Kudos to the child actress
I picked this without much thought at first because usually I like to watch Japanese slice-of-life dramas with some supernatural or fantasy elements in them, but didn’t expect to like this as much as I did and am surprised that there are so few reviews written about it.What I liked about this drama:
Firstly, yes, the Japanese are good at making slice-of-life dramas. I believe this genre is their FORTE. They are able to make ordinary, everyday happenings interesting and very ordinary conversations touching.
Secondly, this drama touches my heart. It shows a family being torn apart by death of a family member, one who is always full of life, of good cheer, keeps the entire house proper, does the housework for the family 365 days a year, cooks all meals for the family, yes, sounds all mundane stuff, but the reality is that when this person is no longer around, the whole family simply collapses. The entire world becomes gloomy and dark for the remaining family members who simply live their lives like zombies day in, day out, year after year. And then, out of a sudden, one day, when they are given a second chance, that is, when the supposedly dead family member comes back (in the body of an elementary school kid), the family gains newfound cherish and happiness….but alas…this second chance is taken away again…..
This drama executed all the above very well. The emotions of the main leads were just right, the words said were appropriate and simply able to strike a chord.
Thirdly, the female lead. The elementary school kid who acted as the wife whose spirit had gone into this school kid’s body. This drama’s title is ‘my wife became an elementary school kid’, so obviously they had to find an elementary school girl to act as the wife and wow, I think they found a really suitable child actress. I am not familiar with Japanese child actresses, but this particular actress really acted convincingly as a 40-plus year-old woman, although she was merely a 10-year-old girl in real. It is not easy for a girl as young as her to act like a mature adult woman, but her mannerisms, body language, vibe, right down to her facial expressions and speaking, were all convincing enough in this drama. Kudos to this actress! I think her exceptional acting was the key to the success of this drama because 98% of everything in the drama was about her and her family.
Overall, the pacing was good, neither too fast nor too slow, there was never a dull moment I could remember, even when what they were doing or talking about were just ordinary everyday stuff.
I have to specially mention the OST. The drama was not filmed in the 80s or 90s, but somehow, there was a nostalgic feel to the music which was soothing to the ears.
As with most Japanese dramas I have watched, loose ends were tied properly at the end, closures were properly made, goodbyes and words of gratitude were properly said, leaving no regrets and nothing hanging in mid-air or unsettled. The ending gave a sense of satisfaction and positivity towards the future.
It reminded us that even if our loved ones were to leave us one day, we should still face life positively and live it to its fullest.
Negative comments? I did think hard, if I really have to comment, it will be that the stories of side characters were not developed much, BUT they were not irritating and did not at all worsen the main storyline. This is perhaps the characteristic of most Japanese dramas, short and focused (on only the main story and the main leads), but really, other than that, I cannot find anything negative worth commenting because EVEN IF there are, the positive ones above far surpass any negative ones.
I highly recommend this drama if you like heart-warming Japanese slice-of-life, family dramas with a supernatural element, but I have to mention that the supernatural element in this drama is not the focus and does not play a huge part at all.
There are numerous such Japanese dramas out there, but this is definitely one of them I did not regret watching.
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Don’t let the age gap tag stop you from watching this!
First of all, this drama offers more than you can expect. One of the main reasons people avoided this, was because of the age gap but this is not about romance at all, it is about family and how you feel or act when you lost someone you love. Of course! it has a pinch of romance but not from them and it isn't the main plot either, which I love, since it made the drama go more naturally. Secondly, I read the manga and I had high expectations on this adaptation, and let me tell you: “It exceeded them!” The manga had many things I didn’t enjoy. However, the drama made changes and that made me really happy. But, simultaneously, there were things I wanted to be included in the drama but they weren't. Nonetheless, I prefer the drama way more than the manga, sorry. The manga is still ongoing, therefore, there could be some things that can change my mind in the future; I'm not saying this drama is perfect, though. It has tons of flaws. The setting was really beautiful, camera movements and scenes were well-developed; I noticed the producers took many shots from different angles and were shown as flashbacks...Nice move! However, there were plenty of continuity errors that made me a bit upset but it's not something I cannot forgive. Another thing is how good the cliffhangers of each episode were but the producers' inability to continue them was very disappointing, to an extent they were not exciting anymore and I was just like..meh! Regardless, I haven’t felt so excited while watching a drama in a long time. This drama kept me every week waiting for the episodes and couldn’t help but rewatch and rewatch them over and over again, I’m not exaggerating.Story: Such a heartwarming journey I enjoyed from beginning to end. On one hand, the drama exposes us how painful it could be losing someone you love and suddenly comes back, a miracle! On the other hand, how this miracle influences the characters’ current life and their future. I really loved how the conflicts were handled since they were approached from a real-life point of view. Prepare some tissues!
