I thought it would be sugar-coated as what I have seen to most stories with this kind, with the male lead doing such swoon-worthy gestures, but no, it did much more than that. Akira's love and adoration for his teacher is fascinating to see. Yes, he's stubborn, rebellious and immature, but that's what a normal teenager would behave. While Hijiri's inner turmoil will make you emphatize with her more. She knew that she's already attracted to Akira but she just kept on brushing it off and tried not to reciprocate that overwhelming affection ( except that one moment when everything is just too much). But the heart wants what it wants. That's the thing that the drama really did right, the execution and portrayal of their romance wherein you wouldn't see it as sensual and disturbing. It highlighted the genuineness of their feelings and how it came to that point where they're in now.
I also like that the story didn't condone and promote this kind of relationship and give us a glimpse to the consequences and what would others feel witnessing something like this blossom, like how Hijiri's friend kept on pointing out how wrong it is to fall for your student and how Akira's mom lose it when she learned that her son is in love with his teacher. Most of the characters are grey wherein you truly can't hate one, but instead pity and emphatize with them for we sometimes see their actions as something that would likely do because it's too mundane and didn't truly deviate with real life instances.
Was this review helpful to you?
Delicate, heartbreaking, and painfully real
Chugakusei Nikki is not a drama you watch casually — it demands your patience and your full emotional attention.It tells the story of Hijiri, a young teacher engaged to a steady, reliable man, and Akira, her 15-year-old student who falls in love with her.
What could have easily become something scandalous or trashy is handled with incredible sensitivity here. it’s not about romance — it’s about loneliness, confusion, emotional longing, and the deep human need to be truly seen.
Hijiri is one of the most complex female characters I've seen in a while. She's conflicted, scared, and constantly torn between what she feels and what she knows is right. Akira, despite being so young, isn't just a naive boy chasing a fantasy — he's emotionally honest in a way that most adults aren't.
Watching their connection grow is uncomfortable, but also deeply moving. it’s messy, painful, and full of all the things people don't want to admit about real life feelings.
The acting is amazing — Kasumi Arimura portrays Hijiri’s quiet struggle so naturally, and Kenshi Okada brings so much vulnerability to Akira it hurts to watch. The cinematography is beautiful too, full of soft light and small, meaningful details.
This drama doesn’t give easy answers. It doesn’t justify anything. It just shows two people, trapped by society and their own hearts, doing their best to survive feelings they can't control.
It’s slow, it's heavy, and it’s not for everyone. But if you’re open to uncomfortable, bittersweet stories that linger long after they end, Chugakusei Nikki is unforgettable.
Was this review helpful to you?
Unpredictable, odd and will probably help you experience you a whole range of emotions...
To tell you the truth, yes it did bother me to see a 25 year old woman fall in love with a 15 year old, however this drama is good that way it does not in any way tell us the viewers that it is okay for a 25 year old to act upon her feelings for her 15 year old student, and actually shows some pretty realistic turns of events as well as keeps viewers on their toes.This drama had me feeling a whole range of emotions,no heart fluttering cuteness but rage, disappointment and the occasional come on... it did have me at odds with myself feeling conflicting emotions and hopes... But also had me thinking damn that woman is cool, not the female lead she was not cool at any moment of the show but the second female lead was slightly eccentric and though I did not always agree with her I loved her coolness.
The female lead is portrayed as the complete appifanny of goodness with just that one pretty big flaw of falling in love with her student. If it weren't for that she would easyslie have been a candidate for citizen/teacher of the year... or maybe dubbed a saint of some sort.
The male lead is a stubborn, lost soul and a teenager as teenager are... but actually sweet and pretty cute. His mom is one of those people who only sees fault in others and fails completely to take responsibility for her own actions. I loved her in the beginning but grew to hate her as the story went on.
I liked how they portrayed the harm of gossip, neglekt, bad parenting and all together the love children often have for even the most abusive parents when they are kids. I also liked the lack of predictability most of the time.
All in all pretty ok...
Was this review helpful to you?
Be open-minded about this taboo topic and you will find a beautiful story
Completed - 3/20/2022Before you start watching this drama, you should know that it's about a forbidden love story between a 25-year old teacher and a 15-year old student. If you have a problem with this and can't be open-minded enough to appreciate this drama, it's best to not watch it.
