Majisuka Gakuen 5 Review

Title: Majisuka Gakuen 5

Genre: School, Fighting

Episodes: 12

Broadcast period: 2015-Aug to 2015-Oct

Cast: Miyawaki Sakura, Shimazaki Haruka, Yokoyama Yu, Kawaei Rina, Iriyama Anna, Kizakki Yuria, Kojima Mako, Owada Nana, Takahashi Minami and a whole lot of AKB48.

After a small fit with the yakuza, Antonio (Yamamoto Sayaka) is kidnapped and beaten. Salt (Shimazaki Haruka) decides to crash the party and beats the yakuza to the bulb, and manages to save Antonio, even though they are rival schools. This sparks worry at Majijo High School, but also anger at the yakuza who feel like they have been stepped on. The Rappappa, now with Sakura (Miyawaki Sakura) as one of the four since Bakamono (Kawaei Rina) gratuated, want to take it to the yakuza, but are told not to by Salt.

Bakamono on the other hand has gotten a job at a firm, only to find out that they are the very yakuza who had kidnapped Antonio, and want her to kill Salt by handing her the gun. At the same time other groups are fighting the smaller schools, in order to take down Majijo and Gekioko.

That same night Salt gets shot, and Majijo and the Rappappa have to decide how they are going to fight…

Well that escalated. I kind of watched all 4 seasons of Majisuka Gakuen with that one light feeling where I did not have to worry about the acting or the storyline, as I knew they weren’t that good to begin with. But the fifth season really took me by surprise: the story is so dark and the camera shots kind of improved, not to mention the storyline. I usually wondered while watching this type of drama, about the parents of the Yankees or the teachers. Surprisingly this time around they added both, and much more! I am a bit confused by why they decided to end the drama franchise like they did, but I guess five seasons is all they wanted to make.

Besides that, the acting didn’t really improve; maybe a little bit by a few of them, but not all of them. And generally even if they added all the things they did, the drama isn’t really going to get better.

So if you have watched the four seasons I do recommend this, if not, you won’t really find it that interesting..

☆☆☆½ / 3½ out of 5 stars

♥♥♥ / 3 out of 5 hearts

Majisuka Gakuen 4 Review

Title: Majisuka Gakuen 4

AKA: Majisuka Academy 4

Genre: Teen, School, Action, Comedy

Episodes: 10

Broadcast period: Jan-2015 to Mar-2015

Cast: Miyawaki Sakura, Shimazaki Haruka, Yokoyama Yu, Kawaei Rina, Iriyama Anna, Kizakki Yuria, Kojima Mako, Owada Nana and Takahashi Minami.

Since the students who made Majijo (Majisyka Jou Gakuen) notorious have graduated, the current Rappappa are living off the fame. Though the Four Heavenly Queens are strong they are not as tight-knitted group as they used to be. This all changes when a new transfer, Sakura (Miyawaki Sakura), student arrives. At first she has no interest in anyone, but soon she decides she wants to take the top - as she prefers to see things from above. This shakes the school’s grounds, but also excites the bored Salt -  who had been wanting to relive her boredom ever since she had beaten every single student in Majijo. On top of that the rival school Gekioko High want to finally beat their rivals once and for all...

Compared to season 1 and 2 (not mentioning season 3 as it about a prison not Majijo), the fighting is very very bad. I don't know if it because of the new cast or there is another director, but they really are bad at it - both the fighting and the 'beat' scenes. Atsuko is no longer there, not that I liked her, but there really isn'y anyone from the original series. Shimazaki Haruka, who plays Paru in season 3, is Salt is season 4 - the new head, but other than that nothing really is close to good acting. The lead is dull an quite a weird character - weird in the sense of not being portrayed as an actual human being, but rather a rag doll looking pretty - if being blank is pretty :S . The story is okay, I kind of like that the storyline has changed focus, meaning it is no longer about Atsuko, and that it once again is about getting to the top.

Whether it is recommendable or not, I have to say that unless you are a fan of AKB48, I don't really see why you should watch it... (and yes, I am a fan.. a bit :P)

☆☆☆ / 3 out of 5 stars

♥♥♥ / 3 out of 5 hearts

Shiritsu Bakaleya Koukou Movie Review

Title: Shiritsu Bakaleya Kouou
Genre: Comedy, Teen, School
Origin: Japanese
Release date: October 13, 2012
Cast: Morimoto Shintaro, Matsumura Hokuto, Shimazaki Haruka, Oba Mina and Takaki Yuya.

