like crack I

One of the Japanese dramas that never fail to amuse me is Hanazakiri no Kimitachi e. A 12-episode series shown in the summer of 2007 which was originally based on a manga with the same title. A Special was shown in Fall 2008, with the actors reprising their roles, and some new characters were also introduced.

Now, I don't tell stories. What you can only get from me is the main plot of the story, which I'll talk about later on. Before I saw the series, I read the manga first, which was a good thing, in my opinion, and I think it was during that time that the Taiwanese version came out, which I never saw (and probably never will). I have nothing against Taiwanese dramas, I have seen some before, but its just really not my thing. They don't have that same impact that I get from Japanese and Korean dramas, and I guess for me there's just something missing with their shows which I could probably never comprehend.

So basically the popular shoujo manga is entitled Hanazakiri no Kimitachi e (For you in Full Bloom) by Nakajo Hisaya. It's about a girl named Ashiya Mizuki who pretended to be a boy in an all-boys school to meet Sano Izumi and all her crazy classmates. I know. You're probably swearing out loud too. But mind you, this is a shoujo manga, and anything is possible in this world. But nothing to worry, everyone finds out she's a girl in the end, and you still get a happy ending.


It depends on you of course, if you want to read it or not. The Taiwanese version was based directly off the manga, as what I've heard from some fans, while the Japanese version deviated a bit. I mean, you still get the essence of the manga and the characters, but with a twist. Which makes it even better than crack. All the side characters are unforgettable, and everyone played their part faithfully, and you can sense the camaraderie and chemistry that they have.

If you're in the mood to fangirl and the type to watch a show for strictly eyecandy, this show is also called 'Ikemen Paradise' (or Hottie Paradise). You can choose from anyone in this show that you can salivate on. For a fanboy though, you've only got a limited number to drool on, but Horikita Maki won't fail you with her cuteness on this show. And it wouldn't hurt to have a fanboy crush on your fellow ikemen boys same with the fangirls.

More pic spams on the next post(and more spoilers), because right now this blog is failing me. For starters, this is what I could provide:

my trio OTP: Ikuta Toma (Nakatsu Shuichi), Horikita Maki (Ashiya Mizuki), Oguri Shun (Sano Izumi)

ah, my two lovely ikemens, Ikuta Toma (Nakatsu Shuichi) and Mizushima Hiro (Nanba Minami)

pardon the biasedness, but I'm a Toma fangirl. Toma with Horikita Maki (Ashiya Mizuki)

This show never fails to amuse me. Everytime I watch a certain episode, or stumble upon a certain snippet from an episode in youtube, it just never fails to make me laugh so hard, even though I've seen it a million times. Downloading is not a problem either, because the subbing team did an awesome job with this series, so you could say that this is worth the space in your hard drive. And also, when you do watch it, you can't just pay attention to the main leads, you have to look at everyone, look at what they're doing all throughout the scene.

Like I said, this adaptation doesn't follow the manga per page. Can you just imagine a series to stay true to a 23-volume manga (with 147 chapters and which has about 22 pages each)? Just how many episodes would that be? Good thing, that the Japanese version digressed and made their own version, which has won has some hearts of the manga followers (that includes me) and gained new fans.

This drama has it all. The craziness. The hilarity. The eyecandy ikemens. The chemistry between each and everyone, not just my OTP. Which reminds me, never, ever take this show seriously if you ever do decide to watch it. It reeks of foolishness, the kind that would make you laughing out loud even in the wee hours of the morning. And this is the reason why I adore Japanese dramas.

You might wonder when am I going to watch the Taiwanese version to compare the two. This I say to you: Never. Like I said above, I will never watch the other version, it maybe because I'm biased, or I'm really not just into Twdramas. I have, however, seen the last episode, and by the first 15 minutes, I knew I didn't like it. It's a personal preference. It's just like how my sister hates mint chocolate chip ice cream and me hating cinnamon. You don't need a reason to know why, and I don't need a reason to explain it. I just don't. And its also your choice if you want to watch this or not. But seriously though, life will never be the same once you've seen Hana Kimi.