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GTO (1998) ended up winner, as was expected, nothing from translated ones came even close to it, sadly. 1. Thou Shalt Not Cheat (1998) [呆佬賀壽] (Finished 1/25) Tags: Drama The drama tells the story of Hong Kong in the 1930s. He Jinbao, a rich boy, was sarcastic and domineering but good at socializing. Unfortunately, he was harmed by a villain and became insane, turned into a fool, and lost control of the family business. Fortunately, he got help from his friends and his beloved. He used the principle that fools have good luck and often turned danger into safety. In the end, he even snatched the ancestral business back from the villain. Not translated. Overall Rating: 6/10 2. Tokugawa Yoshinobu (1998) [徳川慶喜] (Finished 1/49) Tags: Historical, Drama The 37th NHK Taiga Drama is Tokugawa Yoshinobu. The series focuses on the life of Tokugawa Yoshinobu, the 15th and final ruler of the Tokugawa period. Born the seventh son of Lord Nariaki of Mito, Yoshinobu is named shogun when he is just 29 years old. With wisdom and vision beyond his years, he tries to prolong the life of this 200-year-old dynasty which began with Ieyasu. However, he is unable to forestall the winds of revolution as clans in Choshu, Satsuma, and Tosa, with the help of the Imperial Court, clamor for change. Not translated. Overall Rating: 6/10 3. The King and the Queen (1998) [king and queen/왕과 비] (Finished 1/186) Tags: Historical This drama depicts the power struggle between various members of the royal family between the reigns of King Sejong and Yeonsangun, for the ultimate prize: the throne. Not translated. Overall Rating: 6/10 4. To the End of the World (1998) [Forever Yours/세상끝까지] (Finished 2/16) Tags: Romance, Drama, Melodrama Suh Hee is left by her mother at an orphanage as a small child. She grows up at the orphanage and becomes close to Sae Joon, the son of the orphanage's director. The Director objects to her son dating Suh Hee and kicks Suh Hee out of the orphanage shortly before she graduates from high school. Suh Hee must survive on her own in the outside world. Sae Joon continues to love Suh Hee despite his mother's objections. Feels like Cinderella with prolonged bullying phase. Korean way of narration to take everything to extremes and present multiple self-admiring stylish men every time is seriously irritating. Overall Rating: 5/10 5. Kamisama Mou Sukoshi Dake (1998) [神様、もう少しだけ] (Finished 12/12) Tags: Romance, Life, Drama High-school student, Kano Masaki, found herself falling into the practice of selling her body in order to earn money. When she heard that her favourite music composer, Ishikawa Keigo was holding a concert in town, she prostituted herself to earn enough money to attend. Ishikawa Keigo is a music composer who has suffered a tragic loss of his beloved in the past and was still living with the scars. After his concert, he saw Masaki chasing after his van, drenched in the rain. Unexpectedly moved, he took her back to his apartment where they spent the night. Things take a turn for the unknown when Masaki later discovers that she has contracted HIV and has to live with the consequences of what she has done, while Keigo is haunted by his experience of his former lover's tragic loss once again. Finished it only because it seems to have good reception even though I can't stand terminal illness conditions. And for the most part it was as I expected - lots of crying and some forced drama. To be honest, can't even call it decent as FL was rather irritating and even soundtrack was just an arrangement from another dorama. Overall Rating: 5/10 6. My Date With A Vampire (1998) [我和殭屍有個約會] (Finished 1/35) Tags: Historical, Fantasy, Supernatural Fong Kwok Wah is a Chinese guerrilla fighter from the time of the Second Sino-Japanese War. In 1938, he was fighting with Yamamoto Ichifu, a major of the Imperial Japanese Army, when they were interrupted by Cheung San, the progenitor of all vampires. The two men and a boy named Fuk Sang are bitten by Cheung San, and they become vampires. In present-day 1998, Fong lives in Hong Kong under a new name, Fong Tin Yau. His physical appearance has not changed since 60 years ago. He works as a policeman while Fuk Sang lives together with him and pretends to be his son, who currently attends primary school. Fong meets Ma Siu Ling, the heiress of a clan of ghostbusters who have dedicated themselves to ridding the world of evil supernatural beings. Fong gradually becomes embroiled in a love triangle with Ma and Wong Jan Jan, Ma's close friend and confidante. Not translated. Overall Rating: 6/10 7. With Love (1998) [ウィズ ラブ] (Finished 7/12) Tags: Music, Romance It all started when Takashi, a talented composer who could not write a love song ever since his girlfriend Rina left him suddenly, accidentally sent an incomplete piece of his latest work to Amane via email. Deeply touched by his music, Amane wrote back to him, without getting a reply. Amane continued writing to him, pouring out her thoughts. Only when she signed as "Teru Teru Bozu", did Takashi responded with a mail saying "WHO ARE YOU?", because what Rina left him as a farewell gift was a teru teru bozu! It's so artificial and pretentious and empty imitation of romance over emailing that it hurts me with every episode. Overall Rating: 5/10 8. Princess Pearl (1998) [Princess Returning Pearl/还珠格格] (Finished 2/24) Tags: Historical, Comedy, Romance Xiao Yan Zi met Xia Zi Wei, a poor girl who marched a long way to find her father, the Emperor, but nobody took her seriously. Xiao Yan Zi decided to sneak into the mountain where the Emperor hunts, but Zi Wei could not handle the tiring mountain climb, therefore asking Xiao Yan Zi to tell the Emperor her story. On her way, Xiao Yan Zi gets shot and cannot fully explain her story, making the Emperor mistake her for the Princess. Here starts a long and painful story of getting everyone to their proper roles, but many dangers lie near - the death sentence if anyone lies to the emperor and an evil Empress who is waiting to catch Xiao Yan Zi in the act. Added on top, Xiao Yan Zi's lack of proper manners and knowledge of books has driven her closer to jeopardy. Too many wuxia elements here to tolerate if for long. Overall Rating: 5/10 9. Birdcage Inn (1998) [파란 대문] (Finished 2/2) Tags: Drama Streetwise Jin Ah moves into a boarding house run by a small, close-knit family. But her unacceptable behaviour threatens to destroy them all. It's rather a movie about poverty and dreadful conditions where still simple happiness exists. Nothing more than nice. Overall Rating: 6/10 10. Kira Kira Hikaru (1998) [きらきらひかる] (Finished 1/10) Tags: Mystery, Medical The job of a medical jurisprudence involves a lot of complicated crimes such as murder and accidents. Hikaru is a graduate of a medical university, also focused her discipline on neurology. One night during a student reunion, a dead body was found in the kitchen. Hikaru, who is a little regretting that she choose her focus in neurology, was moved by another doctor's words, Dead bodies will not tell us what happened, that is why we have to piece together its last words. Freaking procedural, so just not for me. Overall Rating: 5/10 11. Tsumetai Tsuki (1998) [冷たい月] (Finished 2/10) Tags: Thriller, Mystery, Psychological, Romance Kiyoka Shiina has a successful life : surgeon, happily married and pregnant. Misaki Morishita has a happy life too : she works as an interpreter, married and pregnant. One night, Kohei, Kiyoka's husband, hurts a woman with his car and runs away. However, he doesn't know that Misaki saw what happened. Kiyoka notices that something is wrong in his husband's attitude. When she knows what happened, she decides to destroy his husband's car not to have any proof of the accident anymore. But Misaki goes to the polcie station to tell what she saw... And here begins Kiyoka's nightmare, who will make everything she can to take her revenge on the woman who destroyed her whole life. Topic is pretty heavy as protagonist maniac basically plans mass murders on an absolutely normal peaceful family. Not sure why would I watch it further as I'm not interested in maniac logic or execution or maniac actor's play. Overall Rating: 6/10 12. Secret of the Heart (1998) [天地豪情] (Finished 1/62) Tags: Thriller, Romance, Crime, Drama Winson Cheuk Sheung Man is a compulsive gambler who just returned to Hong Kong after a bout of bad luck and extreme debts in Toronto, Canada. He was reunited with his childhood friend and neighbor, Ching Ka Ming who is disgusted with his gambling habits and laziness. Not translated. Overall Rating: 6/10 13. Burning Flame (1998) [烈火雄心] (Finished 1/43) Tags: Action, Romance, Drama, Melodrama Lok Tin Yau has always dreamed of becoming a firefighter. Sum Pik Yiu and Tin Yau are good friends but Tin Yau later falls for Pik Yiu after he helps her. But she has to give her feelings up for him when his childhood friend comes to Hong Kong from Japan. Lok Hew Fung, Lok Tin Yau, and Ng Dai Heng are best friends who join and become firefighters. This drama is about the lives of firefighters and the situations that they deal with everyday Not translated. Overall Rating: 6/10 14. Jinbe (1998) [じんべえ] (Finished 1/11) Tags: Romance, Drama Miku has lived alone with her father, Jinbe, since