I thought it would be sugar-coated as what I have seen to most stories with this kind, with the male lead doing such swoon-worthy gestures, but no, it did much more than that. Akira's love and adoration for his teacher is fascinating to see. Yes, he's stubborn, rebellious and immature, but that's what a normal teenager would behave. While Hijiri's inner turmoil will make you emphatize with her more. She knew that she's already attracted to Akira but she just kept on brushing it off and tried not to reciprocate that overwhelming affection ( except that one moment when everything is just too much). But the heart wants what it wants. That's the thing that the drama really did right, the execution and portrayal of their romance wherein you wouldn't see it as sensual and disturbing. It highlighted the genuineness of their feelings and how it came to that point where they're in now.
I also like that the story didn't condone and promote this kind of relationship and give us a glimpse to the consequences and what would others feel witnessing something like this blossom, like how Hijiri's friend kept on pointing out how wrong it is to fall for your student and how Akira's mom lose it when she learned that her son is in love with his teacher. Most of the characters are grey wherein you truly can't hate one, but instead pity and emphatize with them for we sometimes see their actions as something that would likely do because it's too mundane and didn't truly deviate with real life instances.
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Unpredictable, odd and will probably help you experience you a whole range of emotions...
To tell you the truth, yes it did bother me to see a 25 year old woman fall in love with a 15 year old, however this drama is good that way it does not in any way tell us the viewers that it is okay for a 25 year old to act upon her feelings for her 15 year old student, and actually shows some pretty realistic turns of events as well as keeps viewers on their toes.This drama had me feeling a whole range of emotions,no heart fluttering cuteness but rage, disappointment and the occasional come on... it did have me at odds with myself feeling conflicting emotions and hopes... But also had me thinking damn that woman is cool, not the female lead she was not cool at any moment of the show but the second female lead was slightly eccentric and though I did not always agree with her I loved her coolness.
The female lead is portrayed as the complete appifanny of goodness with just that one pretty big flaw of falling in love with her student. If it weren't for that she would easyslie have been a candidate for citizen/teacher of the year... or maybe dubbed a saint of some sort.
The male lead is a stubborn, lost soul and a teenager as teenager are... but actually sweet and pretty cute. His mom is one of those people who only sees fault in others and fails completely to take responsibility for her own actions. I loved her in the beginning but grew to hate her as the story went on.
I liked how they portrayed the harm of gossip, neglekt, bad parenting and all together the love children often have for even the most abusive parents when they are kids. I also liked the lack of predictability most of the time.
All in all pretty ok...
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Be open-minded about this taboo topic and you will find a beautiful story
Completed - 3/20/2022Before you start watching this drama, you should know that it's about a forbidden love story between a 25-year old teacher and a 15-year old student. If you have a problem with this and can't be open-minded enough to appreciate this drama, it's best to not watch it.
I am usually not a big fan of infidelity, older woman/younger man tropes and such a taboo topic. But reading some of the reviews, I am willing to give it a try and not to judge a book by its cover. I am so glad I did. This is a beautiful and emotional story about growth, consequences and life's challenges. It doesn't gloss over the fact that this is a taboo subject and that it's not accepted by family, friends and society.
It is without a doubt that our female lead, Suenaga Hijiri, should not have reciprocated her feelings and really put a stop to all of this. She's a teacher after all. However, as the story continues, it's really hard not to root for Kuroiwa Akira to grow up faster, so that they can be together officially.
I really like the fact that the drama does not portray Kuroiwa as super mature and use that to justify this romance. The drama did a great job in showcasing the emotions of a 15 year-old teenage boy. He's passionate, impulsive, immature but oh so in love. He doesn't know what to do with his feelings. His love blinded him from seeing anything else, thus, creating all sorts of problems. Actor Okada Kenshi did such an amazing job in showing raw emotions with his eyes. I see innocence and uncontrolled passion. Although Kuroiwa has matured as an 18-year old, he is not quite mature enough to handle all of his emotions. His mother is correct that he could be so out-of-control when it comes to Suenaga. He doesn't know how to act and respond maturely and is unaware of the consequences to his actions in the adult world. But I do applaud him for still having the self-control to not get too physical with Suenaga. I really enjoy seeing him grow up from a 15 year-old impulsive teen, to finally realizing what he needs to do as a 18-year old, and then as a 23 year-old.
