Galileo 2 review

Ratings: 6/10

Galileo is one of my favourite mystery-solving drama and Summer 2013 brings it back on screen with a little tweak in casting. That tweak I believe has caused a fading interest of mine.

Fukuyama Masaharu as Yukawa Manabu and Yoshitaka Yuriko as Kishitani Misa

Shibasaki Kou only cameos in episode 1 where she gets a geranium stone as a farewell from Yukawa. Don’t ask why, just watch 😉 I like that she got him a dinosaur DIY model when she is in America because it shows how she knows him too well although I don’t why physicists are in any way involved with the dinosaur ages.

I’ve done a half-mark review previously here, so I won’t be introducing the story again. I’ll jump straight to review.

The Good

The lab assistant, Kuribayashi is still there to provide comic relief. Yukawa sensei is still his old self. The drama has attempted to bring fresh air by introducing Dectective Kishitani and her senior colleague who is always belittled by Kishitani. The mysteries are interesting but not the ones where I’M DYING TO FIND OUT><

Amami Yuki guests in the final two episode. Good to see her playing the antagonist instead of being BOSS all the time. Those of AKB48 fans get to see Yuko Oshima cameo as well.

The Bad

Oh, be prepared but don’t be dampened. I thought Yukawa was the one who MADE the drama Galileo. Yes, he is the lead but when Shibasaki Kou’s Utsumi Kaoru ain’t there anymore, it’s like Batman without Robin. I happen to like Robin side-kicking there too. The dynamic and chemistry existed between Utsumi and Yukawa was what kept me on my heels too. It’s frustrating to see their relationship dangling there when we know the chemistry may sprout into larger POTENTIALS. ‘Eye gleams’. I love how at every end of the episode, their relationship inch a little closer. They are partners, kinda, but I want MOAR >.< Oh well. I was thinking if they came back for season 2, I’d still be excited to watch their platonic relationship. EVEN if it’s still going to be platonic like FOREVER.

Yoshitaka Yuriko’s Kishitani Misa really took me time to get used to. She is really more on the annoying side than persistent. And like Utsumi, she can’t solve her own cases by herself. Cue ‘head desk’. I know they want her character to bring Galileo to new levels, make Yukawa handle a new species of female ( pardon me if females do not have species or whatsoever because I’m not Yukawa) and just bring new interesting vibes. Maybe they didn’t consider that Yoshitaka and Fukuyama don’t have CHEMISTRY. I don’t feel like seeing them lovey-dovey or anything. In fact, Yukawa looks genuinely annoyed and stressed out by her. I’m sorry if I want a teeeny weeny romance here and really hoped that the new casting would bring it on. I just felt that detective dramas are aplenty out there but how many are they that we wanna ship the leads? How many even has chemistry?

I thought that the mysteries and cases were going to be enough to keep me interested but season 2 cases are really predictable. The reason why I loved Galileo the first, was because the mysteries were not so predictable. There is physics and there are twists. Most of Season 2 cases don’t even require physics, like the case of the twins, or the girl with a stone that tells her answers to her questions. It has somehow became a basic detective drama. HOWEVER, being a science student, I can look at it in another way. Sure, there are cases which did not exactly require a physicist to help BUT Yukawa’s character take a scientific approach to the matter in hands. Hypothesises can be wrong, conclusions can be inconclusive. Science is about dissecting the problem bit by bit. It requires proving and repeated experiments with altered variables. O.O please don’t be bothered by my babble. SO, I’m trying to look at the bright side and just take it that not all experiments are success, not all cases are riveting or meaningful sometimes.

My words of advice? Watch the first season. You can feel free to skip the second season unless you are a major fan of Fukuyama Masaharu. My wish? Give me a third season and let’s see you try again with Shibasaki Kou back on board this time.

You forgot we were partners?