her mother's death. On her 20th birthday, Jinbe tells her that he made a promise to her mother to raise Miku as his own daughter. In other words, he's not Miku's real father. Feeling as though she cannot live under the same roof with him anymore, Miku sets out on her own. Jinbe confides in a co-worker that lately, he's been seeing Miku less as his daughter, and more as a woman... Not translated. Overall Rating: 6/10 15. Healing Hands (1998) [妙手仁心] (Finished 1/32) Tags: Drama, Medical A medical drama series that focuses on the lives and loves of the doctors and nurses at Yan Oi Hospital in Hong Kong. Not translated. Overall Rating: 6/10 16. Hitsuyou no nai Hito (1998) [必要のない人] (Finished 1/12) Tags: Drama, Family A father is transferred from his work at a prestigious news paper and loses his social status. The family now has to deal with changes in their lives. Not translated. Overall Rating: 6/10 17. King Of The Wind (1998) [대왕의 길] (Finished 1/34) Tags: Historical, Drama The drama talks about the complicated relationship between King Young Jo, (21st king of the Joseon dynasty) to his son Sa Do. Deadly boring, even worse than Heiyan in Japan, only slightly better than wuxia. Overall Rating: 5/10 18. The Barefooted Youth (1998) [맨발의 청춘] (Finished 3/16) Tags: Romance, Drama Tales of the hardships and love. Feels like imitation of countless Hong Kong tycoon dramas. Pretty bad. Overall Rating: 5/10 19. A Sleeping Forest (1998) [眠れる森] (Finished 3/12) Tags: Thriller, Mystery, Drama Kimura Takuya plays Ito Naoki, a mysterious man that seems to have some special childhood connection with Oba Minako. But she lost her memory long ago and doesn't really remember anything about her childhood or him. Naoki knows almost everything about Minako and secretly invites her to the "Sleeping Forest". From there on their story begins, into a dark and romantic drama. I'm really bad with mysteries, especially murder and stalker ones like this. It definitely keeps lots of elements obscure, so there's at least some tension and suspense. Overall Rating: 6/10 20. White Nights 3.98 (1998) [백야 3.98] (Finished 1/20) Tags: Action, Drama In the civil war between North and South Korea, the tension within was high, especially when a mission was hooked with national secrets. A black box, hence, because the key to the struggle. Success, would never come so easily. However, amid the brutal fight for the key-the black box of a crashed battleplane, the male and female spy from the two different nations fell in love with each other. They helped each other secretly, in order to complete their corresponding mission, for the sake of loyalty - and love. However, a fatal plane crash of battleplane occured and finally they sacrifice their valuable love and lives for the peace of human world. Not translated. Overall Rating: 6/10 21. News no Onna (1998) [ニュースの女] (Finished 2/11) Tags: Life, Drama Honami plays a newscaster, a tough pro who is capable of stonily reporting even her own husband's death in an traffic accident on air. The plot revolves around Honami's relationship with her late husband's teenage son who she is forced to take in. The show stars popular Kyozo Nagatsuka as the boy's lawyer and her romantic interest. The series also includes a lot of behind-the-scenes newsroom action and depicts the rivalry between the show's director and producer, who are locked in a constant debate over whether new and variety are, or should be, one and the same. Too plain and simple to my taste. Overall Rating: 5/10 22. Seija no Koushin (1998) [聖者の行進] (Finished 2/11) Tags: Music, Drama Exploring the perception and treatment of mentally-challenged youth and their similarities to juvenile delinquents in Japanese society, this drama series follows the trials and tribulations of a group of adolescents in a work/study program for mentally-challenged teenagers. Although the program's intention is to gently "normalize" them for introduction in society, the group is subject to constant physical and mental abuse unbeknownst to their parents and teacher, Ms Hagawa. However, the friendship between Towa, a naive but unusually articulate member of the program, and Arisu, a rebellious schoolgirl, helps both of them learn to overcome their troubles. Features a star-studded cast of current popular youth idols. Not enjoying mentally challenged themes. Quite decent acting, though, not that I care. Overall Rating: 6/10 23. Sweet Season (1998) [スゥイート・シーズン] (Finished 1/11) Tags: Romance, Life, Drama The affair that Mahiro has been having with the married Yutaka has been the only escape from her troubled family life caused by her father's own extra-marital affair. Mahiro despises her father for his past infidelity but cannot bring herself to stop Yutaka from being unfaithful to his wife. However, an unplanned pregnancy triggers a series of events that promises to shatter the small bubble of happiness Mahiro has made for herself and bring the brewing dissonance in her family to a head. Not translated. Overall Rating: 6/10 24. Meguri Ai (1998) [めぐり逢い] (Finished 2/12) Tags: Romance Graduate student, Shuji, fell in love with his neighbour, Eri, who has a dream of becoming a dancer. However, Eri was unwilling to give up her dream and hence left Shuji to go to America. Still, fate brings them back together time and again like a bittersweet refrain. I was amazed to learn that all the synopsis actually happens during very first episode. And second episode is polarly super slow and only hints reunion in future. It's evident to me that super slow pace is going to last till the end in attempt to waste as much time as possible, and it's not particularly interesting. Overall Rating: 6/10 25. Sensei Shiranaino? (1998) [先生知らないの？] (Finished 2/12) Tags: Comedy, Youth When an eager young man gets an elementary school teaching position as his first job, he finds a school staff and student body stricken with apathy. He vows to find a way to invigorate his students and co-workers, but his tendency to burn a straight path toward his goals, while failing to consider any obstacles in his way, may be his biggest fault. Or it may turn out to be his greatest asset. With Onizuka Sensei publishing since 1997, such format is gaining popularity. What prevents me from continuation is mostly elementary school format with corresponding level of problems, but overall it's nice, even better than expected initially. Overall Rating: 6/10 26. Brothers (1998) [ブラザーズ] (Finished 1/12) Tags: Comedy, Romance, Life The tale of four brothers and their widower father, who heads a large Buddhist temple in Tokyo. Goro Kishitani, the oldest brother, does not want to take over the temple. He prefers only to pass through now and then to exercise his eldest brother prerogative and hit No. 2 brother Masahiro Nakai over the head. Nakai, who really wants to be a sportswriter, appears to be in line for the temple takeover and zips around in a motorcycle helmet and Buddhist robes to chant sutras for the dead. Papa-san frequents Ginza clubs and had a cigarette or a toothpick dangling from his mouth for most of the first episode. He hires an "Otonashi Karen look-alike" (Kimura Yoshino) with a crush on Nakai as housekeeper and she bops around the temple grounds as if it was Shibuya on a Sunday. The opening sequence where they all grab guitars, line up in black robes in front of the temple incense burner, and rock back and forth as if disciples of the Elvis Presley sect of Buddhism is classic in its own way though. Not translated. Overall Rating: 6/10 27. Shomuni (1998) [ショムニ] (Finished 3/12) Tags: Business, Comedy The stories revolve around the Office Ladies of General Affairs department 2 (Shomu ni, or GA-2) in a large multinational company called Manpan Corporation. GA-2 is called "the graveyard for female office ladies" simply because it is the place where female employees are dumped should they mess up big time elsewhere. Jobs include replacing used toilet rolls, changing light bulbs, and organizing company outings, among other menial stuff. As an added incentive, their department is located in the nether regions of the company - in the basement and is, in fact, a disused storeroom. Novelty lasts for couple episodes, and after that not sure what to stay here for... Situations aren't something special, and comedy is typical exaggerated one. Overall Rating: 6/10 28. Love & Eros (1998) [ラブとエロス] (Finished 3/12) Tags: Romance When Kasumi's husband dies in a car wreck, Ryuichi vows to watch over her and her unborn son. Over the next ten years, he gradually falls in love with Kasumi. Now 35-year-old, Kasumi has resisted loving another man for fear of reliving the pain of losing a loved one. She happens to meet Ryuichi's bad boy younger brother and finds herself physically attracted to him; but Ryuichi finally acts on his bottled-up feelings for Kasumi and asks her to marry him. Kasumi must decide if she can bring herself to fall in love with a responsible man like Ryuichi, or if she can be content with the purely physical relationship that his brother can provide. FL does not really suit such concept, in my opinion. Bad boy younger brother forces pity towards him which looks weird. Toxicity is high. Watchable, but on a so-so level. Overall Rating: 5/10 29. Ao no Jidai (1998) [青の時代] (Finished 11/11) Tags: