Keiya_1725

I was also wondering if it could just be a technicality from a story writing perspective :

Ep1 ended with Misa narrating (to Reina): "Marry my Husband".
Ep10 ended with Misa asking Wataru to "(be) her husband".
So it began and concluded with a nod to the show's title.

... though it's barely noticeable and probably not as impactful 😂

But I find your take deeper and more meaningful 🙏

Interesting question! My take:

That was precisely why that confrontation was necessary and ironically one of the few moments where they were being honest with each other about how they truly felt.

For Misa, it was about acknowledging that she should have left the friendship earlier since it was suffocating . Part of Misa's story arc is learning to address her own needs instead of always catering to others and often, it starts with saying no (Like how Suzuki lectured her about it at the beginning). From her POV, perhaps their circumstances wouldn't have turned out this ugly had they both moved on and make space for greener pastures instead of clinging too hard to a deteriorating relationship. Which is also why, in that moment, she doubled down on her decision even when Reina was out for blood. From her POV: Enough is enough. I need to stop lying to Reina and myself.

For Reina, I felt that it was more about her being stuck in denial which stemmed from her past and abandonment issues. She will resort to everything else - lying, controlling others, manipulation and even hurting others - anything to avoid any new possibilities of being hurt and more importantly, to avoid facing the pain that's been lingering in her since young. Misa's kindness and lack of honesty allowed Reina to continue latching unto her unhealthy coping mechanisms which was why Reina needed the relationship. Tragically at the end, Reina still couldn't confront her pain which was why she instinctively went back to her coping mechanisms and chose death (also as a twisted way to force Misa to 'remember' her) instead of facing the truth and moving on towards healing, contrary to what Misa had decided on.

In a way, Misa stayed in the relationship because she was too nice to say no. Reina stayed in the relationship because it was the one thing she could control. Towards the end, we are looking at 2 different psychological responses to a dying relationship which took too long to sever.

But this is my take. (Sorry if it's a little long) I'm sure others might have differing opinions!

The nice little touches of Misa repeating some of what Wataru had taught her, probably to remind Wataru that she can be there for him as well, but more importantly that they should be walking together. Also, that little call back to her wanting to be in the driver's seat at the end.

Ngl, I felt sorry for Tomoya and Reina at times. For Tomoya, it was too little too late for him when he realized how badly he messed up. And for Reina, Shiraishi Sei was so good in her role that I fell for her lies a couple of times 🤦‍♂️ Definitely need to revisit Misa and Reina's final scenes in the ferris wheel because that was quite a lot to process.

Almost all of the scenes with Misa's dad were so warm and comforting too. It made sense that Misa would take over the Wagashi shop, given the significance of the memories she had with her dad there at the beginning, and also probably of the latter ones with Wataru.

Really loved how they recenter Misa in the last 2 episodes and Koshiba Fuka's acting range with this role is 🤯 (She literally had to do everything - act passive / assertive / gyaru and cry a gazillion times.) Definitely a roller coaster ride for me as I really couldn't tell where they were going with the story till the end.

And a separate appreciation post for Reina and Tomoya's (IMO) consistent characterization throughout the series! I felt like their dynamic was well-encapsulated and epitomized in that dinner scene of Ep8 - their contrasting responses when realizing that they fell for Misa's plans.

I think someone else (shout-out to whoever you are!) had described really aptly that:

- Reina comes across as controlling, manipulative and calculating (Nice touch with a backstory to potentially explain, not justify, why she might be the way she is).

- In contrast, Tomoya comes across as more reactive & emotional (Ie. He lashes out when things doesn't go his way likely due to being too coddled in his upbringing and often reacts without a plan). Yet, he's also somewhat naive / gullible in his own way (Ie. Telling Reina to not pin her lies on Misa; Thinking he's a stud for two-timing 😅 etc.)

Again, IMO pretty consistent characterization throughout the series thus far. Props to all 4 lead actors and actresses for doing their best with the material.

Love the points which you've brought up - of Wataru's humble origins, the power (re)balance of the couple and how he does have the option of walking away from familial obligations eventually, with the writers setting the stage early to illustrate and occasionally reminding us of Wataru's passion for Botany. In that sense, at least for 1 (potential) ending scenario, the pieces can fit logically, and not out of blue. Worth remembering that the grandfather's condition for accepting Wataru into the family was that the future child (Miku?) will take over the company.

