Dokuhime to Watashi

Harmless but ultimately forgettable easy breezy afternoon drama with some bad character arcs.

I first watched this Drama after moving to Japan back in 2011 when it was airing on TV in real time. I recorded it daily and enjoyed it for language practice. It was my first afternoon hirudora and I enjoyed the 20 minute soap type format. Revising it 14 years later and it doesn't really hold up in quite the same way now I've seen and have access to much better choices. Still it's hard to be too hard on a hirudora as they are generally a certain level of quality.

The story is a simple premise of an unlikely odd couple friendship between two very different women who end up thrust into each others lives. You've seen it before but it also has it's charm. The unique angle this time is one is in a wheelchair unable to walk since birth and that creates some food for thought about having a different perspective of life. They learn from each other, clash and make up. You know what to expect here.

Hard working, Komugi is your typical career woman in her late 30s and I enjoyed her character never compromised on her strong mind and independence throughout the show. Sakurai Atsuko is a very charming and warm lead who carries the show. I'm not sure if I am bias from seeing her in Shomuni but she is one of the better actresses here. I think with these hirudora's the scripts tend to be very cliche ridden and hammy so I do give a bit of leeway to acting talent versus trying to make mediocre writing convincing and good. Even if the lines sometimes feel wooden, the character feels real, so job well done.

Kurokawa Mei is similar, she plays the blunt spoken, no apologies, Miki with earnest but I found it hard to decide how much I care for her performance versus the characters writing. The character tends to be very one note. I would have to see her in something else to be sure. She fits in with most the rest of the cast though.

Don't watch expecting outstanding acting performances anyway, but I think that is part of the genre and production value here. That said, I did find Oginome Keiko stood out as a ridiculously over the top successful novelist playgirl, oozing sultry sex appeal and a real extravagant diva type. She plays this part well and I found her stealing most scenes she was in. She seems very good at this sort of role. She also manages to pull in some very subtle smaller moments of emotion that really stood out. She seemed a bit too good for the source material at hand here and I felt the character needed a bit more development to show this side and shine more.

The show actually starts off rather slow and I found the earlier storylines about the book publishing to be rather dull. As the show goes on it changes a bit more into a soap, focusing on the love and relationships between characters and also scandals and twists. The middle sections of the show are its strongest and I found myself shamefully binging as it got quite juicy with twists and cliffhangers at the end of most episodes. Still, I did actually watch this already 14 years ago and had somehow managed to forget just about everything so that may speak to how much of an impression it left on me.

The soundtrack is corny, but I do have a real soft spot for the theme song which is used throughout. If you want something light to watch and enjoy the odd couple format and a slightly older female lead approaching her 40s then this might provide some light entertainment in comfy little bursts.

- Moderate Spoilers -

The final arc of the show sees events taking place 5 years later and to be honest it became quite dry and repetitive in structure. You will get bored of the lead characters falling out and making up for the nth time. I also found myself really starting to dislike some of the characters especially the male lead. I also didn't find one of the couplings convincing at all, felt more just out of convenience to resolve a story than any buyable romance.

Shibue Joji who plays the main male lead started out likeable and endearing as a love interest but as the show shifts I found his acting started to feel very corny one note in the shows 2nd half. Not a great performance by the end of things but also just not a very well written character either. Similarly, Soari who plays the best friend Erica who is also in a Wheelchair goes through a transformation to becoming rather unlikeable and obnoxious as the show went on. I honestly didn't really understand her character by the end of the show who nor really care.

This is true of quite a few characters here who seem to go through arcs becoming less pleasant and never having that true of a resolve. The younger brother. Tomoki is incredibly unsatisfying as he seems to just disappear from the story completely without any growth.

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