Acting/Cast: I have plenty of things to say here. Since I’m a huge fan of Ishida Yuriko, I couldn’t skip this one. However, I didn’t stay because of her but Maida Nono and Morita Misato. The veteran actors were not disappointing at all but I expected more from them, some scenes were not developed correctly, it felt a bit overacted and unnatural (I exclude Yoshida Yoh, she was on point). On the contrary, we have Nono-chan whom portrayed her character perfectly, her gestures and reactions were indeed from a middle-aged woman; sometimes I forgot she’s actually a kid. Then, we have Morita Misato whose character was my favourite by far. I grew fond of her so deeply that I was more excited about her than the main plot. Her kindness, voice, mannerism, and smile kept me obsessed with her, I mean.. a healthy obsession, you know. Those two left the veteran actors behind but by a lot! And yes! I supported Moriya with all my heart!
Music: Absolutely fresh and original. The main song suited the scenes so well (That bike scene from Ep1: MAJESTIC!). The soundtrack is so unique, I really appreciated the use of wind instruments, loved it!
Rewatch value: I already did, every single week. But I would definitely do it again.
Final verdict: My cup of tea! So happy I watched this while it was airing. The content provided by the drama Instagram account was delightful. I had never seen such chemistry among all the cast! They all look like a real family. The only reason I don't give this drama a 10, is because of the ending, I wanted a more specific one. It ended how I expected it but I wanted a bit more, just a bit more but yeah! I can't get everything I desire.
Cheers
Belu
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A refreshing heartwarming Family drama
Despite the "weirdness" you have to deconstruct yourself from notions (mostly western) that highly sexualizes everything, with an open mind and thinking about it from the standpoint of a pure story this is a story about grief, and how a family heals after losing a loved one. A miracle happens where the mom appears with her memories in a girl's body. It's wild and crazy on the surface but it's SO INCREDIBLY acted (even more than many adults actors) it's INSANE the range the child actress can pull off, you really get sucked into the story and believe her due to her actions, tone, micro-expressions etc. And along the way as you get to know each family member and their stories and flaws more you just love everyone. This one has some really heartwarming scenes that had me tearing up, but also some light-hearted comedy thrown in. A good balance if you ask me, give it a couple episodes and you'll be addicted. It's hard to explain until you click play, truly a wonderful drama that I'm sure is risky but the pay-off is worth it. As a long time drama watcher (12+) years this is definitely a hidden gem and a wonderful delight to see and to think the child actress is only BEGINNING her career. JUST WOW GIVE HER MULTIPLE OSCARS this is so impressive honestly! With an open mind you will see the beauty of this drama!P.S THAT OST is SO BEAUTIFUL
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From Tsutsumi Shinichi as the Husband to Aju Makita as the daughter, Ryunosuke Kamiki as the brother and an incredible performance by Nono Maida as the Yuriko Ishida reincarnated Wife Takae (and even Misato Morita and Yo Yoshida as support characters), these were all people you grew to really care about and want to see find happiness, though you are aware that not everyone can get what they want in life.
From the get go, we all felt that this story would have a bittersweet ending but I'm happy to say that it was an entirely satisfying and complete conclusion to a wonderful story…
Who would have ever thought a drama with such a humorous set-up could be so heartfelt and heartbreaking!
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This review may contain spoilers
Wholesome version of Himitsu
When I started watching this, I immediately thought of Himitsu (a novel that was adapted into at least 2 movies and a drama). This story might have been influenced by Himitsu, but it veered off into a totally different direction. Whereas Himitsu deeply explored the difficulties and emotional conflicts and jealousies that would realistically result from such a situation, Tsuma, Shougakusei ni Naru told a simpler story about family bonds and finding the strength to move on after the death of a loved one. Also, it avoided the eeriness and darkness of Himitsu. Even though the premise sounds creepy, and I felt a little bit of creepiness in the first couple of episodes, it ended up being totally wholesome and innocent.One of the strongest aspects of the drama was the acting. I especially appreciated the amazing child acting by Maida Nono. I usually don't like child actors and wish dramas had way less of them (the previous drama I just finished was a Kdrama, Woman of Dignity, that featured a typically bad and annoying child performance that should have been cut way down), and a cringy, awkward performance would have sunk this show, but Maida really came through. She was a little bundle of energy and you could easily understand how she could inspire people to get out of their doldrums. Also, I was happy to see Morita Misato in a nice role like this, which she played perfectly (I despised The Naked Director, and thought she was one of the few good things about it).
