_@; So funny to watch all the helicopter parents tailing their kids with their fall term schedules and buying everything they think their kids would need for their first term in college lol. It was so crowded =_=; But I got what I wanted. I bought a really huge T-shirt to wear for bed 'cause it's gotten pretty hot now, and the rest are either exercise clothes or just wear-around-the-house-in-comfort clothes ^_^ I like wearing T-shirts at home, really comfy~
Ah, I should get going and do some exercise now~! Women's pool day at the gym ^,^ I love swimming.
Anyway, after gathering all the advice I need for this round, I went over to the bookstore to do some shopping... and blew over $100+ on clothing and books =_=; I'm such a nut.... There were so many of these frosh kids running amuck with their parents @_@; So funny to watch all the helicopter parents tailing their kids with their fall term schedules and buying everything they think their kids would need for their first term in college lol. It was so crowded =_=; But I got what I wanted. I bought a really huge T-shirt to wear for bed 'cause it's gotten pretty hot now, and the rest are either exercise clothes or just wear-around-the-house-in-comfort clothes ^_^ I like wearing T-shirts at home, really comfy~
Ah, I should get going and do some exercise now~! Women's pool day at the gym ^,^ I love swimming.
Weird Dreams & Interview Advice Needed
When should I do my phone interview? *sigh* Lately, the majority of my thoughts are basically of job-related issues from the stress of waiting, to the stress of planning, to the stress of friends & family offering so much advice that I don't know which ones to take @_@. I woke up a little earlier than usual today after a not-so-nice dream, but still find myself sitting in bed and not exactly being productive. I should really get some food, drive over to school to see a career counselor and ask for their opinion and then drive back home. *sigh* Getting motivated though, even with my own future at stake, is really hard sometimes.
Anyway, I had the weirdest dream this morning. I was dreaming that my dog and I were walking around this farm-like area that looked like something out of a Super Mario game or something, and then she takes off. Someone found my dog and was making comments about keeping her, and I heard this but couldn't see them. Well, I rushed over to reclaim my dog when some people started running around saying that we all need to hide. I grabbed my dog and followed the scurrying people who are entering the forests. Everyone was crawling into caves and hiding for some reason, apparently an explosion was supposed to happen outside and most of the outside world was going to be zapped and disappear into thin air. It felt like an earthquake inside the caves and once all the tremors and such stopped, we all came out to see the world in black & white like one of those really old silent films. For some reason, everyone else had a map of this new developed place and I did not. A drunken-like, old man was sitting on the middle of the dusty street calling out to me to come over and made really inappropriate gestures so I left him there. I walked a little more to see a harbor and docks with this huge ship and people unloading from it. My grandmother and uncle were one of the passengers on this ship and there were a lot of gypsy-looking people coming down. They tried to rob my grandmother, but I was standing close enough to smack their hands if stuck theirs out, but while my uncle was not paying attention, one guy swiped him and I literally chased after him and clawed at him. I was so pissed that I just grabbed the money bag he filched and beat him to the ground. Of course... my alarm went off just around now so the dream ended here. I must be very stressed to have such weird dreams every night.
Anyway, I had the weirdest dream this morning. I was dreaming that my dog and I were walking around this farm-like area that looked like something out of a Super Mario game or something, and then she takes off. Someone found my dog and was making comments about keeping her, and I heard this but couldn't see them. Well, I rushed over to reclaim my dog when some people started running around saying that we all need to hide. I grabbed my dog and followed the scurrying people who are entering the forests. Everyone was crawling into caves and hiding for some reason, apparently an explosion was supposed to happen outside and most of the outside world was going to be zapped and disappear into thin air. It felt like an earthquake inside the caves and once all the tremors and such stopped, we all came out to see the world in black & white like one of those really old silent films. For some reason, everyone else had a map of this new developed place and I did not. A drunken-like, old man was sitting on the middle of the dusty street calling out to me to come over and made really inappropriate gestures so I left him there. I walked a little more to see a harbor and docks with this huge ship and people unloading from it. My grandmother and uncle were one of the passengers on this ship and there were a lot of gypsy-looking people coming down. They tried to rob my grandmother, but I was standing close enough to smack their hands if stuck theirs out, but while my uncle was not paying attention, one guy swiped him and I literally chased after him and clawed at him. I was so pissed that I just grabbed the money bag he filched and beat him to the ground. Of course... my alarm went off just around now so the dream ended here. I must be very stressed to have such weird dreams every night.
Seigi no Mikata Episode 01
A wonderfully entertaining and hysterical drama. I keep watching the first episode over and over again 'cause it's so funny. I have to say that Yamada Yu's performance seems a bit forced at times, but other than that, she does a great job playing the devilish older sister, Makiko. It's funny how evil she is, and yet good things happen because of her arrogant, egotistical, and very bad personality. I tried to watch the fansubbed version (Nawidy), but they seriously need a better proofreader or translator, because some of those lines are just plain wrong. A lot of times I end up continuing to dl raws for subbed episodes because the groups that are subbing are just terrible =_=; (Other times is because sub groups are slow so I watch raws).
Anyway... I haven't watched episode 2 yet, but I'm probably going to watch it tomorrow when I have time. I'm currently in the midst of trying to find a job so I'm not really watching drama as much as I would like.
Anyway... I haven't watched episode 2 yet, but I'm probably going to watch it tomorrow when I have time. I'm currently in the midst of trying to find a job so I'm not really watching drama as much as I would like.
Saturday, July 12, 2008
Summer Drama 2008
Some drama that I've picked up to watch over the summer (at the moment) include:
01. Ando Natsu
02. Shibatora
03. Monster Parent
04. Seigi no Mikata
05. Code Blue
06. Lotto 6 de San-oku Ni-senman En Ateta Otoko
07. Maou
08. Yasuko to Kenji
09. Tomorrow
10. Walkin' Butterfly
11. Here is Greenwood
I've only really watched Maou, Code Blue, Seigi no Mikata and bits & pieces of Ando Natsu, Lotto, Monster Parent, & Shibatora. I can say that I like Seigi no Mikata and Maou best at the moment, followed by Shibatora. Maybe I'm just in the mood for some silly comedy this summer so that's why Seigi no Mikata and Shibatora agree with me. Maou is a thriller and I love thrillers. At first I was worried that it wasn't going to be good, but the drama was surprisingly well done so I really can't wait for each episode now. The rest of the drama, I'm only watching 'cause of the actors in there so if the story doesn't appeal to me, I'll most likely drop most of them.
For the dramas I'm watching so far already, here are some thoughts I have after viewing first episode of the series...
* Maou *
A very nicely done piece. I haven't seen the Korean version yet, which I bet is spectacular in its own right, but the Japanese version is not too bad at all. Ono Satoshi and Ikuta Toma put out really great performances and the way the drama is directed and produced is very nice. I really recommend watching this series if one is into thrillers.
* Seigi no Mikata *
Extremely funny like hysterically-so. This is what a summer drama means for me: fun, silliness, extreme behaviors, and colorful cinematography. The story is about 16 year-old Kanata Yoko who is a slave to her older, demonic sister, Makiko, and the only poor, living soul who knows of her sister's real, true self. The rest of the world thinks that Makiko is an "ally of justice" because all her actions -- despite containing malice or a hint of evilness -- always ends up helping those around her. I was hooked on the first episode so I suspect that I'll continue watching it. Mukai Osamu plays the suave, handsome, and kind Yoshikawa Naoki while Yamada Yu plays the devilish, arrogant, and ill-natured Nakata Makiko. I have to say that Mukai Osamu's recent roles are pretty hot, because it takes him out of the skinny, geeky-looking appearance he's established himself with and into more masculine-looking roles. For instance, he was the skinny glasses-wearing playboy in Nodame Cantabile -- did not find him too attractive in that drama -- and then he was the glasses-free but meek kindergarten teacher in Abarenbo Mama, then back to skinny & glasses as Mayama in Honey & Clover, then onto glasses-free rough-talking Tomekichi in Osen, and now really smokin' hot Yoshikawa Naoki in Seigi no Mikata. I really liked him as Tomekichi in Osen 'cause it was a different type of character for him to play and made him much more versatile in my book. Yoshikawa is also a different type of character for him to play in my opinion and I'm beginning to see him as more than the skinny boy with glasses.
