What dramas are you currently watching?

Tiger & Dragon

Probably the most frustrating Dorama I've ever tried to watch.

There's a big rule in comedy: If you have to have a joke explained to you... it ain't funny. (At least not to you.)

You might get it, you might say, "Oh!" after the explaination. But you still missed the joke.

Tiger & Dragon is a sharp, well made comedy based on Rhythm, Pace, Snappy Patter, Puns, Double Entendre, Call Backs, Wrap Arounds, Hoary Old Jokes, and hip insights hidden within other Hoary Old Jokes.

I can see it all happening, and I can get some of it by reading the subtitles... but the bottom line is... I'm not from Japan, I don't speak Japanese, and so...I'm missing more than half the jokes. And that's frustrating as hell.

And for me, frustration tends to lead to apathy.


I know. Sounds like I'm being real wordy about a show I've pretty much lost interest in. But this is a setting and a style of humor that I would normally really enjoy... if I could understand it.

Geezer wrote:Tiger & Dragon

Probably the most frustrating Dorama I've ever tried to watch.

There's a big rule in comedy: If you have to have a joke explained to you... it ain't funny. (At least not to you.)

You might get it, you might say, "Oh!" after the explaination. But you still missed the joke.

Tiger & Dragon is a sharp, well made comedy based on Rhythm, Pace, Snappy Patter, Puns, Double Entendre, Call Backs, Wrap Arounds, Hoary Old Jokes, and hip insights hidden within other Hoary Old Jokes.

I can see it all happening, and I can get some of it by reading the subtitles... but the bottom line is... I'm not from Japan, I don't speak Japanese, and so...I'm missing more than half the jokes. And that's frustrating as hell.

And for me, frustration tends to lead to apathy.


I know. Sounds like I'm being real wordy about a show I've pretty much lost interest in. But this is a setting and a style of humor that I would normally really enjoy... if I could understand it.

ah too bad you didn't like it! at least you didn't have to wait long to download it...

i, for one, loved it...but it is a more mature comedy that is obviously aimed at a Japanese audience....with very keen idiosyncrasies that i believe add to the dorama...but might not necessarily translate well in other languages...as a former student of japanese language and culture i thought it was brilliant.....

it obviously appealed to Japanese entertainment professionals and lay people alike...otherwise it wouldn't have won the Japanese TV Academy Award for Best Dorama.

welps...you win some, you lose some.

thtl wrote:Just started watching "Moto Kare".

one of the few doramas to have three leads who were all female:

rina uchiyama, ryoko hirosue, and tsuyoshi dohmoto (he was such a biatch in this dorama) :shakehead:

Tu_triky

I didn't dislike it. I disliked "Frighting Girl" I disliked "Refrain". They were just bad.

I just felt left out of "Tiger & Dragon". I think anyone without an intimate knowledge of Japanese pop culture, and a solid grounding in the language would.

On a Happier note: The first couple of episodes of Dare Yori mo Mama wa Aisu have gone up on D-Addicts. And there is a tentative promise of subtitles.

"Happier" because the show marks the return to TV by Yuki Uchida. (Okay, imagine me singing that name as I type it.)

I'm a big Yuki fan, and I've missed her.

It's just a simple "home comedy", and she's not playing the lead. But I'd resigned myself to thinking she'd quit acting for good. So I'll take what I can get.

Geezer wrote:Tu_triky

I didn't dislike it. I disliked "Frighting Girl" I disliked "Refrain". They were just bad.

I just felt left out of "Tiger & Dragon". I think anyone without an intimate knowledge of Japanese pop culture, and a solid grounding in the language would.

On a Happier note: The first couple of episodes of Dare Yori mo Mama wa Aisu have gone up on D-Addicts. And there is a tentative promise of subtitles.

"Happier" because the show marks the return to TV by Yuki Uchida. (Okay, imagine me singing that name as I type it.)

I'm a big Yuki fan, and I've missed her.

It's just a simple "home comedy", and she's not playing the lead. But I'd resigned myself to thinking she'd quit acting for good. So I'll take what I can get.

In any event, I'm always appreciative of your reviews because you have a penchant for thoroughly explicating your opinions, for better or worse...making your comments/suggestions incredibly useful for those of us who haven't seen the doramas you are critically appraising. It definitely constitutes a service for those intelligent enough to see it as such. :victory:

Tu_triky wrote:

one of the few doramas to have three leads who were all female:

rina uchiyama, ryoko hirosue, and tsuyoshi dohmoto (he was such a biatch in this dorama) :shakehead:

:rofl:

You crack me up - really, you do...

