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A cute story with a unrealistic female character (and i know this is a fiction)
At first glance, 'Usokon' presents itself as a heartwarming romantic comedy that reunites two childhood friends who lost touch for ten years. Takumi, the male lead, approaches her with an unconventional proposition, to be his fake wife for six months.As the story unfolds, 'Usokon' initially weaves a charming tale of cute and heartwarming moments, where you can witness how this lie gradually transforms into their truth.
However, as the plot progresses, the portrayal of the female lead character, Yae, raises some concerns. She is selfless and sweet but her naivety and unrealistic behavior can be hard to ignore. The central conflict in the story becomes ... bonkers? as it involves a girl who had a brief relationship with Takumi a decade ago suddenly resurfacing and demanding Yae to go away, so she can be with Takumi. And she does!!!! This development feels unrealistic, with the character seemingly disregarding everything Takumi did and said up until that point.
While I initially enjoyed the dorama despite some minor annoyances, the appearance of this new character marked a downturn in the plot. If a conflict was needed to drive the story, it could have been approached in an entirely different and more believable manner.
On a brighter note, I found Takumi, Shindo, and Remi's characters to be quite engaging. I look forward to seeing these actors in future doramas, hoping for a more compelling storyline that does justice to their talents. ♥
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When the characters regress and you are questioning reality.
After watching one episode one would think the female lead will get an amazing character development and slowly will learn how to prioritize her own needs. One could not predict she will infect male lead with her Jesus complex - and yet this is kind of what happens.Not gonna lie, Takumi was adorable. The twist on the contract marriage and the initial presentation of him as a cold male lead was done perfectly and set my expectations for the rest of the show slightly too high. On the other hand, Yae was just frustrating. While at the beginning the situations she put others’ needs ahead of her own made at least some sense, later it was just too much to handle and the script was leaning into some ridiculous territories.
I think the writer just fails to deliver a character development. I know not all characters need one, but her behavior was truly pathological on a whole new level. If anyone needs character development, it’s her. What’s worse, I feel like her “giving up so others can be happy” persona started to influence male lead too, which led to at best questionable last episode.
That said, I did enjoy them as a couple and their scenes were adorable and blast. The actors had amazing chemistry and as a viewer it was clear to me how in love they are. I also really liked all the side characters - which, surprise surprise, actually got more character development than our leading lady…
Overall, a decent rom-com that is lacking in some major areas.
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The female lead is WHACK!!!!
This is my first review for a j-drama, and I need to get the angst that I have for the female lead character because I get it, making someone happy will make you happy but if making that someone happy put another person to be so heart broken that he will not go to work (and as a workaholic that means a lot) then you must rethink your means of making someone happy because what you are doing is stupid.so for someone out there who wants to watch this series, be forewarned that the stupidity of the character of the female lead is absolutely unrealistic to say the least.
so good luck.
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Alas, it certainly wasn't the case with this "Usokon", which I watched for Nagahama Neru who used to be one of my "oshi" in Keyakizaka46: in a nutshell, the drama is so trite it hurts, all the genre's tropes are (ab)used over and over, and despite some good acting, decent music and better-than-average "packaging", it felt as "plasticky" and fake as a TV commercial.
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I really like the trope about contract marriages, because usually it leads to funny, flirty moments. But not here.. In the beginning the show was an easy 8 - 8.5 for me, but it dropped very fast, leading to reach rock bottom at episode 9. I was so close to dropping the show after episode 10, but with only 40 minutes left, i decided to finish the show. And got more and more frustrated.Usually japan serves very likeable female leads, thats at least my experience, but maybe i was just lucky in the past to watch the right dramas. The fl here is just horrible. she lies all the time for the sake of others, because apparently everyone deservers happiness, but her.
Takumi, Masaki and Remi really carried the show. the support characters are absolutely adorable, likeable and funny. the actors are great and i indeed like the comically acting. The one-sided gay romance surprised me and at one point i just wanted takumi and masaki ending up together, lol. the fl was really frustrating, because theres no character development for her, while remi got a great change and became likeable very fast. she and masaki were my favorite characters! somehow every side character was more likeable then yae, which made it really hard and frustrating to watch the drama.
the dramas favorite trope is interruption. and i hate it. if it occurs only a few times, it can be funny, but overdone its just annoying and thats the case here.
the ending was just ridiculous. a fake marriage to make takumi realizes he wants yae? yeah, no. why communicate when you can pull off such a desaster? lmao.
ah, and what was this ost pls? i dont know if it was autotune, but there were way too much effects on the vocals on the ending song and it was just a pain in my ears.
i dont recommend the show, because there are way better dramas with the contract marriage trope, that serves the things i expect from a drama, very well. this drama failed totally to deliver everything i watch this trope for.
