My favorite
I love this drama, and yes, I am giving it 10/10 all across the board. I have seen every adaptation of this series, the anime, manga, taiwanese, korean and Japanese versions. I will continue to love it, and have seen it over 50 times. The story follows the manga pretty closely, the music is wonderful and catchy, and the actors are wonderful and have great chemistry.The Taiwanese and Japanese versions are 100x better then the Korean version, I would suggest skipping it as it doesn't cover even half of the story.
Definitely one of the best series I've ever seen, and I'm a huge romcom fan!
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JUST WATCH IT!!!!!
It took me a while to actually watch this Drama. I first watched the Korean adaptation first, then the Taiwanese and then the Thai version. At first I didn't think it could get any better than the Korean version and then I watched the Thai version and I thought that was the best it could get.I started watching the Japanese version maybe 2 or 3 times but couldn't get interested because I though it was just going to be like the other versions I've watched, but I eventually just gave in and decided to finish it. Let me tell you... it was the best decision I ever made. I absolutely LOVE this version.
I could see the ML feelings towards the FL develop throughout the series. In the other adaptations I've watched the ML practically ignores the FL and then at the 2nd or 3rd to last episode he gets hit by some divine intervention and then miraculously falls in love with the FL.
The acting was top notch. I found that there cringe worth scenes weren't as bad as other adaptations and I could relate to the FL feelings.
I was mostly into K-dramas but having watched the Japanese version I'm starting to love J-drama a little more. GREAT drama I tell you. ABSOLUTELY WONDERFUL!!!
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I am literally obsessed with this
I love this drama so much, I have watched and re-watched it multiple times and every time I go back I fall in love with it over and over again.For some context, I originally watched the anime, then the Korean drama, then the Taiwanese drama and then this one came out about half a year later. In comparison, this is a close tie with the Taiwanese version for me, there are things I like about both of them but I generally come back to this one.
This drama is a take on the haters to lovers trope with one half of the duo being head over heels in love with other. It is pure fluff the whole time and it is just gold getting to watch them gradually fall in love.
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This review may contain spoilers
i just felt bad for the fl
I am writing this more than 11+ years after this came out, but I still want you to know I watched it with an open mind. I haven't watched the other version, nor am I interested. I think I watched the Korean version, but dropped it because of the male lead. tbh, the male lead in this version is better than the Korean one, but still has no personality or anything that makes him likeable.I think this is based on a manga from the 19's or 2000's, right? So maybe this kind of male lead was in style? idk.
To me, it still feels like the main male lead was emotionless while the female was overflowing with emotions. She is cute tho.
the plot is nothin new, a girl fallings head over heels for a guy, chases him (which is every toxic, and she doesn't respects his space), the boy kisses her (still they are not dating) twice, the boy is dumb, they play around for i think 4-5 years (push and pull), boy decides to marry someone else (had a valid reason i feel), but ditches her last min and marries the female lead.
the end.
The opening and ending songs are cute and sweet.
tbh at first, the female lead was a teenager, so I didn't blame her or the male lead, but I feel like she should have had a personality change made or a maturity change???? i really don't know how to put it into words.
Okay, so in the end, I felt bad for the female lead watching her crush marry someone else must have hurt, but why are you still going after him?
I felt bad for Rin Kun and the male lead fiancée
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Ultimate guilty pleasure watch
I would recommend if you like heart-fluttering slow-burn rom-coms, klutzy female leads and cold male leads. Being a fan of the sunshine/grumpy trope, I can say with 95% certainty that this is the best textbook example of the trope.What I liked: the chemistry between the two leads; character development of the male lead; the comedic acting of supporting characters; actors making unrealistic characters (something which had bothered me in the manga and anime) more human.
What I disliked: the female lead being an extremely unrealistic pushover sometimes, instead of being it a normal amount.
This is definitely at the top of my guilty pleasure rewatch list. I have read the manga and seen the anime as well, and this drama outdid them while still sticking very closely to the original storyline.
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Another itazura na kiss adaptation
I have read the manga watched the anime back in the days of my childhood and since then I have seen this masterpiece being moulded into various adaptation. Itazura na kiss as a story is not my ultimate favourite but yes it is one of those cult favourites like boys over flowers and skip beat which have various remakes all over the globe.Talking about this particular adaptation the cast is good looking ( not very common in Jdramas) acting was mediocre but spontaneous and enjoyable .. There is nothing much to talk about plot as it's roughly the same as manga itself .. music was okay
Overall good but if you already know the story you can skip, watching new drama is always a better devision than watching remakes.
