For a while now I have been totally k-drama-less. during which time I switch to J-Dramas for a bit and now I got hooked on Itazura na Kiss - Love in Tokyo. Now what can I say about this drama? The manga has been remade so many times, I don't really need to have a section called "Plot" cause everyone knows this one. But for the few people who don't know anything about it, Itakaura na Kiss is about a slightly...oh ok, very ditzy girl who is head-over-heels in love with the school genius - a robot like emotionless boy. When her house burns down, she moves in with said genius and totally turns his ordered and colourless world out of whack.
With three versions out there, my least favourite version is the original jdrama in 1997 - Itazura Na kiss. Let's just say that nothing clicked for me and it was generally a little noisy :P. I am not joking, the character is literally screaming most of the time, which totally put me off.
The Taiwanese version - It Started with a Kiss is , hands down, is my favorite. Was it long? Yes - (30 episodes for a series which has been completed in 16!) Would I watch it again? - Hell Ya!
Itazura na kiss - Love in Tokyo is a close second, though.
I started wondering why the Taiwanese version was so popular. I mean, its the same story. Same characters. And the same scenes.
I think what made it stand out was Zhi Shu (Naoki). He revealed a side of the character not shown in other versions. He may not have been as cold as portrayed in the manga, but I warmed up to him because of this. He almost seemed human, unlike the other versions.
I think what made it stand out was Zhi Shu (Naoki). He revealed a side of the character not shown in other versions. He may not have been as cold as portrayed in the manga, but I warmed up to him because of this. He almost seemed human, unlike the other versions.
Frankly speaking, I am not really a fan of this story. Dumb, clumsy girl falls for cold guy who leads her on for 5 years without revealing his feelings. And man, was he a tease! Whenever, he felt she was moving away from him, he reels her back in. A sudden date, or kind word or an unexpected kiss!
But I still would be interested to watch this drama in whatever versions it would be made in.
Now, coming to the latest version of Itazura Na kiss - Love in Tokyo. Well, Irei Naoki, played by Yuri Furukawa is charming as ever. At some level I can really understand his emotional torment with Kotoko. I am not sure if Yuri brought this out while portraying Irei or the writer intentionally drew the character that way. It's really difficult to show him less of a robot since he is supposed to be dead cold - emotionally. But I could do with more of the passionate side that was shown in the Taiwanese, It Started with a Kiss.
What I liked about the Love In Tokyo version is Kotoko herself. Yes, she is dumb! Yes, she is totally a walking tornado! But, she is so charming and cute. She can totally annoy the hell out of me but I can still forgive her. I think this was how Kotoko was meant to be. Seeing her on screen, I can totally get why Irei falls for her even when he can get any girl that he wants. I never really connected with her character until Love In Tokyo.
But at the end of the day, we still need a winner and that one is the Taiwanese version. It started with a Kiss.
Why? The rain kiss of course.
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