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Had potential to be interesting but was disappointing.
This drama had so much potential to be so cute. The first 3-4 episodes were really interesting with each episode focused on a different pov.Sadly, that is the only positive thing I can say about this show. There's no skinship... not sure if the Japanese culture is just more conservative. The two leads had potential...but not nearly enough romance for audiences to feel the relationship.
The ending was terrible. All the characters had no motives/logical sense to their decision making. People are just making stupid choices...for the sake of making stupid choices.
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Being a Martyr is a RED flag!
“Usokon” features a pretty common fake marriage/relationship trope. It doesn’t give us anything unique but does offer a comforting, familiar and cute contract relationship. This is a pretty easy watch and very binge-able. The pacing is good for a short drama (12 episodes, 20 minutes each).Takumi (ML) and Yae (FL) are both likable characters, well, only to a certain extent for the female lead. Their contract relationship is fun and interesting, and the chemistry is pretty good. I was rooting for them all along. The first two episodes hooked me in, especially when we see the perspectives from both leads. Except for one annoying ex who showed up towards the end, the rest of the supporting cast contributes and supplements the main romance/plot pretty well. Acting is not too over-the-top for a J-drama.
The drama was going so well until the last few episodes when they introduced ML’s ex-girlfriend to the story. What a nosedive! The biggest issue is how Yae dealt with the meeting with the ex. Yae already has this martyr-like annoying personality when she was first introduced (such a big red flag). I thought there would be character development for her and she would behave less like a martyr. But no, she continues on to make one of the dumbest decisions ever, when it was made VERY clear to her how Takumi feels. At this point, I don’t think she deserves Takumi at all.
It’s really unfortunate because I was enjoying this drama so much, right up to this point. I like how the childhood friends reconnected, getting involved in the fake marriage, trying to keep this a secret, faking it in front of everyone, slowly falling in love and even the return of the other childhood best friend. All these are the makings of a classic fake relationship and I am eating all this fluff and cuteness up.
Unfortunately, I need to dock points because I was annoyed how it all went down in flames in the last few episodes.
Completed: 10/14/2023 - Review #366
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Almost great
I really enjoyed this series for the most part. It's a bit cheesy, a bit absurd, and a little more than a bit frustrating but it had a lot of heart.I think many people would find Yae's character to be vexing, and for good reason. She is, after all, the classic doormat heroine. But, surprisingly, I wasn't annoyed by her (likely because I haven't had to sit through much noble idiocy recently). I'd also credit it to Nagahama Neru. I think she plays the character charmingly well, making the emotional beats work (for me, at least). I just couldn't help but root for her (and want more development for her). Kikuchi Fuma is wonderful as well, nailing Takkun's duality. He plays nonchalant and lovestruck giddy so so well. I'm not familiar with the source material but his comedic timing made me feel like he was a manga character that had come to life.
The side characters are great as well, especially Takumi's circle. I really enjoyed the depth of Shindo and Remi's love for Takumi. Remi's plotline and her conversation with Yae was a highlight for me. Not many dramas, especially romcoms, explore platonic love like that.
It was great. The leads have great chemistry. The writing is heartfelt (I'm a sucker for metaphors in conversations, although they're a bit too on the nose at times here). I was so ready to put it in my favorites folder — and then the last three episodes happened. Takumi's HS gf trying to find him AFTER finding out that he's gotten 'married' is just so absurd. Ruined the rewatchability for me. And that ending — just not giving. Zero catharsis.
Still, it's a pretty good romcom. I'd just stop watching at like episode 8 or something...
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Therapy For You
The biggest lesson that ALL drama FemaleLeads need to learn is how to say “He’s mine, back tf off Looney Haus” and we’ll all be happy and clap in unison….🥲🥲🥲🥲
The plot of this j drama had me hooked which happens often with j-dramas for me. The plot is always sickening(good) but the execution is uhhh…..
