~Years in Dramaland~ A Journey Through 2002 (pt 1)

Hey guys =)

How are you doing ? Is life treating you well ? Are things going smoothly ? If they aren't, don't worry, they're about to look up right now as I am BACK. Which in itself doesn't mean much to you but I bring dramas and some of them will be sure to improve your mood. Some won't, sure, but yunno, it can't all be puppies and flowers, we need the sad, the « grab the toilet paper coz I can't very well go shopping for more tissues at 4 a.m. » and the « forget the toilet paper, just get me an f-ing bucket and I'll get you enough water to draw yourself a bath with ». Still though, you'll get happy dramas in this post and today we're tackling 2002. Yep, 2002 and 2002 only : we're entering the « one year = one post » stage... 

… is what I would love to tell you right now. 

But the truth is, what we're entering is the « one year = several posts because Mila just can't shut the f up » stage aka the « Kakashi starting to regret letting me in » stage -I am so sorry-.

But back to 2002 : wasn't it a great year ? After all we did get this -explicit- song : here ! And that, my friends, shall always remain in our memories as … something we can't unhear. But seriously, 2002 actually was a good drama-year for me. Lots of dramas I love aired that year and I've seen none that I hated or even despised a little -I mean there was Winter Sonata I didn't enjoy but I never even completed episode 1 so I can't really have an opinion on the show... I do have one on the male lead's style though and it's not a good one o.o -. By the way, I'll take this occasion to say that in spite of what I wrote in previous posts and might write in the future, I do not hate Gokusen -which came out in 2002-. I did grow sick of it and Yankumi truly is a character I can't stand anymore -took me a while to warm up to Nakama Yukie again after this... not that she's bad in Gokusen at all, the character just really left a print on me- but season 1 was fun. And though other seasons are less good, they're still okay, their worst crime being that they don't bring anything new to the table. Repetition is what killed Gokusen for me but, assuming you're the type to enjoy this kind of drama, if you were to just start watching season 2, there's a good chance you might like it. Anyway no I don't believe Gokusen should not exist, I just think there's way too much of it. And with that out of the way, let's discuss dramas there's just enough of, even though sometimes we wish there'd be more. And this time Kdramas are definitely on the map !! Still, we'll start with a few Jdramas anyway.

But first... What?!

LOL, did you think I'd actually get into the real post now ? That I'd get to the point and would do things in a fast, direct and effective way ?

  

Since getting directly to the point without spitting out many many words first is for losers and I fancy myself a Tarantino-kind of blogger -yunno, without the actual writing talent-, let's discuss more stuff. Dramas that didn't quite make the « I love/really like for some(times good) reason » cut but that I still would like to mention. Don't worry though, I'll be quick. You know what, as a sign of good faith, I'll even proceed with bullet points to limit the blaberring.

~Pre-Stuff~

• First of all, a shout-out to 100 tales of horror. Though I was always disappointed that there was NOT, in fact, 100 episodes to the show -LIES ! LIES EVERYWHERE YOU GUYS ! The world is scamming us all-, it still was a fun watch for me. Now, some episodes didn't work perfectly but most of them did work anyway and had their own charm. Also I'm a horror fan and even when the execution doesn't work I always enjoy just witnessing what ideas creators/writers will come up with -though in this case the writers aren't the creators as the stories told are popular legends-. And even when they don't work, it doesn't matter because I can take the bare idea, change it, re-imagine it and make it into something that will scare the heck out of me. Their execution failures still become fuel to the « Mila's nightmares making machine ». And even when they don't, I just like collection of ideas. This drama is actually a nice one so if you enjoy the supernatural, you might like to check it out.

