Monday 26 March 2012

Just finished: Saigo kara Nibanme no Koi

Because I started watching this series so late, I sped through all the episodes in the space of two weeks, and a lot of fun it was too. The initial rush of excitement at meeting new people in new places and watching events unfold was slightly lessened by the end of the series. More and more, the story needed coincidences to keep things moving which was a shame.


But all the same, I really enjoyed the banter and comedy. And the final message that explains the title of the show is pretty uplifting. At least it is for someone old like me. You should approach your next love as if it's your second to last, then you can relax and enjoy it more instead of thinking "this is it! This is the last one!" and getting all uptight about it.


So, this was certainly worth watching, especially for the performance of Kiozumi Kyoko and Nakai Kiichin the lead roles, Uchida Yuki as the skittish sister who's always dressed as if it's deepest winter, and also Jun Miho as the potential marriage partner who finds herself competing against her daughter for a man's attention.


Plus, I should mention that song (not the main theme, but the one that keeps appearing throughout the show with the refrain "Go go go go go to the river") is by Yael Naim and you can see the video for it here. It took me ages to find that, since every search for "Saigo kara Nibanme no Koi song" came up with the theme song by Hamasaki Ayumi. But worth the effort, I feel.

6 comments:

  1. It took me quite a few episodes to recognize the "skittish sister" as the same actress who played the sophisticated ex-yakuza lawyer in Gyne; she has a real flair for comedy. And even though the ending was not quite what I had expected, this is one of the few recent dramas I can imaging watching again, maybe more than once -- so many funny, funny scenes. Thanks for the song links, really loved them too.

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  2. I didn't even recognise her on the publicity photos for this show! I've not seen any of her other work, so I'll keep an eye out for more.

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  3. Happened to find your blog over at d-addicts. "Saigo" was one of the best JDrama romantic comedies I've watched, and the best "mature" JDrama comedy since Kekkon Dekinai Otoko. There haven't been too many good JDrama romantic comedies lately, but hopefully they can continue making these quality dramas. Also read that one of your favorite actors is Sakai Masaaki. Don't know if you've watched "Muri na Renai" but if you haven't give it a watch. Sakai-san was great in that along with Natsukawa Yui.

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  4. I keep hearing good things about Kekkon Dekinai Otoko, but never got round to watching it. Of course, now it's harder to find anything old but thanks for the tips. I'll try and bear them in mind.

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  5. D-addicts should have a link for the torrents, but getting it seeded might be a problem since it is an older drama. If you need a seed request someone will usually do it.

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  6. I've been searching for that song too-thanks for the info!

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