Bartender (2011)

this drama, at first had me watching mainly because i was curious to see aiba's acting, and then the story kind of managed to pull me. Since it's about a bartender who aims to become amazing and a woman who is obviously attracted to him and of course the rival guy who is the classic silent type of character. This drama clearly managed to portray the "anime-ish" feel that it was supposed to have. Generally every episode was about a different glass that the bartender made for the customers of the bar he was working at. The heart warmth he was offering to them by even offering their advice to them was rather refreshing and inspirational in a way.

Many say that aiba did not do great in this role but I believe that he portrayed the bartended very well. Sure he was not perfect, there were still things that needed to be worked on but they did not affect the feelings that you were supposed to feel. Plus, he had a different style of acting for this role than for the previous one. Kanjiya was simply herself like always. Same acting style for every character she plays. She is good but that's about it. Nobuaki , had a role that was pretty much not that difficult. If anything though he was pretty good at making the cocktails and drinks. I think that he also did very good, just not outstanding and great.

The music of this drama was rather addicting. after all it is arashi, i definitely loved listening to it and the soundtracks were rather fitting.

I would not rewatch this esepcially since most of the magic of the drama is there only in the first time , but definitely watching the funny moments or watching again to learn more about drinks, would not hurt.

What was particularly interesting in this drama was the way the cameras & light were handled. It was very gracious and elegant with a warmth to it.

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My third review :)

How was the story Marlee87?
I loved it! At first I had this on my on-hold-list for quite some time. But as my love for the amazing man that is Aiba grew, I thought that I had to finish it. And glad I did. As I've written in a comment, the light and the fact that every drink had it's own story and meaning made me love it even more. The story about a struggeling bartender was actually really good. :)

How was the acting/cast then?
Hehe, this is gonna be an easy penalty kick, cause I totally love Aiba Masaki (you will never ever find any other on my ichiban place on my profile) Since I've seen him perform sooo good in My Girl, this one had such high expectations for Aiba-chan's performance :) and I wasn't disapointed at all. Aiba-chan was very good as Sasakura Ryu. He had the calmness that the character requested of him.
Kanjiya Shiori was cute as she always is, and the character reminded me of her other roles. So in all, not bad Kanjiya ^^
And I have to mention the amazing Kaneko Nobuaki, he was sooo good as the silent and competitive Kuzuhara Ryuichi. The first interaction between Aiba's Ryu and Kaneko's Ryuichi was one of my favorite scenes, have rewatched that part alot.
The rest of the cast served their parts well. Nothing more to add there.

Do we need to ask you about the music, Marlee87? ^^
Yes you should, the music was amazing, well at least the ending song which is Arashi's LOTUS. Being a huge Arashian I LOVED THE MUSIC. Sorry, didn't mean to shout that out. ^^ And the background music in the drama did it's part well, good job composer :D

So, how many times have you rewatched it then?
Not THAT much....just 5 or 6 times....give or take ^^ so for ME, the rewatch value is high, but then again, I don't speak on behalf of the entire dramaland community.

Any final words you care to share?
No, just that I really recommend it, Arashian or nonArashian alike will love it, I promise you that!

Thank you for your time :D

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