It seems like these stories about loved ones coming back from the dead always have sad or bittersweet endings. But I was hoping for a different kind of ending. Even though Marika-chan's mom went through a drastic change and ended up being a sympathetic person at the end, she had been such a horrible human being who hated her life. So I thought a nice solution would have been for Takae to jump into Marika-chan's mom's body and stay there permanently. Then Keisuke could marry this appropriately-aged woman without any creepiness, and I'm sure that Marika-chan would have had a happy life as his stepdaughter, and with a much more positive person playing the role of her mom, who would have given her way more love than her real mom ever did. And Marika-chan's mom could have wandered the world as a ghost, trying to learn more about life, making amends for being a terrible mother, and trying to become a better person before moving on to the next world. Wouldn't that have been perfect?
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This review may contain spoilers
This was a hidden gem!
I don't usually venture into Jdramas as I am biased towards Kdramas, but I've seen most of the Kdramas that Netflix currently offers. The title of this one and the initial preview got me started on it yesterday. And as I have read in other reviews it was the same for me as I finished the 10 episodes (my preferred length) in just over a day's time. There weren't many distracting subplots and it was a small cast, so the storyline didn't wander too far afield. Many of the reviews I've read say "heartwarming" and for good reason. The characters are likeable and their sadness and happiness are well blended. The restaurant scene near the end of episode 10 was a nice way to bring the cast together and I would have ended it there. Candidly, much like the feeling of having dined on a great meal, this series left me with a similar well-fed reaction. Many people will be able to relate to some aspect of missing a loved one and the hope that this series exudes should gladden many hearts. Unless you're made of stone, expect to need something to wipe tears from your eyes on many occasions.Was this review helpful to you?
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Great and heartwarming family drama, unique storyline, great cast performance
I have watched all the 10 episodes in 1-2 days. It is a great and heartwarming family drama, with a unique storyline -- during the initial episodes, I thought it would be similar to "See You In My 19th Life" - a reincarnation process where the girl only remembered her past life when she was around 10 years old. However, this was proven not to be true when the story progressed.It was a great performance by almost all the cast and the child actress Maida Nono who portrays Marika is the shining star of this drama with her impeccable acting skills: as a dominant (and jealous, lol) wife, as a caring mother (to Mai), as a caring elder sister (to Yuri), as a forgiving daughter (to her dementia mother), and a confused child (when she became her original Marika instead of Takae). How a 10-year-old actress can pull off such an amazing acting performance is beyond words. She reminds me of Yuna of "The Kidnapping Day".
I have some mixed feelings about the ending -- the findings at the end of episode 8 that it was not reincarnation, but just Takae "borrowing" Marika's body, is sad. That means the existence of Takae is only temporary and she can't stay in the body forever, and I can already predict what the ending would be like.
Nevertheless, the last 24 hours of Takae spending her last time with the family is bittersweet. :) I'm happy to see that Keisuke and Mai can finally get closure and accept that Takae had to go and they have to move on. It's quite unbelievable though that they kept the little girl awake until the next morning with a packed schedule, so they can make use of the last 24 hours, lol.
For those of you who avoid this drama because of the title, you don't have to be afraid and just watch the drama. Yes, the plot is a bit weird (I would still say that their initial plan for the husband to marry the little girl when she reaches 18 is indeed creepy), but there are no romantic scenes between the husband and the little girl -- even on slightly more romantic scenes, the adult Takae will take over the scene instead of the little girl. It's a heartwarming family drama that the whole family can watch.
It is highly recommended!
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A real M-A-S-T-E-R-P-I-E-C-E!!!
Over the last few years, with alas increasingly common recurrence, I end up being in such despair ("à la" Zetsubou-sensei, I mean, LOL) due to the Nth "westernized" J-drama ("made in Hollywood", as I put it), that for a brief moment I find myself entertaining the idea of dropping Japanese dramas altogether.../.____.\Luckily, though, every now and then good old Japan still manages to come up with the Nth masterpiece, so that I'm happily made to abandon that idea completely and my love for J-dramas is once again maintained and reinforced.
It was precisely the case of this "Tsuma, Shogakusei ni Naru".
A real M-A-S-T-E-R-P-I-E-C-E. There's no other way to correctly describe it.
The script? PERFECT. You cry, you laugh, you think....the whole nine yards, really.
The acting? MARVELOUS. Hard to name only three members of this *great* cast, but traditions must be respected, so I'll go with Tsutsumi-san, Kamiki-kun and most of all the adorable - and amazingly talented - Maida Nono (seriously, to be able to act that well at her age is kinda scary! Can't wait to see her in more dramas!!!)
The "packaging", as I put it (directing, editing, photography, music, etc.)? TOP-NOTCH.
The message? W-O-N-D-E-R-F-U-L!!!
'Nuff said, go watch it *now*, you'll thank me later! ^_______-
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