* Code Blue *
A bit ... blah in my opinion. For some reason, a medical drama with a bunch of young actors -- despite their experience -- really doesn't match well, in my opinion. The story is somewhat interesting, though I cannot help but feel that it is a Japanese version of Grey's Anatomy in a way -- minus the inappropriate sex. Yamapi's character, Aizawa, is the genius of the bunch, but somewhat cold-blooded-almost in appearance. For some reason, the cold blooded-like look suited him better in Kurosagi than in this drama. I've only seen him act with two types of faces: cool & cold plus tormented, or laid-back comical. I haven't really seen him act in any other way, so maybe that's why he hasn't really impressed me at all with this drama so far. Aragaki Yui, Toda Erika, and Asari Yosuke are acting their parts pretty well, though no one has particularly impressed me yet either. As I suspected, ratings did drop this week and it's not surprising. The drama does not move particularly fast or slow, but it is not exactly the most interesting thing to watch in the world. If someone was pretty hyped about this drama before it came out, I have a feeling that some of those people are now somewhat disappointed with how it's going. I'm probably going to continue watching it, just because I have a habit of finishing drama that I see 50/50 chance of being good, or I'm familiar with the story so I want to continue watching it (e.g. Zettai Kareshi despite the first seven episodes of torture.
* Monster Parent *
Why am I watching this? Because Yonekura Ryoko is in it and I love her. However, compared to Koshonin from two seasons ago, this one kind of pales in comparison at the moment. Not every Yonekura drama is good, but Koshonin was one of the best I've seen thus far. Anyway, Monster Parent is about a corporate business lawyer who gets sent to defend schools from the so-called "monster parents" and their bullying of teaching staff. The story is a bit ridiculous to begin with -- though there are probably terrible parents like the ones shown in the drama -- the drama itself is kind of hard to adapt to in the beginning. I'm having a hard time following, but I've only really been skimming the story so maybe I'll give it another shot before I decided whether to stop watching or continue. It's interesting though... in Koshonin, they used the term "monster children" and in this drama, "monster parent" is used.
* Shibatora *
Another manga-based story, but a pretty comical and cute one. Koike Teppei plays the child-faced policeman who is promoted to become a rookie detective. He also has the ability to see things before they happen at a crime scene. Like a manga, the story is humorous and cute to begin with and silliness is expected so for anyone into "silly," this drama is one for you. Ohgo Suzuka, the girl who played young Sayuri in Memoirs of a Geisha, is the female lead in this drama and she is a great actress. Though I swear... she seems to always be playing an angry chick or a bullied and tormented girl in most of the drama I've seen her in recently. Fujiki Naohito plays a sort of tough guy who owns a boutique and it's really different from other roles I've seen him in. I haven't exactly even finished watching the first episode yet, but from what I've seen, I like so far.
* Tomorrow *
Out of the two medical dramas out this season, I find that "Tomorrow" is the better one over Code Blue. Seasoned veterans Takenouchi Yutaka and Kanno Miho play a retired doctor and young nurse in this drama and their performances are really outstanding. The story is about a 35 year-old man, Moriyama Kohei, who retired from his career as a surgeon after an incident that happened eight years ago and is now working at a governmental office. He meets 28 year-old Tanaka Aiko, a young nurse at Nishiyama Moriuchi Hospital, one day while leaving to pick up the arrogant and cold lady doctor, Endo Saya, from the station. A pregnant runaway serves as the catalyst for the three to meet up at the hospital where Tanaka works, and we learn that Endo plans on reconstructing the hospital and open it only to patients with money, not to those who lack the necessary financial means. In order for the hospital to survive, it must undergo this change. Tanaka is against this idea and fights against Endo, while Moriyama appears indifferent to the idea. After a series of events though, Moriyama is forced to become a surgeon again for the people and Tanaka wants him to help her out in protecting the hospital against Endo's plan. The drama is really good and touches on one of the most baffling subjects that plague the healthcare industry: people or money? Without money, a hospital cannot produce the necessary equipment, medicine, salary for doctors, and means to save patients. However, if a hospital only focuses on making money, then what happened to the value of being a doctor and in wanting to save people? For me, this drama is more of a human drama than medical, but it is a really touching story nonetheless and I highly recommend watching it.
* Lotto 6 de San-oku Ni-senman En Ateta Otoko *
The cast of Jotei reunites for this NTV drama and despite my love for Soramichi Takashi, it hasn't really captured my attention yet. I was skipping around the episode since I wasn't exactly interested in what was going on at all. Maybe I have to just sit through and watch it once to really see if I'll stick with it. The gist of what I've got so far is that the story is about an unfortunate salaryman who is divorced and only gets to see his son on certain days. We see his life spiraling out of control starting from a year back in story when his gambling habits are bad, no luck with romance, his job basically sucks, and he needs to pay child support and then suddenly due to the numbers his son picks, he wins the lottery and wins 320 million yen (which is approximately 3.2 million USD before taxes). His troubles don't end though when someone who's been read of his fortunes in his blog starts to make death threats to him. It sounds interesting, but perhaps I just wasn't in the mood to watch it yesterday so I haven't exactly been pulled in for the seasonal haul. I'll still dl the second episode to see if it's worth keeping. I think the series has potential, though I'm not sure how yet.
* Walkin' Butterfly *
Anyone seen Boys Este? Well, it's basically same format, same style, same type of chick flick mentality about a misfit who is groomed into being a polished beauty. The story is about a really tall girl named Michiko who is relentlessly teased for her height until one day she enters the modeling world and sees other people who are as tall as her. She is still self-conscious about her height even after seeing the other models, but a shorty on the basketball team, Flying Rabbits, named Hayase Yukari, teaches her that running from the situation will lead to nothing and one should go through with it instead. In a way, this drama is a spinoff of the movie that will be out in Japan soon, "Flying Rabbits," which is centered on the Hayase Yukari and the team who play as minor characters in the show. I think I might stick with it, because it's one of those "Polish into a Jewel" sort of dramas and I like some of the actresses in it. This type of drama doesn't suit everyone though. Unless one really likes Devil Wears Prada, Ugly Betty, etc., this isn't really the drama for you.
* Yasuko to Kenji *
Drop dead funny! Like something out of a shojo manga -- which it is -- but so and absolutely hilarious. The actors are great in their parts and it's so much fun to watch. The story is about a former biker gang leader, Oki Kenji, who dresses like a yakuza and is very (over-)protective of his younger sister, Yasuko. After their parents passed away ten years ago, Kenji took on the responsibility of raising Yasuko by himself as a shojo manga artist by the name of Sakuraba Reika (though the public thinks that Sakuraba is a woman, no one except the editor and publishing company know that it's actually a man). Because of Kenji's extreme love for his sister, no boy has ever been allowed get close to her and Yasuko is fated to a chaste life with no chance at love until a handsome, young man named Tsubaki Jun transfers to her school. Jun is the younger brother of the lovely flower lady, Tsubaki Erika, a former biker delinquent as well, and she was (and still is) in love with Kenji. The story is extremely funny and very entertaining. I highly recommend this drama to anyone who likes silly shojo stories. Ah, but there is a possibility of it becoming pretty repetitive like Gokusen -- such as Yasuko gets into plenty of dangerous trouble along with Jun and Kenji plus Erika always ends up going to save them. Unless you're like me and was able to stick out for three seasons of Gokusen, there's a possibility this drama may also not be for you. There's a Yamada Taro Monogatari feel to the drama, so that might be a plus (or minus depending) for some viewers.
