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I am thinking of watching the new J-drama Sunao ni Narenakute, but I'm unsure. It has a lot going for it: the writer, the cast, positive reviews from most of my flist; however, it has some negative reviews on my flist and it reminds me a bit of the horrible drama, Last Friends.
Last Friends was about a group of twenty-somethings, who all had dramatic issues: molested/raped by a family member! beaten by boyfriend! possible sex addict! transgendered! It was just a bit too much for one drama and came across as inapproriate funny and overly
melodramatic. (Side note: Rumor has it that Ueno Juri got upset during the making, because she really researched her character who was meant to be transsexual. However, the writer and PD decided to more or less abandon that storyline. Why? They wanted to focus more on Nishikido Ryo's character. Why? The ratings went up the more he was show angsty and the more he was shown beating Nagasawa Masami's character. It's just a rumor, though. I do remember people saying that Ryo's character seemed to have serious mental issues that we never fully explained.) I'm rambling, but basically I could not get past episode two of Last Friends.
People on my flist are also comparing the drama to Love Shuffle. A drama that does not get enough love. It's about a group of people (ranging from age 18 to mid-thirties) that form friendships and real love while playing a 'love shuffle' game. (It's better than it sounds.)
I've also heard comparisons to other Kitagawa Eriko works, such as Orange Days (most likely because of the friendship aspect of twenty-somethings finding themselves while forming bonds), Love Story (most likely because LS was about the love stories and friendships of a group of people living/working Sunset Apartments; though most of those characters were 30 or older), and even Tatta Hitotsu no Koi (maybe best of the love story/friendship stuff). I loved all three of these dramas and Kitagawa Eriko is in my top ten Japanese writers list. The fact that people are comparing her newest work to some of my favorites of hers, as well as the fact that I've loved all her dramas makes me happy.
But within the first episode we learn ( that )
That is just. . . a lot of angst for five characters and eleven episodes. I'm not sure if I can take it. I did watch the first episode RAW and it didn't pull me in. So, I shall wait until it has four episodes out (it will be after my finals) and I'll marathon the episodes. Then, I shall decide -
is Sunao ni Narenakute (Hard to say I love you) the next Last Friends or the next Love Shuffle?
Last Friends was about a group of twenty-somethings, who all had dramatic issues: molested/raped by a family member! beaten by boyfriend! possible sex addict! transgendered! It was just a bit too much for one drama and came across as inapproriate funny and overly
melodramatic. (Side note: Rumor has it that Ueno Juri got upset during the making, because she really researched her character who was meant to be transsexual. However, the writer and PD decided to more or less abandon that storyline. Why? They wanted to focus more on Nishikido Ryo's character. Why? The ratings went up the more he was show angsty and the more he was shown beating Nagasawa Masami's character. It's just a rumor, though. I do remember people saying that Ryo's character seemed to have serious mental issues that we never fully explained.) I'm rambling, but basically I could not get past episode two of Last Friends.
People on my flist are also comparing the drama to Love Shuffle. A drama that does not get enough love. It's about a group of people (ranging from age 18 to mid-thirties) that form friendships and real love while playing a 'love shuffle' game. (It's better than it sounds.)
I've also heard comparisons to other Kitagawa Eriko works, such as Orange Days (most likely because of the friendship aspect of twenty-somethings finding themselves while forming bonds), Love Story (most likely because LS was about the love stories and friendships of a group of people living/working Sunset Apartments; though most of those characters were 30 or older), and even Tatta Hitotsu no Koi (maybe best of the love story/friendship stuff). I loved all three of these dramas and Kitagawa Eriko is in my top ten Japanese writers list. The fact that people are comparing her newest work to some of my favorites of hers, as well as the fact that I've loved all her dramas makes me happy.
But within the first episode we learn ( that )
That is just. . . a lot of angst for five characters and eleven episodes. I'm not sure if I can take it. I did watch the first episode RAW and it didn't pull me in. So, I shall wait until it has four episodes out (it will be after my finals) and I'll marathon the episodes. Then, I shall decide -
is Sunao ni Narenakute (Hard to say I love you) the next Last Friends or the next Love Shuffle?
