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A promotional image featuring Aya Ueto with a cabin attendant attire.

‘Attention Please!‘ is a dorama which was broadcasted throughout spring till the beginning of summer in 2006. A DVD collection was later released in October. It was a relatively popular dorama, gaining an average viewership rating of 16.37%. The ultra-popular actress, Aya Ueto starred in this dorama, which probably was an important factor for the high rating. This dorama spanned over eleven episodes, which is the typical number for most Japanese dramas.

Synopsis

The dorama focuses on the character of Misaki Yoko, a typical country girl. Yoko loses her mother at a young age and she was raised amongst her four elder brothers. For this reason Yoko enjoys the company of males over females ever since she was a young child. Thus it comes as no surprise that Yoko’s attitude lacks any delicacy and is extremely brash. During her high school years Yoko joins a band and becomes their vocalist. Overall Misaki Yoko is an irresponsible tomboy, who thinks that becoming an adult is troublesome and boring. Her only problem is how to find a way to confess to her crush, Tsukasa.

However when she finishes high school, she realizes she needs to find a job and that’s when her real problems start. Yoko only wants to sing with her band and has no idea on what she would like to do in the future. Yet when Tsukasa jokingly mentions that he would like to see Yoko in a cabin attendant uniform, Yoko is convinced that it is the path she must take in order to obtain Tsukasa’s heart. On a whim, she decides to become a cabin attendant, without considering the consequences. Thus Yoko travels to Tokyo and applies to work with the company JAL. Oddly enough they hire her and this is when her misadventures begin.

Yoko feeling rejected…

Making friendship with Shouta

Ex-rock singer Misaki Yoko is the most unlikely candidate to become a cabin attendant. Her tomboyish attitude, along with her loud and overconfident character are a disastrous combination for a cabin attendant. Everybody knows this and thus it is no surprise that most of her co-workers are reluctant to accept or befriend Yoko. Thus Yoko seems to make more enemies than friends! The rest of the staff and the instructors find Yoko a shocking and unwanted addition. However what they did not know was that Misaki Yoko hated losing and was a fighter…

The Characters

Ueto Aya as Misaki Yoko
Misaki Yoko is the protagonist of this dorama. At first, Yoko is a rather obnoxious character, who seems to be extremely accident prone and unable to be responsible for anything in her life. She decides to become a cabin attendant on a whim and accepts to go and live with a stranger in an apartment without a second thought. When she starts her training classes, Yoko seems to end driving everyone crazy and the rest of the class in chaos. An all female environment is something foreign for Yoko and she lacks the feminine characteristics, which are so vital for a cabin attendant.
However Yoko slowly starts fitting in with the rest of the class, to a certain extent and also starts gaining a lot of friends and allies who support her. Yoko starts understanding the meaning of being a cabin attendant and decides to work hard to achieve her aim.
Aya Ueto is a popular artist and singer. However her talents are mostly appreciated in the acting industry, where she’s won a plethora of awards. Aya has also received a lot of commercial endorsements, since she is one of the most popular faces in the entertainment industry.

Nishikido Ryo as Nakahara Shota
Shota appears for the first time when Yoko was accidentally pushed into him, while she was in the train station. Her ticket falls from her hand and she is convinced that he stole her ticket. Thus when she sees him again at her workplace she is quite aggressive towards him. It is no surprise that he thinks that Yoko is extremely loud and annoying. Shota is a reserved person, who is dedicated to his job and doesn’t expect any recognition or attention. In short, he is the complete opposite of the outgoing and self-centered Yoko. Thus they clash a lot during the series because of their different personalities and opinions. However things slowly start changing when Shota discovers the real Yoko behind her loud exterior.
Nishikido Ryo is mostly known for his singing career in the Johnny’s groups Kanjani∞ and NEWS, where he enjoys a huge fanbase. However his acting career has recently been in the spotlight since his brilliant performance of ‘1 Litre of Tears‘.

Maya Miki as Mikami Tamaki
Mikami is an instructor for aspiring cabin attendants, although she is also a veteran cabin attendant. However, due to a past experience, Mikami decides to abandon being a cabin attendant and becomes an instructor instead. She’s extremely strict and an absolute perfectionist. The first meeting with Yoko is nothing short of pleasant. Yoko was calling the instructor “old grandma” to create some comic relief within the class, but was oblivious of the fact that Mikami was outside hearing everything.
The two of them end up sharing a mutual dislike towards each other. Mikami claims that Yoko will never become a cabin attendant and disapproves of her tomboyish attitude. Yoko thinks that Mikami is too annoying and works hard to prove her wrong. Maya Miki is a former top star at Takarazuka Revue. Afterwards, she took up acting in 2000.

