Aw yiss! I've been re-watching some shows and films starring Arashi members lately and I've got to say Nino's roles rank among my faves, with Ryusei no Kizuna and Yowakate topping the list. He was really quite impressive in the Platinum Data movie, too.
(Granted, I still can't stand YamaTaro, but my problems with that show go way beyond casting choices so nvm that.)
Aw yiss. Sakurai's performance is the main reason I'm really enjoying SakiBoku right now so it was very interesting to learn a little more about him. Thank you!
Not such a big fan of live action adaptations of manga in general, but I'm definitely going to watch this one. Two reasons: (1) it's always good to see Hokkaido on screen; (2) I'm just REALLY curious about Shige as Yashiro.
I can relate to all 5... One more kind of mishap that happens to me all the time: I don't have any furniture in my apartment except for a low table so I usually watch things sitting on the floor cross-legged - which is all good as long as I remember to stretch my legs every once in a while. The thing is that when I become really engrossed in an episode, I tend to forget about such trifle matters as blood circulation. The episode ends, I try to get up to go to the kitchen--and fall flat on my face with no feeling in my legs.
(There was also this one creepy situation when out of the blue I remembered a ridiculously funny scene on my way back from work and got in trouble with some angry drunk, who apparently thought I had laughed at him - but only once, thank heavens.)
Unexpected favorite: Saki ni umareta dake no boku. I didn't think much of the story after reading the summary, but it's turning out to be just so. Very. Relatable.
Great article! Loved that you mentioned his stage roles. Tbh the only one I knew is Dokurojo no Shichinin, whoops. Gotta check if anything else is available on DVD.
I'm trying to recall what was the first show or movie that made me pay attention to him, and failing spectacularly... brain finding it difficult to believe that there used to be a time when I didn't know who Oguri Shun was, apparently! A legend indeed.
Can't think of a single favorite role, either--although his guest performance in Yae no Sakura (as Yoshida Shoin) has a ~Very Special Place in my Heart~. Loved his guest role in Kounodori, too. This is going to sound silly but it may have left a deeper impression than the main storyline. Most recently I really liked him as Inami in Crisis (there was also the Gintama live action, but... let's not go there, lmao). Super excited for the new BORDER, too.
I seldom watch Chinese dramas (I immensely enjoyed the few I watched, but my listening comprehension is non-existent and I've trouble following subs because of reasons) so I definitely fit in the beginner category, and I couldn't agree more about Eternal Love.
To be honest, my absolute favorite is Nirvana in Fire, but I also remember feeling utterly lost for the first few episodes so as great as NIF is, it's not exactly beginner-friendly. Eternal Love on the other hand was pure fun from the beginning to the end.
(Although in terms of getting new fans hooked NIF probably wins. It didn't get me to watch more dramas, but it sure did get me hooked on that period in history.)
While I'm not particularly triggered by this theme and it doesn't bother me when it comes up as a problematic issue, teacher/student romance is not something I would willingly watch. This said, a former student and their former teacher meeting again some 10+ years later, learning to see each other in a different light and eventually falling in love is a motif I actually really enjoy. Not sure if I've ever seen it in a drama, though; all examples I can think of right now are books.
At the moment I'm casually following Ashi Girl and Warotenka, and I //might// watch Kounodori 2 depending on current mindset (not a big fan of babies...), but the two shows I'm most looking forward to this autumn are Rikuou and Nirvana in Fire 2 (mostly just curious about the latter, but still).
Started Final Life, too, but I didn't like it much; dropped the series after a few episodes.
Thank you for bringing up this topic! Leaving aside movie adaptations of books that were widely recognized worldwide to begin with, I have a feeling a lot of people would be surprised how many popular tv shows are actually novel adaptations (at least here in Japan; I'm not familiar with the situation in other countries, but judging from some comments below it seems to be similar?).
Personally, I will watch pretty much anything based on books by Bin Konno (examples: ST, Inpei Sosa, Hancho: Keishicho Azumi Han) or Jun Ikeido (Hanzawa Naoki, Shitamachi Rocket and a dozen of other shows - Japanese tv loves Ikeido); not so much because their works are literary masterpieces but precisely because they make great screenplays.
I also really like the novel series by Takeru Kaido that sprouted the Team Batista dramas and movies, although in this case the adaptations have very little (and I do mean VERY little) in common with the original.
Incidentally, two of my favorite Japanese novels (Atsuko Asano's Battery and Shion Miura's Kaze ga Tsuyoku Fuiteiru) have also been adapted to live-action, but neither of those adaptations was particularly successful. Battery: the movie was mediocre, while the drama version was dreadful; as for Kaze ga Tsuyoku Fuiteiru, the movie was perfectly forgettable. Shion Miura's other works seem to have had more luck - especially the Mahoro Ekimae series (both the movie and drama were A++).
For me, cast and genre are decisive factors. I don't really have any actors I hate, but I'm unlikely to watch a drama focusing on characters in their teens or early twenties and starring only very young actors/actresses. As for genre preferences, there are some genres I don't really like but will make exceptions for if the summary catches my attention (for example fantasy), and two I'm literally allergic to (zombies and romance - though I might give a love story a chance if the primary genre is comedy).
(Granted, I still can't stand YamaTaro, but my problems with that show go way beyond casting choices so nvm that.)
(There was also this one creepy situation when out of the blue I remembered a ridiculously funny scene on my way back from work and got in trouble with some angry drunk, who apparently thought I had laughed at him - but only once, thank heavens.)
I'm trying to recall what was the first show or movie that made me pay attention to him, and failing spectacularly... brain finding it difficult to believe that there used to be a time when I didn't know who Oguri Shun was, apparently! A legend indeed.
Can't think of a single favorite role, either--although his guest performance in Yae no Sakura (as Yoshida Shoin) has a ~Very Special Place in my Heart~. Loved his guest role in Kounodori, too. This is going to sound silly but it may have left a deeper impression than the main storyline. Most recently I really liked him as Inami in Crisis (there was also the Gintama live action, but... let's not go there, lmao). Super excited for the new BORDER, too.
To be honest, my absolute favorite is Nirvana in Fire, but I also remember feeling utterly lost for the first few episodes so as great as NIF is, it's not exactly beginner-friendly. Eternal Love on the other hand was pure fun from the beginning to the end.
(Although in terms of getting new fans hooked NIF probably wins. It didn't get me to watch more dramas, but it sure did get me hooked on that period in history.)
Started Final Life, too, but I didn't like it much; dropped the series after a few episodes.
Personally, I will watch pretty much anything based on books by Bin Konno (examples: ST, Inpei Sosa, Hancho: Keishicho Azumi Han) or Jun Ikeido (Hanzawa Naoki, Shitamachi Rocket and a dozen of other shows - Japanese tv loves Ikeido); not so much because their works are literary masterpieces but precisely because they make great screenplays.
I also really like the novel series by Takeru Kaido that sprouted the Team Batista dramas and movies, although in this case the adaptations have very little (and I do mean VERY little) in common with the original.
Incidentally, two of my favorite Japanese novels (Atsuko Asano's Battery and Shion Miura's Kaze ga Tsuyoku Fuiteiru) have also been adapted to live-action, but neither of those adaptations was particularly successful. Battery: the movie was mediocre, while the drama version was dreadful; as for Kaze ga Tsuyoku Fuiteiru, the movie was perfectly forgettable. Shion Miura's other works seem to have had more luck - especially the Mahoro Ekimae series (both the movie and drama were A++).