Hello, everyone. It's been a hot minute. Thank you for clicking this page♡ today I want to share a review of a Japanese drama, Animals. I actually watched this last year, and I rewatched it a few days ago and realized this drama is too good I have to write the review.
(Official Poster)
Title: Animals
Native Title: アニマルズ
Director: Keinosuke Hara
Screenwriter: Sawako Kawamitsu
Genre(s): Business, Romance, Drama
Episode(s): 8 + 2 special episodes
Aired: Jun 23, 2023 - Aug 11, 2023
Original Network: AbemaTV
Casts: Airi Suzuki, Kyoya Honda, Jin Shirasu, Erica Murakami, Yuna Hoshino, etc.
Umi Shikamori (Airi Suzuki) is an office worker. She always works hard everyday beyond her limit because her boss pushes her and Umi has the nature to help others around her. These make her cannot get enough sleep or time to take care of herself.
(Overworked Umi)
One day, Umi fell asleep during a live broadcast because she overworked herself. She and her boss go viral. Umi doesn't like herself while working with the company and later tries her luck in a makeup company called Animal Beauty. There, she meets photographer Kazao Nagamine (Kyoya Honda) and Keisuke Sakaki (Jin Shirasu) who is the CEO of the company.
(Airi Suzuki as Umi Shikamori)
(Kyoya Honda as Kazao Nagamine)
(Jin Shirasu as Keisuke Sakaki. Sorry, I couldn't find his character poster so I post this one)
(Erica Murakami as Hina Kazami)
***
First of all, I want to talk about the poster of this drama. I don't hate it (I think it's kinda cool), but it doesn't fully show what this drama is about. It only shows that this drama is a romance. Well, it is a romance drama, but the story has so much more than that.
This drama has so many elements that happen in our daily life: being an office worker, the reality of being an adult with a job that actually is not the one we wanted, torn between chasing your dreams or staying in your comfort zones, insecurities and others. The problems shown are very relatable, and they are conveyed in a very enjoyable way through this drama.
At first, Umi doesn't like herself. After meeting Kazao, she wants to be a better version of herself. With the help and support from people around her, especially Kazao, Umi is able to change. She gets a new job, takes care of her appearance, helps her friends. Sometimes, things that we can do to take care of ourselves are mostly simple, such as by putting on some makeup, dressing up, being healthy, doing anything that makes us feel good about ourselves and by doing those can boost our confidence. Also, those are acts of loving yourself. I also need to mention that this drama doesn't only contain serious topics but also there are funny and heartwarming moments.
(Kazao and Umi teased each other ˃̵ᴗ˂̵)
(Umi and her friend/coworker, Yuka Taniguchi. And also a glimpse of Umi's interaction with Keisuke and Kazao)
Another thing I love about this drama is the interaction between the characters, as well as the character development. As I mentioned, this is a romantic drama. But Animals also has the friendship aspect, the familial aspect, the brotherhood aspect. I love the environment of the Animal Beauty company. Keisuke Sakaki is an amazing CEO by creating such a lovely and cozy atmosphere in his company. It says a lot about his character. Keisuke is a very kind man and I love the brotherhood between him and Satoru Daigo (Kenta Izuka). Umi's friendship with the colleagues is also precious. She is close with many people like Animal Beauty brand ambassador, Hina Kazami (Erica Murakami) and her coworker Yuka Taniguchi (Sakurako Konishi). Umi's interaction with her sister, Nagi (Yuna Hoshino), is also so cute. Each character develops and it feels so good seeing they grow throughout the story.
(Umi and her sister, Nagi)
(Hina, Keisuke, and Satoru Daigo)
Luckily, the romance is not an annoying love triangle (because if you've been here for a while, you will know that I dislike love triangle). The romance is sweet but not too much. There are times that Umi and Kazao are serious, and on the other times, they are so adorable and playful. I love the banter between these two.
I think Airi Suzuki and Kyoya Honda are the perfect casts for Umi and Kazao; they embody the characters well. Airi did a great job at portraying cheerful but also thoughtful Umi. Kyoya is charming and expressed Kazao's emotions well. Jin Shirasu and Erica Murakami also did well in this drama. I also love Umi and Kazao's chemistry on and off camera and it seems they have so much fun being with each other. Actually, all the casts seem close and enjoy their time while filming together.
(Behind the scene photos)
(Erica, Kyoya, Airi, and Jin)
This is my first drama I watched from the casts, but I will surely keep my eyes on them and watch their other dramas in the future.
(Erica Murakami as Hina Kazami)
If you're looking for a short drama but packed with sweet romance, great chemistry between the characters and has great lessons about life, especially about work, this one might be for you. I, myself, highly recommend this drama even though you aren't looking for a specific drama tropes because this drama is that enjoyable. I give it 5/5⭐️ let me know your opinion on this drama if you have watched it. See you next time!💗
(Photos are from various sources)
(Bonus, because they're so cute ♡⸜(˶ᵔ ᵕ ᵔ˶ )⸝)
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