Last Friends - ラスト・フレンズ

Do you have a friend that is considered family and you will do anything for them? If you've answered yes then you will understand the feelings that the friends in this drama share. Michiru is a girl that lives with her mother in a very unstable environment. Her boyfriend Takeru is a Child Welfare representative who works with children that are abused. He is very understanding of her situation and provides her comfort and support. She eventually moves in with him to get away from her home life, but to her surprise he is a completely different person after this happens. Ironically, he is a complete control freak and abuses her for no reason. At around the same time she coincidentally meets a childhood friend by the name of Ruka who drags her out of the situation and makes her a roommate. This doesn't end the relationship between Michiru and Takeru though. Takeru stalks her everywhere and things get worse when he finds out that Ruka has been keeping her sexuality as a secret and that she is in love with Michiru. He begins to stalk Ruka too and things get violent. Last Friends is a dark drama that portrays love as being painful. This drama will have you at the edge of your seat, pulling your hair out and wanting to join the fight...for some air and independence. I prefer comedies so this is not my favorite drama. The story is well written though and the characters have the audience's sympathy for their individual situations. I rate this drama 5 out of 5 stars.

Release Date: April 2008

Episodes: 11

Main Cast:

Nagasawa Masami as Aida Michiru

Ueno Juri as Kishimoto Ruka

Eita as Mizushima Takeru

Nishikido Ryo as Oikawa Sosuke

You're My Pet - Kimi Wa Pet

This drama unfortunately requires a little too much exaggerated imagination for me. Goda Takeshi is found in a box by Iwaya Sumire outside of her home so she drags the box in and takes him in as a "pet." She names him "Momo" and treats him as a pet and he behaves like a pet, until they start to develop feelings for each other. Will "Momo" remain as a pet or will he transform back as a human and have a normal relationship with Sumire? I watched the entire drama because there was such a hype on the show, perhaps because of the actors in it or even the success of the manga. However, I cannot say that I enjoyed this storyline. It is a bit too extraordinary for my taste. Please feel free to comment if you have seen this and think otherwise. I rate this drama 1 out of 5.

Release Date: April 2003

Episodes: 10

Main Cast:

Koyuki as Iwaya Sumire

Matsumoto Jun as "Momo" Goda Takeshi

Absolute Boyfriend - 絶対彼氏

What would you do if you can’t seem to find love and match.com wasn’t available? Izawa Riko was scoped out by Kronos Heaven a company that develops intelligent robots for a test trial on their latest invention. She signed up for a male humanoid that was programmed and designed to her desires. He looks the way she dreamed and obeys every order to satisfy her. Night is the name of Riko’s human robot and he IS the Absolute Boyfriend. He is too perfect though and she ends up falling in love with him. In the meantime, another love interest (human) enters the love triangle. Will Riko give up her robot for the human? I can see this being more successful as its original form…a manga than a drama series. It dragged on and on… The acting was good, casting was good, story line is not bad. Unfortunately, I just did not enjoy it thoroughly.
I rate this drama 2 out of 5.

Release Date: April 2008
Episodes: 11
Main Cast:
Hayami Mokomichi as Tenjo Night
Mizushima Hiro as Asamoto Soshi
Aibu Saki as Izawa Riiko
Sasai Eisuke as Shirasagi Yuki

Papa To Musume No Nanokakan- パパとムスメの７日間

A Japanese version of Freaky Friday, this hilarious drama is about the relationship between a father, Kyoichiro and his teenage daughter Koume. On a trip to his mother-in-law, Kyoichiro uses this opportunity to bond with his daughter, but he gets a bit more than he wished for. Something magical happens and they end up switching bodies. For the next couple of days, Kyoichiro has to deal with school and friends meanwhile Koume has to learn to be a grown up and to deal with work issues. This situation forced them to live these couple days in different shoes. Now that they are able to see one another’s perspective, will they ever swap back to their own lives?

Even though this story is played over and over with different versions, it is still fun to watch. If you are looking for a good family show, I would recommend this drama.

I rate this drama 5 out of 5


Release date: August 2007
Episodes: 7


Main cast:
Tachi Hiroshi as Kawahara Kyoichiro
Aragaki Yui as Kawahara Koume