Maou (魔王 -2008)

Starring:
Ohno Satoshi as Naruse Ryo/Mannaka Tomoo
Kouno Hiroki as young Tomoo (11 years ago)
Ikuta Toma as Serizawa Naoto
Kimura Haruki as young Naoto (11 years ago)
Kobayashi Ryoko as Sakita Shiori
Masuyama Kayano as young Shiori (11 years ago)
Tanaka Kei as Kasai Hitoshi
Uemura Yuto as young Hitoshi (11 years ago)
Oshinari Shugo as Soda Mitsuru
Honma Haruo as young Mitsuru (11 years ago)
Waki Tomohiro as Ishimoto Yosuke
Nakamura Ryunoshin (中村竜之慎) as young Yosuke (11 years ago)
Uehara Misa as Takatsuka Kaoru
Shinohara Mai as Nishina Eri
Shimizu Yutaka (清水優) as Yamano Makoto
Horimoto Takaya (堀本昴弥) as young Makoto
Iida Kisuke as Ishihara Kanrikan
Tonesaku Toshihide as Kurata Takashi
Kichise Michiko as Serizawa Mari
Gekidan Hitori as Serizawa Noriyoshi
Miyake Yuji (三宅裕司) as Nakanishi Hiromichi
Ishizaka Koji as Serizawa Eisaku
Takeuchi Toshi (竹内寿) as Mannaka Hideo
Guests
Ninomiya Kazunari as Kumada Masayoshi (ep1)
Asaka Mayumi as Mannaka Yoshimi (ep1,2,4)
Morishita Tetsuo as Kumada Takahiro (ep1,2)
Kitaro as Hayashi Kunio (ep1,2)
Okunuki Kaoru as Shintani Tae (ep2-)
Ono Momoka (大野百花) as Shintani Sora (ep2-)
Musaka Naomasa as Ikehata Takahiro (ep4-7)
Yuka as Naruse Makiko (ep4-7)
Tanino Ota (谷野欧太) as the real Naruse Ryo (ep5-)
Shimada Kyusaku as Osumi Kazuma (ep5-)

This drama is a remake of the popular suspense drama The Devil that was aired in Korea last year. Ohno Satoshi will be playing the role of a two-faced lawyer, one of which is a kind hearted soul and the other who is plotting revenge, using his brilliant mind, on the person who killed his relative. On the other hand, Ikuta Toma will play the double lead role of the man, who has become a detective due to his dark past, who is pursuing the mysterious series of murders and fighting against the devil (maou).

OMG! OMG! OMG! This drama rocked my world and then some.

This was the very first drama that I had to wait patiently for but it was so hard. I would check all drama websites for updates. I would scream and curse if it wasn't posted yet. *Nothing against the subbers. I swear!* I just loved this drama so much. I loved Arashi's opening theme. I loved the actors. I loved the script. I loved the whole damn thing from the bottom of my heart.

It was sooooo hard to hate Naruse (Ohno). You understood his dilemma, his pain, and his revenge. Ohno-kun was perfect for this role. He balanced the evil and angelic parts so well. His face was the perfect picture of self-righteousness and fallen angel. As the story went on, it got so hard to see the evil in him but only the spiral of the hurricane that had swept him out into the abyss of retribution.

I wasn't at all sure how well Toma-kun was going to pull off the character of Serizawa Naoto. All I can see is the dumb, goofy guy from Hana Kimi. Well, taking on the serious role of the rebellious but yet law abiding detective fit him perfectly as well. Every episode, I would silently weep for him and the travels he had to take to receive redemption. *sigh* It was like, how much more should he suffer after carrying the weight of guilt of his past sins? How much more did he have to suffer?

I will say that as I watched the ending...the last episode...I felt myself tense up. I wasn't sure how this would play out. I didn't want a crappy ending. But there was hope...this is a Japanese drama after all.

As it got closer and closer....my heart ached. Then I got angry. Then I cried some more. Then this "whoosh" of air was expelled from my chest as I realized I was holding back my breath and the pain of my tears. The ending became PERFECT. I won't say if it was a happy or sad ending but will say that I now have a runny nose and tear stained cheeks. Tears of joy? Or happiness? You decide.

Ohno Satoshi

Look at this pretty face.......*sigh* Can I keep him?

