ひとりの夜もそばにいようぜ　君と僕の歌を歌う

Yukan Club (Leisure Club)! 有閑倶楽部! Despite BADDDDDDDDDDDDDDDD reviews from certain trusted Jdrama blog sites, I TOTALLYYYYY enjoyed this film!!!!

Hahahahaha...

First, I think viewers who would not like this film are those that take the series too seriously or those who are looking who look for deeper things in films.

C'mon!!!!!! Watch it for the laughs!! Like you would an anime!! Forget the realism! Forget the plotline even!! I really really really loved this series because it was utterly HILARIOUS!

I totally enjoyed this series! Not only did each episode really made me laugh, I didn't think the storyline or the plot was bad at all even... Actually, it's really like reading a live-action manga. There wasn't much of a plot to follow because the plots are pretty much episodic but it's just hillarious how the gang go around trying to discover and solve each episode's mystery/situation! The characters are utterly hillarious and to me, that's what makes this series really fun to watch.

I would totally recommend it to people who like..... COMEDY. It's not slapstick... it's just.... very..... JAPANESE! hahaha...

AND If you're wondering... NO. I AM NOT A KAT-TUN FAN (I'm a LUNKHEAD FAN YO). BUT YES! I totally love this series!

NOW to the story itself!!!


STORYLINE/CHARACTERS:

Yukan Club series is adapted from the manga of the same name. This series is about 6 rich kids who together formed the Yukan Club to solve mysteries in each episode. The group consists of three guys and three girls. It seems that the characters are quite different from the manga. Also, actually, part of the premise sounds like Ouran Host Club... But I think the adaptation is the other way round... That is, Ouran was adapted from this series.. since Yukan club is actually a series from the 1990s.


The lead character of this series is Miroku (played by Akanishi Jin of the JE group Kat-Tun) who is the son of the police commisioner (a character that appears in every episode too). And well, yeah, he's from Kat-Tun so his character is the typical bad-boy street-smart cool but good-hearted and funny and sensitive type of character (i bet you there is a name for it).



Then there is Seishiro (played by Yokoyuma Yu from the JE group Janjani8) who is the heir to a hospital empire and trained in martial arts. His character is also the typical calculative cunning genius who comes up with solutions for the group in most episodes.



The other male character is Bidou (played by Taguchi Junnosuke of Kat-Tun also) who is half japanese, son of the sweedish ambassador. He is the playboy and femine-male character of the group, but next to Yuri, he's utterly hillarious!!! I like this character and I thought Taguchi-san really played this role very well!!! He is also the TOTAL playboy character in this series.



As for the girls, first, there is Yuri ... I'm not sure if she's the lead female (she's suppose to be the lead character in the manga version).. but anyway, she's the daughter of a world-renowned but down-to-earth president of the Kenbishi Business. She LOVES to eat, can kick ass and hands down is the most hillarious and enthusiastic and crazy character in this whole series!!!!



Then there is Noriko who is the traditional-japanese character of this series. Her father is a famous japanese painter and her mother is from a tradition tea ceremony family. She often spots a kimono!!! And she utterly HATES MEN!!!! (except in episode 6 where she encounters a really really sweet romance with a ruffian boy!! sooo cute~~~!)



Last but not least, there is the stunning beauty of the group, Karen, who is the daugther of a rich jewel dealer. Her aim is to marry into richness!! hahaha..


MY NIJU YEN:

I really really like Yuri!! She's just damn hillarious!!!! I think if the show was just Miroku, Seishiro, Noriko and Karen alone, it would not be a comedy at all... But Yuri and also Bidou REALLY REALLY spice things up and make it damnnnn damnnn funny!!!
I guess I like Yuri the most because she's the least "female". She loveeess to eat, she is CRAZY, she can kick ass and her reactions are just damn funny!!!!!!!!!
She's played by Minami who is half french... and I thought Minami-san did a GREAT job with this character!!!



