Unnatural (2018)

Before I begin reviewing, I just want to say that watching Episode 1 in this pandemic era made me smile (I was thinking: "S***, they predicted this").

The cases in the drama are mostly well-thought and well-executed, maybe with exception of the few cases related to the main plot which was a bit draggy. They did not just solve cases related to unnatural deaths but also gave a soft criticism to the certain aspects of Japanese society.

I love all the characters in the UDI, they are all unique and the supporting characters aren't just there to support. Perhaps I liked Mikoto less than the others because the character is an idealistic type who believe that we can talk everything out, but it is forgiven because she is played by Satomi Ishihara. Masataka Kubota did a decent job as usual and I am impressed with Arata Iura's acting in here. The music, well.. maybe we don't have to talk too much about it. The OST is a big hit and you will see why it fits this drama.

So, what are you waiting for? Just watch it if you haven't!

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Forensic pathology is work for the future!

As a newcomer to Japanese dramas, Unnatural was definitely worth a try. It doesn't just get into the medical and forensic stuff but also digs into mystery and investigation.
Being a medical drama addict, I found the abundance of information fascinating. Were they asking me to take notes, cuz I was about to do it!! This was my first experience with a forensic-focused show, and I was genuinely amazed. It went beyond just determining the cause of death; each episode presented a standalone story about the victims and their lives, making it emotionally moving.
The cast was refreshingly portrayed, with Dr. Mikoto Misumi laughing off everything, emphasizing that there's no time to despair. I admired her intelligence.
Nakado-sensei, always wearing the 'Don't speak to me' face, investigating his girlfriend case, with the mysterious killer and the surprising resolution, had me hooked. Kube, the part-timer always ready to help, Shoji, the crazy friend, and Director Kamikura, always supportive, formed a cohesive team thriving in UDI, which felt like their home.
In fact, I believe the series left me wanting more. I truly hope for a second season or perhaps they could turn it into a saga, as unnatural deaths just don't seem to end.

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Most J Dramas focus on the doctor-hospital theme, which can get boring after watching these types. Loved the different story line in this drama. Ishihara Satomi is truly talented. Very difficult role, with all the difficult terminology, but she played it perfectly! The entire cast is to be commended as well, but Satomi truly stood out above the rest.
One of her best dramas in a leading role. Never lost interest throughout the story. So happy to have been able to catch this drama. Lots of interesting info for the viewer to absorb. Strongly recommend it to all.

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Why Autopsies Are So Necessary!

This is a fascinating look into the jobs of coroners and forensic scientists in Japan, where the fewest amount of autopsies are recorded of all developed countries in the world. Most deaths reported as "accidental" or by "natural causes" are never autopsied, thus leaving the door wide open for murderers. You can't help but speculate how my deaths might be attributed to murder. Most bodies are cremated before they can ever reach an autopsy table, and there are many hurdles that must be jumped through, such as getting family consent.

Misumi Mikoto is the idealist coroner who firmly believes that her job brings piece of mind as well as closure and truth to the cases she works on. She works at UDI (Unnatural Death Investigations), a company subsidized by the government. They don't necessarily work on police cases but as a private company that is paid by people who want further investigations done. She is the #2 coroner with a troubled past. While her job doesn't pay much, she's very good at what she does. She also tends to wear her heart on her sleeve.

Mr. Nakado is the #1 coroner of the group, and we find out that he's been suffering in anguish for over 8 years since his girlfriend was found dead in a scrap pile. He somehow performed the autopsy himself (not sure how anyone would be able to do that). After finding a "goldfish" imprint inside of her mouth, he firmly believes his girlfriend was murdered and possibly by a serial killer. He tries to check every body he can find for the same "goldfish" evidence with the hope of catching the killer. He barks at everyone, and is notoriously renowned for calling people, "stupid." He's incredibly smart and gifted despite his sour demeanor. He reminds me a little bit of Dr. House.

Finally, we have Kube Rokuro who is the new part-timer, who has a desire to be a forensic doctor. However, we quickly find that he's working at UDI under false pretenses (selling the secrets and stories of what happens at UDI) to a local newspaper, which acts more like a tabloid. However, after finding himself engrossed in the job as well as being smitten with Dr. Mikoto, we begin to wonder how Rokuro will be able to get out of his dilemma, if at all.

