Aogeba Toutoshi Review

Title: Aogeba Toutoshi

AKA: Brass Dreams

Genre: School, Music, Delinquents

Episodes: 8

Broadcast period: 2016-Jul to 2016-Sept

Cast: Terao Akira, Tabe Mikako, Mackenyu, Nijiro Murakami, Anna Ishii and many others…

Hikuma Koichi (Terao Akira) is a music teacher, strongly believing in involving all is students in all the performances they make, no matter how well they play. After having troubles with the music club Kanagawa Public Misaki High School invites Koichi to help them, in order to join the national competition. Soon Koichi notices the biggest problem of the club: the five members that don't want to return. The five had been a band, but due to other students ruining their performance, the five end up leaving everything that involves music. Because of their attire (being delinquents), no one wants them to return... except Koichi, who makes it his mission to get them back, and have all the students play at the contest. But it is not easy, as the five firmly refuse to return. How will it turn out?

Again, I apologize of the summary: I recommend you watch the trailer.

After watching almost every single Yankee drama out there, I kind of missed the genre. I tend to re- watch old ones, so this was a nice drama to come by, as it is new and fresh. I didn’t want another Gokusen, and this drama wasn’t like that.  Yes, there were Yankees, and a teacher “believing-in-the-students-and-so-forth”, but this one is a bit different. It felt a bit “heavy” as in quite an amount of emotions, I didn’t expect to feel. It took me on an emotional rollercoaster, I wasn’t ready for it. The cast was good too, much better than the average Japanese youngsters/newbie actors, so that contributed too.

The overall story was real, and I think this is one of those that is underrated, if you ask me.

All in all, a fine drama, with great cast, and decent story.

☆☆☆☆ / 4 out of 5 stars

♥♥♥♥ / 4 out of 5 hearts

Yokoso, Wagaya e Review

Title: Yokoso, Wagaya e

AKA: Welcome to my home

Genre: Family, Suspense

Episodes: 10

Broadcast period: 2015-Apr to 2015-Jun

Theme song: Aozora no Shita, Kimi no Tonari by Arashi

Cast: Aiba Masaki, Sawajiri Erika, Arimura Kasumi, Minami Kaho and Terao Akira,

Kurata Kenta (Aiba Masaki) is a coward who avoids confrontation and disputes. Due to his upbringing he never bothers other people or does he trouble people, and uses preferably the sentence “I’m sorry” in any given circumstance. His father is the same way, and his mother is a happy person who never stops smiling. The only one in the family with a serious personality is the daughter, who is the complete opposite of everyone else.

The family is happy and loving family, until one day Kenta finds his courage and tells off a man who bothers people at the train platform. Here he also meets Kandori Asuka (Sawariji Erika) a woman that always speaks her mind without holding back.

After the situation the man runs off in embarrassment - but when Kenta takes the bus home that very man appears in the same bus. Creeped out Kenta gets out of the bus only to be followed by the man and it escalates with the man running after Kenta. Kenta runs around the neighborhood, and manages to lose him. The next morning though the flowerbeds in front of their house are ripped out. Unsure whether or not it is that man, Kenta wants to figure out who he is, and by pure luck meets Asuka again, who introduces herself as a journalist willing to help finding out the stalker.

But as it turns out more and more things start to happen to the family, continuously bothering them. Who can it be, and why the Kurata family?

My reason for watching this was mainly Aiba so I did not really read the summary of the plot. But I think that did kind of the good part here, not know what to expect.

The drama is a mellow family story with a psychological twist to it, as it is very disturbing to know that due to a little confrontation you can become a victim of severe stalking and what I call ‘chain-stalking’.  And to be honest, even though it isn’t all horror, it made my mouth dry quite a few times. Just the thought of ‘what-if-it-had-happened-to-me’ made me shiver. As I said: dirsturbing.

As a general it doesn’t isn’r scary, and the family is so adorable and fun to watch, so you don’t get that bored, but to be honest it is a bit too ‘chain-stalkerish’… you’ll get what I mean when/if you see it. And I wasn’t all that excited to find out the ending. Aiba is great as always, and to be honest everyone was good at acting, even Sawariji whom I never really liked before.

All in all: a good and interesting family drama with a hint of suspense.

☆☆☆½ / 3½ out of 5 stars

♥♥♥♥ / 4 out of 5 hearts