Episode 4!!!
This episode is about an 80-year-old miser Kino who falls in love with Bidou. She dies and comes to haunt Bidou to bring him to the after life with her.
I love this episode because it's UTTERLY damn hillarious!!!! Especially the first half where Bidou totally laments his situation while the whole group takes the opportunity to laugh at his misery!! hahahaha


Episode 8!!!
This episode is about Miroku's parents. His father has to deal with an exploding flower bomb in his hand sent to him by an angered okama while trying to make it to an appointment with his wife or else his wife will divorce him!! And to top it up he has to deal with a SEVERE CASE of diarrhea!!
I love this episode because the part where the three boys cross dressed as girls is ABSOLUTELY hillarious!!! hahahahaha... Especially Miroku when he sucks it up and grudgingly plays along clinging to his father and calling him "ojichama" then he almost pukes saying it hahahahaha.... Priceless!!!!
(I bet there were like thousands of Kat-Tun fangirls passing out from watching this scene!! hahahaah... Dude, I'd die if I ever see Yoshitaro in such scene... I'll NOT die from thrill but die from UTTER SHOCK!!! Please.... DON'T LET THIS EVER HAPPEN.)


Episode 9:
Yuri episode!!!!! Minami did a great job in this episode!!!
Yuri gets possessed by a ghost that wants revenge against a teacher at the school!
And I LOVEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE the part where a possessed Yuri tries to kill the teacher with a vase and Miroku grabs her and Bidou takes the vase away from her... Then the teacher questions them and Bidou starts an exercise routine dance with the vase!! DAMN FUNNY YO!!!!


But most of all... I really like this episode coz it had alot of Miroku and Yuri scenes!! ^___^ which leads me to the next category...



I think they're really cute together... They are childhood friends (assuming this because their fathers are very close childhood friends), and they hang out with each other outside of the club (this isn't shown but implied). Also in the manga, it seems that they belong to a Rock club together too.

Also, I think like in a majority of the episodes they're usually shown together... They have alot of childish arguments and playful fights with each other (more than with the other characters...), she'd be the one disturbing him the most, they always sit next to each other in classes (all three class scenes), he also usually disturbs her too. Also, sometimes when the scene is focusing on something or someone else, the both of them might be talking with each other or fighting with each other in the background. So, usually little things like that kinda show that they might be closer to each other than they are to the others (of opposite sex) in the club.
Also, besides their fathers being childhood buddies, when Miroku's mom came to visit, she specially bought an eiffel tower cookie/bread gift for her (after that you can see Miroku distrubing Yuri over the bread in the background).

I think they're really cute together!!


This scene from Episode 9 is really cute!!!!! They go "SOU KAAAAA??!!" together... Soooo cute~~~!! of course Miroku was totally insulting her there for her shallowness hahahaha!! so cute~!! hahaha


This scene was from episode 7... It was quite cute because Miroku suddenly realized that Yuri ate his cake and he questions her and she denies it then they start fighting over cake hahaha... so cute...

The starting of Episode two was really cute too... Miroku was playing with a toy helicopter and was ready to shoot a can when Yuri kicked the can away and he screamed "YURI!!! BAKA!!!!" hahahaha damn cute~



This is from episode 7 and it was really cute too!! After Karen leaves to go on her date with the prince, they wave her goodbye and then they start slapping each other's hands!! So cute!! haha


WOO!! YEAH!! Hold her more!! hehehehehe
Ok... this scene is not as cute as the look of the scene hahaha but I love it because he was holding her!!! ^___^;;... Actually she was possesed by a ghost and fighting to get free but he was holding her back... Then his father came along and asked them what they were doing..... then his father laughed and thought they were both dating... hahahaha... so cute~~~!! I WISH THEY WERE!!!


But anyway.... There were no romance really developed in the series (nor in the manga, it seems...) Although, definitely there was some "attraction" thing suggested between Seishiro and Noriko who are also childhood friends. I think the manga also has abit on Miroku and Yuri but barely.


ANYWAY! It was a great series and I really enjoyed every episode!! And it's a good series to rewatch again and again!!! Because it's all just for laughs!!!


CURRENTLY, now, I am watching Tantei Gakuen Q! It's farrrrrrrrrrr from the comedic Yukan Club but it's a good mystery detective series!!

I just realized it but I've actually seen the lead actor for this series, Kamiki Ryunosuke, on some TV variety program when I was in Japan back in December... NO WONDER HE LOOKED SO FAMILIAR!!!!