Ohitorisama

Ohitorisama (おひとりさま) is a 2009 Japanese romantic comedy drama between a man and a woman that have a ten-year difference in age. It stars Mizuki Alisa, Koike Teppei, Matsushita Nao, Tachibana Keita, and Maya Miki. The summary is as follows:

33-year-old Akiyama Satomi is a history teacher at the prestigious all-girls high school she once attended. She has earned the nickname "ohitorisama" (meaning "one person") for her perfectionism and capability to handle any work by herself. At the same time, the name also refers to her lack of romance. One day, a young man named Shinichi arrives at the school as a temporary instructor. He's ten years younger than Satomi, has only worked part-time jobs, and has neither money nor status. Although the other female teachers and students find him cute, he is completely not Satomi's type... or is he? Will love blossom between this unlikely pair?

I was actually supposed to finish this drama two weeks ago, but the last episode wasn't really subbed until today. And even then, only 80% of it was subbed. It was enough, though annoying. :) Well, as for the reasons for my decision to watch this: it was short (10 episodes long), it seemed cute, the plot was somewhat refreshing with the traditional roles reversed, and Koike Teppei was in it (he's just adorable). When I finally watched it, it didn't lose me, though Teppei's character did annoy me half the time, but made me want to pinch his cheeks the other half. The romance is gradual and when it finally gets there, it sort of plateaus off but it isn't really elaborated until the last 15 minutes of the last episode. I'm somewhat disappointed about that but really, what was I expecting with only ten episodes? For that, I'm quite content that nothing was rushed and you sort of get an epilogue type thing. An epilogue of about 2 seconds long, that is, which really isn't an epilogue at all.

The only thing was that it was obvious the woman was older and at some points, the relationship seemed to even border on being categorized as "wrong" - not that I have anything against age or anything. Just with Koike's boyish looks and innocent charm, lets just say the director and whoever casted him for the role did really well. I did like the conflicts the two had as well as how they differed due to age and maturity (as well as personality) but in the end, everything worked out. My reaction to this? It was cute, entertaining, and their chemistry was somewhat there (I suppose), but I'd say it isn't the best, nor is it something to completely ignore - especially if you've got some time on your hands. After all, it's not like there are too many dramas that center on a 33-year old woman and a 23-year old man.

As of now, all of the episodes are up on MySoju (though the last one needs to get better subs) and only 9 are up on DramaCrazy. Oh wait - DramaCrazy has all of them, but the last one is done by the same subbing group as MySoju.

Attention Please

I've finished the drama series, Attention Please (アテンションプリーズ ) for over two weeks, but I've been busy and the Internet here isn't really reliable. It's a comedy starring Ueto Aya, Nishikido Ryo, Maya Miki, Aibu Saki, and Uehara Misa. It basically follows a young lady that was once in a punk band who wishes to become a flight attendent because the guy she likes said that he like girls in uniform (or something like that). The full summary is:

Losing her mother at a young age, Misaki Yoko (Ueto Aya) was raised amongst
three brothers. Yoko is a slightly boyish girl who is bullheaded and hates
dishonesty. Ever since she was young, she enjoyed the company of boys over
girls. She starts a band with four of her boy friends and becomes the lead
singer. Then one day, one of the members of the band, Tsukasa, gets a job at a
bank in Tokyo. Due to Tsukasa leaving town, the band breaks up and though Yoko
finds herself lonely, she puts on a strong act in front of Tsukasa. She can't
tell Tsukasa how she truly feels for him. On the day Tsukasa leaves for Tokyo,
Yoko goes along with the band members to the airport to see him off. The guys
get excited when they see some cabin crew ladies and Yoko has no idea why. She
reminds them that even she can wear a uniform, but the guys only make fun of
her. That's when Tsukasa tells Yoko he wonders what she'd look like dressed in
uniform. This is when Yoko decides she wants to work as a Cabin Attendant.

It's pretty funny (I mean, we've all seen the flight attendents before if you've been in an airplane) and her personality is totally out there whereas she needs to be reserved in that profession. It just follows her through the entire training (and a little afterwards) with a sprinkling of romance (I mean it - it barely goes into it). After watching it, I feel like I know more of what flight attendents have to go through in order to be qualified enough to get in the air. It's rather interesting. I recommend it. :)

I watched it from Veoh and it's 11 episodes long plus a special.