Ru: Taiwan Express (2020)

Considering there were complications with some unfilmed scenes due to the COVID-19, (according to the screenwriter); the drama itself was breathtaking.

Story:
The plot does a great job of delivering a heartwarming story while integrating the culture and history between Taiwan and Japan. Especially in a setting where the railway industry is dominated by men, it was eye-opening to view this story from a working female's perspective. The plot manages to develop the side characters' stories as they all later integrate. The only con is the incompletion of some of the side characters' stories (due to the pandemic).

Cast:
Watching the drama, you realize how they carefully chose the cast as they had to speak multiple languages (Japanese, English, and Mandarin). No matter which language the character spoke, they conveyed their thoughts. Even though it was the first time a lot of the cast members were working with each other, you couldn't sense that at all. According to the Taiwan cast, the auditions were highly competitive. The drama even challenged itself by casting some people (Li Zi Cheng and Wu Dai Yun) who did not have much experience but did a great job with their 'natural' acting as said by the director.


Music + Cinematography:
NHK dramas never disappoint me when it comes to cinematography and music. The music was composed by Shinya Kiyozuka, who did a beautiful job creating music that deepened the story. Tsunagaru Kokoro, the theme song of this drama (has both Japanese and Mandarin versions) is although short, describes the connection that stretches throughout history between Taiwan and Japan. Hopefully, NHK decides to release an official soundtrack soon.
The cinematography captures the scenery of Taiwan without distracting the viewer from the story. The details of the color grading portray the late 90s/early 2000s setting.

Rewatch Value:
I tend to not rewatch a lot of shows. However, this drama has so much to offer, it makes you want to watch it again.

In conclusion, every second of the film contributed to the drama. I was amazed by the balance between the Taiwan-Japan history and the character developments. Though people say there should’ve been more episodes, I think an additional episode would have stretched the story too much. I just wish I could have seen the fully developed story the production team idealized if it wasn’t affected by the pandemic.
Finally, I highly recommend looking into the links provided below that provide a better understanding of the production, cast, and story after completing the drama.

Behind the Scenes + Interview: https://youtu.be/liAGgbnEzRo https://youtu.be/H0astxpavIg
Taiwan Cast Interview: https://youtu.be/svtd6zv3VNI https://youtu.be/1IY07VTZD1g
Filming Locations: https://youtu.be/tX62P6OWTdM
Explanation of an ending that wasn't included in the film: https://twitter.com/Kumiko_Tabuchi/status/1266724842964828164?s=20

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I wanted to like it but...

Let me start by saying that I was very happy to find a version of this drama with English subs. I think they did a great job translating all the different languages being spoken into a very readable story. Unfortunately, the story itself reminded me of a bad History Channel documentary... slow, very earnest, and (I'll say it) kinda corny. I watched it because I was happy to see Aaron listed as a leading man again, unfortunatly the romance in this drama was drier than an English biscuit. It was only three episodes, but I think for most people the fast forward button will be your friend.

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More Documentary, Than A Romance

LIKES:
Aaron Yan listed as the Male Lead and for what he was given, didn't disappoint.
Cinematography was well done.
Music was perfectly crafted, especially the violin parts that hit your emotions (more than some of the acting).
My favourite parts from the whole thing was the old man Hayama and his interaction with the ML/FL and his whole storyline.
The traditional Taiwanese dancing in Episode 2 was beautiful to see.
Cinematography was good.

DISLIKES:
Production tried to link it all together, but you could tell there were parts cut out, it wasn't smooth. At least there were no shaky camera situations to add drama.
Unlike the train they were designing, the drama moved very slowly and some moments I fast forwarded (like a very slow moving moped out in the country scene), that and some really drawn out moments like at the beginning of Episode 2 [no traffic]. That’s the director’s fault and maybe the writer too. A lot of time wasted on the side stories, (like the hostess club bits) instead of focusing on the FL and ML. I really dislike women like the character for the FL; indecisive, not following their heart, being evasive or giving mixed signals, etc.
The train parts felt like a documentary, more than a drama, some parts were redundant. A good chunk of it was about how the train linked Japan and Taiwan together. The “romance” of the FL & ML was under utilized and seemed like a storyline thrown together. The storyline of Hayama seemed more like the main story, after the train.

OVERALL:
Most of it was almost boring, with some interesting bits. Not well planned out. I don't recommend this and won't rewatch.

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It could be better

The drama contains historical stuff and a combination of for 4 languages (Japanese-English-Mandarin-Taiwanese Hokkian) that I liked so much. Together with Aaron Yan and its 3 episodes length, those factors add extra appeal for me. Despite the different languages, I don't feel any gap between the stories and the characters are not 'disconnected' when speaking or showing emotions to other characters who primarily speaks different language. The main story itself is not complicated - you know what is the problem and you know what the outcome will be - but it is not boring. But still you will find some scenes that is not necessary at all when the drama could use them to develop more depth in the story. While I understand some of the side stories are not solved well due to the pandemic, I feel that at least they should try to do something (e.g: Letting Haruka narrate some updates about them). There also a few times they "eliminate" extra actors from the scene with a rather unnatural way which made it less realistic. In terms of music, I couldn't say much but yes I love the theme song.

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