I am usually not a big fan of infidelity, older woman/younger man tropes and such a taboo topic. But reading some of the reviews, I am willing to give it a try and not to judge a book by its cover. I am so glad I did. This is a beautiful and emotional story about growth, consequences and life's challenges. It doesn't gloss over the fact that this is a taboo subject and that it's not accepted by family, friends and society.
It is without a doubt that our female lead, Suenaga Hijiri, should not have reciprocated her feelings and really put a stop to all of this. She's a teacher after all. However, as the story continues, it's really hard not to root for Kuroiwa Akira to grow up faster, so that they can be together officially.
I really like the fact that the drama does not portray Kuroiwa as super mature and use that to justify this romance. The drama did a great job in showcasing the emotions of a 15 year-old teenage boy. He's passionate, impulsive, immature but oh so in love. He doesn't know what to do with his feelings. His love blinded him from seeing anything else, thus, creating all sorts of problems. Actor Okada Kenshi did such an amazing job in showing raw emotions with his eyes. I see innocence and uncontrolled passion. Although Kuroiwa has matured as an 18-year old, he is not quite mature enough to handle all of his emotions. His mother is correct that he could be so out-of-control when it comes to Suenaga. He doesn't know how to act and respond maturely and is unaware of the consequences to his actions in the adult world. But I do applaud him for still having the self-control to not get too physical with Suenaga. I really enjoy seeing him grow up from a 15 year-old impulsive teen, to finally realizing what he needs to do as a 18-year old, and then as a 23 year-old.
Suenaga also has changed throughout the drama. As an inexperienced and young teacher, she is unable to do the right thing and control her feelings. She should have put a stop to all that until Kuroiwa is 20 years old. Because of her decision, she has to face the aftermath and consequences throughout the rest of the drama. The drama never makes this taboo romance to be all rainbows and roses. There are realistic consequences, and some very serious/extreme ones courtesy of Kuroiwa's mother. The drama does surprise me towards the end with the decision Suenaga made regarding the pledge, and I'm glad she did what she had to do, and finally realized what's best for both Kuroiwa and her.
As much as I root for the leads to be together, I can totally understand where Kuroiwa's mother is coming from. While watching this drama, I asked myself what I would do if I was his mom. I might not have used such drastic (surprising) measures at the end, but there's no way in hell I would approve my son's relationship with his teacher. It could be difficult to watch how Kuroiwa's mom treat Suenaga, but watchers have to understand where she's coming from.
Lastly, I also enjoy the secondary romance and how it all develops. Machida Keita is just as handsome as ever, and this drama came out before the popular "Cherry Magic". I enjoy his dynamic with both Suenaga and Haraguchi Ritsu in two very different relationships. Haraguchi is such a badass female character. She's so cool, eccentric but caring in her own ways.
I would have loved to see the 23 year-old Kuroiwa a little more and have a longer ending/epilogue but I am satisfied.
Was this review helpful to you?
Unexpected emotional rollercoaster
Okay so let me just say this first: I do not support student teacher relationships. And yet I found myself rooting for them and having my heart wrenched all throughout this drama. Some things I want to state are that this is not a lust fueled relationship nor are they having romantic meetings in between classes. Nor is the female lead 'grooming' (which is a very serious world and has strong sexual implications) the male lead. The relationship isn't normalized either and the female lead spends the whole second half of the drama taking accountability for her mistakes.Now that I got that out of the way lets talk about the beauty of this drama. First of all the acting was executed perfectly by the whole cast throughout the drama. Especially in Jdrama's i find that a lot of acting goes over the top and it seems to remind you that you are watching a drama but that was not the case here. It felt like I was really looking over these people's daily lives. The leads chemistry is so strong, which makes the story even more heartbreaking when you feel their emotions. Every time they are together it feels like you are looking in on a private interaction and the micro expressions really sell you every scene.
The cinematography was beautiful and unlike any other Japanese drama or any drama that I've seen for that matter. There were these strange moments in the first few episodes where the shot would change into a black and white one anytime the character wanted to have a mini monologue which just stopped in the second half of the drama which was strange. There is also this weird fishbowl effect that happens occasionally which I don't understand the creative intent behind, but it only happens a few times so it's not a big deal.
