Kindaichi Shonen no Jikenbo S04 (Neo) Review

Title: Kindaichi Shonen no Jikenbo Neo

AKA: Files of Young Kindaichi Neo

Genre: Mystery, Suspense

Episodes: 9

Broadcast date: 2014-Jul to 2014-Oct

Cast: Yamada Ryosuke, Kawaguchi Haruna, Daiki Arioka, Asari Yosuke and Narimiya Hiroki.

This is the fourth season of the drama following young Kindaichi Hajime - the grandson of the great detective Kindaichi.

Kindaichi Hajime (Yamada Ryosuke) together with his friends Nanase Miyuki (Kawaguchi Haruna) and Saki Ryuta (Daiki Arioka) have joined the school Mystery Club. As always they are an unrepeatable trio, but school isn’t easy when being Kindaichi Hajime, as murder is always around the corner, even in the club next door. And when the Hell’s puppeteer Takato Yuichi (Narimiya Hiroki), a crime producer - making plans of how to commit the perfect crime for payment, seems to be behind a lot of the killings, Hajime can’t keep still and decides to fight him directly and uncover the tricks the way he knows - in the name of his grandfather…

Finally at the fourth season of this drama and I know I should have expected it, but the deaths are way too circumstantial for Hajime to be there every single time. I mean more people die in this drama than average, and those three are witness to too many murders compared to the regular high school student.

That said, besides the acting not a single thing was even interesting, and yeah I count the murders in too. I didn’t know who the murders were a lot of the time, but usually I could guess when a famous/known actor/actress guest starred there was a 95% they were the killers, and sometimes the way of killing was just ridiculous. Also after the murders, and confessions of course, Hajima had this idea of ‘understanding’ the killers and talk to them - which was bull. I mean the way these people are killed is just coldblooded, why would you need to talk to them? Sorry I don’t see remorse or regret, so yeah.

All in all an interesting drama with loop holes.

☆☆½ / 2½ out of 5 stars

♥♥½ / 2½ out of 5 hearts

Kindaichi Shonen no Jikenbo 2014 SP Review

Title: Kindaichi Shonen no Jikenbo Gokumon junku Satsujin Jiken

AKA: Kindaichi Boy’s Accident Files 2014 SP / The Files of Young Kindaichi 2014 SP

Genre: Mystery, Suspense

Broadcast date: 2014 January 12

Cast: Yamada Ryosuke, Narimiya Hiroki, Kitamura Kazuki, Kawaguchi Haruna, Daiki Arioka and Wu Chun.

The special continues after the Shanghai story.

Kindaichi Hajime (Yamada Ryosuke) is forced to go to a well-known cramming school in Tokyo called Gokumon, famous for providing results immediately. He is taken by his two friends Nanase Miyuki (Kawaguchi Haruna) and Saki Ryuji (Daiki Arioka) who are afraid that Hajime might not continue till graduation with his grades. Arriving at the school they are met with a scream and find a dead body. When the police arrive they are surprised about how indifferent the fellow students are. Shortly after Lee Byron (Wu Chun) pops up and shows Hajime a letter he had gotten from a man calling himself “Puppet Player from Hell”, and explains him that his sister pointed him and as the mastermind behind the murders that happened in Shanghai.

As he is reading the letter he spots a man doing a magic trick and vanishes. Running after the man, Hajime and his friends are led to a warehouse where a message of a challenge is waiting for him…

Okay, yes I am a bit obsessed with these dramas, by these I mean classic, but they are really good. And this special is also pretty good, considering the scale they go through. This time it is Malaysia, and they really go there, which is nuts, but compared to the Shanghai special, this one is a bit more believable - and I sort of knew some of the trick. I am surprised that the Japanese aren’t tired of the same tricks over and over again.

Besides Wu Chun being a bit weird actor, the rest are really good, and the special appearance from Nickhun made me laugh out loud, but even though he didn’t really say anything (not that I remember anyway) his acting was better than Mr. Chun.  

So… to watch, not to watch? If you have watched the other you should, and even if you didn’t it’s still great :)

☆☆☆½ / 3½ out of 5 stars

♥♥♥ / 3 out of 5 hearts

Kindaichi Shonen no Jikenbo 2013 SP Review

Title: Kindaichi Shonen no Jikenbo Hong Kong Kowloon Zaiho Satsujin Jiken

AKA: Kindaichi Boy’s Accident Files 2013 SP / The Files of Young Kindaichi 2013 SP

Genre: Mystery, Suspense

Broadcast date: 2013 January 12

Cast: Yamada Ryosuke, Kawaguchi Haruna, Arioka Daiki, Seung Ri, Wu Chun, Kiritani Kenta, Vivian Tsu and Komatsu Takuya.

This is the story renewed once again with a different cast and storyline.

Kindaichi Hajime (Yamada Ryosuke) together with his friends Nanase Miyuki (Kawaguchi Haruna) and Saki Ryuji (Arioka Daiki) travel to Hong King when Miyuki gets chosen as a stand in for a model that refused in the last minute. Arriving in Hong Kong they are excited to sightsee, but it is not long lived as Miyuki gets kidnapped. While running after the kidnapper they end up in a ruin which has been made into a park, and they meet Yang Lan (Kawaguchi Haruna) who looks exatly alike Miyuki. They find out that she is the model that had refused, but for some reason was worried about Miyuki since people where after her. Hajime decides to take her to the model contest and make her pose as Miyuki so that they might be able to find the kidnapper.

