There are various shows on TV and in Japan there is what they call J-drama. These J-drama would have their famous stars or upcoming pop idols portraying the characters from the popular anime and manga. The topics are not limited to almost real life situations. There are some fantasty-filled manga and anime that have been turned into some live action series. One of them is Sailor Moon. You might wonder how it is possible but it has been done! Think of all the otaku who enjoy cosplay a lot. It would seem as though their fantasies have become real through such shows.
There are really interesting J-drama series which are based on manga. Some of them would be “Kimi wa Petto,” “Hana Yori Dango” and “Gokusen.” “Kimi wa Petto” is about a career woman taking care of a young man as she would take care of a pet dog. There are interesting twists in that series but it is also a good study of the human condition: of wanting to love and be loved. “Hana Yori Dango” has been popular as both anime and manga. It is the story of young people. A young woman named Tsukushi comes across a group of young men known on campus as F4. She develops a relationship with the leader of the group, Domyouji. “Gokusen” is about a high school teacher who happens to hail from a Yakuza clan. She dreams of having all of her students graduate. These three examples of anime have a hi-jinx factor as some people say and the situations are quite comical. Not quite in the sitcom kind of way though. These three J-drama actually have Matsumoto Jun in common. He’s a popular member of the Johnny’s group “Arashi.”
There are also Chinese shows that have adapted some manga and anime. Some of them would be the high school basketball series “MVP Valentine” which is based on “Slam Dunk” and it starred the group 5566. Taiwanese group F4 and Barbie Hsu starred in the series “Meteor Garden” which is based on “Hana Yori Dango.” Another manga turned into a Taiwanese TV series is “Yamada Taro Monogatari.” The Taiwanese actor Vic Zhou played the lead role. His fellow F4 member Ken Chu was also in the series, acting as the father to Vic’s character. As you can see, this trend is not only in Japan!
The difference between the TV series and J-drama adaptations and the anime and manga would be that sometimes the element of the fantastic and whatever other effects which are typical of the shoujo and shounen manga look weird. Computer generated graphics don’t always make such great effects. Either way, these shows are very enjoyable and entertaining. Plus you get to see your favorite actors too!
[tags]japan,taiwan,j-drama,anime,manga[/tags]