• About Lunch no Joou now. It took me ages to actually sit down and watch that thing but there was no way around it, I would HAVE to watch it at some point. I mean, look at the cast : Takeuchi Yuko, Tsumabuki Satoshi, Yamada Takayuki, Eita, Yamapi -not a great actor but when in a minor rôle, he's cute to look at-... ARE YOU KIDDING ME ? Are you trying to kill me Show ? Coz, please stab me moar, MOAR ! Let's bring KimuTaku in, why not ? But he wasn't in it and so I survived. Anyway, basically that drama is about a woman who agrees to be someone's fake-fiancee because she really likes food -sounds stupid but tbf, the omurice in that drama looked so good I tried to make some for weeks... and failed every single time :D I mean, it tasted good but it didn't look quite as nice as the ones on the show-. The dude leaves and she ends up living with his dad and bros who all kinda fall in love with her because this is Dramaland and men and women can't be friends. Lunch no Joou is very flawed. The characters are likeable yet sometimes say the most horrendous things without the writer realizing it, the music's really nice yet overused, the love triangle gets too heavy and some storylines with potential are never properly used. Yet the drama is heart-warming, Takeuchi Yuko is very likeable and Tsumabuki Satoshi's character is adorable. It gets too slow at times but it's also quiet and charming at others. I did like it despite the problems I had with it and so, I thought « yes, this needs a bullet point ».

• And lastly -for now since, to be honest, I'm still watching and rewatching stuff for part 2 so this thing is ever-growing... you might not make it out guys, this is like the Hotel California of posts-: Remote. In this one Domoto Koichi stars as Himuro Kosaburo, a talented detective who sadly, after receiving a huge trauma, is no longer able of stepping out of his basement, the outside world being too much for him to handle. So it's from his basement that he starts using Ataka Kurumi -who until now was basically just handling traffic and parking tickets-, as some kind of avatar, walking her through cases. It's hard for her though cause not only does she often finds herself in difficult situations, not only does her new job put some distance between her and her fiancee -Tamaki Hiroshi- but Himuro also happens to be kind of a jerk. Because of course he is. That said I don't know who's got it worse cause he has to listen to Fukada Kyoko's « kawaaii » high-pitched voice a lot and I think it only took 10 minutes for my ears to start bleeding. That said this was one of Fukakyon's okay-est roles for me, she was actually fun most of the time. And though Remote is pretty basic and does have some very obvious flaws -one of them being, for example, its less than satisfying ending-, it does have a nice sense of humor and the cases are entertaining. Also Eita gets a cameo which is always a good thing, though a cameo is never enough since, repeat after me, « more Eita is always better ». But truly, there's only one real reason this show's on this list.... and here it is -prepare to watch all my credibility go down in flames- : I love Domoto Koichi and he's, like, really hot in that drama which throws a lot of fanservice in the viewer's face -also I was kidding, I had no credibility to begin with-. What I said still stands : the show IS fun. The cases are entertaining, the characters are likeable and have a nice dynamic -with a hint of romance but really, you should not expect a true love story-. If you're into Japanese detective dramas and would like to have a good time, do definitely check it out. But mostly for me : Koichi's hot. And what kind of shallow, blindsighted, dumb fangirl would I be if it was not reason enough for the drama to make the cut, right ? So it was, it did, and I am, oh I SO am. 

 

 

Aaaaannd... we're done guys ! With the intro I mean. Now we can get into the REAL stuff. Are you ready ? Sitting comfortably ? Do you have some food nearby maybe ? Cause it might take a while... know this though : you can still turn around now, it's not too late. Go outside, talk to a friend, read another, better, post -this blog has plenty of them-. No ? Okay then, I warned you, your choice : let's go ! 

~Actual Stuff~

*taking serious tone now*

*seriously get ready to stop laughing now*

*of course you weren't laughing before...*

*so get ready to keep not laughing*

Just like in the 2000-01 post, I'd like to start with a 'not awesome' drama though, in this case, we're not starting with a mediocre one but going straight to an 'alright going on good' one. At first I was actually gonna put it in the « pre-stuff » part of the post but the more I thought about it, the more I thought « You know what Mila, no, I really want to discuss this. Who cares if your post is so long people might die of old age reading just part 1 ? People don't matter, we hate people. Filthy people, we hates them, we hatess them forever ». And then I went to a really really dark place but my point is : Satorare, I wanted to talk about it. Not only because I like it but also because it's less known than some other dramas on my list so I thought I might actually get you to learn about something new. With Odagiri Joe in it, which is always a plus. But don't worry, we're not in a « Domoto Koichi's hot » kind of thing, I have many things I really like about Satorare that do not include Odagiri Joe's hotness -actually, to be honest, I do not find him that attractive in that drama... love him and all but I really like older-OdaJoe better-.

