Title: 息もできない夏
Title (romaji): Iki mo Dekinai Natsu
Format: Renzoku
Genre: Romance
Episodes: TBA
Viewership rating: TBA
Broadcast network: Fuji TV
Broadcast period: 2012-Jul-10 start
Air time: Tuesday 21:00
Theme song: TBA
Synopsis
It may seem like most of us in modern society live the ordinary life: Wishing for the happiness of self, family, and loved ones. Some, however, live an unimaginable life, with a past that could only be understood by few, and carry a fate so vast upon them. The characters that appear in this story each carry such deep scars or secrets, and are burdened to their destiny.
"Breathless Summer" picks up on a rather rare social situation where a girl grows up without a family register. In other words, without citizenship to her own country. As she uncovers the truth about her identity, she comes across an older man, most likely as old as her father, with a scarred heart. Amidst crossing paths and being torn apart from their surroundings, the two become inseparable to each other, what becomes a shocking but bittersweet summer love story.
Tanizaki Rei, the girl without a family registry is played by Takei Emi. Rei is an innocent 19 year old girl, one that you may find anywhere else in the world, excited about what her forthcoming future might bring. Coincidentally, she finds out the truth about her background, that she isn't recorded as being born in the legal books. The truth shocks her, brings her down in thinking that she does not truly exist in the societal world.
The older man that she meets, is a 41 year old former newspaper reporter Kiyama Ryuichiro. When Ryuichiro was still a news reporter for a major newspaper, his inherent composure and sense of justice in saving the weak led him to uncover exclusive scoops. It was not until a twist of fate involved him in an accident that he is forced to leave the firm. Now he lives quietly in the suburbs working night shifts at the ward office.
Japan's civil code 772 states that if a child is born between a couple where the wife had been in a prior marriage less than 300 days ago, the child will be registered under the prior husband's family register even if DNA tests prove that the child is that of the new couple. This questionable law was in effect for over 110 years without ever being amended, thus creating children who grow up to be without a family registry. One may think; "What are the chances?" But the incident portrayed can happen to anyone, and it is a fact that such children exist in this country.
How will Rei face her destiny and overcome it? Will Ryuichiro be able to admit to his sins to find meaning in his life? What will become of their love? Brutal as it may be, the drama will shine light on how wonderful it is to live and love through a complicated family relationship. Expect nothing less than a sensational social entertainment drama this summer! -- Fuji TV
A cheerful girl who thinks of her mother. Although they are poor, her mother Yoko, sister Mao, and her pull together to live. She did not receive the best education, but she loves studying, or rather likes working hard so that she can take over from her mother who has been cheerfully watching over them even though it has been tough on her. She graduated from high school with excellent results, and knew that there was no money for her to attend university. Her dream is to become a patissier who can make pastries that touch people’s hearts someday. Her fascination with pastries began after her mother made an apple pie during her childhood. When there were things that made her miserable, she would always eat her mother’s odd-shaped apple pie, and feel its curious power to warm a person’s heart. She began working part-time at her current work place since the first year of high school. In the midst of this, she gets the big chance to be selected as an official employee. It is finally the first step towards her goal to put her dear mother at ease and dream to train in Paris, the home of pastries. At that time, it was the moment when the door to the future that she had diligently work towards. At least, at that time, her future was bright. However, during the procedure to become a full-fledged company employee, she learns the shocking truth that she does not exist on the family register or have citizenship. In her despair, she starts to fight to regain herself. Kiyama Ryuichiro becomes her only friend among the people she maintains a distance from. She grows attracted to Ryuichiro and a love for him develops … …
Eguchi Yosuke as Kiyama Ryuichiro
A 42-year-old single man who finds no hope in life. A former journalist on the city news team of a leading newspaper. Originally a person who rebelled against authority and desired to be the voice of the weak, he aspired to be a journalist and in 1993, joined a leading newspaper. He moved from being a city news reporter, to a reporter covering the First and Fourth Investigative Divisions in the Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department’s press club. Five years ago, became the top reporter of the judicial press club in an extraordinarily quick career advancement. However, his destiny changed after something happened and he left the newspaper out of disappointment. It was a path that everyone envied. However, he grew aware that he had become an ace reporter with a string of scoops rather than a reporter who wrote articles that gave voice to the socially vulnerable. He certainly had not forgotten his original intentions, but the expectations and sense of duty naturally made him look for incidents that would be good material. During that period, something happened that greatly shook up his role as a journalist and he left that newspaper. After that, Kiyama abandoned all his desires, ambitions and sense of justice, deciding to sacrifice his life in atonement for a past incident. He now works as a temp at night at the ward office, and lives in solitude. One day, a young girl who does not exist in her family register arrives at the ward office. He did not think that they would become deeply involved in each others lives. He would later feel that the intensity of her gaze in the moments that she loosens up, is identical to his previous self. Having refused to face up to his past all this while, he knew instinctively that if she did not help him, he would not have helped himself.
Kimura Yoshino as Tanizaki Yoko
Tanizaki Rei’s mother. A single mother who works as a nurse. A woman with a bright, sunny personality despite being poor. She has had to raise her two daughters single-handedly after losing her husband in an accident 14 years ago. Young for a mother of an 18- and 14-year-old, she and her daughters are called the beautiful three sisters by neighbours. In contrast to her cheerful exterior, she hides a big secret regarding her beloved daughter, Rei. She did not list Rei’s birth in the family register, and she has never told anyone about this, much less confessed the truth to Rei. Despite the remorse and regret that she constantly lives with, she is determined protect Rei to the end no matter how matters change. However, this time, because Rei has learnt about her situation, the strong bonds between mother and daughter start to fray. And the dreadful past that she was supposed to have put behind her as well as another secret that she never spoke of to anyone else, quietly and brutally attack her again … …
Nakamura Aoi as Kusano Kota
A mysterious youth who lives alone in a cheaply-built apartment. He meets Tanizaki Rei when she goes to the ward office for advice on the application for social security. For some reason, he lends an ear to the exchanges between Rei and Kiyama Ryuichiro. Picking up on something which gets him strangely interested in Rei’s matter, he begins to check up on her after that … …
Kaname Jun as Ayukawa Hiroki
A man with a fearless smile and a menacing expression who appears before Natsume Shusaku. He, for some reason, asks Natsume for money, and appears whenever he feels like it to take the cash. The appearance of this horrible man, derails the lives of Kiyama Ryuichiro, Tanizaki Rei and her mother … …
Asada Miyoko as Tanizaki Kaori
Tanizaki Rei’s grandmother. Mother-in-law of Tanizaki Yoko. She thinks that her son’s marriage to Yoko doomed him, and hates her. She also has doubts about Rei’s birth and treats her harshly. She believes that her beloved son’s life would not have been derailed had Rei not been born.
Kitaoji Kinya as Natsume Shusaku
A mysterious, regular customer who only comes to buy the apple pie that Tanizaki Rei bakes when Rei is in the store. At times, his gaze when he looks at Rei is more than that of a mere customer. He is an extremely mild and ordinary elderly man. However, his gaze when he looks at Ayukawa Hiroki is that of a person with profound hatred. He recently lost his wife and for the first time in his 63 years, he makes a major decision and sets foot in this town.
Anyway, I've seen the first two episodes and I liked them. I felt them to be quite lengthy at parts, but the plot was delivered really well. Here are some further thoughts
So the main premise is of a young 19 year old girl who was not added to her family's registry. In the first episode we were left with lots of questions, but I am glad the second episode covered some of those questions well.
I for one could not imagine my reaction if I found something like this out. I initially thought it was a bit over dramatic, but after some thinking I can sympathize with Rei. Her life was just getting in order, and the person who could help her (her mom) was unwilling to help. I was pretty angry at the mom until episode 2 revealed that she was abused by her ex-husband.
So far there is no romantic interest between the two mains, so I am really interested to see how this works out. Kiyama has that...family, is it? He is also a guy who follows the rules, which I am sure has something to do with that incident from before. I don't think we quite know what that incident was?
Also we have that younger kid (online ID Whiskey Bourbon) who seems mysterious yet fitting for Rei as they both may be in the same situation. Although he is quite a creepy fellow as he follows Rei around.
And what is with the Grandmother and hating Rei? Jeez.
So what are your thoughts?
Last edited by Loki on Aug 24th, '12, 03:38, edited 2 times in total.