The first episode had me so giddy, a drama where the ML is SUPER expressive, goofy and head over hills while NOT giving me the ick? Rare gem.
The ML carried. I loved his facial expressions and his little secret crush/love sickness. I was giggling the whole first couple of episodes. Absolutely cute. Somehow he gave cute but masculine in the same sentence.
On being introduced to the FML i actually liked that she was presenting as this meek and obsessively selfless character….IN THE BEGINNING, because it’s gave off a kind innocents that is my personal favorite type of FML trope. I know the majority of other romance drama watchers prefer the “strong independent woman” trope which is fine but my preference differ;~what can I say, I love a good damsel in distress~ so I can say I thought I was going to enjoy the FMLs character and development of said character . I thought wrong… let’s get into the nitty gritty
I loved that the plot is childhood sweethearts reunited for a second chance at love. Sooo
cute. The fact that the ML(and presumably
the FML) was secretly in love since they were
very young is so heart bursting
I hate that they didn’t lean into that
background more. Like we really didn’t get a
solid flashback of the FMLs point of view
while the ML was going out of his mind
thinking she was in love with their best
friend(2ML). A clip of her writing in her diary
about him or crying because he had a girlfriend, SOMETHING.
While the ML was very loveable, he was also very annoying and pathetic. What man leaves the woman he loves for 10 years, no contact, over a petty competition between him and 2ML that was mostly in his own head? Allowed the FML to go off and date others and be manipulated and used while he was striving to be the “better man”
I will say, it was very romantic that he became a successful architect and business owner to win her heart and fulfill her dreams but he could of did all that while atleast keeping in contact with her.
The fact that the ML was not man enough to tell his best friend(2ML) that he was in love with FML and to back off and atleast persue FML despite assuming she liked 2ML while
they were still young is pathetic. Man up!!! Coward.
The FML honestly needed a therapist.
The amount of people pleaser running
through her DNA needs to be studied.
The saddest FML to exist.
I won’t pick her completely apart because she
was not all bad and I actually liked her
character outside of the people pleasing
obsessiveness.
The only self serving thing she’s done
throughout the whole drama was agree to
marry ML because you could tell she was
enjoying the whole “fake marriage” situation.
She enjoyed being a kept woman/stay at home wife and finally something belonging to her and her alone. it was
probably the first time she felt contentment
and true joy since splitting with her
childhood friends. Everything else was in
shambles.
The fact that she allowed that butter face
crying weirdo to manipulate her emotions,
made me so mad. Like girl STAND UP. The Ex
(2FML)was so outta. Still obsessed with a guy
you dated in highschool for 10 seconds who
didn’t even like you is wild behavior. And then
showing up at his home where his wife is to
give a sob story in hopes that she would leave
him is sick and twisted. The FML should have
told her to keep that tear covered mug away
from her and her husband and to seek help.
But she didn’t, she allowed a 10 second ex
girlfriend to breakup her happy situation with
ML.
In conclusion, this drama deserved alot more.
If they didn’t make the FMLs character so
annoying it would have needed more
episode’s because the plot is honestly so cute
and wholesome. Imagine a universe where the FML allowed the ML to kiss her after he confessed. We would have atleast made it to the Christmas Eve glamping trip. We needed to see the FMLs
character development. I wanted a episode where she finally learned to say “no and f you” for once. For all we know she’s still a push over who allows outsiders who don’t matter to manipulate her emotions
and life. Also needed more intimacy and physical love between the Mainleads. There was only 1 kiss and it was barely a kiss. I want to see tongue and some “cheek”grabs but hey… that’s just me. 👀I give this drama
a 8.5/10. It would have been a 7.5 if not for the ML and his cuteness.
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Good Enough
Japanese Drama '' Usokon '' is a romantic comedy of a contracted relationship between two old friends.The drama has an unoriginal, but overall an enjoyable story. The main male lead was pretty funny as he struggled to express his true feelings towards the girl and as he was being cheeky behind her back, making scenarios of his own, scenarios that kept failing miserably. The female lead was also enjoyable, though her character got tiring after a while, as she was too much of a victim with no real character development in the ending.
