live-action asian dramas, anyone?

My comments on Death Note created quite a stir. I should probably grab another episode or 3 to be fair since I made a big fuss about it. What are they on now, 5?

In other news... *significant* work has been made on some site improvements. Test version available soon, hopefully by the end of the week. (I'm not being quiet for nothing.)

Anyone out there watch Asian television dramas? If you're curious, here's a good place to start:

Torrents, Pan-Asia: http://www.d-addicts.com/
Japanese specific: http://www.jdorama.com/

E sorta got me on this last year by suggesting Densha Otoko, which I thought was somewhat meh but opened the door to lots of other things I thought were less meh.

I've seen maybe 10-15 shows in part or in total over the last year or so and I find them generally more amusing than most anime these days. That mix is about 3-4 Korean shows, 1 or 2 Chinese shows, and the rest Japanese.

Things I like specifically:

1) They're short, maybe 12-16 episodes long, about an hour a piece.
2) They're finite, which is absolutely huge. Western series are made until people stop watching and die a slow death. Asian series have a beginning, middle, and end.
3) Like BBC shows, they have the same pool of actors over and over again, which some might dislike but I personally like because you can hunt down your favorites in different roles.
3b) It's very, very easy to have favorite actors in Asian dramas, because they're hardly ever known for one particular role.
4) The variety is huge. The execution isn't as expensive as a Western show, which becomes painfully obvious when you watch a crime, action, or serious drama serial. No Jack Bauer triggering massive pyrotechnics. But, on the other hand, the low-production values put more stress on the actors being generally competent if not outstanding. (And "24" blows bigtime. Way stupider than Death Note, if you need a point of reference.)
5) As shallow as it is, you can find pictures of attractive actors of the opposite sex and hunt for dramas featuring them. Yep, I'm guilty.

* Note: Above list uses "actors" to refer to both male and female variety, which I mention specifically because I strongly believe that unless there is some specific need to denote an actor as male or female (i.e. a pregnant actress) then it's unnecessary.

So, that's my pitch. When anime starts getting stale, try mixing some fun, disposable dramas into your downloading diet.

Recent dramas to start chewing on if you like anime:

- Densha Otoko, about a blubbering otaku who makes hypercute Misaki Itoh fall in love with him by saving her from a drunk on a train. Total geek fantasy, but fun nevertheless.

- Hana Yori Dango, modernized manga adaptation, featuring arguably some of the most currently popular actors of the 18-24 generation. Makes way more sense as a live-action show, very over the top.

List your favorites with summaries or links to summaries below!