@Loki: please make a proper introductory first post about the drama, because "I can't believe nobody made a topic for this drama yet!" says absolutely NOTHING about the plot, actors, such unimportant factors to the drama.
Thank you.
Update: it's beautiful now^^
Last edited by Ethlenn on Jul 19th, '12, 19:54, edited 1 time in total.
Ethlenn wrote:@Loki: please make a proper introductory first post about the drama, because "I can't believe nobody made a topic for this drama yet!" says absolutely NOTHING about the plot, actors, such unimportant factors to the drama.
Thank you.
Will do. Sorry, it is my first time starting a thread. Although if you click on the spoiler portion of my post I think you may find some information -I just did not want to spoil anything just in case.
I finished watching both eps few ours ago and here are my thoughts.
I picked this drama only and only because of Eguchi Yosuke to be honest. Never seen Takei Emi in anything before.
I kind of have mixed emotions about the romance part of this story. I have no problem watching romance and love story between a couple with some age gap but here is a bit strange for me. I don't know why though.
Another casting problem for me is Jun Kaname being the father. I just can't imagine him as this characters. He just doesn't look old enough to have a daughter at this age.
I am really curious to see how the story progress between the two lead . Not to mention other mysterious characters we have seen so far.
On a different note, how is it possible that Eguchi Yosuke looks younger and younger everytIme I see hIm?
I watched this drama because the description (from somewhere else) says that it's about forbidden love and hinted that the 19 yrs old may fall in love with her possible biological father. I thought wow, Japan sure is so open minded. Of course I soon found out the description is all very wrong. Regardless, I'm very interested in the possible romance between the two main characters with big age gap. It's kind of cute. Having said all that I do find that it's a bit frustrating to watch the mother. And right now, I'm having a hard time swallowing the idea that
Kaname Jun plays the father. He's like 31 yrs old. If he had a child when he was 18 then she would only be around 13 yrs old. And he doesn't look 37. Come on now. There are so many other 37ers who can take the role. This is like how they have Ueno Juri playing 9-10 yrs old in that Taiga.
It's only two eps and my interesting premise is already crumbling before my eyes. Let me just ignore that fact and concentrate on the romance. Older Yosuke falling for young lady is something to see.
I like it...but it seems really wierd. Maybe a cultural thing, but if you born, you exist ! This story is like being an illegal alien in your own country. Very wierd..good but wierd.
The mother is also horrible. This is worst than becoming a single teenage mom. It's a problem that shouldn't exist. It's also wierd and hard to believe that she never got any medical care up until now.
so basically Rei never receive a medical care or her mother covered it with her own money in 18 years.
i dont really understand the rule? (300 days rule) can someone enlighten me?
can someone born beyond marriage (bastard) and without proper father/ nobody took up the responsibility be registered in Japan?
overall, this drama are very good so far.. but im baffle because most site tag it as romance drama. no sign of romance, yet..
I'm a bit unsure of the rule in Japan (even after reading the synopsis) but I would suggest to follow what happened in the drama so far. The mother didn't want to register Rei in their family registry because the father could see it and potentially track them.
I'm positive more will be revealed in the upcoming episodes.
i dont really understand the rule? (300 days rule) can someone enlighten me?
can someone born beyond marriage (bastard) and without proper father/ nobody took up the responsibility be registered in Japan?
The rule is about a baby that was born not more than 300 days after the mother got divorce with her previous husband..
The baby is considered as the previous husband's child, so the baby has to be registered in the previous husband's family register.. unless DNA test prove the baby is not the previous husband's child, or the previous husband testify in the court that the baby is not his...
Mao sure had a sissy fit! It was probably done to make Rei all alone. Anyone feel paranoid that somebody else was hiding in her place?
I'm still a bit lost on Kiyama's past incident. From what I gather he possibly had some interview with a newspaper and they printed some unwanted article about buying and selling drugs at his old company. This caused more media attention and a colleague of his committed suicide due to the possible upcoming media questioning?
Kiyama also has that awkward relationship with that woman and the kid. Still have to wonder what all that is about.
That Whiskey BonBon guy + that mysterious other person = ?
The mother!!! This is the second time where she gives us a bit of hope that she can be a good mother...and then something happens. I can only assume this will happen again.
Rei had to grow up a lot in this episode. She had to try to learn to be independent, and then realize that she does have support. And finally the inevitable meeting with her biological father was a very interesting cliffhanger. Have to wonder if that was by chance or not?
Romance wrote:I'm personally so tired of Takei Emi by now... but i like Eguchi...
How is this drama after all? Worth a watch or nothing special?
I personally think this drama is quite a heavy drama. I feel sometimes the episodes move a bit slow at times, but the pace is consistent until some pretty good cliffhangers at the end. The romance part might not be what you expected, mini spoiler ->
3 eps in and nothing has happened
. I guess I wouldn't recommend this if you are personally tired of Takei Emi as she is part of the main cast. I personally have seen her in Taisetsu na Koto wa Subete Kimi ga Oshiete Kureta, and W no Higeki, and I think she is a tremendous young actress.
I'm thinking that the whole problem of having no family register is not the real storyline of this drama. of course the first 2eps were heavily depended on it but It's more like an excuse to bring all characters together and connect them to each other without having to go the long way of introducing them to us one by one.
I'm liking this drama so far. more heavy theme coming later for sure.
but Jun Kaname as the dad is still bothers me alot. the mother also annoys me alot. even though she explained her running away and her her concern for Rei's well being, is still does not justify the fact that she left her two daughters on their own. yes, they are not young but still she run away on her own.
now I'm so curious to know how the love story between Kiyama and rei begins.
ps. I think Emi is doing a good job in her character. but of course, my weakness is Eguchi who I can't take my eyes off him.
I'm still clueless about the relationship of Kiyama and the widow. It seems he lives in their house so maybe they're a couple??? Really aside from the possible romance of Kiyama and Rei, other factors are really not worth watching for me. Come on, get on with the romance. I want some angst.
Whew, I am glad that Rei's little rivalry with her co-worker had been addressed. I hope it is over now.
I wonder about Kouta's relationship with Kiyama's friend, is it really how Kouta told Rei?
I like the growth shown from Rei, and Kiyama was the one to help her with that. Is that a connection we see now?
The cliff hanger once again was done really well. Now we have the sisters reunited with their Mom (...uhh at least for now), but we also have the Dad inching closer. I really do hope they don't drag this family registry issue out until the last episode!
I'm already bored and tired of the whole family register problem. It's getting annoying and dragging. One minutes is solved another minute still with lots of problems. If the writer has made this issue the centre point of storyline, it's a major problem. As serious as it can be for some people, we viewers already know what hardships waiting for them and don't need a constant reminder. They either fix this issue now and put her in family register or if they want to leave it till last ep, I don't want to know anymore about it till then and just leave it the background.
I see some nice moments between rei and kiyama in the next ep. I'm looking forward to see it.
love this drama, one of the best 2012 summer jdo, worth- watching
,I`ve been a fan of Eguchi Yosuke since early 90`s. [Tokyo Love Story, Ai to iu na no moto ni, 101kkai me no propose, hitotsu yane no shita 1&2 were great. Takei Emi is a good actress too.
im trying to watch this drama without subs (part of my of learning process to studying the language).. so i probably missed out or misunderstood certain things here.. pls enlighten me (ive deleted the previous episodes. hard disk space issue)
ep01-04
>the whiskey (chatting board) guy is the same guy visited the ward office right (on ep01)?
i wonder why Rei chan just look OK /not surprise. she can safely assume he's a stalker. (IIRC Rei chan didnt gave much info about herself during chatting)
>Yoko asked her 1st husband a divorce then unfortunately he raped her. probably Rei was conceived of this occasion. right? thats explained the 300 days issue..
agreed with some posts here about family registry issue. it should not be drag more..
digitalcoconut wrote:im trying to watch this drama without subs (part of my of learning process to studying the language).. so i probably missed out or misunderstood certain things here.. pls enlighten me (ive deleted the previous episodes. hard disk space issue)
ep01-04
>the whiskey (chatting board) guy is the same guy visited the ward office right (on ep01)?
i wonder why Rei chan just look OK /not surprise. she can safely assume he's a stalker. (IIRC Rei chan didnt gave much info about herself during chatting)
>Yoko asked her 1st husband a divorce then unfortunately he raped her. probably Rei was conceived of this occasion. right? thats explained the 300 days issue..
agreed with some posts here about family registry issue. it should not be drag more..
