Mama to Papa ga Ikiru Riyuu (2014)

This drama in my opinion needed more episodes, 10 or 12 should be fine with the runtime it had (~44 minutes). The characters were fleshed out, but you simply can't tell a story about cancer in just 220 (~44 x 5) minutes.

Cancer is much more than that, and it truly does suck. It's cruel and unforgiving once it has metastasized. The ending left me feeling empty, as we didn't have enough time to fully sympathize or empathize with Toko's suffering and fight through her illness.

Despite the other characters being well fleshed out, including their first child, Ai, and even Kenichi's work colleagues who just made short appearances. Their second son, Yuu, lacks depth to his character. He's just the usual innocent and cute boy characters you see in dramas where there are child characters, while Ai (the first child) feels like an actual character since she had her own issues and suffering through the runtime of this drama.

I dislike saying this, but you can remove Yuu from the story and it'll play out the same, that's how lacking in depth he is. But to counter, the other characters are really well fleshed out for a drama this short. Toko and Kenichi's parents, his colleagues, boss, etc. for example.


Verdict: Not good, not bad, just mediocre. Watch if you want just some perspective on cancer patients' suffering.

Read More