mochibunny
Full disclosure here, but I'm viewing this as a fan of the anime, so I may be slightly more biased and harsher. With that being said, I think the drama so far is nearly identical to the drama, so, so far so good.The casting seems to be pretty good, as the cast looks age appropriate, with the exception of Akihiko, who looks miscast here. He looks off to me, as the character is supposed to be taller, with long hair and facial haired and a university student, while here, he looks about high school age. Other than that, if you're a fan of the anime and are expecting the cast to look 100% identical to the anime characters, there may be some disappointment there. In terms of an identical looking cast, you may need to look for the stage play cast instead.As for the acting, I didn't see any issue to the acting at all. It didn't seem to me that it was trying to emulate the anime with the expressions, but I think it was just enough emulation that gave off the feel of the anime without going overboard.Again, this seems to be a solid start, so I'm going to keep going (even though the music for this won't be the same as the stellar music that was produced for and included for the anime adaptation), and try to keep an open mnd as possible.
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Lang Lang's appearance in Shenzhen was definitely an improvement overall from his cameo interview apperance in the Vienna and Innsbruck episode. I truly felt the friendship and comraderie that he and Jay have and I enjoyed the musical knowledge (and sharing of their history as friends) in this two part episode. As a result, I take back what I had said in a review prior. I agree with Jay's sentiment of having him join the show permanently, even though it's a given that Lang Lang is incredibly busy. I also enjoyed the behind the scenes look of Jay's concert in Shenzhen, how he passionately runs them, and how close he is with his tour crew. I didn't mention this in the first part review for the Shenzhen episode, but I also enjoyed the short tour of Lang Lang's piano academy, as not many people get a chance to go inside. Overall, this was a pretty good episode. Hopefully this momentum will continue until the show ends.
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Lang Lang didn't properly show for his first appearance in Vienna, so I guess they were trying to give him another chance with this episode. Although it is a great episode, I wish they had invited somebody else since we already saw Lang Lang. That being said, I think it's great to see Jay's passion for music blossom with the kids at the academy and I agree with them both in that classical musicians do need to listen to more modern music and diversify themselves in the world of music - I also personally agree on the vice versa as well. I can also totally see Jay retiring from music just to teach kids piano. More could have also been done in this episode, but I won't judge it too hard since it's only the first part of the Shenzen trip.
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I said it in the last review of the first part of the Gold Coast episode, but I'll say it again. Everything just felt too rushed and planned. Australia is beautiful, but I wish they did a little bit more.
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The Gold Coast episodes felt a bit rushed and too planned for the "impromptu" theme that they were going for. Although Darren is a great tour guide and friend as he had everything ready, it doesn't really work too well for a show that's going for the theme of doing things impromptu and at the last minute. Each "segment" of this trip felt too rushed overall. I appreciate Darren and his sentiments though.
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This episode was very different in terms of style. On top of not having magician Will (due to work events he couldn't get out of), their guest celebrity does not physically join the crew in Vienna, nor in the town of Innsbruck where they make an impromptu visit to. As a result, the run of this episode is very different and has it's pros and cons. The effects of Jay and Guan Lin's pranks on Mr. Du also seem to really get to him this episode as he can be phyiscally upset, which ruins the mood of the show until he gets over it, but later, Mr. Du, who is older than Jay and Guan Lin, who doesn't want to walk back down to the main town of Innsbruck for another two hours, takes the cable car, while unbeknownst to him, Jay and Guan Lin take a car to a completely different town. Separated, the show takes on a different vibe, as Jay and Guan Lin state that they aren't slowed down by Mr. Du nor hear his complaints.The vibe of the Vienna/Innsbruck episode was half ruined due to Jay and Guan Lin's pranks, but we also get to see a different type of show because of it. However, I still would like for the celebrity guest to actually join them on the trip instead of giving a behind the scenes interview like with this episode.
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Most of this episode was a walk down memory lane for Blackie Chen, Jay Chou, and the rest of the cast who lived most of their lives in Taiwan. For Jay fans, it is a walk down his career history as he visits memorable places that had a huge impact on his career and on his life. We also get to see the impact Jay has on the Taiwanese entertainment industry as we see him constantly being bombarded by fans wherever they go, whether it's his hometown shopping mall, a local coffee shop, the local bubble tea shop, to even the night market. Personally, as a Jay Chou fan, I knew that he was incredibly popular, but to see it in action is a whole different story. On another note, the two magicians continue to duke it out to see who is the better magician, taking every chance they can get to do a trick and one up the other. I actually like this comedic and friendly rivalry, and I can see this battle definitely continuing on even long after the show is over. I think this is a must watch episode for those who are fans of Jay Chou, to see the places that not only impacted his career, but places he's been to in his youth and to get to know the behind the scenes stories of his career.
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Singapore part II was actually a little less exciting than the first part of the episode. There is also a scene that is also probably not for the faint hearted and those who are extremely scared of heights - the scene where the two magicians are seen bungee jumping on Sentosa Island as punishment for coming in last place go-kart racing. Just even watching them being lifted up 40 meters into the air and seeing them swing back and forth at that height was extremely traumatizing. The rest of it though, was consistent with the rest of the show, and we also got to see a bit of Jay's performance at the Formula 1 Singapore concert. This episode won't deter me from watching though. Looking forward to the remaining episodes.
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In this second episode, which is part one of two, Jay and the gang travels to Singapore to meet JJ Lin (and Jay was also asked to perform a concert at the Singapore Formula 1 event). JJ acts as a travel guide for the group (as he was born in Singapore and the country is his home country), taking them to his childhood places and preparing a surprise event for someone special in his life. In this episode, we learn that JJ is a nerd who loves video games and was rebellious as a teenager, showing Jay and the gang his favorite hangout spot and taking him to eat in the food court, where they run into fans who take pictures of JJ and Jay, and while, surrounded, Jay, of course, takes opportunity to perform magic tricks.Aside from all the jokes made by Jay, JJ and the gang, this episode was a little bit more touching and heartfelt. It's a reminder that even superstars are human who love their family and shop at the local mall and eat in the local mall's food court. Overall, I enjoyed this episode more than the first, and am looking forward to what's in store in the second part of their trip to Singapore.
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In the first episode, Jay picks up Jam Hsiao at his hotel and they head to the basketball court and then make their way around Paris. From the first episode, it just seems that this show is going to be a bunch of guys going on impromptu trips around the world with a new guest and gooffing off everywhere. Although this premise may seem mundane and boring, it's actually not. We get to see a different side of Jay, his friends and his celebrity guest; as we see in this episode, that Jay's competitiveness can get the best of him in sports and he resorts to tricks (aka cheating), and making bets with the guys. It's a guys being guys show, but it makes them seem more relatable in some ways. I love the humor and the relaxing premise of the show. I think it's a nice and relaxing watch if you're looking for something along these lines. And the good thing is, you don't need to watch any of the shows in order, so if you skip around, you're not going to miss anything. Give this a try.
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