OMFG. Fark me. WTF did I just watch??!!! My mind is completely blown. How can this be by the same writer who wrote SP? This season is turning out to be better than expected. Mozu was the great hope and it turned out meh. Season 2 might save it but I'm betting on it. The Long Goodbye was pretty good and I only saw Border as another gimmick police show but it has turned out to be such an incredible show. Stop reading and watch it if you haven't.
WHAT I LIKED
+ Oguri Shun's best acting job I have ever seen. Straight up contender for best actor in 2014. He is good. You can feel the emotional weight in his eyes and his sense of desperation. Hopefully he no longer has to do stupid romantic comedies that make no sense.
+ My main concern was how many ways the writer, Kaneshiro Kazuki could use the gimmick to tell stories before it became repetitive, sort of like River Edge but the writer has managed to exploit the gimmick to tell stories in many interesting ways that I did not forsee.
+ The emotional toll that Oguri Shun's character takes throughout the series. Best way to build empathy.
+ During the car bomb scene in episode 4, I was thinking they can't possibly have the budget to blow that car up? lol
+ I love episode 5 aka memory loss episode. Funny as hell.
+ Oguri Shun's monologue in episode 6 and the fact that the villain's argument in that episode made twisted sense. Good villains are the ones who believe in what they are doing.
+ Instead of writing about incompetent colleagues, we have great villains like the political fixer in episode 7. Holy shit, what a badass bad guy that I want to see Oguri Shun defeat. The hero is only as good as the villain and what a villain. Cause Oguri Shun's power can be considered cheating but when you put him against a villain where his powers are of little use? He better come back in season 2!
+ The final villain of the season played brilliantly by Omori Nao. He is the Joker to Oguri Shun's Batman and what a discourse those two have. Very reminiscent of The Dark Knight. Oguri Shun's power allows him to cheat but but its useless against the master criminal with the perfect crime.
+ Oguri Shun smashing his head against the brick wall.
+ The ending. What an ending. Can't believe someone had the balls to do that ending. Kaneshiro Kazuki has been building that up during the series with all the if you become as powerful as the bad guy, you will turn bad talk as well as all the mental pain and anguish that Oguri Shun goes through. I want season 2 now!!!
WHAT I DIDN'T LIKE
- Haru being way too young and the exy costumes during the bloodless autopsies.
- Oguri Shun did not need the hackers for simple things like accessing victim's email.
- No announcement of season 2? Someone please give them Hero's huge budget.
SUMMARY
Absolutely must watch jdorama. Strong contender for jdorama of the year. Oguri Shun has always been to me the boy who got abused in GTO. Now he is Ishikawa, the police officer tortured by his gift. Bring on season 2!!!!!
Another +
ReplyDeleteThis drama knows how to effectively use a tirelessly used trope properly, with all its attributes and emotional stakes.
I think what elevated that drama from what it could've been, and what made dramas failing at it, is that the writer concentrated on the power itself, and all the good and eventual harm is can bring. For that, he created a character to carry out that idea. So all the weight of the show rested on him but he didn't disappoint. Sometimes its all about the dialogue between 2 characters with opposite views, hence the interesting villains.
I agree the hackers were useless in many cases, or just used as a convenience. The autopsy girl was plain annoying but her role didn't matter, neither did the role of all the side characters :P
That drama, and its ending (gave me chills) was the surprise of the season!!
Was debating whether to watch this or not.. Now Imma watch it! Thanks for the recommendation!!! (:
ReplyDeleteI had a good feeling about Border and I'm glad 6 episodes in I'm still enjoying it. I hadn't watched SP so it was easy to give this a go, and you're definitely right about his acting skills!
ReplyDeleteThere really aren't many j actors that can act let alone convey feelings of empathy, so this is, and hopefully will continue to be, a very satisfying watch.
Thanks for the review! I would have missed Border but for your recommendation.
ReplyDeleteEp 5 is still my fave. It went from funny as hell to tearjerker in a matter of moments. Fave ghosts ever.
My friend said Odagiri Joe is selective about his scripts but after alice no toge i'm not too sure about that =X
Ep 5 made me start to think that Border could be very good.
ReplyDeleteJdoramas are written as the dramas are being shot so the only way to be selective is by looking at the writer's past work.
Has Alice no Toge really gotten worse?
Wow, this is Gaijin Keisatsu level cop drama... mind blown here as well.
ReplyDeleteThat "gimmick exploiting" was the biggest draw for me, it's like they subtly assumed you'd have all these preconceived notions... amazing.
Btw, the guest star for episode 5 is THE Kudo Kanduro, in case no one noticed. If that'll explain the comedy aspect and why he has exponentially more air-time than the other episode quests.
PS:
Love the selection of MILFs too :D
4545: Thanks for pointing out Kudo Kankuro!
ReplyDeleteYeah, its Gaiji Keisatsu level. Question is whether they can sustain it next season and bring it to a satisfying end.
I only just finished this series and my mind is also blown. I enjoyed it all the way through but that ending....WTF! Awesome and i really hope there will be a season 2.
ReplyDeleteBy the way, I don't get why anyone could complain about Haru paying the coroner. I don't care if she's too young, she is bloody gorgeous! Happy to make an exception for a face like that.
Thanks for this review, it's the only reason I watched :)
PS: A long time ago you asked me to tell you if Nazo no Tenkousei is good once I'd finished. I can tell you it's an ambitious and beautifully shot drama which has a very unique feel to it. Some of the acting is poor and the story does get a bit silly, but if you like sci-fi this might not be a problem. Overall I'd say it's worth checking out simply for how different it is to your average drama. I actually enjoyed it!
Shane: I just started watching Nazo no Tenkousei. :)
ReplyDeleteHaru's inappropriate casting and autopsy clothes just takes away from the grittiness and 'realism' of the show for me.