Lastly and perhaps the most pivotal aspect of this drama is the OST. It is literally so beautiful and the music is used just the right amount. My favorite song is Prologue by the singer Uru and whenever it comes on I want to cry. It is so beautiful and whenever it came on during the scenes between Akira and Hijiri I started to tear up or cry outright. It was utilized just the right amount and whenever it did it hit you in your heart like an arrow. The lyrics of the song also perfectly fit the tone of the story that when I hear it I feel like I'm experiencing a highlight reel of the drama again. I love this song so much and it makes me so emotional that I can't add it to my car playlist lol.
So for people like me who are apprehensive about watching this drama because of the subject matter I would say give it a chance. Obviously not everyone will like it or approve of their love (as we see in the drama) but its not predatory as some people make it out to be.if anything it taught me more about healthy love and selflessness than most dramas that are made today. If you don't like it you can just stop but if I had not given this drama a chance I feel that I would really have missed out on a life changing story.
I give it a high rewatch value and I plan to watch it again but man it really took it out of me I need something easy to digest so my emotions can recharge I'm exhausted okay bye go watch it
PS - The male lead is so FINe. I haven't ever seen him in anything before but now I am tempted to go through his whole filmography damn. Also FL was very cute too.
Was this review helpful to you?
This review may contain spoilers
An interesting watch
In classic Japanese style, they just picked the most unique story from the bunch.The premise itself is very interesting. The drama portrays the consequences of going against social norms and loving someone you shouldn't. The portrayal is as real as it gets yet beautiful in its own regard. The love between the leads is something that I would consider to be as true and real as it gets. As in the male lead, he feeling of love and the emotions for a teenager are very well expressed and thoughtfully portrayed and play an important role in the story(as it should). For the teacher, she really played the role of a responsible teacher and adult yet occasionally getting swayed by her emotions which is a very real thing. People might dislike the male lead's mother due to her being such a strong resistance in the story, however her character was a very real depiction of a real life mother(specially a single mother with a single child).
The cinematography is classic japanese, simple yet beautiful and always revolving around life.
The music though is really good and adds to the overall feels of the story and also makes it memorable for a long long time.
Excellent production quality.
Overall the story is worth experiencing. If you have some spare time, or you are in search of something unique, give this a go and you will definitely like it(if not love it).
Was this review helpful to you?
A paradox of a show
This drama is a mystery to me.I find it incredibly surreal how a show, where every single character without any exception is absolutely unbearable, can still leave you glued to the screen from start to finish.
There are some of the most cringeworthy moments in the history of motion pictures in this show. To the point where you'd want to poke your eyes out with a Bic pen. Yet still, you are somehow constantly left wondering about what happens next, and sometimes even rooting for some of the above-mentioned unbearable characters.
Maybe under some hypno spell secretly inserted by the show-makers, or maybe because I'm, unbeknownst to myself, a masochist, I was somewhat rooting for the male lead. Even despite his personality and its consistently representative obtuse expression on his face, having assured him first place in the contest for 'Being more punchable than a sandbag'."
I wish I knew before starting this show that I would be thrown down to the worst hell of all for an MDLr. That being the agony of choice: do I give it a 10 or a 1?
I guess this show is one of those paradoxes of the universe that will forever bug the brains of humanity. Beautifully awful and awfully beautiful. And since witnessing a paradox is bound to be a memorable experience for just anyone, I surely do recommend trying to watch it.
But be prepared, you're up for a very unusual, to say the least, ride.
Was this review helpful to you?
What I hated the most of this drama are:
- That annoying mother of Kuroiwa
- Also the mom of Hijiri was something
- Dramatic to the point of tacking help frompolice
- how the character of Kawai has became of a real loser
I love to watch noona romance genre or student teacher genre stories but was very painful they didn't had even a moment of happinnes, well at least thy got together in the end that's what counts
I wish there were more scenes of them together when he became a proper adult but sadly they just showed some seconds not more
Was this review helpful to you?
The wrong kind of problematic!
