Watching only the first episode of foreign dramas, endlessly

I had some time on my hands while staying at home, so I decided to watch some foreign dramas. However, the number of them is enormous, and popular shows, much like manga serialized in Weekly Shonen Jump, continue endlessly for over 10 seasons, making the end nowhere in sight and feeling hopeless. Giving up halfway is inevitable.
So, I watched only the first episode of the first season, over and over. Every show puts a lot of effort and money into the first episode, so there are few duds, and it is unlikely to result in a waste of time, so I have no regrets.

This time, in the order I watched them, I rated them on a 5-star scale based on my own 'degree of wanting to see more' and added my impressions. I hope this helps those looking for dramas from a slightly different perspective than a general overall rating of the entire work. Please be aware that the content of the first episode contains spoilers.

My viewing environment is a 42-inch plasma TV. For audio, I used a Victor SU-DH1 for simulated surround sound.
As for movies, my favorite is The Matrix. I prefer human dramas, action, and psychological suspense. I am not good with romance or comedy. However, if regular members from ER appear, I might feel nostalgic and rate it higher. I am overwhelmingly a fan of dubbed versions over subtitles.

There is no information on how many seasons each drama has, whether it is completed, where it can be watched, who the actors are, etc. Please look those up yourself. For questions, impressions, recommendations, or typos, please use the comment section below.

*For reference, I have also attached my drama viewing history at the end.

■HOMELAND ☆☆☆☆☆
The story begins with CIA officer Carrie suspecting that Sergeant Nicholas, a soldier returning from Iraq, is an Al-Qaeda spy. She is isolated, with no one, including her superiors, believing her, and the episode ends just as she finds what looks like a small sign. I can't help but want to see what happens next.

■Star Trek: Picard ☆☆☆
Nostalgic memories of watching this on late-night commercial television as a child come flooding back. The poker exchange between Captain Picard and Commander Data in the first 5 minutes is a true treat for fans from that era. They have aged quite a bit, but I am glad it was produced while the actors and the voice actors who dub them are still alive. The sarcastic and humorous Picard-style dialogue is also still alive and well.

■Game of Thrones ☆☆
A heavy fantasy like Lord of the Rings. There are so many characters that I cannot remember their names. At the first episode stage, it is difficult to distinguish between friends and foes, and I don't know who to empathize with. It is hard to keep watching without any expectations.

■The Flash ☆☆☆
The story of the birth of a new hero, Allen, who is just... really fast at running? The geeky engineer, the capable beautiful operator, and the other characters are easy to understand and likable. It's like an American comic book movie that is almost self-contained in just the first episode. So, there is a sense of satisfaction. Only at the very end does the doctor's mysterious behavior remain, but not enough to make me desperate to see what happens next.

■UPLOAD ☆☆☆
The protagonist, Nathan, is just a handsome guy. He suffers serious injuries in a car accident and is uploaded to a virtual heaven at a young age. It feels like the idea of 'isekai' reincarnation, common in Japanese light novels, made into a serious live-action drama. It is interesting how harsh it is, like not being able to eat delicious food unless you pay extra even after being reincarnated. Can you really say you are alive in this second life? That conflict is the highlight.

■Mr. Robot ☆☆☆☆
I have been watching foreign dramas for many years, but it is rare to have this much monologue from the protagonist. Humorous dialogue is one of the charms of foreign dramas. In that sense, I want to respect the production team for taking on the challenge without fear of criticism. The theme is the overthrow of the world against the dominance of global corporations. Will one hacker succeed in that? In that respect, I want to see the conclusion of the story. Jenny from ER appears as a counselor.

■WESTWORLD ☆☆☆☆
If you want to watch a Western, which has become quite rare these days, this is a must-watch. Although it is a virtual space. Guests can become residents there, shooting guns, playing with women, and doing whatever they want, like in a game. Those who get shot bleed realistically, but they are sophisticated AIs. However, a glitch occurs in that AI... and the future is quite intriguing.

