Don Quixote is a really good comedy, find myself laughing out loud in almost every episode, and somehow it never gets old. Matsuda Shota really shines in his yakuza role in it. Highly recommended if you want a show with good laugh.

As for a more serious one, try out Soredemo Ikite Yuku and IS~Otoko Demo Onna Demo Nai Sei. Both of which are my favs this season. Zenkai Girl is definitely pretty good too, though a bit draggy towards the end.

For detective/suspense dramas - definitely recommend Zettai Reido and Team Batista 3.

You can head over to my review blog for a quick review on each of the shows I mention above and hopefully you'll find something that interests you. This season's not bad actually, I like it better than last.

Agreed but funny thing is, all I cared about in the drama is Mita (Nanako's character). BEcause I find the family problems really really ANNOYING. Like...I don't care if they never have their problems solved or how they'll end up to be. The father is really useless, has been since 1st episode, and worse of all, the eldest daughter too. I nearly gave up on the show, if not for Mita pulling me back. I think the high rating has to do with the fact that this is Nanako's first drama ever since she stopped acting to focus on her children few years ago.


But I can't wait for her next drama Lucky Seven, with Eita (Soredemo Ikite Yuku), MatsuJun (not a fan of him but well...) and Naka Riisa. Sounds like one of the highest anticipated drama.

This post has been edited by avanpiper: Dec 12 2011, 03:25 PM

I watched first 2-3 epis of Utsukushii Rinjin then I never continued...maybe I should though, Nakama Yukie I know is pretty good there with her antagonist role.

But for me, the one drama that stood out is Soredemo Ikite Yuku, brilliant performances by both Eita and Mitsushima Nanako. The drama won most of the major awards for the 70th Television Drama Awards, grabbing best actor, best drama, best screenplay. Too bad Mitsushima missed the best actress, really thought she deserved it. Another one would be JIN 2.

I'm still bewildered by the fact that this show gets 25% average rating~ with its final episode over 40%! The only drama in the last 12 years to do so, since Beautiful Life. I guess we should not underestimate the power of Matsushima Nanako. While I hate most of the characters, Mita was the only one I that kept me coming back every week to watch it.

Kaseifu no Mita [ep 9]




Quite a lot of dramas are ending already and I'm trying to finish them this festive holiday, while I have the time before the start of new season.

Yup! One of my favs this season maybe because I find it a bit relatable at some point. It's a great show for single women lolz.

This season I'm watching:

Strawberry Night - so far, quite good, I like the chemistry btw the characters and Yuko Takeuchi is a pleasure to watch as the tough detective. Some episodes/cases were pretty mediocre, but the rest are good.

Seinaru Kaibutsutachi - the plot/storyline itself is quite intriguing, deals with surrogate child, which is illegal in Japan. Just curious how it'll end.

Hungry! - Mukai Osamu and the rest are eye-candy and if that's not enough, there's French cuisine too! Not a good idea to watch when you're hungry though, so I always watch during dinner lol

Lucky Seven - I kinda anticipated this too much, coz the outcome isn't as good as I expected. Not much Eita anyway.

Dirty Mama! - Funny! Super cop mom and boy I pity Karina who acts as the rookie cop aka. babysitter but the baby is cute at least.

Bunshin - Just watched first episode. Intriguing and I love mysteries. Though not a fan of Masami's acting, it's quite fresh to see her act two different characters in this series. Can't wait to continue with 2nd episode tonight!

Lucky seven was a letdown, like you, I watched solely for Nanako and Eita. Though I know Nanako will play a very small role, I never thought that Eita will disappear midway. They're wasting talents! The rest of the cast not enough to keep me engaged.

As for Saikou no jinsei, I dropped after watching 1st episode lol. Not my type of drama. I like serious themed series but somehow, the storyline not captivating enough, unlike Soredemo (now that was brilliant).

I like this season more than the last. Offers more entertaining ones. So here are my recommendations:

ATARU - great acting of someone with 'savant syndrome' and cute interaction with the supporting casts.

Kagi no Kakatta Heya - Fans of Ohno or arashi should watch, though I'm neither, I find Ohno portraying the lead character very well, love his expressionless and cold attitude. Except when he speaks fast about something he likes, that is solving locked rooms mysteries. Not to mention, there's Toda Erika too.

Legal High - very funny! A lot of over the top acting and exaggerating for the most part, but that's why I like it.