You wanna see a beautiful love story between an adult and a child? Congratulations, you've found it...I think everybody who decides to watch this after reading the synopsis expects to be confronted with a seriously messed-up plot and expects to feel disgusted with the female teacher who catches feelings for the 15-year-old student. And while I did think that the teacher was completely inappropiate and should have been banned from ever teaching again, I was also thinking that this scenario should have been depicted in a much more scandelous way just to show how truly problematic the leads' romance is. Instead this series really tried to depict this unacceptable scenario in the most acceptable way possible and delivered us a romantic love story.
Going into this, I wanted problematic characters and forbidden love, yes, but I was hoping for it not to be romanticized. They definitey addressed the problem of such a taboo relationship and its negative effects on the child, but in the end, the whole message of the show still was "If it's true love, it's gonna work out anyway" and that's not a good way to deal with kind of issue.
My biggest problem about this series was the FL. Apart from the fact that she was boring as hell and had no consistant or interesting character traits, I was really repulsed by the way she stood up for her feelings for the underage boy. Also, the people around her, apart from the pair of mothers of the FL and ML, did not react appropiately to this messed-up couple. A romance between a 15-year-old and a 25-year-old is unacceptable and the fact that this woman fell for a child is not something that can be forgiven or forgotten even if they give us multiple timeskips.
But despite my many complaints, I gave it a relatively good score of 7/10 because of the sheer fact that I was very entertained by this series. As I was watching it, I kept needing to know what happens next and though I did not enjoy the side couple nor the direction they took with the main couple's journey, I was kept on my toes the whole time and that explains my rating.
Anyway, despite the producer's obvious attempts to make the audience root for their relationship and understand their unconditional love for each other, I found myself really hoping for them to not end up together, no matter how many years passed, because let's face it, who in their right mind can root for this kind of romance?
Was this review helpful to you?
This, is a story of true love
I never knew japanese dramas were this good, until I watched this one. The rawness of the emotions, the storyline, the realistic pacing and events, the acting, THE ACTING, loved how they didn't ruin any character, and the fact that you can understand every character's perspective without blaming them or hating them for their actions, proves just how beautifully written this story is. Let's not even talk about the ost; it clings at your heart in ways you never knew was possible.Loved every second, every minute, every hour of this wonderful experience.
This drama is everything, and more.
Was this review helpful to you?
This review may contain spoilers
Jdramareally are high quality, this is one of those you can't easely forget and even want to watch again in the future/Story 10/10
the story very interesting even if it's not something new...the way they made it was wonderful
it's a story about 15 teen who fall in love with his sensei...the gap age to my opinion is not so big , because there in Japane there are very young teacher. so i think she is 21-22 years old when she start teaching, she look also very young
They fall inlove and to love theres no bonderies, it feels the story really streching the limit as we know it today with all the rulls and politcly corect people star to lose sence of love, this one make you belive that love exist again
it's not so easy to convey people today that real love like this not a feiry tail but i think they did here great job to make you feel it's there/
ACting 9/10
The main actor is just superb
The real down to this drama and that is why 9 of 10 , because the actress... she realy realy don't know how to convince with her pale acting esspecially infront of this superb actor when he is even just dubate and begginer..it's very strange and there are scenes that it's upsetting because it could be so much better
especialy the parts when they kiss and when she cry or need to be sad or pasionet...she just can't
Music 9/10
The piano in the background are nostalgic and i love it it's fit to the all old fashion style of the drama . it's like vintage style and uselly this is how Japanese produce...like the 80's and the music is from the 80's but the ending song i like less i feel sometimes it's not strong enough with this strong plot and the great actor. and producing and sudenly the main song is pale.
There are couple of cons:
1. the main actress
2. the main song
3. the mother...i think they could make her more human but she look wicked and mad.. maybe it's the actress acting and not what the producer want really, it's seems not so relate to the plot because they are all human there's no bad and good in this drama and suddenly there this mother that act like evil, it's very strange
4. the plots have holes
first the relationshop between the teacher and student is little weak...we didn't watch how they develope their relationship other hole is the conection between the father and son...it's too fast to understand what is ha.ppening to them after they didn't meet 13 years and sudenly they hug it's ok?! strange.
