Hamsapsukebe jdorama awards 2009

Really wanted to wait for the subbing of Soratobu Taiya to finish before looking back at 2009 but at this rate, we're going to have to wait til the 2nd half of 2K10. 2K9 was an ok year but I'll probably remember it more for the really atrocious doramas of Arifureta Kiseki, Mr Brain, Zeni Geba Code Blue, Triangle, Boss, Boku no Imoto, Buzzer Beater and Tokyo Dogs. So much potential and money wasted. The biggest disappointment was Triangle. They had the acting talent but they couldn't even produce a generic thriller script to for it. 2K9 for me was the year where writing overtook acting as jdorama's biggest weakness.

Only jdoramas that aired in 2009 are counted, not jdoramas that were subbed. If not Manhattan Love Story and Ningen no Shoumei wouldbe strong contenders.

BEST GUEST ACTOR IN A JDORAMA


Sora Aoi in Jyouou Virgin. A picture can speak a thousand words

BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS

Nakatani Miki as Nokaze in Jin


Lots of actresses can probably pull off the prostitute with the heart of gold but few can do it with class and heart.

Honourable mention:

Natsukawa Yui as Hatori Akira in Ninkyo Helper.

Shiraishi Miho as Kanako in Shiroi Haru.


BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR

Uchino Masaaki as Sakamoto Ryoma in Jin

Jin maybe the main character but he is the heart of this show.

Honourable mentions:

Endo Kenichi as the baker in Shiroi Haru and Samejima in Fumo Chitai. Truly a great actor with ability to play two very distinct characters.

Yanagiba Toshiro as Kawamata Isao in Fumo Chitai. He did his usual Muroi Shinji stone faced acting but it was very effective.

Nakai Kiichi as the lawyer in Smile. Gah, if only Matsumoto Jun weren't in it.


BEST ACTRESS

Ayase Haruka as Saki in Jin

Nope, this screencap is not from Jin. I just couldn't resist using it again.

Honourable mentions

Karina as Aizawa Airu in Love Shuffle. Was going to give it to Karina except it was more her chemistry Tamaki Hiroshi rather then her acting. Its basically a coin toss between the two of them.

Minamisawa Nao as Takemiya Mei in Akai Ito.

Kanno Miho as Kiina. She's good in anything she does.


BEST ACTOR

Abe Hiroshi as Haruo in Shiroi Haru
I should just call this the Abe Hiroshi/Uchino Masaaki award. No other jdorama actor is as good as those two. Abe was fucking awesome in Shiroi Haru. It could have been a KDO level dorama if not for the amateurish directing. Imagine if they had cast Abe as Iki in Fumo Chitai and Shiraishi Miho as Chisato in Fumo Chitai...

Honourable mention:

Tamaki Hiroshi as Usami Kei in Rabusha. With Nodame, Shitaotoko and Rabusha, he's got three must watch doramas on his resume with him as the main actor. It remains to be seen whether he has the ability to elevate the mediocre to good.


WATCHABLE SHOWS OF 2K9

Kiina: barely watchable and only for Kano Miho.

Rinjo: Wow. A police show where its actually about procedures in solving crimes instead of characters trying to look cool. Actually, when compared to all the other so called police jdoramas, it should be considered must watch.

Akai Ito: A lot better than what it was suppose to be. Probably the biggest surprise of 2K9 for me.

Majo Saiban: pretty fun show about jury tampering.

Futatsu no spica: Not as good as Akai Ito but still a decent high school dorama. Sakuraba Nanami shows promise.

Ninkyo Helper: Just wished they went a bit darker. A bit of a stretch to accept some of the characters as yakuza. The 'All My Soul' song really saved this show IMO.

Liar Game: Without the ending it just feels too incomplete to be a must watch.

Saru Lock: fanservice + laughs. What more can one ask for?


MUST WATCH JDORAMAS OF 2K9

5) Jyouou Virgin. Obviously this recommendation has nothing to do with storyline or acting. As a midnight dorama, it is the best at what it is suppose to be, next to Tadano Hitoshi.

4) Fumo Chitai. The 1st part of the series was truly an awesome story arc.

3) Shiroi Haru. Actually, I consider Shiroi Haru the best acted show although Jin won 3 of the acting awards. That's probably because all the other actors in Jin really saved the show IMO whereas the supporting actors in Shiroi Haru complimented Abe's acting. I guess I'm penalising the supporting actors in Shiroi Haru for not overstepping their boundaries. Abe is so good in this that this is the one show from last year worth rewatching.

2) Jin. Great concept, a bit contrived at times but great performance from the supporting players.

1) Love Shuffle

Best show of 2K9. Because it more an ensemble show and a dramedy, the chemistry between the actors stood out more than the acting. Awesome script from one of the best jdorama writers ever.