Toshi Densetsu no Onna - not a fan of Masami Nagasawa's acting but I think the show's made for her. Nice to see a show where she's not crying or being helpless for once (like in Last Friends). And i think guys will like the way she flaunts her legs in this one, a lot of them.

As for a more serious drama, Mou Ichido Kimi ni Propose by Yutaka Takenouchi. Well, I'm a huge fan of his, maybe a bit biased but it's pretty good and depressing because of the theme. Well, look it up!

I seem to have a lot of shows to keep up with this season

Compared to the last, I only finished Strawberry Night while the rest, I gave up halfway. Lucky Seven was overrated and not enough Eita to keep me attracted. Hungry! was fine I guess, just not quite there either.

I only know Gou~Himetachi no Sengoku, can read it up in wiki. It's more focused on the three sisters who married important people, including Gou whose husband is Tokugawa Hidetada. Quite good. It's my first taiga drama.

@truballer - found the movie, downloading. can't wait to watch, looks interesting.

This post has been edited by avanpiper: May 3 2012, 05:09 PM

i'm up to ep6 atm, it's pretty good. I like that it's dark and mysterious. no fooling around. I'd say give it a try and see if you like the genre. I'll continue till the end just coz I'm curious of how they end up.

just watched halfway just now, not bad. Give it a try if ur a fan, the kid's cute too

Dramas I'm giving a try this season (will watch first episodes and decide from there):

Beautiful Rain - definitely following, Mana-chan too adorable to miss.
Ghost Mama Sousasen
Higashino Keigo Mysteries - i like how they use different actors and actresses for each episode, definitely watching everything.
Tokkan - curious about the tax collector's job, which prompts me to watch, aside from Inoue Mao.
Summer Rescue - Mukai Osamu as doctor, must watch hehe
GTO - not sure why they wanna remake this show, as awesome as it was. But still, giving it a try. Browsed through and it looks pretty good, so far.

6 in the lineup. Was thinking there should be more but with other anime to catch too, this should suffice for this season

yeah it's generic, kinda like they got the idea from 11 Nin Mo Iru! theme (in which Ryoko Hirosue was the ghost mum and also the youngest kid gets to see her). They just changed it to the investigation formula. But pretty glad this season has less detective dramas, a bit overloaded last season.


Just watched first epi of Iki mo Dekinai Natsu (Takei Emi & Eguchi Yosuke). Aren't they promoting Takei Emi a bit too much recently? She was just in W no Higeki last season and another drama now. Doesn't take a break like most actors/actresses do. The show's intriguing though, I didn't realize Japan doesn't have the Identification Card system like we do with MyKad. They only us driving license or health insurance card for official purposes. The show is romance but I really can't imagine any romance between Eguchi and Takei lol, their age difference too much but who knows, maybe they can work it out together.

late reply but I've been following this drama. It's flashy and attractive, especially when the lead's company is just so cool~ Ok well, back to the plot, it's quite interesting, expect some competition in whatever software development they're doing, betrayal, and definitely love triangle. It's somewhat similar to korean dramas from what I've heard (I don't watch korean dramas).

So I am following these dramas this season:

Beautiful Rain - For Mana chan really, quite slow, actually kinda draggy with the plot but her cuteness makes up for that.
Higashino Keigo Mysteries - Some mysteries are pretty well-written, while others are just meh...but the different actors/actresses make it interesting.
Ghost Mama Sousasen - not sure whether to continue yet
Iki Mo Dekinai Natsu - thought it was good and interesting at first but the second half is just too boring and disconnected. The leads don't even have chemistry (can't feel anything between them). So sorry Takei Emi, hope you'll do better in ur new drama next season. I don't get why they're promoting her like crazy though. This is her second consecutive drama and up for another one next season. Doesn't she need a break?

Kuro no Onna Kyoushi - might continue, might not
Summer Rescue - for the sake of the two leads, I am finishing this.
Tokkan - quite interesting

This season...I don't know, it's bit disappointing, there's no real gem.

Agree about Nagasawa Masami, almost like deliberately showing off her long slim legs recently. Not that I'm complaining, she's definitely improving a lot in terms of acting. And I'm glad she tried a new hairstyle (with her hair short) she looks more mature and back when she was in Last Friends, I didn't really like her acting. But that is mostly due to the weak character in that drama. Surprisingly though, I enjoyed Toshi a lot, I think she's good in comedies. Hope she keeps on improving and getting better with each drama.

