Kazoku Game - an afterthought

Finally got down to watching Kazoku Game. Finally. 

I approached the show with apprehension because the main character, Yoshimoto sensei, played by Sakurai Sho, reminded me of Sho's previous role as an eccentric emcee with exaggerated-expressions of "The Quiz Show". Didn't enjoy that drama. I was only able to watch through it because I am an Arashi fan, and as a fan I thought it was not honourable to quit on him quarter-way. But I've grown up, and I'll quit on a drama if it sucked and a waste of my precious time. The second reason for the apprehension was last year's Nazotoki movie starring Sakurai Sho as well. It completely baffled me why it was well-received in Japan. It was horrible and a poor excuse of a movie. Hey producers and screenwriters, it doesn't mean you can neglec the storyline cos you have Japan's no.1 man in your movie! 

But bad experiences with Sho's drama projects aside, Kazoku Game won the game against my doubt and cynicism. From the get go, I was in. I was thoroughly sucked in to the story of the Numata family and how Yoshimoto sensei was going to play with them using his extreme, unheard-of ways. During the first few episodes, I could not quite decide if the Yoshimoto character was a villain or the good guy and  for that, I must applaud the screenwriter(s) and the director for effectively creating this curiosity bubble without bursting it too soon. Was Yoshimoto sensei genuine when he said he'll help the badly bullied, Numata Shigeyuki who has not attended school in months? He managed to get Shigeyuki back to school, yet in another scene, Yoshimoto sensei seemed to be egging the culprits into bullying Shigeyuki further. He set the stage for a birthday party for Shigeyuki knowing that his classmates would not turn up. This is-he-good-or-is-he-bad curiosity kept me glued and excited for more episodes. 

The unraveling of the ingenuity of Yoshimoto's game with the family was exciting as it was extreme. In order to play the Kazoku Game, you need a really good and scheming brain and Yoshimoto had it all. Yoshimoto sensei was a genius when he used a heavy-duty door (those you see in banks for high security) to lock Shigeyuki in his room in a bid to lure him out of his self-imposed isolation. In dealing with the elder son's arrogance and un-compassion, Numata Shinichi, an honour student, Yoshimoto sensei took compromising photos of him shoplifting and slicing bicycle wheels. You thought these photos were simply blackmail material, but as the show progressed you find yourself impressed with how Yoshimoto sensei used it as tools of change - to change Shinichi's deviant behaviour.  

Bullying - thumbtacks glued to seat.

Yoshimoto sensei with the elder son, Numata Shinichi. Here, he films Numata Shigeyuki being bullied by his classmates.

Yoshimoto sensei tells Shigeyuki to be stronger, because reality is cruel.

Yoshimoto sensei wins over the Numata family (with the exception of Shinichi) when they see a more cheerful Shigeyuki. 

Extreme problems call for extreme measures.

Throughout the show there were flashbacks of Yoshimoto sensei's past as a school teacher and the circumstances which led to his present eccentric persona. That part of the show was the sickest. It's revolting knowing that there are people like that out there. He was a monster, a monster created because everything was too perfect for him. No struggles, no opportunities to exercise empathy and no one (not even his parents) stepped in in time to stop his un-compassionate attitude and twisted cognition. Who would have thought teachers could be that warped! Don't worry, it isn't Sakurai Sho's character and anyhow, I don't think the Johnnys would ever play pure villain characters. 

Sawada kun had minimal scenes in the show but was a central character to Yoshimoto sensei's life mission.

Acting-wise, I thought Sakurai Sho shone in this show. Never thought his acting was bad (though it is not as natural as fellow Arashi member, Nino), but I thought it was his best role and acting to date. It must have taken a lot of energy out of him, out of any actor, to portray such a conflicting character. Yoshimoto sensei was anguish, eccentricity, kindness, evilness personified. The other actors did well too. The screenwriters gave them sufficient screen time to develop their characters and I found myself rooting for the family to get their act together and repair their problems. 

Cast of Kazoku Game on VS Arashi!!

    

In line with my general preference for Japanese dramas due to the life lessons and inspirations I usually gained, the dialogue that left the greatest impression on me was the exchange between Shinichi and Yoshimoto sensei when the former lost the bet. It was in the sensei's reply that reminded me of an important lesson - when Shinichi defiantly asked Yoshimoto sensei if he wanted him (Shinichi) to drop dead and die, the sensei said "No, that's too easy" and continued, "I want you to rebuild your family". To die is seriously easier than staying alive and dealing with the issues/problems of life. To rebuild one's family, one's life, that takes immense courage and willpower. 

Kaseifu no Mita (Housekeper Mita)

Matsushima Nanako as Mita-san

What do you do when you chance upon a 2011 drama with viewership ratings in the 20% range and with its final episode in the 40 percentile? You watch it to verify if the high viewership was well-deserved and understand its popularity. And there were no regrets spending my long weekend break enjoying each episode of the 11-part drama. 

