New season, new dramas! Here are my first and pre-impressions for some of the dramas this season.

Last Friends
It’s the story of people who have been hurt and how they are coping with it. It deals with many issues such as domestic violence and sexuality, so needless to say, this series is rather mature and serious. Not only does it have an amazing cast with Nagasawa Manami, Ueno Juri, and Eita, the story is interesting and compelling. Add to that a GREAT OP sequence and I think I’ve already decided that Last Friends is going to be my favorite of the season. And isn’t that promo images so beautiful?

Zettai Kareshi
I was pretty hesitant to pick this up mainly because I have read enough of the manga to know that I don’t really like it. But then they cast Mizushima Hiro and I really like him, so now I’m watching it. And Maya Miki also plays a role in it, which is definitely a nice addition because I have always enjoyed watching her. The writers have changed the setting from high school to a cake company, which was probably smart, considering the nature of the show. Don’t know how long I’m going to keep watching it because it’s kind of bothering me right now.

Around 40
As the title implies, it’s the story of people who around 40. And as series a series with older actors and actress just means that it’s the veterans of the business who are again taking leading roles (as opposed to mother/father to leading roles). Basically the story of three women, one who wants to get married, but has high standards, so she has a lot trouble (also because she is very intelligent). Another is a housewife who is tired of just staying at home and wants to get back into society again. The last is a fashionable magazine editor who vowed never to get married, but did anyway. Stars Fujiki Naohito as the love interest of the main character

Kimi Hannin Janai yo ne?
Every mystery series is pretty similar, but they each have different gimmicks. In Kimi Hannin Janai yo ne? (You’re not a criminal, right?), the leading girl, Morita Sakura, has an amazing memory and can remember the tiniest details. She happens to get caught up with Usagawa Kyosei, an detective who is pretty crappy and falls in love with female suspects. The male lead is played by Kaname Jun, who was the villain in last season’s Ashita no Kita Yoshio. His character here is very comedic, so it’s strange for me to watch him here. Also because, he was also in the Taiyou no Uta drama where he played another very series character. And as I’ve said before, I can never resist a good mystery!

Ryokiteki na Kanojo
Based on the South Korean movie, this drama pretty much follows the same formula of the movie (or at least as far as I’ve watched to far). I’m not really a big fan of the movie…I could never understand why the guy just took all of her abuse. I am interested to see how the writers are going to stretch a movie into an entire drama, though. And how they integrate the change in setting from college students to working people. But actually, I never finished the first episode, so…

Hokaben
A lawyer drama with Ueto Aya starring as a rookie lawyer who wants to help the weak and works for the pro bono section. Her law firm is the largest in the nation, but the pro bono section only has one other lawyer - her boss. So far, it seems like this drama is going to focus on some heavy subjects and the first case is separated into two episodes (which she’ll probably win). Also stars Kato Shigeaki for Johnny’s fans.

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Puzzle
This one is like a mystery, but not exactly. It starts Ishihara Satomi (who I’ve always thought is really beautiful) as an English teacher who isn’t really very proficient at English. She’s selfish and arrogant in front her students, but acts meek and kind in front of her coworkers and the rest of the work. But she’s really smart and can solve puzzles and ends up solving various mysterious things with three of her students. And speaking of her students, is this a HanaKimi reunion or something? Because 2/3 of her students are from the main student cast… So far, though, it’s really fun and Ishihara Satomi is great.

Tracklist
1. Namida no Niji
2. SAVE ME
3. way to heaven ~100db mix~
4. Namida no Niji -Instrumental-
5. SAVE ME -Instrumental-

Namida no Niji / SAVE ME is Ueto Aya’s 15th single. It was released on May 30, 2007 and has currently sold approximately 9000 copies. It peaked at #17 on the Oricon charts.

Namida no Niji is Aya’s first attempt at song-writing; she co-wrote it. It’s a ballad with gorgeous strings in the arrangement and beautiful vocals from Aya. The chorus is best part in the song; the build up from the verse sounds great.

SAVE ME is definitely the better A-side. It starts off with a hurried feeling and soft vocals. The piano and guitar sound great here. The song really comes out in the chorus. The melody is gorgeous and the vocals are pretty good as well. Although, it’s not particularly catchy, the arrangement and the melody are both amazing. This single is worth listening just for this one track; it’s that good.

The remix of way to heaven attempts to turn it into a dance track. The brass is gone and there’s a lot more synth and electronica. It’s pretty interesting, but gets kind of annoying after single, really the only vocals is the chorus and “way to heaven” is mixed in way too much.

Buy this single: CD only

Tracklist
1. way to heaven
2. owari no shiyo
3. Shimokita Ijou Harajuku Miman - French Bossa version
4. way to heaven -Instrumental-

way to heaven is Ueto Aya’s 14th single and her first single in over a year’s hiatus. It was released on March 14, 2007 and has sold approximately 12,000 copies. It peaked at #20 on the Oricon charts.

way to heaven features a fun arrangement using brass, interesting beats, and synth. The verse is nothing special, but I find the chorus pretty catchy with its English phrases and fast pace. The best part of this song is definitely the arrangement; the brass sounds excellent.

owari ni shiyo has a very epic sound to it and Aya’s vocals sound quite tragic. I particularly like the verse melody; it sounds much more beautiful than the chorus does. It’s a gorgeous ballad and has a very grand sound to it.

Shimokita Ijou Harajuki Miman has a minimalistic arrangement, of course with the French Bossa sound to it. I love the chorus here with Aya’s vocals over the background vocals. The verses are pretty interesting as well with short and pronounced notes. I really like the piano in the arrangement.

Buy this single: CD only

Starring:
Ueto Aya as Machida Hina
Fujiki Naohito as Koga Ikumi
Kyomoto Masaki as Fujimura Moroki
Sonim as Kudo Beniko
Narimiya Hiroki as Kamiya Yuji
Aoi Yuu as Ezawa Mami

The initial description of this drama is “forbidden love” between a teacher and a student. However it is much more than that. It starts out as Hina (Ueto) skips class with her friend Beniko (Sonim). They later split up and Hina runs into a man at the game arcade. They become somewhat like friends and go back to his apartment. There, Hina freaks out and pushes him away, and the two end up only sleeping side by side the entire night. The next day at school, the man she met last night is her new math teacher - Koga Ikumi (Fujiki). However, he doesn’t seem to recognize her. He’s a genius, fairly young and good-looking, making him extremely popular among the all-girl student population. The real reason he has come to teach at a school is because he is dying of a brain tumor - he left his previous life suddenly and seeks to live out his last days peacefully. No one except his doctor knows that he is dying.

The plot doesn’t truly start until Hina hits her head during gym and later collapses during class - she is rushed to the hospital. When she wakes, she looks for Koga and overhears a conversation with Koga’s doctor. She, the doctor, tells him that he has probably only six months to live, however Hina thinks that the doctor is talking about her. When she asks Koga about this, he lies to her and tells her that she is dying. He calls it his ‘experiment.’ Koga’s doctor doesn’t tell her the truth when she is confronted either. What starts is a relationship based on lies. Hina begins to depend on him and he begins to need her in his life. She is his mirror image - he can see the effects on someone else, the same things and thoughts that happened to him happening to the girl.

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