Yes, Whiskey BonBon/Kouta showed up at the same office in the first episode. Looking back, he asked if he could receive welfare without an I.D.
And yes, Rei surely seemed to have revealed herself online to Kouta. This is probably just an occasion where Rei was too blinded by his help online and that they are in similar situations that it seemed okay to meet. But he totally gives off the stalker/creeper vibe!
The issue about the Mom is a little less clear. They have that one clip of the violence leading into the rape, and they keep playing that. But what you said makes sense. I don't think that 300 day rule has been mentioned yet in the show, has it?
I don't know how this story will eventually turn out, as this already turned out unexpectedly different for me. But boy, I'm totally enjoying this drama! So worth watching. And episode 5 is inteeeensssse!
same here. I just watched ep5 and I'm confused now.
I'm confused about about Rei's dad now. I can't make up if he's pretending to be sorry or of he's genuine. his first impression were definitely were not good. I thought that he already figured it out that rei is his daughter but it seems not. he just starting to suspect it.
and I really want to know more about Kiyama and that lady he's living with relationship. why on earth he lives with her. I know he feels responsible for her husband's death but still...
and the boy Kusano, It's kind of disturbing to think about his "other" job and I really can't trust him some how
and so far there is no sign of romance between two leads so I'm kind of annoyed a little
but over all, I am liking this drama alot and can't wait for new ep each week.
Issy wrote:same here. I just watched ep5 and I'm confused now.
I'm confused about about Rei's dad now. I can't make up if he's pretending to be sorry or of he's genuine. his first impression were definitely were not good. I thought that he already figured it out that rei is his daughter but it seems not. he just starting to suspect it.
and I really want to know more about Kiyama and that lady he's living with relationship. why on earth he lives with her. I know he feels responsible for her husband's death but still...
and the boy Kusano, It's kind of disturbing to think about his "other" job and I really can't trust him some how
and so far there is no sign of romance between two leads so I'm kind of annoyed a little
but over all, I am liking this drama alot and can't wait for new ep each week.
Yeah I think Rei's dad is very suspicious. The signs pointing to him being more on the bad side are like him taking money from the grandfather, and the weird suspicious looks at times. Otherwise there is just a bunch of music which makes him seem quite evil. I thought that he somewhat seemed pretty genuine when he talked with Rei, though. Although he seriously does nothing other than walk around.
And speaking of evil, that woman Kiyama lives with might end up being the evil character in this story. Holy smokes is she some sort of jealous or what? I also did not know she was that widow, I guess it is only fitting. Kiyama might feel he can't ever be with her as he feels too sorry.
I mentioned last time about Kusano Kouta -something is really fishy about his job. I'm sure we are all thinking male prostitute at night.
As for the romance, I actually think the romance is just super slow. At least in the last episode we can see how Rei actually relies a bunch on Kiyama and she feels comfortable talking to him about anything. Kiyama himself has changed from a quiet and stoic character to one that is having a happy time in a situation like this. I'm also sure that his "by the book" character may be broken in the future because of Rei. I'm interested to see how this trial will go, but those things take FOREVER!
There is always just enough to keep me interested each week. I haven't seen a drama this heavy in a while, I find myself having extra sympathy juices. I have to be honest, if it weren't for Takei Emi I don't know how much more I would take.
not sure why but I have a feeling that we are not going to get the romance that we all expecting between rei and kiyama by the end.
First of all it's a jdrama and secondly in jdramas two people with such a huge age gap (he can practically be her dad) normally won't be romantically involved with each other like other dramas. Although I really like to see this happens but I'm not going to build too much hope on it.
not sure why but I have a feeling that we are not going to get the romance that we all expecting between rei and kiyama by the end.
First of all it's a jdrama and secondly in jdramas two people with such a huge age gap (he can practically be her dad) normally won't be romantically involved with each other like other dramas. Although I really like to see this happens but I'm not going to build too much hope on it.
I know right? The synopsis for this drama is very misleading. I think they just grew fond of each other, but I don't think their relationship is going to become romantic at all.
Next ep, momma stabs ex-husband then momma goes to jail. Rei comes flying into Kiyama's arms. The plot thickens. Me like. Let the loving begins boys and girls.
I guess the whole trial thing won't be done, which is a relief as that would be dragged on.
The mother is still as frustrating as ever. Are we going to be left with unspecified reasons for the hate of her father? Also the reason(s) why she isn't telling Rei who her real father is.
This episode's ending was...totally spoiled in the basic plot synopsis...Anyone actually think that wasn't her father?
Anyway the next episode looks like LOTS OF PLOT happens. The preview for episode 7 was the best part of episode 6 for me!
I hope we really get some more closeness between Kiyama and Rei and doesn't turn out to be misleading preview. saying this I still have not much hope of great romance happening them. I just can't see it and I'm dying to see it.
one thing I really want to know is what is the exact relationship between Kiyama and that woman. this ep kind of convinced me that they look like a married couple. I can't find any other explanation for it.
and more confusion about Rei's dad because I am starting to think of him less evil as in 1st ep and it seems he meant it when he said he was sorry for everything.
Rei is being total stupid for not even suspecting that Ayukawa might be her real father. It's where the whole problem of not having a family register started. even after being told so by Kusano she still never even thought about it.
and finally, I'm writing this while listening to "Set Fire to the Rain" by Adele because Iki mo dekinai natsu made me totally addicted to this song.
For any who are interested, I have recaps available for the first 6 episodes. http://www.asianaddictsanonymous.com/ta ... nai-natsu/
After the last episode, I can't wait for the next one!!!!! I am loving this drama so far. Takei Emi's acting and the leading male's acting are wonderful.
I just wish we didn't have the Kiyama-Takaoka relationship thrown in there to confuse the heck out of us. I think with all the issues they are already covering, some of the stuff they include (like that) can just be chopped out.
roller coaster emotional ride. some irrational and emotional thinking by rei chan and her mother. they possibly can settle the issue easily, at least move forward, if they put aside emotion and pride aside.
missing opportunity, i think they should craft it better 'the family re union' at the end of the episode.
so far so good. very unpredictable, though not exciting enough..
and im possibly the one, not keen the show emphasize on the romantic side. rei-kiyama possible love relationship are good possibility and i like it cause its unusual. but i dont want the show focus on it.
wolforion20 wrote:
I just wish we didn't have the Kiyama-Takaoka relationship thrown in there to confuse the heck out of us. I think with all the issues they are already covering, some of the stuff they include (like that) can just be chopped out.
Same here. It has stayed mysterious since ep with nothing to add except some strong jealousy which only points out something horrible or devastating will happen by the end. But I'm thinking that it has to be a whole ep dedicated to this in coming weeks.
Ep7 was a good ep. Finally we get to see proper Rei x Kiyama time together and by look of eep 8, there are more to come but as I said before, I just can't see any happy ending coming out if it.
And I think my impression of Ayukawa was wrong. He's not the person I thought he was earlier eps.
Why is the Grandmother kind to Rei now? Recall how she treated her in the first episode, and compare to episode 7.
There is progress in the relationship, and the preview shows even more of a development! I think we can count out a hot and heavy romance at this point?
So Ayukawa...now we are supposed to feel bad for him I guess? Is this going to be a series in which nobody is really that "evil" character? Well, I still have reserves about that woman with Kiyama...
I kind of have to say I am okay without a hot and heavy romance between Kiyama and Rei. A nice, subtle love would be fine for me, but with Takaoka and how crazy she looks...yeah...bad things to come and definitely some tragedy on the way.
Since we are up to 8 next week and it's still not the finale...Hmm. I found one place that says this drama will have a total of 10 episodes. Truthfully, though, I think stopping at 9 would be good as the plot gets redundant quite easily despite the interesting plot and the good acting with everything going back to Rei and her mom and the whole issue of her birth in circles that go nowhere, tho 10 isn't bad. Given how slowly they've been building everything, will we get a rushed ending?
@Loki
I really don't get the grandma thing. Her treatment of Rei always seemed colder and now she's acting more like a grandmother just when Rei's father's true identity comes into questions. WTF? So confusing.
I think they are trying to drum up sympathy for Ayukawa, but I don't know if I feel it. I mean sure, people can change for the better if they are dying, but in his case, isn't way too little way to late? He has committed two very bad, unforgivable sins.