First of all, the idea's intriguing.

Wait, no, first of all, older OdaJoe:

Okay, now about...

About...

Okay what was I on about again? 

Oh yeah: the drama's intriguing idea...

« Satorare » in the drama is a word referring to people whose thoughts can be heard by everyone around them. They don't know their thoughts can be heard : government people are assigned to them, making sure people act normal around them and satorares don't find out they are satorares since they'd probably become really depressed at the thought of having NO intimacy whatsoever and might end up killing themselves or committing other drastic acts. But yeah their thoughts are basically broadcasted to everyone near them all the time. From « I'm hungry » to « I wonder what penguins' knees look like » and « This person talking to me right now is so stupid I want to bang his or my head against the wall ». The drama doesn't give much more explanation so you just have to accept the fact that satorares exist and our lead is one of them. And, as you can imagine, he's a very lonely character. He's never had a friend nor a girlfriend in his life and he's also stuck at work. Because, well, it's hard for people, becoming friends with someone whose thoughts you can actually hear ! Not only can you hear them when they think bad things about you -or not necessarily bad things, just things you don't wanna hear- but, let's say you tell someone something very private : if he thinks about it later -or while you're talking-, boom, that's it, everyone near him knows too. And Satomi works in a hospital, he's a doctor who's never given the chance to operate on people since people would hear his thoughts while he does. But Satomi doesn't know he's a satorare ! Which means he doesn't know why he has no friends, why he can't get a girlfriend, why he doesn't get a shot at work. He thinks that's because he's not good enough, because he's lacking. Which is truly heartbreaking, especially considering that OdaJoe portrays the character so well.

That said, don't think that it's a depressing drama ! I know it looks that way right now, but believe me, it's actually quite fun. Because the people around Satomi can't react to his thoughts but that doesn't mean they don't want to or, sometimes, slip up -the female lead actually does slip up most of the time... because of course she does-. And some situations are really funny. For example, consider this : at some point, Satomi tails two people on a date. He's in disguise and trying to be super discrete but of course everyone around him -including the people he's following- knows what he's doing. But no one can, and again that includes the people under his watch, do something about it since they're not allowed to react. That's a great comedy set-up and the drama gets a lot of laughs through the course of its episodes. So no, the drama's not depressing, it's not even dark really. There are some sad things in it but it's also very heartwarming and I love the characters. The secondary characters form a good ensemble that provides us with good comedy but mostly I like the protagonist and the two female leads. One of those two female leads is Satomi's mother. To Satomi, she's an ordinary good mom -which is already awesome btw- but we know she's had to deal with Satomi's condition and it's an exhausting thing to do. Her courage, patience, warmth and love make her such a strong, compassionate and brave character that she often brought me to tears. I mean, I'm not saying « give her a medal for loving her son » -especially since he's the sweetest thing in the world... and will grow up to also be one of the sexiest things in the world but that takes us in weird places- but raising kids is not easy and raising Satomi even less so. So I really think his mom is someone to admire and she gets a lot of very sweet scenes that went straight to my heart. And then, at the end, the whole subplot surrounding her kinda broke said-heart too...

