This is only the second C-drama I've watched, and of course, before my C-experience becomes somehow statistically relevant, a lot more time will have to pass, LOL...but I still think I'm seeing some trends, as compared to J-dramas (correct me if I'm wrong!): first of all, cinematography and photography/colors are much more relevant (and *ages* better!) in China; secondly, the music as well (intended both as OP/ED credits songs and, even more importantly, as the musical score accompanying the various scenes) is also, at least for me, tremendously better; thirdly, even with much longer dramas (this one, for example, with its 24 episodes - which make it a "short" one in China, BTW! - could very well be the equivalent of 3 to 6 modern J-dramas! - what with the new Japanese "standard" being shorter dramas made of half-length episodes), well, even with all that, Chinese writers manage to keep things lively and not boring; last but not least, traditional Asian values seem to still be at home in China, while in Japan they keep getting replaced by Western stuff at a dramatically fast pace.
All this said (and consider it a public explanation of why you're most probably bound to see many more C-reviews from poor old me in the future ^__-), this "My Assassin Girlfriend" also showed a coupla drawbacks (hence my vote - good but not perfect).
But let's start with its (many) good points: I chose to watch it 'cause I had really loved Xu Jie aka Jelly in "Waiting for You in the Future", and indeed she was good and funny in this one as well (so much so that I wonder why she hasn't done anything else! >__<). The rest of the cast was also brilliant! I've developed a huge crush for Chen Hao Lan aka Anna Hollen, who's gorgeous to look at *and* a pretty good actress! Ryota (weird name for a Chinese actor, LOL) was also extremely good, I'm gonna keep an eye on him too. But seriously, they all did great, even the minor roles were played well.
The music (see my considerations above) was also nice and catchy, particularly the opening credits song!
The cinematography was beautiful, both in the modern and in the ancient settings (my personal preference going to the latter...ah, those colorful silky costumes! Made my crush on the FL even bigger, LOL).
The script was mostly well done, though (here come the afore-mentioned drawbacks) I have to confess it gave me the impression that some parts were missing, as if they had planned it to be made of more episodes and had to cut some parts off eventually. This (which is totally a personal idea, so pardon me if I'm wrong!) might explain a coupla plot holes (which I might address in a comment later on so as to avoid spoilering anything in this review). Another (minor) problem I had was that I would've changed some small things at the end (just a matter of personal preferences, though).
All in all, a solid, funny time-travel rom-com graced with endearing main characters and some nice humor here and there. Not a masterpiece, but a pleasant watch nonetheless!

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As you might have already guessed by reading my constant rants against the French "Nouvelle Vague" and "Cahiers du Cinéma", I must confess that I often find short movies (as well as a few normal-length ones!) to be way too artsy for my taste...but it really wasn't the case here! ^____^
So it's definitely not a surprise that this "Transferring" won several awards at SAPPORO SHORT FEST 2012 and at BUSAN International Film Festival 2012!
In a mere 20', in fact, they managed to squeeze in a deep, sweet little story which I couldn't help but seeing as a metaphor of life: within society (the classroom) we often have to wear labels and we might feel left out; outside of it (the windy way home) it can be an inhospitable, cold desert; but if we know how to let people in (the afternoons at Morikawa's) and how to use some humor (Masuda's dedramatizing remark at the end), then every encounter, no matter how fleeting, can end up being a real treasure.
Such a beautiful, oh-so-Japanese message! ^____^

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Masterpiece!