Watching episode 7 finally. I'm a bit disappointed in this drama. It started out well, but now it's descended into the usual heavy melodrama with requisite overacting, a plot and back story that doesn't always make sense, and shallow characters. I mean, am I to believe that Rei's actually this naive, and incapable of responsible decision making? That her only redeeming qualities are her prettiness and her love of apple pie?
Sigh.
Complaints aside, could someone explain the parentage thing to me? I'm a bit confused.
I thought the whole reason they were going through Ayukawa's family register is because they KNOW Rei is his child/rape baby (judging from the time her mother got pregnant, and when she got together with her second husband), and there's apparently no other way to put her on the Tanizaki family register (are you kidding me? How could you have such a convoluted system?). If there was actual proof that she was her step-father's child, wouldn't she be able to go on his directly? If her mother was so sure that Rei was her second husband's child, then why did they need to avoid putting her on their register? Why would they have to go through Ayukawa's at all? They didn't have to do it for the second child! I really do not understand the system!
I thought we went through the whole "You're Dad's not your biological father, but he's your real father!" bit a few episodes ago and Rei had actually resolved that the man who raised her, who she knew as her Dad, was her real father, even though she shared DNA with Ayukawa. I was pleased to see that assurance. I was glad that she was at least still able to move forward.
But no. She still thinks she might not be related to Ayukawa? Did I just REALLY misread things in previous episodes?
And what is even the point of this plot line? The drama really needs to move past this because we all know that Rei is Ayukawa's child. There's no reason to keep hemming and hawing over this. It's just dragging it all down.
I'm glad to see a drama about the injustices of the Koseki (戸籍) system. You see Koseki mentioned in numerous Japanese dramas, such as when some dark family secret is revealed, or when a couple sets up the paperwork for listing or change of their Koseki registrations. Japan seems to be unique in Asia in that Japan still retains a Koseki system. It was eliminated in Korea and China due to its use in class discrimination. Koseki systems are most often seen in countries in the Middle East, like Kuwait and Saudi Arabia, where such systems are used to distinguish (discriminate) between foreign-born (or their children, etc.) and long-term locals. In Korea, the system was so widely dispised that from time to time the peasants in a locality would rebel and burn down the local record office to destroy the Koseki, which were viewed as an instrument of repression.
Of course, the 300 day problem has been repeatedly mentioned over recent years on the Japanese news, so it isn't surprising there would eventually be a drama focused on this one particular problem aspect. I'd like to see a more general discussion within the drama, pointing out how odd Japan is in retaining this Koseki record system while surrounding countries long ago discarded Koseki as a tool of discrimination.
SusieQ wrote:Watching episode 7 finally. I'm a bit disappointed in this drama. It started out well, but now it's descended into the usual heavy melodrama with requisite overacting, a plot and back story that doesn't always make sense, and shallow characters. I mean, am I to believe that Rei's actually this naive, and incapable of responsible decision making? That her only redeeming qualities are her prettiness and her love of apple pie?
Sigh.
Complaints aside, could someone explain the parentage thing to me? I'm a bit confused.
I thought the whole reason they were going through Ayukawa's family register is because they KNOW Rei is his child/rape baby (judging from the time her mother got pregnant, and when she got together with her second husband), and there's apparently no other way to put her on the Tanizaki family register (are you kidding me? How could you have such a convoluted system?). If there was actual proof that she was her step-father's child, wouldn't she be able to go on his directly? If her mother was so sure that Rei was her second husband's child, then why did they need to avoid putting her on their register? Why would they have to go through Ayukawa's at all? They didn't have to do it for the second child! I really do not understand the system!
I thought we went through the whole "You're Dad's not your biological father, but he's your real father!" bit a few episodes ago and Rei had actually resolved that the man who raised her, who she knew as her Dad, was her real father, even though she shared DNA with Ayukawa. I was pleased to see that assurance. I was glad that she was at least still able to move forward.
But no. She still thinks she might not be related to Ayukawa? Did I just REALLY misread things in previous episodes?
And what is even the point of this plot line? The drama really needs to move past this because we all know that Rei is Ayukawa's child. There's no reason to keep hemming and hawing over this. It's just dragging it all down.
I totally agree.
I thought that from the moment she found that she's not on the family register, she should've known or at least had an inkling that she's Ayukawa's child, rather than the second father's. In fact, IF she's really the second father's child, why wouldn't her mother let her have the family register and went through all the trouble? But I gave the plot the benefit of the doubt for the whole '300 days of birth after divorce law' or whatever that is, that might have been the problem, plus the mother's reluctance to put her in his registry.
The plot has been dragging for forever I'm hoping they'll speed it up a bit and get over the fact that she is Ayukawa's child. Of course, it'd have been hard to swallow for that fact that she was born not willingly but from a rape case, bit sick I'll agree and I can understand the harsh truth. Besides that, there's also the redundant Whiskey Bon bon guy, I hope he's not just there as another victim of having no family register.
I know that the drama is starting to get laggy in and redundant as they aren't moving forward at all, but
The only time Rei ever thought she wasn't her parents' child was when she first learned of not being on the family register. After she learned about her mother's divorce, it never occurred to her that she could have been Ayukawa's daughter.
And thanks to Japan's laws, it doesn't matter if the child is not the previous husband's child, they are automatically put onto the ex-husband's family register regardless of the fact that the child is the new husbands if the child is born within that 300 day period after the divorce.
Tanizaki wanted to get Rei on his family register, but Yoko balked at trying to initiate the process as Rei would go on Ayukawa's first before being transferred over to the Tanizaki register. Yoko was afraid if that happened, Ayukawa would come find them and they would be subject to his abuses, etc. once more.
It looks like Tanizaki did look into the trial aspect before his accidental death, but the problem with that was Yoko ISN'T sure just who is her eldest daughter's father. I think we are all pretty certain that Rei was conceived when Ayukawa raped her, but it's not 100% certain. Since Yoko feared the truth and she had kept the rape from Tanizaki, that is why the trial didn't happen to put Rei immediately on the Tanizaki register, plus Yoko is just really good at running away and not facing reality.
This is quite a ridiculous law and you can see through this drama how it can scar children because of it.
Though I've been bored to tears but I remain hopeful for the possible romance still. So at the end of ep 8, our heroine Rei and hero Kiyama had their second "passionate" hug. I was debating on whether or not I should celebrate on this advancement of galactic proportions on their relationship. *cough* Before that they had a "date" stroll. Oh I see love in their smiles and repressed emotions in their eyes (or maybe it was just my imagination.) Anyways, we all know it's all about the preview for the hope of some kind of miraculous advancement in their relationship. I know it's futile but can I dream? So apparently, Kiyama's possible gf, possible house lady, possible woman (or whatever she is because I'm not sure even after 8 eps into the drama), invited heroine Rei to their house maybe to show off her position and relationship with hero Kiyama. The worst part is I see no more "passionate" scene between our "couple".
I am already so confused about their romance that I read every where way before this drama went on air and involved the big age gap. by end of ep8 we already see that their supposed romance has actually taken some sort of form. but from preview of ep 9, you feel as there was no love on the air between them. I kind of feel cheated. I kept wondering how they going to progress with this story specially as it is a Jdrama where loves like this one don't get to happen by the end. but I still had my hopes high.
Thanks for the explanation, Wolforion. Yes, it is a stupid, stupid law. =/
ps790, I agree the discussion of the family register system itself would've made for a more compelling drama.
Regarding what else is being discussed...
Honestly, I never felt a love connection between Rei and Kiyama. His doting on has seemed more like that of a father on a daughter. I'm not at all disappointed there hasn't been more of a romantic relationship either, just the opposite; I appreciate their friendship and it frustrates me seeing how Kiyama's girlfriend (I'm sure she sees it that way, but he might not) has worked herself into a jealous rage over it.
I'm not saying I wouldn't accept a turn in that direction, but this drama really doesn't need a romance at all.
I won't be expecting any romance have they started this story in a different way. The press about it, it's opening and ending, they way things being build up between them till now and most importantly, the jealous girlfriend, all of these prompt you to think that there would be some sort of romance between them. It doesn't matter if it gets anywhere or not (the big age gap points more towards no where) but there will be some romance. Rei and Kiyama relation never potrayed as a father and daughter relationship. Have they meant it that way, there would have been millions of hints dropping everywhere. Specially the jealous GF would have sat straight by Kiyama from beginning. Her believing it or not" carried on with jealous behaviour or not, would be a different story. Unless they wanted to show their romantic feelings developed in these last two eps and it's a bit too late to start on it . If I assume that there meant to be no romance but only father/daughter relation, then they didn't make Rei a type of character that missing father figure in her life either.
