shoujo85
Australia
The Good: The highlight of the show is without a doubt Oguri Shun; it truly wouldn't be the same without him. He is completely in character as the young, elite, no-nonsense detective and delivers his lines completely deadpan. His scenes with former-gang-leader-group-date-loving partner Maruo are the main comedy for the dorama and are generally quite enjoyable. Yuriko also does a good job as Yuki; she conveys the character's internal struggles well without over-doing it.
The Bad: Tokyo DOGS suffers from a seemingly unorganised and random plot. The dorama can't seem to make up it's mind whether it's a character dorama following Sou, Marou & Yuki's daily struggles together on the manhunt for Jinno, or whether it's an episodic Cop Show dealing with a new crime each episode. It goes back and forth between the two and the flow of the dorama suffers considerably. Evidence and tips also have a habit of turning up out of thin air just in the nick of time.
Unfortunately, Hiro's acting is what really lets this dorama down; he tries hard (perhaps too hard) but it is obvious that he's not suited to the role at all. A good character actor in the role of Maruo could have made Sou & Maruo a memorable duo indeed; as it is we are left with only half of a great comedic partnership.
Summary: While Tokyo DOGS could have succeeded burdened by either a poor plot or poor acting from one of the lead characters, it struggles to cope with both.
The script offers the continual promise of a possible romance between the main characters but the chemistry just isn't there and in the end it simply doesn't deliver. The ending is also far too vague for my liking, although it does lend itself well to a possible sequel.
Despite its many flaws Tokyo DOGS is a dorama I generally enjoyed watching and would watch again on a rainy day.
I would not recommend Tokyo DOGS if you are looking for a serious Police Dorama. It is better suited for those who would prefer a semi-serious show with some comedy and very little romance.
<< See my full review at doramasan.wordpress.com >>
The Bad: Tokyo DOGS suffers from a seemingly unorganised and random plot. The dorama can't seem to make up it's mind whether it's a character dorama following Sou, Marou & Yuki's daily struggles together on the manhunt for Jinno, or whether it's an episodic Cop Show dealing with a new crime each episode. It goes back and forth between the two and the flow of the dorama suffers considerably. Evidence and tips also have a habit of turning up out of thin air just in the nick of time.
Unfortunately, Hiro's acting is what really lets this dorama down; he tries hard (perhaps too hard) but it is obvious that he's not suited to the role at all. A good character actor in the role of Maruo could have made Sou & Maruo a memorable duo indeed; as it is we are left with only half of a great comedic partnership.
Summary: While Tokyo DOGS could have succeeded burdened by either a poor plot or poor acting from one of the lead characters, it struggles to cope with both.
The script offers the continual promise of a possible romance between the main characters but the chemistry just isn't there and in the end it simply doesn't deliver. The ending is also far too vague for my liking, although it does lend itself well to a possible sequel.
Despite its many flaws Tokyo DOGS is a dorama I generally enjoyed watching and would watch again on a rainy day.
I would not recommend Tokyo DOGS if you are looking for a serious Police Dorama. It is better suited for those who would prefer a semi-serious show with some comedy and very little romance.
<< See my full review at doramasan.wordpress.com >>
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