Kaseifu no Mita was supposedly the comeback drama for A-list Matsushima Nanako after a two year hiatus. Boy, does Nanako san know how to choose her dramas! Was thinking that the role of a housekeeper isn't what you call glamourous, yet Nanako san chose this project. This probably says a lot about the quality of the storyline and character developments. 

 

The youngest of the Asuda siblings, Kii wanted to meet her mother who had drowned in this river.
The enigmatic Mita-san followed Kii's orders but was stopped in time by oldest brother, Kakeru.  

The Asuda siblings sets several challenges for Mita-san in a bid to have her do the impossible, smile. 

The Asuda siblings - Kaito, Kii, Kakeru and Yui. The scene where the siblings decided to leave the house after discovering how their father's adultery drove their mother to the point of suicide.

There's a very sad element to this show, and a very dark one as well. I mean, the very first episode already started out as the Asuda siblings losing their mother in what was believed to be a drowning accident. In order to get the housekeeping matters (household chores, cooking of meals, a little child-minding here n there) back in shape after the death of the mother, the father, Asuda Keiichi, hired the housekeeping service of Mita-san. Ta-da~! Therein the relevance of the title. The dark element veers its head in episode 8 when the truth behind Mita san's robotic and cold demeanour is revealed. 

Task-oriented and highly compliant with orders, Mita san excels in her housekeeping duties and the Asuda family are thoroughly impressed by it. However, when it comes to people relations, Mita san is so devoid of human emotions to the point where she basically acts like a robot - following orders to a tee (she will really kill someone if you asked her to). In normal human interactions and conversations, it is a social norm to share your thoughts about a particular subject e.g. should the children forgive their father who had caused so much grief to their mother; staying true to her robotic persona, Mita san does nothing of that. After the episode 8 revelation, we came to know the reason why Mita san took such extreme measures to rid herself of self-will and just follow the orders of the people she worked for. So sad... what happened to her was so traumatic that Mita san chose the extreme path of never smiling again, never to be burdened with emotions nor self-will as she erroneously believed that it led to tragedies.  

The "dame na oyagi" father asking for forgiveness from his children.
In this scene, he stopped his wishy washy nonsense and took the decisive step of reclaiming his position as their father.

The Asuda siblings going the extra mile to help Mita san overcome her sad past, and to smile again.

The Asuda siblings were a delightful bunch. Not in the ooooh look a happy, always laughing, always cheering others on kind of way but how they went all out to help Mita san overcome her past. Touched by how Mita san had played a crucial role in bringing the family back on track and back together again, (strange how Mita san does it when she is the way she is), the Asuda siblings went on a mission to have Mita san smile and be herself again. Very touching and typical Japanese dramas moments. So did they succeed in getting Mita san to smile again? 

Mita san finally showing some normal human expression in the last quarter of the drama series.

Mita san!!! You smiled!!! You finally smiled!!! 

  

Matsushima Nanako was amazing in her role as Mita san. Nanako san was able to keep her character's lack of emotions consistent throughout but what I thought was a true A-class act was how she was able to convey in her facial expressions the thawing of the ice-cold Mita san in very measured, very subtle ways with each time the Asuda family inches closer to family unity. That subtle and controlled acting would probably have been difficult for a novice actress. Anyhow, at the last episode, Mita san did smile for the children and because of the children. Look at that face, no over-acting!! Sasuga Matsushima Nanako!

Aibu Saki as the bubbly but extremely clumsy character, Urara. She's the maternal aunt to the Asuda siblings.

Thought this was a really pretty picture of Aibu Saki.

The perennial second female lead (or so it seems), Aibu Saki, is in this well-received drama too! I like Aibu Saki but for some reason the Japanese Broadcasting Stations always seem to cast her as the second lead or a supporting character like in Buzzer Beat and Miss Pilot. Why!?!? She is a good actress y'know! Does Aibu san not have the first female lead vibe? Is her talent management company not pushing hard enough for her? Is it because she portrays slutty characters well like in Buzzer Beat (we all know that slutty characters will never be the first lead or else how do you get viewers to root for the character?). If you notice, the female leads are the Aragaki Yuis, Horikita Makis and Ayase Haruka-types where the first impression you get is innocence and good-naturedness, qualities necessary for viewers to root for the characters. 

Well but I'm glad Aibu san played this character of Urara (what kind of name is that anyway!?) where she was always falling, always getting into some kind of accident and having flies in her cake or soup. Yet, Urara always tried her best to keep smiling and keep the atmosphere light-hearted. Urara's the sort where it irritates the hell out of you yet because of her good intentions, you can never really get totally mad at her. 

