Sorata wrote:

Just finished this and i was really surprised. Despite all the bad reviews this had i was absolutly overwhelmed by this dorama, maybe because i�Lm a huge anime/manga fan, and this story is much more anime like than dorama like. Ryuzaki Shinji(Takizawa Hideaki) is now my favorite dorama character, it used to be the King Takashi from IWGP, i loved everything about him the manerisms, the way of talk, of walking, everything, i think Taki stinks as an overall actor but he pulled this character really well. Nishikado Ryo on the other hand once again ruined a perfect good character(coufh*Last Friends*coufh), the guy seems to have only one facial expression, his performance was really bad but didn�Lt ruin the dorama for me. This dorama has so many memorable momments: the trade that Ryuzaki made with Aoi, that Aoi would kill the drunk guy and Ryuzaki would heal the kid who was about to die; the scene at the hospital when Ryuzaki forced the patients to choose the order they wanted to be healed and of course my favorite one when Ryuzaki was in the hospital and all the kids refused to be healed by him just so he could heal the teacher and then he went and healed all of them, pretty awesome. The only thing this lacked was more on the romance situation between Ryuzaki and Nagisa(Mizukawa Asami); anyway this is a pretty good dorama i recomend it.

Uh-oh, I think we have polar views regarding Tackey and Ryo's acting: I thought Ryo did a far better job here than his turn on LAST FRIENDS, while Tackey was the lifeless one.

I'll have to throw in my lot with the "bad reviews" you mentioned--but, well, contrasting views are what make the world go round... or something. Anyway, it's all good, baby.

***

My thoughts on ORTHROS NO INU:

http://endersgirrrl.wordpress.com/2010/01/03/drama-review-orthros-no-inu-dog-of-orthros-tbs-2009/

Ooh, I get a mention! Fame at last!

Actually, I think i'm going to skip JDramas altogether and just read the E.G. review. Much more entertaining

Anime Dad wrote:

Ooh, I get a mention! Fame at last!

Lol, now you're a household name among my three regular readers, yay!

Seriously, how could I NOT quote your line? It's etched forever in my brain, stored for easy retrieval whenever I need something to make me laugh.

Anime Dad wrote:

Actually, I think i'm going to skip JDramas altogether and just read the E.G. review. Much more entertaining

The folks at the D-A thread don't seem to think so, but that's cool. Diversity rawks.

Ender's Girl wrote:

Uh-oh, I think we have polar views regarding Tackey and Ryo's acting: I thought Ryo did a far better job here than his turn on LAST FRIENDS, while Tackey was the lifeless one.

Well i never said that Ryo�Ls acting was worst than his acting on Last Friends(which was horrible), but his character here seemed so lifeless...no substance at all, at least from my point of view.

While i rate Taki as one of the worst actors(if we can call him that) in jdrama scene(only Yamapi is worst than him) he was able to make this character work for me, maybe like i said before because i�Lm a huge anime/manga fan and i really like this lone wolf kind of characters, so maybe i�Lm being a little biased on my rating of Taki�Ls acting in this dorama.

And in some parts of your review you mock the fact that Orthros is unrealistic, but who cares about that, this is about if one is entertained or not, i don�Lt care if they weren�Lt suposed to live after falling off the bridge.

But for most parts i have to agree with your review, the super cliché plot and the failing at making this a melodrama, cop flick, supernatural thing, whatever.

During the first episode i too thought about the Silence of the Lambs during the scene between Shinji and Hasabe lolol, very original, lol.

I was shocked that his was written by 5 people...so many people and this is what they come up with...

Anyway can you tell me what are your favorite doramas. From your review is easy to tell that your a very cult person, so i don�Lt think you�Lll find a lot of things that suit you in the jdorama world, you probably like Byakuyakou and Kekkon Dekinai Otoko, both have good plots and great acting, but let�Ls face it most japanese dramas have weak and cliché plots, specially the school life and cop ones.

Edit: sorry for the crappy english, it�Ls not my first language.

