rebzombie reviews

Densha Otoko or Train Man the TV series is based on the international bestselling book of the same title. If you want to know more about it, then you can check my Train Man book review. The Japanese TV series almost stayed true to the book with some modifications to the story.

All throughout the book, Train Man is just Train Man and Hermes is just Hermes. But in the TV drama series, Train Man is Yamada Tsuyoshi (Ito Atsushi) and Hermes is Aoyama Saori (Ito Misaki), who I think was perfect for the role. You’ll definitely fall for her at first sight.

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Train Man by Hitori Nakano is an international bestseller based on true events. It’s about a geek who became a reluctant hero and defended the female passengers from an obnoxious drunk. One of the passengers sends him a pair of Hermes teacups as a thank-you present. He didn’t know what to do next, so he turned to an online message board for help. This is how the love story of Train Man and Hermes began.

Train Man is seen from the geek’s point of view but in message board form. The book is a compilation of posts from the time Train Man first met Hermes. You’ll see how he matures and step out of his cocoon as he discovers what he has been missing since birth. He found out that there’s more to life than animes, games, work, and sleep.

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The first time I read the title Dance! Subaru, the last word stuck in my mind.  I thought the movie was about Subaru and cars.  I got it wrong big time!  The movie is about dance and features Meisa Kuroki as the beautiful ballerina Subaru.

Since she was a little girl, Subaru dreamt of becoming a ballet dancer.  She shares this dream with her twin brother Kazuma.  But due to a hereditary disease, Kazuma died and since then she turned to dancing to find happiness.

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Buzzer Beat is a Japanese basketball drama that revolves around Kamiya Naoki (Yamashita Tomohisa) and Shirakawa Riko (Kitagawa Keiko).  Naoki is a professional basketball player for the JC Arcs while Riko is a violinist.   They met in a time when both of them are struggling with their careers.  Like destiny wants them to be together, Naoki just broke up with his cheerleader girlfriend, Nanami Natsuki (Aibu Saki).

The chemistry between Yamapi and Keiko was good that it felt like they were really in love with each other.  The last time I saw Keiko was in Fast and the Furious: Tokyo Drift where she played one of Bow Wow’s friends.  Aibu’s character in Buzzer Beat is the total opposite of her role in Zettai Kareshi, where she played a naïve girl.

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Aside from becoming a doctor or an engineer, becoming an astronaut is what kids want to be when they grow up.  Twin Spica or Futatsu no Spica is about five teenagers who are pursuing their dream to become Japan’s first astronaut in space.

The five astronauts in training might have the same goal but their personalities are pretty much different from one another.  Asumi (Nanami Sakuraba) really wants to be an astronaut but she’s being held down because of her dad’s involvement with the explosion of the first Japanese rocket.  Running is her advantage over the other candidates.  I don’t know how that helps in becoming an astronaut.

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Atashinchi no Danshi is a recently concluded Japanese series that stars Maki Horikita.  It is about Chisato, a homeless girl hiding from her father’s debt collectors.  But even with all the grim and dirt on her face and clothes, she’s still beautiful.

The series becomes more interesting when Chisato met Shinzo and asked her to marry him and be the mother to his six adopted sons.  In exchange, her debt will be paid off.  This is no easy task especially when the six have their own problems to begin with.   On top of that, she must fulfill ten mothering goals as stated in the contract she signed before their supposed marriage.

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Tokyo Shonen or Tokyo Boy is about a girl named Minato who has a pen pal named Night. She also fell in love with a boy named Shu. The movie is told through the eyes of the three characters involved in this bizarre love triangle.

Maki Horikita takes on a challenging role, playing both Minato and Night in the movie. As a Tokyo boy, Horikita was scary. You can automatically tell whether she’s Minato or Night in the scene. I don’t want to be left with Night in the toilet alone.

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