And regarding more general discussion about the main point of the drama that is 300 days law and family register, it has not being the main point here because they have picked a wrong person to show their hard life and suffering regarding this matter. They made a character the center point of this story when she has not suffered as much as others shown here. She has being enjoying a fairy care free and happy life till she wanted to be a full-timer and wanted to travel abroad. They have thrown dozen of other problems and focused on different issues than 300 days law. Problems like DV, her work environment issues, relationship between Her mother and her grandad, her dad and his issues...
Of course you need all these sidestories to build up a drama but if you making a drama to point out hardship of people with no family registry , shouldn't you explore life of people that are suffering way more than Rei who has everyone at tip of her fingers ready and willing to help her out with everything ? That's why me as a viewer finding it hard to focus solely on 300 days law/family register problem as the main point of this drama and think of other issues like romance in here.
Last edited by Issy on Sep 1st, '12, 05:47, edited 1 time in total.
Well this drama has little merit for me to continue on if not for older man Kiyama and younger woman Rei relationship. I can't say I understand the characters in the dramas. All of them seem to have mastered their craft in being drama queens which is probably the whole point.
So ojousama momma had this romance fling going on with glassman who turned out to be one bad egg. It's implied that she was abused on a regular basis by him though there was only this one scene where it was implied that he beat her up then raped her. That wasn't good but I remember she did run away from home for him so in order for me to be convinced that she was so traumatized to the point of hating him so so much in the present, there must be something more than that. She did afterall succeed in divorcing him so I'm not sure why she's still so afraid of him. Anyways, fastforward, momma apparently never did return home to her parents and I'm not sure why she seemed to resent them. She didn't have a whole lot of a reaction when her dad said her mom died. I thought that was big but there wasn't a whole lot of reaction to that. When she stabbed her dad which was even a bigger even, there wasn't a whole lot of reaction to that neither. But really I'm not sure why momma turned psycho and wanted to stab ex-hubby that bad when it wasn't a life threatening situation. I'm not sure what makes of this woman and I wonder why she treated her parents the way she did. I figure I must have missed something like maybe it was her parents who forced her to marry crazy glassman turned abusive husband. But then I remember she ran away with the guy. Anyways, I fastforwarded a whole lot and I might have missed some major intricate plot here that actually makes some sense out of this. Wait, are they really her parents?
Then we have a man with a "dark" past Kiyama. So he felt guilty of this gig in the past then started living with the man's wife after some point to compensate? What the hell? Actually, that's not unusual but he's not giving me the vibe that they're an item. Can a man living in the woman's house and not being involved? It's apparent to me that he's not in love with the widow so what the heck is Kiyama hanging around her house for? I'm not getting this.
Then we have Kiyama's junior, our genius here who decided to write an article about somebody specific pointing out location no less and actually thought it wouldn't affect them in anyway. Dude, what the hell? How long has this guy been working in his field again? Then right afterward, he comes whining and crying to Kiyama, wanting to undo his dumb mistake. I can't help but rolled my eyeballs. I mean duh... like he didn't see that coming.
I don't have a whole lot of problem with main girl Rei except that she's taking too long to make a move on our hero Kiyama. I appreciate the fact that she doesn't hesitate flying into his arms and all but I really need something more substantial than that. Really, my patience is wearing thin. I just can't stand murky relationship.
I also don't have a whole lot of problem with glassman turned abusive hubby. I mean he's bad and I get that but he's sick and he's trying to repent. Sounds logical to me. I'm not sure why the drama is trying to mak him out to be some creepy character in the beginning like they want to convince that momma's trauma is justified or something. The strange thing is at the same time the drama is showing me that momma overreacted for apparently no reason. Now I start to wonder what's all that creepy implication is about. To me it's misleading.
As for the remaining characters, they're all pretty much on crack, more so than the main ones, well, except for grandpa. He seems to be normal.
And one more issue that really bothered me in ep 8
the fact that whole Tanizaki family insist of they have done nothing to be shamed of and the whole issue is to do with the reporter and what he wrote (which is so stupid when he given all details about Rei even a photo and name of place she works at and only omitted her name.) When their mother actually turned psycho in front of every one and wanted to kill her ex. Grandad got stabbed by accident but if it wasn't him, it would have been Ayukawa. Grandad tells a lie to protect the family and every one start believing in that lie. Specially the mother. As if nothing happened. She comes out and start acting all innocent.
I also have to agree a bit with the reporter, everything he said was right (and actually a pretty good summary so far). But I guess the point is that now that it is out to the public, now we have that separation between who accepts them and who does not.
EDIT: I am not saying what he did was right
I pretty much agree with everything Hideaki_Ito has mentioned. This drama has really tried hard to make these characters have some odd motives which may be off-putting to some? This is a lot of drama to deal with -like everyone here has problems. I can't think of an ending where everyone and everything is good, and I think I shouldn't think of it that way either.
So anyways, the romance deepened. Rei threw herself into Kiyama's arm for another passionate and lengthy embrace. They felt each other's warmth, her arms around his waist as his on hers, her head on his chest, his chin on her head. They stood there for a while romancing in the rain before headed back inside. After that, Rei wanted to go home. Kiyama of course offered to take her but she refused.
Next day, Rei told Kiyama that she would go meet bad-egg daddy for DNA test. Kiyama right away suggested to make it a date but by doing so Kiyama must put off plan to go on a shopping date with widow and he didn't hesitate to tell widow that. This was enough to stirs evilness in the heart of widow-san. Zere's evil zere that does not sreep. So while Kiyama and Rei were standing there side by side lovey dovey feeling their hearts skipping beats, waiting for bad-egg daddy, she appeared like a ghost and interrupted their date. Furthermore, she established her position as being family members with Kiyama and went off hinting more stuff. Rei's eyes widened. "Oh my goddess, my Kiyama-san has a family? Uso da... broken my harto..." Kiyama was caught red handed and could not defend himself. His face showed profound conflict and pain as Rei dashed off. His eyes trailed her silhouette, his expression, full of distress.
Fastforward... After Rei knew that her Kiyama was looking all over for bad-egg daddy for her and that she also got tips from (genius junior) that her Kiyama was just "being nice" to widow and son, confirming his bachelor status, her heart softened again. But then we know ze evel widow would be plotting somezing. She had Rei delivered the bday cake for her son so Rei could see loverboy Kiyama at the house. Jealousy raged on as the women threw death glares while Kiyama got caught in the middle of it all. Fried. At the end, Rei could not suppress the pain in her heart any longer and excused herself. Hero Kiyama gave the widow a piece of his mind, "we're not like that" (as in you and I aren't lovers so why you do that and chase my lovely young lady away you evel beyatch.) Then like all dramas heroes, he ran after his lady but it was too late to fix this misunderstanding of galactic proportion. She dumped him on the spot. He again stood there trailing her silhouette. His feet, buried in concrete. His expression, profound distress. His eyes, drown in pain. Rei went home and cried uncontrollably. Her heart shattered. She could not deal with the fact that she just parted ways with the love of her life.
Next ep,
It doesn't look good. I'm afraid Kiyama may sacrifice himself and be widow's man for real. Yaddaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa.....
So anyways, the romance deepened. Rei threw herself into Kiyama's arm for another passionate and lengthy embrace. They felt each other's warmth, her arms around his waist as his on hers, her head on his chest, his chin on her head. They stood there for a while romancing in the rain before headed back inside. After that, Rei wanted to go home. Kiyama of course offered to take her but she refused.
Next day, Rei told Kiyama that she would go meet bad-egg daddy for DNA test. Kiyama right away suggested to make it a date but by doing so Kiyama must put off plan to go on a shopping date with widow and he didn't hesitate to tell widow that. This was enough to stirs evilness in the heart of widow-san. Zere's evil zere that does not sreep. So while Kiyama and Rei were standing there side by side lovey dovey feeling their hearts skipping beats, waiting for bad-egg daddy, she appeared like a ghost and interrupted their date. Furthermore, she established her position as being family members with Kiyama and went off hinting more stuff. Rei's eyes widened. "Oh my goddess, my Kiyama-san has a family? Uso da... broken my harto..." Kiyama was caught red handed and could not defend himself. His face showed profound conflict and pain as Rei dashed off. His eyes trailed her silhouette, his expression, full of distress.
