Is the 2023 Drop drama better than the 2009 movie? I think so!

 

You probably know that I have a great big soft spot for delinquent media, whether that be anime, manga or even live-action drama and movies. Well, with that in mind, I wanted to look back at the 2023 drama, Drop, based on the 2006 novel written by Hiroshi Shinagawa, who also directed the 2009 movie and the drama. I wanted to compare the drama to the movie and offer my take on which is better. 

Drop follows the tale of middle school student, Hiroshi Shinanogawa. After a stint attending a prestigious private middle school in which he is bullied, he transfers to a public middle school where his love of delinquent manga causes him to attempt to be like one. Dying his hair red, he is soon called out by resident bad boy, Tatsuya Iguchi, on his first day at the new school. Iguchi beats Hiroshi up pretty badly in a very one sided beat down, but through his spirit and fights with other students, Iguchi accepts him into his gang of friends. Alongside the other members of the gang, Hideki 'Wanko' Yamazaki, Takashi Moriki and Yutaka Anjo, they get involved in a series of big brawls and disputes. 

The differences between the drama and the movie start right from the get-go with the drama showing us a glimpse into Hiroshi's life before he dyed his hair red. We get a scene of him getting a chapter of Bebop High School, his appearance completely different from what he becomes later on. The chapter of Bebop High School is taken from him after he accidentally bumps into a couple of delinquent looking guys from a different middle school. As one guy threatens him with a baton, he is forced to kneel, causing the guys to call him pathetic. To make matters worse, this scene is witnessed by a couple from the same middle which he attends. Following this, he makes the decision to transfer to the public middle school where he encounters Tatsuya Iguchi. 

Another change happens in a scene that has been rehashed from the movie. In the movie's version of the scene Hiroshi and Tatsuya head to the latter's home, where they find a rival gang from a different school waiting for them. The pair take on the lot of them. In the drama, all of the gang are present for the scene and Tatsuya's dad has better involvement as well. Tatsuya and his dad share one of the best moments of the entire drama when they have an argument whilst they repeatedly kick a couple of downed rivals, it's a fun scene. 

There are several characters that are brand new to the drama, such as Katagiri, a man linked to Hide, Hiroshi's brother-in-law to be. Katagiri is a bad dude that was a delinquent that fell down the dark path, becoming involved in the Yakuza and craving violence. His presence ensures that the finale of the drama differs greatly to that of the movie. He's also linked with the detective, Aramaki, who serves a pretty good recurring role throughout the drama, often providing some comic relief or exposition. The game centre manager is also much more of a character with him providing his game centre as a form of hangout for Tatsuya's gang, including Hiroshi. He also oversees some of the fights that take place in the batting centre. 

Thankfully missing from the drama is the awful, jarring failed romance subplot. Miyuki is even replaced entirely with a different character, Misuzu. The decision to include the harsh rejection was a baffling one as it really broke the pace and gave the entire thing a sour mood at the end, which is why I was glad to see that it was done away with for the drama. 

Another big difference is the fact that we actually get to see Hiroshi get a win or two. In the movie, he just got beat time and time again, so it was refreshing to see him pull off some upset victories in fights using his unorthodox methods, which some could see as dirty, but it gets him results! 

There's some nice Shounen manga-like moments where certain rivals become friendly and help the protagonists out in difficult fights. It's handled rather well and makes sense for the plot thanks to the pretty good script. 

The editing is also much better, the pacing flows better being much swifter and the scene transitions are much smoother. The addition of the manga pages as transitions really adds some welcome flair to the drama and I loved seeing them. Hiroshi Shinagawa clearly grew as a director and it really shows when watching the drama after seeing the movie. 

Tatsuya Iguchi also is handled much better in my humble opinion. With the help of having 10 episodes rather than having the time constraints of the movie, he feels much more like a developed character and not a one-note caricature of a delinquent. We see him being vulnerable, we see his efforts to be a friend and Mizuki Itagaki's great performance really helps drive home that Iguchi isn't all bad. 

It's hard and possibly unfair to compare Kanata Hosoda and Hiroki Narimiya. I thought that both did an excellent job in their portrayals of Hiroshi Shinanogawa. Hosoda really nailed the angst within the wannabe delinquent, the desire to be strong and not as weak as he appears. He also excelled in the comedic moments. Normally, I don't like weak protagonists, but Hiroshi is just too likable. 

Karasu Hayashi's Moriki is the definitive version of the character in my opinion. He's the guy that is cool, collected and breaks fights up when they're about to go too far. 

Nao Takahashi and Ukyo Matsumoto make for a great badass duo as Toru Akagi and Kojiro Kato. Takahashi especially stands out with his charisma and overall screen presence. The duo both get a chance to flex their acting skills as well as participate in several fight scenes. 

Overall, I would definitely recommend the drama above the movie, due to Hiroshi Shinagawa's improved skills as a director making it a much better viewing experience. The 2009 movie is still worth checking out, but it is the inferior version in my honest opinion.