262
631
132
10
11
14
11
3
10
28
6
13
1
2
16
23
7
4
3
2
2
4
6
1
1
2
6
14
17
34
Every change begins with the word if, followed by the will and small first step.
This is for sure more of an office slice of life with romance, rather than romance set in the office. Rather than the story leading to romance, the romance is part of the greater self-discovery and development journey of our cute protagonist - Kano Akihito.
The thing is - I went into this completely blind not even knowing there will be a fantasy element (imagine my surprise at the end of episode 1), but no matter the set up it became clear to me this is Kano’s story and everyone else is there to highlight his improvement and growth, and I was all in. At first I was scared that the parallel world would hinder the romance and make me not invested in the plot, but romance is honestly not the goal here, but rather a result of a character driven story. It’s the cherry on top, not the main course.
There were many important life lessons in it, but two that for sure I enjoyed the most were:
You should not compare yourself at the beginning of your journey to someone who is miles ahead of you. You underappreciate your own abilities and also the other person’s hard work to achieve what they did.
Often how people treat you is a direct reflection of how you treat them. Taking the initiative and the first step can help you form close bonds and dear friends who will help and support you no matter what. You can all learn from each other and grow as people. Instead of staying in the vicious circle of being distant towards people because they are distant towards you, and them being distant towards you because you are acting distant towards them - take that first step to close the gap and create a healthier environment.
That said, even if the romance was not the highlight, it was still great. I cannot just ignore the height difference - even if it does not play an important role in any of the scenes, and it’s just existing there quietly, it’s enough for me. I also love how obvious to us the dynamics between them is, and how oblivious to it Kano was. But that’s the charm of the drama - we can witness how Kano figures out that words can be used for communication between people, not only powerpoint presentations for work. The love story in it was honestly great. It’s all in small gestures, unspoken worlds, stolen glances. It’s about taking care of the other person, not wanting them to suffer, wanting to support them and lessen their burden. It’s slow and gradual, but it’s well executed. Wish the change of heart was a bit better presented though. With Kano I kind of get when and why, but I don't fully feel it.
Acting wise I loved the performances of both leads. Kano Akihito as this slightly neurotic salesman and Ogami Seiji as the stoic and what seems like a perfect senior. But it’s more than meets the eye - they both had their insecurities, hesitations, and fears. They both thought they made the right choices to help the other to later find out it was a misunderstanding and misstep for both of them. Especially big props to Nakagawa Daisuke with his dual performance, which had to seem close enough that it could be the same person in parallel words, but also different enough to justify the set up in the first place. Also, his tiny pinning moments? Amazing.
Overall, what a pleasant surprise. I went with the idea that fluff office romance will be enough, but instead got food for thought, soul and heart.
The thing is - I went into this completely blind not even knowing there will be a fantasy element (imagine my surprise at the end of episode 1), but no matter the set up it became clear to me this is Kano’s story and everyone else is there to highlight his improvement and growth, and I was all in. At first I was scared that the parallel world would hinder the romance and make me not invested in the plot, but romance is honestly not the goal here, but rather a result of a character driven story. It’s the cherry on top, not the main course.
There were many important life lessons in it, but two that for sure I enjoyed the most were:
You should not compare yourself at the beginning of your journey to someone who is miles ahead of you. You underappreciate your own abilities and also the other person’s hard work to achieve what they did.
Often how people treat you is a direct reflection of how you treat them. Taking the initiative and the first step can help you form close bonds and dear friends who will help and support you no matter what. You can all learn from each other and grow as people. Instead of staying in the vicious circle of being distant towards people because they are distant towards you, and them being distant towards you because you are acting distant towards them - take that first step to close the gap and create a healthier environment.
That said, even if the romance was not the highlight, it was still great. I cannot just ignore the height difference - even if it does not play an important role in any of the scenes, and it’s just existing there quietly, it’s enough for me. I also love how obvious to us the dynamics between them is, and how oblivious to it Kano was. But that’s the charm of the drama - we can witness how Kano figures out that words can be used for communication between people, not only powerpoint presentations for work. The love story in it was honestly great. It’s all in small gestures, unspoken worlds, stolen glances. It’s about taking care of the other person, not wanting them to suffer, wanting to support them and lessen their burden. It’s slow and gradual, but it’s well executed. Wish the change of heart was a bit better presented though. With Kano I kind of get when and why, but I don't fully feel it.
Acting wise I loved the performances of both leads. Kano Akihito as this slightly neurotic salesman and Ogami Seiji as the stoic and what seems like a perfect senior. But it’s more than meets the eye - they both had their insecurities, hesitations, and fears. They both thought they made the right choices to help the other to later find out it was a misunderstanding and misstep for both of them. Especially big props to Nakagawa Daisuke with his dual performance, which had to seem close enough that it could be the same person in parallel words, but also different enough to justify the set up in the first place. Also, his tiny pinning moments? Amazing.
Overall, what a pleasant surprise. I went with the idea that fluff office romance will be enough, but instead got food for thought, soul and heart.
Was this review helpful to you?