Fastforward... After Rei knew that her Kiyama was looking all over for bad-egg daddy for her and that she also got tips from (genius junior) that her Kiyama was just "being nice" to widow and son, confirming his bachelor status, her heart softened again. But then we know ze evel widow would be plotting somezing. She had Rei delivered the bday cake for her son so Rei could see loverboy Kiyama at the house. Jealousy raged on as the women threw death glares while Kiyama got caught in the middle of it all. Fried. At the end, Rei could not suppress the pain in her heart any longer and excused herself. Hero Kiyama gave the widow a piece of his mind, "we're not like that" (as in you and I aren't lovers so why you do that and chase my lovely young lady away you evel beyatch.) Then like all dramas heroes, he ran after his lady but it was too late to fix this misunderstanding of galactic proportion. She dumped him on the spot. He again stood there trailing her silhouette. His feet, buried in concrete. His expression, profound distress. His eyes, drown in pain. Rei went home and cried uncontrollably. Her heart shattered. She could not deal with the fact that she just parted ways with the love of her life.
Next ep,
It doesn't look good. I'm afraid Kiyama may sacrifice himself and be widow's man for real. Yaddaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa.....
Oh dear! I laughed so much reading your recaps.
Ep 9 was kind of painful for me to watch.
the widow is emotionally unstable and she is determined to have Kiyama. He seems to be surprised at her reaction which is odd because her jealous behaviour is so obvious to every one but him plus that what will happen naturally if you have been living with them for a while.
But now we know about kind of relationship going on between them both. Least with Rei. We know now that she cares more about Kiyama than just him being a father figure or a friend in need. I'm almost certain that Kiyama will chose the widow and her kid over Rie and this is sad to see Kiyama sacrifice himself because he sees himself responsible for widow's husband death.
We can say Rei is young and will fall in love again but that widow and her son's happiness depends on Kiyama but I still feel sad and depressed about such ending.
Issy wrote:
Oh dear! I laughed so much reading your recaps.
Ep 9 was kind of painful for me to watch.
the widow is emotionally unstable and she is determined to have Kiyama. He seems to be surprised at her reaction which is odd because her jealous behaviour is so obvious to every one but him plus that what will happen naturally if you have been living with them for a while.
But now we know about kind of relationship going on between them both. Least with Rei. We know now that she cares more about Kiyama than just him being a father figure or a friend in need. I'm almost certain that Kiyama will chose the widow and her kid over Rie and this is sad to see Kiyama sacrifice himself because he sees himself responsible for widow's husband death.
We can say Rei is young and will fall in love again but that widow and her son's happiness depends on Kiyama but I still feel sad and depressed about such ending.
If I don't entertain myself on the (half-ass) romance it would be very difficult to watch this drama especially with so many characters doing things that I can't understand. Kiyama lost his marbles. He's a single man. She's a widow and a kid. Why the hell would he want to live in the same house when they don't have man woman relationship? No excuse will justify this dumb course of action and that includes the atonement nonsense.
^
Totally agree! Their living arrangement is redicilous. If you are not intending to fill that house's man/father position, why on earth living with them in the first place? He's giving the widow and her son false hopes. No matter how good his intentions were at first, still is very misleading. Specially that you can see he has no feelings what so ever for her. Kiyama disappointed me in last ep.
The romance has zero interest to me, so I'm a bit surprised there is so much discussion of such. Most of us (I had thought) were familiar with the many stories in the Japanese media about the 300 day problem, and the various ways people have delt with it. The plot of this drama is clearly crafted so that those issues, so familar from repeated coverage in the Japanese news media, are presented one by one. As a result, the characters go through some rather silly changes, but the overall result is to bring up the various variations one by one. Maybe someone in Japan could record and upload one of the documentaries that appear on TV from time to time on the 300 day problem. I've seen at least 2 of them, and I'm living abroad and so am limited to just what appears on International NHK. It looks like it would be helpful if there was such a documentary program here so people would have a better understanding of why different aspects of the problem are being presented in this drama. Even the brief coverage, a few minutes at a time, you see from time to time on the NHK news or Fuji TV international news might help.
ps790 wrote:The romance has zero interest to me, so I'm a bit surprised there is so much discussion of such. Most of us (I had thought) were familiar with the many stories in the Japanese media about the 300 day problem, and the various ways people have delt with it. The plot of this drama is clearly crafted so that those issues, so familar from repeated coverage in the Japanese news media, are presented one by one. As a result, the characters go through some rather silly changes, but the overall result is to bring up the various variations one by one. Maybe someone in Japan could record and upload one of the documentaries that appear on TV from time to time on the 300 day problem. I've seen at least 2 of them, and I'm living abroad and so am limited to just what appears on International NHK. It looks like it would be helpful if there was such a documentary program here so people would have a better understanding of why different aspects of the problem are being presented in this drama. Even the brief coverage, a few minutes at a time, you see from time to time on the NHK news or Fuji TV international news might help.
I am a bit confused on what depth you want our discussion be on 300 days law here on this thread because this is seen from an outsider point of view. I think you have already mentioned this before so I am quoting myself here on why I think the main issue of this drama is not getting much attention
And regarding more general discussion about the main point of the drama that is 300 days law and family register, it has not being the main point here because they have picked a wrong person to show their hard life and suffering regarding this matter. They made a character the center point of this story when she has not suffered as much as others shown here. She has being enjoying a fairy care free and happy life till she wanted to be a full-timer and wanted to travel abroad. They have thrown dozen of other problems and focused on different issues than 300 days law. Problems like DV, her work environment issues, relationship between Her mother and her grandad, her dad and his issues... Of course you need all these sidestories to build up a drama but if you making a drama to point out hardship of people with no family registry , shouldn't you explore life of people that are suffering way more than Rei who has everyone at tip of her fingers ready and willing to help her out with everything ? That's why me as a viewer finding it hard to focus solely on 300 days law/family register problem as the main point of this drama and think of other issues like romance in here
And last ep, that was entirely focused on Kiyama and his "love life" and his two adoring women!
The problem of this drama isn't the subject matter. It's the poor story telling and the unlikeable characters. But anyways, I'm not going to lie through my teeth and say I'm watching this drama because I'm onto something big like trying to unravel the mystery of the 300 days law and study its effect on numerous children in Japan in today's world. I'm here for the possible angst-filled romance between middle-aged Kiyama and young girl Rei. I don't know what is the clear message from this drama but it's crystal clear to me that they're reeling me in for the Kiyama-Rei romance when they cast hot man Eguchi Yosuke and doe eye Takei Emi then they threw in some flirting here and there between them. It worked like a charm and here I am, suckered into this. But after 9 eps into the drama, I'm kind of angry now that they're not giving me what I was looking for. I need to fry somebody on a stick to soothe this anger.
So it was the end of a beginning. The romance was wilted the moment it started budding. The eternal flame of love blew out the moment it started burning. Oh my angst-filled romance, where art thou? I was hoping to hear Kiyama romancing Rei with pick up lines like, "You're like a case that I'm stuck with. Every time I see you, you dig deeper into my nerve. So my heart aches." Now t'is no more. I weep as Kiyama and Rei buried that little flame of love in to the deepest corner of their heart and continue on living their separate lives.
Preview
Bad-egg daddy dying. And the lovebirds... well... I dunno.
There's one scene in ep 10 where Kiyama and genius junior were together discussing something. I thought to myself so Kiyama wanted to atone his sin by living in the same house with widow. Maybe genius junior can move into Rei's house and atone for his sin too so everything can be consistent. Psycho momma can use a handy man. Then evel widow-san and psycho momma can battle it out to see who win the title of dark evil overlord.
So it was the end of a beginning. The romance was wilted the moment it started budding. The eternal flame of love blew out the moment it started burning. Oh my angst-filled romance, where art thou? I was hoping to hear Kiyama romancing Rei with pick up lines like, "You're like a case that I'm stuck with. Every time I see you, you dig deeper into my nerve. So my heart aches." Now t'is no more. I weep as Kiyama and Rei buried that little flame of love in to the deepest corner of their heart and continue on living their separate lives.
Preview
Bad-egg daddy dying. And the lovebirds... well... I dunno.
