mysecretsoul

You can be sure I wouldn't attack Russia in winter, either; it's more likely I'd get there, then continue south across the water towards Japan instead. "Conquering? Whoops, got distracted by the taiyaki...."

Such a lucky accident! Interesting that Gene Kelly also had the opposite reputation of Fred Astaire (in that he was hard to work with, sometimes described as a little mean). Do you like many of the musical/dance films from that era? I confess I've only seen the classic and "big name," ones, but have always been particularly impressed with the dancing.

Don't worry! Ryoma totally captured my heart too; how could he not? Fukuyama-san embodies the magnetism of the man just as well as everything else. It's a little startling, but he bears some resemblance to him as well (despite being older and well, more handsome). And oh my gosh, he does need to act more.

It would be a perfect choice to watch with her, too; the other elements of YK are family-based, and two of the lead characters are a mother and daughter. Hope you enjoy it together! The mystery element is also very strong.

I'm about to start the first episode of Princess. Woo~ XD

Thank you so much for the link! I'm excited to try it out, especially as I had no idea such a thing almost occurred. Wonder how history might have played out if things had been different. Then again, I adore speculative fiction, haha.

Ah, yeah! Well, both of them: there's a Gregory Peck film set late in the novels, and another short-lived but excellent miniseries from A&E. Thank you for the recommendation; I have never read that work, but after hearing such beautiful imagery I can't stay away. Good thing I have my tablet here. *_*

Oh, I know right? It seems like all of the bombastic characters of history were born on my day. Worst part is that I'm also very short. XD

Great taste! Fred Astaire had such talent and was purported to be so nice in real life too. One of my favorites was a little more wild, and sadly passed recently: Peter O'Toole. He was so perfect in Lawrence of Arabia.

Hello again, onee-chan! I always have room open to watch something with you. Princess, then? I'll start up tomorrow~

And yes; I've been feeling kind of guilty about not watching much in the way of Japan, haha. Some of these are even good for building for vocabulary, as well as being entertaining. I would really recommend Yakou Kanransha from 2013 though. It was incredible *_*

You know, it's strange. When I first started watching dramas, all I wanted to see were pure romances. Like, I could hardly be bothered with anything else. Then suddenly, boom! Can't stand it without a whole lot of other stuff padding it down. It seems to be a reoccurring phenomenon around here, actually; perhaps it should be given a name, like a new form of plague.

Though I enjoy Gye Baek more after watching Queen Seon Duk, it's purely because certain historical figures are featured in both. With Sword and Flower, I've actually seen dramas from the perspective of each warring state from that time period now. They're all heavily romanticized of course, but it's fun because I'm a history nut.
And no worries: I can only take Lee Yo Won in small doses too. But she always seems to be surrounded by the most incredible co-stars?!

Looks like Seo Jin's new project will air in February....

Ah, you enjoy Bogart then? I never knew he liked ships, though when you mention it that definitely makes sense. Now for two fun coincidences: I also like ships, and C. S. Forester, who wrote the novel which forms the basis for African Queen, also penned the Horatio Hornblower series (which got me into them in the first place). But yes, you may like Dokushin Kizoku -- especially because you liked Sabrina, and classic movies in general. The nostalgic quirkiness keeps the entire thing really fresh somehow.

You share a birthday with Fukuyama-san? For some reason, it always made me kind of happy to share a birth month or day with artists too. My birthday is pretty much only shared with Napoleon Bonaparte though? XD

Oh! Thank you for showing that to me. Where did you see this special? I don't think I've ever heard of this story before, but it does sound fascinating.

She is, though if I remember correctly, her parts aren't many overall. You'll definitely see Ryoma writing letters to her, since they were separated so frequently; much of their content is based on those that survived until today.

Isn't the cast amazing though. It drives me crazy that Fukuyama-san, particularly, doesn't act as frequently. His singing is awesome, but his acting and script choices are always solid. Did you know he turned down the part three times before he accepted? So glad he did, haha.

