Japanese TV tends to draw its inspiration from the bountiful well of manga, but Fuji Television and Tokai Television looked overseas to come up with their version of the hit Canadian series "Orphan Black," which began airing Dec. 2.
In the past decade, reworkings of overseas series have found their way onto mainstream television with mixed results. The most successful is likely the highly rated "My Boss My Hero," which was adapted from a South Korean series and aired on Nippon TV in 2006. Last year there was "Hope: Kitai Zero no Shinnyu Shain," which also came from South Korea, and in 2015 there was "The Last Cop," remade from a German series. Adaptations don't always work; the Japanese "Saturday Night Live" was a rather short-lived experiment in 2011.
"Orphan Black," which includes the subtitle "Nanatsu no Idenshi" ("Seven Genes"), is an ambitious undertaking. The main star is South Korean actress Kang Ji-young (formerly of pop group Kara) who plays seven different roles. Her co-stars include veteran actor Naoto Takenaka, but it's clear upon first viewing that this is Kang's vehicle every step of the way. With her supermodel looks, Kang is bound to attract the attention of fans, but some critics have complained her Japanese can be "hard to understand." Fans of the original series have also said she lacks the scope and power required for the role, which won Canada's Tatiana Maslany an Emmy for best actress.
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