Suenaga also has changed throughout the drama. As an inexperienced and young teacher, she is unable to do the right thing and control her feelings. She should have put a stop to all that until Kuroiwa is 20 years old. Because of her decision, she has to face the aftermath and consequences throughout the rest of the drama. The drama never makes this taboo romance to be all rainbows and roses. There are realistic consequences, and some very serious/extreme ones courtesy of Kuroiwa's mother. The drama does surprise me towards the end with the decision Suenaga made regarding the pledge, and I'm glad she did what she had to do, and finally realized what's best for both Kuroiwa and her.
As much as I root for the leads to be together, I can totally understand where Kuroiwa's mother is coming from. While watching this drama, I asked myself what I would do if I was his mom. I might not have used such drastic (surprising) measures at the end, but there's no way in hell I would approve my son's relationship with his teacher. It could be difficult to watch how Kuroiwa's mom treat Suenaga, but watchers have to understand where she's coming from.
Lastly, I also enjoy the secondary romance and how it all develops. Machida Keita is just as handsome as ever, and this drama came out before the popular "Cherry Magic". I enjoy his dynamic with both Suenaga and Haraguchi Ritsu in two very different relationships. Haraguchi is such a badass female character. She's so cool, eccentric but caring in her own ways.
I would have loved to see the 23 year-old Kuroiwa a little more and have a longer ending/epilogue but I am satisfied.
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Unexpected emotional rollercoaster
Okay so let me just say this first: I do not support student teacher relationships. And yet I found myself rooting for them and having my heart wrenched all throughout this drama. Some things I want to state are that this is not a lust fueled relationship nor are they having romantic meetings in between classes. Nor is the female lead 'grooming' (which is a very serious world and has strong sexual implications) the male lead. The relationship isn't normalized either and the female lead spends the whole second half of the drama taking accountability for her mistakes.Now that I got that out of the way lets talk about the beauty of this drama. First of all the acting was executed perfectly by the whole cast throughout the drama. Especially in Jdrama's i find that a lot of acting goes over the top and it seems to remind you that you are watching a drama but that was not the case here. It felt like I was really looking over these people's daily lives. The leads chemistry is so strong, which makes the story even more heartbreaking when you feel their emotions. Every time they are together it feels like you are looking in on a private interaction and the micro expressions really sell you every scene.
The cinematography was beautiful and unlike any other Japanese drama or any drama that I've seen for that matter. There were these strange moments in the first few episodes where the shot would change into a black and white one anytime the character wanted to have a mini monologue which just stopped in the second half of the drama which was strange. There is also this weird fishbowl effect that happens occasionally which I don't understand the creative intent behind, but it only happens a few times so it's not a big deal.
Lastly and perhaps the most pivotal aspect of this drama is the OST. It is literally so beautiful and the music is used just the right amount. My favorite song is Prologue by the singer Uru and whenever it comes on I want to cry. It is so beautiful and whenever it came on during the scenes between Akira and Hijiri I started to tear up or cry outright. It was utilized just the right amount and whenever it did it hit you in your heart like an arrow. The lyrics of the song also perfectly fit the tone of the story that when I hear it I feel like I'm experiencing a highlight reel of the drama again. I love this song so much and it makes me so emotional that I can't add it to my car playlist lol.
So for people like me who are apprehensive about watching this drama because of the subject matter I would say give it a chance. Obviously not everyone will like it or approve of their love (as we see in the drama) but its not predatory as some people make it out to be.if anything it taught me more about healthy love and selflessness than most dramas that are made today. If you don't like it you can just stop but if I had not given this drama a chance I feel that I would really have missed out on a life changing story.
I give it a high rewatch value and I plan to watch it again but man it really took it out of me I need something easy to digest so my emotions can recharge I'm exhausted okay bye go watch it
PS - The male lead is so FINe. I haven't ever seen him in anything before but now I am tempted to go through his whole filmography damn. Also FL was very cute too.
