I don't know how those Japanese/Korean Doramas get so popular. They seem more popular than the western soap-opera equivalent. Am I wrong? Most of the time, the camera work is shoddy, the writing lame, and the acting sluggish.
If they suck, and maybe I just don't get them, why are they so popular?
>>1
I don't know. My experience of jdramas are limited to Densha Otoko + At Home dad. Both I liked because they were relevant to my interests while being funny. Soaps are sort of more long-winded than drama-series, no? I can't recall following any comedic drama series, at the moment. "Full House" was more of a sitcom, and I'm not sure what "House" (m.d.) and similar count as.
I'm thinking, the drama series I've heard of don't really seem as soapy as western soap-dramas. So comparing the two probably isn't correct, as they'd be classified as non-soapy dramas if they were western? I'm not sure! Please keep in mind that my experience with jdramas are rather limited, so I'm just guesstimating.
Anime and doramas are, in a way, very similar.
-A lot of doramas are also based or adapted from popular manga or books. Like in anime.
US sitcoms/soaps Aaron Spelling and Darren Star.
-Since it's adapted from a book or manga, most of them end after the main storyline has been resolved. Usually spanning 11 episodes/acts). Like in anime.
US sitcoms/soaps Days Of Our (9) Lives, whodunnit this week on CSI, or alienwhodunnit on X-files.
-Nearly all of them are shot on location, a lot of outdoor filming and the insides of actual houses guarantees dynamic visuals. Like in anime.
US sitcoms/soaps most of it is shot in a studio set. I watched Three's Company for years. Never once saw the outside of their apartment.
I think it's better to think of doramas as extended movies. The quality of the acting, writing and camera work may not be as polished as US ones, but I highly recommend some for the sheer broadness of the stories. Get something funny first 'cause they still can't get horror and crime genres to work. For me, at least.
I agree with the above poster on thinking of them as "extended movies." I have just recently begun watching them and the stories are somewhat short (only about 11 1 hour eps) and they actually complete something as opposed to soap operas which go on while just making up shit so the soap won't end.
I havn't seen any Korean dramas yet only J-Drama but out of the nes I've seen I've enjoyed 3/4 and the 1/4 I didn't enjoy that much was still OK. Maybe you are watching the wrong ones? I just go to the "recommended j-dramas" on this forum and/or d-addicts and download those.
one of the new ones coming out on july 3rd is a live-action version of Hana Kimi with Oguri Shun as Sano Izumi and Horikita Maki as Ashiya Mizuki this is definately going to be worth watching!!!
>I agree with the above poster on thinking of them as "extended movies."
I think Japanese drama are treated with more love & care on the part of producers. There seem to be more ドラマ(drama) titles out there in Japan and in the US, in terms of originality.
Soaps also seem to be automatically melodramatic, whereas (some) J-dramas have elements of comedy, action, etc.
(Soaps = All My Children, As the World Turns, etc right? I don't recall seeing much comedy from those episodes that I did see.) Plus shows like the Guiding Light have been on for decades, whereas J-drama are designed to be one-shot deals (and then sometimes get picked up for a second season.)
It all really depends on what you compare with. There's shit anime out there and there are also shit drama's.
Stuff that involves romance is pretty much long-winded.
But there are some great drama's out there and the majority of them are based on manga's/animes. Some pull it off better than others, but it really depends on the cast and the budget.
I'm the opposite of OP-san. I was a hardcore anime fan till I started watching drama. And now I can't really enjoy anime as much as I used to. I find it boring.
K-dramas are very long winded most of time, reminds me alot of some old mexican telenovelas i watched long time ago.
Commonly on K-dramas are someone will die, or main characters are blood related and fall in love to each other, troublesome parents, the antagonists are ruthless (extreme prejudices and conservative ideas), and very mellow dreamy + melodramatic which involves a lot of tear dropping screen. I guess this is why they are quite popular, especially in east asia region.
J-Dramas has a quite good originality however some of them are mostly based on popular novel, manga or anime (a setback perhaps?)
easiest example there is manga, anime and drama for 'Kindaichi', or 'Meitantei Conan', and many more. Some are well done, while some are horridly done.
However some i think are quite originals are Densha Otoko (of course), Kekkon Dekinai Otoko, Love Revolution, Yamato Nadeshiko (not the Shichi Henge :p they are completely different)or the good old Tokyo Love Story :).
Most of J-Dramas are about 10-20 as far as i know and they are not that long and pretty straight forward. And rarely put up with contiunity for 2Unless you looking at Taiga Drama which are sometimes up to about 40+ episodes.
Anime > Dorama
Hmm. No.
Anime < Dorama
Not that either.
Anime = Dorama?
HMMMM.
well i can't stand k-dramas so i can't say i've watched many. however i find the difference between J-dramas and western ones is that J-dramas were written with an ending in mind.
I like the Gokusen drama, haven't watched the anime yet though.
>>5
Wow, thanks for the tip! Oguri's my favourite actor, so I should and Horitaki did really good as Nobuta, so I'll have to check this one out. Is it based on the Taiwanese drama?
hm hm hmm
most Jactors are not schooled actors
most ppl who appear in dramas got the job coz
1.they r teen idols...music,centerfolds,just look good
2.they have the right connections.aka parents know ppl
so it is just as horrible as watching Glitter with Mariah Carey or that horrible movie corssroads with britney spears
or why not Blade the tv series...
its just famous ppl getting paid alot doing stupid things on tv
I started out watching anime. But I eventually got tired of it, because it seemed like I was just watching the same plots over and over. Now I watch dramas exclusively (well, except for a few shows I just can't give up, e.g. Nana).
I like Jdramas better than Kdramas because the pacing is better.
Kdramas take forever to get through the story.
But if you would like to see a Korean/Japanese collaboration, check out "Friends". It's only four episodes long, and it stars Fukada Kyoko (who is very cute albeit not the best actress) and the adorable Won Bin!!!
Off topic, but as for American television, I just can't commit to a show that drags on for years. I really pity all those people that got sucked into "Lost".