This series has been remade by Korea's MBC network as "Dr. Jin". The Korean version is very good, though some credit for this is no doubt due to the quality of the original Japanese version.
Murakami Motoka's Japanese comic book series is the original source of the story.
Was it anime as well?
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Imagine that.
I believe the Jin (2009) Tokyo Broadcasting System television series is live action, just as the Korean remake is live action. The original source, however, is manga, not anime. Sorry for any confusion.
Just from what I have read about the Japanese TV series, I am susceptible to persuasion that it is the better of the two, but not having actually seen it, I cannot be sure; nevertheless, the Korean version is pretty good, and since the last episode I saw of the Korean series ended with a cliff-hanger in which the character, Yi (in the Korean version, called Sakamoto in the Japanese version) has just been threatened with execution for the third time in the series, I anxiously await the next episode.
I just finished the japanese jin season 2. I have been following the korean version too. I have watched a ton of korean drama, but this was my first japanese drama series. I must say that the Japanese version is much better than the korean interpretation. The manga is better than both the dramas.
Manga > Japanese Jin season 1 >>>>>>>>>Japanese Jin season 2 ==Korean Jin.
The japanese jin's season 2 was a huge letdown. Jin was written up as a wimp, who cried too much. It was a little unbelievable that Jin was so emotionally involved with Ryoma sama who flew in and flew out of Jin's life, but was so passionless towards saki. The one sided love and all the sacrifices saki made was just too much for me and i ended up fast forwarding through the final episodes of season 2.
The Korean Jin has failed to hold my attention. The Japanese Jin's season 1 seems more nuanced and heartfelt. The korean Jin is a political drama moving from scene to scene with no character development.