tata

I was really hyped to watch this mainly because of Ryusei Yokohama. He's one of my favorite Japanese actors, so I had pretty high expectations.
But, unfortunately, I ended up disappointed.

At first, I found the story pretty cringe. It was the typical mysterious, pushy guy and a female lead who's constantly trying to figure him out while practically throwing herself at him. Still, I decided to give it a chance to see where things between Ren and Miu would go.

What actually surprised me was that the show wasn't just about their romance. It also explored the love stories of other characters, and honestly? I found those WAY more interesting than the main couple's relationship.

Hikari and So, for example, had a much more interesting romance. I really wish we'd gotten to see more of them. Their relationship felt healthy and genuine, and I genuinely enjoyed watching them together.

As for Ren and Miu... their relationship started off pretty meh, got better for a while, and then ended terribly.

And poor Ruki. Of course, Miu wasn't obligated to like him back or reciprocate his feelings, but she definitely took advantage of his kindness. She even acknowledges that it's easy to benefit from someone's kindness when you're going through a difficult time, and that's exactly what she did. I think it was really unfair of her to give Ruki false hope.

I also didn't like what they did with Chiaki, Ren's longtime friend. She was initially introduced as the typical romantic rival, only for us to later discover that she was dealing with a serious issue, which eventually drove Ren and Miu apart. It almost felt like the writers were trying to turn her into some kind of villain.

And I especially disliked how she made Ren feel guilty for not reciprocating her feelings. Just because she'd been in love with him for 15 years doesn't mean he owed her anything. He wasn't obligated to return feelings he never shared in the first place.

And speaking of Miu, I found it pretty ironic that she had gone through such a painful breakup, one that clearly left her emotionally scarred, yet she still let her guard down around Ren and ended up putting herself through another painful situation. You'd think she'd be more cautious after everything she'd already experienced.

Anyway, despite all my complaints about the story, I have to give credit where it's due. The production was genuinely great. The locations were gorgeous, the color grading was beautiful, the soundtrack was really nice, and the actors did an amazing job too.

It's just a shame that the main romance didn't live up to the rest of the show.