Mystery, Romance, Crime, Youth Abandoned by his mother and having had to fend for himself, Ryuu is one of many Japanese youths that have turned to a life of petty crime in order to survive in Japanese society. Life on the streets has given him a tough exterior, but it is his kind heart and his dislike for what he has become that wins over a local beauty and helps him take his first steps towards a better life. When an overzealous and less than ethical police inspector fingers Ryuu for a crime he didn't commit, he is resigned to accept his fate. However, help emerges from an unexpected source to give him the strength to fight for his freedom: a victim of one of his past crimes. It looks surprisingly truthful and natural. Synopsis covers only first three episodes, and it was really unclear for me which direction it can go from then on. Answer is that it goes sideways to different characters developing their stories with climaxes of the stories becoming centerpieces of each episode. I'd say that it gets more interesting after first three episodes as it goes sideways from lawyer. But in the second half most of drama is based on lawyer alter ego which I consider cheezy. I found myself slightly irritated with repeating patterns and ended up forcing myself to finish it which is not a trait of masterpiece. Overall Rating: 6/10 30. GTO (1998) [-] (Finished 12/12) Tags: Comedy, Youth, Drama Onizuka Eikichi is a graduate of a third-rate University and the leader of a motorcycle gang, whose lifelong dream is to become a teacher. After being hired by a seemingly eccentric director, Onizuka begins his unconventional way of teaching a hopeless group of troublemakers. Although he meets much opposition from the students and teachers themselves, his passion for teaching, and more importantly, his students, eventually convinces everyone that Onizuka truly has the makings of a great teacher. Was confident in material from the start after watching anime, so main worry was about actors and freshness, also about the final score. If I can find some flaw, I'm lowering the score. In first episode it looked very illogical how two blackmailers suddenly decide to vouch for Onizuka after beeing just surrounded by gang members. In anime blackmailers were blackmailed with photos of them tied, beaten and in underwear, but dorama totally failed to present any viable explanation. Still impressive despite the fact that I remembered most of outcomes. Overall Rating: 9/10 31. Sekai de Ichiban Papa ga Suki (1998) [世界で一番パパが好き] (Finished 1/12) Tags: Family The protagonist is a 41-year-old divorced lawyer. 13 years ago, his wife's infidelity led him to abandon his then 5-year-old daughter and leave home. This summer, his wife departed to heaven. The daughter still hates his father, and wants to enter a Tokyo university so she needn't have to live with him... This is a story of how two people even as they fight each other also gradually come to understand each other. How the father thinks of his daughter, how the daughter thinks of her father, and other faint awakenings of love: This begins the "love story" between parent and child. Not translated. Overall Rating: 6/10 32. Harmonia (1998) [ハルモニア] (Finished 1/9) Tags: Music, Thriller, Romance, Supernatural At a home for the physically impaired, a cellist teaches a patient whose is unable to speak but possesses a hyper-keen ability to play music. As her cello skills improve, however, so does a mysterious power that allows her to cause great harm to others through ESP-like channeling. Supernatural thriller about espers sounds like swearing to me. Pilot episode did not impress in the least. Overall Rating: 5/10 33. Akimahende! (1998) [あきまへんで！] (Finished 1/11) Tags: Comedy Nowadays, kids have their parents wrapped around their fingers. While they appear to despise their parents, they are actually insecure and want someone to give them love, guidance, and support. Although Katsura is sometimes absent-minded, she is a strong, independent woman. Junichiro proposes to her for the second time in 30 years. During this 30-year span, Junichiro was widowed three times, and fathered four children. Katsura agrees to move into the Aoki household as a live-in housekeeper and marry him only if his children learn to love her. This is a comedic and sometimes touching story about Katsura's experiences as she tries, in her own way, to win the children's hearts and trust. Main lead is pretty irritating with squeaky voice and constant fuss. Comedy is rather primitive, too, so leaving early. Overall Rating: 5/10 34. Nanisama! (1998) [なにさまっ！] (Finished 6/11) Tags: Comedy, Drama While working in the leisurely atmosphere at a food company's factory, Futaro is asked by his good friend to return to their corporate headquarters. Unfortunately, he finds himself as an assistant to Izumi, a highly demanding expert on Italian food culture. Futaro gets off to a rocky start with his new female boss and always seems to be saying or doing the wrong thing. He also doesn't seem to be particularly suited to his new position on the Italian Restaurant Project, considering he doesn't even like tomatoes! But Futaro may still have a few tricks left up his sleeve that he can use to win over Izumi and find success in his new job. Everything is so-so here - comedy, leads, concept. Watchable, but I'm not sure what to like here. Overall Rating: 6/10 35. Change! (1998) [チェンジ!] (Finished 1/10) Tags: Comedy, Supernatural Atsuko Asano and child star Yuka Nomura appear as an actress mother and her daughter who hates her mother's work. Struck by lightning, the two are surprised to find they have switched bodies and have to live each other's lives. Not translated. Overall Rating: 6/10 36. Kiseki no Hito (1998) [奇跡の人] (Finished 1/10) Tags: Life, Drama Since his auto accident at nineteen, Katsumi has suffered from amnesia and minimal brain damage. All memory of his previous life was lost, and he now lives with the mind of an eight-year-old. When Yasuko meets Katsumi in the rehabilitation center, she is captivated by his sincerity, genuineness and musical talent. The attraction is mutual, but Katsumi is like an adoring child to her, and Yasuko is intrigued by his unusual situation and her desire to reintegrate him into society. And when another beautiful young woman takes an unusual interest in him, no one can be sure of her motives or her connection to his former life. Will Katsumi ever recover his memory enough to put together the events of his past and move on? Not translated. Overall Rating: 6/10 37. Sommelier (1998) [ソムリエ] (Finished 1/11) Tags: Food, Business After a corporate restructuring, Mr. Ogura, an aging manager, is assigned to run La Mer, a French restaurant in Japan. Joe Satake, a very talented French Japanese wine expert, has been asked by Ms. Katagiri, Mr. Ogura's immediate supervisor, to help. Using his expertise and keen observation skills, Joe is a genius in selecting the right wine for every occasion for his customers. He is very eccentric and has high standards, demanding that the wine be properly handled and appreciated. On his flight to Japan from Europe, he comments on the wine selected by Nao, an arrogant, young self-styled wine connoisseur and fellow passenger who coming back from a shopping spree, angering her when he starts by saying, "the wine is crying…" In a series of accidental encounters, Joe keeps bumping into Nao, who grows angrier and more determined to get back at him in some way. The spoiled daughter of the department head, Nao tells her father that she wants to become a sommelier when she finds out that he is working at one of the company's restaurants. BS theme and realization as wine here is the answer to every single question. Overall Rating: 5/10 38. Tabloid (1998) [タブロイド] (Finished 3/10) Tags: Business, Crime, Drama Tokiwa plays a sharp tongued reporter for a major daily newspaper. She was demoted to a sleazy tabloid as a punishment for breaking the reporter's code of conduct. While working in the tabloid, she discovered that she has the freedom of uncovering the truth behind a murder case. Feels like a light detective to me as each time there's a scoop, then there's research and getting to know situation better followed by correction of actions. Fine, but not impressive. Overall Rating: 6/10 39. Seikimatsu no Uta (1998) [世紀末の詩] (Finished 1/11) Tags: Drama Just when about to commit suicide after being deserted by his bride-to-be during the wedding, a man meets a university professor who is also at the point of killing himself. A woman nearby intervenes, one thing leads to another, and the three lost souls move in together. Each episode is a distinct story about the sometimes painful, sometimes warm romances between them and the people they meet while sharing an apartment. Not translated. Overall Rating: 6/10 40. Shounentachi (1998) [少年たち] (Finished 1/3) Tags: Mystery, Youth, Drama The drama centers around family court investigator Hirokawa Hajime and deals with juvenile crimes that take place in a local family court. Not translated. Overall Rating: 6/10 41. Happy Mania (1998) [ハッピーマニア] (Finished 1/12) Tags: Comedy A comedy about a girl who keeps developing crushes on guys. A humorous drama that will appeal only to those who want a cute girl drama without seriousness. Not translated. Overall Rating: 6/10