^Hahaha yea, well said, Tu_triky :hehe:

Finished the T&D special, now the overall story makes more sense, but this theatre thing, man, I didn't catch anything. For non-japanese these jokes are lost in translation.

boris wrote:^Hahaha yea, well said, Tu_triky :hehe:

Finished the T&D special, now the overall story makes more sense, but this theatre thing, man, I didn't catch anything. For non-japanese these jokes are lost in translation.

yeah i agree...it's very japanese in terms of the comedy...but still you might enjoy it :sweat:

Yup, setting aside japanese terminology, it's not that bad dorama and I'm not giving it up yet :victory:.

boris wrote:Yup, setting aside japanese terminology, it's not that bad dorama and I'm not giving it up yet :victory:.

ganbare! :mrgreen:

thtl wrote:Just started watching "Moto Kare".

Just finished "Moto Kare". This is a rather nice drama about common people, and I think the characters are portraited quite realistically. I've read some unfavourable reviews before I start, but decided that the reviewers just wanted more dramatics than this drama offered.

The acting was good, in general. The ladies in the show, from Mom (Ichige Yoshie) to Hiroe (Sonim), all did admirably. Sonim proved that she can act, especially when contracted against her role in KKK2003. Hirosue Ryoko and Uchiyama Rina both did well, but I've come to expect nothing less from these two.

The only disaster here is Dohmoto. It's not that he didn't fit his character - in fact I think he portraited the wishy-washy Kashiwaba Toji quite accurately. However he seems to be doing the same thing in every drama he's in. I know he's a singer and has an image to keep up, but his unkempt hair and pathetic sideburns really got to me, for some reason. Tu-triky said Kashiwaba was a 'biatch' in this drama, and I agree with him that Kashiwaba seemed to let life screw him around, more so than the female leads.

There is nothing wrong with this drama, but I think some people are uncomfortable with it because it hit closer home than they expected.

thtl wrote:

Just finished "Moto Kare". This is a rather nice drama about common people, and I think the characters are portraited quite realistically. I've read some unfavourable reviews before I start, but decided that the reviewers just wanted more dramatics than this drama offered.

The acting was good, in general. The ladies in the show, from Mom (Ichige Yoshie) to Hiroe (Sonim), all did admirably. Sonim proved that she can act, especially when contracted against her role in KKK2003. Hirosue Ryoko and Uchiyama Rina both did well, but I've come to expect nothing less from these two.

The only disaster here is Dohmoto. It's not that he didn't fit his character - in fact I think he portraited the wishy-washy Kashiwaba Toji quite accurately. However he seems to be doing the same thing in every drama he's in. I know he's a singer and has an image to keep up, but his unkempt hair and pathetic sideburns really got to me, for some reason. Tu-triky said Kashiwaba was a 'biatch' in this drama, and I agree with him that Kashiwaba seemed to let life screw him around, more so than the female leads.

There is nothing wrong with this drama, but I think some people are uncomfortable with it because it hit closer home than they expected.

hehe....well yeah...as you echoed...dohmoto...was the "weakest" link in this dorama....

it might hit close to home for some...but truthfully, i don't know many situations where the guy is being solicited or courted by two beautiful women while he looks for his penis

I just finished "Jyou No Kyoushitsu" today~
I'm starting Trick 2

Tu_triky wrote:

hehe....well yeah...as you echoed...dohmoto...was the "weakest" link in this dorama....

it might hit close to home for some...but truthfully, i don't know many situations where the guy is being solicited or courted by two beautiful women while he looks for his penis

They say love is blind - and I think this is especially true for the fairer sex. Hiroe falling for Chitose was the perfect example. The one clear message in this drama is that hottie fall for you even if you are the most pathetic example of the male gender. :sweat:

thtl wrote:

They say love is blind - and I think this is especially true for the fairer sex. Hiroe falling for Chitose was the perfect example. The one clear message in this drama is that hottie fall for you even if you are the most pathetic example of the male gender. :sweat:

a cruel life lesson, perhaps *_*

I am watching the new summer dramas...last week and this week they are all starting...So far only seen Sapuri and Kekkon dekinai otoko. Looking forward to Regatta at the end of the week too. I really liked Sapuri...

I don't know a lot of the acters names but i was so happy to see one of the guys from Orange days pop up in Sapuri.

Anyone else seen any of the new summer dramas yet??

currently i'm watching dragon zakura n attention please..
for 'attention please' i'm still waiting for the next sub. ep 9,10 & 11. :victory:

watching Remote - Fukada Kyoko plays a ditzy, dumbish police officer - her acting for once seems to fit perfectly for the role - i wonder if the producers deliberately wrote the script that way to fit her :hehe: :beaten: :rofl:

My thoughts exactly. :hehe:

I liked it. I hope you'll enjoy it. :)

tabana wrote:My thoughts exactly. :hehe:

I liked it. I hope you'll enjoy it. :)

yeah, just finishing up the second episode, its actually not that bad - and not as bad as i originally thought it'd be