I see this drama as Hotaru no Hikari with a sprinkle of Nodame Cantabile. There's the same sort of chemistry between the leads as in both but, unlike Hotaru no Hikari, I didn't find the lead unbelieving silly but, more like Nodame, just too kind, which some people look down on or take advantage of. When you see her for the first time, you think it's probably going to be a drama going around in circles but it's actually very direct. Kyoko Fukada is so versatile you don't know what you're going to find with her; her character, though too kind for her own good, is also very honest. Let me tell you, for a drama like this, that's actually refreshing.
But what I liked the most about this drama and the main reason I'm actually writing a review is the following: this is a romantic drama with love triangles and unrequited feelings in which none of the involved ladies take it on each other. They're not resentful, not vindictive and actually talk to each other about things other than the men in question. Heck, I even liked the relationship between the lead and her co-workers, which got developed from cliches that may have been unnecessary to something more realistic and interesting. There's a lot of ladies standing up for each other in this, I don't know if that's a merit of the manga which this is based of or not but hey, I'm so grateful.
All in all, I was faced with situations in which I thought the drama was intending to go towards a cliche and there it was, doing something else (especially with Shohei Miura's character). It's not devoid of cliches, mind you, there's a stern cold-seeming male lead saving a heartwarming cutesy female lead, but there's a lot in between I found absolutely worthy of my time.
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So where do I get a meat pillow? This is what I want to know....
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When I started watching this, I simply had to put aside everything else out of my way (including sleep!) just to finish this drama. Aside that, I also decided to edit the subs (which the last time I did so was in 2010) for better quality version and timing for my mom and cousins whom I'm going to share this drama with. I did it all for the sake of sharing the love of this cute dorama, that's how much I got hooked with it.
Truth be told, the drama was full of cliché and since it was basically adapted from a manga... well… for the shoujou manga fans, you know how romance can get out of hand in comic books. For those who don't have any idea, you might want to try reading the manga to understand. However, what sets this drama aside from all the other cliched ones, for me, are the following:
- It's light.
- Easy to watch
- Heartwarming
It reminded me on why I got addicted to watching Jdramas in the first place. I enjoyed them for the short series episodes, simple story line and its uncomplicated humor. It's a mix of all the elements I was looking for a Rom-Com. No politics or heavy conflicts mixed into the drama which really worked well for me.
This is also the first drama I have seen Fujioki Dean act in and I was smitten with the way he spoke in English and Mandarin. I don’t know how his accent for Chinese was, but for his English it was perfect. Undoubtedly, it was given that he'd have a perfect American accent because he did grow up and study in USA. But that aside, I love how charismatic he was as “Shunin”, he was exuding the aura of an irritable middle aged guy but has a heart of a lost puppy (just saying). On the other hand, Fukada Kyoko is another story. I’ve seen her in the drama “Last Friends” a Japanese-Korean drama collaboration which also starred Won Bin. She looked so different from that drama in comparison to this one because she looks younger! Very unbelievable, but thanks to advanced cosmetic technology, it was very much possible. Now she looked a bit like Miyazaki Aoi which was a bit disturbing. Other than that, her acting has improved as well, so it’s quite cool that she came a long way as an actress.
The OST for this drama was done by Aiko and oh how much I’ve missed her voice. As always, she never disappoints, her cute voice suddenly popping out in those sweet or crucial moments throughout the drama leaves an aftertaste of good feels. I might be re-watching this soon in the future when drama drought comes in, but for now, I'm savoring the memory of fluff.
Over all this drama is a fun watch, it won’t leave you heated up or annoyed. Recommending this to all those Jdrama fans who loves to watch Romantic Comedies with lots of cute stuff and good vibes.
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Anyway, this was a cute drama. Pure fluff and just what I was looking for after crying my eyes out from some of the more serious options available. I did enjoy the storyline however predictable it was because- let's be honest with each other for a second- if you want to watch this drama its likely for its sappy, syrupy goodness. There are a lot of romantic entanglements in this drama but nothing too serious and you get used to it after a while.
The main female lead was a bit of a push over. The main male lead a bit emotionally cut off. Some reviewers said that they didn't really feel the chemistry between the two leads. While I agree that it appears the two have nothing but friendship between them in the beginning, I did catch a few of their sparks. This isn't a fireworks type of love. The fire builds slowly and just when you think you'll finally get the big pay off (I.E. kiss) you find yourself disappointed. There are kisses but nothing to write home about. This is Please Love The Useless Me's major drawback. However, I'm a sucker for a couple that squabbles cutely with each other so I don't really mind the lack of fireworks.
