Cyndi P

Overall, this was interesting to watch and had a pretty good cast. It was a different take on a cooking series and kept me wanting to watch. The only real "issues" with the show is that it has its cheesey moments (very anime-style but it is based on a manga), the ending was a little melodramatic, and it is hard to follow the math concepts Gaku relates to cooking when he starts having his epiphany moments because then the dramatic mood gets lost with all the dialogue. Some other elements like timing and food temperature got me thinking more about the chemistry of cooking so it is a show I could find myself watching again and enjoying. Bonus, Toru Nakamura still maintains his hotness in this series versus being silly in his other recent dramas and despite his age.

I have watched a lot of Jdramas growing up Japanese and the main reason I stuck to watching this one was because of Hayato Ichihara 😍 Other than his amazing presence, this drama was fine but not one of the best I've seen. It got overly complex with the relationship analysis and fails to have some of the characters see past the "systems" and just decide what they wanted in life with confidence. It's a good reflection on modern relationships but sends confusing messages that paints marriage in an almost negative tone. Mukai and Sakaido are realistic types of people but at the same time, for a Jdrama they lack some interest. This show is more of a casual watch but not something I'd repeat again.

I give this a 6/10. Though the costumes are pretty huge and intricate, it has too much talking and less performance. I've watched the Korean (origin of the concept) version and love that they do a full song and vastly change the style of the song they perform. I still will watch to the end but I'm bored during all the talking...