Yoiko no Mikata (よい子の味方 -2003)

Starring:
Sakurai Sho as Suzuki Taiyo
Matsushita Yuki as Mita Shizuka
Fukiishi Kazue as Sakai Minako
Endo Shozo Sasaki Shuzo
Yazawa Shin as Kojima Kaoru
Yoshida Hideko as Yoshikawa Kiyoko
Hamada Mari as Yokoyama Sayuri
Matsushima Nahomi as Tanaka Rie
Itaya Yuka as Arai Erika
Otoha as Omoto Rumi
Matsumoto Jun as Sawada Shin (Gokusen)
Waki Tomohiro as KUMA (Gokusen)
Aiba Masaki
Ohno Satoshi
Saito Ryusei
Hirooka Yuriko

Ask any nursery-aged little girl what she wants to be when she grows up and she's bound to say nurse, florist, or ballerina. Ask any nursery-aged little boy what he wants to be when he grows up and he's bound to say policeman, fireman, sports player, or pilot. As for 20-year-old young man Taiyo Suzuki, however, he's had different aspirations all his life. Moved by his elderly nursery school teacher, Taiyo decided then and there that he too would also become one. Now, having passed the nursery school teacher examination, bright-eyed and eager Taiyo is out to make his mark on a totally female-dominated world. Posted at the Himawari Nursery School to cover for another teacher on maternity leave, Taiyo has but a few short months to prove himself to the female teachers and children's mothers who are arrayed against him that he is every bit as capable as the women. And more importantly, along the way, he'll make his mark with his sparkle and energy to be a true best friend to the children at the school as well. --- NTV



I love, love, love, love this drama. Why, oh why, was it so hard to find online? Well, because the fansubbers specifically pulled all those episodes off because they weren't giving permission to do so. Soooooooo..........................

I got a wild hair. I found the subbers. STORMY fansubs. I found their blog site. They had all episodes there ready for downloading. So I did. I'm so glad I made the effort.

Imagine Gokusen. Then imagine Gokusen in kindergarten. Yeah, Sakurai Sho is our beloved teacher. He himself had pretty much the same hang-ups as Yankumi. You wouldn't really imagine Sho-kun as a kindergarten teacher...but damn if it didn't work. He was wonderful. I think I cried every freakin' episode. They were so sentimental and happy. So happy that you couldn't help but tear up. Oh....episode 6 you'll cry not because of happiness. Sooooooo sad. Ugh!

If you have the time, Winamp, and HJsplit......download this freakin' drama! It's so wonderful. Sho-kun is excellent. So excellent enough to cry on a freakin' dime. I couldn't spill that many tears like he can....and they seem truly sincere!

Can I say I loved it? Yeah? I LOVED IT!!!!

I love you Sakurai Sho! Ohhhhhh, and Aiba, Ohno, and Matsumoto-kun made some guest appearances. Ohno-kun! I love you, too!

Sakurai Sho

Yamada Taro Monogatari (山田太郎ものがたり -2007)

Starring:
Ninomiya Kazunari as Yamada Taro
Sakurai Sho as Mimura Takuya
Kikuchi Momoko as Yamada Ayako
Matsuoka Mitsuru as Yamada Kazuo
Oshinari Shugo as Sugiura Keichi
Fukiishi Kazue as Torii Kyoko
Otsuka Chihiro as Nakai Masami
Shibata Rie as Ikegami Maria
Musaka Naomasa as Ikegami Ryunosuke
Tabe Mikako as Ikegami Takako
Utsui Ken as Ichinomiya
Yoshizawa Hisashi as Ehara Makoto
Fukui Hiroaki as Osaki Shinosuke
Yamada Shintaro as Ando Masaki
Kojima Haruna as Usui Kotone
Takahashi Ryosuke as Okubo Shin
Ogata Sayaka as Kashiwagi Honoka
Yarita Akihiro (鎗田晟裕) as Yamada Jiro
Shimizu Naoya (清水尚弥) as Yamada Saburo
Muranaka Haruna (村中暖奈) as Yamada Yoshiko
Yoshida Riko as Yamada Itsuko
Shibuya Takeru as Yamada Mutsumi
Ayata Toshiki (綾田俊樹) as Isogai Shitsuji
Maro Akaji as Mimura Hijirichi
Nishida Naomi as Mimura Tsuyuko
Mizukawa Asami as Kotani
Yoshiyuki Kazuko as Ume
Ohno Satoshi (ep10)
Nekoze Tsubaki as House maid
Hankai Kazuaki (ep10)

Yamada Taro, a freshman on a scholarship at Ichinomiya Private Senior High School, is high-achieving, strikingly handsome, and truly athletic and seems perfect. But he is actually extremely poor. The story humorously portrays Taro, who tackles problems that occur because of his poverty, and his six younger brothers and sisters. --TBS

This was a cute drama. The first few episodes got me hooked. I loved the way it was set up to teach values that money isn't everything. Yeah, it's nice to have but it doesn't bring you all the happiness in the world.