Ender's Girl wrote:

My thoughts on ORTHROS NO INU: http://endersgirrrl.wordpress.com/2010/01/03/drama-review-orthros-no-inu-dog-of-orthros-tbs-2009/

Hi,

I enjoyed reading your review. At the same time, I can't help but wonder, if it is indeed as bad as you make it out to be, why did you follow the drama right down to the last scene in the last episode? And then write about it in such painstaking detail?

I would have stopped watching if I hated it as much as you did.

Maybe it's so bad that it's actually good?

This drama isn't the most artistic, profound or intellectual serial around, but I think it does a decent job of keeping the viewer entertained. Yes, it has its cheesy moments, but on the whole, it is watchable and entertaining.

Click on button to reveal/hide spoiler:

In the first episode, I thought they would stereotype the two main characters as the angel with the devil's hand and the devil with God's hand throughout the entire series. But they didn't. Aoi did not break out of the "angel with the devil's hand" mould, but Ryuzaki's character was not what he was initially set up to be. He had seemingly amoral scenes ("what will you do for me [if I cure you]?"), but there are also scenes where the viewer finds out why he did what he did. It turned out that he evaluated the merits of the situation and had quite a unconventional perspective of it.

On the two lead actors' performance, my personal view is that Nishikido Ryo's performance was pretty dull. I felt that he sleepwalked throughout the entire series, except for that scene in the last episode where he grips Tackey's throat with his "devil's hand". Perhaps extreme emotions are easier to portray. Which says a lot about his acting skills.

I thought Tackey did a commendable job. He has a natural screen presence which commanded my attention whenever he's onscreen. He brought out the enigmatic aspect of Ryuzaki's character well. He did not fall into the trap of over-emoting. He could have portrayed Ryuzaki as a sneering malevolent devil with God's hand to show some "acting chops", but I was really glad he didn't.

For Tackey, I felt that he was admirably restrained and nuanced in his acting. But for Ryo, I felt that he was wooden and expressionless. That's only my viewpoint of course. I'm not a fan or hater of either of them.

On the whole, I think the average person is likely to find it interesting enough to want to continue watching, just as long as you're not looking for arthouse plot devices or standard of acting.

Sorata wrote:

And in some parts of your review you mock the fact that Orthros is unrealistic, but who cares about that, this is about if one is entertained or not, i don�Lt care if they weren�Lt suposed to live after falling off the bridge.

I don't see how one can be entertained if basic logic itself fails the drama. It isn't even the supernatural/magicky stuff I have issue with (this is me, a fantasy/sci-fi nut since I was a kid), but rather the implausible actions, plot developments, and resolutions that I found to be rather hard to swallow.

Sorata wrote:

Anyway can you tell me what are your favorite doramas. From your review is easy to tell that your a very cult person, so i don�Lt think you�Lll find a lot of things that suit you in the jdorama world, you probably like Byakuyakou and Kekkon Dekinai Otoko, both have good plots and great acting, but let�Ls face it most japanese dramas have weak and cliché plots, specially the school life and cop ones.

Actually, I DO find a lot of things that suit me in the Jdorama world... There's KimuTaku (of course)... and YamaPi... and Kame... and Oguri Shun... and Yamada Takayuki and Eita and Tsumabuki Satoshi and (ohyes!) Nagase Tomoya...

I'm basically a fangirl at heart, and very, very, very actor-centric when choosing which dramas to watch (which would explain my near-completion of the filmographies of YamaPi and Kame, respectively, lol). That doesn't mean though, that I think my fave actors can do no wrong. If I hated a particular aspect of a Kimura drama, for instance, I'll go out and rip it to shreds--with great relish. (But I wax euphoric about the merits with just as much fervor, hehe.) That's just how I am, I guess.

Sometimes I base my choices on the recs here at J-D or other forums, and more often than not the recs have been very helpful. That's how I came across BYAKUYAKOU (which I have immense respect for as a drama; I reviewed it on my blog, though I won't consider it a personal favorite). That said, I have yet to see other highly recommended titles like KEKKON... or SHIROI HARU, but I plan to. Just taking my time...

