thecheesz_

An unflinching portrayal of the horrors and resiliences in war

This was a really good watch imo as it shows the other side of World War 2 from the Japanese perspective. Of course, its not to excuse the atrocities that the Japanese empire has done, but Japanese citizens also suffer its consequences too especially with the Hiroshima nuclear bombing. I was really impressed with the depiction of nuclear bombing victims as they really showed the charred appearance unflinchingly, which shows how cruel the use of nuclear weapons can be.

The romance was really cute too as the main couple were very reserved but they are good folks who are trying to make do with the trying situation. The acting for Suzu (FL) was spot on, I really felt the pain when she lost her arm while also blaming herself for causing the death of her cute niece. And it was especially heartbreaking to watch how she also lost a part of her identity when she lost her right arm since she likes to draw a lot. But I would have like to watch more from the ML since he didn't has a lot of scenes. That's why I feel that his acting was ok at best as he don't have the chance to show his acting chopes, This was a shame as I really like the actor's works.

I think the only problem I have is how the first misunderstanding between the main couple was resolved quite quickly and I personally don't see a point to have the current scenes added. Felt more gimmickly than adding any value to the plot. Some commenters were saying how they don't like how the main couple didn't address their issue with Rin but I feel that it was very Japanese to do that as they were known to do these kind of ambiguous storytelling, which I am fine with it. The music was good but unmemorable imo. Overall, I think this was a really good show and worth rewatching it again.

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If you need a drama to cry, this is the one

This is the drama if you really need a good release of tears. I was crying almost every episodes. The story was not the most original since there are dramas that already portray lead characters with life threatening illnesses. But what I really appreciate is the tenacity of the ML to live with the disease despite the sufferings he has to face. Plus Haruma Miura was so good in this! It was quite rare for me to fully care about a fictional character and how his future will pan out because he was so convincing as an ALS patient. He is the soul for this drama, every expressions he does makes me want to hug him so much. Its such a shame that he was not with us anymore.

I also love how the story addresses the issues that Takuto has with his family. It felt so real and I could totally feel his pain for being the unloved child in the family and how he got the courage to voice it out to his mum after he got ALS. The brother's growth was also endearing.

But the only thing that I hate about this drama was the writing for Shigeyuki. They really did him dirty. He is more like a character to add more spice to the drama. I think the love triangle was unnecessary but I guess they want to emphasise how unwavering the ML and FL love is.

I am also not a fan of the FL, but she did grow on me in the end. I just felt confused with her portrayal in the beginning.

The music is really good. Everytime I hear Harukaze by Rihwa, the sadness just kicks on me.

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Feel good drama about love and navigating differences

This was my first foray into Jdrama and it has such a feel good vibe that makes you want to keep watching for more. The story is pretty straightforward. An delinquent outcast fell in love with a visual impaired girl at first sight. However, the ML chasing after the FL was not without it's challenges as they need to learn how to accomodate to each other's differences. But what I really appreciate from the show is that the FL's poor eyesight was not seen as a weakness and the drama did not fall too much into a web of constant self-pity like many dramas that portrays disabilities do. The two main lead did a pretty good job in their performance but the characters are not the most challenging to portray, so I can't give any higher than 7.5. The music was nice but was quite forgettable. Pacing wise was pretty good.

What I dislike:
- Don't understand how ML could fell in love with the FL so quicky. No explanation on that.
- Not a fan of Shishio and the FL sister's romance. Some things can't be forced but I guess the writer wants to give a happy ending for everyone.
- The twist at the end was kinda unnecessary.

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Novel concept but unrealistic as a whole

I find the premise and concept of the drama to be quite novel as it's not a storyline I have watched before. However, I do feel that the drama tends to make these savior attempts of mentally distressed people quite simple. Sometimes, I don't think with mere words, you can really save a person who decides to die.

There were some episodes in this drama that stood out for me. Particularly, the war veteran and the comfort women episodes as these can make people cry. The episode on the depressed dog was also a delight as I definitely did not expect them to narrate the story from a dog perspective. However, there were some episodes that I hated, particularly the ones where Rowoon's character was being annoying. Out of all the characters, I dislike the ML the most as he was loud and stupid sometimes. Overall, while the show is a nice watch, I don't think it's worth the time to rewatch as the story can get depressing due to the heavy subject matter it is trying to portray.

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Premise and story is promising but execution fell flat.

I had really high hopes for this because I am a sucker for sad and melancholic movies with a deep message but I finished the movie disappointed. The message of the movie is deep, I have to give credit to but I can’t get pass how there are so much lack of context to what exactly happen to youngster doctor that made him depressed and traumatized. Without sufficient time to explain his traumas, it just makes his suffering hollow.