* Ando Natsu *
A sweet, little story about a woman who wants to be a pastry chef. Something about food and pastries has been pretty hot lately from Zettai Kareshi to Osen, so I wonder if that's rubbed off somehow on this season as well. The story moves a bit slow for me, though I've only really skimmed around with it. I might have to try one more episode before I decide to stop watching it or continue. The drama is not bad, but it's extremely interesting to me. If one likes to watch people make mouth-watering desserts, this is a drama for you. I have to keep testing it out before I decide if I like it or not.
* Here is Greenwood *
Reminds me of the Princess Princess D drama series in a way =_=; mixed with Boys Este, Akihabara@Deep, Hanakimi, and Taiwanese adaptations of Japanese manga. I guess if you like the manga, this might be something you would or would not like... I wouldn't know since I've never read the manga. The drama adaptation does remind me a bit of a low-budget version of Princess Princess D ^_^; Sponsor is Aniplex too... I think it's definitely one of those "I'll probably watch 'cause I'm bored" dramas, but if there comes a point when my hd gets too full, this is one of the first series I'll be dropping.
-*-*-*-*-*
Well, Rookies is probably over and CHANGE as coming to an end soon as well, though I haven't really been following CHANGE all that closely so I don't really know. I'm still waiting for recent Rookies episode to come out for dl so I can finish watching it, and still watching Atsuhime since beginning of this year. I'm loving it more and more with every episode.
With the new season, I must say that my top five dramas right now are Seigi no Mikata, Maou, Tomorrow, Yasuko to Kenji, and Shibatora.
01. Ando Natsu
02. Shibatora
03. Monster Parent
04. Seigi no Mikata
05. Code Blue
06. Lotto 6 de San-oku Ni-senman En Ateta Otoko
07. Maou
08. Yasuko to Kenji
09. Tomorrow
10. Walkin' Butterfly
11. Here is Greenwood
I've only really watched Maou, Code Blue, Seigi no Mikata and bits & pieces of Ando Natsu, Lotto, Monster Parent, & Shibatora. I can say that I like Seigi no Mikata and Maou best at the moment, followed by Shibatora. Maybe I'm just in the mood for some silly comedy this summer so that's why Seigi no Mikata and Shibatora agree with me. Maou is a thriller and I love thrillers. At first I was worried that it wasn't going to be good, but the drama was surprisingly well done so I really can't wait for each episode now. The rest of the drama, I'm only watching 'cause of the actors in there so if the story doesn't appeal to me, I'll most likely drop most of them.
For the dramas I'm watching so far already, here are some thoughts I have after viewing first episode of the series...
* Maou *
A very nicely done piece. I haven't seen the Korean version yet, which I bet is spectacular in its own right, but the Japanese version is not too bad at all. Ono Satoshi and Ikuta Toma put out really great performances and the way the drama is directed and produced is very nice. I really recommend watching this series if one is into thrillers.
* Seigi no Mikata *
Extremely funny like hysterically-so. This is what a summer drama means for me: fun, silliness, extreme behaviors, and colorful cinematography. The story is about 16 year-old Kanata Yoko who is a slave to her older, demonic sister, Makiko, and the only poor, living soul who knows of her sister's real, true self. The rest of the world thinks that Makiko is an "ally of justice" because all her actions -- despite containing malice or a hint of evilness -- always ends up helping those around her. I was hooked on the first episode so I suspect that I'll continue watching it. Mukai Osamu plays the suave, handsome, and kind Yoshikawa Naoki while Yamada Yu plays the devilish, arrogant, and ill-natured Nakata Makiko. I have to say that Mukai Osamu's recent roles are pretty hot, because it takes him out of the skinny, geeky-looking appearance he's established himself with and into more masculine-looking roles. For instance, he was the skinny glasses-wearing playboy in Nodame Cantabile -- did not find him too attractive in that drama -- and then he was the glasses-free but meek kindergarten teacher in Abarenbo Mama, then back to skinny & glasses as Mayama in Honey & Clover, then onto glasses-free rough-talking Tomekichi in Osen, and now really smokin' hot Yoshikawa Naoki in Seigi no Mikata. I really liked him as Tomekichi in Osen 'cause it was a different type of character for him to play and made him much more versatile in my book. Yoshikawa is also a different type of character for him to play in my opinion and I'm beginning to see him as more than the skinny boy with glasses.
* Code Blue *
A bit ... blah in my opinion. For some reason, a medical drama with a bunch of young actors -- despite their experience -- really doesn't match well, in my opinion. The story is somewhat interesting, though I cannot help but feel that it is a Japanese version of Grey's Anatomy in a way -- minus the inappropriate sex. Yamapi's character, Aizawa, is the genius of the bunch, but somewhat cold-blooded-almost in appearance. For some reason, the cold blooded-like look suited him better in Kurosagi than in this drama. I've only seen him act with two types of faces: cool & cold plus tormented, or laid-back comical. I haven't really seen him act in any other way, so maybe that's why he hasn't really impressed me at all with this drama so far. Aragaki Yui, Toda Erika, and Asari Yosuke are acting their parts pretty well, though no one has particularly impressed me yet either. As I suspected, ratings did drop this week and it's not surprising. The drama does not move particularly fast or slow, but it is not exactly the most interesting thing to watch in the world. If someone was pretty hyped about this drama before it came out, I have a feeling that some of those people are now somewhat disappointed with how it's going. I'm probably going to continue watching it, just because I have a habit of finishing drama that I see 50/50 chance of being good, or I'm familiar with the story so I want to continue watching it (e.g. Zettai Kareshi despite the first seven episodes of torture.
* Monster Parent *
Why am I watching this? Because Yonekura Ryoko is in it and I love her. However, compared to Koshonin from two seasons ago, this one kind of pales in comparison at the moment. Not every Yonekura drama is good, but Koshonin was one of the best I've seen thus far. Anyway, Monster Parent is about a corporate business lawyer who gets sent to defend schools from the so-called "monster parents" and their bullying of teaching staff. The story is a bit ridiculous to begin with -- though there are probably terrible parents like the ones shown in the drama -- the drama itself is kind of hard to adapt to in the beginning. I'm having a hard time following, but I've only really been skimming the story so maybe I'll give it another shot before I decided whether to stop watching or continue. It's interesting though... in Koshonin, they used the term "monster children" and in this drama, "monster parent" is used.
* Shibatora *
Another manga-based story, but a pretty comical and cute one. Koike Teppei plays the child-faced policeman who is promoted to become a rookie detective. He also has the ability to see things before they happen at a crime scene. Like a manga, the story is humorous and cute to begin with and silliness is expected so for anyone into "silly," this drama is one for you. Ohgo Suzuka, the girl who played young Sayuri in Memoirs of a Geisha, is the female lead in this drama and she is a great actress. Though I swear... she seems to always be playing an angry chick or a bullied and tormented girl in most of the drama I've seen her in recently. Fujiki Naohito plays a sort of tough guy who owns a boutique and it's really different from other roles I've seen him in. I haven't exactly even finished watching the first episode yet, but from what I've seen, I like so far.
* Tomorrow *
Out of the two medical dramas out this season, I find that "Tomorrow" is the better one over Code Blue. Seasoned veterans Takenouchi Yutaka and Kanno Miho play a retired doctor and young nurse in this drama and their performances are really outstanding. The story is about a 35 year-old man, Moriyama Kohei, who retired from his career as a surgeon after an incident that happened eight years ago and is now working at a governmental office. He meets 28 year-old Tanaka Aiko, a young nurse at Nishiyama Moriuchi Hospital, one day while leaving to pick up the arrogant and cold lady doctor, Endo Saya, from the station. A pregnant runaway serves as the catalyst for the three to meet up at the hospital where Tanaka works, and we learn that Endo plans on reconstructing the hospital and open it only to patients with money, not to those who lack the necessary financial means. In order for the hospital to survive, it must undergo this change. Tanaka is against this idea and fights against Endo, while Moriyama appears indifferent to the idea. After a series of events though, Moriyama is forced to become a surgeon again for the people and Tanaka wants him to help her out in protecting the hospital against Endo's plan. The drama is really good and touches on one of the most baffling subjects that plague the healthcare industry: people or money? Without money, a hospital cannot produce the necessary equipment, medicine, salary for doctors, and means to save patients. However, if a hospital only focuses on making money, then what happened to the value of being a doctor and in wanting to save people? For me, this drama is more of a human drama than medical, but it is a really touching story nonetheless and I highly recommend watching it.
