---> MY SUNSHINE (Silent Separation)

Broadcast date:   January 10, 2015

 

Short Synopsis:  While studying at university, Zhao Mosheng fell in love at first sight with law student He Yichen. Through various incidents where Mosheng "stalked" Yichen on campus, Mosheng's cheerful personality charmed Yichen, and they slowly became college sweethearts. When Yichen's foster sister Yimei challenged Mosheng for Yichen's attention, Mosheng turned directly to Yichen for clarification, but did not expect to receive a cold response from him. Mistaking that Yichen and Yimei are a couple, Mosheng followed her father's arrangements and moved to the United States to continue her studies. Seven years later, Mosheng - who is now a professional photographer - returns to China, and coincidentally bumps into the unforgettable Yichen. Since the seven years they broke up, many people stand in the way of these star-crossed lovers: Foster-sister Yimei; Mosheng's marriage in United States; the unrelentingly infatuated ex-husband Ying Hui; as well as the financial grudges between the couple's fathers. All these situations continue to affect the two former lovers, but instead, these misunderstandings and challenges give them a better comprehension of the love they have missed over the past seven years. *taken from wiki*

young Yichen and Mosheng

SO... i feel that this Chinese drama deserves a place in this blog.  in the hopes that whoever may stumble upon my drama reviews, they will be encouraged to watch chinese dramas for a change.  i have to admit that liking dramas from mainland china is slowly creeping up on me.  there is something about their productions that are distinct and different from other asian dramas... which is a good thing. they may speak the same language, but it is different from Taiwanese dramas in style and approach even if their artists oftentimes collaborate with each other.

Yichen is hands down my fave character.  Wallace Chung*photo above*earned my respect after seeing him in this role*i'm now scouring the web for his other dramas*  he is the classic "one-woman-man".   and this is even when he believed loving Mosheng is against his better judgement.  he so loves her and he cant' do anything about it... but give in to that love.  aaahhh,  episode 20 is just... just... just... looove.   it was when he gave up all pretension of being indifferent and mean towards her.  basically, it was an admission of how weak he was and still is to the love he felt for her in the past and at the present.  and when he apologized and clung to her*photo below* that's a picture of a vulnerable man totally devoid of his pride. 

the adult Mosheng on the other hand seems pretty dull and ordinary, in sharp contrast to the bright like a burst of sunshine*hence, the title* young version of the female lead.  you really wouldn't understand Yichen's devotion to her if you don't know the young Mosheng and her relentless pursuit of him.

 

if i have one complaint against this drama, it's the repeated flashback scenes. i just don't understand why they have to repeat the same flashback over and over again!  oh, and Mosheng's hideous wig is an eyesore... i feel you Yichen :)  but other than those petty complaints and a few others,  everything else is perfect.  it was beautifully written *this is based on a chinese novel* and directed,  you would sympathize  and become attached to the characters and the story.
this is a 32 episode drama but what i have downloaded was 36, only to find out that the last 4 were actually a summary of the entire series *Orz* so don't be fooled. here's a 15 minute trailer of My Sunshine *cto of vid*

---> KINKYORI RENAI (A Close Range Love)

so basically the plot of this movie is a student who fell in love with her teacher and the teacher loving her back.  eeewww right?  i am not being prudish people... in fact i take pride in having liberal views most of the time.  but still, a high school teacher and his student,  im a little bit skittish and uneasy about that particular scenario if only because he is in a position of authority and she is an impressionable teenager.  no matter how i think about it, it is a totally inappropriate relationship. but then again, give her a couple more years to experience the reality of life and i may be ok with two of them being together. "may" being the operative word.

BUT of course you may ask,  for lil 'ole me who always drags her feet when writing,  some extraordinary inspiration may be present... there must be a pretty good reason why im investing my time writing about this.  that reason is because, this movie(based on a manga) is so well made and handled,  soon enough, it totally won me over. 
i knew i was safely and securely on board when i found myself wanting to stop that first kiss... aaahhh,  i wanted to stop him and scream... "don't even go there, a-ah. otherwise, there's no going back!" and i was right.  he really shouldn't have done that, of the two of them, HE was the adult.  but then again,  we are talking about L O V E people, so, nuff said!

his rationale why he did not avoid and lie about his feelings for her maybe because of what happened to his father, you see, he hates lying.  haaay Yamapi,  whatever your reasoning is, it doesn't alter the fact that she is your teenage student.  i'm just gratified that you know what you're getting into...that there is a very high possibility and probability that the kind of love a young teen may have is only temporary.  at the very least, let her date some handsome bloke for a while and see how that goes. but then again, you might say,  that's only delaying the inevitable.

he was sooo smitten with her that at some point he was becoming impulsive and his thinking is waaay far ahead... she was like... hold your horses teacher!  aaahhh love, the more you try and find a reason,  the more you'll find there is none!  that date on the beach... omygattt... one minute he was impetous, another minute he was profound but always so sweet... i was grinning from ear to ear. 

aaahhh, i'm just ever sooo grateful that this is a movie therefore the struggles are short and not dragging.  there is a drama production for this manga but i have yet to see it.  i will update this particular post if and when i decide to watch that.

as you can see and read, there's way too many "aaahhh and haaay and but" in this review.  it's a testament on how torn i was between disapproval and approval of the whole situation.  while im still at loggerheads with myself about this issue, in the meantime, please take the time to see this film. its is certainly worth the watch.