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An interesting watch
In classic Japanese style, they just picked the most unique story from the bunch.The premise itself is very interesting. The drama portrays the consequences of going against social norms and loving someone you shouldn't. The portrayal is as real as it gets yet beautiful in its own regard. The love between the leads is something that I would consider to be as true and real as it gets. As in the male lead, he feeling of love and the emotions for a teenager are very well expressed and thoughtfully portrayed and play an important role in the story(as it should). For the teacher, she really played the role of a responsible teacher and adult yet occasionally getting swayed by her emotions which is a very real thing. People might dislike the male lead's mother due to her being such a strong resistance in the story, however her character was a very real depiction of a real life mother(specially a single mother with a single child).
The cinematography is classic japanese, simple yet beautiful and always revolving around life.
The music though is really good and adds to the overall feels of the story and also makes it memorable for a long long time.
Excellent production quality.
Overall the story is worth experiencing. If you have some spare time, or you are in search of something unique, give this a go and you will definitely like it(if not love it).
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A paradox of a show
This drama is a mystery to me.I find it incredibly surreal how a show, where every single character without any exception is absolutely unbearable, can still leave you glued to the screen from start to finish.
There are some of the most cringeworthy moments in the history of motion pictures in this show. To the point where you'd want to poke your eyes out with a Bic pen. Yet still, you are somehow constantly left wondering about what happens next, and sometimes even rooting for some of the above-mentioned unbearable characters.
Maybe under some hypno spell secretly inserted by the show-makers, or maybe because I'm, unbeknownst to myself, a masochist, I was somewhat rooting for the male lead. Even despite his personality and its consistently representative obtuse expression on his face, having assured him first place in the contest for 'Being more punchable than a sandbag'."
I wish I knew before starting this show that I would be thrown down to the worst hell of all for an MDLr. That being the agony of choice: do I give it a 10 or a 1?
I guess this show is one of those paradoxes of the universe that will forever bug the brains of humanity. Beautifully awful and awfully beautiful. And since witnessing a paradox is bound to be a memorable experience for just anyone, I surely do recommend trying to watch it.
But be prepared, you're up for a very unusual, to say the least, ride.
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What I hated the most of this drama are:
- That annoying mother of Kuroiwa
- Also the mom of Hijiri was something
- Dramatic to the point of tacking help frompolice
- how the character of Kawai has became of a real loser
I love to watch noona romance genre or student teacher genre stories but was very painful they didn't had even a moment of happinnes, well at least thy got together in the end that's what counts
I wish there were more scenes of them together when he became a proper adult but sadly they just showed some seconds not more
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The wrong kind of problematic!
You wanna see a beautiful love story between an adult and a child? Congratulations, you've found it...I think everybody who decides to watch this after reading the synopsis expects to be confronted with a seriously messed-up plot and expects to feel disgusted with the female teacher who catches feelings for the 15-year-old student. And while I did think that the teacher was completely inappropiate and should have been banned from ever teaching again, I was also thinking that this scenario should have been depicted in a much more scandelous way just to show how truly problematic the leads' romance is. Instead this series really tried to depict this unacceptable scenario in the most acceptable way possible and delivered us a romantic love story.
Going into this, I wanted problematic characters and forbidden love, yes, but I was hoping for it not to be romanticized. They definitey addressed the problem of such a taboo relationship and its negative effects on the child, but in the end, the whole message of the show still was "If it's true love, it's gonna work out anyway" and that's not a good way to deal with kind of issue.
My biggest problem about this series was the FL. Apart from the fact that she was boring as hell and had no consistant or interesting character traits, I was really repulsed by the way she stood up for her feelings for the underage boy. Also, the people around her, apart from the pair of mothers of the FL and ML, did not react appropiately to this messed-up couple. A romance between a 15-year-old and a 25-year-old is unacceptable and the fact that this woman fell for a child is not something that can be forgiven or forgotten even if they give us multiple timeskips.
