Hitorishizuka (2012)

This is the kind of drama that is going to be hard ro review for me. The reason for that is this show had very very good moments but at the same time alot of stuff were a little bit dragged out and unrelated to the actual storyline.

But let me tell you what the best part of this drama is, it's the character Shizuka played by Kaho. I might have to think about it abit deeper, but just at the top of my head she is one of the most interesting and mysterious characters I've seen in a good long while. Even after finishing this show I want to know more about her.

So, the storyline is pretty interesting at it's core but some moments are dragged out. I don't mind sitting through slow dramas as long as the good parts are good enough and I felt that about this show. The good parts were worth the wait. If you can't stand slow dramas you might want to avoid this or at least expect to not like it as much as I did.

The acting is pretty much flawless, that's what I've come to expect from WOWOW shows at this point. Kaho, like I said, is amazing as Shizuka and the various police officers, private investigators and other supporting roles are great. I have to admit, in the first episode I kinda felt Kaho was miscast as the main character but it changed the second she appeared in the second.

The music was very good and I still remember the "main score" of the show which I really liked.

Ultimately the reasons I can't rate this show higher are these. The first episode is really slow until you get into to the actual plot. Also I didn't really love the ending, I won't go into that cause of spoilers. And last, I wanted to know more about Shizuka.

But I recommend this drama, IF you think you can manage the slow pace.

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(Read the full review at my review blog, remaaarkable.dreamwidth.org~!)

Kaho plays an excellent mysterious creature as Shizuka, and every episode is filled with suspense as the police, all from different divisions, near the truth about Shizuka only to be thwarted at the last minute.

It was a bit puzzling to figure out how all the stories connected back to Shizuka--they all do eventually, and often in excellently creative ways, but the meandering story until it gets to her always felt a little off-kilter. Why, I was asking myself at the beginning of each episode, do we need to see all this monotonous stuff about random people? The cops were especially puzzling--as the ones involved change every episode, it felt like a waste to get to know them the way we do throughout an episode only to ditch them in the end when Shizuka runs again. The episodes could've been tightened up considerably if we focused more on Shizuka's case and less on the monotony that makes up police work. After all, the title of the drama isn't "hitorikeisatsu."

Nevertheless the people who are actually involved in the Shizuka plot are excellently cast, and I was seriously impressed by how things come full circle over the course of the show. It's intriguing, with a mix of both suspense and mystery (there are times when we are privileged to information the police doesn't have--such as what Shizuka is up to), and an extremely satisfying ending. I'm not sure I'd ever rewatch the show--after you know what's going on I'd hate to sit through all the unrelated plots again.

So yes, a slow-paced show with many extraneous details, but carried by a top-notch cast and a tight, intriguing overarching plot. Worth watching the first time, but only so you can learn what the hell is going on at the end.

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