I took this picture of these plum blossoms on March 20, the first day of spring.
These are the games I bought this week. Ace Attorney is my favourite game right now, but I feel like I will only play it once. Once I finish the game, I’ll remember the correct responses so it won’t be as fun anymore… unless I play again when I’m like 40. All the Detective Conan episodes I’ve watched are paying off because now I’m applying that learned knowledge to the game hahaha.
Listening to: Call of Silence
Many anime fans don’t like live-actions of anime. Period.
I also (mostly) agree. But… live-actions dramas are better than films. With episodes, it allows the show to have more depth. One major problem in all live-action films is that they cut a lot of important scenes and most of the time, they cut out important characters.
These aren’t in any particular order. I won’t be talking about the plots of these shows, just what I liked about them. I don’t watch as many dramas as I used to, so the newer live-actions will probably not be on here. Nonetheless, I still find value in making this list because good shows are good shows, no matter how old they are. 😉 If you’re interested in knowing which dramas I’ve watched, you can view My Drama List (still incomplete) here.
1. Bloody Monday (2008)
I enjoyed this Japanese live-action because Haruma Miura and Hiroki Narimiya played their characters really well. The instrumental soundtrack is beautiful. Listen to this and you’ll know what I mean. Also, both seasons played music by Flumpool, which is my favourite Japanese band.
2. Boku dake ga Inai Machi (2017)
This is better known as Erased. It is a Japanese drama. I didn’t think I would be interested in time travel but I was proven wrong. I often take breaks from dramas and anime (My Drama List reflects this by the number of dramas I am “currently watching”) but I binged this show. Special thanks to Fed for watching it after my recommendation!
3. GTO (1998)
This Japanese drama stands for Great Teacher Onizuka. I watched this before I started university and I feel like it changed my life. That’s a really bold statement but I began to see life a little bit differently in “unconventional” ways.
4. Hanazakari no Kimitachi e (2007)
This Japanese drama is also known as Hana Kimi. There are so many actors!!
5. Hotaru no Hikari (2007)
This is a Japanese drama based on the josei manga with the same title.
6. Kurosagi (2006)
I’ve watched every episode in this Japanese drama at least 10 times, and the reason is because I used to really, really like Kurosaki, the main character.
7. Liar Game (2014)
This is the Korean live-action adaptation. It is different from the manga because they made the Liar Game into a TV game show. I love how they changed it to better suit the current generation.
8. Liar Game (2007)
This is a Japanese drama. I do prefer this over the Korean live-action of Liar Game.
9. Smiling Pasta (2006)
This Taiwanese drama is based on a manhwa. I haven’t read the manhwa because it’s really hard to find English scanlations of it (or even the work in its original language). However, this drama was able to make me cry and laugh in the same episode.
10. Switch Girl!! (2011)
This is a Japanese drama. Mariya Nishiuchi was perfect for the main role because she was a model of Seventeen at the time, and so were other actresses (her character does modelling in the drama too). I am her fan. ❤
If you watch Asian dramas, I recommend you use My Drama List if you haven’t already. It’s like My Anime List, but for dramas! Basically, you mark down the statuses of different shows and movies you’ve watched, record the episodes you’ve seen, give them ratings and leave comments.
I do have some issues with My Anime List, but I like it better than My Drama List because it is harder to find shows on MDL. The shows should be separated by genres and in categories such as ‘Korean drama’ and ‘Japanese drama,’ etc. They don’t have that. That’s why I’m missing a lot of shows on my list!! I can remember the plots and characters’ appearances of certain dramas, but I don’t remember the names of the dramas.
If you’re interested, My Drama List can be found at https://mydramalist.com/dramalist/alpaca_xx
Please note that it is incomplete because of the reason I explained above. I actually just filled out the list recently so I have not entered any episode data on my ‘Currently Watching’ list. I don’t know if I will be able to because I haven’t watched dramas in a LONG time, which means I don’t remember what episode I’m on! T_T With that being said, my ‘Currently Watching’ list is not being counted in my Profile’s episode number and time watched information. Most of these shows are from 2009~ because that was when I watched a lot of Asian dramas.
My Anime List is private, but I can tell you that it’s longer than My Drama List. My Manga List (this is on the My Anime List website) is longer than My Anime List.
What does this all mean?
It means I’ve watched a lot of T.V. and it’s no wonder I have poor eyesight AND I’m not sure whether I am proud or if I pity my soul…
Moving forward…
Now that I have My Drama List kind of filled out, expect some drama recommendations and favourites posts in the future!!! Even though I do not plan on ranking any of these dramas and movies, I still remember what I enjoyed (or hated) about them. ^_^
First, I’ll give some examples.
1. Tao Ren from Shaman King (Chinese)
VS. Yoh from Shaman King (Japanese)
2. Shampoo from Ranma 1/2 (Chinese)
VS. Akane Tendo from Ranma 1/2 (Japanese)
3. Chinese Team from Beyblade Metal Masters
VS. Jingka from Beyblade Metal Masters (Japanese)
As you can see, the Chinese characters in these anime are wearing traditional clothing like qipao and the girls have buns in their hair. These anime take place in the modern day so not everyone is dressed in traditional clothing. Meanwhile, the Japanese protagonists are wearing headphones and are wearing modern clothing.
When I went to China, I did not see anyone wear a qipao. What are everyone’s thoughts about the Chinese characters looking distinct from everyone else, even though the setting does not take place during a traditional era? It seems to me that the Chinese character designs are stereotyped.
The King’s Avatar is a Chinese show that portrays a realistic representation of how Chinese characters should look in a modern day setting (in terms of clothing). It features Chinese people in China.
Inuyashiki is about a father who develops stomach cancer and has three months left to live. Spoilers: He becomes a robot, which sets off the story in the manga. Before he became a robot, he is on a swing and sings a song. This is after he finds out he has cancer. His family do not have respect for him, so he is unable to tell them the news.
Ikiru (To Live) is a black and white Japanese film from 1952 by Akira Kurosawa. It’s about a father who also has stomach cancer. He has less than a year to live, and is unable to tell his son because his son cares more about his money than him. In the rest of the film, the main character tries to find meaning in his life, similar to Inuyashiki. At 1:39, the main character’s facial expression looks like Inuyashiki whenever he is trembling. Later on at 2:53, he is sitting on a swing and sings a song. Both characters in Inuyashiki and Ikiru are singing the same song! Do you think Oku watched Ikiru and was inspired by this scene?
The biggest difference is that Ikiru is more realistic and there are no robotic elements to it. After all, this is a movie from the 1950s and it has real actors. However, their journey towards finding meaning in life is similar. What do you think? Has anyone else seen Ikiru before?
Here’s a short comic I did that goes from left to right. I hope you like it!
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me
WordPress reminded me on February 25 that it was my blogiversary! I’m a little late on posting this but thanks everyone for reading my blog~
Wretched and Divine 