But despite my many complaints, I gave it a relatively good score of 7/10 because of the sheer fact that I was very entertained by this series. As I was watching it, I kept needing to know what happens next and though I did not enjoy the side couple nor the direction they took with the main couple's journey, I was kept on my toes the whole time and that explains my rating.
Anyway, despite the producer's obvious attempts to make the audience root for their relationship and understand their unconditional love for each other, I found myself really hoping for them to not end up together, no matter how many years passed, because let's face it, who in their right mind can root for this kind of romance?
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This, is a story of true love
I never knew japanese dramas were this good, until I watched this one. The rawness of the emotions, the storyline, the realistic pacing and events, the acting, THE ACTING, loved how they didn't ruin any character, and the fact that you can understand every character's perspective without blaming them or hating them for their actions, proves just how beautifully written this story is. Let's not even talk about the ost; it clings at your heart in ways you never knew was possible.Loved every second, every minute, every hour of this wonderful experience.
This drama is everything, and more.
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Jdramareally are high quality, this is one of those you can't easely forget and even want to watch again in the future/Story 10/10
the story very interesting even if it's not something new...the way they made it was wonderful
it's a story about 15 teen who fall in love with his sensei...the gap age to my opinion is not so big , because there in Japane there are very young teacher. so i think she is 21-22 years old when she start teaching, she look also very young
They fall inlove and to love theres no bonderies, it feels the story really streching the limit as we know it today with all the rulls and politcly corect people star to lose sence of love, this one make you belive that love exist again
it's not so easy to convey people today that real love like this not a feiry tail but i think they did here great job to make you feel it's there/
ACting 9/10
The main actor is just superb
The real down to this drama and that is why 9 of 10 , because the actress... she realy realy don't know how to convince with her pale acting esspecially infront of this superb actor when he is even just dubate and begginer..it's very strange and there are scenes that it's upsetting because it could be so much better
especialy the parts when they kiss and when she cry or need to be sad or pasionet...she just can't
Music 9/10
The piano in the background are nostalgic and i love it it's fit to the all old fashion style of the drama . it's like vintage style and uselly this is how Japanese produce...like the 80's and the music is from the 80's but the ending song i like less i feel sometimes it's not strong enough with this strong plot and the great actor. and producing and sudenly the main song is pale.
There are couple of cons:
1. the main actress
2. the main song
3. the mother...i think they could make her more human but she look wicked and mad.. maybe it's the actress acting and not what the producer want really, it's seems not so relate to the plot because they are all human there's no bad and good in this drama and suddenly there this mother that act like evil, it's very strange
4. the plots have holes
first the relationshop between the teacher and student is little weak...we didn't watch how they develope their relationship other hole is the conection between the father and son...it's too fast to understand what is ha.ppening to them after they didn't meet 13 years and sudenly they hug it's ok?! strange.
5. it's rushed a lot...i think they can strech it more
6 the classmate...also the girl friend classmate very annoying very
7 all the classmate are pale without any loyalty of real relationship...it's feel like acting the characters are flat.
8. i think what is the main reasone is the actress acting also in the kiss scenes...its' just ruined the entire drama for me, she don't look in love...or sad it's can drive you crasy because the actor is so loveable and do good job and she is numb
overall it's my second jdrama i love this year, very good . for the best you can watch my other reviews
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This review may contain spoilers
A tale of courage
This is not a story that condones or encourages romantic relationships with minors.This is a story about the mistakes we make, the consequences we pay and the painfully unforgettable memories that come with it.
This is a story that smells of nostalgia, youth and first love.
A story that inspires courage.
I had to express most of my feelings in my native language but let's take a look at the ratings in English:
---- Story 8.0/10
Although the focus of the story is on the forbidden relationship between Hijiri and Akira, the story follows Hijiri's time and growth as a teacher. We watch her grow from an immature, naive, lacking-in-confidence newbie to a teacher who was able to face her students and parents straight on. Despite being commented by numerous people that she wasn't suited to become a teacher, she held on to her passion. It's one of the things I appreciated most in this drama. The transformation of Hijiri as an individual, the courage she mustered, the resolve she grew to have, it was her memories with and feelings for Akira that gave her the strength to stand on her own. Confidence, courage, determination. These are not things that others can give you. The fact that she was able to find them within herself at the end of everything is enough proof that it had been a journey well worth it.
