chillingindoors

I adore French cinema, but I stand by my opinion of J-cinema being the most diverse I have seen.
I have hardly seen them make very silly films. Comedy, yes. But not silly films for young girls or teens (equivalent to shoujo manga adaptations). Also, I haven't seen them make films on expeditions or important historical figures, like Asa Ga Kita (first woman who opened a bank in Japan) or Nankyoku Tariku (first Japanese expedition to Antarctica) or very out-of-the-box storytelling where the script reverses something creepy into something that leaves you wandering about the criminal's perspective like Wandering etc.
Please correct me if I am wrong. Would love to have some recommendations if there are.

I'm not sure what genres you are into so I've tried to list some must-watch dramas from a variety of genres -

MARS (Romance, Psychological)
In A Good Way (Coming-of-age, college, friendship, romance)
Skip Beat (coming-of-age, comedy, entertainment industry, slight romance)
Someday or One Day (time travel, romance)
Momo Love (siblings relationship, family, first love)
The Rose (family, psychological, slight romance)
Fated to Love You (comedy, romance)
Ghost Bride (horror, supernatural)
Black and White (investigation)
The World Between Us (mass shooting, social commentary, psychological)
Bump Off Lover (suspense, thriller, psychological)
Rainless Love in a Godless Land (msytery, fantasy, romance; a little similar to Goblin)

Feel free to reach out for more :)

Do let me know your thoughts if you watch them :)

SAMEEEEEEEEE! I watched almost everything with those actors too, and still continue to!
Did you watch Ariel Lin and Mike He's latest drama 'Imperfect Us'? It was fantastic (not a light watch though).

Skip Beat seriously deserved a 2nd season! It was so perfect. Too bad it's been over a decade.. so they're clearly never coming back :((
SIGHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHh

BTW if you liked Skip Beat, you should check out Glass Mask. They're very similar minus the wackiness.
https://kisskh.at/798-glass-mask

Oh yes all those Rainie Yang dramas <3333
DA LUNG DA LUNG DA LUNG DA LUNG XDDDD
I still enjoy watching all those dramas you mentioned. Unpolished but so feel-good and heartwarming.
I'm glad at least Japan still makes well-written wacky dramas like those once in a while, specifically those written by Kudo Kankuro. Do check them out!

HAHA that's fine.
I re-watched it sometime back and I found the styling really ugly. But back when I watched it while it was airing, that style was considered trendy and hip. So many people replicated them and found them so cool. The craze for F4 and Meteor Garden was just unreal all over the world.
Also, I can't help but mention that the Taiwanese adaptation is the closest an adaptation ever got to the original source material.
Taiwan seriously used to make the best adaptations, like MARS, Meteor Garden, Skip Beat etc
It makes me sad that they don't make those kind of wacky dramas anymore..

OMG THE CAST LIST IS BLOWING MY MIND
Kamiki Ryunosuke
Mamiya Shotaro
Narita Ryo
Sugisaki Hana
Shirasu Jin
Iitoyo Marie
Namase Katsuhisa
Ito Kentaro
Hirose Suzu
Kaneko Nobuaki

*instantly starts watching*

Sigh I'm probably in the minority who wasn't a fan of the ending.. I wish it ended when they she sent him the 'I love you' voice message after they parted at the train station. I really liked what he said at the train station.. the future is for both of them to plan together and that they could charge forward in their careers and not give up (even if that meant living apart). They could communicate daily and take a train to meet whenever possible.
It may not appear feasible but there are couples who do that.. also they were relatively new in the relationship.
the whole ending with them hugging and her saying that you're where my home is - felt a bit of a cop out where one of the leads always has to compromise and settle where the other is to make it work. It was too neat, and the "accident-that-didn't-happen" was too convenient and lazy writing to get them to the lets-live-together-ending. An open ending would have worked a lot better for this drama.
But again this is a C-drama.. and they barely like to keep it vague and people would probably hate that kind of ending.