Oh, you also saw Gou? Was it iffy? Still, good to see it translated. It pains me that so many Taiga dramas are left raw, including Taira no Kiyomori (and what a cast, there too).

Kizoku is surprisingly good. It feels like a homage to old romance films, complete with vintage soundtrack. If you've ever seen the Audrey Hepburn film "Sabrina," it's like that mixed with King of Dramas.

Absolutely! The scholars even contend that without a sister as unique as Otome, Ryoma might never have grown into the man he did. She encouraged almost all his pursuits, even when they were out of the common way for contemporary Japanese men of the time. She actually practiced naginata actively and left her husband for the freedom of home, too. That straightforwardness was shared between she and her brother~

Our view is similar, that common people can change the world; in fact, I think that while those cerebral people have their uses, simpler minds give proper focus (after all, who knows best for the people than the people themselves?)

Oh, The Voice? I haven't seen him much, honestly; the only drama I've actually taken interested in with him was Behind The White Tower, where he plays the "good" to Kim Myung Min's "bad," coincidentally ambitious sleaze. Gong Yoo was certainly wonderful in The Crucible, though for some reason my head popped to him first. The way his character is described (at least initially) in Coffee Prince gives me that impression, haha. Still need to see that one, since I was living under a rock when it was popular. XD

Saeguks really are a killer. I'm rather enjoying Gye Baek, but the connections it has to Queen Seon Duk are helping. There are some pretty frustrating parts to it lately, but Seo Jin works so well with his costars. And those dimples. Love them.

You're probably a little disappointed his newly announced one is so long too, right? It's another 50 episode family do. @_@

No problem! Too bad the person that transcribed doesn't have the power to add information to the top post; around here, it seems like many people have trouble finding the final parts.

Men like Ryoma and Katsu Kaishu had such foresight; you'll enjoy the other historical figures Ryoma comes into contact with later, no doubt. It actually surprised me how far his struggle went and how many it touched in the end. The travelogues gave me goosebumps also, especially in this respect -- some of them nearly had me cry.

But after reading more about Ryoma and perusing letters to his sister, Otome, what's even more incredible is how ineloquent and simple he was. People like Takechi Zuizen might be expected to change Japan, but the real revolutionary was one who came to understand more than the same samurai creed. That he should be so progressive and clever, it would usually only happen in stories.

...some of them are wild. As you complete the series, I'd be glad to share more information, though I do totally forget what occurs episode to episode. Gah, I should really re-watch, haha.

And never feel bad about messaging me or asking me questions! It's a lot of fun for me too~

The last three episodes are subbed, though by transcript; somehow the translator went missing and another provided subtitles from the Hawaiian broadcast. I believe they're available but somewhat hidden; after this, I'll try to track the link down and send it to you. :)

If we're talking about the Americans or British conversing with the Japanese, it's because they'd never had real contact with them before. The Dutch had been seafaring for quite some time, being some of the first to interact with Japan; many religions missions and trade routes were developed between the two, though even these were limited.

As to Yataro, that aspect would normally bother me as well -- though I believe it would have been possible for Yataro to have read or garnered the events from Ryoma (or those surrounding around them). In some of my books, there are many stories related by Tosa citizens and ....

Oh, Yoo Seung Ho! Almost forgot about him. He didn't impress me in Warrior Baek Dong Soo, but later recaptured my attention in Queen Seon Duk. The character was so multi-faceted and hard to read at first. I have no idea why I only keep encountering him in sageuks though, haha.

Oh, that's awful! The travelogues enhance the show so much. If I'm not mistaken, they pick back up down the road -- yet some are still overlooked.

Something about Ryomaden that surprised me was just how unaware the Japanese were of their place in the world. Like, they had no idea how small an area their island encompassed, or how behind in technology they were. I can't even imagine what seeing the Black Ships for the first time would have been like.

Which leads me back to the point you made about history classes. Before seeing it on screen, it would have never occurred to me to think about how such things felt.

