Drama Digest
“FAKE MOTION: Takkyu No Osho” is a sports youth series directed by Kawai Hayato and Chimura Toshimitsu. It aired in Japan from the 4th of April 2020 to the 28th of May 2020. The title translates to “FAKE MOTION: The King Of Ping Pong.” The series is a sports friendship series about the story of young high schoolers competing against each other in a ping-pong championship. The series has been based in the year 20XX, where Ping-Pong has dominated the world of high schoolers. Ping-Pong is the deciding factor in the hierarchy of high schools. The story revolves around three groups of people: Satsukawa University Shibuya High school, Ebisu Nagato Campus High School, and the fallen champion. Satsukawa University Shibuya High school is the reigning champion of the annual Ping-Pong competition. Ebisu Nagato Campus High School is the school that challenges Satsukawa school. Takasugi Ritsu, the fallen champion, is a part of Ebisu school but has lost all belief in table tennis. The narrative begins half a year after Ebisu school challenges Satsukawa school. The story proceeds with the captain of Ebisu school’s ping-pong team convincing Ritsu to join the team and fight against Satsukawa school for his highly heightened senses. The series revolves around the two teams fighting against each other and trying to rise in the hierarchy. Will Ebisu School succeed with the help of Ritsu? Will Satsukawa School be able to maintain its title and position in the ping-pong hierarchy?
The Feel-Good Part
The exciting part of the series is the depth. The filmmakers have given enough depth to each character and the story. Each character is placed in the story so well that the audience automatically connects to them.
The Disappointing Factor
For many viewers, the annoying bit of the series would be the boyband sort of school, Tokyo Metropolitan Hachioji Minami Technical High School. The introduction of this school seems to be useless in this series, but it makes much more sense when you watch part 2 of this series. The series has two parts: FAKE MOTION Takkyu no Osho; and FAKE MOTION Tatta Hitotsu No Negai.
In-Depth Analysis
The series is a very well-made series. When you see the poster and the trailer, the series doesn’t give you much motivation to watch it. You expect the series to be an okay-ish series about high schoolers playing table tennis. But when you watch it, you realizee that the series is very packed. The filmmakers have innovatively decided to use a completely different year to give it a fictional setting. This helps to justify even the most minor fictional elements. Due to this, the audience is not taken aback when the filmmakers use the sci-fi elements of each player having a power that they use in playing table tennis, such as mist or fire. If the series were based in real-time, then the audience would find these elements unrealistic and cause them to hate the use of these elements. The series has been well made in its plot, setting, character development, and even its filmmaking techniques. The series is a low budget, but at no point would you feel it is low budget.
Star Power
The casting is the cherry on top of the series. The characters of the series are so strong that even the casting needs to be perfect for the actors to be able to do justice to the roles. This is precisely what has happened in the series. The actors give full justice to their roles. The J-Drama viewers would even be surprised to see their favorite actors performing the kind of roles they have never played before.
Overall Opinion
Overall, the series is a must-watch. The series keeps you entertained throughout. From friendship to drama to sports, the series gives you everything. It is a well-packaged series of only eight episodes.