■Hand of God ☆☆☆
A judge who begins to cling to God after his son commits suicide. His face is huge! He starts having hallucinations and acting strangely. He claims it is all a divine revelation. The priest also seems suspicious (that is the intentional setting), and I suppose this is what the process of a mentally broken person joining a cult is like. It has a strong cult religious color, and as for watching the story by empathizing with the judge, it is content I find hard to accept.

■RED OAKS ☆☆
David, who is good at tennis, teaches lessons at a country club as a semi-pro while having romantic relationships with girls. It is nice to be able to watch it quickly in 30-minute episodes. The night parties, which are truly 'American youth!', look fun, but I don't think I would fit in.

■Scorpion ☆☆☆
Four geniuses who are struggling in life. They are all eccentric and unique. Communication at LAX airport was cut off, and nearly 50 planes could not land. The four were called in to solve it. The climax is a masterpiece: a ridiculous scene where they connect a wired LAN cable between a passenger plane flying just above the ground and a supercar driving underneath it. Excellent.

■The Strain ☆☆☆
I want to see what happens next, but the prelude is too long. The first episode ends without anything being explained at all. 206 passengers on a plane from Berlin have died. Is it due to an infection by an unknown organism like an earthworm? They investigate, but... The old man who runs the antique shop has a great personality.

■House of Cards ☆☆☆
Francis, who contributed to the election of the next president, was dropped from the promised position of Secretary of State. Burning with anger, he sets out for revenge. The hot drama that approaches the inside of American politics is the charm. Personally, I am not familiar with the political field and am not good at it, but I enjoyed it. I am also curious about the activities of the young newspaper reporter Zoe. It seems to be a remake of a drama of the same name from 20 years ago.

■Into the Badlands ☆☆☆☆
Full of kung fu action on par with Bruce Lee or The Matrix. Wow, it's cool. A post-apocalyptic world where only martial arts prowess is recognized. The existence of the mysterious country of Azra and a boy who gains mysterious powers only when he sees blood. It's exciting.

■PREACHER ☆☆
An unknown object from space enters the body of a priest in Africa. Immediately after, his body explodes. Meanwhile, in a rural town in America, a loser priest is listening to the troubles of the residents. A man with what seems to be superpowers flies in from the sky. A mystery.

■BULL ☆☆
Bull, a doctor of behavioral psychology, tries to analyze the psychology of jurors in court to acquit Brandon. I hear that American trials are swayed by money, but if they are also manipulated by psychology, the truth will likely be greatly distorted.

■BOSCH ☆☆☆
Detective Bosch, who carries trauma from his childhood, is interrogated after shooting an unarmed suspect. Meanwhile, he discovers the skeletal remains of a child in the mountains. Jerry, the ER receptionist, another middle-aged man, and the actor who played Dr. Coburn in the maternity ward all appear, gathering supporting actors. It can't be a coincidence, right? The old man from the farm in The Walking Dead also appears.

■Patriot ☆☆
He was supposed to go in as an operative to stop Iran's nuclear weapons development, but due to constant trouble, the mission never progresses. Is the main point listening to the scenes where he improvises and sings folk songs that mock the situation? Based on the synopsis, I expected a serious drama, but it was actually a comedy lol

■Sneaky Pete ☆☆☆
After being released from prison, Pete assumes a false identity and enters a family as one of its members. This is to commit fraud and steal money. However, as he helps with the family's work, he begins to experience the warmth of a home... His brother's safety is being held by the person he cheated before entering prison, and he is told that if he doesn't pay the money within a week, they will cut off his fingers one by one.

■GOLIATH ☆☆☆☆
Billy, a washed-up former lawyer, becomes suspicious of a ship explosion incident from three years ago and is about to file a lawsuit when he is assaulted by someone and thrown into a detention center. It seems the incident was something the company Borns Tech tried to cover up. Will Billy also be finished off by the mastermind? If you like cool middle-aged men, this is a must-watch.