After finally managing to merge Catteleya#2 and Bakada as one, the school board has decided to move the students from one class to Catteleya#1 for a month. This worries the class, mainly the class president Fumie (Shimazaki Haruka) since the rules of Catteleya#1 are harsher and stricter, and one little mistake can expel a student. The boys on the other hand are pretty sure of themselves, even though a split amongst the Bakada boys has happened.
Arriving at the school the “Bakaleya” students are met with disgust and hostility, by the new school president, who sees the girls as “failures” and the boys as “possible danger”. The boys somehow manage to stay under the radar, but when a different school starts to ravage other delinquent schools aiming for Bakada, the boys have a hard time sitting still. On top of that Fumie gets an offer she has a hard time declining…

If I think about the drama - which happens since it’s a continued story from the drama - this movie seems more like a last episodes. I can’t believe people went to the movies to watch this.. I mean it’s not worth a movie ticket at all. It has the typical drama feature, but it was completely like the drama, very low-budget, and same rhythm.. like the possibility of getting suspended, the save the friend in need, and the girl vs. girl competition.
Only reason I could enjoy it was because I watched the drama, and wanted the ending of this drama - which wasn’t all that.
Watch if you liked the drama, though if you haven’t you can still follow it, and understand it, but sort of becomes boring if you haven’t.

☆☆☆½ / 3½ out of 5 stars

♥♥♥½ / 3½ out of 5 hearts

Majisuka Gakuen 3 Review

Title: Majisuka Gakuen Season 3 

Genre: School

Episodes: 12

Broadcast period:  2012-Jul to 2012-Oct

Opening song: Ponkotsu Blues by AKB48  

Cast: Shimazaki Haruka, Kizaki Yuria, Shimada Haruka, Oba Mina and a whole lot of AKB48

“Year 20XX. With the reform of the juvenile law, private prisons are born. Dangerous delinquent young girls, abandoned by society, school, and even their family, are gathered there. The detention period is unlimited. A battle ring where only the fittest survive. That is what you could call Prison HOPE, also known as Majisuka Prison” (Taken from intro).

Paru (Shimazaki Haruka) was one day brought to Prison HOPE, a correction facility for delinquent girls. The problem is, she has no memory of why or how, only short flashbacks. The guards and the inmates don’t make it easier for her; the only person that seems to be nice to her is Peace (Kizaki Yuria), a weak girl and her roommate who is somehow an outsider in the quarter ‘Habu’ where Paru is put. In Habu there are all in all 8 girls, where the leader, Nobunaga has left them for some unknown reason leaving the top spot vacant. The Habu quarter is split in two, by the two strongest after Nobunaga: Urusayo (Shimada Haruka) a strong girl and Daasu (Oba Mina), Nobunagas friend.

After Paru’s entrance, the Habu as well as the rival gang ‘Mongoose’ get shaken up big time, even though Paru only cares about finding about a so-called Keita…

Lol, I can’t explain my rating. There is just something about these girls beating the shit out of each other that I enjoy (It’s not the hitting part, It’s just the way they seem to be fighting for whatever they love with their bare hands that make me so linking it - a bit like CROWS 0). The acting was bad, occasionally good by some actors. The plot was silly, better than the other and lastly the involvement with the “other people” - meaning not just the girls from the school - made it more interesting. To sum up, only watch if you watched the other 2 seasons, it gives you a new breeze of air, or whatever..

☆☆☆ / 3 out of 5 stars

♥♥♥ / 3 out of 5 hearts

Shiritsu Bakaleya Koukou Review

Title: Shiritsu Bakaleya Koukou

Genre: School drama

Episodes: 12
Broadcast period: 2012-Apr to 2012-Jun
Theme song: Shake it up! by Kiss-my-ft2
Cast: Morimoto Shintaro, Matsumura Hokuto, Shimazaki Haruka, Oba Mina and Takaki Yuya

This story is about two schools, Bakada High School an all-boys yankee school and Cattelya High School a prestige all-girl school, merges.

When Bakada High School is to be closed the chairman decides to merge the two schools in order to save the school. Bakada is an infamous school known for the Yankees that fight all the time and students getting into trouble with the law outside the school. He decides to merge it with Cattaleya High School, famous with an amazing reputation for perfect scores and decent rich girls, with great manners.

The merging not only leaves both sides shocked of the difference, but as the girls see it as a mission, they decide to change the boys, from top to bottom. The boys on the other hand refuse to even be changed, so they rebel, with all they have.

This is the beginning of two different worlds colliding, but they start mutual understandings…

First of all, I don’t know any of these Johnnys (except Yuya) or any of the AKB48. Second of all, that doesn’t even matter: they are worth watching! Even though the acting is a bit… well bad, they somehow grow on you.  But generally Yankees grow on me :P I didn’t really like the Yankee school + pretty girl school love story idea, since in my eyes Yankees are either innocent when it comes to girls, or too vulgar, but somehow they managed to keep it on a friendly basis, so it wasn’t all that bad. My favorite would be Yuya, not because I knew him, but because of his character. The rest was good too, considering it’s their first real drama, lol, I think. Okay, anyways, a drama about guys fighting, girls trying to change them, the higher ups ruining everything, and love stories here and there…

☆☆☆½ / 3½ out of 5 stars

♥♥♥♥ / 4 out of 5 hearts