I saw this this on Disney+ and thought isn't this the name of a famous movie that I never got around to watching? I enjoyed Netflix's sumo jdorama Sanctuary although it had a stupid ending and ended up watching a bit of sumo related videos including a livestream where everyone in the chat knew the wrestlers and a news report about this Japanese girl trying to survive doing sumo for the love of the sport.
Sumo Do, Sumo Don't is about such a girl, Oba Honoka who is the lone member of the sumo club of her university. She is from Aomori, very straightforward and is not good with people. Ryota has just been dumped by his best friend because he never puts full effort into anything finds out that he is in danger of not graduating which will prevent him from working.
Ryota's teacher gives him a chance and tells him she will pass him if he joins the sumo club and participates in one match.
WHAT I LIKED
+ Classic underdog sports story where a team of losers work hard together and fail and fail before getting better.
+ Movie about people finding their place in the world and how giving one's energy to a goal is a rewarding experience.
+ Payoff is great and you will be cheering our lovable team of wrestlers on at the end.
+ It has got the feel good Swing Girls/Ganbatte Ikkimashoi vibe.
+ I liked that it talks about how Sumo is a man's sport and women are not given much chance to participate.
WHAT I DIDN'T LIKE
- Pacing is extremely, extremely slow. Not for binging. I really considered stopping around episode 4 because of how slow and laid back it is. I feel they could have chopped it into 7 episodes instead of 10.
- Not as funny as it should be, especially with the pacing.
- Main character Ryota is too skinny. He is clearly the least athletic of the guys but storyline wise, they put him last in the team. He has no muscles in his legs and no power. I know they are suppose to be C level ie bottom of the amatuer wrestlers but it would be better if he looked a bit athletic. That said, acting-wise he was cast perfectly.
SUMMARY
I both dislike and like Sumo Do, Sumo Don't. The pacing nearly kills the show for me. It does everything else well but I have no desire to rewatch it because it is too slow. However it still delivered on the feel good moments. Overall, I would rather rewatch Sanctuary. I can't really recommend it for the pacing but if you don't mind super slow jdoramas this could be up your alley. Maybe it is time for me to watch the movie.
2 comments:
There's one Disney+ J-Drama that I saw someone recommending, it's an adaptation of the manga, Land of Tanabata. It's been written by Gannibal writer, but I don't watch it yet and I'm not sure if it's good or not.
I remember liking this a lot for all the reasons you mention, but yeah a bit more sedate than the usual underdog story.
I think I mentioned this before but the Netflix wrestling drama "Queen of Villains" was pretty good, and is a lot more action-packed than this.
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