Battery (バッテリー -2008)

Starring:
Nakayama Yuma as Harada Takumi
Takada Sho as Nagakura Go
Morimoto Shintaro as Harada Seiha
Saito Yuki
Horibe Keisuke
Miyazaki Karen (宮崎香蓮)
Nagashima Shugo as Sawaguchi Fumito
Matsukawa Naruki
Kim Ji Sun (김지순, ちすん)
Nakao Mie (中尾ミエ)
Ishibashi Renji
Kajiwara Hikari (梶原ひかり)
Chihara Koji

A story about a teenage pitcher and catcher who develop a firm friendship through their battery. Harada Takumi, an aloof junior high school boy who has a great arm, meets Nagakura Go, who can catch Takumi's fastball. Together, they build up a trusting relationship among the teammates. --NHK

Another story about baseball. Hmm? I guess the twist on this story was about the relationship between pitcher and catcher. I will say that this story, out of all the baseball stories so far, touched me the most. Why? I used to be a member of a battery. I was a catcher. If you don't understand or trust "your other half", then there is no battery. As I catcher, I believed in my pitcher and I believe she trusted me.

So this story really delved into my heart. Then almost every episode I had to look back to my high school years and remember................

There wasn't any overly dramatic scenes or exceptional performances. This wouldn't get an Oscar or Emmy (in the Japanese equivalent). But for some reason, I will download this and keep. It really touched me here.......<3

Nakayama Yuma

Cute kid!!!

Happy Boys (ハッピィボーイズ / ハッピィ★ボーイズ -2007)

Starring:
Seto Koji as Segawa Kyoichi
Kamakari Kenta as Akasaka Junta
Kato Keisuke as Kitamura Kosuke
Shindo Gaku as Inada Gen
Nagashima Shugo as Tsuruoka Kokoro
Sugawara Eiji as Fukawa Kiichi
Fujimura Shunji as Shikawaichi Kura
Tanaka Tetsushi as Katano Sakatoru
Guests
Komatsu Megumi (小松愛) (ep1-2)
Ueno Natsuhi (ep3-4)
Morishita Hisae (森下仁佐恵) (ep5-6)
Uemura Takahiro (植村好宏) (ep5-6)
Ikeda Kaori (池田香織) (ep7-8)
Hashimoto Atsushi (ep7-8)
Minemura Rie (峯村リエ) (ep9-10)
Toyonaga Toshiyuki (豊永利行) (ep9-10)
Kino Hana (木野花) (ep11-13)

A comedy following five young men who work at Lady Braganza, a shitsuji kissa (butler café).

This was a classic Japanese comedy about young men coming of age. To spice it up, add five good-looking guys and let the saliva drip off your chin. Okay, only two of the guys did it for me.

I was hoping for something more dramatic at the end, but I had the end figured out at the next to last episode. With all these cute guys and girls visiting the parlor, where was the young love? A little confusing to me because...well...they are in their prime of life. Some sugar and spice should have been happening.

Okay, so maybe they were trying to delegate the theme of the story without lust involved. Okay, so I sat there dreamy eyed looking at cute guys who had lessons to learn and life to live without hormones controling the whole story. Got it! Ahhhhh, but young love...............

This wasn't my favorite nor my most disliked. It kept me interested, killed time, and left me a little bereft but nothing I couldn't get over. And well, the eye-candy was fetching.............

Kamakari Kenta


Kato Keisuke