Rate Horikita Maki: Note: There is a rating embedded within this post, please visit this post to rate it.

Where did I first see her?
Without realising it, the first time I did see Maki was during Densha Otoko, the series. How ever, of course, the first time I noticed her was in Nobuta wo Produce as Kotani Nobuko.

My Opinion
From Nobuta wo Produce, I began to see her everywhere! I really enjoy the shows that she is in and like to look out for her shows. That being said, you can really tell the difference between her real smile and her acting smile. It is really bad!

TV Shows:
Atashinchi no Danshi (2009)
Chance! (2009)
Danso no Reijin (2008)
Innocent Love (2008)
Hanazakari no Kimitachi e SP (2008)
Tokyo Daikushu (2008)
Deru Toko Demasho! (2007)
Hanazakari no Kimitachi e (2007)
Densha Otoko Deluxe (2006)
Kurosagi (2006)
Nobuta wo Produce (2005)
Densha Otoko (2005)

Websites
Official Webiste

• Densha Otoko Review and Caps…

Densha Otoko is the story of a nerd who saves a girl on the train from a drunk man. He then undergoes a transformation with help from his internet friends to woo the girl. It’s the classic story but this movie goes to show that the old stories still are the best.

The drama series was the first drama that I watched. It was OK, and I really enjoyed the first special.

It was back in the days before I paid attention to Oguri Shun and Horikita Maki. It was back in the days when it took me a moment to realise that “otoko” and “otaku” aren’t the same words. It was the beginning of something fantastic that would take over my life. Who knows how much spare time I would have now if I had never watched that show.

But it wasn’t until recently that I finally got around to watching the movie. I should say now, I know this movie, as well as the TV series is very popular. As I watched it, I couldn’t help compare it to the series.

In the series Densha Otoko was much more nerdy than Yamada could ever be. As for Hermes, well… I thought she didn’t display/command the awe that the Hermes in the series did. Ito Misaki, while very emotionless in her portrayal, does win over the movie Hermes, played by Miki Nakatani. However, Nakatani’s Hermes felt much more human, something that I quite liked.

Eita’s hair, always a character in itself, is two very enthusiastic thumbs up from me. Slick and sexy. Ooooh yeah.

Overall, this is such a sweet tale that has been told many times before. Looser boy falls for dream girl – I think this is the basis for a lot of shounen manga. This movie is a nice modern spin on it. Plus the “true story” tag, I can really understand why this movie has mass appeal. And it appeals to me as well.

I liked the ASCII art. I like that they explained what it is that Hermes likes about Densha Otoko.

I laughed during their “sweet” kiss. It was just awkward, and like in the series, he cries too much. Some bits dragged on for a bit.

What’s up with Orange Range? They have to be the kings of theme songs.

I like how the movie and the tv series are somewhat connected. A nice touch.

Overall, I give this

Buy Densha Otoko

• Densha Otoko – US Version
• Densha Otoko – Japanese Version – Standard
• Densha Otoko – Japanese Version – Special Edition

Trailer

Rate Oguri Shun: Note: There is a rating embedded within this post, please visit this post to rate it.

Where did I first see him?
Without realising it, I first saw him in Densha Otoko, the tv series. It wasn’t until later, when I knew who he was, that I went back to rewatch and see him there. I can’t remember if I watched Hana Yori Dango or Gokusen first, but I watched both around the same time. It is around this time that I actively became aware of Shun. I’m not sure when I first became to really appreciate him as an actor, but I certainly came to admire him.

My Opinion
Shun is one busy boy. He seems to do a lot. I really like Shun as an actor – he’s someone that I would watch something because he is in it. He is pretty sexy too, in an odd kind of way – and definitely looks better with darker hair in my opinion.

Misc Facts
Shun has Pectus Excavatum, a disorder in the chest which makes a part of it sunken. He’s still sexy.
He’s left handed. Lefties for world domination!
He likes surfing.

TV Shows:
Tokyo Dogs (2009)
Hanazakari no Kimitachi e SP (2008)
Binbo Danshi (2008)
Detective Conan 2 (2007)
Hanazakari no Kimitachi e (2007)
Hana Yori Dango 2 (2007)
Detective Conan 1 (2006)
Densha Otoko Deluxe (2006)
Hana Yori Dango (2005)
Densha Otoko (2005)
Stand Up!! (2003)
Spring Story (2003)
Gokusen SP (2003)
Gokusen (2002)

Movies:
Hana Yori Dango Final (2008)
Crows ZERO (2007)
Sukiyaki Western Django (2007)

Links:
Official Site
Japanese Wikipedia
English Wikipedia

This is your average story about the geeky nerd (is that redundant?!?) who falls in love with a beautiful rich girl. Except this is based (loosely, I’m sure) on a true story!!

Otaku is a anime/game nerd in Japanese. And Tsuyoshi is an Otaku for sure! Traveling home on the train (densha in Japanese) one night, there is a drunk old man harrassing all the female passengers. When he gets to Saori, the girl across from where Tsuyoshi is sitting (and who is quite beautiful), he stands up to the man long enough for him to be taken by the police. Saori thanks him and gets his address to send him a thank you gift.

Tsuyoshi goes home and asks on a message board for help in getting this girl! Basically the whole story is Tsuyoshi finding confidence to date Saori with the help of members on a “Singles” message board.

The story is, as I said, nothing ground breaking. And Tsuyoshi is sooo over the top. Does he have to cry every time he talks to Saori?? By contrast, Saori seems so shy she doesn’t show any emotion. Just a slight smile here or there, or a single tear. She is a woman of few words.

But even though we are not crossing fresh ground here, the story did hold itself together. It was very entertaining to watch. It was sickly sweet a lot of the time, of course. But I think the thing that won me over for this was the comedy. It was laugh out loud funny. It was outrageous. The characters on the message board were charactures and I loved them! The whole show was so funny, I can’t recommend it enough!

My favourite character, without a doubt, was Misuzu Jinkama. She was somehow sweet yet scary.
If you are going to watch them, don’t forget to watch the specials. I have only seen the first special, I am going to watch the deluxe one tomorrow. But the first special, why, I think it was (perhaps!) better than the show! It was a riot! Lol. It was sort of a “behind the scenes” thing – what was happening to our other characters as the drama between Tsuyoshi and Saori was happening.

Much recommended