Saturday, June 16, 2007

Rondo (TBS 2006) with Yutaka Takenouchi and Choi Ji Woo





This 2006 11 episode Japanese Drama with Korean drama superstar actress Choi Ji Woo and famous Japanese actor/model Yutaka Takenouchi starred in :Rondo/ 輪舞曲/윤무곡 / Yunmugok caused a stir when it came out. One thing being Choi Ji Woo is a popular and beloved Kdrama actress from "Stairway to Heaven" and "Winter Sonota" are two famous dramas she played the lead actress.I cannot wait to watch it. I remember him from "Long Vacation" where I enjoyed Yamaguchi Tomoko (no longer acts) and Kimura Takuya of SMAP SMAP fame. The soundtrack was amazing and my roomie Kako chan told me about it.
In this drama, Kaneyama Takumi (Takenouchi) plays an undercover policeman in search of his father's killer! He was killed by someone in the underworld and he swore he would avenge his death. Now he foreswore his loved ones to find the true killer. Along the way, he meets Yuna and Yunee sisters from Korea in Japan in search of their father. Trying to eke a living managing a small restaurant, these two people slowly fall for each other. Will Takumi avenge his father's death and will Yuna find her father?
The first episode was a special two hours. There was alot of dramatic camera angles and black and white fade outs which got a bit to me. As the title implies "RONDO" has many meanings but the one I like that is used for this drama is "return". You learn watching this drama that their is a "return" theme throughout the drama. I personally like the two leads so that was enjoyable for me.
Plot wise, there was a ton of twists and turns. The English subtitles were atrocious. Luckily, I studied Japanese and understand some Korean so I was able to piece some conversations that were otherwise not translated or if they were it was done poorly. Choi Yuna (Choi Ji Woo) dies her best in the tragic rolls that has her crying alot. As Takumi, (Takenouchi) is the typical stoic and emotionless (tries to be) Japanese man. I enjoyed the Takumi's underworld "little bro" sidekick who is very loyal to him throughout the drama.
Overall, the drama to me rates a 7.5 out of a 10 scale.

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