I agree about most of what you write up there. especially GTO and Iki mo dekinai natsu. Disappointing. I can't judge GTO much since I dropped after 1st episode, but I'm just not interested in that kind of high school drama. Instead, I'd recommend the other one, Kuro no Onna Kyoushi, which turned out pretty amusing and interesting. I actually watched it all in one-go (well almost), surprisingly better than the others imo.

As for Beautiful Rain, the beginning was good but so draggy towards the end (still haven't finished). It feels like not getting anywhere with the plot when the actors/actresses are good ones, their talents are so wasted there. Not even cute Ashida Mana can save it.

Ghost Mama was funny though. I'm continuing it. Higashino was a hit and miss for me. I usually like mysteries and Japanese dramas offer a lot of them, but this one is disappointing despite the number of top-notch actors/actresses they hire for it. Too bad.

As for Tokkan, I'm left with the final episode. Rich Man Poor Woman is kinda expected with the plot but it makes for the better ones this season.

I haven't browsed through the titles for next season. Hope it'll be better than this one though.

Okay so I kinda looked through the new ones, my to-watch list:

Priceless - Just for Kimutaku x Karina pairing really. And to answer your question, it says will be airing on 22 Oct from official site (every monday 9pm)
Double Face - Nishijima Hidetoshi!!! Like him ever since Strawberry Night. And it's police drama, awesome~
Going My Home
Tokyo Airport
Doctor X
Resident ~ Go-nin no Kenshui
Kekkon Shinai - Kanno Miho, Amami Yuki and Tamaki Hiroshi ALL in ONE DRAMA, not to be missed hehe and this brings both Kanno Miho with Tamaki Hiroshi back together again.
http://www.fujitv.co.jp/kekkon_shinai/index.html

Koukou Nyuushi - Masami Nagasawa as English teacher, hope her Engrish is not bad though.


Wow that's a lot, I wonder if I can catch up. But it depends on whether these dramas are subbed or not. Hope they will!




This post has been edited by avanpiper: Oct 4 2012, 11:53 AM

gonna watch Going My Home tonight too~ waiting for Double Face though, i need dark police drama xDD

just watched first epi of Going My Home and random stuffs I noticed:

First episode is so LONG!


Anyways, my verdict for now is that this is not for people who likes fast-paced dramas. They really take their time showing different characters' lives, mainly Abe Hiroshi's of course.

ep1 of Kekkon Shinai really is similar to Watashi ga renai dekinai riyuu, the whole setup and theme too. So far it's okay. I like all three main leads, so that's plus.

As for tokyo airport, I was just browsing through and the moment Kyoko Fukada speaks Engrish, I can't stand any longer. If I were the pilot, I wouldn't be able to catch what she's saying I hope the real control tower officers have good and fluent english at least.

I kinda like the drama though, maybe coz I find myself similar to Karina's character, the way she thinks/feels about certain things. The others were so-so. But the plus is the music and overall setting (i like vibrantly coloured setup/scenes). The music really helps (OST is great).

Akumu-chan is i think NOT for me. Kinda disappointed that kitagawa keiko is in something like that (could've chosen better roles?) I do admit I didn't watch the first episode yet, just browsed through and though Gackt is there and that's rare, I still find it not attractive (which is why it's still there, untouched).

Perfect Blue is so-so too, but I'll give it a shot and continue for now. The same goes with Tokyo Airport, Going My Home. Still waiting subs for Resident, Monsters, Priceless and etc. Kekkon Shinai is watchable, though not as good as Watashi ga Renai Dekinai Riyuu. My personal opinion.

I watched Double Face Special last weekend. It was still without subs but it's not hard to get the whole point. If you've watched Hong Kong movie - Internal Affairs or the Hollywood remake The Departed, then this is exactly similar. It's just the Japanese remake of the movie. Am waiting for the drama version.

Priceless is doing really good so far. Didn't expect it to exceed my expectation but Kimura's character is lovable although he doesn't seem to mind being poor as much as I would be if I were in his shoes. But the houseshare thing is nice.

As for Ooku...episode 1 was incredibly good. And the following ones as well...but yeah, it seems to go for the romance plot but let's hope there's more to it than just that. Masato Sakai never fails to impress me. Despite the age difference between him and Shogun (tabe mikako, age 23), they do have some chemistry. Not bad.

Going My Home is testing my patience a lot. Firstly, I like Abe Hiroshi, but the plot about finding kuna is very fantasy-like for me. And I'm not really into fantasy genre. So...I might drop this.