Summer Anime 2014 Ep 1/2 two cents thoughts

This post is going to be a collection of my two cents comments about the first episode of some Summer Anime that I have watched. You may agree or disagree with me, but I'm not asking you to agree with everything.

Just to clarify, I watched all the titles without reading the manga unless otherwise mentioned.

more warnings:

lots of stupid fangirlings and maybe incoherent sentences

and obviously major spoilers. 

Also, this is a lengthy post so please take your time.

K-drama: Bel Ami/Pretty Man/Yeppeun Namja after thoughts

Are you a huge fan of shoujo manga or manhwa? 

Are you a fan of bishounen/flower boy/pretty boy?

Are you a fan of rich family stories? 

If you have shoujo manga in 2 out of 3 choices, then this drama is for you.

I just finished this drama and I thought I should just write a bit of my thoughts and maybe do this drama a justice. I watched this drama with a shoujo fan mindset and this is a very light heart-ed drama.

If you heard of this drama, you probably checked the ratings and it is unexpectedly low. I gave it a gamble and went to watch it since the cast were a few of my favorite actor/actresses. It's been long since I last watched a Han Chaeyoung drama and I've been a huge fan of hers since Chunhyang days and also Jang Geun Suk since You're Beautiful. IU was a new lead so it was quite interesting and sorry, I have no idea who Lee Jangwoo was. 

This drama was adapted from a popular manhwa so you will expect dramatic scenes and reactions and unrealistic story. 

Jang Geuk Suk is Dokgo Ma Te while IU is Kim Bo Tong. Ma Te is a pretty boy who uses his pretty face to win heiress's heart to get what he wants (house, car, money... etc) and one day, he bumps into Hong Yoora, who seems to be "stalking" him. He approached her and she knows of his "password" that he needs in order to meet his mother and the answer of his password lies in Yoora's hands after Ma Te's mother sudden passing from an illness. In order to retrieve his password to reunite with his father, Ma Te has to conquer 10 women sent by Yoora to help her kick MG Group's Vice president, her mother-in-law, off her seat. 

Through the 10 women Ma Te meets, he learns and acquire skills needed to surpass MG group's power. However, the women that Ma Te dated, he manages to mature as a better person and take life lessons and values and through his experiences with them, the women also knows more about themselves, especially their flaws. 

J-Movie: Kuroshitsuji/Black Butler Review

Before you read any further, my review may be biased because I am a huge fan of Kuroshitsuji.

When the news of kuroshitsuji live-adaptation film was given a green-lit, i was very skeptical if this will turn out any flop. Many otakus will know when manga-adapted movies all turn out terrible and majority of the films have an awkward flow and plot. Then, when the news of the cast was released, i was even more worried because Ciel became a girl?!?!?!?!??! It's like they are trying to push for a het!sebastian x ciel and then there was this rumor that the identity of ciel will be changed. Also, a mix model for undertaker? My mindset back then was "SHIT THIS IS GOING TO BE A MAJOR FLOP"

When they release the trailer of kuroshitsuji.

I changed my mind about the movie because Mizushima Hiro did a well job portraying Sebastian!!! Still worried about Ayame Goriki portraying as Kiyoharu Genpo (we all know as ciel), but since it was a Warner bros. Japan film, it wouldn't be so bad. I was looking forward to watch the movie but when it was announced the release date, i was a bit sad that it wasn't release worldwide until March!!!

SPOILERS BELOW!

Manga: Bride of the water god

The bride of the water god
Genre: Historical, shoujo, fantasy
Type: manhwa
Synopsis: Soah is a girl from a small village. The Water God is upset and so a long drought has been devastating the village people. In order to appease the god, they marry Soah off to him by sacrificing her to the Water God in exchange for rain. The Water God rescues her to his Water Kingdom, where her new life begins. For Soah, this is a story of her faith ... her life ... her love... (from mangahere)

I've not been a fan of manhwa's because their shoujo manhwas are always almost the same but there are a few that I am a great fan of : Goong, Model, Bride of the Water God, Noblesse, Captive Hearts (omfg this is BL but the best BL ever!!!!!!!)

