This drama has so few reviews I decided to copy my feed post from a month ago to the page as a review; other reviews give you the story details, so I feel okay just gushing in my stream of consciousness fashion here. :) (It is a given that not many titles are still at the forefront of my brain a month later for being so wonderful-only the wretched titles tend to lurk that long!)

The short summary: This is a highly emotional slice of life with performances that are a balance of charming, funny, and naturally sad at times as 9 people who’ve lost the people they love most in the world are faced with a world that doesn’t understand what they are dealing with and makes them want to be further isolated as no amount of “stay strong”isms will do any good… Those people come together and find a place they can breathe, people they don’t have to pretend to be okay around and eventually get okay around. Tearjerker moments paired with gentle humor, character growth and the best example of a true “found family” story I’ve seen… that is what you are signing up for if you watch this drama which I HIGHLY RECOMMEND.

The lengthy version (my brain splatting out its thoughts without censorship-pardon the mess):

I hovered between 9.5 and 10 for the rating here, but I really can’t find fault in it, especially since I had to naturally watch some pretty compressed video (it was uploaded long before the era of full HD gigabyte plus episode files being common) that lost a lot of the color in it but still found myself crying a bit, smiling, and crying again for all the pain and happiness alike… yeah, this deserves a 10. It is a heavily character-centered slice of life about found family (admittedly a weakness of mine that will warm my heart more than almost every other trope when it is done well, and man, this is your platinum star for that!), so instead of plot twists and turns or intense feuds of family dramas that have scheming at the forefront, this is bringing together people who are as different as you will find but who share one crucial thing: they all just lost the most important people to them because of the same tragic accident.

Granted, you need to WANT something that explores grief, loss, and pain from MANY perspectives and showcases a really complex set of character dynamics as they cope with trauma, loneliness (to extremes), survivor guilt (a couple of them weren’t there at the scene of the accident at all, but their guilt, while a little different, is no less intense, and their isolation and alienation no less saddening).

Stunning performances across the board. This managed, in 9 hours, to let me see deeper into the stories of the characters (despite there being several to peer into, some more deeply than others) than most dramas can in 20 hours, but unlike many (most) quick works that aim for the same “tell a lot with little time” result, it never felt like they were just gluing together tiny skits. It flowed exceptionally well, and I ended up deeply loving the characters thanks to how thoughtful I found both the writing and portrayal of them.

Emotional train wreckage, yep, and it is beautifully handled. I feel both amazing warmth and a tiny bit of exhaustion from so much emotion pulled from me as I couldn’t stop watching after a point. I didn’t want to let go of them, any of them. They really managed to end it pretty perfectly while leaving a big part of me wanting to forget much I’d just seen so I could watch it for the first time again even though it is not throwing a thrilling twist-filled plot that justifies forgetting before rewatching. I want to see their initial encounters and growth from the start with no knowledge of it. I want to watch them grow together and heal together in this gentle haven. The blend of heart, humor, pain, and characters who grow to trust and feel truly comfortable like family, real lasting family, with one another is worth anyone watching who wants to throw their hearts into something. (I am really glad I watched it far in advance of the Korean adaptation coming out-the Kdrama has only cast 3 potential house members, and I am excited for it, but I think it’ll be very different… still, what a fantastic title to remake in HD, hopefully with all the charm of the house this one features which really is just a perfect setting for this story!)

This is certainly not for people primarily looking for pretty faces and sharp cinematography. It is 20 years old this year and what is online, fan subbed, is compressed to under 1/5 the file size it would be if released now. I didn’t actually find it detracted too much after a brief adjustment for my eyes since I was there for the characters’ story, story, and more story and it fully delivered. The OST, while the start and end are consistent, has some fitting songs. In particular, a couple of instrumental numbers threw my brain back to an album I had, might still have, that I think was the Tokyo Kosei Wind Orchestra. At least that is the cover that is in my head (it is not at all a weird song of theirs-they have lots that are non-traditional-just one that I remember the flute player’s sound from and think this might be that same player). No huge wow factor anywhere… but that is why it shines. It is delicately handled, full of tiny details (both through setting/cast/prop visuals and in character traits and dynamics), and nuanced, and it feels deeply honest, authentic, in terms of the emotions of every character.