To answer your question--you want specifics?--I'd say PRIDE, LONG VACATION, HERO, BEAUTIFUL LIFE, LOVE GENERATION... oh, are these all KimuTaku dramas? Lol, well, you get the drift. Non-Kimura dramas I heart heart heart would be NOBUTA WO PRODUCE and TATTA HITOTSU NO KOI... oh, are these YamaPi/Kame dramas? Lol, well there ya go. Told you I was a fangirl at heart.

Sorata wrote:

Edit: sorry for the crappy english, it�Ls not my first language.

I don't see "crappy English" anywhere.

Gwynnie wrote:

Hi, I enjoyed reading your review. At the same time, I can't help but wonder, if it is indeed as bad as you make it out to be, why did you follow the drama right down to the last scene in the last episode? And then write about it in such painstaking detail? I would have stopped watching if I hated it as much as you did. Maybe it's so bad that it's actually good?

Lol, someone asked me the same question over at D-A...

True, I normally ditch a drama I've lost interest in after the first few episodes, but I stayed with ORTHROS for three reasons:

1) I was riveted by Tackey's "acting" with the same morbid fascination as when watching a train wreck. How could I turn my eyes away from such a... spectacle?

2) Nishikido Ryo's acting wasn't bad at all, and I thought I'd give him a chance this time.

3) The drama's concept WAS interesting, and I wanted to see how it would play out, with or without the terrible writing.

And to answer your second question: CATHARSISSSS, baby! There was no way I was going to walk around for the next few weeks with memories of Tackey's scenes bugging my brain. Had to get them all out or die trying, lol. (What the hey are blogs for, anyway? )

Well. Reading your insights (and Sorata's too) did me good. Different viewpoints are always refreshing. I said this in the comments section of my review: my less-than-glowing words for Tackey and this drama are by no means a diss of the fans of the drama. I hope you don't take my Down with Tackey! Tackey must go! diatribe personally. I guess different dramas just rub us different ways. Which makes watching them all the more enjoyable, ne?

Ender's Girl wrote:

That said, I have yet to see other highly recommended titles like KEKKON... or SHIROI HARU, but I plan to. Just taking my time...

I see KEKKON and like Pavlovs Dog I instantly salivate with recollections of just how great this drama was/is. Don't know how many times I've watched and rewatched this immensely entertaining vehicle. Hiroshi Abe is definitely at his best and my personal idol Kuninaka Ryoko is the perfect straight man(should I say woman, but that does not fit the idiom) displaying a comedic side I did not realize she was capable of interpreting.
I wait with impatience for your blog of this drama.

i just finished the series..(weeps) i cried so much like crazy towards the end..i'm ok with the ending i just wish it could have turned out better

leapyear29 wrote:

i just finished the series..(weeps) i cried so much like crazy towards the end..i'm ok with the ending i just wish it could have turned out better

Now i�Lm curious, what kind of ending were you expecting??? I think this one was happy enough.

I wasn't really happy with the ending.

Click on button to reveal/hide spoiler:

I thought they would do better than having both of them walking past each other without realizing it! =.= Failed... The last epi was bit too rush and i couldn't stand the part where the girl (I can't remember her name) was pointing her gun at the bad guy, she had plenty of time to give him a shot!!!!!! Why the hell was she standing there staring???!!!!

Oh, I see that there are a few posts commenting on Ryo's acting, on how bad he did in the drama. Well... Personally i think he did quite well, he was supposed to portray as a helpless person, not knowing of what he should do with his power. I've seen him in Niini no Koto wo Wasurenaide. He did well in it...
_________________

^ Spoiler tags added.

^ Thanks for adding the spoiler tag! ^^
_________________

XJShinoda wrote:

^ Thanks for adding the spoiler tag! ^^

Glad to help.

Main characters photos

Takizawa Hideaki - Ryuzaki Shinji

Nishikido Ryo - Aoi Ryosuke

Mizukawa Asami - Hasebe Nagisa

Yaotome Hikaru - Kumakiri Masaru

Yamamoto Ryuji - Shibata Shosuke

Harada Natsuki - Maezono Chiharu

Oshinari Shugo - Yoshizumi Masato

Haru - Shirakawa Kana

Rokkaku Seiji - Ninomiya Ken

Sasaki Kuranosuke - Sawamura Takayuki

Takahata Atsuko - Sakaki Yoko