Sunday Drama: Minami Kun No Koibito

Normally when I review drama's I’m all like this is my favourite drama ever, I love it – so I thought I would be good to review a drama I can totally slag off.

 

The fact that I actually watched all 11 episodes of this drama is a testament to my determination and tenacity… or maybe just a sign that I have way too much time on my hands.  It was really, really horrible.

 

 

Minami Kun no Koibito (Minami’s Girlfriend would be an approximate English translation) is the story of the love between two high school students – Minami (Ninomiya Kazunari) and Chiyomi (Fukada Kyoko).  

 

After eating at Chinese restaurant that has opened mysteriously overnight (why the hell do people ever go to mysteriously appearing Chinese places?  It never ends well), Chiyomi gets a fortune cookie that says if she sticks with Minami he will do great things but, if she ever leaves him, terrible things will happen.  Pretty detailed for a fortune cookie – I guess you can say a lot more on one of those little slips of paper if you write in Kanji.

 

So, on the way home, they have a fight and Chiyomi suddenly – OMG ZOINKS!!!! gets shrunk to 16 cm high!

 

 

As you’d expect, this leads to many wacky adventures:  Minami trying to hide his 16 cm girlfriend from his family and friends, almost being exposed, family and friends getting the wrong idea and thinking he’s up to really shady stuff and so on.

 

Luckily, before she got shrunk, Chiyomi’s hobby was doing novelty oversized calligraphy (there is probably a name for this) because that is a really handy skill to have when you are shrunk to a teeny-tiny size.  She can write notes in her own hand-writing and do other things that are only possible if you are really good at writing with a brush as big as you are.  It’s almost like she knew one day she would be shrunk.

 

The story line is pretty much what you’d expect but there is a really creepy side plot.  Chiyomi, pre-shrinkage, was being raised by her grandfather because her parents are dead.  So this dude, who is supposed to be her cousin or some relation, keeps popping into the grandfather’s sushi shop (he’s also a teacher at Minami’s school) and dealing out the life advice.

 

The dude is still getting over his unrequited love for Chiyomi’s mother – who, of course, looked exactly like her.    At least getting shrunk to miniature size gets her away from the creepy uncle/cousin who obviously has inappropriate feelings for her.   This whole side story goes nowhere but definitely has “inappropriate” stamped all over it.

 

The best thing about this drama is Fukada Kyoko – I have a big girl crush on her at the moment – and even she is kind of annoying in it.   Also, the special effects are really well done.   Apart from that, everything about it sucks.   The ending is especially annoying and you are left thinking “Huh?  That’s it?  I just watched 11 episodes of this .. and that’s how it ends?”

 

I give this drama one star – and that’s only because of the bits where Minami get's caught buying doll clothes  and everyone thinks he is gay and/or crazy.