Celeb To Binbo Taro (Review)

Hey hey yo yo. I just watched Celeb To Binbo Taro and I quite liked it! I marathoned it and it actually made me want to write about it. So here is a review!

Synopsis

Taro Sato has been poor all his life. Since the death of his wife, his situation has become even more desperate as he has to raise his three kids by himself and has no real marketable skills. So when he applies for a job that he doesn't expect to get, as a chauffeur to a rich young woman, he's surprised when he does. His employer is Alice, your usual spoiled rich kid. Her father is a hotel magnate and her mother a popular actress. She's never wanted for anything her whole life and expects to get everything she wants. She and Taro have nothing in common, and, at least in the beginning, all they do is get on each other's nerves.


Cast & Characters

Ueto Aya plays Mitazono Alice. If you read my review on Nagareboshi which also stars Ueto Aya, you'll know that I really didn't like her at first. She was in a whole bunch of dramas but I just did not want to watch them. After Nagareboshi, I just fell in love with her and watched a bunch of her other dramas. This one is no exception. Even though here character was really spoiled and bitchy at times, I knew the that deep inside, she had a good heart. Even the people around her can see it despite how cold she is sometimes. I always love those characters that seem tough on the outside but are actually very broken inside. I know! I know! Such a cliche, right? But I just love that type! I think there's a specific Japanese word for those types of females but I've completely forgotten it.

Kamiji Yusuke plays Sato Taro. This is my first time seeing Kamiji Yusuke ever! Or at least I think. He might've been in a few of the dramas I've watched but I really can't remember. Anyhow, he's super cute! His character, Taro, is so kind and giving, and his passion towards his neighbourhood and friends just touched my heart. Even more so, his love towards his children was so so so touching I almost cried towards the end. Kamiji's performance is definitely moving and I'm already searching up other dramas that he's been in. 

Kuninaka Ryoko plays Yasuda Sachiko. Sachiko as a character is probably the typical second lead. Except in Jdramas, the second girl is really nice most of the times. I really like how she had her own little arc about her dream to be a designer. Anyhow, I recognized her from the drama Hungry!! but she didn't really have an impact on me. 

Kashiwabara Takashi plays Gotoda Tsukasa. Gotodaaa, oh Gotodaaa. His character was pretty meh at first but became super hateable towards the end. Kashiwabara was actually the reason why I watched this drama in which you'll see why in the next section of this post. Overall, his character didn't really develop until the end where he was used for a big twist that I think everyone was half expecting. Still, Kashiwabara is pretty cute. I just wish that he'd get a haircut or go back to his Itazura Na Kiss days, but time waits for no one and he's definitely grown visibly older.


Thoughts & Feelings

It's actually quite funny how I came to discover this drama. I've searched up all the dramas that Ueto has been in before to watch but apparently this one never caught my eye. Nevertheless I was definitely fated to watch this drama because I actually discovered it through Itazura Na Kiss. I was watching the old 1996 Japanese version of INK and thought the guy who played Naoki was super cute. It ended up being NAME HERE so I just clicked on a bunch of dramas he was in to see if any of them would catch me eye. Unfortunately he's not the lead for a lot of dramas so I didn't find any. BUT I definitely stopped at this drama because of Ueto Aya. The plot sounded typical but I loved cliches like this. TARO ACTOR NAME HERE ended up looking pretty cute and it was a boring day in the middle of summer so I just decided to marathon it.

This drama really surprised me. There were a lot of times where I got impatient with the plot and more so with the stupid step mother. GAWD she was so annoying with her controlling nature that I was happy her whole plan backfired in the end even though Alice had to burn with her. TBH I don't even know what is a spoiler for this drama because there really is no plotline here. If you stand back and look at the whole drama, it's actually a little bit like an episode-to-episode format with little conflicts here and there but a general conflict which would probably be NAME HERES revenge.

Critically, this drama was meh. There were so many cliches like love contract, cohabitation, revenge, dead first love, etc. But somehow those cliches were set up in an enjoyable way. Now I know some people like to watch super good quality dramas with deep and meaningful plots but I'm just not that kind of person. It's embarrassing to admit but I love love love all the cliches that this drama had. And I'm sure a lot of people think the same way I do as well. Come on, just admit y'all love the 'love contract' cliche!

1st side note: can we please talk about how cute the kids were. I honestly don't like children that much, but the kids in this drama were so cute! Their relationship with their dad seriously touched my heart. Despite my undying love for romance, it seems like its always the family moments that make me tear up.

2nd side note: ISN'T SO CUTE HOW THE MAIN CHARACTERS LAST NAME WAS TARO?! I LOVE TARO! AND HIS FIRST NAME IS SATO WHICH MEANS SUGAR! So he's basically 'Sugar Taro' lol. SO CUTE. I'm kind of in love with him now because he has such a cute smile.

Okay, all cuteness aside, there is a serious topic I must address. What is that topic? Badumbadum, drum roll please! THE ENDING! Let's just talk about the ending right now. This show is seriously such a troll. It literally pissed me off on so many levels. This one is a major spoiler, so I've made it that you can only read it if you highlight it. Do it with caution. I use a lot of caps and it definitely will give you a headache.

[I CANT EVEN WITH THE ENDING IT MADE ME SO MAD AND THEN SUDDENLY HAPPY LIKE ARE YOU KIDDING. SO LIKE TARO WAS LIGHTING UP THE FIREWORKS AS ALICE WAS RUNNING TO CONFESS TO HIM AND THEN THE FIREWORKS BLOW UP AND THEN THERES THESE AMBULANCES AND THEN THERES SUDDENLY A FUNERAL FOR TARO. LIKE SERIOUSLY. I WAS LIKE, "ARE YOU SERIOUS?! ARE YOU SERIOUSLY GOING TO KILL HIM RIGHT NOW IN THE LAST EPISODE WITHOUT THEM CONFESSING THEIR FEELINGS FOR EACHOTHER?!" AND THEN HE SUDDENLY SHOWS UP AND SAYS HE WAS BLOWN TO ANOTHER NEIGHBOURHOOD. WELL THATS A TYPICAL JDORAMA FOR YOU BUT I FELT SO TROLLED I WANTED TO KILL THEM. SIGH. AT LEAST THE CUTE ENDING MADE UP FOR EVERYTHING.]]]