Reviews

Mama wa Idol Reboot

Update: I watched and wrote my comment a few days before the news broke out. I'm in utter disbelief upon hearing the news of Nakayama Miho passing away at the young age of 54. During the past couple of weeks I went into a binge-watch of all her projects from the 80s and 90s, she was a truly striking, talented and fun actress that gave a unique signature to all the projects she's been in. It's unfortunate what has happened and she will be missed dearly. Rest in peace, mama idol!

Following the success or appeal (?) of Mama wa Idol (1987) the leads returned for another run, they even brought some of the side cast like the neighbor who still have her eyes on the male lead. In fact, the entire thing felt like a carbon copy of its predecessor, from the cast to the setup, story, dynamics, characters, jaded jokes, setting and production. They were seriously trying too hard to make it as similar as possible without offering anything new. Nakayama Miho is still trying to be a mother of children not of her own while suffering from the same interrupted intimacy trope in every episode. I couldn't find a single thing that might nudge this over Mama wa Idol, they should've aimed to improve over or at least not repeat the same mistakes.

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SUIKA!

This slice-of-life drama was a quirky concoction of midlife crises, emotional constipation, and nostalgia. It’s not going to set your pulse racing or redefine the genre, but it got enough charm to keep you interested, for the most parts. The story follows Motoko, a 34-year-old woman whose life got a kick in the pants when her friend absconded with 300 million yen. Then, there was a sexually frustrated manga artist, a melancholic professor, and an emotionally stunted young landlord. It was basically the setup for a comedic entanglement, but instead, you get slow-burning introspection with the occasional dash of the familiar Japanese absurdity. There’s something hypnotic about watching these women fumble their way to self-discovery, finding happiness in their mundane fractured lives. It had this warm nostalgic glow all over it but that couldn't save it from some inconsistencies and shortcomings. Particularly with its 2nd half where the drama already exhausted most of the personal stories around the housemates and what left was a lot of emptiness. There was an opportunity to dedicate an episode for the young landlord since she was the fourth wheel in the dynamic. Suika was the kind of drama that doesn’t try too hard to impress, and somehow that was its biggest charm. It wasn't revolutionary, but if you’re in the mood for a contemplative drama with a few laughs and a lot of heart, this one might be worth it.

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Surprisingly Good

At the surface, the drama explored the abuse cases as expected from reading the synopsis, however, the rabbit hole was much deeper than initially thought. Each episode peeled one layer after another with more haunting revelations up until the last episode. I was worried we would be presented with a superficial showcase of some traumas but the drama actually took its time with each of leads' struggles and constructed a solid story. Although it went off the rails a little bit at the end but nothing too outrageous. I would've hoped if the ending was more grounded but one can look at it serving a theatrical over-exaggeration for the final act. Moreover, the constant jumping back and forth between different periods could've been done better. The side abuse cases didn't hold up compared to what the leads were going through nor did they blend well with the story. Aside from the intense cruelty, that one menacing soundtrack caught my attention. It's the same soundtrack that was used in Silent Hill 2 (White Noiz) which is strange because it's not the same composer. It definitely gave the drama a unique signature that was absolutely chilling whenever it played, though they almost didn't use it in the last couple of episodes.

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Inconsistencies Hell

Amazing first episode that was masterfully crafted to kick start the story and prepare it to venture in all kinds of directions. There was a slight decline in the writing moving forward but it kept holding its own weight for awhile. That prison warden was quite the character. The OST was pretty decent. There was also some glaring inconsistencies like the alcoholic father suddenly becoming sober just to get to the next point in the story. However, the drama hit a major unsalvageable road block. Specifically at the beginning of the last 1/3 of the drama. It turned the drama into cheap vapid melodrama diminishing any merits it previously established for the past 8 episodes. The ending was questionable at best, it didn't really allow for real conversations to be had. It's really unfortunate after it had a very solid run before flipping the switch.

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Fed up with long lasting dramas ? Try this one.