Some 15 years ago, that masterpiece going by the name of "1 lt. no Namida" got me hooked on J-dramas. And now, after all those years of strict japanophile observance (in which I've watched about 250 J-dramas), I've got the strong feeling that this masterpiece going by the name of "Waiting For You in the Future" will definitely get me hooked on C-dramas! Such a strong impression it has left me with! ^__________^
And how could it have been otherwise? Everything here is absolutely top notch!
Coming from J-dramas, which normally (of course, apart from asadora and taiga dorama) consist of 3 to 12 episodes, I must confess all my initial skepticism, when I started this drama made of 36 episodes of around 50' each (we're talking of 3/4 of an asadora!). But my hat goes off to the writer(s), 'cause not a single episode felt draggy or redundant!
The premise is very interesting (matter of fact, I've discovered this drama precisely 'cause I was looking for something similar to the J-drama "High Position" which I really loved) but, as my fellow reviewers already so aptly pointed out, this is much, much more than a mere time-travel story: it's about life, friendship, love, and it portrays an inspirational, life-changing path of personal growth. All filled with beautifully written characters who are so endearing that, by the end of the drama, you feel like you've just said goodbye to a bunch of friends!
Let me also spend some words about the acting: of course each country, each different culture has its peculiarities when it comes to acting styles (for example, Italian actors act similarly to French or Spanish ones, but pretty differently than, say, Brits or Scandinavians). I distinctly remember that when I had started watching J-dramas, at first I couldn't help but notice the different acting style, though I soon got used to it and now I must confess I find the Japanese acting style much more to my liking than, say, the "hollywoodian" one. Regarding the Chinese acting style, I had already watched a few Chinese movies, so I wasn't totally unfamiliar with it; as a result, adapting to it was totally effortless. And the whole cast does a superb job in this production, seriously! Particular praises go to Li Guang Jie, Fei Qi Ming, Sun Qian, Xu Jie aka Jelly and Zhang Zhi Lu, but they all did wel, really!
Praiseworthy are of course also the direction and the photography, both at a definitely higher level than those of most Japanese productions, I'll have to admit!
Last but definitely not least, the OST is simply fabulous. The score is always perfect for enhancing the viewers' experience, and the songs are really beautiful ! Honorable mention for the lovely "Sanctuary"!
Summing it all up, a perfect 10 in my book! Instant top5 of all times, as far as I'm concerned. I loved every single minute of it!

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Nature in all its majesty - and with no sugarcoating whatsoever, LOL

Maybe it's because half of the blood running through my veins comes from an alpine valley, and I'm no stranger to the sight of steep slopes all covered with coniferous forests. Or maybe it's 'cause I just really like Japanese rural settings, which I consider way more authentic and interesting than the more usual urban ones. And then again, maybe it's simply because this is indeed a great movie, period.
Whatever the reason, I deeply enjoyed this "Wood Job"!
Such a pure, straightforward story, mixed with some very funny scenes, some deep moments, some great acting (Ito Hideaki in particular steals the scene more than once), some nice music....and last but totally not least, some breathtaking scenery!
Perfect 10! ^___-

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I must confess I had such great expectations for this "Kioku ni Gozaimasen!" aka "Hit Me, Anyone, One More Time!", given the stellar cast and particularly the presence of Koike Eiko and Nakai Kiichi (two of my all-time faves, who were BTW both as great as always!). Unfortunately it wasn't such a brilliant, fast-paced comedy as, say, "The Uchoten Hotel", but just a (too) light comedy. It had its moments, but I ended up laughing a lot less than I had expected I would.
It's still an enjoyable movie that will provide a coupla hours of relax, only not the masterpiece I had expected.

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Great acting - as usual! - by the always superb Wakui Emi. Unfortunately, there's little else here. The plot is annoyingly trite (the Nth retelling of Cinderella's tale - which I don't care for at all, btw; I'll never understand how anyone can actually consider even remotely romantic a story which could be summed up as "she's poor, he's loaded". Materialistic much?!?!?). The dialogues aren't memorable, and neither is the rest of the cast (actually, Tsuruta Mayu is good; Kishitani Goro's clownish antics are somehow funny, but seem out of place 90% of the time here; as for Karasawa Toshiaki, he's as expressive as...a fish!!!). Forgettable.

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Recipe for a perfect dorama: take two great leads (Wakui Emi is simply to die for, here...and I guess Fukikoshi Mitsuru will have the same effect on the female audience), add some very good supporting actors (Amami Yuki and Ono Takehiko most of all, but everyone else also does a good job), mix everything with a nice, light and entertaining plot and most of all with lots and lots of witty and überfunny dialogues, give everything that unmistakable, unbeatable 90's flavor, and finally serve: the viewers will appreciate. Now, I can't speak for everyone else, of course, but believe me, THIS viewer was delighted from the very first minute to the very last! Perfect 10/10! :)

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I'm sorry, but honestly, I found this bad. And I don't mean "well, a bit bad"; not even "hmm, quite bad"...I mean REAL bad, bad bad...Walker-Texas-Rangers-kind-of-bad... =__= I can't help thinking that to make Shinohara Ryoko play a role that seems like it's been written for Dolph Lundgren (hell, seems like it's been written BY Dolph Lundgren!) it's such a tremendous waste of talent... T__T I noticed that not only this dorama has been quite popular, but basically everybody else here gives it a good vote...so I dunno what to say, it seems as if I've watched a different dorama, but what can I say? Imho half of it is too damn predictable (like a bad mix of all the worst Hollywood cop-movies), and the other half is either ridiculous or plain absurd...