Family. Yeah, that is where it is at.

But this was all fantasy. I can't think of any instance in real life that we would just give up a perfectly good mansion given freely. I understood the anxiety that Taro faced but I had gotten the impression that the smiles on the kids' faces was all that mattered.

I couldn't understand why his mother didn't work. Weak, they said. Whatever. She could work from home. Leaving all the hard work for Taro, a boy of 17-18, to deal with parental issues was unfair. That really bothered me. While the father traveled around the world, the mother didn't work, and Taro going to school, working, and maintaining the family. Something was wrong in this story.

I know they tried to make the family values, pride and morals come to life....and they did a good job of it.....but it was just hard to see any type of real issue.

Okay, I cried at the end. The kids were sooooo sweet and innocent and they tried to help out their big brother. I, for one, finally saw something that showed a human side in this family. The parents couldn't face up to it but the young kids saw the need to be equal in the household. Go Kids!!

I know I sound uncertain of this show. It had it's definite good points and bad points but I faced this show as a fantasy rather than reality and liked what I saw.

Oh, and did they beef up Ninomiya-kun later on because in the drama he seemed sort of dorkish but this same year he made Tokyo Tower with Jun-kun and he was looking rather hot! What gives?

And might I say that Sakurai Sho I think is my favorite Arashi member. He was just too cool for school.....hehe!

Sakurai Sho

Ummm? Hello baby!!!!

Yellow Tears (Kiiroi namida / 黄色い涙-2007)

Starring:
Sho Sakurai - Ryuzo Mukai
Masaki Aiba - Shoichi Inoue
Kazunari Ninomiya - Eisuke Muraoka
Satoshi Ono - Kei Shimokawa
Jun Matsumoto - Yuji Katsumada
Yu Kashii - Tokie
Hirotaro Honda - Teikichi
Hanae Kan - Yasuko Muraoka
Chieko Matsubara - Kinu Muraoka
Mariko Miyamitsu - Mikako Yoshino
Kotaro Shiga - Hayashida
Kin Sugai - Yone
Tomoko Tabata - Kaoru Nishigaki
Mai Takahashi - Yumiko

The movie is centered around five friends as they end up spending the summer of 1962 shackled up together in a tiny studio apartment in Tokyo. The five friends are Eisuke - the manga artist, Shoichi - the singer, Ryuzo - the novelist, Kei - the painter and Yuji – the 5th wheel (?). The friends spend the summer in pursuit of their own ideals of personal freedom - being able to do what they want. In the process of pursuing their dream they learn firsthand that however ideal it may seem, its not as easy as they think. -- Lunapark6

Hmm? This movie was a little slow. No action, no sex (only by implication), no drugs, lots of silent moments and talking.

This movie was a growing-up/coming-of-age movie. It was really four guys with Matsomoto Jun making small appearances. Lessons learned, the guys realize that sometimes dreams can't make money.

I wouldn't recommend this for everyone. Even all the Arashi fans might not like this. It was not made for eye-candy visuals and for teenage thrills.

I really can't say if I like this movie or not. I feel like the story was trying to go one way but the movie didn't make the trip. Or it was made that way. Don't know. In actuality, this movie had it's poignant moments and wonderful quotes that (damn, I wish I had written down) at one point near the end, made me tear up. Okay, at that point, I was like "ahhhh!" *wipes wet soaked eyes*

Yeah, I guess I liked it. It started making more sense near the end. But in a way, it was sad.....sometimes growing up makes life a little difficult.