Nevetheless, the couple was cute and the love triangle was nicely handled. However, the ending was ridiculous and so idiotic that didn't make sense if one wanted a more realistic approach to a drama that so far had a smooth sail with its story.
So, overall, six out of ten.
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I probably would have given this drama a 9 or 10 if the last four episodes had matched in quality with the first 8. A lot of the MDL comments I saw before going in called the female lead too self-sacrificial, a claim I always take with a grain of salt. I personally find that while there are plenty of legitimate complaints about female leads who will literally lay themselves on the train tracks or burn themselves at the stake or sit themselves in the electric chair for some of the most foolish and unreasonable of reasons, there is also lot of disdain out there for too much kindness in female leads, like if a female lead sacrifices herself or something she wants for another character, even if it's truly a noble sacrifice, she actually Deserves to be laid on those tracks or burned at that stake or put in that electric chair. With this in mind, I decided to go into Usokon open-minded. I truly like kind and self-sacrificial characters, and I'm always happy to see them represented in dramas, so I was hopeful and excited for this drama.For the first 8 episodes, I can genuinely say Usokon is very solid. I enjoyed the episodes so much, in fact, that I struggled to understand what people had been complaining about. The female lead can be more self-sacrificial and kind than she might need to be, but all of her kindness and sacrifices are for truly kind and worthwhile reasons. She never did anything I found to be outrageous or stupid. I really, really, really liked her. Of course, like most everyone else, I found the male lead charming and adorable and a riot to watch as he acted surreptitiously silly and excited over his feelings for the female lead. The romance was so easy to root for, because the leads were sweet apart and together.
But then came the last four episodes.
I'll just jump straight in and say that a random girl who went on one date with the male lead in high school and who he obviously didn't really like back shows up and is all 'I've loved him for ten years! Give him to me!' (I'm exaggerating a bit, but that was essentially her attitude), and the female lead...acquiesces. Granted, two of our side characters have a heart-to-heart with her telling her she's being foolish and way too self-sacrificial and she sort of, finally, sees some reason, but the whole plot twist is completely unnecessary and leads to a rushed finale where the female lead and the second male lead have to fake a wedding ceremony in order to lure the male lead there, because He is so heartbroken over the female leads behavior that he decides to walk around moping about it. As you can see, this ^ story choice...is a real buzzkill.
Now, I know there are going to be people who disagree with my assessment of the female lead as a character in the first 8 episodes. In response, I can only say that there's a vast difference between sacrificing your job on behalf of for your single-mom co-worker who is struggling to make ends meet and giving up your man because some girl he went on one date with ten years ago shows up saying she's in love with him and she'd very kindly appreciate it if you'd gtfo. The first scenario is relatable and shows just how much the female lead cares about other people's well-being. The second scenario is stupid.
I do have to disagree here with some viewers who have said the female leads nice-to-a-faultness rubs off on the male lead, because I think they missed some important context clues from the flashbacks about his character. He starts liking her when they are children but never makes a move until in his late twenties. The reason? Because he's intimidated by the other friend in their friend group and feels like he has to prove himself in order to be good enough for the female lead. He believes (we never find out if he is right or not) that the female lead likes this other friend, and he (the male lead) doesn't measure up. The whole drama, there's this big, neon sign over the male leads head telling us he struggles with insecurity/self-doubt. This is fine with me, because I think it works for his character, and I really felt for him, but I don't think you can act like his difficulty with expressing his feelings are because of the female leads influence. No, he already had that problem. I will, however, agree that his response to the female lead stepping aside for this nobody girl is pretty dramatic. Why he doesn't confront this girl and be like 'We went on one date. You need to grow up and leave the woman I love alone' is beyond me, but he doesn't, and we all just have to live that.
I honestly went into this drama hopeful that it would be a more positive portrayal of a kind female lead. I don't need, nor do I want, all drama female leads to be super kind, but I would like to see more dramas treat female leads who exhibit such kindness and self-sacrificial behavior with the respect they deserve. True kindness and self-sacrifice, the kind that actually puts good into the world, is not for the faint of heart. It's for the strong.
I'll end my review by saying that if the female leads kindness had continued in the same vein as what we'd seen in the first 8 episodes, my opinion of this drama would be very different. It's amazing how much only 4 episodes can completely change the way you feel about a story, isn't it?
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