I really didn’t expect enjoying watching this drama. First of all, because most of the actors were unknown to me and I also considered the story development to be superficial : each of the twenty episodes last less than 15 minutes.
On first day I watched the 11 first episodes. On day 2, I got frustrated : is the drama already over ? Just like that ? Oh my God, I am already missing the ML.
Of course, it is fast to watch but everything you expect from a good drama is in here : love, hate, jealousy, revenge, twist plots.
Now, FL and ML have not that much chemistry but ML‘s acting is enough to make you dive into the story and make you watch the drama till the end with great pleasure. I'm sure, whether you are a girl or a boy you will fall in love with Li Jiu Lin before the end of episode 10. Wanna bet ?
I really loved ML and FL relationship, you can « feel » their love, or at least you can believe in it. Not just because of the acting but also the filming. Some scenes are sensual but nothing as erotic as what you can see in western films. ML is really good at playing emotionally.
For this kind of production, with clearly no ambition to deliver a piece of art, everything is perfect : settings, costumes, scenes, dialogues, actors and soundtracks. Unexpected twist on episode 12… Almost shocked…. Noooo !
The storyline may be a bit stereotypal, progressing really fast (maybe too fast, with real shortcuts) but who cares when it comes to thrilling entertainment ?
You may not rewatch this drama, but you’ll eventually go and look for shows in which Li Jiu Lin plays.
Not that bad I guess.

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Fake Messiness

The drama started with enough intrigue to keep me curious for where it was heading. However, it quickly became apparent what type of drama this was going to be. Things were messy and over bloated with way too many plotlines that were forcefully connected to the mother's pregnancy to give the illusion of a grand story. Most of these plotlines didn't get the treatment they deserve and were brushed off hastily, take for example the younger daughter at school. On the other hand, the older brother story with the gang business and whatnot was just seriously stupid writing that didn't mix well with the overall story at all. The drama was also painfully filled with extreme cliches at every turn, scene and dialogue, which the Japanese consider mandatory for every 'family' drama. If we were to focus on the mother (and maybe eldest daughter?) then the drama is decent enough.

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Delusional Love

Surprisingly atrocious! To start, reading the synopsis would give you all the spoilers you need as it will play out exactly as suggested. Given the supposed 'moral' dilemma, the drama resulted to shifting genres at around episode 9 to diverge the attention from the characters' relationships when it reached a pivotal moment, which is why we ended up with a corporate corruption plot. This was the main reason why the plot crumbled under its own weight, because the writers couldn't follow through with what they created. Well, it was problematic from the beginning, there was simply little to no room to navigate such a set up for a story where the FL fell in love with her brother-in-law immediately after her sister's death. The plot wasn't particularly unique but other ones at least had a reasonable justification by utilizing a time-skip or concealed identity. All of that doesn't come close to the tone deaf ending where the entire cast were casually hanging out at the bar as the credit rolled.

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What's the point

I watched the whole thing without even knowing what's the point by the end of it.
Now it's not the first Japanese drama I watch that ends with a vague open end, I don't mind that and I'm fine with it but seriously this one isn't it.

The genre, romance and comedy are non existing, it's just a slice of life with barely any life lessons, just confused people thinking and talking about their failed relationship,
Do they figure out what went wrong? Nope
Do they learn anything from the experience? Nope not really.
Do we learn anything? Not even the slightest, it's really confusing.

I understand that the main theme here is adult relationships, they mentioned that many times but still it's about confused adult that somehow trying to understand what they want in life and in love and by the 8th ep and after one of the side stories character have a long monologue about marriage and kids they finds out that they will always be confused about life and there is no way you'll find your answer in life, you just have to life it come what may, well guess what!? EVERYONE KNOWS THAT!!! Thank you for teaching nothing.
For a "slice of life" drama it was not very eye-opening.
For a character like Mami, she is the most annoying character ever btw, she started off married, and she just keep complaining and acting like a Bi**h to her husband then get a divorce then end up together with her husband... Honey that's just married with extra steps, extra unnecessary and annoying steps, you are just a spoiled brat! Get over yourself!

For Mukai, my sweet confused boy, I totally and completely didn't sympathise with him lol like bro what do you want? They literally gave him many options, the one that want to have fun with no commitments, the one who want to be serious about marriage, a girl that wants the normal relationship with the typical steps, and another that want the full baggage, and you leave all that to fall for a girl that doesn't even want you and end up being the same as you were. And you say character development?? Bi**h where!!???

