After having seen all the versions of Itazura na kiss existing (including the 1996 Japanese version), and particularly loved the “Love in Tokyo” version, saying I was waiting for this special would be an understatement. Though, I wouldn’t say my thirst was completely quenched. Let me explain.

STORY (8). I won’t talk about the initial story here as I find it almost perfect. Still I want to comment some aspects of the special episode, and one in particular...
Until now, only the Taiwanese version has dealt with the honey moon (as I don’t recognize the Korean 7 minutes episode as a real adaptation), and as I thought the honey moon story was deserving a long episode (just like in TKA), I was really happy to see on the details the episode would last 3 hours… and here comes the trouble. I really found this special was too short, and most of all too HURRIED! I know announcing days is part of the “joke” with Mari-chan, but when the week ends up only being a list of days and short episodes, I only can be disappointed. I know the manga was like this too, but I found the liberties taken by TKA interesting, I wish love in Okinawa had taken some too!
(A detail that always annoys me in dramas… No one in the world kisses like that, please stahp…)
Bonus: As spoilers are forbidden, I won’t say too much, but I just LOVED the cross over, it made me laugh out loud, for real! (+1 for the music and the japanese by the way ~ !) [you’ll get it when you’ll see it].

ACTING/CAST (9.5). Miki is still a perfect Kotoko, cute, sweet, and… so in love! I discovered her in the first season, and couldn’t imagine a better actress to play this role. As for Naoki, I was a little disappointed as Yuki Furukawa acted the same way he did before Naoki and Kotoko’s wedding. I haven’t been able to see the love in his eyes for like ¾ of the episode. Sure Naoki Irie has to be Naoki Irie, but I was expecting at least a smile from time to time (Finally I’m just like Kotoko, I want him to love her so hard I can’t stand such a distant behavior, hihi).

MUSIC (7). The music is neither wonderful nor awful, I would say it was average. It was light, and perfect for the story. Though I didn’t appreciate the fact that there was music during all the episode, to my mind, the ost is here to improve the story, to accompany it and make it more alive. I had the feeling it was always trying to catch the attention. Seriously, some moments and some dialogue need their silence.
On the other hand, I HAVE to put a stress on the opening, because I just found it really cute, colorful, and loved the music. I’m listening to it again right now!

*43 minutes of re-watching, please wait…*

REWATCHING (8.5). After watching it again, I feel split between my first feelings, for some stronger than ever, and the joy of discovering things I had missed or misunderstood the first time (subtitles didn’t work and my Japanese isn’t that perfect).
Though I have to correct some things I wrote before. There ARE moments when Naoki smiles, even if they are discreet and short (watch out!). As for the music, it’s well and truly omnipresent, BUT it’s not that bad, as it stays behind the story, and it’s not that bothering finally.

OVERALL (8.5). I had a great time watching this, without any doubt, even the second time. The Itakiss series are parts of my favorite dramas ever, which explains the high score I gave (after all) and… why I was so critical :p. Though, as explained, my disappointment is real… maybe I was expecting too much from it? I have to admit I spent all the summer waiting for it to air, while expecting the Japanese version to go further than the Taiwanese (and obviously the Korean)… Well, after all, I still love it! To conclude, I would even say, hmmm…. WHEN IS THE SEASON 2 COMING OUT?? (pliz ;_;)

P.S. Sorry for the length of the review, I think I was inspired. It’s my first review here, so don’t hesitate, and comment !

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[I wanted to make this review short since the show is short… and ended up writing a lot… Now reading this may be longer than watch one episode, well played myself, well played]

STORY (6) & REALISATION (5) [5,5]. A short story about young teenagers having their first experiences with love, how cute! The four main characters present different profiles, and however short the development of the story can be, I find it very cute and interesting. There are humoristic moments too, although they got kinda old since 1999, and are not really funny (well… I guess their age is the reason why it didn’t make me laugh). On the other hand, the fact that the show is only 8 episodes of less than 15 minutes long, these little almost awkward moments are not a big deal. The shortness of the show is also the reason why even though the story is far from being the best I have watched, I enjoyed and would give it a 6 out of 10. I hate the way it ended though!

AS FOR REALISATION. I really feel like I have to comment on this, even if there is no actual "realisation grade". Indeed the realization has some flaws (scenes with fast actions in particular), on the other hand it was obviously a tiny project, sooo… once again, not a big deal. I also found the mini shows of Takizawa Hideaki before and after each episode nice.

CASTING & ACTING (7). Yamashita Tomohisa, Maeda Aki, Nakamaru Yuichi and Akanishi Jin’s first drama! (Well okay, Akanishi Jin only appears in one episode and we almost don’t see him buuut still!). Aren’t they cute in their first acting experiences? Yamapi is only 14 if I am right. Their acting wasn’t exceptional I must admit, but it wasn’t bad at all, I appreciated watching them a lot! It is always great to see where it all started, ne!

MUSIC (5). The music is fine: light, kinda cute, not omnipresent, however not extraordinary.

OVERALL (5,5). All in all, I would describe this short drama with this only: EASY AND SHORT ENTERTAINMENT. You easily get charmed by those young boys and girls discovering love, and the shortness of the drama makes so that its flaws aren’t a big deal at all. Of course I cannot rate this drama a better grade since it seems to be a really small project, and however cute I found the story and actors, it remains far beyond other shows I have seen. Yet I keep recommending it for those who appreciate the actors like Yamapi.

Ijou ~

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