Absolutely. Hyun Woo had some particularly impressive emotional scenes in Gye Baek, too, which I saw recently; I just hope he can choose decent projects when the time comes. Bad projects can shake a good actor and good projects can elevate a bad one, they say. There was another kid that was decent...I think he's the one in Man From The Stars?

Oh, I understand the focus would not be on Ryoma in Jin. I was more saying I'm not sure Uchino would be the right choice for a longer stay with the character. But the portrayal sounds spot on to what others would see of the man, and I'm glad it got you into the drama. Not enough people have seen it. And I now really want to put Jin higher on priorities, haha XD

I noticed you also added Shinsengumi! where funnily enough, I think Uchino-san would have been an awesome Kondo.

Uchino Masaaki.... I would need to see Jin, though I think Fukuyama-san ultimately embodies the role. Seeing the portrayal from start to finish, the innocence and imperfection and the struggle, then ultimate evolution into a legend.... it's incredible. For Uchino-san, I can see him doing wonderfully with the complete, larger-than-life Ryoma others would see.

Admittedly, it did take me a while to warm to him in Tonbi though.

I had begun to suspect that about Korean dramas. For example, though Lee Hyun Woo isn't terrible, I continually see him playing young versions of people he looks nothing like (such as Uhm Tae Woong). Funnily enough I then always see people complaining that the older character isn't as "cute" as the younger version, haha.

Oh, Ryoma was featured in Jin! Love to hear it. He's a person that deeply influenced Japan down to its core, though his popularity as a historical figure experienced a resurgence with the airing of Ryomaden. Taiga dramas rarely romanticize, you're right, though they're not above occasionally using supernatural elements. As to an unreliable narrator, they don't really do that (though Yataro's life is shown as well; he's also an important person, whose fate was intertwined with Ryoma's).

Oh! In A Good Way is apparently similar to the Reply series, though the entirety of the story takes place in the past (1995). The lead character sometimes narrates something she found out later, but for the most part it's like this. Romance hasn't quite developed yet, but the main focus currently stands on college and finding one's own way. The Taiwanese title is actually "My Era of Freedom," which is probably more descriptive of its contents.

Are the cases in strong in Galileo then? I'm glad to hear that the partner change isn't as dire as I'd initially thought.

Haha! Can't stay away from Kimura-san after all? It seems like something I'd like too, with a very quirky science-fiction/video game atmosphere.

Last Cinderella was spoiled for me because of hype; many people openly chalked out the ending all over the place, which was frustrating. That said, the age difference would have probably repelled me anyway. Though I rather do like Fujiki Naohito, I can see where you're coming from; for instance, he probably showed the most life in CONTROL, but the drama wasn't great.

Young actors sometimes even annoy me, especially in Korean dramas; with exceptions, they can feel like place-holders until the adult cast comes in. When they're part of focus and very talented or realistic, I tend to notice them favorably (such as in Woman).

I see you started Ryomaden! That drama was really something for me; it inspired me to buy tons of books on Sakamoto-san. Fascinatingly, what I read jived extremely well with the plot line and included information in the travelogues. Makes me want to watch it again. XD

Oh, I see then. Legal rights can be such a muddy area. It's my opinion that fan-made products which don't hurt the sales or image of the original should be allowed; though, on that same note, the wishes of the creator should be respected. It's good that the game was eventually okay-ed.

Agreed on types of male lead. I'm getting so sick of cold, arrogant princes when it comes to romanc and Densha definitely sounds like a breath of fresh air. Aren't there also multiple versions of it? I remember reading about it a little, because it was based on a true story. Or my memory is off, haha.

I just realized Haruma-san is actually a year younger than me, wow. He impressed me most in his younger roles, because there seemed to be a spark. Though it seems that he has yet to take on a more mature ones to boost that spark (other than Taisetsu). I'll have to add it to my list~

Oh, Aiba-san! His dramas are so rarely subbed, which is a shame; apparently his Last Hope medical foray this year was excellent. Gu Family Book was popular this year as it aired. I hope you enjoy it! I've never actually seen Lee Seung Gi as an actor before, haha.