Here's the third ending song of Full Moon wo Sagashite, Eternal Snow, in which it become my favorite ending of the anime. There's also another video that has the song, although it had spoilers from the anime. Anyway, enjoy the song.

This is going to end up being a rather general review of Kinsenka because there's an awful lot in this visual novel and not much of the story can be spoken about without going into some spoilers. Positives: - Emotional scenes and stories within stories. This visual novel got me emotional multiple times throughout starting from relatively early on. - Just enough tone changes so that the story does not become one-note. Some sections had some comedy or some light slice of life sections in order to change it up. - The music is atmospheric and adds to the experience. I also think the theme song is very well done. - Localization was done well. If you want to nitpick I'm sure you can find some things - but overall it's well done. Neutral: - It's a heavy story. There are some things in here that are hard to stomach and are not for everyone. Including - general spoilers - so it may not be for everyone. I didn't find any of it to be too heavy, but this is definitely a place where YMMV. - I feel like the ending was a bit of a letdown compared to how well everything had been built up. To be clear I do not actually think the ending is bad, but I feel it didn't live up to the rest of the visual novel's quality quite as much. Negatives: - The story is a bit uneven. Two of the chapters dragged a bit, including the last one. Pacing was quite a bit better through the first half of the visual novel. - A few unanswered story threads still remain, namely: Overall, I'd recommend this to most readers looking for a good nakige. It's not perfect, but if you liked this writer's other works then you'll probably enjoy this. I don't think any of its flaws are enough to stand in the way of this getting a high score from a lot of readers. It took me 20 hours to finish it - and I usually land somewhere between 50-75% of average VNDB time - so I think it's worth the $30 cost at full price, but if it ever goes on sale it's definitely worth picking up.