 

I also love our lead's love interest. See, I like the fact that she's very sweet and compassionate and wants to be kind to Satomi but that she's also very hesitant about their relationship because she doesn't know whether she's strong enough to be involved with a Satorare. She can't help but gravitate towards him, if only at first because she feels sorry for him and wants to help, but she's not a saint, she's not completely selfless and she's not self-assured either so she gets scared at the thought of getting close to someone she's not sure she can have any intimacy with. Her kindness, though, is what really shines through and there's an early scene in the drama where I really decided that yes, I liked her. In episode 2 she gets involved in some kind of scheme to help Satomi though she didn't want to take part in it at first because she didn't think it would actually be a good thing for him. Anyway, because of it, they get closer and there's this scene where they're talking and suddenly, here comes Hoshino's two-timing ex with his new girlfriend. And seeing that she's really hurt by this, Satomi does the « drama knight » thing to do -which, do we agree, almost none of us would do IRL?- and pretends he's her new fiancee so she does not lose face. We're kinda used to this scene in Dramaland, aren't we ? But this is different, of course, because of Satomi's condition. First he thinks of this charade but immediately, because his inferiority complex is so deep-rooted, this thought is followed by another : « what if it makes it worse ? » What if, because he's so lacking, he makes her look bad, what if he's not even worthy of pretending to be her lover ? And hearing that, she immediately wraps her arm around his and introduces him to her ex because there's no way she's gonna let him think that about himself. While Satomi thinks he's doing a good job acting, the ex and his new girlfriend are laughing because, of course, they hear everything. And Hoshino hears everything too, she knows they're making fun but she only says « Isn't he a nice guy ? » twice because more than her losing face, she's touched by Satomi's intentions, touched by his kindness. Sure she does not have a fiancee but she has a friend who cares this much and she won't stand for people laughing at him. How do I not love this kind of character ? Especially since, on top of all that, she's also very amusing in how she just keeps reacting to his thoughts when she's not supposed to, completely confusing him.

The drama has its flaws of course, I wouldn't want you to expect otherwise. I think that apart from the too « scripted » thoughts and kinda slow pace, the most obvious problem is the ending. See, as I said, the drama is a mix of warmth, fun, bittersweet feelings, love, etc and of course, there's sadness too in it. And the drama does have to deal with this sad and heavy stuff at some point. And it does. With very awkward bad writing in the last episodes, offering us a letdown of a conclusion. By that point I was more than emotionally invested enough in the characters to walk with them through the crappy finale but still you know, a good one wouldn't have hurt. In no way is Satorare a masterpiece. Its flaws are obvious and I'd bet some people would get bored watching the drama but you know, I truly did love it. I haven't seen the movie it's based on but seeing how much I enjoyed the drama, I definitely will check out the movie sometimes, especially since it stars Suzuki Kyoka and Masanobu Ando, both actors I really like.

Moving on.

Moving on to another drama I love -and after that there'll be another drama I love... it's like a drama love fest in here-. Even more so. A lot more actually. This has been in my favorite Jdramas for a long long time. But weirdly enough I haven't been rewatching it much and so when it came to writing about it for this post I was like « okay I'm ready to type, I know I love that drama but... why again ? ». I couldn't quite remember everything about it. So I rewatched it because deep down I knew I had to do it justice, I couldn't just type anything, pretend I remembered -which I'd never do anyway.... worst case scenario, I'd pull a Koi Ga Shitai x3 on you and say « I don't remember that drama but omg guyze watch it ! -and then remind me why it's awesome again- »- . So I rolled up my sleeves -which I wasn't wearing since the Devil was complaining about the weather being too hot that day-, I put some epic music on -which I immediately turned off since, well can't hear the drama's dialogues over the LOTR soundtrack- , sat down in front of the computer and I watched the whole damn drama, oh baby I watched it good. And you know, going back on stuff you really really really liked a few years ago, you always have "the Fear", the Fear that maybe it's not quite as good as you remember it because let's face it younger-you is almost always dumber than now-you. Or at least now-you thinks so. Anyway you have this fear that not only will you waste your time rewatching the show but you might also actually spoil the good memories you had of it. That said rewatching Long Love Letter -which I now realize I forgot to give you the title of … - only made me love it more. I saw more flaws in it than I did the first time but I also found some new things to love and basically love is all around, can't you feel it in your toes guys ? Or is that numb feeling in your feet just the result of having been sitting here reading this post for the last 5 years of your life ? Meh, we might never know so let's just say it's love.