Mita san advising Urara against becoming like her, and that she need not always feel the pressure to be keep a cheerful appearance when she doesn't feel like it. Basically, to be true to oneself.

Farewell Mita san!

The parting scene was, as expectedly, a tear-jerker. I thought it was so uncharacteristically charming and nice of Mita san to give the youngest, Kii, an origami panda with the words - Kii no koto mo daisuki desu (I liked Kii very much as well), as a parting gift. 

Overall, I liked this drama as much as Hanzawa Naoki, another ratings master. Matsushima san and the rest of the cast were great in their roles (how do all those child actors do it!?!?!). As with most Japanese dramas, there's that triumph over difficulties, overcoming the odds spirit in the storyline, which I love and appreciate dearly. May Nippon Television (NTV) come up with more good quality and well received dramas such as these!   

    

Boku no ita jikan - The hours of my life

Source: http://alare-chan.tumblr.com/

Right after watching Tokyo Bandwagon, I hopped onto another Tabe Mikako-starring drama, Boku no ita jikan. Great to know that Tabe san is getting more air time in dramas and playing female lead roles as she is a good yet underrated actress in Japan. Tabe san is adorable but I guess she falls in the same category as Inoue Mao, where though they look pretty enough to be on telly, their looks aren't as outstanding and commanding as actresses like Ayase Haruka and Kitagawa Keiko.

I was especially drawn to this drama for the Miura Haruma - Tabe Mikako pairing, and to a lesser extent, for Saito Takumi. Saito caught my attention in last season's drama, Miss Pilot, also starring Horikita Maki and Aibu Saki. Uniforms indeed do wonders to a person's look and Saito Takumi looked more dashing than usual in his pilot get-up in the previous drama. Okay and back to the Miura and Tabe san pairing, as mentioned in the earlier Tokyo Bandwagon write-up, I liked their chemistry (well at least their on screen love was more believable than the Kamenashi-Tabe one) and was looking forward to seeing them together in action again. If I had to use one word to describe their on screen chemistry, it'll be comfortable. There is that naturalness in how they interact and look at each other. It isn't the sort where there is high sexual tension in the air, but that of two friends eventually realizing that perhaps, they could make it work as a couple.

Source: See Alare-chan's tumblr. It's wonderfully filled with Tabe san and Miura Haruma. 

Miura Haruma plays a tragic hero here. I guess you could use that term as the drama revolves around Miura's character, Sawada Takuto, - how he learns of his sickness, comes to terms with it and faces it head on. Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) is an incurable, neuro-degenerative disease where one progressively loses muscle ability in the most basic of life functions - speaking, swallowing and even breathing. (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Amyotrophic_lateral_sclerosis)

The plot sounds vaguely familiar to another Fuji TV drama - 1 litre of tears. However some checking up on wikipedia revealed the disease featured in one litre was that of spinocerebellar degeneration - another incurable disease where the "cerebellum of the brain gradually deteriorates to the point where the victim cannot walk, speak, write or eat". The effects of the two diseases are the same and both seemed to be of the degeneration of neurons. So exactly what differentiates them??!?

1 litre of tears - a Japanese drama classic.

On the topic of 1 litre, I wouldn't go as far as saying that 1 litre of tears was life-changing, but there were many life lessons gained just by watching one of my favourite drama. Seeing how someone with multiple physical disabilities yet bravely trudging on in life and doing her best to live each day like a dignified person, should be one of the biggest slap across the faces of an able-bodied persons who feel like life is not worth the effort. So I'm kinda hoping that Boku no ita jikan will be able to have that same wake-up call effect for tv viewers and myself. I like Japanese dramas for inspiring life lessons such as these and it is why I always preferred Japanese dramas to any other Asian dramas (besides the fact that there's usually only 10 - 12 episodes).

So far Boku no ita jikan has been interesting enough for me to wait in eager anticipation for episode after episode. The development of the love story between the two leads is of good pacing and there are healthy doses of air time given to the supporting characters for viewers to get to know them as well. I especially liked the sub-plot of sibling rivalry between Miura's character and his younger brother. The parents are really inexcusable when they so blatantly favour one child over the other; just because the favoured child seemed to be more promising in achieving what they deemed a great future as a doctor. What nonsense!! Some parents really need to self-reflect and see how their words and non-verbals can tear down a child and/or create a monster with a better-than-thou attitude. Anyhow, back to Miura's character, I thought it was very insightful of the screenwriter(s) to show how Takuto built himself a "frivolous" character with a happy go lucky persona to cope with the sense of loss of parents' love and disappointment.  Wanna see how the revelation of Sawada Takuto's sickness changes the family dynamics.

While waiting for subsequent episodes of Boku no ita jikan (it's currently at ep 5 in Japan), I shall indulge a little more in pictures of Miura ans Tabe san together.

Love their chemistry

Miura and Tabe san in Kimi ni todoke. Loving their chemistry, still.