At the contest they meet waiter Kim Yong Dong (Seung Ri), police officer Li Bai Long (Wu Chun), talent searcher Takigawa Ryuta (Kirirtani Kenta) who found Miyuki, designer Ivy Liu (Vivian), and Xin Li (Komatsu Takuya).

While dining a man at their table dies after drinking champagne which was poured by Yong Dong, and he immediately gets suspected for murder, but that’s when Hajime steps in…

Oh man, no matter which year these are, the mysteries are all just as weird. And the way they are made are just as messed up, and practically impossible if it were a real crime. Or that is what I think, but I guess that is what makes it interesting for viewer. Yamada is okay as Hajime, I sort of was not expecting him to be as good as he is, but I think he did a good job making everyone believe he is Hajime. The rest of the cast is great as well, though I really felt it was weird having the Chinese cast in a Japanese drama, but also some of the acting was really bad. It might have something to do with the script, but I was face palming myself almost all of the time.

The story was good, but had a lot of bad points which made me pretty bored most of the time.

All in all it is good if you are a fan of the actors, but don’t expect anything grand…

☆☆☆½ / 3½ out of 5 stars

♥♥♥ / 3 out of 5 hearts

Kyo no Hi wa Sayonara SP Review

Title: Kyo no Hi wa Sayonara

AKA: Farwell for today

Genre: Human

Broadcast date: 23 Aug 2013

Cast: Ohno Satoshi, Miura Tomokazu, Kishimoto Kayako, Mimura, Fudaka Kyoko, Kimura Fumino and Yamada Ryosuke.

Fujioka Kouta (Ohno Satoshi) is a bit of a lazy guy, who somehow managed to get a job at a restaurant. With no future aspirations and being cowardly about proposing to his long timed girlfriend, Kouta lives day by day like a normal person. One night, after taking his girlfriend home, Kouta passes out on the sidewalk and brought to the hospital where he is informed that he has a kind of blood cancer called “Myeloma”, which luckily has an 80% chance of survival. Kouta starts his treatment with chemotherapy, and befriends a kid called Harada (Yamada Ryosuke), who suffers from the same thing and had suffered form it ever since he was 8, which also left him without a leg.

This story is about Kouta fighting his disease and learning that there are things in life you can’t get around no matter how hard you fight…

Okay, bias aside, this is one heck of a special, with the entire package! Like I cried the entire time, almost 1½ hours straight! Though I was crept out by Yamada Ryosuke’s character I have to admit, he did a good job. Ohno delivered spot on, and I really believe he has an amazing ability. The story is not high thriller or completely exciting, but it does captivate you, and you do feel every moment of the screen story, from the lead actor to the supporting cast.

The only thing about this is that it is a special so I can’t really give it 5 stars, but you do get a great story, amazing acting, and it really is recommendable. I personally believe that it is a must watch story.

☆☆☆☆ / 4 out of 5 stars

♥♥♥♥½ / 4½ out of 5 hearts

Hidarime Tantei EYE Review

Title: Hidarime Tantei EYE
AKA: Left-Eye Detective EYE
Genre: Detective, Crime, Mystery
Episodes: 8
Broadcast period: 2010-Jan to 2010-Mar
Insert song: Hitomi no Screen by Hey! Say! JUMP
Cast: Yamada Ryosuke, Yokoyama Yu, Ishihara Satomi, Okada Yoshinori, Katahira Nagisa and Crystal Kay.

After undergoing a cornea transplant of the left eye, which he got from his brother, and after the sudden death of his brother, Tanaka Ainosuke (Yamada Ryosuke) starts to see strange images, in his left eye when he falls or hits his head. The images make him think that his brother, Tanaka Yumehito (Yokohama Yu), was in some way involved in the crimes he sees. After finding out that his brother is still alive and the master mind behind the criminal acts, he swears to be the one bringing him down.
3 monthes pass and the older brother is back with a crueler way of dealing with things, and Ainosuke is keen on stopping him and getting his brother back to being his nice and gentle older brother he knew. The teacher, Sayama Hitomi (Ishihara Satomi) is in deep debt, so hoping she could get reward money from the police by helping Ainosuke, she tries to hit him, so he can get the images. But this time, she is more involved than she expects..

Ahhh, I really missed these kind of dramas! The "supernatural-crime-solver"! Lols, no seriously it was fun, though I thought there were alot of hitting scenes. Poor Ryosuke.. Oh yeah, and crying scenes! Damn, he cried in all eps! Gosh, but his acting was amazing.. Like, every scene was realistic, not.. well "cool-with-a-feel".. Lol, I mean like Kamenashi does.. I mean, cries and tries to look cool. Ryosuke cries, but ends up looking pathetic, and cool at the same time. I cant explain, but his senpai can learn something from his kouhei.
The drama is fun, in a non hilarious way, and sad in a "ooh-poor-guy" kind of way. Though I thought the sensei was unnessasary, rather have a classmate, he falls for, than a teacher.. Feels wrong.. Getting mixed vibes :P lols..
To round up, a superb watch.. Not THE greates, but worth it :)

☆☆☆☆ / 4 out of 5 stars

♥♥♥ / 3 out of 5 hearts