Another Readport as we dive into what VNs we've been reading the past month!

Had to exclude multiple otome, doujins and vtubers, but outcome is nice. 1. Hanataba o Kimi ni Okurou -Kinsenka- 花束を君に贈ろう-Kinsenka- [Frontwing] 1 "The human heart is but a vessel for pain." That's what someone once whispered―a voice laced with loneliness, whispering directly into the soul. It's an indescribable sadness, a love just beginning to bloom. It becomes an invisible pain that pierces the heart. And that's what makes up life: a cyclical series of highs and lows. Tachibana Sai was born without the ability to feel pain in his heart. He spends his days eliminating any seeds of malice that sneak up on his sister, the one person he treasures, without drawing attention to himself. Sick of the never-ending monotony he lives through, he chances upon a meeting with Benio Matsuri, a young girl whose aloof demeanor resembles that of a beautifully crafted doll. For the first time in his life, he encounters a heart-piercing sensation―that of falling in love. On the edge between day and night, in a twilight world where the dead and living mingle, stands an apartment building called Maison sans Nom, which is home to a group of boys and girls. A ruthless boy who knows no pain in his heart. A lonely girl without any friends. A friendly girl who struggles to make connections. A prickly, ambitious girl who is keen to be of help. A boy who loves his own cute self above anything else. A mess of a woman who tries to solve everything through brute force. And a boy with a tender heart who knows no pain in his body. This ill-assorted group of residents, hands stained with blood from battling the supernatural Maledicts, shall encounter the hearts they never knew and begin nurturing their souls. The human heart is but a vessel for pain. To protect this pain akin to love... To gently break the world apart, piece by piece... Even if it means abandoning humanity. That's why the heart is but a vessel for pain. For life blazes brilliantly, while the heart goes around in an endless cycle. Localized in English, so should have reviews in no time. Scenarios by talented authors are always looked forward to. It has multiple elements similar to Sakura, Moyu. But compared to that it's darker, more straightforward thus shorter and without time wasted on SOL, same heavy on flashbacks and past investigation. 2. Hatsukoi Master Up 初恋マスターアップ [AZARASHI SOFTWARE] The protagonist Nagatomi Yukihisa, has a past which ended his youth in disappointment. Several years after graduating――While living his life without making any change, he is informed that his estranged father has left him a vast amount of fortune, including his house as his inheritance. Yukihisa suddenly comes into a lot of money, and taking his aunt's advice, he decides to revisit something left unfinished during his youth――Making a video game. Thus begins assembling staff members. A former associate, now a popular illustrator, Ichijiku Konoka. A childhood friend, supporting Yukihisa in reuniting the team, Manganji Urara. And a new member, taking Yukihisa's place as the lead writer, Hawa Wakana. This is a story of an awkward boy and girls revisiting their youths. While being supported by many people, what kind of future awaits Yukihisa and his friends―― Nice story about troublesome youth with welcome theme 3. Clover Reset クローバー・リセット [vividX] 1 Shonan Saika Academy, a high-achieving all-girls school in Kanagawa Prefecture. One day, Marin Tachibana, along with her best friends Mashiro Saotome and Kiyoka Jinguji, experiences a special day. It begins with meeting an unusual new transfer student, Shizuku Kujyo. A beautiful girl with a calm and dignified demeanor. Meeting her feels like déjà vu... While showing her around the school, they stop by an observation deck, where Marin finds a four-leaf clover. There is a tradition at this school: If you press a four-leaf clover found on the observation deck into your student notebook, your wish will come true. (I want to get closer to her. To spend more time with her...) With this wish, Marin gives Shizuku the "coincidental" four-leaf clover she found. This act becomes a turning point, bringing Marin and Shizuku closer together with the help of Mashiro and Kiyoka. However... "Please, stop worrying about me. I don't want to just be protected..." "Shizuku, we're friends, right?" A storm threatens to tear them apart. It is deeply tied to a "secret" Shizuku is hiding and a "trauma" from Marin's past. The story follows the growth, mutual support, and cherished memories of the four girls. Will Marin and the others find their personal "clover" (happiness)? Yuri doujin, but fine looking one, with OP and localized in Enlgish .