In terms of music, I understand they trying to go for the least obvious, by using not so melancholic music but the use of more upbeat tunes just makes the emotional part very distracting for me.

Also, I just feel that the side characters (particularly the hospital members) are wasted in this show. I don’t see a need to have them in the plot tbh, they add nothing much substantial to it. Overall, meaningful message but badly executed movie.

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Lighthearted and cute

This was a really cute and fluffy drama and my first foray into japanese foray. I think it did a really good job portraying the innocent love in highschool and the confusion and even struggles that comes when acknowledging one's sexual preferences. But if you are looking for a deep plot, this won't be it. Shunsuke did really well in acting as an unconfident person who is struggling with his sexual preferences and I also love his chemistry with Meguro Ren. The acting wasn't particularly very difficult to do, that's why I ranked it slightly lower. But Meguro really does know how to charm his audiences. I think it's really a good rewatch if you are feeling down as the innocent love between the MLs will make you giggle and squeal in excitement. The OST was quite good, much better than some of the other JDramas.

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A lot of wasted opportunities and unnecessarily draggy

This was recommended as one of a top tier Japanese drama but I kind of differ. It is a beautiful drama, with amazing cinematography and really fitting soundtracks. However, the drama was unnecessarily slow and the drama wasted the opportunity to tell a good compelling story of a hearing impaired person. Most of the time, the ML was engaging in self-pity and was a melancholic character. It did highlight some of his struggles when he slowly lost his hearing but I just don't really feel a lot for him most of his time. Perhaps, it was the limited emotions that Meguro Ren was able to portray for the character. His crying scenes just feel one-dimensional and I think his character needs him to be able to emote well for the drama to succeed. The FL actress was not great in crying scenes too. I watched another drama of hers and it seems to be so as it felt like she was constipated everytime she wants to cry, which is quite distracting everytime I want to invest myself to the tender moments of the drama.

I can't relate to their romance too. When they were highschool lovers, I can feel the attraction. But after they got back together again after ML lost his hearing, I feel that the FL love for him was pity rather than true love. The second ML was frustrating too as it doesn't make sense for him to give up on the FL and not do anything. He didn't fight for her love, he just gives up?? The only character that save the show was Haruo. He was such a comforting source for everyone and I am moved and convinced about his maturation.

Perhaps I would have appreciate the show more if I understand Japanese as I feel like I am not getting the nuances of the script as intended due to lost in translation, which was also highlighted by the writer that causes some controversy.

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Way better than season 1

Amagi as the main character is definitely more interesting than Tokai because the former is enigmatic, animated and so unpredictable. Nino totally nailed his character in this series as I looked forward to his performance every episode. I was also glad that Sera got more screen time this season, which was something I felt off in the first season and really liked how they showed his progression as a doctor. Was also great they have more episodes portraying the back stories of side character especially for Tokai’s favorite nurse.

In terms of the story, there were more excitement for this compared to the previous because there were more twists. The best one being Tokai and Amagi’s backstory. Totally didn’t expect that. And the public surgeries make it more dramatic and everything higher at stake. I think it’s a good strategy to include the public surgeries because they don’t have to pretend that the show is a realistic medical drama anymore. They are owning its own absurdities. The only issue I have with the story is probably the black pean agreement, which felt forced to called it that item since it’s more of a metaphor to the doctors’ relationship. I was very confused how the stories links to the Black forceps when they called it that.

I love the music in this show. The use of dramatic classical music for the DA portion is a stroke of genius and add the drama to those scene. Overall, this was a huge improvement from the original. Congrats!

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Interesting glimpse to a rather niche occupation but story development could be better

I watched this solely for Sugino, but I wouldn’t say this is his best performance especially coming from Barakamon. But it’s not completely his fault because his character is written in a manner that felt rather one-dimensional (I can’t really see what is his personality besides being someone who loves the mountain and someone who is hard on himself). But there were other characters who definitely nailed their performances, such as the evil mother and the government official. I hate them to pieces.

Plot wise - it goes deep into the issues that plagued Mountain doctors, which is refreshing as it is rather a niche career. But because it’s so focus on showing the action of the career that it affects the many characters’ characterization and development. For example, Emori is just a bitter doctor. The episodes also tend to be rather formulaic as each dealt with different cases and catastrophe. Music is the weakest here as they were just very forgettable. Overall, good cast, good subject matter but poor storytelling.

