I admit that I was not originally planning to watch Bambino!, but somehow ended up watching the first episode. It was refreshing. It is not action packed, or tremendously silly, or really overpowering in any sense. It, in a way, is sort of like the food they are cooking in it--flavorful, varied, and yet both sophisticated and subtle in its own way. It is very well put together. While the "plot" may not sound exciting to the average person skimming through it, I will say this: Bambino! is an amazing story about a young man coming into adulthood and learning to recognize what it means to be a whole person. Ban's growth sometimes seems painfully slow, but by the end of the series I couldn't help but be moved and encouraged by him. I loved his development, and they chose a stellar actor who could bring in all the subtlety that was needed for it. While it didn't "grab" me the way others do, I enjoyed every episode and can easily see myself watching it again as I continue to move between stages of my own life, and can again let Ban's story resonate with me.