At the risk of being turned into stale sashimi, I am putting my head out there and say that with The Journalist, the Japanese drama industry has finally woken up to the challenge from their Korean neighbors.
Gone are the horrible fake lighting caught in the 80s time-warp.
In comes the naturalistic treatment often seen in high budget movies, and increasingly a defacto in K dramas.
The cinematography too, hmm, I like it.
We all know Ryoko Yonekura as the rogue doctor in Doctor X, or that dirty lawyer in another series. Both did her disservice with substandard scripts and a need to be comical to appeal to the lowest denominator.
In The Journalist, she is moody, tough, stubborn and unglamorous because her look should be the last thing to be considered.
The series addresses several very embarrassing issues in today’s Japanese society – apathy and corruption.
Are they real? Well, can there be wave without wind?
This series really reminds us that Yonekura is a first class actress who is totally possessed by her character. Not very likable for sure but do I admire her guts?
Oh hell yes.
Does she look like a real journalist? Better than most real journalists.
Not that they are less credible but the rest of the crew can walk into any serious production.
The question is will the trend continues? Can we hold them to this new standard? Is the story air tight? Of course not, but it is compelling. It made me upset about Big Government.
Let’s see what it will do to you.
I want my future J dramas to be as good as this.
Now is that too much to ask?