Good japanese series.

There's a Great Teacher Onizuka Live Action Series (12 Episodes), but I never watched it :D (The anime sooo good.)

Peacemaker Kurogane.

One Piece (Xtra long), Sword Art Online(short), Shingeki no kyogin("short" not ended yet), Fairy Tail... And i dont remember more names right now.

Google for drama addicts.People there will definitely help you find something suited for your own tastes.
P.S.: plenty of decent/good j-dramas, so i couldn't recommend one. There are original series or live actions (based on mangas). And definitely don't throw the romance stuff. Some time it can be a very good drama.

Densha Otoko (Well, it's a romance but I suggest you to check the story at least).

Lone Wolf and Cub is a classic live action series (although it is based on the manga).

You may have better luck with movies, rather than series. Anything (or everything) by Akira Kurosawa is a good place to start. The (original) Japanese version of Shall We Dance is also quite good, if you're looking for something more modern.

Off the top of my head, I'll say Liar Game, Gokusen, Nodame Cantabile.

If you don't mind tearjerkers, I'd suggest 1 Litre no namida and Koizora too. If you were looking for shoujo dramas, I could be of much more help since I mostly watch those.

Golden Empire Drama
Mischievous Kiss: Love in Tokyo Romcom
Otousan is an old one sorry cant find link

you could try watching the Live Action death note movies >_> though, i'm not a 100 % sure if you'll like them if you haven't seen the anime or read the manga

I've watched so many series that I really don't know what to recommend you since I like em all.

However, I could recommend you movies made by Studio Ghibli since not only that they are well done and have great stories but also do have a lot of cultural references.

Last one I want to watch (and it's on my HDD for a while now) is From Up On Poppy Hill. The story is set in Showa 38 (1963, a year before the Tokyo Olympics) and follows the coming of age of a high school girl named Matsuzaki Umi. The manga recounts her everyday life of laughter and tears with a school newspaper member, the student council president, and other schoolmates.

If you want a romance I would recommend you ef - a tale of memories and ef - a tale of melodies (their are related :P), Allison to Lillia, Nodame Cantabile series ( 1, 2, 3, 4 ).

For non romance, again, Allison to Lillia (actually more of an action series with romance), GTO, Ah, Megami Sama (has some romance though), Death Note, Cowboy Bebop, Planets, Elfen Lied, Ghost In The Shell, Hellsing :D, Metropolis.

You can have a look at my list as well. Not too many dramas and love stories in it, more SF and comedies actually.

Live actions: Gokusen, Nodame Cantabile, Great Teacher Onizuka ( i recommend the nineties series for the first viewing ), Hataraki Man, Sugarless, Sukeban Deka, Shomuni, Yankee Kun to Megane - Chan, Yamada and the Seven Witches. And the best from that batch is by far Hataraki Man due to Kanno Miho's acting.

Actually try 99 - Nen no Ai, it might be perfect for you, period drama although pretty short :(

Off the top of my head: Battle Royale.
It's a movie (in addition to being a manga and probably more things).

For me I Give My First Love To You, I love the ending song by ken hirai <3

Love Exposure is good too. Crows Zero is a must! I don't really know a good source but I have them and enjoyed :P

Watch Gaki no Tsukai. You'll mop the floor laughing.. (:

Also, you can try Beginners! (a bit romantic but more comedy), Liar Game, Kimi Hannin Ja Nai Yo Ne (police-comedy), Onizuka and Mikeneko Holmes no Suiri (a Sherlock version where Holmes is a cat, played by Matsuko Deluxe - need anymore reason? (: ). Though I believe Mikeneko Holmes no Suiri has no subtitle after ep 3. I might be wrong, you should check that out beforehand. (:

samah resukyu - Tenku no Shiryojou
Kuro no Onna Kioshi
Final suggestions take it or leave it!

Google this
D-Addicts:Completed_JDramas

Vermillion Pleasure Night, hands down the best. No argument. Oh Mikey! is great too.

And for synopsies google:
wiki d-addicts

Thus being said, i'm returning to my Love Revolution screening.

Dramas that come to my mind are

Liar game : about innocent girl that "unfortunately" join the game that makes the winner get huge money and the loser must pay huge debt. but she found a genius partner that helps her in game.

Great teacher onizuka : Its about ex-badass gangster that want to be a teacher haha.

Proposal daisakusen : its about man who has a girl that he loved from childhood, but unfortunately married to another man. But come a "fairy" that give him a chance to change past. This is romantic-comedy drama

My Japanese teacher showed us My Boss My Hero in class, it was pretty good

1 Litre no Namida - Have tissues ready.
Last Friends - I wouldn't say this is based on romance. It is quite a good show.

I have almost 0 experience with this but you can always try looking here.

I'll recommend Akihabara@deep .
There's a movie that's a rather serious drama take on the story, and a TV series which is a lot more bizarre and switches between comedy and serious frequently and without warning. The Otaku subculture plays a big part in driving character and plot developments.

I also like the Garo and Kamen Rider series, but that's superhero stuff - so it's a lot more like Anime in terms of story & content.
You probably want to watch some Kamen Rider and/or Super Sentai though, both from back in the 70 when those franchises started and the current series. Those is a large part of Japanese pop culture in the same way Doctor Who is a large part of British pop culture, so background knowledge can help to understand other works.

yes