Aibu Saki as Wakamura Yayoi
Yayoi is another aspiring cabin attendant but unlike Yoko, she has always dreamed of wearing an elegant uniform and being a cabin attendant. Yoko and Yayoi become friends at once, despite of being the polar opposite of Yoko. Yuki Sekiyama also becomes a close friend of Yayoi and Yoko. Yayoi’s father owns a soba shop, which ends up being the meeting place for Yoko and pretty much the rest of the JAL crew. Yayoi is a shy and reserved person, but she stands up for Yoko when her classmates turn against her. Through Yoko she gets to know Shota and develops a crush towards him. Throughout the whole series Yayoi’s aim is to confess to Shouta. Aibu is a relatively new actress, who has received moderate success since her debut in 2003. She frequently acts as a secondary character in doramas and movies.

Uehara Misa as Hirota Saori
Saori is an extremely ambitious aspirant cabin attendant. She takes her training seriously and works hard to be the best of the class. She gives off the aura of being sophisticated and snobbish. Saori is set on reaching a high status in JAL and thus she aims to hang around with the elite staff. Seeing Yoko, take the training session on a lighthearted note, made Saori dislike her immediately. Saori and Yoko become rivals and they are always passing snide comments towards each other.
Misa has a long acting career behind her in doramas and movies, her most notable appearance being in the popular horror movie, ‘Ju On’ which is known as ‘The Grudge’ with the western audience. She has also received various commercial endorsements.

Koizumi Koutaro as Tsutsumi Shuusuke
Tsutsumi Shuusuke is your typical ladies’ man. He loves women and makes no secret of it. Yoko meets Tsutsumi while he jumped from a balcony to escape from who I assume was an infuriated girlfriend, while he was actually with another girl! Yoko, bewildered by this insane scene, helps him escape from her wrath and he invites her to dine with him sometime. Yoko takes advantage of this by inviting her friends and forcing Tsutsumi to foot the bill to maintain his secret. He develops a crush on Hirota Saori and is always trying to get her to date him. Tsutsumi is also a pilot-in-training, but not unlike Yoko, he doesn’t really take his job seriously and seems more keen in getting the attention of cabin attendants.
Koizumi Koutaro is the son of the ex-prime minister, Junichiro Koizumi. He is also known as the rumored fiance of the singer and actress Hitomi Shimatani. They have acted together in a dorama called ‘Boku dake no Madonna’, where they have also ended up dating.

The Music

The opening song is performed by the singer, presenter and model Kaela Kimura. Kimura is well known for her alternative style in her wardrobe selection and her hairstyles. Recently it has been reported that she’s been dating SU from Rip Slyme. She covered the infamous song ‘Pretty Woman‘ by Roy Orbison, which was rearranged in a more modern style and a rock genre. This song was released only in the ‘Attention Please Soundtrack‘. Oddly enough this song was never released in her discography, since it certainly had potential to become a hit. Also Kaela Kimura has recently released an album on the 7th February 2007 called ‘Scratch’. This album topped the charts by selling 198,727 copies. Kaela also made a cameo appearance on episode 10 of ‘Attention Please!’.

Conclusion

This dorama has a very special place in my heart, especially since it’s the very first Japanese dorama I’ve ever watched. I started watching this dorama on a whim to relax, but I ended up getting so much into it, that I myself felt like becoming a cabin attendant! I ended up watching all the episodes in a matter of a few days because this dorama was extremely addictive and entertaining.

Realising she fell in love…

Finally becoming a cabin attendant

The dorama is extremely uplifting and the atmosphere gives off a positive aura. Despite the fact that Misaki Yoko applies to become a cabin attendant for the wrong reasons, she gradually starts to learn what it really means to be a cabin attendant and grows to appreciate the meaning of being one. Aya Ueto manages to come out with a stunning performance and portrays Yoko’s tomboyish character extremely well.

My only gripe was that Yoko and Shouta’s relationship seemed to lead to nowhere, after the dorama had built their relationships slowly and hinted in so many ways that they both had feelings for each other. It made their relationship seem stagnant that Yoko and Shouta never got past their friendship and became an actual couple. Thus the ending was kind of dry and disappointing to me.

This is a story about a young irresponsible female who grows up to be responsible and a talented cabin attendant. It also shows that if someone puts their heart into something, they can really change and become whatever they want. The eleven episodes portray how hard cabin attendants work, and it made me appreciate their dedication.

Rating:

Torrent: Fansub by Kioku Konseki
Torrent: Original Soundtrack
Purchase: Attention Please!