Review on Japanese Drama: Sapuri/Suppli (2006)

Title: Sapuri/Suppli

Type: Japanese Drama

Duration: 11 episodes

Theme Song: You by Kat-Tun

Cast:

Itoh Misaki as Fuji Minami

Kamenashi Kazuya as Ishida Yuya

Eita as Ogiwara Satoshi

Sato Koichi as Imaoka Kyotaro

Shida Mirai as Konno Natsuki

 Synopsis:

Fuji Minami (Itoh Misaki) is a 28-year old workaholic which eventually drives her boyfriend to break-up with her when she can't even find time to meet with him on the night he initially planned to propose to her.  She's one of the leading creators in the advertising agency she works at and she usually loses herself in her work that she can't find time to do anything else.

Ishida Yuya ( Kamenashi Kazuya) is a carefree 19-year old college dropout who never stays on any job for long because he can't seem to find what he likes to do the most.  He is still very much a child since he hasn't really practiced tact and propriety and finds these stuffs bothersome. But when he met Fuji, he decided to take work more seriously because he found it satisfying that people listened to his ideas when he presented them.  More and more, he finds himself working harder and wanting to improve himself so that he could be worthy of being with Fuji.

 However, Fuji was attracted to a more mature and has a very promising career, Ogiwara Satoshi (Eita).  Satoshi was initially attracted to a married woman and seems to have overlooked Fuji's feelings for him but later on realizes his mistake.

In the midst of all the love triangles that seem to expand as the story moves on, the story also showed how as little as 15seconds can alter your life through the advertisements we usually see every day.  It shows how these "creations" are made and how they struggle to go beyond themselves and the challenges they meet with each project.

Review:

I would have to say that the story was initially very promising with very attractive leads and interesting setup.  I just wished that there were more stories about the advertisement and the hardships and setbacks they meet.  I definitely liked the father-daughter story but I wish they showed more of how the father realized the bond between them and how he got used to her presence in his life.

I truly liked the refreshing way and very innocent approach Kazuya tackled his character and I felt his devotion to Fuji. Unfortunately, although I found Misaki very beautiful, I found her acting very wooden and stale, as if she was only going through the motions.  Her eyes weren't that expressive and I can't seem to sympathize with her character.  If she wasn't the lead here, I would say her acting was very forgettable.

I was kind of hoping they would show the challenges their relationship would face in their work setup or the advantages of having a May-December love affair in an environment that you need to be creative and always inspired. 

Kamenashi Kazuya and Shida Mirai kept me hooked with this drama until the end.  I somewhat enjoyed myself with this drama but I wouldn't say it's a must-see drama.

I give this show 6 out of 10 stars.