I can't remember how I first encountered Bride of the Water God, but all I remember was when I first read the story, there were no english scans online so I must've bought the chinese manga to read. What made me reach for this book is the beauty of how the characters are drawn. Although most manhwa has their characters with large round eyes and narrow body and face, this artist drew all the characters like dolls. If you read one of the 4koma somewhere in between, the mangaka mentioned that she likes to draw her characters beautiful and made sure they have elegance, even if the scenes were killing.

The drawings inside are by far the most beautiful and serene I've ever seen and if you want to take a look at some scenery of the water kingdom, you can go tumblr and search for the tag. The thing about historical manga, it is important for a manga to draw their dressing well and she made hers so simple and elegant, just too beautiful. Oh yes, her drawings resemble clamp. Long bodies, long dresses, long hair. Everything is elongated!

Story wise... it revolves around the human girl Soah and how she's an important character in the celestial world. The gods are at war with mainly two sides, shin nong or the emperor (they are both brothers). I really like how the mangaka incorporates chinese tales into the story (i've listened to it since i was young) so i'm not unfamiliar with the stories. Her style of writing seems to focus more on relationships between people, something really classic and full of grace(?????) i know i dont make much sense loll!

When you read Bride of the Water God, you will not feel much violence, everything is quite pretty and peacemaking... basically your heart won't go crazy and make you turn into some violent reader but at times i did go crazy with the stupidity of the characters. There is not much depth into the storyline so you don't have to think so much and just go with the flow. There are fun moments inside but other than that, i think you can expect cliche lines and scenes.

An advice, just enjoy the 2d bxw scenery!!!!

I will re-read the manhwa again because the scanslators are terrible with their translations (sorry!!) and i got so confused with the names and because different people translate it, the story becomes choppy and sometimes it doesnt make sense. So if you are a fan of the manhwa, please buy the original or translated whatever you see in your country and read it again.

JDrama - Itazura na Kiss ~ Love in Tokyo

Episodes watched so far: 7/16

Title: Itazura na Kiss ~ Love in Tokyo

Genre: Romance, comedy, high school

Year of broadcast: 2013

Status: Ongoing

Synopsis: At a high school entrance ceremony, high school student Aihara Kotoko, who isn’t that smart, notices pretty boy Irie Naoki. She falls in love with him immediately. Kotoko initially doesn’t express her feelings to him, but finally has a chance to tell him how she feels. Unfortunately, Naoki turns Kotoko down, saying “I don’t like dumb women.”

One day, Kotoko’s house is severely damaged by an earthquake. Until the house is rebuilt, Kotoko Aihara and her father decide to live with her father’s friend. When Kotoko moves to her new temporary house, she is surprised to learn that Irie Naoki lives there as well. -- Drama Wiki

I was skeptical to start on this drama after all I have watched the anime, Taiwanese and Korean version of this drama. I didn't have high expectations for this because I remembered someone telling me the ratings were rather low. It was until I read on my Twitter that this drama got extended to 16 episodes That was when I decided to give it a go. How often will Japanese drama be extended, right?

PLOT

They fast forward quite a lot of parts compared to the other 2 versions but in my honest opinion, I prefer it if they cut down on the naggings. I like how the they only show the main points of the drama which i found the Taiwanese version to be too draggy and the girl was whiny. In addition, I like how the high school arc was summarized within 5 episodes and the remaining 11 should most probably be focusing on the University Arc. I am not sure if they are going to continue about the married life since the actress acting as Aihara Kotoko is still rather young. She's only 16 so I doubt she is able to portray a married woman. 