The NVL style is a style that is highly-specialized for text-heavy, plot-heavy games with extensive narration. On the opposite end is ADV-style, which is specialized for VNs with moderate to low-levels of narration and high levels of dialogue. The major reason NVL has mostly fallen to the wayside is that VNs that need its unique qualities simply aren't being made anymore. Companies like Light, Propeller, and Nitroplus have become less and less prolific over the last ten to twelve years, while companies like Navel and Will reached their peak between 2015 and 2018, when the JVN industry itself peaked and began its drastic decline. The NVL style never really caught on with EVN companies, so it is mostly a non-issue, with the ADV being what most people recognize as 'visual novel style'. For more particular UI aspects, I have a particular dislike for Purple Soft's translucent menu at the top of the screen that tended to go off at random times through accidental button presses, requiring me to back track manually using save games just so I wouldn't miss plot points. Most VNs have a menu with text and sound options, with gameplay ones often having control and hot button options as well. Most UI options are pretty standardized, whether in the west or the east, so you can play any VN without an instruction manual or much fumbling.

For UI, well basic should be enough for the ease of the players, although sometimes developer can do much with it, with one example is Tokyo Necro which Nitroplus tried to allow us feel like virtual player whenever we start the VN (Although it become quite cumbersome). Other than Tokyo Necro, there's also Purple Software which they do the floating textbox with the shortcut is half hidden at the top with the player allowed to customize it to their convenience, at least in their VN before Criminal Border such as Amatsutsumi and Aoi Tori. Besides those two examples, no much I can talk about seeing this is the basic of the VN with the UI in most VNs are usually quite similar, so that's all for what I can talk about this topic.