* Lotto 6 de San-oku Ni-senman En Ateta Otoko *
The cast of Jotei reunites for this NTV drama and despite my love for Soramichi Takashi, it hasn't really captured my attention yet. I was skipping around the episode since I wasn't exactly interested in what was going on at all. Maybe I have to just sit through and watch it once to really see if I'll stick with it. The gist of what I've got so far is that the story is about an unfortunate salaryman who is divorced and only gets to see his son on certain days. We see his life spiraling out of control starting from a year back in story when his gambling habits are bad, no luck with romance, his job basically sucks, and he needs to pay child support and then suddenly due to the numbers his son picks, he wins the lottery and wins 320 million yen (which is approximately 3.2 million USD before taxes). His troubles don't end though when someone who's been read of his fortunes in his blog starts to make death threats to him. It sounds interesting, but perhaps I just wasn't in the mood to watch it yesterday so I haven't exactly been pulled in for the seasonal haul. I'll still dl the second episode to see if it's worth keeping. I think the series has potential, though I'm not sure how yet.
* Walkin' Butterfly *
Anyone seen Boys Este? Well, it's basically same format, same style, same type of chick flick mentality about a misfit who is groomed into being a polished beauty. The story is about a really tall girl named Michiko who is relentlessly teased for her height until one day she enters the modeling world and sees other people who are as tall as her. She is still self-conscious about her height even after seeing the other models, but a shorty on the basketball team, Flying Rabbits, named Hayase Yukari, teaches her that running from the situation will lead to nothing and one should go through with it instead. In a way, this drama is a spinoff of the movie that will be out in Japan soon, "Flying Rabbits," which is centered on the Hayase Yukari and the team who play as minor characters in the show. I think I might stick with it, because it's one of those "Polish into a Jewel" sort of dramas and I like some of the actresses in it. This type of drama doesn't suit everyone though. Unless one really likes Devil Wears Prada, Ugly Betty, etc., this isn't really the drama for you.
* Yasuko to Kenji *
Drop dead funny! Like something out of a shojo manga -- which it is -- but so and absolutely hilarious. The actors are great in their parts and it's so much fun to watch. The story is about a former biker gang leader, Oki Kenji, who dresses like a yakuza and is very (over-)protective of his younger sister, Yasuko. After their parents passed away ten years ago, Kenji took on the responsibility of raising Yasuko by himself as a shojo manga artist by the name of Sakuraba Reika (though the public thinks that Sakuraba is a woman, no one except the editor and publishing company know that it's actually a man). Because of Kenji's extreme love for his sister, no boy has ever been allowed get close to her and Yasuko is fated to a chaste life with no chance at love until a handsome, young man named Tsubaki Jun transfers to her school. Jun is the younger brother of the lovely flower lady, Tsubaki Erika, a former biker delinquent as well, and she was (and still is) in love with Kenji. The story is extremely funny and very entertaining. I highly recommend this drama to anyone who likes silly shojo stories. Ah, but there is a possibility of it becoming pretty repetitive like Gokusen -- such as Yasuko gets into plenty of dangerous trouble along with Jun and Kenji plus Erika always ends up going to save them. Unless you're like me and was able to stick out for three seasons of Gokusen, there's a possibility this drama may also not be for you. There's a Yamada Taro Monogatari feel to the drama, so that might be a plus (or minus depending) for some viewers.
* Ando Natsu *
A sweet, little story about a woman who wants to be a pastry chef. Something about food and pastries has been pretty hot lately from Zettai Kareshi to Osen, so I wonder if that's rubbed off somehow on this season as well. The story moves a bit slow for me, though I've only really skimmed around with it. I might have to try one more episode before I decide to stop watching it or continue. The drama is not bad, but it's extremely interesting to me. If one likes to watch people make mouth-watering desserts, this is a drama for you. I have to keep testing it out before I decide if I like it or not.
* Here is Greenwood *
Reminds me of the Princess Princess D drama series in a way =_=; mixed with Boys Este, Akihabara@Deep, Hanakimi, and Taiwanese adaptations of Japanese manga. I guess if you like the manga, this might be something you would or would not like... I wouldn't know since I've never read the manga. The drama adaptation does remind me a bit of a low-budget version of Princess Princess D ^_^; Sponsor is Aniplex too... I think it's definitely one of those "I'll probably watch 'cause I'm bored" dramas, but if there comes a point when my hd gets too full, this is one of the first series I'll be dropping.
-*-*-*-*-*
Well, Rookies is probably over and CHANGE as coming to an end soon as well, though I haven't really been following CHANGE all that closely so I don't really know. I'm still waiting for recent Rookies episode to come out for dl so I can finish watching it, and still watching Atsuhime since beginning of this year. I'm loving it more and more with every episode.
With the new season, I must say that my top five dramas right now are Seigi no Mikata, Maou, Tomorrow, Yasuko to Kenji, and Shibatora.
Thursday, July 10, 2008
So Many Considerations
I'm finally going to travel down to Sausalito, but I need to figure out exactly which day and all the other necessary expenses that I will be incurring while I am staying down in the SF bay area. I would like to interview as quickly as possible so I know if I get the job or not, that way I can get back to my friend and tell her whether we will be able to live together or not. We are planning on renting an apartment together and she starts work at the same firm next month on the 11th... so if I get a yes before that time then I'll be able to proceed with the necessary preparations needed to go and live down there. I'm pretty excited, but also very anxious since it's audit busy season right now and I really cannot expect the employer to get back to me as quickly as I would like him to... *sigh* I'm trying to plan the trip for either before the 24th of July or after, because I promised to be the DD for my friend's birthday... which reminds me... I need to get her something for her birthday. I wonder what though...
I also finally finished watching Marathon today, it's a drama special with Ninomiya from Arashi in it. It's pretty good and about an autistic runner. It's a pretty even-paced, but somewhat slow-moving drama so you would have to watch it when you have a lot of time. I watched it in 8 segments 'cause I would watch a bit and then put it down to do something else, and then watch another segment and then put it down to do something else. Finally finished it today and it's really heartwarming. Ninomiya is such a great actor and the story was really beautiful. I highly recommend this drama.
I also finally finished watching Marathon today, it's a drama special with Ninomiya from Arashi in it. It's pretty good and about an autistic runner. It's a pretty even-paced, but somewhat slow-moving drama so you would have to watch it when you have a lot of time. I watched it in 8 segments 'cause I would watch a bit and then put it down to do something else, and then watch another segment and then put it down to do something else. Finally finished it today and it's really heartwarming. Ninomiya is such a great actor and the story was really beautiful. I highly recommend this drama.
Monday, July 7, 2008
Anxiety, Fear & Exercise
After my 4th of July weekend, I came back to reality and new anxieties plus fears have basically taken hold of me. For instance... I don't think I've been so nervous about hearing back from employers in such a long time. When I really want something and can't have it, I get really bummed out. I also feel really scared at the moment, because I have a tendency to say the wrong thing when I get too happy or too upset so... I really hope that I didn't blow my own chances at obtaining this job that I really want.
Anyway... to get rid of all these fears and anxieties that have been pounding on me since yesterday, I went to the gym for three hours and just exercised the heck out of my body. I was pretty sore and wobbly when I was done, but it felt good and for just a little while, I didn't think about anything. I really like going to the gym and really hope that I manage to get my body in shape within the next few months. *sigh*
Watched The Bachelorette again today and was not really surprised with the ending, but it made me sad 'cause I really liked Jason. He really has a lot of class so I hope he finds someone special someday.
