It's taken me forever, I've finally realized that I only like upbeat doramas. This year has been decidedly lacking in that. I've watched fewer doramas this year than any in past 10.

Is Japan undergoing a case of clinical depression? What happened to the upbeat minds that gave up 101 Propose, Under the One Roof, My Boss My Hero, Nobuta no Produce?

Even watching Hero, something felt off. It's certainly a comedy, but the optimism that subtly pervades the original seems gone.

Any recommendations for the past year?

I rather liked Starman. It's a bit (read very) silly, but it is upbeat and has Hirosue Ryoko

"Zoku. Saigo Kara, , ,": http://www.jdorama.com/drama.1949.htm

But that's a sequel. You need to watch the first "Saigo Kara, , ,:http://www.jdorama.com/drama.1716.htm

in order to know the characters.

Amachan. It's hard to find a more happy, upbeat drama than this.

Tonbi was very optimistic, despite quite a few sad events. It was all about good people coming together, growing together, and overcoming challenges together. Good mix of comedy and drama.

gaijinmark wrote:

"Zoku. Saigo Kara, , ,": http://www.jdorama.com/drama.1949.htm But that's a sequel. You need to watch the first "Saigo Kara, , ,:http://www.jdorama.com/drama.1716.htm in order to know the characters.

I definitely second that recommendation. The Saigo Kara Nibamne no Koi series is one of my favorites now.

Working backwards chronologically (in other words, I scanned down my own drama list)...

Itsuka Hi no ataru Basho de http://jdorama.com/drama.1808.htm
Very uplifting despite it's subject matter.

BOSS (1 & 2) http://jdorama.com/drama.1398.htm
A comedy not always trying to look like a comedy.

Meitantei no Okite http://jdorama.com/drama.1403.htm
This one is a straight up parody of the entire detective genre. Very silly.

Change http://jdorama.com/drama.1263.htm
Because no drama list of any kind is complete without a Kimutaku drama.

Taiho Shichauzo http://jdorama.com/drama.740.htm
I hope you're not lactose intolerant, because this one is very cheesy.

Hope that helps!
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Ah! And since you mentioned My Boss, My Hero, you might also like Nakuna, Hara-chan.

I think I did not do a good job explaining what I mean by optimistic and uplifting. I think that it's important that the main character is relatable and / or charismatic yet believes in achieving something normally considered impossible. Then it's up to the writer to frame events and actions so that once you accept the initial setup, you can believe that it is possible and root for them

101 Propose - ugly salaryman get an beautiful, stylish, smart woman
Under the One Roof - Ordinary guy be able to stitch back an estranged family
My Boss My Hero - 27 yr old gangster pose as a high school student
Nobuta no Produce - Makeover brings out inner beauty
Kamisama Mou Sukoshi Dake - terminally ill patient has chance to experience first love

Danda Rin was very much in that vein. But did it really have to be about tax collectors? Ultimately, she changed her office, but her goal was the system, seemed a bit unsatisfying ... given the ratings, a sequel is basically impossible
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Amachan! Yes, that totally felt like a throwback to the old days. Loved it

Starman was predictable but funny.

Zoku, Saigo Kara 2 - I felt the first one was pretty messed up, didn't even bother with the second one. I think I totally missed the chemistry between the cast.

tonbi - I definitely saw the father son bonding idea. But it was very hard to get attached to the main character, so it was hard for me to care

Meitantei no Okite - I don't remember it well at all... I know I watched it, remember the setup, but the case details, character appeals, didn't stick at all... Maybe worth another look

Change - Kimutaku is definitely a list staple, but I felt he sleptwalked through this one.

Itsuka Hi no ataru Basho de - I don't know, the uplift was so late in the drama. I was overwhelmed with the overall hopeless tone...

Boss 1 was good, Boss 2 was frantic.

Taiho Shichauzo felt miscast - I skipped thru the rest after watching ep 1

Never saw Nakuna, Hara-chan, will look for it

auroragb wrote:

Zoku, Saigo Kara 2 - I felt the first one was pretty messed up, didn't even bother with the second one. I think I totally missed the chemistry between the cast.

The chemistry is really there in Zoku.

Quote:

Change - Kimutaku is definitely a list staple, but I felt he sleptwalked through this one.

I think he sleepwalks through all of his roles.

Quote:

Taiho Shichauzo felt miscast - I skipped thru the rest after watching ep 1

Yeah, I thought it was miscast too. For me, Itoh Misaki just didn't fit the role at all. Probably cast for name recognition/tarento only.

Sorry I wasn't more help.
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Funny how you've seen almost all of the suggestions
Nakuna, Hara-chan is Tomoya Nagase trying to become 3d to be with his lover. Pretty nice, but suffers from the cliched romance like Starman. Asou Kumiko is great in it though. Nagase is Nagase
You've probably seen it already, but Kimutaku's Priceless is very much the thing you described!

Definitely don't watch Hanzawa Naoki. I started and couldn't stop and hated it the whole time. The way they get viewers to tune back in is to leave them irritated and angry and hoping for payback next week. And then they ended on a cliffhanger to keep you irritated until season two.

Both seasons of Doctor X are very cheery!
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Eve wrote:

Both seasons of Doctor X are very cheery!

Hehe.

bmwracer wrote:

Hehe.

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One Pound Gospel is upbeat and funny.