And of course, I loved the storyline revolving around Hijiri and Akira. By no means was their time together long enough to be convincing that it would be a relationship that lasts forever, but the fireworks at night, the fingers that barely intertwined, the stolen stares and skipped heartbeats, the gradual setting of the sun, the gentle waves of the ocean, the desperation, fear and uncontrollable desires. Sometimes there's just no reason at all. And the fact that a J like me was convinced of their thoughts for each other really shows how successful the production was in the portrayal of their journey together. I haven't watched a lot of Japanese dramas but most that I've watched, I always had to fast forward in some of the parts. But not this. Unless it's the Shotaro-Haraguchi storyline, which I'm not a fan of but I'm most likely in the minority. Anyway that's how much I was engrossed in how Hijiri and Akira's story unfolded. The plot is not flawless in the least (that slap?? And we need more of the ending), but there is an immense charm to it that made me finish the whole thing in one day.
---- Cast 8.0/10
Honestly, everyone was pretty great (how is this Mizukami's debut role??) but Arimura's acting lacked just a bit of depth in some places. It would have made the watching experience more engrossing if her acting was better, as important as her role was. But most of the times her performance was passable and there were several scenes where I was impressed with her acting as well.
---- Music 9.0/10
"Prologue" is such an amazing song. The lyrics spoke of what Hijiri and Akira couldn't. All of the BGMs/OSTs fit the vibe so well.
---- Rewatch value 8.5/10
Even though it was so depressing in parts, I loved the atmosphere of the series, especially the first five episodes! I rewatched it the next day I finished it and plan to do it in the near future again.
---- Overall 9.0/10
Because I enjoyed it so much and because I was so inspired by the characters. I can't say that I will ever have as much courage as Hijiri and Akira did. In fact I'm fairly certain I never will and never had. But it's incredibly endearing to know the courage and transformation love brings.
Lastly, major props to the production team - every cliffhanger, every close-up shot, every slow-motion frame, the impeccable timing when the OSTs played, the colours, the angles. All of these built together to make the story as memorable as it is.
后记：
爱。
不是一个应该轻轻被抛出的字眼。
15岁的恋慕，到底是一时冲动的喜欢，还是炽热长久的爱情，我想中学圣日记用了八年告诉我，青春的美好不限于懵懂纯粹，也可以深沉热烈。