Tokyo Bandwagon

Raced through 8 consecutive episodes of the Japanese drama, Tokyo Bandwagon. Didn't expect myself to be enjoying the drama as much as I have! Gotta qualify the reasons for my initial skeptical attitude about the show:

1. Just finished the massively popular and entertaining drama of the Japan world - Hanzawa Naoki. Any dramas watched thereafter pales in comparison, naturally. 
2. Ratings in Japan weren't that sparkling. Somehow, ratings represent how good or bad a drama is. See Hanzawa's skyrocketing ratings. At times low ratings can be attributed to the drama's time slot. Tokyo Bandwagon's broadcast timing in Japan was actually promising - Saturdays 9pm. Oh but we're now in the internet age, so I guess tv ratings are no longer a fair and accurate representation of dramas.
3. Tokyo Bandwagon is a family-based drama. Perhaps I've been away from Japanese dramas for too long and wasn't confident of Japan's ability to carry through this genre. However, I eventually remembered shows like Ninomiya Kazunari's Freeter and Yasashii Jikan, and 1990s' hit - Under One Roof, and how I should slap myself for doubting the ability of Japanese TV! How dare me!

Sure there is my favourite Kamenashi Kazuya (since his role in Nobuta Wo Produce) and I will show my support when I have the time and energy by watching the dramas he's in. On a side note, I deliberately avoided some of his dramas as I thought those would make my liking for him turn to dislike. Or maybe, the storyline just didn't appeal. Maybe it's the soft spot I have for Kame, maybe it's my general preference for family dramas, or maybe, it's really not such a bad show despite the ratings. Having said that, I thought the first two episodes were not so great, and I would have stopped watching if not for Kame and his likeable character in the show. However, if you give the drama a chance and go into the 3rd, 4th episode etc, you would realise that the ratings didn't do justice to the show.

Tokyo Bandwagon is a typical Japanese drama in that at the end of every episode, there's some resolution to the problems and issues surfaced at the start of each episode. There's that feel-good, inspiring factor which I've found in almost all the Japanese dramas.

Despite the father's rocker-dude attitude and non-typical dressing for a man his age, he conveys the most basic yet easily forgotten wisdom of how love covers a multitude of sins. The stories in the drama bring out the essence of that. It takes so much courage to forgive a father who abandoned the family years ago and now wants to reunite - love gives the strength to forgive and accept your father again. It takes the help of people who love and care enough for you to stop you from committing the biggest mistake of your life - like killing the murderer of your beloved sister. It is love for your family that allows you to lay aside your pride and set things right - seeking forgiveness for past wrongs.

Kudos to the actors who make up the Hotta family (protagonist family) and their friends, neighbours, and acquaintances. The latter's presence served to emphasis what a good and kind-hearted family the Hotta family is. All characters had a part in keeping the drama going and entertaining.

Another highlight for me was the subtle love story between Kame's Hotta Ao and Tabe Mikako's character, Suzumi. I liked how the writers kept their love story tightly intertwined with the on goings of the main family. Afterall, this isn't a love story. The love development is a tad too fast to be realistic but oh well, it's a 10 episode drama so I guess the writers had no choice but to speed things up. I didn't have high hopes for the chemistry between the two actors and I still do not think they have the best chemistry. Tabe was great with Miura Haruma in the movie, Kimi ni todoke; while Kame had better chemistry with Ayase Haruka and Horikita Maki. Tabe, the actress, has too much of a good girl vibe to seem believable for Kame, the idol actor, to fall in love with. However, I can understand why they casted Tabe as she is a good fit for the Suzumi character who isn't the frivolous and air-headed type of girl. Tabe looks like she has a good head on her shoulders and it would be a little hard to swallow if she played a loud, delinquent kinda character. Oh but boy does Suzumi have that sassy side as you would see across the episodes, and especially in the episode where she lambasted a group of antique bookseller seniors, for ... I forgot the exact reason, but it was a well-substantiated argument she put forward. Quite unexpected of a young girl, what more, a young Japanese girl. Girl Power!

Lastly, I really like the songs by Kame's father in the show played by rock singer, Tamaki Koji. He sings the ending song titled, Search Light. Beautiful, emotionally-provoking voice. One of the best voices I've heard from a Japanese singer. I first came to know who Tamaki san is when he guested on Arashi ni Shiyagare (a variety show) I chanced upon when holidaying in Kyoto, and found that he is the composer of the awesome 1990s' pop song - Ai nanda. The writers and director of the show lost no chances in showcasing Tamaki san's musicality by having the character sing with his guitar in several episodes.

To end it of, pictures of the beautiful-faced Kamenashi Kazuya as the show acknowledged by giving him a "heisei playboy" image. Looking forward to watch the remaining few episodes by this week!!