Also watched Code Geass Episode 13... and I have so much to say about these last few episodes in general. Need to save it for another post though. I probably should head to bed since my body needs the sleep so I'm going to try and force myself to sleep ^_^
Anyway... to get rid of all these fears and anxieties that have been pounding on me since yesterday, I went to the gym for three hours and just exercised the heck out of my body. I was pretty sore and wobbly when I was done, but it felt good and for just a little while, I didn't think about anything. I really like going to the gym and really hope that I manage to get my body in shape within the next few months. *sigh*
Watched The Bachelorette again today and was not really surprised with the ending, but it made me sad 'cause I really liked Jason. He really has a lot of class so I hope he finds someone special someday.
Also watched Code Geass Episode 13... and I have so much to say about these last few episodes in general. Need to save it for another post though. I probably should head to bed since my body needs the sleep so I'm going to try and force myself to sleep ^_^
Saturday, July 5, 2008
Maou Episode 01
I was pleasantly surprised that this series actually turned out to be pretty good. I tried watching Code Blue the other night and I'm still not quite too impressed with that one despite my penchant for medical dramas. In any case, Maou is a pretty entertaining watch for those who like thrillers. The acting is surprisingly good and the theme song is nice, but I do think the singing is a bit off at times... What can I say... Johnny's boys are not always the most talented singers... Anyway...
Story Synopsis:
For those who do not know, Maou is actually a remake of the 2007 Korean drama "The Devil." The story is about a 28 year-old lawyer, Naruse Ryo, called the Angelic Attorney, who is an ally of justice to the common people and a kind, brilliant, young man. However, unbeknownst to everyone, this angel actually has a brutally dark side and is plotting revenge against the one who murdered his younger brother eleven years ago.
Opposite to Naruse is 26 year-old Serizawa Naoto, a young detective who pursues a series of murders linked to tarot cards delivered in a red envelope by someone called "Amano Makoto." He is aided by Sakita Shiori, a psychometric who reveals the meanings of tarot cards related to the cases and is able to see the truth behind the deaths of victims. As Serizawa continues to chase the perpetrator, he is reminded of his dark past and finds himself chasing the devil deeper into the depths of hell.
Episode 1:
Our story begins with the picture of Lucifer from a page in a book of which Sakita Shiori is reading to a group of children at an orphanage. When she tells the children that the demonic being is an angel, they all protest that it looks like a devil instead. She flips the page over and the children see a beautiful angel. Shiori explains that it is the same angel as before and that Lucifer incurred the wrath of god, which caused him to fall to the underworld and in doing so became the lord of darkness.
Jump several cut scenes back and forth and we see a young boy with a knife sticking out of his chest inside a warehouse. Naruse Ryo, holding a bouquet of flowers, is standing in the distance as the boy is desperately reaching out for something. When he walks closer to the spot, we see that the boy is actually someone from the past and the flowers he brought, are placed over the area where the boy died. Naruse mourns over the area where his younger brother, Hideo, was killed eleven years ago.
Blackout and cut to a scene in the courtroom, in which Naruse just won a case at proving the innocence of a man. The reporters chase after him as he leaves the courthouse and ask for a picture, but he tells them that he as somewhere else that he needs to go and leaves. At the same time, Serizawa Naoto is chasing after a man and manages to catch up to him at the top of the building's roof. In order to get the answers he wants to hear, he dangles the man upside down on the building's edge until his team arrives to stop him. Meanwhile, Naruse is stationed at a distance with a viewfinder watching Serizawa. When he returns home, he enters a red-lit room in his house full of pictures taken of Serizawa and those related to him.
Some time later, Serizawa's classmate from junior high, Souda Mitsuru, is taken into the station apparently for hitting his girlfriend when asking for money. He goes to interrogate him, but is asked to switch out later. When he returns to his desk, a package has arrived for him from a person by the name of Amano Makoto (雨野真実) and he opens it to see a single red envelope and inside is a single tarot card, "Judgement." As he and his teammate, Takatsuka Kaoru, are looking at it quizzically, a case is phoned in and Serizawa rushes out to get in on the action. As he bolts down the hall, he meets Naruse who has arrived to act as Souda's attorney. Naruse asks where the interrogation room is and Serizawa points out the way, he realizes that Naruse must be Souda's attorney and asks that Naruse takes good care of his friend before dashing away.
[-Opening Theme-]
The story picks up with Sakita Shiori and her friend, Nishina Eri, who are searching for an earring. Shiori uses her psychometric abilities to locate the missing accessory before picking out a tarot card for the day for herself, "Fortune." She then leaves for work at a library and is accosted by Naruse who is looking for architecture-related books. She helps him locate the books, helps him check them out, and then asks if they've met somewhere before; however Naruse looks puzzled and she decides that it must be her imagining things.
At the police station, Serizawa is getting a verbal beating while at the law firm, Naruse is told by his coworkers that the public has sent him a lot of fan letters calling him an angel. He smiles, goes back to his office and reflects on his meeting with Serizawa. Back at the station, Serizawa and Takatsuka are on the rooftop going over the tarot card when he suddenly gets a call from his older brother, Noriyoshi, who wants him to come back home for the business party. Later during the day, Serizawa meets his friend, a yakuza-looking debt collector named Ishimoto Yosuke, and they talk about Souda.
Flash forward to the evening and we see Naruse putting on black gloves, getting ready for the kill, and Serizawa arriving at the party. He meets his friend, Kasai Hitoshi, who is also his brother's secretary, and then is approached by Noriyoshi and his wife, Mari. Noriyoshi points Serizawa out to a man Serizawa is indebted to, a lawyer called Kumada, who is currently talking with his father. When Serizawa approaches Kumada to greet him, he is attacked by his father for becoming a police officer rather than succeeding the family business. Kumada tries to pacify things between father and son, but then leaves to take a phone call from Naruse. After the call, Kumada excuses himself and goes back to his firm while Naruse watches from outside.
The next day, Serizawa rushes to Kumada's firm upon hearing that his benefactor has been murdered. He searches through Kumada's desk to find a familiar red envelope with the same tarot card he received, "Judgment." A box from the sender, "Amano Makoto" is seen on the floor and Serizawa asks one of the people at the firm if they knew who sent the package. No one knows, but they only know that a knife also came with the package -- the same one sticking out of Kumada -- and that he got a phone call the night of his death.
Meanwhile at a church, Naruse is listening to the choir sing and notices Shiori a few seats away from him. He looks at her with a calculating, cold, and positively frightening expression. Cut scene to Serizawa, everyone has gathered back at the police agency and going over the tarot card left behind at the crime scene. When new information comes in about the killer, Serizawa bolts out of the station. Scene changes back to Naruse and Shiori who end up talking and walking together for a while, and we learn that Shiori became an orphan soon after she was born. She is ambushed with hugs from the children at the beginning of the episode after saying so and Naruse watches with a friendlier expression.
Later, Serizawa, Takatsuka, and Nakanishi Hiromichi come find Shiori to get her to do a reading of the tarot card. With her psychometric abilities, she witnesses how Kumada is killed and tells the group what she saw. She tells them that Kumada took a knife out of the box and pointed it at the opposite party, and the other man pulled the blade close to himself, but then they struggle and fall down on the floor. As a consequence, Kumada actually stabs himself with help from the other party. Serizawa does not believe Shiori and thinks that it's all bullocks. He does feel a bit unnerved at remembering her explanation of the judgement card: "Atonement for sins of the past."
Cut away to Naruse's home and he is sitting on the couch looking at a music box with a picture of his mother and younger brother inside plus a harmonica. He remembers the day his mother throws her body on top of Hideo's while sobbing over his death, and also how his brother's killer, the very same Serizawa Naoto, was acquitted of all charges based on the allegation that it was really the victim who took out the knife first and Naoto was only acting out of self defense. Because of this, Naoto was set free and Naruse watched as his brother's killer got out of his crime.