Back to the drama. With a title like Long Love Letter, you can pretty much guess what it's all about so I feel stupid explaining but let me give you an idea anyway. So there's this dude called Asami and this girl called Yuka and they meet. They have one of those nice meet cutes like OTPs do in dramas and they talk for a really really long time and they get along and they exchanged numbers but omg Asami gets his cell stolen and so he can't call and she calls but the woman who stole the phone answers and it's a huge misunderstanding. One year later she works in her dad's flowershop and he works at the high school she used to teach in. She's delivering flowers and stumbles onto him while he was trying to turn down a student making a pass at him. She thinks he's taking advantage of the high school girl and omg more misunderstanding but yay they talk and they almost get cool again but thenstuffhappensandit'slikenotcoolandthenlikethegroundshakes... and the whole world around the school turns into a wasteland and everyone's -maybe- dead except the few people who were on the school ground. 

So, yeah, assuming that, like me, you expected the movie P.S. I love you to be about a zombie overlord taking over the world, this is all pretty predictable. Otherwise I guess the whole « the school just got taken away in the middle of nowhere » is kind of a surprise. And in a way I do feel a little guilty about telling you guys but then again it's the whole point of the show and I can't discuss it at all without telling you. And don't worry, it happens in episode 1 so it's not like I'm giving away a huge end-twist. It's the starting point really. But anyway yeah, from the title alone, you probably wouldn't guess what the drama is actually about. That said, although the « love » in the title isn't romantic love, there is, as previously stated, a romance in LLL and it's even a good one ! It's a Japanese noona-romance guys =D

But it's not like other noona-romances. The age difference does come into play because Asami allows himself to be a little less mature with Yuka but they don't have to deal with society's views since there's no more society to begin with. So that makes their relationship a whole lot simplier. That said, they were never characters to let society's judgment trouble them. They have good communication, great chemistry and they enjoy spending time together so a few years wouldn't have made any difference at all. Most of the time it doesn't even show, but they do bring it up once or twice since Asami does act younger when with Yuka. I love this couple because of how plain their relationship is. They're in a wasteland of a world, they've got to manage lost teenagers and try to survive but through each other they find this very sweet, peaceful, simple kind of happiness and that just makes me glad. And also I love both characters separately, starting with Yuka. Yuka breaks in front of Asami once in the beginning and he comes for her, he waits for her, he leads her on the way back. After that she does break a few times, away from everyone's eyes, and all those scenes are very effective. They're very effective because Matsu Takako is a great actress and conveys Yuka's feelings of despair but because they also underline just how strong a woman Yuka is. She's not a saint -for example she does feel bitter about the sacrifice she made for her former student, played by Tsumabuki Satoshi, she has doubts, etc-, she has moments of weakness, but these moments of weakness make her human and she's a real pillar for the stranded group. She gives them warmth, courage, hope, support and in the face of danger, she won't back down, she'll fight and protect them. She's got such determination and resilience, she's awesome and I love her. And I love him too.

Asami's like a lost puppy a lot of the time. But he's also a dedicated responsible teacher who wants to see his student happy, well-learned, and, well, given the situation, alive. The reason I say he's a lost puppy is because he's got this lonely aura around him. We're given very little info about him. We get info about Yuka : she lives with her dad, he's got a flowershop, she was a teacher, she left the school for reason-I-won't-spoil, we see her with a friend too. She's got relationships, we're given a context for her character. Asami doesn't really have one. And that's not because the script is lacking, that's because he's just very lonely, which becomes really apparent in one of my favorites scenes of the drama. Japanese people, as you may know if you've watched a few Jdrama, learned a few Japanese or just watched Kimi Wa Petto -they say both approximately 197 times in each episode- , have those words : « okaeri » and « tadaima » that basically mean « Welcome home » and « I'm home ». After a few episodes, Asami actually says « tadaima » when coming back to the school after wandering in the wasteland. The students he's with are taken aback, suddenly realizing how much weight this everyday phrase actually carries. And I think Asami's the first person to actually say « tadaima » because he's never had much of a home which is why he's pretty quick to consider the school as his new home. Later in that episode, in said-favorite scene, he's walking back to the school and Yuka welcomes him with an «  Okaeri ». So he kisses her because at that point she's probably the most beautiful she's ever been to him. And he's got this look on his face, this touched, thankful look and you realize he's probably not heard an « okaeri » in years. There are other clues in the drama too but yeah, Asami -again, wonderfully played by Kubozuka Yosuke whom I previously discussed in my 2000-01 post since he was in SOS and IWGP- is a lonely character and it's great seeing him grow as a person as he finds himself a home, a place to belong and, most importantly, the people to share it with.

