True, I guess even if you watch it a lot over here it still has the novelty aspect, whereas you can't escape it. Not all Japanese TV is crap though, I have been watching Liar Game and Proposal Daisakusen, and really enjoying them, the former because it is very clever, and the latter because... well... Nagasawa Masami in a school uniform... whats not to like?
I just sat through the 100 minute special and boy was it bloody awful.... Being a fan of the original manga and the anime, I know the story plot inside out, I know the characters and I know the time frames. Story plot is close, not perfect, but reasonable. The acting is standard Japanese over the top acting so all the characters look stupid and the characters, WTF? Did Rumiko Takahashi just count all the money she was getting when they made this? Goudi is an idiot in the manga and he is a simpering idiot here, Akemi is quite a deep character in the manga but her she is a simpering idiot, Mrs Ichinose again is a short fat women not a short old women but again she is played for laughs most of the time, Yotsuya nearly works, but he is a look more mysterious and younger in the manga. I feel sorry for Sakamoto, mainly as the phrase 'The something a person called Sakamoto would say' did grate... >_< But Master looked the part but went from serious person that gave out good advice every so often to a simpering idiot played by a comedian. Even Mr Otonashi looked wrong mainly as he doesnt look old enough to father a child who would have been in his late thirties by now, in the manga he is old with white hair and a moustace and beard... Is there some clause in Live Action series of manga that say 'You must screw it up'?
Well, having never seen the original, I didn't habe anything to compare it against. Never been a huge fan of Rumiko Takahashi.
