Oselame
United States
Every episode felt like a chore I had to do in order to see the end of it.
This drama was excruciatingly bad.Instead of focusing on the superpower of the main character and making good use of it to create interesting and funny situations. The writer tries to juggle too many storylines that go absolutely nowhere.
The love triangle is soon put aside to focus on the kidnapper's storyline. Which is boring as hell! Compared to the crime dramas we have in western media. This is almost childlike. What was supposed to be a thriller just becomes irritating. Very quick.
The gangster's/neighborhood redevelopment storyline also goes nowhere.
The romance between the main character's brother and his patient also goes nowhere.
The career pursuit of the main character is also so underdeveloped. It goes somewhere, but it is so diluted in the sea of other storylines.
And the superpower, which is something that is in the TITLE of the series isn't put to good use. It has absolutely no effect on the plot.
All the storylines that had so much potential are dropped just to show a dull crime story. With the most incompetent cops you'll ever see in your life.
Also, the main character had the oportunity to catch the bad guy midway through the series. She HAD HIM and let him go just because the writer wasn't done with him yet and there were several more episodes she had to fill with this garbage.
The result is a series that is overly long. Uninteresting. Boring. And a complete waste of time. They stretch everything almost up to the rupture point.
The only thing that really kept me watching were the funny scenes with the gangsters and my curiosity to see how this mess was going to end.
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Entertaining. If you let it to be.
It feels like you're watching an anime. And not a drama based on one.Everything is exaggerated. Which, even not being an anime kinda guy, I really liked. That trick they use to slightly change the eyes of the actresses, change their facial expressions completely. It is a very cool effect that gives a very stylish, distinctive look to the more tense scenes. It gives a more dark tone to the performances. Just like an anime.
It is nice to have those over the top performances. Since there isn't a single character with a trace of personality. So, the actors don't have much to work with.
A hat tip to Morikawa Aoi, who plays Saotome. She really embraced the "animesque" style of acting. With a very well balanced performance within what the series proposes. She found the perfect timing between being over the top and knowing when to "slow-down" a bit. It was really fun to watch her going full-throttle on her scenes.
The games were what attracted me to this series. But they're nowhere as clever as the ones you would find in Liar Game, for example. The characters don't use their wits to win the games. It is all luck, cheating and Deus-ex-Machina.
But the games, most of them at least, are played and finished within the episode. And the episodes themselves are short. About 22 minutes each. Which makes for a pleasant experience. Since there isn't much substance to keep the episodes going for more than that.
Also, the number of episodes is short. Add the short running time of each episode. And you can watch it in one sitting if you want. And that's a big plus for me. Someone who hates over stretched, draggy and filler full dramas.
Things happen fast. The pacing of the drama, alongside the exaggeration and absurdity of it all, is one of the things that kept me watching it to the end. Start to finish in one afternoon.
About the plot. There isn't one. At least not on this first season. We don't know anything about the main character. We don't know about her motivations. We don't know where those kids get all that money to play with. We don't know who the bad guys are and what they want. We don't know anything really. Except that they like to play games.
The first seven episodes are the most formulaic and repetitive. But, also, the most fun. After the series drops the formula, it loses a lot of momentum.
I still recommend it. And I would add. If you can wait for the second season to watch the whole thing at once. Maybe, it will be an even better experience. Since this first season cuts right in the middle of (what seems to be) the conclusion of this arc of the story.
There's some negatives in it. But, you'll have fun if you just let go of the details and just go along with it.
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The first three episodes are sooo boring. There's no plot. Characters have no soul. There's just over the top humor.
Then, the last two episodes, the series starts to pick up momentum. Really moving moments. Characters start to develop a personality. Every ingredient for a good drama is finally there.
Then, it's over.
The series would really benefit from three or four more episodes. There are a lot of characters and opportunity to develop very interesting situations. But, all characters are robotic, soulless, caricatures. No one has a good background story. No one has a clear well-defined arc. Which is expected in a series with just 5 episodes.
The reporters waste so much of the show's limited running time making stories about silly stuff. If they spent each episode with an interesting piece of journalism. They could've expanded this show dramatic range so much.
But, they didn't.
And when they decide to try. It's too late. We're already in the last two episodes.
But, at least, those are two very good episodes. The main character has a very brief moment to shine. After spending three and half episodes being the over the top, silly, clumsy caricature newbie reporter. And she does. As does the person that is the target of the big story she's covering.
One very touching scene. Which was worth all the wait.
Also, the workplace aspect, had a lot of potential. It is a TV Station! There are lots of interesting stuff to see and learn about. But instead of showing. They just tell. Or write it on the screen for you to read about it. When it would be more interesting to be able to see! Or, even better, create a story around it!
One thing I really liked about this show is that it is beautifully shot. The very first shot of the series. A drone shot of the city, that approaches the TV station building, then enters through the door and shows every departament of the station on a (fake, but brilliant) single shot is fantastic.
If they had more time. If the had spent their limited time wisely. Developing the characters. Showing the workplace in more detail. Dropped the over the top humor sooner and gone for the "Interesting investigative story triggers a character's backstory" formula. It would've been a big hit!
But it was a big miss, instead.
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