I see that you started to translating the sex scenes, and no much to say other than good luck.

Decided to add one of Ar Tonelico 2 boss theme, Exec_Sphilia, with the song was sang by the prequel's main villain. And yes, I posted it here despite that Ar Tonelico 2 entry is exist on VNDB. Enjoy.

I just finished Time Leap I approached it without big expectations, but it turned out to be quite good While it features time travel as a major part of the setting, it doesn't approach it "scientifically" - it's just a magical plot device more related to "KEY magic" - but I'm okay with that, if only it gives me nice tale It will be a very slight spoiler, but without it it's difficult to talk about the plot at all, so let's just say that one thing that all people subjected to "Time Leap" have in common is some very strong feeling that makes them want to escape from the reality. There are five routes, of which two are unlockable. My favorite girl - and first route I did - was definitely Ayumu (the "current" one ). I seem to have soft spot for this kind of fiery redheads and/or osananajimi tsunderes (well, technically she's MC's adoptive sister, but whatever ). I also think that her route was most fleshed out among the three "basic" ones. And remember - never think lightly of her deadly round-kick Completing Ayumu's route unlocks Ayu (younger version of Ayumu that appeared because of "Time Leap"). But, sensing that Ayu's might be kind of "true route" (considering the premise) I saved her for the last playthrough, so the next route I got was Yuu - imouto-style heroine While I really liked her as a character, her route seemed to lack some impact compared to Ayumu. But I appreciate, that her (as well as Haruka's) route also was somewhat related to the "Time Leap" phenomenon - intially I thought that it will apply only to both Ayumu's versions. Completing Yuu's route unlocks Haruka - the oldest sister, who currently works as a teacher in local higschool, where MC, Ayumu and Yuu attend. I really love her look with her hair down: That route was interesting, and a bit of emotional rollercoaster. There was also quite a plot twist. Then there is kind of side-heroine, Komomo. She's Hisamitsu's (the town's rich idiot kid) maid, and a ball of cuteness While her route doesn't involve Time Leap directly, it still has themes of past memories etc (my favorite). And did I already say that Komomo is cute? And finally Ayu - the Ayumu from 4 years ago. Violent but cute, and her story has quite balanced mix of comedy and drama. However, heroine routes are one thing, but the very important part of the VN is family as a whole. They all play important part in every route, which created very pleasant, wholesome atmosphere - in no small way thanks to the great side characters duo - the youngest children - Fuuta and Sakura. If I had to point out weak points of this title, there would be mainly two: a bit unsatisfying (too short!) epilogues I'd like to see more CGs (or rather, in case of this title) "CG-like" scenes. PC version has some scenes done as 2d movies (with voiced MC) but console port has everything rendered using ingame engine. I still prefer PS3 version from technical point of view, since PC version lacks almost any UI, apart from black text box at the bottom of the screen. Also, console version has somewhat expanded scenario, as a replacement for removed H-scenes. All in all I really enjoyed this VN. While nothing groundbreaking, it's solid. Fully animated characters are nice feature, making scenes much more lively. So it ends up with my standard score for not-outstanding-but-good titles - 7.5/10

I'm reallyyyy late on the party, I know. I just want to give my appreciation and respect to the translator. Trust me bro, you're so brave, keeping the project up for that long, alone, and for a long VN is not an easy thing at all. I am a translator as well (Although I'm not as experianced as you), so I know exactly what does this mean. I really hope you could complete your project, and I'll wait for it to congratulate you!

Mods: Please let me know if you need anything else, I'm more than happy to update or change things! I'll reserve this post for additional info, as to hopefully not spam the forum when I update. *I'm taking a day or two break before starting chapter 3. Suggestions and feedback are welcome! *After feedback from a non-vn user, I think I will at some point add a small tutorial on how to use Ren'py. I'll probably have Kathie on a few screens. *The first fight scene was done a long time ago at 720p, so the current images are zoomed in. I plan on redoing that scene at some point. I also want to have ACT or Chapter skips on the title screen when the story increases in size.

Hello! I am new to REN'PY, and have been working on a kinetic VN called 'A Plumber's Tale'. I have completed the rough version of ACT 1, and would like to share my current progress. This will be a superhero VN covering a long story arc, and multiple characters' perspectives. Any feedback/constructive criticism/ideas are more than welcome! Just please keep in mind a few things: I am pretty new to Ren'Py, also new to creating anything like this ever. Please let me know if I'm making any silly mistakes, or if there is something I can optimize better (Feel free to decompile and rummage around!). This will be a pretty long story, a lot of things aren't explained yet or might not make a lot of sense. The end of this release is essentially just the starting point. This is a rough draft, I still need to do things like change the GUI /Title Screen Setup/etc. Any ideas are welcome! (I suck at choosing fonts!). Thanks for your time, please let me know if there are any issues with downloading! FOLDER: https://mega.nz/folder/6Z4QzRKQ#d2yrs7JDG4NB24pQ3QLhJg *4-17 Fixed misplaced diffuse transitions *5-28 Rough chapter 2 completed *5-29 Updated Title screen and basic font. Chapter 0-1: Chapter 2:

For the company, I suppose they're already quietly disbanded and went back to the main company, Cuffs, or maybe Cuffs decided to not use the name anymore unless when something happen with one of its product, such as when Yosuga no Sora was abut to be released in the Steam (Chinese language only) with Cuffs listed Sphere was still listed as the developer for it. For more information on Yosuga no Sora staffs, the writer are only wrote all game made by Sphere while the director got some more works until Enki Dekinai with he got special thanks.

