Best of 2008: Japanese TV Dramas
APA's resident fangirl Kanara Ty has watched a lot of dramas this past year, and she picks out her top ten favorites of 2008.
This year's dramas had a very interesting cast of characters: we've seen politicians, flower-shop owners, stalker ex-boyfriends. This particular season has also been characterized by the amount of the novel and manga-adapted dramas that were produced this year –- for example, Kankuro Kudo's adapted screenplay for Ryuusei no Kizuna, the popular series Yasuko to Kenji and Zettai Kareshi.
While 2008 has been weaker in comparison to past years, this year emerged as a strong drama season for the women. Forget about the sparkling faces of the pretty-faced idols or charismatic older men; rather, this year featured strong, defined female leads and supporting actors. I found myself becoming more fascinated with shows like Seigi no Mikata (Ally of Justice) or Around 40, because they brought more voice to the women of Japan -- whether they were fictional or not. It reminds me of the days when actress Honami Suzuki took on great roles, such as in Tokyo Love Story or News no Onna, when trendy dramas had finally made a big splash in Japanese households. I also found some surprising turns from Yu Yamada and Karina, who both have careers as models as well, as they took on some serious, yet also entertaining acting gigs in various dramas.
In no particular order, my Top 10 Japanese Dramas of 2008:
CHANGE (Fuji TV)
Probably disguised as an Obama endorsement for this past year's American election, CHANGE came as a highly anticipated Fuji TV drama starring the King of Dramas himself, Takuya Kimura, and an A-List supporting cast featuring Hiroshi Abe and Eri Fukuatsu. The drama went head to head with the third installment of the popular Gokusen live-action series. Kimura had delayed the filming of CHANGE due to his busy schedule and forced the drama to premiere a month after all the other Spring dramas had already started airing. Even though it ran in the popular Getsu 9 drama slot, the drama didn't do as well as Fuji TV had hoped, still falling behind the highly rated Gokusen 3. Although it may have lost its momentum, Kimura still garnered some acting awards for his role, and CHANGE ended with the highest rated series finale of the year. Perhaps the highlight of the entire drama is Kimura's 22-minute farewell speech at the closing of the drama. While the plot is quite predictable and Kimura pretty much plays the same kind of character in every drama he's starring in, CHANGE earned a spot on my list because it feeds to the momentum of the Obama movement, and it reminds us why the government exists in the first place: to serve the people, rather than be self-serving. Note: bonus points were also received for Kimura's transformation from nerdy schoolteacher (with a bad perm) to painfully handsome prime minister, and the inclusion of Madonna's “Miles Away” made for a fitting choice as the show's theme song.
Bara no Nai Hanaya (Fuji TV)
Pairing SMAP member Shingo Katori and Yuko Takeuchi for the first time, this is one romance that isn't excruciatingly cheesy. The characters in this drama easily grow on you. In addition to the budding relationship between Katori and Takeuchi's characters, I really took note of the chemistry between the daughter-father duo, Katori and child actress Yuki Yagi. Perhaps what really makes the dramas strong are the interactions between characters; each actor easily delivers his or her line with precise timing and wit, which makes it all seem so natural. Also, of course, no Getsu 9 drama on Fuji TV is incomplete without an epic theme song coupling -- this time being "Zutto Issha Sa" by Japan's beloved crooner, Tatsuro Yamashita. Watch the ending credits: it's simply breathtaking to watch Katori and Takeuchi make graceful movements around each other in the snow for all 2 minutes and 27 seconds.