Another day at the station, everyone is discussing more details of Kumada's death and we learn that the suspect is Hayashi Kunio who was last seen with Kumada. Just as Serizawa is about to leave to catch Hayashi, Naruse comes in with Hayashi in tow saying that Hayashi wants to turn himself in. Later in the interrogation room, Serizawa asks about the red envelope with tarot cards and demands to know why Hayashi sent them, plus why did he kill Kumada? However, Hayashi says that he did not kill Kumada and the evidence is from a voice recording between Hayashi and Kumada just before his death. The group hears of the struggle, which confirms that the death is an accident, but the detectives are still unconvinced. Then Takatsuka brings in a bag full of red envelopes and inside them were letters this time addressed to Kumada, telling him of his sin from twelve years ago and how everything that is happening was started by his own two hands -- meaning that because Kumada helped a murderer get acquitted of charges and placed the blame on Hideo, karma is now coming back to get him. As Nakanishi reads these words, Naruse sits with a calm expression on his face. Nakanishi, Takatsuka, and Serizawa go over the facts and Serizawa discovers that Hayashi has been had by the one called "Amano Makoto," because Amano was the one who made the call, which got Kumada to get back to the office. The more Serizawa questions Hayashi, the more agitated he becomes until Naruse asks that he calm down. Serizawa demands to know how he can stay calm at all when someone who has a family who will be missing them was killed. Naruse swallows his anger before answering that Hayashi is also important to someone in his life, and not just the victim or him, but also Serizawa and also Naruse himself.
Later, Serizawa hurriedly rushes to find Shiori in order to get her to do a reading on the letter and at first she rejects him, but after his persuasion, gives in and helps. When placing her hand over the letter, she sees a man was typing something on a laptop and he is wearing black gloves when putting the letter into a red envelope. When Serizawa asks if there is more, she says that that's all she saw... but what she did feel is that this person has no soul.
Back at the warehouse, Naruse is mourning for his brother again and looking at the harmonica he gave him for his birthday. He remembers Hideo playing "Somewhere Over the Rainbow," their mother's favorite song, and Hideo then confesses that when he grows up, that he's going to become a lawyer and make lots of money (for the family). As Naruse grips the harmonica tightly in his hands, tears stream down his eyes.
Another day, Kumada's son approaches Naruse and demands to know if Naruse is honestly saying that his father killed himself. Naruse apologizes for the boy's loss, but he gets really angry and pushes Naruse up the wall. Naruse only tells the boy that there's only one truth so please wait and see. Kumada's son lets Naruse go, and the attorney heads to the detective agency where Serizawa and Hayashi are to do a simulation of what happened that night. Hayashi narrates everything that happened while Serizawa plays as Kumada. Halfway through when Serizawa pulls out the knife to attack Hayashi, he sees his past play out before him: a boy lies on the ground with a pocket knife protruding out from his torso. Serizawa is completely shaken up from the simulation and even more rocked when Naruse uses the exact same words that Kumada used to defend him years ago: "The victim was the one who pulled out he knife first and the defendant was only acting out in self defense, therefore the defendant is innocent." Having proved his point, Hayashi was allowed to go free and Naruse walked away triumphantly.
Later that night, Serizawa went out drinking in order to drown out his past and he gets very drunk. As he stumbles back home, he falls over a bike and rolls up in fetal position on the ground while crying out from guilt. Back at Naruse's apartment, he is in the red room looking at current pictures of all people associated with Serizawa and focuses on Serizawa's father last.
Impression:
The acting was pretty good, though the story seemed kind of predictable, and there were a few holes I think, but it's good for what it is. Ikuta Toma plays these types of roles pretty well. I honestly like him in a role like this than I do when he's playing a nice guy like Takemoto from Honey & Clover. Ohno Satoshi really surprised me too, I really never would have imagined him playing a role like this so seeing him like this was really refreshing.
I especially love the fact that Naruse used the name "Amano Makoto" when delivering red envelopes to his victims and to Serizawa. Though the kanji is different, if one only goes by the phonetic sound, the name would actually sound to look like this: 天の真実 Ama no Makoto (Shinjitsu) = Divine Truth. I thought this was pretty creative.
Perhaps I'm too tired to really hear it correctly anymore, but I'm not quite sure why Hayashi had the voice recorder on him... If I watch it again, I'm sure I'll catch it, but I guess I'm just too tired at the moment to know. In any case, I really enjoyed this episode so I hope the rest of the series continues to get better.
Story Synopsis:
For those who do not know, Maou is actually a remake of the 2007 Korean drama "The Devil." The story is about a 28 year-old lawyer, Naruse Ryo, called the Angelic Attorney, who is an ally of justice to the common people and a kind, brilliant, young man. However, unbeknownst to everyone, this angel actually has a brutally dark side and is plotting revenge against the one who murdered his younger brother eleven years ago.
Opposite to Naruse is 26 year-old Serizawa Naoto, a young detective who pursues a series of murders linked to tarot cards delivered in a red envelope by someone called "Amano Makoto." He is aided by Sakita Shiori, a psychometric who reveals the meanings of tarot cards related to the cases and is able to see the truth behind the deaths of victims. As Serizawa continues to chase the perpetrator, he is reminded of his dark past and finds himself chasing the devil deeper into the depths of hell.
Episode 1:
Our story begins with the picture of Lucifer from a page in a book of which Sakita Shiori is reading to a group of children at an orphanage. When she tells the children that the demonic being is an angel, they all protest that it looks like a devil instead. She flips the page over and the children see a beautiful angel. Shiori explains that it is the same angel as before and that Lucifer incurred the wrath of god, which caused him to fall to the underworld and in doing so became the lord of darkness.
Jump several cut scenes back and forth and we see a young boy with a knife sticking out of his chest inside a warehouse. Naruse Ryo, holding a bouquet of flowers, is standing in the distance as the boy is desperately reaching out for something. When he walks closer to the spot, we see that the boy is actually someone from the past and the flowers he brought, are placed over the area where the boy died. Naruse mourns over the area where his younger brother, Hideo, was killed eleven years ago.
Blackout and cut to a scene in the courtroom, in which Naruse just won a case at proving the innocence of a man. The reporters chase after him as he leaves the courthouse and ask for a picture, but he tells them that he as somewhere else that he needs to go and leaves. At the same time, Serizawa Naoto is chasing after a man and manages to catch up to him at the top of the building's roof. In order to get the answers he wants to hear, he dangles the man upside down on the building's edge until his team arrives to stop him. Meanwhile, Naruse is stationed at a distance with a viewfinder watching Serizawa. When he returns home, he enters a red-lit room in his house full of pictures taken of Serizawa and those related to him.
Some time later, Serizawa's classmate from junior high, Souda Mitsuru, is taken into the station apparently for hitting his girlfriend when asking for money. He goes to interrogate him, but is asked to switch out later. When he returns to his desk, a package has arrived for him from a person by the name of Amano Makoto (雨野真実) and he opens it to see a single red envelope and inside is a single tarot card, "Judgement." As he and his teammate, Takatsuka Kaoru, are looking at it quizzically, a case is phoned in and Serizawa rushes out to get in on the action. As he bolts down the hall, he meets Naruse who has arrived to act as Souda's attorney. Naruse asks where the interrogation room is and Serizawa points out the way, he realizes that Naruse must be Souda's attorney and asks that Naruse takes good care of his friend before dashing away.
[-Opening Theme-]
The story picks up with Sakita Shiori and her friend, Nishina Eri, who are searching for an earring. Shiori uses her psychometric abilities to locate the missing accessory before picking out a tarot card for the day for herself, "Fortune." She then leaves for work at a library and is accosted by Naruse who is looking for architecture-related books. She helps him locate the books, helps him check them out, and then asks if they've met somewhere before; however Naruse looks puzzled and she decides that it must be her imagining things.