■STATE OF PLAY ☆☆☆☆☆
The footage is old, but the content is thrilling. The mistress of the Secretary of Energy is in a train accident. It is judged as a suicide, but she was actually involved in a major incident. The passionate actions of reporters trying to get to the truth. It gets very exciting, involving family, politicians, police, and thieves. It's in the top tier for a hook in the first episode.

■ROMA ☆☆☆
The costumes, stage sets, number of extras, and production costs used to recreate ancient Rome are extraordinary. It's like a Japanese Taiga drama, but the scale is far superior. A rift has formed between Caesar and Pompey, who built prosperity together, and it's at the point where a war might start in the next episode. The depiction of Octavius, who looked like a mediocre boy, showing an unexpectedly intelligent side is skillful. It made me want to walk around Rome in the game Assassin's Creed.

■THE PACIFIC ☆☆☆
The story begins with the landing at Guadalcanal in the Pacific War. The director is Spielberg. It takes a relatively long time for scenes of marching through the jungle where nothing happens, but something feels like it might. The contrast between that quiet, tense feeling and the intense gunfights that follow is good. I haven't studied history, so I thought it was a complete victory for the U.S. military after Pearl Harbor, but it doesn't seem that simple, and the Japanese military also seems to be fighting well. Shane from The Walking Dead appears as a sergeant major.

■Band of Brothers ☆☆☆☆☆
A war drama by Spielberg made before The Pacific mentioned above. This is a story about an airborne unit in World War II. The first episode is almost entirely rigorous training, and it ends just before they finally board the plane and take off. It's a 10-episode series that concludes in one season, so I want to watch it to the end.
Sergeant Nicholas from Homeland is the lead here as well. If you look, there are many famous actors, such as Abraham from The Walking Dead and Morris from ER.

■The Boys ☆☆☆
A world where heroes actually exist. While crushing evil in the world, it has become a huge business, and Vought International is making money from movies and related merchandise. However, the personalities of those heroes are the worst; behind their fame, they satisfy their desires and cover up their mistakes. Hughie, who lost his girlfriend in a hero's accident, and a fake FBI agent corner and defeat one of the heroes, but...

■THE MAGICIANS ☆
A college version of Harry Potter? Quentin, who loves the world of picture books, is guided to a graduate school of magic and passes the exam. But...

■SUPERNATURAL ☆☆☆
A story about brothers chasing strange phenomena and evil spirits. Ten years ago, their mother died in an inexplicable phenomenon where she was burned on the ceiling. Their father, who was chasing the truth behind it, goes missing. In the process of searching for their father, they encounter a ghost in a white dress. Basically, it's an episodic format. Negan from The Walking Dead appears.

■The Expanse ☆☆☆☆☆
I'm excited just because it's a rare serious space show. The setting is space in the future. Humanity is divided into Earth, Mars, and the Asteroid Belt, and humans and aliens live together. A dilapidated spaceship receives a distress signal while transporting ice. They head to investigate, but it's a trap, and their mothership is shot down by missiles!

■DC's Legends of Tomorrow ☆☆☆
To prevent the villain Savage from ruling the world 150 years in the future, the plan is to time-leap, gather 8 heroes, and defeat him at a past stage. It's as luxurious as the Avengers. The pacing of gathering the heroes in the beginning is good.

■The Grand Tour ☆☆
This wasn't a drama, but a car review show. For those who want to see wonderful scenery with cool cars driving. The first episode is a performance battle driving around super-luxury cars like Porsche, Ferrari, and McLaren.

■12 MONKEYS ☆☆☆
It is wonderful in that the theme seems to have foreseen and sounded an alarm about the current COVID-19 pandemic. 7 billion people in the future Earth died because of a virus developed by an organization. They time-leap from the future to find the cause and eradicate it.

