Dorokei (2018)

Dorokei is really something special. The rare sort of drama where almost everything just clicks, and because of that it's difficult to review - where do I even start?

The focus on theft-based crime solving is refreshing, for one. Without being able to rely on the shock value of more violent offenses, it creates for some really unique and memorable scenarios. I can still vividly recall several of the one-off episodic criminals despite it having been months since I last watched.

There's just so much... relatable humanity, in Dorokei. Madarame is one of my favorite drama protagonists of all time - equal parts endearingly stupid, then remarkably sharp when the circumstances call for it; unmotivated when it comes to work, then suddenly passionate when that work involves empathy for someone in front of him. And all of those aspects manage to work together seamlessly. Nakajima Kento did an amazing job portraying him.

As did just about everyone else in their roles. Mr Endo was maybe born to play a sketchy thief with a heart of gold. And often in comedic-leaning detective shows the eclectic side characters will be a bit of a mixed bag, but here I find all of them charming in some way, even Ojiyama, who I definitely wish had been given a less creepy "quirk" but who is also given enough genuinely amusing moments that by the end I couldn't help but like him a bit, too.

The show looks beautiful: so many scenes are lit with these lovely glowing colours, and I feel the absence of aesthetic in other shows a lot harder since this one. Why can't every detective drama look like this, I ask myself. The music is great. The humor is on point. And I imagine not everyone will consider Dorokei a romance, as I do, but it is certainly a show about love and the power that it can have, and I think that's the sort of fiction we all could use a little more of.

If I have any real gripe about Dorokei, it's that I wish it had been an episode or two longer, to give me more time with these characters. Or that a season 2 would hurry up and be announced. (I'm still keeping my fingers crossed.)

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A police-themed comedy drama is not easy to make, sometimes they just go full blown comedy while sacrificing the depth of the story/characters. Dorokei is not that type of drama, because it managed to find the balance between the comedic part and the serious part. The character growth is good, you can watch how Madarame mostly goofing around here and there before growing to be more mature as he and his peers in Section 13 started to appreciate the work. However, the storyline is slightly inconsistent - it jumps back and forth from being predictable or not (but thankfully there are more 'unpredictable' ones).

Kenty as Madarame did very well, I felt that his acting was very natural and when he is doing the comedic parts it was just like watching him during variety shows. Kenichi Endo is brilliant as usual, when Kemurigarasu is in 'ruthless mode' I think it was very cool. I can't help thinking about Bisho Tantei Goro Akechi when seeing Tomoya Nakamura in this drama, basically it it just Goro with some changes to create Ojiyama (yeah, I watched that drama first - please understand that).

I loved the OST, it really suits the theme of the drama for me. The sound effects were good as well, but at times they spoiled the story and make parts of the story became less surprising.

So despite the minor flaws, I overall enjoyed this drama. It is a good choice to give you some entertainment.

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