Arashi

PIKA*NCHI life is hard dakara happy (ピカ☆☆ンチ Ｌｉｆｅ ｉｓ Ｈａｒｄ だから Ｈａｐｐｙ」-2004)

Starring:
Satoshi Ohno/ 大野智 as Haru
Sho Sakurai/ 櫻井翔 as Chu
Masaki Aiba/ 相葉雅紀 as Shun
Kazunari Ninomiya/ 二宮和也 as Takuma
Jun Matsumoto/ 松本潤 as Bon

Wah! Finally, I've watched it! It's the sequel to [Pika*nchi: Life is Hard dakedo Happy], a movie starring the 5 Arashi members! (^_^)

Well, As we all know, [Pika*nchi] ended with Takuma(Nino) flying off to LA.
As expected with the sequel...it started off with Takuma coming back to Yashio.

And many things happened since he left,

Shun(Aiba) got accepted at Aogakku and eventually found an interest in crochet! and joined a class...then, he improved until he became a crochet sensei... yep, he's teaching crochet, yo!! And now, everything he wears is hand-made...by him. Very weird yet cute.

And...Haru(Ohno) is working in that grocery store owned by that lady whom he had sex with. And yep, he's still seeing her.

Bon(Jun) left Yashio to go on a trip to improve his cooking skills. He says he agrees with the municipality and it's okay with him to demolish the "poor" building. Haru is deeply scarred by this and considered Bon as a traitor, since they're trying to protect the building and Takuma's apartment.

And lastly, Chu(Sho)...has a family! Haha...yes, he met the gang leader of a female gang and after years of fighting, they eventually fell in love and lived together. Hahah...Then later on, his "wife" got pregnant and gave birth to the cutest little boy, who was named Teppeki! Hahah...and for the sake of their baby, Chu transformed and became the top salesman. Chu's the cutest dad ever!

Anyway, the movie was mainly focused on the boys trying to stop the demolition, etc etc.

And in the end, Takuma had to leave again...and before he left, Haru gave each of them notebooks which had "Life is Hard dakara Happy" printed on the front. He said, they'll write down the hard stuff and funny stuff that'll happen to them there. "The one who writes the sequel of the story is you", Takuma said. Well, of course...the guys didn't like the idea at first. But the leader, Takuma, said he'll write on it and the guys followed.

I love the opening and closing credits~ (^_^) the opening song was still Pikanchi...but more colorful and interesting X3 and the closing song is....Pikanchi Double!! Yeys! I love it...they showed the PV~~ (^_^) wooh~

And also, Nino sang his version of "Michi" which was reaaaally good! (><) really, Nino's solos are the best! Wah, anyway...watch it guys! (^_^) A must-see for Arashi fans~ (^_^) Yey for the boys~~<3>~~jennah13

Obviously, I found a "bubble-gummy" summarization of this movie. All I could find on the time I'm given. So many movies, so little time, ya know?

This movie, was a total meltdown for me. The first one wasn't all that but this one was even worse. Agh! The only good part of the movie was the fansubbers sarcastic comments at the end during credits...LOL! What a hoot! Oh! And the MV was nice anyway.

The whole movie was wishy-washy, made no sense. Okay, the fansubber that wrote the English needs to take more classes in writing English. Ugh! But what can you do. We depend on these guys to get these movies out quick and free to watch. So I should just shut my trap! God bless SARS and Dattebayo....the only fansubbers that I really love.........

Arashi

PIKA*NCHI life is hard dakedo happy (「ピカ☆ンチ Ｌｉｆｅ ｉｓ Ｈａｒｄ だけど Ｈａｐｐｙ」-2002)

Starring:
(Group Arashi)
*Matsumoto Jun as Bon
*Ninomiya Kazunari as Takuma
*Aiba Masaki as Shun
*Sakurai Sho as Chu
*Ohno Satoshi as Haru

The movie revolves around 5 old friends (portrayed by ARASHI) who live in a big apartment complex in Tokyo. Recently promoted to the status of senior high school students, none of them has a clear idea about the up-coming future and just spend all their time having fun. While entertaining themselves in Harajuku to relive their high school days, they encounter some unforeseen surprises…



This was kind of cute. I've never actually seen all of Arashi at once other than in MV's. It started out really well, the middle bored me, then it picked up at the end.

It wasn't all that great but I know for Arashi fans....I'm sure everyone is swooning. Not me. I'm a KAT-TUN girl!!

The movie just didn't make a lot of sense to me. A lot of mumbo jumbo. That's okay. It was enough to kill early morning boredom.

Arashi