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Abe Hiroshi's performance is simply excellent: at the same time funny, convincing and even moving, here and there. The same can be said about the absolutely gorgeous Natsukawa Yui. Kuninaka Ryoko is also good, though her character lacks depth....as a matter of fact, I don't give this a full 10/10 right 'cause I feel the whole thing could have been better developed. But anyway, it's still a very good dorama! 9/10 p.s. Kuwano-san has a great taste in music (it reminded me of Nodame Cantabile, LOL), as Hayasaka-sensei in manga (Tezuka, Golgo13, etc.)! Oh, and of course the Great Kaneda (that guy's just too funny, ROFL) has an impeccable taste in cars! 1970s Opel GT, one of my all-time faves! ^___^

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Weaker than the first season

This second season of "Yuru Camp" was in my humble opinion much weaker than both the first season and the in-between special episode. Fukuhara Haruka's screentime was drastically shrinked here, while most of the focus went to the supporting actresses - but that per se wouldn't have been such a big problem, as they're all decent actresses (even though not as good as Fukuhara - anyway, thumbs up to Ohara Yuno for her always contagious chuckle ^__^). The real problem is that the focus was also mostly switched from actual "yurucamping" to silly comedy, alas without much success. As a consequence, also the scenery, which had been an important detail previously, got a bit neglected here (don't expect loads of spectacular views, but rather just the occasional glimpse).
I have no idea how much covid-related restrictions could have been the cause of these changes for the worse, though...therefore my not-too-low grade.

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For once, I'll jump to the conclusion: this is a M-A-S-T-E-R-P-I-E-C-E !!!
First of all, the message is so deep that it simply humbles at least 90% of other dramas (and basically every Western series ever - but well, that's easier).
The script works like a Swiss clockwork, seriously; and seeing how this drama consists of 40 episodes of around 45' each, that alone is quite a feat! You laugh, you cry, you learn, etc....the whole nine yards! Or rather, Yin & Yang and all 24 solar terms!
The characters are so well-written and tridimensional that when you finish watching the series, you feel like you're saying goodbye to a group of friends!
The acting is simply superb. At this point I usually give three "honorable mentions" but here it's hard to name just three, one would want to praise *all* of them with a virtual standing ovation! Anyway, traditions must be kept, so let's say I'll stand a little longer for Jiang Shan, Zhao Lu Si and my beloved Dai Lu Wa.
The music is just lovely and adds greatly to the viewing pleasure.
As for the "packaging" (direction, editing, photography, etc.), that's top-notch too.
What's not to like? Perfect 10! Goes instantly into my top-5 of all times! ^_____^

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(Over)simplifying it, all Japanese movies could be divided into four categories:

1) The GREAT ones, stuff like the "Kazoku wa Tsurai yo!" trilogy, or "Umimachi Diary", or many many others, all magnificent examples of what makes Japanese culture so unique and fascinating

2) The SILLY ones, titles like "The World Sinks Except Japan" or "Oppai Volleyball" and many others; in a decent portion of these, the silliness is actually pretty funny, making such movies still enjoyable

3) The YAWNFESTS, or what I tend to refer to as "Victims of the nefarious influence of French 'Nouvelle Vague' and 'Cahiers du Cinéma'..."; pompous and artsy, painfully slow, with horribly thin (or even non-existing!) plots, unappealing dialogues etc.

4) All those which cannot fit in any of the previous (hey, I did warn you I was oversimplifying it! ^___^;;;.....)

Unfortunately, this "Bread & Bus Etc." fits in the third category. It took me FOUR DAYS to finish it, because I literally couldn't stand watching more than half an hour of it in one go (and usually my eyelids would start feeling horribly heavy already after ten or fifteen minutes...>____<).
The whole plot could fit on the back of a postage stamp, and if it had been done as a short movie (like, five minutes, tops) it might have been okay. But at close to two hours, it's almost unbearable.
Too bad, because Fukagawa Mai (the reason why I've watched it!) possesses a pretty nice acting talent. But it just couldn't shine in this yawnfest, alas.

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After the first episodes I thought I was gonna give this "Shimobee" a pretty high grade, 'cause it started very well, managed to be really hilarious here and there, and was altogether very entertaining.
The second half of the series, though, was more or less the fair of déjà vu (the "terminal illness" trope can produce gems like "1 lt. no Namida" or "Neko", but it can also result annoyingly trite and cheesy, as it was the case here, imho) and that made me lower the rating considerably.
Still, both Shiraishi Sei and Yasuda Ken deserve a standing ovation: the former is not only a gorgeous woman, but also a marvelous actress; and the latter is simply amazing, I honestly don't know many actors who would've been able to pull this off!
The music was also really nice.
Overall, and despite the not-so-great script, a pleasant watch.

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