如果在报纸上看到一则女老师和中学三年级的男生在一起的新闻，我想我一定会无法理解和认同。能够让我真心的为他们应援，大概是中学圣日记的成功之处。（当然也因为罔田弟弟真的好帅啊！！！！99年我可以！！（划掉
中学圣日记并没有美化师生恋。相反的，每个角色都有自己的立场，身为观众我也深以为然。看完之后的我依然不认同成年人和未成年的交往，但是这个故事的妙处在于体现每个人的犹豫，让步，失误，纠结，退却。很真实。如果想要爽快的看剧，也许不该选择伦理剧，看些打戏爽剧傻白甜的戏就够了。伦理剧之所以是伦理剧，是为了展现人们在明明知道不应该，在明明畏惧世人的眼光，在连自己都不知道自己在做什么的时候，还是跟随内心做出决定，那一份不知道是对是错的勇敢。
为什么被这个故事打动，就是因为勇气。
----晶的勇气来得相对简单，因为青春（笑
在还没有经历世道的磨练，在被社会的框架限制之前，我们都曾经有过或多或少的叛道离经。那是因为我们被体制，被父母，被老师所保护。曾经的自己或许不懂，但是进入社会，就能体会到作为一个小孩子，是有多么的幸福。成为大人，是要为自己负责任的。而未成年，可以为所欲为，可以肆意妄为，可以有无限的勇气。在明明什么都不懂却自以为是的年纪，也许以为只要两个人愿意就可以对抗全世界。只要我放弃一切，就可以守护你。这份不知道是充满傻气还是勇气的认真着实让人动容，恰恰正是15岁独有的执着热血。但正因为晶只有15岁，世界不会容忍他的放弃。
因为15岁。
----圣的勇气来得艰难，因为社会。
明明知道对方是个孩子，明明知道会自毁前程，明明知道没有任何一个人会认同，如何义无反顾？但是又无法忽视自己的内心，被对方的勇敢和热忱一点一点的打动。这样的犹豫不决反反复复，很真实。很人性化。因为一份不知道是否长久的爱而愿意违背世间的规矩，这很不理智，可是很勇敢。而圣最后能够拿出这份勇气，让我很佩服。
我非常羡慕这份勇气。因为我没有，绝对。
很多人都说圣是个绿茶婊，口嫌体正直。我却完全能够理解她的做法。最初只是把晶当成孩子的圣，一点一点发现他的优秀，被依赖，被信任，被认可，都是在圣还一点自信都没有的时候打动她的原因。身为一名教师，她要怎么接受自己竟然对自己未成年的学生动心？就算动心，也要否认，要拒绝。可是圣一味的逃避终究还是败给了夏日的悸动。
被拆散是无可厚非的。未成年之所以是未成年就是因为这个年纪的我们还什么都不知道，而身为成年人的父母老师监护人绝对有义务和权力终止两个人的关系。
重逢，却也是必然。（18岁的晶太帅了无法不再次沦陷吧？？
中间的拉拉扯扯，说白了，谁可以在那种离别下没有一点留恋？看到晶狂踩自行车摔倒还站起来狂奔我都不行了，遑论是已经被打动的圣。
留恋留恋，挥之不去。
我还是那个时候的我。你还是那个时候的你。
所以继续逃避，继续沦陷。
看似反复甚至更严重的情节，悄然起了一些变化。15岁和18岁的区别，还是挺大的。就像剧里说的 ’この年の三年、ヤバイな’。遇到圣的事情好像总是被打回15岁小屁孩原形的晶，也在悄悄成熟。
为了你，成为更好的自己。这就是爱情最该有的样子。
所以你说为什么可以爱八年，因为从来没有开始过没有拥有过的，总是会在回忆里发酵升华。也许他们会被现实打败，也许会永远热恋，我不知道。可是经历过这样的感情，难以忘怀。是以我这样旁观的观众，也难以忘怀。
看的时候不断感叹，青春だね。やっぱり青春だね。まだまだ子供だね。对于有这种想法的自己难免有点伤感。
我真的，是大人了。
-- 最后想说这部戏每个晶圣在一起的场面都是名场面啊太强了！！初见，春夜喜雨，表白，体育祭，包扎，火车，夏日花火，离别，重逢，山江岛的脚车，小木屋，摩天轮，每一个夕阳，每一个海边 T_T（略过还是不知所谓的巴掌（划掉
-- 两次的离别都太戳心——从脚车上摔下来重新站起狂奔的晶，迎着风大喊 “我会成为大人的 所以你别离开”（我靠眼睛又开始流汗），也许这个时候他才真正感受到‘大人’和‘小孩’的区别，全力的奔跑，竭力的呐喊，但是无力，太无力。——站在摩天轮底下仰望圣的晶，能够说出 “我会一直祈祷你能幸福”，真的，真的，真的让我很感动。你终于学会放手，长大了。那三声加油，那本沉重的笔记本，传递他的真心。被这样爱过，真的无法忘怀。
（完了我中毒了出不来啊啊啊
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Stupid plot
FL is such a hypocrite. She acted like she wanted to be a good teacher, but all she did was being in love with a minor!!! Her character is so weak and annoying.Story telling is bad. I can't seem to believe that they fall in love. Nothing happened that would make it make sense for a teacher to fall for student. Also, she should just quit teaching if her feeling is that easily swayed. She can't seem to be able to control herself, let alone control her students.
FL acting is also plain. She can only make one face, trying to be cute and all. I don't seem to enjoy the show and not recommend anyone wasting time with it.
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