---> OUROBOROS

Toma Ikuta, Oguri Shun and Ueno Juri are the main leads of this drama... so is it any wonder why i am watching this even if it does not exactly have the happiest of endings? *sorry for the very early spoilers... "forewarned is forearmed" peeps :p*
i saw the posters and i was like... wait a minute... is that who i think it is?... no way... they are not together in a project... but all thanks to the drama gods, they are indeed together in a dorama *fireworks and confetti everywhere*

*cto of pic

short synopsis:  Ikuo and Tatsuya grew up like brothers in an orphanage where they found love and care from their teacher Yuiko.  one day, Yuiko was killed and there was a conspiracy to cover-up what really happened. from then on, Ikuo and Tatsuya became the dragon brothers *ouroboros is a snake or dragon biting it's tail, it is the design of their teacher's pendant*  who vowed to avenge the murder of their beloved teacher and unravel the mystery surrounding her death. fast forward... Ikuo is now a police investigator and Tatsuya is a yakuza boss,  both are still committed to the childhood vow to make the killers of their teacher pay for their crime. and then there's Mizuki, a police investigator and Ikuo's partner and her influential father... *that's all i'm gonna say, no more spoilers*

Yuiko and her Ouroboros pendant... *cto of pic

Ikuo and Tatsuya as children in the orphanage... *cto of pic

Oguri Shun as Tatsuya and Toma Ikuta as Ikuo... *cto of pic

Ueno Juri as Mizuki... *cto of pic

judging by the dramas that i have reviewed so far,  you can tell that i generally favor love stories, romantic comedies in particular.  in this case, i'm making an exception of Ouroboros because it is an action packed suspense, mystery drama... a far cry from the drama genre i always favor. why? because i almost always watch the dramas the 3 main cast are in, no questions asked!

Oguri Shun~~~Toma Ikuta~~~Ueno Juri    *cto of pic

Since this drama is more of a suspense/mystery, it would be totally unfair of me to cite particular scenes that would only lead to unwanted spoilers for those who are yet to see it.  So i'm gonna stop myself right here, right now from writing... well, maybe my one and single complaint... For somebody with a gunshot wound, this somebody certainly is one hell of a tough person to be able to go through sooo much, and i mean soooooo much!  Ok, imma zip it now *Orz*  suffice it to say, for me it was a case of ~ Just when i thought i had everything figured out by episode 4, turns out that i was so wrong ~ it's a beautiful drama with an equally beautiful cast.  Ouroboros everybody...  *cto of vid

---> SECOND LOVE

Broadcast period: 2015-Feb-06 to 2015-Mar-20

aaahhh... just realized i haven't written anything in a while here.  i assure you that its not because i have not watched any asian dramas lately, it's just that nothing i have seen so far has inspired me to write... anything! Actually, i have seen all sorts of dramas and tv series these past few months, from british to american to chinese dramas and that's apart from my usual korean, japanese and taiwanese drama productions and yet nada... not a single word to write about... until... this came into my drama radar...

Kamenashi "KAME" Kazuya as Kei

German trained contemporary dancer Kei certainly drew my attention 'coz Kame is definitely sporting the "sexy vibe" in this character.  There's something about Kame and the way he carries himself, like there's an inner "coolness" in the guy *spazzzzzz*  you have to see the look he gave the lead girl Yui when he slipped a piece of paper in her hands... now THAT was pretty intense, totally capable of making you melt from where you're standing... yes indeed!

his attraction to the lead girl can only be classified as a classic "love at first sight" , while to her and the rest of the school where she works as a teacher, he was mistaken for a dangerous stalker...

the impromptu dance he performed for her, i guess in an effort to convince her that he is indeed the famous dancer he claims to be both mesmerized and scared her. she thought it was all a scam... pretty amusing :)))

They had the right love at the right time.  They found each other... wait... the more apt word is SAVED each other at a time when their personal lives are slowly spiralling downwards.  HE,  the reality of a disappointing career that he so loves marred by a rejection he cannot bounce back from.  HER,  an illicit love affair that she has gotten herself into against her better judgement and despite what happened to her parents.   I just love their kind of loving... rash, impetous, illogical yet emotional and  passionate.

'id like to write about a whole lot of things about this drama but i'm afraid it'll give too much away and part of it's charm is it's not predictable.  let me just say that sometimes 'id like to slap some sense into Kei's head, sometimes at Yui's head.  there are times when i want to cheer them on and yet there are times when i want to tell one or the two them, good riddance!  this drama is realistic in a good way and not just for the sake of it!  it is safe to say that Second Love has become one of my fave drama for 2015... or maybe even of all time. 
ladies and gents... Kei and Yui..