CHARACTERS

 

Irie Naoki -- After watching the different versions of ItaKiss dramas, keeping in mind the "Tsundere" character, I realize the Taiwan version portrays Naoki as a easily irritated yet cold type of guy. Maybe with a tinge of coolness in it. While the Korean version gives me the cold prince vibe, but the Japanese version gave me a totally fresh feel. I don't know how much people feel from all the different versions though. The Jap version reminded me of Houtarou Oreki from Hyouka where he is the "The Energy Conservationist Style" type of person. He just gives me that sleazy feel, super cool and relax not giving a hoot about the world. If you read views about Oreki, you might probably feel the same way. 

Aihara Kotoko -- This actress is surprisingly young. I couldn't handle her acting on the first episode it's like trying really hard to portray the character but I am not getting it. But later on as the story progress, she got better, ease up a bit and she's good to go. Of course there is still lots of improvement to go but I think out of all 3 versions, the jap one wins hands down as she is less whiny but really stupid HAHA. She looks like a middle school-er though and it was weird trying to watch her as a University student. I wonder what happens when she gets married. That might be a SP episode or something.

Ikezawa Kinnosuke -- I LOVE HIS KANSAI-BEN!! It made him so cute haha! He is not much of a yankee in the drama, just some annoying brat. 

Sudo-senpai -- The tennis devil in the series if you remember him. He's a little too gay in this version to my liking and the different effects for him is just... meh. 

Yasu Matsumoto -- The bijin that was supposed to rival against Kotoko. In my opinion, I thought the actress was too old for the character? Naoki and Kotoko both look like high-schoolers but she looks like a working adult. I was expecting someone prettier but she's pretty too. 

My rating for this drama so far: 7.5/10. Rather entertaining. (I don't give full)

OMAKE:

MY EXACT SAME REACTION AS KOTOKO

I SQUEALED AT HOME LIKE SOME CRAZY MOFO

IMAGINE MY REACTION. I WAS LIKE OMFG TOTALLY RELATE-ABLE.

Irie mama was saying "Kissu dayo?!" 

JDrama - Legal High

Title: Legal High
Season: 1
Episodes: 11
Language: Japanese
Genre: Law, comedy
Year of Broadcast: 2012

Of all the law related dramas inside and outside of the country, a majority of lawyers are depicted as heroes, either bringing tears to your eyes helping the weak underdog, or trying to advocate justice to the extreme. This has led the general public to view lawyers with eyes of respect and envy.

However, the main character of "Legal High!!" stands miles away from that stereotypical identity of a lawyer. Komikado Kensuke is stubborn, abusive in his language, sarcastic, moody, and an extravagant spender. To the contrary, he has never lost a case in his life. A genius at bargaining and building strategy, winning is everything to Kensuke. His love for money, fame, and women obviously collects the dislikes of other professionals in the field. Kensuke loathes the textbook of justice the young lawyers try to brandish.

Unexpectedly, Mayuzumi Machiko is a lawyer who passed her bar exam through hard studies. She is overly earnest in her mission of saving the weak, and rather clumsy and incapable of planning ahead. Her lack of versatility and strong righteousness drives her reckless, without compromise to her convictions. Passionate and determined, she is the complete opposite of Kensuke's character.

"Justice is the winner," Kensuke stands by this belief without doubt. Despite the skepticism he receives for his sensational efforts, the people surrounding him begin to see that their view was but a pipe dream. In the courtroom, Kensuke reminds us of the feeling we had all forgotten: To fight with all our energy and to never give up. --Fuji TV (extracted from wiki-drama)

Movie - Summer Wars

Summer Wars

(I am pretty sure you can find better trailers)

When timid eleventh-grader and math genius Kenji Koiso is asked by older student and secret crush Natsuki to come with her to her family's Nagano home for a summer job, he agrees without hesitation. 

Natsuki's family, the Jinnouchi clan, dates back to the Muromachi era (1336 to 1573), and they've all come together to celebrate the 90th birthday of the spunky matriarch of the family, Sakae. That’s when Kenji discovers his "summer job" is to pretend to be Natsuki's fiance and dance with her at the birthday celebration. 