The series is an important one. Japan is a generally peaceful country where people try their best to live in harmony. They don't like to "rock the boat" and will do nearly anything to maintain that harmony, even it means avoiding any kind of confrontation. However, true harmony can never be achieved by turning your back to what is going on; by avoiding confrontation. How can harmony be experienced at the expense of others? It can't be. It's an impossibility, and this is largely the reason why this show exists. With only 170 coroners in Japan, they're desperately trying to get more as well as to change the government policies surrounding autopsies and why they are so vitally important.

While the serial killer story was a fascinating one, my favorite episode was actually the bullying, or as the boy rightfully called it, "Death by Bullying." This was an especially powerful episode that brings a world-wide problem to the forefront. The UDI group race to solve the "murder" of a young high school teen in order to prevent the death of another. However, we quickly find that nothing is as it seems, and the school as well as the other students involved, realize their horrible mistake; allowing the bullying to happen. Yes, where bullying takes place, everyone is involved, and everyone is responsible. I truly hope people take this episode to heart.

There was only one season of this fantastic show, which is easily better than any "CSI" series I've seen, and should be given more seasons. I sure hope a second season is in the works! Not only is the science fascinating but you gotta love the people of UDI!

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That was an outstanding drama about a small team of pathologists, with casas that seemed well researched to me who is a non-medical person.

Things I liked most:
* The female characters! Although they were still in the minority, they were fantastic! The two main female characters were an equal part of the cast -- in most cases the female forensic doctor was the one who found the deciding clue, even. Both were shown as professionals, with interesting personal lives, own ambitions and well-rounded personalities.

* The team! We get to know all five (hm, six) people of the UDI well, and how they learn and grow together. They start as distant, even uncomfortable colleagues -- and in the end, they work as a well-integrated team. Some of them get some character development, some don't really need it.

* The supporting cast! Even they got a personality, some are more mysterious, some antagonistic, some familial. All of them clearly have their own motivations and goals.

* The acting! The directing! The soundtrack!

* No Romance! Well, over the course of one or two episodes, the male part-timer wonders if the female lead might be interested in him, and it seems he wouldn't have rejected any advances -- but! That fizzles out and is never even thought about again.
(Although, as I read through the other reviews, I see Orangevine's who states that "There is also a love triangle (with the caveat that one must be well-versed in Japanese romance tropes to spot it)". I'm obviously not well-versed, so I don't see it.)

* Minimal gore! We see blood, contusions, discoloration of the skin, some wounds, the occasional part of an organ preserved in formalin. Faces of the deceased are never disfigured, there are a few scenes where we see how the scalpel starts to cut, but never any opened bodies or any inner body parts while the autopsy is in progress.
All in all, it's remarkably respectful of the dead (compared to US productions) and there's never any kind of voyeurism.

* A fascinating insight into Japanese culture! Concerning death, and how the deceased and those who have contact with them are regarded and what it means for the politics around them.

* Last but not least: The cases! Not every case is a crime, but they are all interesting. The first one is noticably from before CoViD. The seventh had me in tears, that one hit close to home for me. The overarching plot was also intense, and was the main focus of the last three or so episodes, and tied all the personalities and their development together.

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Um J-drama Diferente

Um drama bem diferente, sobre um tema não muito abordado. Foi o primeiro J-drama que assisti sobre o trabalho de legistas. Achei bem interessante e fiquei bastante surpresa em saber como tão poucos casos de morte não naturais são investigados no Japão.

Os casos são bem instigantes e nos deixa curiosos para saber mais, além de exames laboratoriais eles também investigam o local uma espécie de CSI (guardada as devidas proporções ok?).

A Ishihara Satomi é uma ótima atriz, ela não decepcionou em sua atuação neste drama. No geral a equipe toda desempenhou muito bem seus papéis sem atuações exageradas e caricatas.

Um ótimo drama do começo ao fim sem perder o foco e sem enrolação. Super indicado!

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Las recomendaciones de 'boca en boca' -principalmente- hicieron que me viera esta serie porque los dramas médicos/forenses/ y similares no son un género que llamen mucho la atencion pero... oooooh, este drama me tuvo enganchada desde el episodio 1 (que pareciera que de cierta forma dio un mini spoiler de lo que iba a pasar en el mundo a futuro).

