a promising July

July is set to be the month filled with loads of good things. At least in my view I think it will cause two very awesome dramas are set to be aired from that very month until September. One, Hanazakari no Kimitachi e and two, Yamada Taro Monogatari. However, these two are NOT to be confused with the Taiwan-versions to which I have only watched Yamada and not HanaKimi. There's no doubt there's going to be a comparison once more between the two, like it was for HYD, but honestly, I don't really care. Some people will prefer the Taiwan ones and some will prefer to Japanese ones so let's leave it at that.

Not only is the storyline looking promising and fun-filled, but the cast is also very, very much, promising =D For HanaKimi, Nishikido-kun was rumored to be cast as the lead character, Sano Izumi but uh, from what I know...the character in the manga is tall, lean and good-looking. Except for the first quality, Nishikido-kun has the other two covered perfectly. Lol. But I knew it was just a rumor cause not only did Nishikido did not..ahem, fit the first quality needed (gomen ne Nishikido-kun!) but also because he and the his fellow nutty Kansai-jins are on 47 prefecture tour for Zukkoke which makes it highly unlikely for the guy to have free time to film any drama. And I wouldn't want him to overwork himself, cause really, with both K8 and NewS, the guy has been going back and forth more than anyone else.

Anyhow, the confirmed cast has finally been released..drum rolls please... starring Oguri Shun as Sano Izumi, Ikuta Toma as Nakatsu Shuichi and Horikita Maki as Ashiya Mizuki. Oguri and Ikuta! One word - WOW. I love both actors and the actress isn't too bad either. I think Oguri could pull of his role (look what he did for Hanazawa Rui), but it's too early to judge now ne? Meanwhile it would be great to see Ikuta playing a more meatier role instead of just momentary cameo. Though I was thinking it would be fun if Inoue Mao was casted as the female lead instead cause of her spunky personality. And it would definitely double the excitement if Inoue and Oguri were to team up together again as a romantic pair(since it didn't work out for HYD, hehe).

And for Yamada, it would be Ninomiya Kazunari as the popular and lovable but mistaken for a rich guy - Yamada Taro. And his best friend for the drama? None other than Sakurai Sho as Takuya Mimura =D Two out of five Arashi members in the same drama, casted side by side as lead roles. Okay so the main lead is Yamada but still, Takuya is featured quite prominently too. I think it's one of the very few occasions members from the same group actually have a chance to work together in such roles that have equal importance. For Tatta Hitotsu no Koi, although Kamenashi-kun and Tanaka-kun were in it together but it was obvious that Kamenashi-kun was the lead and Tanaka-kun was a supporting role. Oh but then there's Gokusen 2 as well, where both Kamenashi-kun and Akanishi-kun held equally important lead roles as Odagiri Ryu and Yabuki Hayato =D Ganbatte Ikkimashoi! would have been another drama which features two JE guys from the same group in equal roles too, though not much of a lead since the story's main characters & focus are actually on Suzuki Anne's role and her friends. But it was nice to see both Nishikido-kun and Uchi-kun together in the same drama =D Though for only 3 episodes.

I will definitely be looking forward to these two dramas, especially since they feature four of my favorite Japanese actors/guy. Oguri, Ikuta, Ninomiya and Sakurai =D