5. it's rushed a lot...i think they can strech it more
6 the classmate...also the girl friend classmate very annoying very
7 all the classmate are pale without any loyalty of real relationship...it's feel like acting the characters are flat.
8. i think what is the main reasone is the actress acting also in the kiss scenes...its' just ruined the entire drama for me, she don't look in love...or sad it's can drive you crasy because the actor is so loveable and do good job and she is numb
overall it's my second jdrama i love this year, very good . for the best you can watch my other reviews
Was this review helpful to you?
This review may contain spoilers
An uncomfortable student x teacher drama... which is why it's a gem
This was the most uncomfortable dorama that I’ve ever watched with characters that made so many wrong decisions along the way.Which is why it’s my favorite JDrama of all time.
To note, I hate student-teacher dramas with a passion. I hate that it tries to romanticize a very serious issue regarding a relationship between a minor and an adult, and in some cases they try to condone it; saying that the minor is “mature for their age” and the adult “cannot choose who they love.” Chugakusei Nikki absolutely did NOT go that route.
Instead, it presented the relationship as it is in reality: a uncomfortable relationship that shouldn’t happen, and why it shouldn’t have happened in the first place. Here, the characters are portrayed as they would in real life. Hijiri, the teacher, is recognized to be an adult where everyone expects her to have good reason, but she did not. Akira, the student, is presented to be immature, impulsive, and passionate; just like an actual teenager and not that “mature for his age” type of guy. It clearly showed that even though there is an emotional foundation for the development of their feelings, the unequal maturity level between both Hijiri and Akira were the ultimate teller of the downfall of their relationship. The show never once shied away from this fact, and even reinforced it. In the end, [SPOILER ALERT] even both Hijiri and Akira realized this fact, and voluntarily decided to back away. For Hijiri, she realized that she was getting in the way of Akira fully realizing his true potential and dream of the future. For Akira, he realized how much of Hijiri’s life was disrupted and destroyed simply because of their relationship. While they've made a LOT of bad decisions that I would never agree with in real life, finishing the drama left me feeling so empty; I felt pain for the characters, that remained even after hours after watching (like what I felt with the ending of Your Name).
Moreover, the side characters are not one-dimensional, especially Akira’s mother. Despite the occasional use of ominous music as Akira’s mother tries to interfere with the relationship of the leads, the show has made it VERY clear that she only does it out of pure love and concern for her son, rather than just being antagonistic. The poignant moments where she tries to fight for Akira’s future, even at the expense of her own son hating her, was heartbreaking. Because in real life, a mother’s love would always choose their children’s well-being even if it meant that their children would see them as a “bad guy.” I felt particularly empathetic of the mother in one episode, after [SPOILER ALERT] Hijiri has signed a legal document promising to never meet Akira again after her persistence. Instead of bragging this signed document right in front of Akira’s face, she instead chose to calmly relay Hijiri’s choice to Akira. She even explained that Hijiri’s decision to stay out of Akira’s life was made out of love, and encourages Akira to think how he could respond to this act of love. This, for me, made her a very empowered character, and I never thought she was a villain.
Technicalities wise, all the cast exhibited strong performances. In particular, Arimura Kasumi, Yoshida Yoh, and Natsukawa Yui delivered the best performances amongst all the actors. They portrayed the characters with so much sincerity and you can feel their own pains and regrets. Mizukami Koshi, on the other hand, delivered a good performance that it's shocking to know that Chugakusei Nikki is his very first ever acting project. He naturally showed the impulsiveness of being a 15 year old boy (which, tbh required more from him since he was 19 at the time of filming and had the build of a 19 year old too). While there are areas for improvement, he undeniably showed good potential which is why he's named a rising star.
Lastly, the SOUNDTRACK. IT HAS THE BEST SOUNDTRACK AMONGST ALL THE DRAMAS I'VE WATCHED. It contributed SO much to the emotional weight of the story and it matches the tone of each scene well. I still play the soundtrack to this very day, years after the drama ended.
Ultimately, this show was one of the very few gems where you have to be open to watching it, to be able to be comfortable with the discomfort it brings, before you can truly realize how special it really is. At the end of the day, it makes you realize why love is never enough and that sometimes love is in the form of selflessness.
Was this review helpful to you?
