Good Luck!!

This is one of those older "feel-good" series, a hidden gem, that is so much needed today. Good Luck is a rare, well-written, well-acted, and realistic aviation-related show. I like the way its scriptwriter measures various contents because they are well-balanced. Most of the story lines revolved around the career of enthusiastic young co-pilot, Shinkai. Job details such as safety, seniority, check lists, training, and even periodic medical check-up were handled and described very well. It's not surprising that this big-budget drama is supported by a premium airlines in Japan, All Nippon Airlines, so it didn't fail in its expectations. Not only the pilot's everyday life, but his relation with fellow pilots, family, girlfriend, and neighbor were amusing as well. It was organic and very realistic. Overall production was superb and the music was perfect!

The wonderful characters portrayed in this drama were varied and interesting...particularly Kimura Takuya (Le Grand Maison) as young first officer and co-pilot, Shinkai and Tsutsumi Shinichi (handsome, intense veteran actor) as Captain Koda. Kimura was excellent as he always is. But, Tsutsumi stole my heart with his superb acting and depth. The supporting casts played well, too, while the actress playing the veteran flight attendant Togashi (Kuroki Hitomi) was sheer delight! I loved pretty actress, Shibasaki Ko, who played a difficult character and love interest, Ogawa the Mechanic. Bravo to all!

Last but not least, this series made my heart ache in many ways, yet uplifting in its positive outlook on dreams. It also made me an aviation enthusiast!. A must-watch!

This was a much better drama than I first thought. With its vintage video patina, it presented almost as a cheesy, daytime soap. However, the quality of the cast soon dismissed such a notion. Takuya Kimura in the lead had a lot of presence. It was an underplayed performance but that leant it its credibility. The biggest role went really to ANA ... All Nippon Airways. A ten hour commercial (!) but the producers got such a good deal with incredible access to the maintenance hangars. If you're an aviation geek you'll get a great kick out of stripped down engines, close-ups on landing gear and even an exposed APU!

I'm not gonna lie, I wasn't expecting much from this show at first. I was just scrolling through Netflix and wondered what the show would be like so I decided to check it out. Boy am I glad I did!

I had no idea what to expect at first but I was hooked by the end of the first episode. The characters are fantastic. Even the ones you don't think you like end up growing on you. In a way the show kind of feels like a live action anime in all the right ways.

The show also does a great job of showcasing Japanese culture and the different way they look at work. It's quite interesting to watch from that perspective too.

All in all, I'd highly recommend this show but I will say if you aren't interested in the show after the first episode, you probably won't be interested in the rest of it. That said, if you are interested, you're going to be in for a treat.

Having achieved his life-long dream of being a pilot, Hajime is first officer on an international jetliner and is now working to become a captain. But he can't seem to please Captain Mizushima, who has become an exacting taskmaster since an air incident many years ago. To complicate matters, he begins a relationship with stubborn and straight-talking mechanic, Ayumi, whose parents died many years ago in the plane crash for which Captain Mizushima feels he is responsible. What follows is a story of 21st century love, dreams and passion. This is a very good drama and is on the top ten J-dramas on Jdorama.com At the moment it is number 6. This was the first J-drama I've seen and one of the best!

Apparently this originally was a TV series in Japan and was set in a time before smoking was banned in public places, so it makes it a little dated. But the story grips you from the beginning with the dour, bullying Auditor, Kodak, giving young trainee pilot Shinkai a hard time and being very petty. The story develops from there and is very much a tribute to its strong cast - with excellent acting across the board. The plot engages you from the beginning and the storyline is strong and even tense sometimes. Very occasionally it shows its TV series origins and strays into being a little soapish, but never for long and is quickly rescued by the strong acting. You will grow to love all the characters and girls will undoubtedly swoon over Shinkai (who is rather a hunk - and I'm a feller! 😁). Definitely worth a watch and a rare 10/10 from me.