Itazura na Kiss: Love in Tokyo

I had read some of the manga that this show was based upon and this show more than any I can think of evokes the exact feeling of the comic. This is mostly brought about by the fact that the actors are exceptionally capable at reflecting this. It is like Kotoko has transformed out of the manga to be a real person and the same for Naoki. Kotoko is not a natural beauty, but she is cute and when she sets her mind to it she is, as Naoki says, quite literally a "force of nature". Her determination, positivity, and heartwarming personality make you want to root for her continuously, and Naoki definitely represents something perfectly unattainable that is a natural target for her puissance. A story universal in its appeal, where it is made clear that who you grow into is much more important than how you start off, and that you should never compromise on your dreams if you are prepared to work hard enough to attain them. Incidentally, I watched the Taiwanese version of this and found that even though I speak Chinese far better, I didn't enjoy it as much because the warmth of the characters just wasn't there; the Taiwanese girl was prettier, but she was not Kotoko and didn't have her spirit. Production values are, just like any Japanese TV show, very strong and show some interesting and lesser known parts of Tokyo. Fantastic show.