Title: Hanzawa Naoki
Genre: Business, economy, banking
Episodes: 10
Average viewership ratings: 29.07%
Broadcast network: TBS
Broadcast period: 2013-Jul-07 to 2013-Sep-22
Air time: Sunday 21:00
Theme song: Theme of Hanzawa Naoki ~Main Title~ by Hattori Takayuki
This drama deserves a discussion thread! Wow, I can't believe no one has made a discussion thread for this amazing drama. This drama is such a hot topic in Japan, as the final episode reached 42.2% rating in the Kanto region. "Baigaeshi!" catchphrase is practically mentioned in every conversations at Japanese business office now.
I just watched only up to 5 episodes (half of the series) but I fell in love with it immediately. I absolutely love business dramas like this since Karei-naru Ichizoku and Fumo Chitai. I feel like watching Fumo Chitai again now. (Karasawa Toshiaki and Takenouchi Yutaka's combi was just pure kakkoi-ness)
I just love watching how the lead is cornered to the edge, facing enemies from various sides, but he never give up, just keep struggling and crawled his way to victory. How the allies become enemies and enemies become allies. We don't know who is fooling whom. Plus... a little bit of 'soap opera' spice here and there, lol. This is what I love abt this genre, it's close to reality (personally coz I worked in a Japanese trading office), and yet we can see some exaggerated 'soap opera' moments, haha. Those people's expressions who cornered Hanzawa for no reason, reminds me of Cinderella's step mother and step sisters
And the gay guy from the Taxation Bureau, omg, he's awesome, haha... sasuga kabuki actor!And what a lovely surprise for me, the actors playing the bankers here are quite new and fresh faces, but they can act! Sugoi! I mean, they're old, but I almost never see them in dramas before... usually they'd cast the same supporting actors for dramas like Shiroi Kyoto, Karei-naru, Fumo Chitai, etc. I'm usually not fond of the idea of Johnnys Jr member in a drama, but the Johnnys boy here was not bad.
As much as I love Ueto Aya as Hana, Hanzawa's wife here... but I feel that her role in the story is a bit off, like she doesn't belong there... she's too much not involved in the story, like she's just a flower vase there. Apparently Hana is the evil wife in the original novel... wow, I prefer to see Ueto in an evil role, rather than the perfect and ideal wife.
I noticed that the drama only covered the first two series of Hanzawa novels, and there's a 3rd and 4th series running... I'm planning to read the 3rd and 4th novel series now, yabaaii...... what has Hanzawa Naoki done to me.
I read that Soratobu Taiya was also adapted from a novel written by Hanzawa's novel writer, I'd definitely watch that too. We need more business dramas like this
(rather than detective dramas that gets old and boring love stories
)