There's one scene in ep 10 where Kiyama and genius junior were together discussing something. I thought to myself so Kiyama wanted to atone his sin by living in the same house with widow. Maybe genius junior can move into Rei's house and atone for his sin too so everything can be consistent. Psycho momma can use a handy man. Then evel widow-san and psycho momma can battle it out to see who win the title of dark evil overlord.
again
I really don't where to start with ep10.
I guess I start with Rie who since she find out she can't have Kiyama, starting to be so daring and out spoken and challenging Kiyama and weird widow about being happy and having mutual and common way in life.
I am really disappointed with Kiyama for giving the widow, marriage application papers. even though it seems that he is doing the right thing but at the same time it's not really as he is not in love with her. and I think it's quiet appearant that he does have feelings for Rei.
i am wondering if widow asami will sign those papers eventually and gets what she wanted for years. she always been scary to look at so I really don't blame Kiyama for not wanting to marry her till now. but I still blame him for giving her false hopes.
from next week's ep, they left a very important sentence unfinished by Rei and that's to do with telling Kiyama, what he means to her. well, I'm not going to build too much hope on it as I don't think they will give me the ending I want anyway
oh, and the whole ep10 like previous eps had zero relation to 300 days law and it's "horrible" effects on Japanese society and so ... therefore I did not include that in my thoughts and opinion.
Issy wrote:
I really don't where to start with ep10.
I guess I start with Rie who since she find out she can't have Kiyama, starting to be so daring and out spoken and challenging Kiyama and weird widow about being happy and having mutual and common way in life.
I am really disappointed with Kiyama for giving the widow, marriage application papers. even though it seems that he is doing the right thing but at the same time it's not really as he is not in love with her. and I think it's quiet appearant that he does have feelings for Rei.
i am wondering if widow asami will sign those papers eventually and gets what she wanted for years. she always been scary to look at so I really don't blame Kiyama for not wanting to marry her till now. but I still blame him for giving her false hopes.
from next week's ep, they left a very important sentence unfinished by Rei and that's to do with telling Kiyama, what he means to her. well, I'm not going to build too much hope on it as I don't think they will give me the ending I want anyway
oh, and the whole ep10 like previous eps had zero relation to 300 days law and it's "horrible" effects on Japanese society and so ... therefore I did not include that in my thoughts and opinion.
It would be a damn sham if these two centralized characters end up to have this half-ass "fling" then go on with their separate lives. I start to wonder if the objective of the drama is to suckered me in then leave me high and dry. Damn it, her straw hat flew to him and he picked the lady's hat up. It was a romantic date on the country side where the man picked up the straw hat that flew off the lady's head and brought it back to her.
after reading your reviews,opinions, thoughts, I'm thinking whether I should just drop this drama or not. I agree with the bad storytelling and there's ZERO chemistry between the characters. I just don't feel anything between Kiyama and Rei, at all.
I guess I'm dropping then even though I'm up to ep8. I don't really care how's the ending anymore. Rather disappointed with the plot. It could be something really good.
It would be a damn sham if these two centralized characters end up to have this half-ass "fling" then go on with their separate lives. I start to wonder if the objective of the drama is to suckered me in then leave me high and dry. Damn it, her straw hat flew to him and he picked the lady's hat up. It was a romantic date on the country side where the man picked up the straw hat that flew off the lady's head and brought it back to her.
I know! that what captured my heart after reading about " Big Age gap between Eguchi and Takei playing as lovers in drama" too, that romantic opening where no one else is there apart from them two. they spend two third of the drama with no hint of Love between main two leads and then suddenly have them both looking at each other with love-sick eyes which we know 90% is not going the way we want.
this drama has failed to deliver its message. it failed to highlight the importance of 300 days law (which I still don't think it was the main point and base of the drama) if that was they aiming for and it failed from its human relation and romance point of view.
both left half and badly done that you can't really concentrate on one and see the story from that angle. two many characters, two many stories and too many issues all mixed in one big mess that you can tell where is the end or beginning.
but I want to finish this drama and see how it ends. so far all they did is playing with my emotions and giving me false hopes...
I only watched up to ep 4, but have read this thread (and watched other dramas) which is why I'm behind because..... it's boring and did not live up to what (I thought) it was gonna be. And after reading this... I may actually drop it >___>
It kinda has that Mitsu no Aji-ness... no chemistry whatsoever and suppose to be soooooo controversial and.... it's not lol. (I only kept watching that because I liked Miho and ARATA so much) I kinda like Eguchi but can't stand Emi that much, and Aoi's character.. I rather here more about his story than her's because as Issy said, really has no hardships going on or anything (so why should I even pity her...?) Poor drama....
I agree will a lot of what was said before. Looks like we all got baited into this drama from it's interesting synopsis. Unfortunately the synopsis
pretty much told us the basic plot of the WHOLE ENTIRE drama -not just a basic start to it. It feels like I got cheated out of a good drama as things just moved way too slow. Maybe even without the synopsis, I think I would feel the same way as I do now.
One more episode left, I was actually kind of surprised to see that from the preview. Right now I am willing to take almost any kind of ending from this drama just for closure. I think it will end like so:
Rei and Kiyama will not get together (do they even deserve to be together?). Time skip -Rei will get on her family registrar and be able to live normally. Not really a spoiler but yeah
Am I really the only one who never actually thought this was a romance drama? I've always felt that Kiyama was treating Rei exactly as she said he was: a child. He doted on her like he would a daughter, out of his desire for atonement, and to be seen as "good." It was selfish of him, and easily misinterpreted, but there it is..
I'm not at all surprised that he rejected her. Rei never saw the real Kiyama anyway, just the nice, helpful version of him that seemed like her knight in shining armour. I don't think anyone has seen the real Kiyama for a long time. It's sad that the complexity of his character is lost midst the outcry against their lack of a love connection and further buried beneath Rei's personal drama.
I don't think he's passionately in love Asami either, but I don't think that matters. He cares about her, and it's obvious that's gone way beyond some sense of responsibility and atonement. It's clear Asami and her son love him, and her jealousy was mostly unwarranted (I really don't think he has ANY romantic feelings toward Rei), so why couldn't they be happy together?
I also really wish this series had weighed in more heavily on the 300 Days Law. I was surprised that Whiskey Bon Bon's big secret is that his mother(s?) was a lesbian. Are you kidding me? You mean that stupid law even prevents kids like him from having a register? ARGH. That should've been revealed sooner! And made a bigger deal of it! >_<I>_<
This whole series has more or less condemned the parents of the kids without a register... never the law. Not really. That's incredibly backward.
The drama is clearly about Kiyama and Rei because it's Kiyama and Rei on the cover. They stand side by side without physical contact. They stand side by side because they have a form of relationship. They have no physical contact because it's meant to be hidden due to its unfavorable nature. In other words, they have a hush hush underground love affair that can't be revealed to the whole world to see. I'm not making this up. That's what they want me to see.
It's so undertgrounf they don't even wanna show it in the drama lol.
The drama was suppose to be about the forbidden love of a 19 year old and a 40 something year old... that was said before the start of the drama. It was suppose to be sooo controversial about going into the 'forbidden love' that it didn't even go into it supposedly. I really had a Majo no Jouken-ish anticipation for this...
Wow. I never read about it being "forbidden love" beforehand and I don't see the promotional pictures as implying some kind of romantic relationship. Of course the opening and the pictures suggest they are the main characters and have SOME kind of connection, but clearly the actual writing steered away from what may (or may not) have been intended. Rei's personal family drama has been the focus, and we haven't really gotten enough of Kiyama WITHOUT Rei's presence to have any development on his side. I'm not sensing romance in Eguchi 's performance either.
At this point, unless the finale episode has a HUGE turnaround, I don't think you can call this a romance drama AT ALL. I mean, I don't see how you'd even come to think that unless you had the idea of it being a forbidden romance drama already in your head. If you jump to that conclusion I think it's a pretty big leap.
So, I would like to download the soundtrack of Iki Mo Dekinai Natsu / 息もできない夏 (the whole cd, not just the theme song). I've looked on all different Japanese music download sites and can't find it anywhere. If anyone knows where I can download it I'd be really grateful, thanks. ^^
It may seem like most of us in modern society live the ordinary life: Wishing for the happiness of self, family, and loved ones. Some, however, live an unimaginable life, with a past that could only be understood by few, and carry a fate so vast upon them. The characters that appear in this story each carry such deep scars or secrets, and are burdened to their destiny.
