Glass Heart

Whiplash and the art of motorcycle maintenance

A friend in graduate school at Northwestern during the late 90's and early 00's spent some of his free time working for the college radio station. On occasion, he had the opportunity to interview one of the alternative artists as they would appear in the Chicago metro area. One such artist (Neko Case) not only had performed on stage multiple times during his stint on radio but also had a mutual who regularly hosted parties and they bumped in to each other a few times in this context as well. When Ms. Case was headlining the music stage at the local summer arts festival, I expressed to my friend how much I enjoyed her music and hoped to catch her performance. Surprisingly, my friend had no such warm and fuzzy feelings towards the alt-country singer. He recounted that both as an interview subject and as a person in a personal setting, she was not at all interested in discussing music or seemingly anything else with anyone who was not a fellow musician.

This anecdote may not paint Neko Case is the most positive light but her solo music remains magnificent and her vocals with Vancouver's New Pornographers are among the finest to be recorded in the last thirty years. This retelling is not so much about her and her shortcomings as a human being but as a relief upon which to discuss musicians and music in general and art and what's it, y'know music and art, all for? What's so great about it?

In "Glass Heart", Satoh Takeru's main character, Fujitani Naoki, is a genius. Viewers know this not only because viewers see him extemporaneously turn a simple melody in to a Mozart-level composition, but also because every character around him says at every opportunity that he's a genius. The first part of that is enough. The second part gets a bit tiresome. Nevertheless, Naoki is a genius and recruits fellow aces of guitar, keyboard and drums to form his new band. To the extent that "Glass Heart" succeeds, it's thanks to the perfect casting of Machida Keita as the stoic and aloof-on-the-surface guitarist and Miyazaki Yu's ferociously unhinged musical sequences on the drumkit. And the camera work and editing for said musical sequences are legitimately stunning.

But the plot is wafer-thin and meanders in-and-out of Naoki's troubles which never really create any emotional impact because Naoki himself doesn't seem to feel anything other than a compulsion to write more songs, perform once in a while and have somewhat robotic interactions with people who have either supported or antagonized him. Had any of the bandmates showed some exasperation with Naoki like any normal human being would have, it would have added some badly needed connection with how things usually operate here on Planet Earth. And Naoki is exasperating. As a positive, he's somewhat mercurially amusing as this easily distracted, stream of consciousness creator. But he's also sporting some pretty toxic and unhealthy traits that get the "it's ok because he's a genius" treatment.

Further, Saijo is a confounding character. While playing the drums, she's an absolute mastodon. When she puts the drumsticks down, she's a mouse. This character needed to be more mastodon. Much much more mastodon.

Where "Glass Heart" really falters is that it very explicitly wants to express why music is so great and important and how this musical genius' creativity is so wonderful. And it's not at all convincing.

The primary issue is that it's all entirely inward-looking. This wonderful thing that Naoki does is generally accomplished with him in some sort of trance where he's wholly unaware of his surroundings or attempts by his bandmates to communicate with him. The big transformative experience by the members of Tenblank is their realization that their performance as a band IS how they live and that their lives without their shared musical exploits are less meaningful.

Which is great.

For them. The musicians.

But music that is only meaningful for the musicians is just a series of notes and words strung together. "Glass Heart" makes some glancing attempts to involve other characters but it's the half-brother from a rival band (musician), a manager who wanted to be a singer (musician), a sinister record exec who's background is a songwriter (musician) and a messy idol-style singer (musician). None of them nor any audience member or anyone have any impact on what "Glass Heart" proclaims as its message. To be clear, it's great that the creators enjoy their process and are fulfilled in their pursuits. But to "Glass Heart" that's the end of it. Music for the musician. It's enough to be the tree in the zen proverb of the tree falling in the forest when no one is around. Hint: that's not all it's supposed to be.

For those that are interested, "Inside Llewyn Davis" is a master class on a musician discovering fulfillment in his art.

As for "Glass Heart", it's fine as an extremely long form music video but isn't much of anything else.

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Learning how to love a musical genius

This starts and ends with a concert. I loved every bit of the music. This alone makes it worth the watch. Naoki is a musical genius. He lives for the sounds that his brain soaks like a sponge to spin songs that takes you to a happy place. He is hard to know because he deliberately cuts himself off from the world to let the sounds around inspire him. He meets three others that changes his musical view. Sho has a gift with guitar and made him form a group. Akane opens his heart to the beat of her drums. Kazushi opened the door to challenge him on keyboards. Together they form bonds of friendship and music that turns them into family. It explores the darker side of the industry and how naive talent can be exploited. How jealousy between brothers can be settled with musical competition and grudges forgiven with better understanding. That healing can come through selfless giving and combining of talents so that all are represented. There are definite flaws but still a good watch and if you like the music, a definite rewatch of the last episode for the concert is highly recommended.

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This show wrecked me (and that's a compliment)!

Now, is this show 'perfect'? Not quite-- there are admittedly some pretty unrealistic parts at times that do require viewers' suspension of disbelief to be in good healthy working order, LOL, and I wasn't fond of the spinny camerawork that's used (thankfully only just) a couple of times, either-- however, the characterization and relationships and emotion and just plain love that is woven throughout this are all quite powerful, and the overall production, music, and acting are at a quality level so insanely high that it's almost unreal (especially after finding out that whenever you can see the characters playing instruments, the actors were truly actually playing-- and had practiced incredibly hard for over a full year each before filming to be able to do so!), so I couldn't help but give it a full 10 overall even without complete-'perfection,' because this really is a masterpiece of labor and love.