And the parallels - even Wataru and Misa having single, loving parent is sort of a parallel 😭

Re. Wataru's childhood, I'm reminded of him handing Misa the strawberry milk candy for the first time, and how the words he shared with her genuinely stemmed from his own experience as a kid - as narrated in the flashback of ep5.

Misa's personal growth is such a joy to watch - her learning to stand up for herself and asserting boundaries, all while, as much as possible, avoiding the 'damsel in distress' trope. Ie. How she stood up against both Wataru and Tomoya, even if the contexts differed; Of her being more comfortable in expressing herself and pursuing what she wants; Of her bonding with new (or previously missed) friendships in her second life.

In a way, we get to appreciate the both Misa and Wataru's growth as individuals, not just as a couple, making the best of their second lives.

If the both of them do end up getting to live their lives the way they'd want, that will also be a lovely call back to what their conversation at the start of Ep6 ✌️

Anyway, thank you for sharing! It's really interesting to see how different people notice different details from the show. 🙌

No problem!

Thanks for highlighting! Goes to show how much planning went into the show 😭

Just want to give a shout-out to the writer and the team for the tightly-written script and screenplay because you really do notice the references and motifs during rewatches. Some noticeable ones:

- Misa's father mentioning how 'a kind student' guided him in EP1 > Wataru revealed to be the 'kind student' in EP5's flashback.

- Screenplay detail: In EP2, Wataru's narration of of him being 'an unnamed background extra' in Misa's life. As his flashback ends and the scene shifts back to the present, we return to Misa's POV. The camera slowly shifts from blur to sharp focus on Wataru as they greet each other at the building entrance, symbolising that Wataru is no longer an unnamed background extra in Misa's life.

- Screenplay detail 2: Reina figuring out Misa's plan through all the flashbacks of what Misa had said in previous episodes, making effective use of the dialogues that were written, a reflection of how tightly-written the show is. Of course, there are added layers to this scene from Reina's POV (regardless of how awful and manipulative she has been, you know a show is well-written when you can empathise from different character's POV), but I'm conscious of typing too much here so moving on.

- Callback Reference (or Motif) 1: Umbrella. In the first life, Wataru ran after Misa at the university with an umbrella but failed to catch up. He also recalls driving past Misa in the streets after her awful class reunion. In the second life, he redeems the missed opportunities by shielding her with the umbrella twice.

- Callback Reference 2: Hand warmer. In the first life, Misa (in a mascot costume) hands Wataru a hand warmer. In the second life, Wataru returns the favor after Misa witnessed Tomoya and Reina riding off in a taxi.

- Callback Reference 3: Hatsuyuki (First Snow). In the first life, Misa (in a mascot costume) watches the first snow with Wataru. In the second life, they watched it again, leading to their first kiss.

- Callback Reference 4: 'Hope it rains'. In the first life, Wataru said, 'Hope it rains.' at the Dai Dai Pond in his first encounter with Misa. In the second life, the rain came while they were hanging out at the same location to cap off their 'date' at the university. Okay, this is probably just a coincidence 😂

Just my opinion, but these little details do make me appreciate the show even more, showing how much care goes into the production. So, huge shout-out to the writer (and entire staff)'s attention to details, and given that this is a drama dealing with time-travel, I think they've done a pretty awesome job 👏

I'm also wondering if Wataru goes back to being a researcher (which I believed he mentioned to his professor in ep2. His exact line was, "I'll save the dream of being a researcher for my next life.") provided the writers give the story a happy ending.

Also, perhaps the writers have 1 last flash-back up their sleeve to use for Wataru? Might be effective, given how controversial Ep8's ending was (ie, noble idiocy trope), if they can come up with proper reasoning or ways to tie things up neatly. Personally, I've really enjoyed the flashbacks as they provided more depth for his character while complementing the story.

It seems like we will be getting close to 70 mins run time for each of the last 2 episodes.

Hope the team sticks the landing for this, given how tightly written the screenplay + script has been so far 🤞