"Breathless Summer" picks up on a rather rare social situation where a girl grows up without a family register. In other words, without citizenship to her own country. As she uncovers the truth about her identity, she comes across an older man, most likely as old as her father, with a scarred heart. Amidst crossing paths and being torn apart from their surroundings, the two become inseparable to each other, what becomes a shocking but bittersweet summer love story.
Tanizaki Rei, the girl without a family registry is played by Takei Emi. Rei is an innocent 19 year old girl, one that you may find anywhere else in the world, excited about what her forthcoming future might bring. Coincidentally, she finds out the truth about her background, that she isn't recorded as being born in the legal books. The truth shocks her, brings her down in thinking that she does not truly exist in the societal world.
The older man that she meets, is a 41 year old former newspaper reporter Kiyama Ryuichiro. When Ryuichiro was still a news reporter for a major newspaper, his inherent composure and sense of justice in saving the weak led him to uncover exclusive scoops. It was not until a twist of fate involved him in an accident that he is forced to leave the firm. Now he lives quietly in the suburbs working night shifts at the ward office.
Japan's civil code 772 states that if a child is born between a couple where the wife had been in a prior marriage less than 300 days ago, the child will be registered under the prior husband's family register even if DNA tests prove that the child is that of the new couple. This questionable law was in effect for over 110 years without ever being amended, thus creating children who grow up to be without a family registry. One may think; "What are the chances?" But the incident portrayed can happen to anyone, and it is a fact that such children exist in this country.
How will Rei face her destiny and overcome it? Will Ryuichiro be able to admit to his sins to find meaning in his life? What will become of their love? Brutal as it may be, the drama will shine light on how wonderful it is to live and love through a complicated family relationship. Expect nothing less than a sensational social entertainment drama this summer! -- Fuji TV
This is a description from jadefrost
Tanizaki Rei (Takei Emi), a 19-year-old bright-eyed, naive girl-next-door, accidentally learns about the secret of her birth one day. She has no family register. Sinking into the depths of despair, she wonders if she exists in the world, on a social level. In the midst of this, she encounters a man old enough to be her father. 41-year-old Kiyama Ryuichiro (Eguchi Yosuke) is a former journalist who bears deep emotional scars. Once an ace on the city news team of a major newspaper, he covered many events and obtained exclusive scoops with his strong sense of justice and characteristic cool nerves. However, his destiny changed after something happened and he left the newspaper out of disappointment. He now works as a temp at night at the ward office, and lives in a corner of the city. The wheels of fate start moving silently as these two lonely people, whom society has given up on and live as if holding their breath, meet. Having distanced herself from the people she has got on well with up to now, Rei finds herself drawn to Ryuichiro who becomes her only friend and an “unacceptable” love grows. On the other hand, Ryuichiro’s encounter with Rei nudges him to face the sin(s) of his past and find the meaning of life.
This is a description from another site:
A 19-year-old girl burdened by a cruel destiny, a 41-year-old man living in atonement, and a forbidden love that cannot be accepted by the people around them. ?Iki mo Dekinai Natsu? is as much a social drama as it is a love story. Takei plays said girl who learns that her mother never recorded her birth in their family register. While falling into despair after finding out the secret about her birth yet wholeheartedly trying to live to regain ?herself?, she happens to run into a former journalist (Eguchi) who is suffering from a deep scar in his heart himself. Although they could be father and daughter, they start to develop much stronger feelings for each other, a love forbidden by society.
Oh, I have to agree with everyone saying "this is suppose to be about forbidden love betweem Kiyama and Rei".
If it was not about forbidden love between these two, there is no point of writing Rei's character like this in past few eps. she clearly shows signs of jealousy in her own way just like the widow over Kiyama. why would she behave like this if this was not writer's intentions with her character?
and forget about 300 days law, family register...This drama is clearly NOT based on this problem. it was used as an excuse to introduce Kiyama and Rei together.
Issy wrote:Oh, I have to agree with everyone saying "this is suppose to be about forbidden love betweem Kiyama and Rei".
If it was not about forbidden love between these two, there is no point of writing Rei's character like this in past few eps. she clearly shows signs of jealousy in her own way just like the widow over Kiyama. why would she behave like this if this was not writer's intentions with her character?
and forget about 300 days law, family register...This drama is clearly NOT based on this problem. it was used as an excuse to introduce Kiyama and Rei together.
Precisely. They could have ward office agent Ryoko taking care of Rei's register problem instead of hot man Kiyama. We'll see how many watch that one.
Watched ep 11. So they want me to go in to watch this for this forbidden love between Kiyama and Rei but they got cold feet and turned this into some weird schmoeball. It's either that or they've been scamming me all along. Okay so they've scammed me all along.
Hideaki_Ito wrote:Watched ep 11. So they want me to go in to watch this for this forbidden love between Kiyama and Rei but they got cold feet and turned this into some weird schmoeball. It's either that or they've been scamming me all along. Okay so they've scammed me all along.
Yep! pretty much it. they tricked us into watching this dull drama with a promise of forbidden love but they chickened out by the end. I knew I shouldn't have build much hope on their promise. now I pity Kiyama even more than when he was living with the widow and her son with no love. total disappointment in his character...
Hideaki_Ito wrote:This is the description from the front page:
This is a description from another site:
A 19-year-old girl burdened by a cruel destiny, a 41-year-old man living in atonement, and a forbidden love that cannot be accepted by the people around them. ?Iki mo Dekinai Natsu? is as much a social drama as it is a love story. Takei plays said girl who learns that her mother never recorded her birth in their family register. While falling into despair after finding out the secret about her birth yet wholeheartedly trying to live to regain ?herself?, she happens to run into a former journalist (Eguchi) who is suffering from a deep scar in his heart himself. Although they could be father and daughter, they start to develop much stronger feelings for each other, a love forbidden by society.
Yeah that's the one I read from TH, which was translated from Sanso..and so um... that description pretty much indicates it's suppose to be a forbidden love story.
-edit
If it wasn't for the synopsis indicating forbidden love, I wouldn't have watched it because I really don't like Emi that much (why all these scandalous roles lately geez? Typecast much?) so it was forbidden love, Aoi, Jun & Eguchi that made me interested to watch it...
I don't even really know what to say now that I saw the final episode. One of the most disappointing series I've seen. I would strongly not recommend this to anybody.
*shrugs* I must've read a synopsis at some point too, but only remembered the issue with Rei's famiily register and the cast. I usually like to watch an episode or two before passing judgement. I wasn't questioning anyone's presumptions based on the various versions of the synopsis. They're fair in that case. (though I disagree that the pictures and OP are blatantly suggestive of a love story; they're not. They suggest a connection. If the synopsis hadn't mentioned a love story and had instead highlighted the question of Rei's parentage and Kiyama's fatherly doting, people would've been talking about how disappointed you are that Kiyama isn't her real father. =P Which just goes to show you should take the synopsis to be worth a grain of salt and judge the drama based on the episodes.)
But the series itself, as I've said, hasn't been a forbidden love story AT ALL. On paper, yes. In practice, no. Takei Emi is a good actress, but Rei's naivety and kindness made it hard to discern her romantic interests, if any. She was sweet to EVERYONE, until she was given a reason not to be. Like discovering that the kind mother and her apple-loving son were Kiyama's jealous pseudo-wife and her innocent son. Or that the friendly middle-aged man who gives her a beautiful glass apple is actually her mother's abusive ex-husband... Oh Rei. How have you LIVED to this point? You are a TERRIBLE judge of character! So how were we supposed to figure out she liked Kiyama in a romantic way when she was like that?
It seems to me that Eguchi Yosuke was uncomfortable in the role of Rei's love interest seeing how reserved he was. Again, I've always had zero sense of romance from him. Whether that's the writing or the acting, I don't know. Probably a combination.
I'm not criticizing anyone for having hopes of a Majo no Jouken-style love dashed. It would've been a more interesting story, I agree! I'm criticizing this drama for failing to follow through with the promise of forbidden romance, even though I wasn't aware of that, and more so for even failing to highlight the real problem of the 300 Days Law when they stressed it so heavily in the beginning.
i think the series showed some promises at early stages.. but last 5 episodes are pretty poor.. poor story telling, the acting (some) are OK-ish but no chemistry between all main characters.. i'll give 3.5/10..
Takei Emi is brilliant.
