For those familiar with scriptwriter Ubukata Miku’s work, TBS’s Until the T-shirt Dries feels like a refreshing take on her recurring concepts and devices at first. It’s as if we’re guided down a path we’ve been down before, but there’s something different about it this time โ something compelling and enigmatic that persuades us to…
Reviews
Stove League (Japan): Admirably Faithful to the Original and Yet…
Remakes are difficult to pull off. Either because different mediums have different grammars or because different cultures have different artistic styles โ or simply because the original sets the bar way too high (or way too low at times). Remakes are just as difficult to review, because there’s only so far you can analyse a…
NHK’s My Family (2023), Gently and Lovingly, Leaves You Speechless
It’s terribly difficult to review a series like NHK’s My Family. Not because there’s nothing to be said about it. No, no. Quite the opposite, really: there’s way too much to be discussed. But, at the same time, it’s as if our vocabulary is too limited. It’s as if the dictionary simply doesn’t have the…
Netflix’s Human Vapor Is Heartbreakingly Intoxicating
On December 11th, 1960, Toho released The Human Vapor, the third and last instalment in their “Transforming Human” series of sci-fi features (following 1958โs The H-Man and 1960โs The Secret of the Telegian). Written by Kimura Takeshi, directed by Honda Ishiro, and counting on Tsuburaya Eiji’s visual effects (quick reminder that Ishiro and Tsuburaya also…
Reborn: The Case of a Good Heart Against Bland Execution
TV Asahi’s Reborn certainly has a lot going on for it: led by the excellent Takahashi Issey in a dual role, it relies on an exciting blend of time slips, reincarnation, and found families. Top that off with a witty hero who helps the poor underdog win against the greedy magnate, and you’re bound to…
Soda Master: Quirkly Facing the Changing Tides of Time
Tinged by nostalgia and twisted by sorrow, our memories are anything but reliable. There’s no such thing as objectivity when it comes to human remembrance: the same event can be remembered in a thousand different ways, and as the years go by, details are bound to fade away, change shape, or take on diverse meanings….
Sounds of Winter: A Raw, Unconventional Romantic Drama
In the last episode of NTV’s Sounds of Winter (yes, last; is this a bit spoiler-y? Perhaps, but I’m not revealing any major details!), the protagonist sits next to her friend on a swing set. She grabs her backpack and pulls a light-blue scarf out of it โ a scarf she spent days knitting herself….
Passing the Reins: Giving Full Rein to Our Far-Fetched Dreams
How often do you find yourself watching a series or film about horse racing? Even though horse racing is considered to be one of the most ancient of all sports, I, for one, can’t remember the last instance I sat in front of the TV cheering for a fictional (or real-life, let’s be honest) horse…
Just a Bit Espers: A Deceptively Simple Sci-fi Satire
I’m a huge admirer of Nogi Akiko, a screenwriter who has one of the most impressive filmographies in the history of Japanese television โ in my humble opinion, of course. She’s written anything and everything from classic J-dramas (NTV’s The Memorandum of Kyoko Okitegami and TBS’s Public Affairs Office in the Sky) to more modern…
Chosen Home: A Gentle Tale about Being Human
I cried throughout the entire finale of Nippon TV’s Chosen Home. Chosen Home isn’t exactly the sort of series that makes you cry. No one dies, nothing extremely tragic happens. But I felt tears running down my face for all its 44 minutes. There was something about saying goodbye to its characters, witnessing the end…