At the police station, Serizawa is getting a verbal beating while at the law firm, Naruse is told by his coworkers that the public has sent him a lot of fan letters calling him an angel. He smiles, goes back to his office and reflects on his meeting with Serizawa. Back at the station, Serizawa and Takatsuka are on the rooftop going over the tarot card when he suddenly gets a call from his older brother, Noriyoshi, who wants him to come back home for the business party. Later during the day, Serizawa meets his friend, a yakuza-looking debt collector named Ishimoto Yosuke, and they talk about Souda.
Flash forward to the evening and we see Naruse putting on black gloves, getting ready for the kill, and Serizawa arriving at the party. He meets his friend, Kasai Hitoshi, who is also his brother's secretary, and then is approached by Noriyoshi and his wife, Mari. Noriyoshi points Serizawa out to a man Serizawa is indebted to, a lawyer called Kumada, who is currently talking with his father. When Serizawa approaches Kumada to greet him, he is attacked by his father for becoming a police officer rather than succeeding the family business. Kumada tries to pacify things between father and son, but then leaves to take a phone call from Naruse. After the call, Kumada excuses himself and goes back to his firm while Naruse watches from outside.
The next day, Serizawa rushes to Kumada's firm upon hearing that his benefactor has been murdered. He searches through Kumada's desk to find a familiar red envelope with the same tarot card he received, "Judgment." A box from the sender, "Amano Makoto" is seen on the floor and Serizawa asks one of the people at the firm if they knew who sent the package. No one knows, but they only know that a knife also came with the package -- the same one sticking out of Kumada -- and that he got a phone call the night of his death.
Meanwhile at a church, Naruse is listening to the choir sing and notices Shiori a few seats away from him. He looks at her with a calculating, cold, and positively frightening expression. Cut scene to Serizawa, everyone has gathered back at the police agency and going over the tarot card left behind at the crime scene. When new information comes in about the killer, Serizawa bolts out of the station. Scene changes back to Naruse and Shiori who end up talking and walking together for a while, and we learn that Shiori became an orphan soon after she was born. She is ambushed with hugs from the children at the beginning of the episode after saying so and Naruse watches with a friendlier expression.
Later, Serizawa, Takatsuka, and Nakanishi Hiromichi come find Shiori to get her to do a reading of the tarot card. With her psychometric abilities, she witnesses how Kumada is killed and tells the group what she saw. She tells them that Kumada took a knife out of the box and pointed it at the opposite party, and the other man pulled the blade close to himself, but then they struggle and fall down on the floor. As a consequence, Kumada actually stabs himself with help from the other party. Serizawa does not believe Shiori and thinks that it's all bullocks. He does feel a bit unnerved at remembering her explanation of the judgement card: "Atonement for sins of the past."
Cut away to Naruse's home and he is sitting on the couch looking at a music box with a picture of his mother and younger brother inside plus a harmonica. He remembers the day his mother throws her body on top of Hideo's while sobbing over his death, and also how his brother's killer, the very same Serizawa Naoto, was acquitted of all charges based on the allegation that it was really the victim who took out the knife first and Naoto was only acting out of self defense. Because of this, Naoto was set free and Naruse watched as his brother's killer got out of his crime.
Another day at the station, everyone is discussing more details of Kumada's death and we learn that the suspect is Hayashi Kunio who was last seen with Kumada. Just as Serizawa is about to leave to catch Hayashi, Naruse comes in with Hayashi in tow saying that Hayashi wants to turn himself in. Later in the interrogation room, Serizawa asks about the red envelope with tarot cards and demands to know why Hayashi sent them, plus why did he kill Kumada? However, Hayashi says that he did not kill Kumada and the evidence is from a voice recording between Hayashi and Kumada just before his death. The group hears of the struggle, which confirms that the death is an accident, but the detectives are still unconvinced. Then Takatsuka brings in a bag full of red envelopes and inside them were letters this time addressed to Kumada, telling him of his sin from twelve years ago and how everything that is happening was started by his own two hands -- meaning that because Kumada helped a murderer get acquitted of charges and placed the blame on Hideo, karma is now coming back to get him. As Nakanishi reads these words, Naruse sits with a calm expression on his face. Nakanishi, Takatsuka, and Serizawa go over the facts and Serizawa discovers that Hayashi has been had by the one called "Amano Makoto," because Amano was the one who made the call, which got Kumada to get back to the office. The more Serizawa questions Hayashi, the more agitated he becomes until Naruse asks that he calm down. Serizawa demands to know how he can stay calm at all when someone who has a family who will be missing them was killed. Naruse swallows his anger before answering that Hayashi is also important to someone in his life, and not just the victim or him, but also Serizawa and also Naruse himself.
Later, Serizawa hurriedly rushes to find Shiori in order to get her to do a reading on the letter and at first she rejects him, but after his persuasion, gives in and helps. When placing her hand over the letter, she sees a man was typing something on a laptop and he is wearing black gloves when putting the letter into a red envelope. When Serizawa asks if there is more, she says that that's all she saw... but what she did feel is that this person has no soul.
Back at the warehouse, Naruse is mourning for his brother again and looking at the harmonica he gave him for his birthday. He remembers Hideo playing "Somewhere Over the Rainbow," their mother's favorite song, and Hideo then confesses that when he grows up, that he's going to become a lawyer and make lots of money (for the family). As Naruse grips the harmonica tightly in his hands, tears stream down his eyes.
Another day, Kumada's son approaches Naruse and demands to know if Naruse is honestly saying that his father killed himself. Naruse apologizes for the boy's loss, but he gets really angry and pushes Naruse up the wall. Naruse only tells the boy that there's only one truth so please wait and see. Kumada's son lets Naruse go, and the attorney heads to the detective agency where Serizawa and Hayashi are to do a simulation of what happened that night. Hayashi narrates everything that happened while Serizawa plays as Kumada. Halfway through when Serizawa pulls out the knife to attack Hayashi, he sees his past play out before him: a boy lies on the ground with a pocket knife protruding out from his torso. Serizawa is completely shaken up from the simulation and even more rocked when Naruse uses the exact same words that Kumada used to defend him years ago: "The victim was the one who pulled out he knife first and the defendant was only acting out in self defense, therefore the defendant is innocent." Having proved his point, Hayashi was allowed to go free and Naruse walked away triumphantly.
Later that night, Serizawa went out drinking in order to drown out his past and he gets very drunk. As he stumbles back home, he falls over a bike and rolls up in fetal position on the ground while crying out from guilt. Back at Naruse's apartment, he is in the red room looking at current pictures of all people associated with Serizawa and focuses on Serizawa's father last.
Impression:
The acting was pretty good, though the story seemed kind of predictable, and there were a few holes I think, but it's good for what it is. Ikuta Toma plays these types of roles pretty well. I honestly like him in a role like this than I do when he's playing a nice guy like Takemoto from Honey & Clover. Ohno Satoshi really surprised me too, I really never would have imagined him playing a role like this so seeing him like this was really refreshing.
I especially love the fact that Naruse used the name "Amano Makoto" when delivering red envelopes to his victims and to Serizawa. Though the kanji is different, if one only goes by the phonetic sound, the name would actually sound to look like this: 天の真実 Ama no Makoto (Shinjitsu) = Divine Truth. I thought this was pretty creative.
Perhaps I'm too tired to really hear it correctly anymore, but I'm not quite sure why Hayashi had the voice recorder on him... If I watch it again, I'm sure I'll catch it, but I guess I'm just too tired at the moment to know. In any case, I really enjoyed this episode so I hope the rest of the series continues to get better.
