This review may contain spoilers
"But even so they laugh and live on."
"Hiyokko" is the 36th asadora that I've watched. Early on, this one looked like one I would really like and I eventually chose it to be the last in this almost non-stop asadora journey that began February last year. I had a good intuition about "Hiyokko" and I can confidently say that it's one of my favorite asadoras.
Mineko (played by Arimura Kasumi) gets a lot of flack for not being an "ambitious" heroine. I know asadoras are mostly known for their heroines chasing a career path, but the unambitious ones have just as much charm in my opinion. There's also nothing wrong with just having a job you like instead of having a career path you pursue. Anyway, Mineko is a very giving, hard-working, and family oriented person, which are common traits in most heroines. In that way, she's kind of a low-key heroine like Jun-chan in "Jun-chan no Ouenka. This, however, does not make her any less fun to watch. I truly loved Mineko every step of the way.
In "Hiyokko," Mineko has two love interests which is a bit rare. Her first love interest in rich college student Shimatani-san (Takeuchi Ryoma). He's very sweet but blunt at times. The couple come from different social circles, which ultimately leads to their break-up. While this was predictable, the writer was smart in how it was written. All in all, a couple I liked and was sad to see end. Mineko's second love interest is Hide-san (Isomura Hayato), a chef who works at the same restaurant as her. Their relationship starts as a friendship and develops slowly over time. Though we only see them together for a short time, I think this couple has become one of my favorite asadora couples. Hide-san is definitely one of the sweetest and most caring love interests.
As with most asadoras, the side characters are the real highlight of this series. Miyamoto Nobuko, from asadoras "Dondo Hare" and "Amachan," once again steals every scene that she's in playing the restaurant owner Suzuko. I also particularly loved Aiko-san (Wakui Emi from "Chiritotechin"), Setsuko (Kanno Miho from "Churasan"), and Saori (Ito Sairi, whom went on to lead "Tora ni Tsubasa"). From the previous sentence, you can guess that the asadora is populated by a lot of familiar faces and veteran actors. One thing I really loved about the supporting characters that new ones are introduced with every phase of Mineko's life. Many have their own arcs like Tokiko (Sakuma Yui) and Mitsuo (Izumisawa Yuuki), whom both come to Tokyo with her. Then there's the girls' dorm friends, Mineko's coworkers at the restaurant, and the residents of her apartment. There's so many characters to get attached to.
Normally, I don't pay attention the crew behind asadoras... But, here I noticed that the writer Okada Yoshikazu also wrote "Churasan" and "Ohisama." While I didn't completely like "Churasan," "Ohisama" is still my favorite asadora. "Hiyokko" has my favorite elements of both of these asadoras, such as the close-knit community from "Churasan" and the easy, slice-of-life vibe from "Ohisama" among others. For "Hiyokko," Okada added a new element that being the mystery behind Mineko's father's (Sawamura Ikki) disappearance, which is the main storyline of the entire asadora. I'd like to thank Okada for writing these three asadoras and improving with each one.
"Hiyokko" only takes place over four years from 1964 to 1968, which is unique for an asadora. The series feels very firmly planted in the 60s and there's so many wonderful references like with The Beatles and Twiggy. My favorite reference is San Francisco being referred to by the song title "Be Sure to Wear Flowers in Your Hair." *Go listen to this song by the way; it's so lovely* After finishing "Hiyokko," I realized that 156 episodes can feel so short. I very much wanted to stay in the world of "Hiyokko," which is why I immediately watched "Hiyokko 2" after.
Mineko (played by Arimura Kasumi) gets a lot of flack for not being an "ambitious" heroine. I know asadoras are mostly known for their heroines chasing a career path, but the unambitious ones have just as much charm in my opinion. There's also nothing wrong with just having a job you like instead of having a career path you pursue. Anyway, Mineko is a very giving, hard-working, and family oriented person, which are common traits in most heroines. In that way, she's kind of a low-key heroine like Jun-chan in "Jun-chan no Ouenka. This, however, does not make her any less fun to watch. I truly loved Mineko every step of the way.
In "Hiyokko," Mineko has two love interests which is a bit rare. Her first love interest in rich college student Shimatani-san (Takeuchi Ryoma). He's very sweet but blunt at times. The couple come from different social circles, which ultimately leads to their break-up. While this was predictable, the writer was smart in how it was written. All in all, a couple I liked and was sad to see end. Mineko's second love interest is Hide-san (Isomura Hayato), a chef who works at the same restaurant as her. Their relationship starts as a friendship and develops slowly over time. Though we only see them together for a short time, I think this couple has become one of my favorite asadora couples. Hide-san is definitely one of the sweetest and most caring love interests.
As with most asadoras, the side characters are the real highlight of this series. Miyamoto Nobuko, from asadoras "Dondo Hare" and "Amachan," once again steals every scene that she's in playing the restaurant owner Suzuko. I also particularly loved Aiko-san (Wakui Emi from "Chiritotechin"), Setsuko (Kanno Miho from "Churasan"), and Saori (Ito Sairi, whom went on to lead "Tora ni Tsubasa"). From the previous sentence, you can guess that the asadora is populated by a lot of familiar faces and veteran actors. One thing I really loved about the supporting characters that new ones are introduced with every phase of Mineko's life. Many have their own arcs like Tokiko (Sakuma Yui) and Mitsuo (Izumisawa Yuuki), whom both come to Tokyo with her. Then there's the girls' dorm friends, Mineko's coworkers at the restaurant, and the residents of her apartment. There's so many characters to get attached to.
Normally, I don't pay attention the crew behind asadoras... But, here I noticed that the writer Okada Yoshikazu also wrote "Churasan" and "Ohisama." While I didn't completely like "Churasan," "Ohisama" is still my favorite asadora. "Hiyokko" has my favorite elements of both of these asadoras, such as the close-knit community from "Churasan" and the easy, slice-of-life vibe from "Ohisama" among others. For "Hiyokko," Okada added a new element that being the mystery behind Mineko's father's (Sawamura Ikki) disappearance, which is the main storyline of the entire asadora. I'd like to thank Okada for writing these three asadoras and improving with each one.
"Hiyokko" only takes place over four years from 1964 to 1968, which is unique for an asadora. The series feels very firmly planted in the 60s and there's so many wonderful references like with The Beatles and Twiggy. My favorite reference is San Francisco being referred to by the song title "Be Sure to Wear Flowers in Your Hair." *Go listen to this song by the way; it's so lovely* After finishing "Hiyokko," I realized that 156 episodes can feel so short. I very much wanted to stay in the world of "Hiyokko," which is why I immediately watched "Hiyokko 2" after.
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