Overall the story is about our main female lead's debilitating "nice girl" personality and general "uselessness" that gets her into all kinds of trouble. She grows as a person because of emotionally distant Ayumu who can't help but look out for her- for a price. He offers her room and board, free food, and a place to stay. However, she must work for him and call him "master". She in turn lands her dream job, begins an awesome relationship, and stops making stupid mistakes because of Ayumu's backhanded compliments and kindness (often disguised in the forms of errands just to torture her etc). She finds herself in debt to him but also slowly (slooooooowly) falling in love with him. It's a cute story and the acting is ok. I wouldn't mind having Dean cook homemade meals from scratch for me every day. A girl can dream....
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In the beginning, I thought that just Shibata and Shunin were going to have importance to history. But all of them was important!
Akira, Haruko and Mogami-kun were very insteresting characters, with a lot of personality. Mogami-kun also was really cute and I felt in love with him.
In the other hand, Shunin and Shibata had a lot of chemistry.
The soundtrack was amazing!!
I would to like to watch this drama again!
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A drama that's like a sweet dessert after an omurice meal
I've been itching to watch this because after watching some dramas where Fukada Kyoko starred in, I felt that maybe her other works will also be promising. And I wasn't wrong! This is a simple, light-hearted, and sweet drama about adulthood, love, friendship, and work.I didn't find Shibata annoying because of her over-trustfulness. She actually reminds me of Kanzaki Nao from The Liar Game manga, because I felt the same way about her, too. Their kindness isn't the problem, it's the people who continuously took advantage of them before. But, with Shunin's character and the strong female personalities surrounding her, I'm glad to witness that they balanced out the events in the drama by playfully teasing her innocence with naivety. Another thing that I loved about this is the created friendships among the female characters. It's so refreshing to see how for once, women aren't pitted against each other because of a certain man, and they are just sharing the hardships of adulthood with alcohol and delicious foods over their tables. (Or maybe Shibata is just too kind to start an issue haha)
Overall, I like the plot very much. Just when I thought I would only watch a blossoming love story between two people, it offered me so much more than that. It made me think of what to expect of my future, and when I reach the next stage of my life, which is working. I do agree that the resolution felt rushed, but I'm still fine with that. It's our choice to check the source material if we're unsatisfied with the development of the story. So, don't hesitate to give this a chance if you want to take a break from heaviness and lighten up! :)
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1This review may contain spoilers
Constant Insults Equals Love, Apparently.
General spoilers only. Not sweet to me. The ML calls the FL an idiot, stupid, useless, hopeless, incompetent, a hag, etc throughout the ENTIRE show. He insults, demeans, and belittles. He shouts at her and berates her when she asks for help. He has a very small character arc at the end that was not enough to redeem him in my eyes.The SML, however, was sweet, sincere in his interest, earnest in his love, encouraging, supportive, and accepting. The FL even says he made the world seem like it could be a nicer place!
It was so frustrating that the FL instead fell for the emotional abuse with crumbs of care (and cooked meals) that the ML dished out. It seems love is through the stomach after all (sarcasm). A lot of the FL's insecurities even stemmed from how the ML treated her at their previous job when she was a subordinate that he was nasty to. His excuse for treating her like sh*t is that he was unhappy forcing himself to work at a job he didn't like but was good at. Poor him (sarcasm). I don’t think that justifies the extent to which he behaved badly.
At least the FL grows a bit of a backbone and starts bickering back to the ML. I didn't feel romantic chemistry from that however.
I kept waiting for a turning point in the ML's behavior and an increase in romance, but the change was miniscule. The few kisses were dead-fish-kisses and one of them was 100% non-consentual (FL kissed ML while he was sleeping, which I find creepy).
This felt unsatisfying and a waste of time; I wish I had dropped it partway through instead of hoping for improvements in character growth that never came. The actors did a good job with what they were given, I just really disliked how the screenplay was written.
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Good good good!
It was really refreshing to watch such a good show. No over-complicated story, no overacted roles (kinda), no unnecessary twists, this drama knows what it wants to be, and it's just that. Lovely and entertaining!The romance and the humor was completely spot on here! Nothing felt awkward, it was quite natural and believable too in spite of being a manga adaptation.
It's a fairly simple story about this girl, who is way too naive but has the best intentions to help out others. But because of all her clumsiness she gets helped out by her boss all the time. They have this bond which at first is more like picking up a stray cat but it develops into consistent trust and fun between them. The side characters are also fun and lovable. I actually miss discovering more about them.
Thankfully there are No evil-doers in the background with silly schemes, or causing misunderstandings. Also the love triangles are Not the heart breaking kind, people actually try to talk things out and understand their feelings before anything tragic happens, which is a relief really.
It's simple and refreshing, lovely and entertaining.
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