Friday, July 4, 2008
Junjou Romantica & Antique Bakery
So Junjou Romantica anime has ended and I'm really sad about that 'cause I really enjoyed it despite the cut in content ^^; I'm still trying to get my hands on the newest book that just came out and the artbook =_=; *sigh* I love this series, it's so sweet and ridiculously cute. I hope that the anime will pick up again eventually. I thought it was supposed to be around 25-26 episodes long, but it looks like it's stopped at 12. I also thought that Vampire Knight was suppose to be 25-26 episodes long, but since the manga is only at 40+ chapters so far, I can see why it cut off at 13 for one season. Nana is still waiting for the manga to finish before starting the second season.
Next... I started watching Antique Bakery yesterday and really enjoy it. The voice actors were just perfect! Exactly how I imagined them to be. Fujiwara Keiji as Tachibana was perfect ^,^ Miki Shin'ichirou as Ono was absolutely perfect! Miyano Mamoru as Kanda was also perfect! Ah, I love the Nichoume scene~ I have a feeling that this drama won't disappoint me at all ^_^ I'm looking forward to the next episode.
Next... I started watching Antique Bakery yesterday and really enjoy it. The voice actors were just perfect! Exactly how I imagined them to be. Fujiwara Keiji as Tachibana was perfect ^,^ Miki Shin'ichirou as Ono was absolutely perfect! Miyano Mamoru as Kanda was also perfect! Ah, I love the Nichoume scene~ I have a feeling that this drama won't disappoint me at all ^_^ I'm looking forward to the next episode.
Tuesday, July 1, 2008
Tears & Laughs
I am the type of person that loves to cry at movies, novels, manga, and just about anything that's happy or sad. At the end of chapter 164 from D.Gray-man, I was just tearing up when Komui listed the names of all the failed experiments in the Black Order. Though the chapter itself was just hilarious, these little things always make me smile and cry.
Also went to the movies today with my brother for his birthday to see Wall-e and it was just the sweetest movie ever about sustainability and life in space and earth 700 years into the future. Wall-e is a garbage disposal-like robot that takes all the junk in the world, compacts it into a cube and then stacks it up. However, it's been 700 years and there is still a lot of waste left on the planet so all the humans have not returned to earth from living in their spaceship in outer space. The only lifeform left really is one last wall-e robot and a cockroach.
Over the years Wall-e has been living in solitude inside this van with his collection of spare parts and junk. He longs for romance while watching a taped musical that he found in the garbage and then one day a ship sent from Axiom -- the mothership where all the humans have gone to live in 700 years ago -- landed on earth and the robot, Eve, was left behind in search of vegetation. Eve possessed a short fuse and exceptionally violent. Everytime she sensed anything that may be threatening or if anything pissed her off, she would blast it to pieces with her killer ray from her right hand. And then one day she met Wall-e who clumsily tried to court her. The two became friends and were getting along well until Wall-e showed her the plant sprout that he found one day. Seeing the tiny green sprout caused Eve's system to take hold of it, contain it inside her body and then go right away into hibernation. Wall-e then spent the next few days or weeks tending to her, taking her out to the top of the van where he lived in order for her to get sunshine and such until one day the spaceship came back to retrieve her.
Because Wall-e did not want to lose Eve, he climbed aboard the ship and was transported to Axiom where he reunited with Eve... unfortunately, more troubles ensued aboard the mothership as we discovered that the reason why no one has returned to earth was because of a conspiracy. Anyway, the story is very cute and amusing. I was on the verge of tears at the end though 'cause it was just so cute. I highly recommend people watching it.
Also finished Zettai Kareshi today and it ended pretty similar to the manga so that was satisfying for me. I will have to go into more detail about it later.
Yesterday, watched the Bachelorette again like I do every Monday and was kind of surprised. The date with Jeremy did not progress all too well, in my opinion, and that was probably the leading factor, which led to his downfall. I liked him even though all the guys hated him. He did come on a bit strong and sometimes I really wondered if he was telling the truth or not, but he's a nice guy. The week before, I was actually not at all surprised that Graham got booted off. I liked him right off the bat in the first episode, but he's like this big kid who can't make up his mind so I can see how things didn't work out. My number one pick since the beginning was Jason though 'cause I liked how geniune and sincere he was. He's got experience considering what his wife did to him so I think learning from that would help him be able to give DeAnna all she wants. He's the perfect guy in my opinion. Jeremy is perfect, but too rigid. I was not exactly a fan of Jesse at the beginning, he was totally not what I thought would be ideal, but he's proven to be pretty fun and likeable... just not sure if he's marriage material at the moment. I really hope that she picks Jason 'cause I like him best.
Also went to the movies today with my brother for his birthday to see Wall-e and it was just the sweetest movie ever about sustainability and life in space and earth 700 years into the future. Wall-e is a garbage disposal-like robot that takes all the junk in the world, compacts it into a cube and then stacks it up. However, it's been 700 years and there is still a lot of waste left on the planet so all the humans have not returned to earth from living in their spaceship in outer space. The only lifeform left really is one last wall-e robot and a cockroach.
Over the years Wall-e has been living in solitude inside this van with his collection of spare parts and junk. He longs for romance while watching a taped musical that he found in the garbage and then one day a ship sent from Axiom -- the mothership where all the humans have gone to live in 700 years ago -- landed on earth and the robot, Eve, was left behind in search of vegetation. Eve possessed a short fuse and exceptionally violent. Everytime she sensed anything that may be threatening or if anything pissed her off, she would blast it to pieces with her killer ray from her right hand. And then one day she met Wall-e who clumsily tried to court her. The two became friends and were getting along well until Wall-e showed her the plant sprout that he found one day. Seeing the tiny green sprout caused Eve's system to take hold of it, contain it inside her body and then go right away into hibernation. Wall-e then spent the next few days or weeks tending to her, taking her out to the top of the van where he lived in order for her to get sunshine and such until one day the spaceship came back to retrieve her.
Because Wall-e did not want to lose Eve, he climbed aboard the ship and was transported to Axiom where he reunited with Eve... unfortunately, more troubles ensued aboard the mothership as we discovered that the reason why no one has returned to earth was because of a conspiracy. Anyway, the story is very cute and amusing. I was on the verge of tears at the end though 'cause it was just so cute. I highly recommend people watching it.
Also finished Zettai Kareshi today and it ended pretty similar to the manga so that was satisfying for me. I will have to go into more detail about it later.
Yesterday, watched the Bachelorette again like I do every Monday and was kind of surprised. The date with Jeremy did not progress all too well, in my opinion, and that was probably the leading factor, which led to his downfall. I liked him even though all the guys hated him. He did come on a bit strong and sometimes I really wondered if he was telling the truth or not, but he's a nice guy. The week before, I was actually not at all surprised that Graham got booted off. I liked him right off the bat in the first episode, but he's like this big kid who can't make up his mind so I can see how things didn't work out. My number one pick since the beginning was Jason though 'cause I liked how geniune and sincere he was. He's got experience considering what his wife did to him so I think learning from that would help him be able to give DeAnna all she wants. He's the perfect guy in my opinion. Jeremy is perfect, but too rigid. I was not exactly a fan of Jesse at the beginning, he was totally not what I thought would be ideal, but he's proven to be pretty fun and likeable... just not sure if he's marriage material at the moment. I really hope that she picks Jason 'cause I like him best.
Dust & Mayhem
I think after months of not really cleaning my room due to my being busy from work and school, the dust in the room has piled up so much that it's now proving to be a health concern. I have lots of books in my room and I seriously think that a lot of dust has accumulated over time on them. I really need a storage to put them in away from my bedroom so that I'm not wheezing, sneezing, and coughing so often every time I'm in my room. Well... I'm also wondering if it's with my immune system being down, allergies, or the time of the day/night. I don't usually cough like this during the day, but when night hits I just begin coughing like crazy. *sigh* I really hope that once I can get my biological clock working properly again I can stop coughing like this.
I finally cleaned my room after putting it off for so long, but I'm not sure if it's done me much good just yet.
I finally cleaned my room after putting it off for so long, but I'm not sure if it's done me much good just yet.
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