I love all the characters. Not all of them are fleshed out enough and not all of them are well acted -Yamapi looks bored/asleep/braind-dead most of the time and the crazy lady that the writer keeps using as a cheap way to move the plot along is very over-acted- but as an ensemble, I love them. Of course some characters go crazy, some of them for a moment, some of them completely. After all, the drama can't be all happy ! I mean, the Earth is a wasteland and everyone they know is apparently dead. They don't have much food, they're running out of water and they've got no electricity either, it ain't gonna be no fun vacation in Happyland. But the feeling that gets through in the end is a warm, hopeful one. The drama's got his dark elements, the whole idea of it is dark to begin with, but it's ultimately about people being the best they can be. And now, let me come back to the title : « Long Love Letter ». Many love letters are written during the drama. Some of them are actually written  -the students writing to the people/time they left behind, Takamatsu's card, etc – and some of them aren't, they come in the form of actions. Lots of love going around. But the love letter from the title, the long one, is something we're all writing according to the drama. Asami, at some point, makes the point that feelings, in a way, time travel all the time. He gives the example of a scarf a girl made for her boyfriend. She puts it in his locker and he finds it later. Even if they're not together anymore, the feelings traveled til the time the boyfriend found the scarf. And what Long Love Letter ultimately wants to say is that we're the girlfriend, our actions are the scarf and the world is the locker. Everything we do is changing the world for the next generation and when we strive to make it a better place by doing small or grand actions, it's like we're writing a long love letter to those who'll come after us. That said, LLL is not only concerned with the future but also the present and, at the start of the drama, Asami writes something on the board that never gets erased: « Live for the now ». A common phrase that nonetheless makes a lot of sense here and what Asami means by that is not only that we should do the things we wanna do now because who knows if we'll end up marooned in a wasteland tomorrow -after all schools do get alien abducted/lost in different dimensions/etc all the time- but also, as he explains, that "now", wasteland and all, is all we've got. So we can't dwell on the past and we must make the best of today.

Now, the drama's got some shaky writing -especially at the end-, it's not always light on the message, the editing can be quite cheesy, the music's not always on point -drama's got a very nice musical theme though- and the effects are cheap. And yeah, some actors are wooden, some are overacting -they're more of an exception than the rule though- but in the end the drama's heart shines through and I can't get too mad at a show that basically says « Love's what brings us together and will save us ».