■Primeval: New World ☆☆
A crack in space-time occurred, and dinosaurs warped from ancient times to the present day. Two people were eaten by the dinosaurs and died. If I only talk about the setting, it's too cliché. The police want to exterminate them as pests, but there is also a conflict with an organization that says they should be stopped because there is a risk of affecting the ecosystem. Is the highlight the fighting scene between dinosaurs with realistic skin and fur?

■The Night Shift ☆☆☆☆
Sudden emergency patients and speedy, humorous dialogue. With dizzying and thrilling developments, the episode flies by. Of course, romance and the growth of newcomers are also things to look forward to. It also addresses hospital management for uninsured patients and social issues. The two leads are super beautiful. It's the best starting episode to attract viewers.

■Chicago Med ☆☆☆
Starts with the opening of the emergency room and a train derailment accident. Compared to The Night Shift, it gives the impression of telling the story slowly, placing importance on the patients' symptoms, history, and families. The downside might be that it's hard to distinguish them in the first episode because they have gathered too many beautiful men and women of the same type.

■New Amsterdam ☆☆☆
Compared to the two above, there are many cool, unique middle-aged men. A hospital reform drama based on a true story. A go-getter director who fires many staff members all at once from the beginning. The jazz-style music that plays at every scene change is stylish. A famous quote: "If you can't save them as a doctor, save them as a human being."

■MASTERS OF SEX ☆☆☆
A famous obstetrician made the elucidation of sex his research subject! I thought it would be a silly comedy with a theme like this, but the content is terribly serious. The doctor himself is also suffering from infertility with his wife, so it's serious.

■Dr. House ☆☆
House is an eccentric doctor who has a bad leg and great skills, but refuses to wear a white coat. He dislikes examinations and conversations, and since he is only interested in diagnosing and treating illnesses, he has a policy of not meeting patients. Unlike other medical dramas, each episode is dedicated entirely to one patient.

■Fargo ☆☆
An homage to the 20-year-old movie of the same name. A lackluster 40-year-old insurance agent starts to have his life spiral out of control after having a conversation with a murderer, leading to an incident. I didn't know the genre 'black comedy,' but there is indeed a bit of humor mixed into the horror and suspense elements. It's surprising that it's based on true events.

■GRIMM ☆☆☆
Nick is a descendant of the Grimm family, who have the ability to see monsters hiding among citizens. The causes of the bizarre incidents were the work of these monsters. It is a suspense drama where he, as a detective, pursues criminals with his partner Hank.

■Hawaii Five-O ☆☆☆
There are many police dramas, but it's rare for one to be set in Hawaii. He became the head of a special task force, but his methods are rough, forceful, and indifferent to life or death. The beautiful scenery of Hawaii and the many women in swimsuits are a treat for the eyes. Norman Reedus, who plays Daryl in The Walking Dead, appears as a terrorist but is immediately removed.

■The Man in the High Castle ☆☆☆☆
A world line where Japan and Germany won World War II and are governing the United States in a divided manner. Money was spent on the surrounding details, such as buildings and vehicles from the 1950s that never existed. Juliana is entrusted with a mysterious film by her sister. Her sister is killed by the police. Meanwhile, a young man from the resistance also heads to the neutral zone in a truck from New York and encounters Juliana. Because it is drawn so carefully, the story doesn't progress much in the first episode and there is no end in sight, but I am curious about what happens next.

■SS-GB ☆☆☆
During World War II, Germany defeated Britain and the Nazis are in control. However, the police organization is maintained as it is. Detective Archer, who was investigating the suspicious death of an antique dealer, ends up investigating as a Nazi pawn under a German officer. The detective, seen as having betrayed his motherland, becomes a target for the resistance.

■NCIS ☆☆☆
Callen, who was once injured in a shooting incident, returns to the field and teams up with specialists to handle special investigations. The bespectacled accounting lady is a character with a great personality. I feel like they shoot guns too easily and kill too many people. Basically, it seems to be a self-contained episode format.

