Bambino!

The long Easter weekend is almost over :(

I've decided to stay away from the crowd this weekend so I stayed home finishing up on some work and doing some overdue cleaning.

The rest of the time, I indulged myself in J-dramas. I'd been watching Gokusen for a few weeks and I'm finally done. Well, a very inspiring story from the teaching profession point of view but hmmm ... I'm not exactly gonna jump into it after watching the show. A product of 2002, the show starred some of today's bright young stars - Jun Matsumoto and Shun Oguri (I know them from Hana Yori Dango - there'll be a movie to cash in on this series out this June! *trailer*) and Ken'ichi Matsuyama (L of Death Note).

After Gokusen, I tried watching Shinobi. Maybe it's just me but that movie bored me. Perhaps period dramas don't appeal to me much.

Then I thought I'd give Bambino! a shot. Initially, I'd wanted to give it a miss cuz the title made it seem like it's a joke of a show that would be a complete waste of time. Boy, has it proven me so wrong! And I'm glad I decided to give it a try cuz the first episode already got me hooked. Apparently, it's the winner of several awards, including two acting awards for Matsumoto and Kitamura, in Japan.

It's about a young college student, Ban played by Jun Matsumoto, who is also an aspiring chef at an Italian restaurant in a small town called Hakata in Fukuoka. Due to an overdose of compliments from his small clientele back at home, Ban undergoes apprenticeship at an upscale Italian restaurant in Tokyo arranged by the owner of the restaurant where he works. In the big city, the conceited Ban suffers multiple bruises to his ego and finally realises that his skills are nowhere near that of a real chef. And so his struggle to embark on a career in cooking up top-notch Italian cuisine begins.

I'm getting addicted to J-dramas because they often feature slices of real life - lessons of life to be lived and learned - that I can identify with. Just like the writings of Haruki Murakami, eccentric as the stories are, there are characters and plots that screams, "Déjà vu! Have you not also lived the very same scenario before?"
Like this one in Bambino! *the scene is at the end of the clip* - Asuka, the more senior appetiser supervisor who used to serve tables to earn her place in the kitchen, tells Ban that the reason why he's always in a panic and tripping over himself. It is because he has no confidence in his skills and wants to get the job over and done with so that he can get away from the table as quick as possible.



I've definitely been in that frame of mind countless times. If I get impatient, I mess up. But when I take my time and perform earnestly (especially during presentations), I can pull it off. My only challenge is, how can I maintain consistency.

Oh, did you see the cute guy there with Asuka and Ban? He's Mukai Osamu, my latest favourite (my other obsession is L. Haha ... he's damn cool). Can't wait to watch Hachimitsu to Clover once I'm finished with Bambino! :)