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✒✨️ Kotoko Got The Mojo /or/ My Mom The Magician ✨ °7.8° °wonderful deal°
MK is a warm hug from beginning to end. Just like roses have thorns, this warm hug has some pricklies that will poke the viewer here and there. Modern western women may not be able to take much of Irie. The older one is, the more guys one meets like him. The story is about his transformation, and that's a good thing. 32 49-minute episodes sounds like alot, but the show flows by quickly. It is cuteness itself for the most part.Three years. Her whole HS life she's been in love with Naoki Irie. Kotoko Aihara isn't going to graduate without making a play. She writes a letter and delivers it to him in person. "I don't like dumb women,” is what she gets in return 😳.
Sure, she's not book smart. She ain't anything-smart. She's in F-class and he's a big-deal - he's at the top of the HS pyramid - in every way - but, wow… WOW! He's /MEAN/. What a bad-deal he turned out to be.
Before Kotoko can get home to regroup, she finds out there is NO HOME. Apparently, her house was struck by a meteor. Her father sends her an address and says they'll be staying there while the restoration is being done. When she arrives, she sees her dad sitting with two men: 1. Irie. 2. His dad. They will be living at their place until her ruined house is rebuilt😲! Apparently, their dads are old friends. The show doesn't nail the timing down, but the ☄strike probably happened right when he was rejecting her. So, yup, it's the forced roommates trope. It's a good-un. I'm not tired of it yet. - especially when it's as adorable as this show is.
Kotoro just hates Irie now. Except she doesn't. She'd like to, but she /can't/. He's her kryptonite, & now they are thrust together. He's miserable and barks like an angry dog. Soon he'll be wagging his tail, & iIt's all because of mom. Mom understands the art of the deal. ‘Oh, Irie, could you help Kotaro study?’ Mom senses right away that Kotoko is the remedy for all that ails Irie. Mom becomes Kotoko's partner in crime and relentlessly endeavors to pair these two up.
Yahagi Honoka (Oshaie Sommelier Oshako!) is Aihara Kotoko. Furukawa Yuki (Kamisama no Ekohiiki) portrays the grumpy Irie Naoki. Nishimura Tomomi (Hana Yori Dango 2) is mom. Everyone else does a nice job, too. When Irie plays tennis, Kotaro attempts to follow suit. There's a tennis club coach whose personality changes when he touches a racket. He goes from the most affable guy in the world to world-class monster. It is pretty funny. The directors are Nagata Koto (Lion no Oyatsu), Kawano Koji (Aki wa Haru to Gohan wo Tabetai), & Abe Masakazu (Nanba MG5, Tokyo Little Love). Screenwriter, Miura Yuiko of Ultraman Geed, adapted Tada Kaoru's work to the screen. Ms Tada also brought us Fall in Love at First Kiss, Miss in Kiss, Kiss Me, Itazura na Kiss 2: Love in Okinawa, It Started with a Kiss, They Kiss Again, and more. I'm sensing a theme😘.
How many shows have you seen where the MOM just makes it? It isn't that common, but it's the case here. Irie's mother is darling. She's the best thing about MKLIT, and Kotoko isn't far behind. I just love both of them. Kotoko, during the run of the show, is slowly becoming Irie's mother's twin. It's adorable and hilarious, and she could certainly do worse.
The bit where a woman doesn't know that her cooking is awful until it's on the table and served to everybody is as utterly ridiculous as it is overused. It's everywhere, especially in Asian programming. What person doesn't taste the food as they're cooking it? It's just preposterous and it's time to let that crash to Earth and stay there. Otherwise, the filmcraft is smooth and seamless. The music is nice. Dad wore a pink tie with white polka dots to the post engagement ceremony to discuss wedding plans. Afterwards, at home, he asks Irie if he's "sure" about all of this (engagement) while still in that pink polka dot tie. That tie represents the ebullient and fanciful Kotoko. It's a dun-deal.
The theme is never give up. We see it with Kotoko & Irie, Matsumada & Irie, Knchan & Kotoko, and mom with Kotoko. This is also a classic opposites attract, cat/dog or Mars/Venus tale.
These parents treasure their kids, while the kids haven't thought a whole lot about it. Certainly, Irie's been resentful, and Kotoko's been too obsessed with Irie to notice anything else around her. But at the end of S1 we see that when the parents want them to make a choice for love and happiness they struggle to make the best choice for their parents and their families. They are growing up. Thinking about others is how it begins.
Mom manages to wrap up the show with a BIG surprise. It's brilliant. The entire show is a fun-deal.
QUOTE🗣
Everyone has their own pace. You just have to find something at your own pace, you see?
〰🖍 IMHO
🎬8 🖊〰8 🎭8 💓8 🦋7 🌞10 🎨7 🎵8 😅7 🤔6 🔚8
Age 13+ the only potential objection is that Mom at one point doesn't even care if they get it on. She's playing for keeps. Nothing happens though. Irie is a misogynist @$$ in the beginning of the show. His behavior is not okay. Everybody worshiped him which he took as confirmation that he's superior. His mother is the counter to that, though. He's got problems that need fixing and she recognizes Kotoko as the fixer. Every romance is a little bit of fantasy. One could watch it with a younger teen and explain how this is the type of guy that a girl stays away from. This story gets to be a show because its resolution is what's unusual, but IRL one canmot expect to make it work with such a person. You don't want to be the one to try to fix an @$$hole. Then you're in for an @$$hole type of life. That's a horrible deal.
