Maddeningly Good
This show made me mad. Not because it was bad or disappointing (like, frankly, so many of its peers), but because it got me. Hit me right in the heart, and I wasn't expecting it.
If you've read any of my reviews you'll know I carry a certain cynicism about Japanese live-action. I often find it to be cartoonish, awkward, and pointless. Countless experiences with shows like these has built up an armor for me, a way for me to relegate any new j-drama as a fun but ultimately shallow pass time, like a Netflix doc that stretches a few too many episodes. So I was caught completely off guard when Glass Heart demanded my attention immediately and didn't let go. Even a frankly cliche few opening minutes carried some magic in it, some hint of secret sauce which Netflix has been using to raise the bar on k-dramas in recent years. And as the show started to weave its plot, to develop its characters, to hint its themes, I was bewildered.
This show is undeniably a j-drama. Traces of their DNA is scattered across every episode: over-earnest protagonists, a genius male lead to outshine the rest, infectious angst, and abrupt monologues in which a character seems to blurt out their deepest complexities like a self psychiatrist. And yet here we find an extra layer of subtlety, a necessary injection of hope and ambition, and most importantly an idea. To make everything worthwhile they've managed to build the show around a group of core ideas, intrinsic facets of the human experience which bear exploring. My unshakeable hate for the "quirky genius ml showing fl the light" trope was finally toppled by the fascinating motif that "the sound of a genius makes ordinary people miserable." What a fascinating, resonant message. I'm so upset.
I have a friend who hates the movie Up. She calls it emotional manipulation. Finally I understand how she feels, because I was swept up so swiftly and completely into the emotions of this show that I couldn't help but feel offended by its audacity. It left me with the same hollow wonder that Your Name did, a certain gaping hole where a mountain of feeling had just carved its way through. I resent it. But I cannot deny that it is the foundation of a truly outstanding show. Well done.
If you've read any of my reviews you'll know I carry a certain cynicism about Japanese live-action. I often find it to be cartoonish, awkward, and pointless. Countless experiences with shows like these has built up an armor for me, a way for me to relegate any new j-drama as a fun but ultimately shallow pass time, like a Netflix doc that stretches a few too many episodes. So I was caught completely off guard when Glass Heart demanded my attention immediately and didn't let go. Even a frankly cliche few opening minutes carried some magic in it, some hint of secret sauce which Netflix has been using to raise the bar on k-dramas in recent years. And as the show started to weave its plot, to develop its characters, to hint its themes, I was bewildered.
This show is undeniably a j-drama. Traces of their DNA is scattered across every episode: over-earnest protagonists, a genius male lead to outshine the rest, infectious angst, and abrupt monologues in which a character seems to blurt out their deepest complexities like a self psychiatrist. And yet here we find an extra layer of subtlety, a necessary injection of hope and ambition, and most importantly an idea. To make everything worthwhile they've managed to build the show around a group of core ideas, intrinsic facets of the human experience which bear exploring. My unshakeable hate for the "quirky genius ml showing fl the light" trope was finally toppled by the fascinating motif that "the sound of a genius makes ordinary people miserable." What a fascinating, resonant message. I'm so upset.
I have a friend who hates the movie Up. She calls it emotional manipulation. Finally I understand how she feels, because I was swept up so swiftly and completely into the emotions of this show that I couldn't help but feel offended by its audacity. It left me with the same hollow wonder that Your Name did, a certain gaping hole where a mountain of feeling had just carved its way through. I resent it. But I cannot deny that it is the foundation of a truly outstanding show. Well done.
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