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Can’t seem to be invested in the plot..

I feel that the subject matter depicted in this drama is quite ahead of its time as I don’t remember seeing a lot of shows that depict the scam industry. But it is super relevant now in 2024, where scams are such a big issue in Asia and there are many movies that portray the matter. However, I wasn’t as invested to the storyline as I wanted to be. Maybe because I feel sad for those that being scammed while it kind of glorifies the industry? Or there weren’t enough peaks in the drama? But the acting is great just not the music. I feel that it could do better but it seems like a trend for Japanese drama.

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Poor acting and story that hinder its potential

My biggest issue with this drama is the acting. The actor who performed Yamato is quite awkward to make me be invested in the plot. The other guy who performed Kakeru is better but I just googled him and he is so young!

In terms of story pacing, I think it is quite draggy and seeing how Yamato not acknowledging his feelings in the beginning with not great acting is quite painful to watch. It got better at the later half where both ML began to acknowledge the feelings with one another.

Another problem I have with the plot is there were too many ??? moments like Yamato getting sick and had temporary amnesia? What was that about? And the two ML could have just confess in Yamato house but the writer(s) decide to add another scene in school for the confession? It’s just weird writing… overall, while their interactions are cute for the two leads but I think there are better BL to invest your time.

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Best Taiwanese drama hands down

Watch it because you won’t regret doing so. This was one hell of a drama with so many twists and turn that you won’t expect. You might be confused through the journey as there are many mystery plots to unravel but it will all fall into place. The ending where everything is revealed is truly mind blowing for me and also love how they incorporate so much social themes into the plot even though as a whole it is a romance drama.

The two main lead are perfect for their roles they portrayed. Alice Ko was exceptionally good portraying the outgoing and later grieving Huang Yu Xuan and depressed Huang Yunru. Her getting best actress is a testament to her performance. This drama was also when I fell in love with Greg, he is just so hot and can really act.

The music is another big part of this show. Music soundtracks compliment the plot while all the songs were so good and fits the nostalgia vibe that part of the drama is going for. Once again, watch this as you definitely won’t regret.

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Not so convinced about the acting...

The storyline is straightforward, just like what the title suggested. An overprotective undergrad trying to be independent and this was after she met her future lover, who does not have the luxury to be protected by his parents. Of course, her path to independence and self-sufficiency is not met with a set of challenges as her overprotective mum wouldn't want her to pursue that path and her family also met with crisis after crisis. As a drama, it is pretty enjoyable but I am not convinced if she will truly be independent. But I know there is a movie sequel for this, so I might want to check this out in the future and when I have time.

I think one problem I have with this show is that the FL is acting too unrealistically dumb even though I don't think her character is supposed to be that way. Also, I feel that the mum is acting way too mean which doesn't make sense. Like shouldn't she be very protective of her daughter but why at times, she felt like a bitchy person towards her daughter?? Besides that, the other casts are great. Overall, I think this is a decent filler show to watch especially if you are waiting for new episodes for other series. Or you just wanted a chill watch, this will be a great option too.

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Love to see the duo in action

I didn’t have a lot of expectations for this because first, I didn’t watch the original Korean version and second, crime fighting drama is not really my go to kind of drama. But it was a pretty good watch considering I was hooked to the different crimes and how the duo managed to overcome the obstacles along the way. But storyline is pretty standard and the twist at the end isn’t that much of a surprise either since the final boss usually is someone close.

The two ML chemistry is really good and is one of the main reason why I continued watching. But I do feel that Kento especially tend to be a little trying hard to look good in many of his characters he depicted and here is a similar case. Probably due to his idol status that he needs to depict characters in a certain manner.

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My favourite Taiwanese drama for a very long time.

This was my favorite Taiwanese drama for a very long time until Someday or One Day comes along. There were a lot of life lessons I got when I watched and it has stuck with me till now. And for a period, it really inspired me to want to be a scriptwriter myself because the writing was really good even though the story might not be the most novel.

Ariel Lin really hit the park with this because my impressions have been stucked to her performance of Xiang Qin. But here, she totally did a 180 change in performance style which I wasn’t expecting. Chen Bolin was also really good especially the parts where he was lonely and sad. Their chemistry is also another level and made me convinced that they are truly bestie turned couple.

Also, the side characters performed really well especially You Qing’s mum. Finally, it’s a mum that is not mean spirited and really knows the FL very well. How I wish my mum can be like this too..

The music is also really good and very fitting to the vibe of the drama. And the OSTs are really nice to listen. Overall, you are missing if you haven’t watched this.

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