As Kenji attempts to keep up with Natsuki's act around her family, he receives a strange math problem on his cell phone which, being a math genius, he can't resist solving. As it turns out, the solution to the mysterious equation causes Oz, the program that controls nearly every aspect of life to be hacked into, it's up to Kenji and his new "family" to stop the hacker before it's too late.

(Source: twitchfilm.net)

My rating: 9/10

I am not going to compare this against the other films that the director made (I didn't watch) so please don't compare or anything. When I watched this movie, I didn't read the synopsis or read any reviews and I had no clue what the whole movie is about. I only know it was a fantastic movie.

The movie started out with a virtual world, creating avatar for yourself and honestly, I thought we are in some game world like SAO and I was skeptical because I didn't like the transport-yourself-into-a-virtual-world type of story. Then came the art and I was like "Oh, cool, this is rather digital looking." Just when I almost believe that this was going to be something like SAO, the film returns back into the real world, in the physics club of two guys being the administrator of Oz. 

My perception of the movie changed.

The synopsis has already explained to you the beginning so I will just zoom in on how I felt.

It all started with the mysterious equation that lead to the start of "terrorism" in Japan. I like how they tried to portray terrorism in the story through the form of hacking, but not quite since there wasn't someone to physically "hack" into the system but this character called A.I. that was behind all the attacks and problems that arise in Japan. The man who build A.I. was Jinnouchi Wabisuke. He build a Love Machine that was for the military and the military put this system for testing but they did not know that it actually created such chaos. 

Why? Oz was simply not a game, a social networking site, but the entire world is relying on it as it covers almost everything electronically. So when something is down or vulnerable, A.I. could just gain control and cause unrest. 

I thought there was going to be some crazy hacking activities going on in the movie since Kenji cracked the mysterious equation but no, everything was just solved as Math. Like wtf, how do you just stare at numbers do some crazy mental calculations and then figure out the string of passwords? That is insane. Okay, maybe because I'm just stupid and slow. (I hate math). But yeah, it wasn't some crazy hacking like what you see in bloody monday, just simply math. Although the logic is so simple, it kind of also  creates intensity when Kenji was pressured against the countdown timing of destruction - a satellite (i think) that was in space was targeted to crash at the Jinnouchi house which everyone is currently staying and only Kenji was able to stop the destruction by solving the codes through Math.

Apart from how the plot wasn't the acts of terrorism, I like how the movie covers family spirit. The family originally gathered in the Jinnouchi mainhouse to celebrate grandma Sakae's birthday but during the midst of chaos, grandmother Sakae suddenly passes away and the family was rather broken with different ideas on what to do next - the men insisted on preventing further deaths in other families (Oz system was down and it somehow caused the death of Sakae), while the women believed that they should only be concerned of their own family. Jinnouchi men are considered passive in the family but thanks to this chaos, the men were fighting together and that was when you see the family spirit that grandmother Sakae had passed on - "We are all in this together". The story was really touching when grandma died and she writes her final letter which was read by her daughter. I got all teary when the letter was read out. I loved the grandmother, she was such a wonderful lady. 

The art of the anime is wonderful. The class 2D type of anime different from what you see nowadays - big boobs, huge eyes, lots of blushing. The only thing that reminded me of animes now is how the characters are drawn CLAMP-like skinny figures where they literally look like paper walking around. Awesome setting in the city of Ueda, traditional houses, and nothing elaborate - lovely peaceful scenery. The art of the virtual world was simply wonderful. Totally different from the real world yet it is still classy and digitally colorful - something like penguindrum.

The music is awesome too. The right music played at the different scenes and how it actually made you emotional. The OST is to die for. 

Lastly, the touch of romance and humor in this movie was simply so cute. I am glad that romance wasn't a huge part of this movie and it wasn't entirely retarded. A very slow-paced sci-fi movie happened all within 3/4 days.

I hope my review is proper (laughs). This is my first review so I have no idea what I am supposed to say. I am not a very good in analyzing films and I lack the depth of discussion but what I have said in the above is what I had felt throughout the movie. I am bound to leave out a lot of details, but I hope you can enjoy the movie as much as I do.