Long story short, My main problem with this is it felt like a loop, all the characters are at the same spot in their life - except maybe Kouki san- by the end of it.
Making me wonder why did I spend all that time watching it.

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Love? Never

The drama’s main plot revolves around a woman whose one defining characteristic is being perpetually sad. Why is she sad? Who knows! The writers certainly didn’t seem to. Maybe because the men in her life are about as reliable as a dial-up internet connection, or maybe it’s because the script was clearly written by someone going through a mid-life crisis and decided, “You know what’s relatable? Pain. Just… constant, nonsensical pain.” Nothing really makes sense, it was unbelievably dull as everything kept going in empty circles through the same events. Every man and woman were interested in the leads for some reason. Breakup was an expected element in such a plot but it was seriously poorly executed. It's the type of breakup you might see in an anime at the first slight misunderstanding, justified by a cheap trope rather than proper character writing. Why would their love be so great? The leads romantic chemistry has all the fire and passion of a wet sponge, it just couldn't sell the viewers on the long distance relationship and love. The drama was just a bloated, meandering, self-indulgent slog that mistakes misery for profundity.

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Generic Lustful Men

Imagine a love triangle that’s less about romance and more about how spectacularly uncomfortable and contrived things can get. A plot that goes absolutely nowhere for a full fat 11 episodes. A blind man could recognize and see the outcome of this empty mess at first glance. It was unbelievably obvious from the beginning that Tsubasa will refuse to choose between the two. Well, it was also obvious this wasn't meant to be serious drama comedic, light and playful play on the given situation, however, the execution was the farthest thing from displaying such needed attributes. The storyline teetered between laughably implausible and downright tedious. It's a joyful love story, yet it lacked love, logic, joy or likable characters. The male characters were too damn one-dimensional, they make cardboard cutouts look like complex psychological studies. I've seen more emotional depth in a traffic report. All things considered, the dram was still not as bad as Nakayama Miho's other project "Suteki na Kataomoi (1990)".

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Dead End

This drama proved to be much worse than expected and ended up being my least favorite Nakayama Miho project thus far. It’s a 90s slog that moves at the pace of a drunken snail trying to cross a busy freeway. It got some charm buried under all the emptiness and shortcomings, but you’ll need an archaeological dig to find it. The plot was full of second-hand cringe distilled into indigestible form and the lack of chemistry was shocking and deadly with all of her male co-stars! The supporting cast fares slightly better but they were clearly there just to pad out the runtime. To be fair, it’s not all bad. The drama did occasionally capture the bittersweet pain of unrequited love but those moments were few and far between, and they were buried under so much fluff and filler that you’ll wonder if they were worth the effort.

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Alchemy of Souls is a mesmerizing and intricately woven K-drama that blends fantasy, romance, and political intrigue into a spellbinding story. Set in a beautifully crafted fictional world, the series follows complex characters navigating forbidden magic, fate, and tangled destinies. The drama’s rich plot is layered with betrayal, passion, and redemption, making it both unpredictable and captivating.

The performances are stellar, with a strong cast bringing emotional depth to their roles. The cinematography and world-building are visually stunning, immersing viewers in a magical realm full of breathtaking landscapes and atmospheric tension. The blend of heart-pounding action, romance, and supernatural elements keeps audiences hooked with every twist and turn.

Alchemy of Souls is a must-watch for fans of fantasy dramas, offering both visual splendor and deeply human storytelling.

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A heartfelt, visually stunning exploration of friendship and youth.

Begins Youth (2024), is an emotional, visually stunning journey through friendship, dreams, and the transformative power of music. Blending narrative storytelling with their signature performances, the film captures pivotal moments of growth, passion, and memory, offering both stunning visuals and heartfelt emotion.

The chemistry among the members shines as they reflect on personal experiences and shared ambitions, all set against a soundtrack that perfectly amplifies each moment. The cinematography is breathtaking, combining vibrant concert sequences and intimate storytelling that immerses viewers in the journey from struggle to success.

Whether you’re a long-time ARMY or new to their story, Begins Youth offers nostalgia, joy, and relatability—making it a must-watch for fans and moviegoers alike.

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