■Transporter: The Series ☆☆☆☆
Directed by Luc Besson. The opening car chase scene and the opening visuals are incredibly stylish and chic. This alone is worth watching. The setting is simply a transporter who delivers anything if asked, so it's great to be able to watch it without using your head or thinking about difficult things. The fight scenes where he uses his wits and utilizes small items on the spot are also cool. There is a blonde model who is so beautiful it makes you sigh. Recommended if you want to watch something quickly and feel refreshed.

■THE PURGE ☆
One day a year, all crime is permitted. That time has come. The city turns into a mob, and the police and hospitals are locked down. Expectations are high for what will happen with people in various positions, but it moves on to the second episode without much progress.

■Fear the Walking Dead ☆☆☆☆
A story in a different region of the same world line as The Walking Dead. The story is from the eve of the zombie outbreak to the early stages. Because they are trying to reset the settings and draw it carefully from scratch, the appeal of the first episode is weak. But since I am a fan of the main series, I have high expectations for the next episode and beyond.

■LORE ☆☆
At first, there is a few minutes of animation, so I thought I had opened the wrong video. It becomes live-action halfway through. It is a documentary-style work based on biographies and folklore, but the horror element was thinner than I expected.

■HANNA ☆☆
Kidnapped a baby from a facility and fled. Trained in the forest for 15 years. Forged into a killing machine. Finally found and captured. But is this also part of the plan?

■Chernobyl ☆☆☆☆
A drama based on an actual accident. It is much more horrific than any clumsy horror expression. It is short with only 5 episodes, but it is difficult to binge-watch because the mental damage when watching it is severe.

■His Dark Materials ☆☆☆
A fantasy with cute animals that speak human language. The explorer Asriel discovers a castle hidden in dust beyond the northern lands. Meanwhile, the Gyptian child Billy and Lyra's best friend Roger go missing, and Lyra sets off on a search by airship with a lady she is not sure she can trust. She was entrusted with an alethiometer by the Master, but it hasn't told her the truth yet.

■CHUCK ☆☆☆
His best friend Larkin steals state secrets and sends them to Chuck. He is then shot to death. All the encrypted information is stored in Chuck's brain after he receives the email. Chuck, who knows the secret, is chased by the CIA and the NSA. But he ends up cooperating after finding and disarming a bomb. It's more of a comedy than a serious drama.

■Mr. Mercedes ☆☆☆
An indiscriminate hit-and-run incident occurs involving a Mercedes. Two years later, former detective Bill, who retired with the case unsolved, was living a lazy life, but he tries to start investigating again after receiving a mysterious email from the culprit. The foreshadowing of the tennis ball is brilliant. It is also rare for an old man to be the protagonist.

■The Outsider ☆☆☆☆
A bizarrely murdered corpse of a boy was found in a park forest. The suspect, Terry, is at a disadvantage due to all the circumstantial evidence and eyewitness testimony. However, he does not admit it, claiming he has an alibi. With the support of a competent lawyer who believes in Terry's innocence from the beginning, the police side also loses confidence...

--

So, having watched up to this point, the ones I want to watch the second episode of first are Homeland and The Expanse. I'll share my thoughts next time!

※Foreign dramas I have watched so far

□Watched all seasons
ER (15 seasons), The Walking Dead (10 seasons) ← I managed to enjoy both up to about season 6, but after that, it felt like a superfluous addition.

□Watched multiple seasons
The Following (2 seasons), Stranger Things (2 seasons), Blindspot (2 seasons), Star Trek (? seasons)

□Watched one season
The Young Indiana Jones Chronicles, 24, LOST, Elementary, Twin Peaks, Roswell, Strike Back, Prison Break

□Watched one or more episodes
Full House, Fringe, HEROES, CSI: Crime Scene Investigation, Breaking Bad, Sherlock, Shameless, Cold Case, ALF, Friends