It's been a while since I see the last post for this thread. Anyway, what I read mostly is GL manga, although I still following Conan to a degree. What I follow weekly nowadays is Onimai (It took someone recommend the anime of this to finally convince me to read the manga because the premise is quite out there and made me drop it after several chapters) and Tis Time for Torture Princess, with both of those are episodic so it's easier to follow compared to Conan (And not to mention lighter).

I've just finished watching Akiba Maid War, that anime made me laugh and sad on the time. Pretty entertaining anime to say the least! Still figuring whether I should continue watching other animes on my lists or play/read VNs instead... Hmm... Decisions... Decisions...

Hello Fellow Creatives! I made some cool new seamless texture images to share with you. Free, as always, to use in your projects with attribution. They're on my TXR - Brick - Seamless page...here's the link: https://soundimage.org/txr-brick-seamless/ PREVIEW VIDEO Big news for those of you who are using my music tracks: I've created a brand new preview video that contains a sampling of my music tracks that you'll find in my Ogg Music Mega Pack. You can check it out here: https://youtu.be/W7yQVscjqUM?si=wD1XqAOJ6_Lswgqw PACKS THAT GROW WITH YOU I think the coolest thing about the music packs isn't just that they keep growing as I add new tracks to them, but that Gumroad allows me to notify users so they can download the newest additions as they come out. I really like the idea of music packs that grow along with the people who are using them. You'll find the Mega Pack here: https://soundimage.org/ogg-game-music-mega-pack/ And my genre packs here: https://soundimage.org/ogg-music-packs-2/ As always, enjoy, stay safe and keep creating!

Since this post, I have finished ENA: Dream BBQ and played the following games: - Undertale (Only played the neutral and pacifist routes. I am waiting a bit before I consider doing the genocide route). - Azure Striker Gunvolt (A fun game that could have used more story. With older Mega Man games, I'm fine not knowing more about the Robot Masters since they are robots. Their objective is to prevent me from reaching Dr. Wily. With Gunvolt, he is facing other humans. We only get to meet one at the end of a level.) - OneShot (Has an interesting story and setting. I find it a little funny how they include the player into the game.) - Vibrant Venture (The game is not finished yet, but its gameplay is interesting as you swap between four characters to perform actions while keeping momentum.) - Magical Nut Ikuro (The newest game from Querate. I was able to finish the main story. Overall, it is a good game with decent characters. I do not see myself remembering any of them, but they work with the story the game wants to tell. I do wish more was done in certain areas.) As for some other games, I do plan on getting back into Marvel Rivals asap. Also, I want to play more fighting games (Smash, Granblue Fantasy Versus Rising, Street Fighter 6, etc.). I just hope that I will have a lot of time to interact with other players online.

I find it bloated too, and I keep it as a last resort when everything else fails lol. Have to admit though that I'm rather happy to at least have it as it is the only one that provides regular updates. Agent script are quite updated too, but it's a bit slow. Even if I can't get the v0.1, I'll nevertheless read the link you provided, maybe I'll get something out of this. In any case, thanks a lot for everything.

Yep, I know about Luna, and experienced firsthand that Defender detected it as malware While I feel it's too bloated for normal use, I someties find it useful to find H-code that I then could put into Textractor Unfortunately it seems that older versions aren't available anymore. And scripts based on D-CODE and _ExecutionWatch indeed crash in current version - I just tried my script for Time Leap, and it didn't work So it seems that currently the only option for getting script for yet unsupported game is to ask on their discord and hope that someone makes it...

Thanks a lot, I'll check the link you gave next weekend. Hopefully, it won't be too techy for me and I'll be able to learn how to adapt existing scripts for games unsupported. Although it might be useless since you seem more knowledgeable than me and probably already know of this, as a thank you : if you don't know LunaTranslator, you might be interested https://github.com/HIllya51/LunaTranslator . It's more akin to Textractor but is still maintained. It also works with quite a few emulated games as well. Warning though : It's detected as a malware by quite a lot of AV software but as far as I know, it is clean, although I can't guarantee (besides, it is not surprising that an app tinkering with memory might be considered malware by AV). EDIT : do you know where I can download the v0.1 of Agent ? Can't find a link to this old version.

There was a tutorial for the older version of Agent, about finding so-called "D-CODE" - and I used that method. https://github.com/0xDC00/agent/wiki/Finding-D-CODE-(Deprecated) It seems that ExecutionWatch script in latest version of Agent(0.1.4) is a little broken, and doesn't catch shift-jis encoded strings properly, so I'm using Agent v0.1. Currently it seems that it's recommended to write custom scripts from scratch, but that requires more programming and inner workings of a given game/console knowledge, so it's a bit above my level

About Agent and this tinkering you speak of : is it easy to explain how to do it or do you know of any tutorial or something ? I'm used to Textractor and such tools and I've also used Agent with a Switch game on one occasion but I have no clue on how to write a new script for Agent. Is there an easy way ?

Maybe Omerta is the VN that you search for with it had hitman MC who had killed a couple along with blonde hero being the gang leader, although the couple didn't related to the gang though.

So far I finished 3 out of 5 routes in Time Leap - and it's quite good (At last!) While nothing outstanding in terms of plot or romance, I find it very enjoayble - there's some good comedy, a bit of drama and lots of heartwarming family moments I'll write more once I complete it.