Also my biggest gripe with this and a lot of C-dramas: The leads didn't really grow and remained as they were..

the physical difficulties that came with a prosthetic leg were never fully addressed either, like some research, some understanding into her condition would have fleshed out her character better.
Same for him - we never truly got to know his journey and how he got into the profession, and how that affected his view of life.
Like given that she has a prosthetic leg and there are possibilities of complications that may even result in death or further injury, wouldn't that make the possibility of 'death' be even closer for her.. how did that make him feel?
They centred everything around her decision to go to Shanghai when there were so many other things that could have been addressed / weaved into the narrative.. I like it when we have a focus on secondary characters, but in this drama the angle with Grandma Lin brought really little to the table, and the focus could have been a lot more on the difficulties her handicap brought to their relationship.

Oh yes, I remember that Roads Less Travelled article! I watched Neko Zamurai after it!
Unfortunately, most J dramas and T dramas have less than 1000 viewers these days unless they get popular HAHA

I completely agree! I'm open to the fact that people may not enjoy the same things.. What irks me is when people have those opinions and judgments purely based on a few bad dramas / movies they watched, and come to the conclusion that that's all the country has to offer.

What a sincere and beautiful love story of two very flawed, complex, and headstrong adults. Both Li Xian and Zhou Yu Tong's performance was so understated, and natural; they looked like a real couple that was in love. The cinematography complemented the warm, intimate and mature vibe the couple had, and the score was equally well-utilised to elevate their feelings. Though it wasn't without its flaws (that were never addressed), this has to be the best 'modern' Chinese drama I have watched. It was so reminiscent of the good old classic romance dramas from Japan where characters felt modern, and charming despite being flawed. And I rarely say this for a Chinese drama, but that was just the right length!

Chiba Yudai directed this?!
OMG I had no idea he directs too!
Will have to check it out.

I'm a sucker for these stories too HAHA
Harmonia has been on my PTW list!
Will watch it soon :)

Same :)
I love (1) the diversity, and (2) the emphasis on script and emotions in Japanese cinema. Like you could name an occupation or a topic and you'd be able to find a Japanese movie or drama on it. The range and diversity is truly unparalleled to cinemas from all over the world, all the way from seriously dark and heartbreaking stuff to silly stuff. Also, the way they're just able to make you empathize with just any character is commendable.

It pains me when I come across comments from people who watch the teensy manga adaptations and come to the conclusion that it's the only thing Japan makes or that Japanese actors can't act. Oh well..

I voted for Weightlifting Fairy Kim Bok Joo and Kill Me Heal Me :)

All these dramas brought back so many memories OMGGGGG
I have literally watched all of them.
GOOD OLD DAYS!
And also what are the odds I literally watched Summer Snow for the first time a few days back and fell deeply in love with it.
Such a fun article, everyone! Good job!
And +1 for the inclusion of dramas from different countries.

My first Asian drama was Princess Pearl.. I remember watching it on TV with my parents. It was probably their first time watching a Chinese show (since we're not Chinese).. it was such a rage back in the day! I don't even remember the plot anymore but I'll never forget naughty Xiao Yan Zhe and Er Kang, and blind Qi Wei and the old dude who lusted after her HAHA

P.S For oldies like me - Those of us who started watching Asian Dramas in the early 2000s mostly began our drama journey with Taiwan (and Japan for some). They were the most popular dramas back in the day and people were crazy about them. The current craze stars receive can't compare to the fame the Taiwanese F4 received for example. Too bad they're not as popular with the current drama audience and are largely stereotyped and misjudged. I hope more people give Taiwanese and Japanese dramas a chance because they're so good , and bring a much larger variety of stories, especially Japan.

Damn I almost didn't recognize Huang Xiao Ming.

Oh no :((
It's OK, thank you very much for subbing the first episode.
We deeply appreciate your effort :)

His acting is so understated and beautiful in 'Will Love in Spring'.
I am in LOVEEEEE.
Going to go watch as many of his dramas and movies as I can..

Loved him in Nanyobi Ni Umareta No!