Se nota cuando un guionista es apasionado con su trabajo y creo que en este drama lo refleja a lo largo de los 10 episodios, todos los casos que se presentan son interesantes, variados y algunos de ellos hasta emotivos que encajan muy bien con la canción de cierre del drama: 'Lemon' de Kenshi Yonezu. El cast es muy bueno, puro actorazo pero más allá de sus fortalezas individuales, de verdad les crees que son un equipo y eso se refleja en la química.

Mi única queja es... y para cuándo la 2da temporada?

Esta serie la encuentran en netflix y es otra recomendación garantizada de entretenimiento puro, un drama maduro que ofrece conocer un mundo no muy explorado (la medicina forense) y también reflexionar un poco más sobre la vida y la muerte.

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Exciting science-y non-romance Jdorama

Once upon a time, I considered a career in forensic science but didn't pursue. I find Jdrama Unnatural exciting watch!

What I like:
1. Writing - I love the cases that were presented in this series. My favourite episode is the death by drowning. I didn't expect the fiancee/boyfriend to go ahead with his intention. What a sad moment for him and humanity! The father-and-son arcs in death in burning building was awesome great. Tearjerker.
2. Love story - I like that romance was hinted at the start of the series but never explored. Instead the writers focused on the love between Mikoto and her mum and brother.
3. Acting - Fine acting by cast especially from Satomi Ishihara and Arata Iura.
4. Mystery - Three main characters have mysterious background (Mikoto, Kai & Rokuro) and I like how it's related to their work.

What I dislike:
1. I am unclear about Mr Kibayashi's connection to Nakado. Why is he so willing to help him out?
2. Shishido is a despicable man!
3. The arc of the serial killer. It feels rushed.

Favourite scene
When Mikoto informed parents of burnt victim about how their son died saving people from burning building.

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Cool Forensics Crime Show with Interesting Cases

The show is relatively PG for most of the season with the more gruesome imagery (largely blood splashes) not appearing until the last couple of episodes. The show was episodic until the last two episodes as each told the story of a different victim. Within each investigation was greater discourse into a societal concern, such as bullying, ethics in journalism, vigilante justice, family relationships, and abuse of employees in the workplace. 

As with most Japanese detective shows, there is a significant combination of psychological and scientific elements to each investigation. The team frequently is forced to better understand both the victim and the assailant to identify the potential cause of death; then they turn to science to prove it. Or perhaps they identify the cause of death and use this information to provide the families with better insight into why their loved one passed on. 

In addition to the main UDI team, there is a wide array of assisting characters including the two lead police detectives who often work with UDI; the funeral director who frequently directs cases their way and assists as needed; and various medical professionals who provide their expertise or access to various public records. The acting amongst the side characters was pretty decent, and the cast as a whole was largely relatable. You come to really, REALLY loathe the main villains, but that is a sign of good storytelling. 

I will say that Misumi occasionally got on my nerves with her ‘holier-than-thou’ approach, especially towards Nakado. She puts her nose into things and follows people around when it really goes beyond her professional role which is never attractive to me. She makes demands as the story progresses when she is not his superior and is not in a position to take that stance. While her rigid code of ethics is worth praising, she is also relatively unapologetic when that code of ethics harms her friends. Sometimes taking the ethical stance should also be accompanied with recognition and empathy for how one’s actions impact others. 

One interesting ethical commentary the viewers took away from the show was the theory that truth is more important than justice for forensic professionals. Their job was not to be responsible for the outcome of their findings but rather to present the scientific facts for the lawyers to handle. This reminds me of the recent real world case where famous forensic scientist Henry Lee was found to have fabricated evidence in multiple cases. Unfortunately, this now calls into question his testimony at more than 8,000 cases over the years.  

The show is short but interesting; the technical effects were decent for its production level. It had some comedy mixed within but was largely a serious drama, little of the over-embellishments or over-acting that sometimes appears in Japanese shows. Certainly was a fun watch for the family of an evening and the crimes themselves were relatively well written. Some loose ends (especially at the end — I won’t go into those because I don’t want to spoil it), but by and large the causes of death and motives were unusual and it offered something new. I think I still like Galileo or Mr. Brain better in terms of ‘scientific-themed’ mysteries . . . but this was still a cool drama to watch.

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