Re-📺? 🆒
From lite&trite to heavy&serious, here's some recs ~
💘
Ouran High School Host Club-8,,
Ao-chan Can't Study-7.8,
Special A Class 💓8.2,
Maid Sama-10,
Why Raeliana Ended up at the Duke's Mansion-8.4,
Mischievous Kiss,
True Beauty-7.5,
Map for The Wedding-7,
Monthly Girls' Nozaki-kun-7.7,
Colourcloud Palace-7.5,
Hakkenden,
7th Time Loop-7.9,
Honey & Clover,
My Teen Romantic Comedy SNAFU,
Princess Principal 8.6,
Sugar Apple Fairy Tale-7.5
My Happy Marriage-8.3,
My Happy Marriage-8.3,
Real Girl-7.5,
My Happy Marriage-8.3,
Your Lie In April-9,
Violet Evergarden-9.5
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EVERY REWATCH FEELS COMFORTING
The aesthetics of the series are very comforting and pleasing ..they have a very cool old Japan vibe even the fashion sense of many characters ...the actors were great and played their roles nicely ...According to me this is the best version out of all other version and i ll state my reasons .First of all Irie naoki actually shows emotions throught the series ,u can actually see times when he realises he is jealous about kotoko . Yes he might actually harsh at times but I think it's just an introverts way of trying to express themselves ..Overall the storyline is good and funny at many times .One thing i wud change is i would have wanted a little bit more of the kototo being pregnant part of series just to see how Irie would take care of her .Was this review helpful to you?
This review may contain spoilers
Spineless Jerk
I hate the ML so much, he treated the FL like trash throughout... right up until 15 min to the end. This is now the second time I have seen a FL that I can not stand. At every moment when the ML was an unnecessary a..hole to her I thought this is it. She will finally get up from the ground and give him a taste of his own medicine. But it never happened. I must have liked something about the show because I finished it but I am not gonna lie I cried and not because of anything sad but because of annoyance and hatred towards the ML and FL. I would have been with 20 eps, if it meant that she grew a spine. I loved the MIL but her wanting a daughter and wanting to fill that mother role for the FL was not enough for me to support her and her giving false hope to the FL. ML should have faced some consequences for his rude behavior but he didn't. When in the last 20 min of the show he went and said to the FL dad that they wanted to get married the least he could have done was apologize and get on the ground and bow to that man. I was rooting for the second ML but he ruined it at ep15. Why would you do that man? You almost got me but you tried to force yourself. I honestly kept watching for the MIL because that woman is def a shipper and a part of some type of fandom lol.Was this review helpful to you?
Love story of balance between feeling too little and too much
Mischievous Kiss: Love in Tokyo is most balanced adaptations of the Itazura Na Kiss story not because it is perfect, but because of how honestly and wholeheartedly it portrays two very different people learning to love each other.What makes this shine is the maturity hidden beneath the comedy. The ML is not a red flag, nor is the FL “too much.” They are simply opposites on an emotional scale:
One feels deeply and expresses freely.
The other has never been taught how to express anything at all.
Watching them grow, bend, clash, and gradually understand one another is the true beauty of this story. Their relationship is not built on grand gestures, but on small, quiet moments that form a believable journey from youth to adulthood.
The drama shows beautifully that love doesn't require two perfect people only two willing people. And over time, they become a genuinely balanced pair.
The supporting cast remains iconic:
Irie's mom is the absolute QUEEN of this drama is hilarious, meddling, manipulative, and somehow still incredibly lovable.
Kotoko’s father is more grounded and less pitiful, adding warmth instead of frustration.
This is a story you appreciate best when you’re older when you understand that communication styles differ, love evolves, and emotional maturity isn’t the same for everyone.
It's not flawless. But it's heartfelt, nostalgic, engaging, and unexpectedly meaningful.
A true comfort show worthy of a 9/10.
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The best version of Ita Kiss
Only japanese dramas and movies can get the mangas right, the slapstick comedy and over exaggerated expressions as depicted in the manga can only get true justice in a jdrama. I have watched all version including the famous korean version and ever thing the korean version lacks is present in this one. I did not like Naoki initially but , yuki is an amazing actor and portrayed the character very well. Irie-kun is not supposed to be an ass, but he is someone who lacks on displaying their emotions, and yuki does a good job in opening the character every episode. kotoko's role tho was a bit exaggerated, she again does the most authentic character.overall i loved the drama.
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