So ...  that was a long one sorry... LOL joking: this was not nearly as long as it could have been. But still, next one will be shorter I swear ! A LOT shorter. I won't even waste time on a transition, here it is : Kisarazu Cat's Eye. Which does have something in common with Long Love Letter : the drama is impossible to predict from the title. I mean, would you expect Kisarazu Cat's Eye to be a story about a young man learning he's dying of cancer and has only six months left to live ? Because that's what you're getting. And knowing that, would you believe this drama is actually hilarious ? Because it is. And would you also believe that at some point the lead puts on a bat costume and, turns out, he was Bruce Wayne all along ? Cause... yeah he wasn't. But the first two were true, the drama IS about a young man dying of cancer and it IS very funny. Because Bussan, our lead, ain't about to wallow, nope, he's gonna do all the crazy stuff he wants to do. And he's not going to do it alone, he has his own gang of misfits, including shy college boy Bambi -Sakurai Sho at its most adorable-, living-in-his-little-bro-s-shadow Ani -dude's bro is Narimiya Hiroki so... yeah, I wanna live in that shadow too-, afro-wearing Masta -who owns the bar they hang out in- and weird no-one-really-quite-knows-anything-about Ucchie. They're all a blast to hang out with and that's what if feels like, it feels like we're also hanging out with them. Though if I actually were there I don't know if I'd take part in their crazy schemes cause you know... they're crazy o.o Still, they're a very fun gang and the drama is also full of fun other characters like the baseball coach, the lady owner of the strip club, Bussan's dad and his love of -mostly failed- impressions, the very frustrated high school teacher who plays extreme pranks to relieve tension, etc. The actors are all doing a great job -I mean they're over acting but that's what the drama asks for and they're good at it, it doesn't feel messy at all... that said of course, I know some people won't like it, I'm usually one of them-, the writing is very fast, the directing is energized and the drama likes, in each episode, to throw twists at us. I remember that a few years ago I tried to show that drama to a friend and we actually ran into a problem : it was way too fast for her. Because it was eng-subbed and though her english was good and usually more than enough to understand drama subs, KCE was just too fast. But I love its fast pace, there's never a dull moment.

That said, it doesn't mean the show lacks emotion. I mean, you get to see the gang enter a Mr Kisarazu contest, form a band or steal jewelry Mission Impossible-style but there's also a sadder side to the drama. Let's take Ozzy for example. Ozzy is Kisarasu's symbol in a way, chosen as the town's guardian angel by its people. He's the local bum, he spends most of his days running around to get beer but he's loved by everyone. He's a very funny character but he's also someone with a very sad past and there's a sweet melancholy to him and even tragedy that comes out a few times in the drama -yeah, he kinda broke my heart actually...-. Same goes for the gang : they're having a blast but Bussan is, after all, going to die at some point so there's this sense that while we're having a lot of fun, the fun is bound to end. And that's sad. The characters are misfits and it makes them entertaining but sometimes you remember that if they didn't have each other, they'd be pretty much ostracized from society. Now, the sadder side of KCE does not overshadow the fun side, not at all, but it's still there. And I love it. I love how the drama can get me to almost cry at some weird-ass scenes like Bussan's dad singing a love song in a red dress, embarrassing his son to the max, and how it can also get me to laugh at some scenes that would not be fun in other shows. I must admit, that rewatching it, I had some doubts about some things but in the end I wasn't bothered enough to not enjoy the heck out of KCE. Plus, some things that made me cringe actually take a turn for the better anyway. For example, I really didn't like the way Mohko's character -the local "easy girl"- was being treated, I did not appreciate how she was such a joke to everyone, but then you learn something new later in the drama and turns out the joke was basically on everyone else. Not everything that made me cringe turned around later but the good parts largely outweighed the bad ones.

I love that drama to bits. I feel for Bussan, I love his gang, I have so much fun watching them do crazy dumb stuff and getting away with it for the weirdest of reasons, I love the cast -it really is a shame that Okada Junichi's not around much anymore- and I love that there's still heart even in the craziest of situations. Basically, yeah, I just love it. I totally get why some people wouldn't like it since it really is in a category of its own but I can't not tell you to give it a shot. Kisarazu Cats NYAH !

And that's it for now you guys. Again, congratulations, you made it through. Your strength, endurance and resilience are commendable, you'd do well in a "dumped in a wasteland" situation. But for now you can go live your life again, assuming you're one of those people I heard of who have one. Part 2 won't come too soon so enjoy your freedom, go be amazed at how high def the real outside world looks. Thank you all for reading and I wish you lots of good stuff, including, but not limited to, good dramas, nice-looking oppas and onii-chans, cool unnis and onee-sans... and chocolate.

Until next time, this is Mila, signing off.