Every actor was perfectly cast, but Takeru Satoh in particular (who also was actually the producer for this series!) was downright *incandescent* as the eccentric yet guileless and (usually) softly-caring musical savant who is the core that both the entire story as well as all the other characters revolve around-- he embodied that character so utterly that not only did I literally not even recognize him as the same actor who played Kenshin until I actually looked it up, but it was like the character didn't even exist and he just truly lived and breathed his soul (which is no surprise if you know about his supreme dedication to his roles-- to the point where he even *did his own stunts* in the Kenshin movies, which is just a flat-out *crazy* level of commitment in a work with that much {and that kind of} action!). And Keita Machida (who plays guitarist Sho), and Masaki Suda (who plays Toya, the leader of the band OVER CHROME), are also standout highlights in this already stellar cast.

As for the music, given its absolute importance for a work of this type, you'd fully expect it to be fantastic, and it truly is-- both the official TENBLANK tracks (which were released as an actual album in real life, and I'm really glad they did, because they're plenty great enough to want to listen to even on their own!) as well as all the various composing/jam sessions, collabs, piano playing, and even just background music throughout are all so darn good it's insane. I was alternately rocking out, getting goosebumps, holding back tears, and just plain stunned by its beauty in turns. This show's music is magic (and I have not stopped listening to it on loop since I watched it!).

As for the story: At first you'll think that it's going to be about the female lead character getting her dream back, then you'll think it's going to be about the male lead character forming a super-band and the typical story arc that sort of thing would take... however, it turns out that it's not really about any of that at all-- it's more about the beauty of music itself; and what a tangled web of affection and attachment can do to and for all the people wrapped within it; and what can make a person feel like living again; and finally fulfilling what one was born to do; and living each day to the fullest because there is no telling when it will end; and loving those around you purely, even if it hurts. And yes, sometimes the plot itself takes some extra-dramatic turns; however, even the parts that require suspension of disbelief somehow still worked here, because the themes are more important.

Now, to address some rather odd complaints that I've seen around here saying that the romance in this supposedly 'came out of nowhere' 'late in the show': Please be serious, guys... if you really didn't already fully assume that there was going to be a romance AFTER THE VERY OPENING SEQUENCE OF EPISODE 1 (where the FL and ML practically intertwined souls or somesuch through their music, LOL), then I'm sorry but I think you need to read some more shoujo manga to get a lock on the tropes, LOL, because it was honestly super obvious that they were going to be a thing right from the very start (and even *more* so when it was made perfectly clear that Sakamoto was a tsundere in episode 2 already-- because, again, knowing the tropes, it was also obvious that he'd of course then be the doomed secondary love interest, placing the ML as the definite endgame for the FL. BY EPISODE 2). And the romantic themes were plenty woven into the show in even more ways, as well, from a number of the ML's own comments and song lyrics to the fact that practically every character in the entire show (other than Mr. Tsundere Boy, obviously, plus of course the Overchrome bandmembers, who {along with a completely different connection to the ML that I won't spoil} have their own thing going on...), regardless of gender even, are either obsessed with the ML and/or his talent, or are just straight-(and not-so-straight-)up in love with him, or both! (Which, I mean, is perfectly understandable, LOL; as my viewing partner aptly put it, the ML truly is mesmerizing.) So yeah, it certainly didn't come out of nowhere; it was literally there the entire time.

Anyway, all that said: Given some of my hints about the themes mentioned before, you can probably guess that this is not a typical happy-ending type of show. And it wouldn't have been anyway, even if it hadn't had an open ending. Now, I usually hate open-style endings the most (I'd much rather have proper closure in a story instead, even if that means it's sad, though I do of course prefer happy endings over all other options); however, given the way the story goes, this was actually the very first time in my almost-four-decades of consuming media that a work ended with an open ending and I was actually glad it did-- because it really does end at the best possible place it could to still have a positive feeling of catharsis (even if there is also still a heartwrenching feeling underneath), and also make you continue thinking about the show for a long time afterwards. I felt wrecked at the end (in a good way)-- I believe my exact comments to my viewing partner were, "I am devastated. But it was so good!" And I actually immediately wanted to rewatch the whole show again!

TL;DR: Was it 'perfect'? No. But it's still a masterpiece. And for me that's what earns an overall rating of 10/10.

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A love letter to music

A story of a band and it's members, Glass Heart is a rare japanese drama that shines because of it's production, story, music and the characters.

The series explores the struggles and joys of creating music and performing, as well as the power of music to connect people and transcend personal hardships. The story of a band's formation and their journey to success resonates with viewers who love music or dream of making it themselves. The soundtrack was absolutely amazing - energetic as well as soulful.

The characters are well-written and their backstories are explored as well. While the first half was totally fire, the second half loses a little momentum wherein a lot of aspects are covered in a very short time. The other characters' (Sho Takaoka and Sakamoto Kazushi) background could have been explored a little more.

Overall, Glass Heart is a well-made J-drama with high value production and a strong music that resonates with audience that appreciates music and stories about creative process.

My Rating : 8.5/10

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A bit contrived—but full of heart.

When I first started watching this, I was really put off by how overproduced and clean it was. I tend to prefer film that aims for a more realistic vibe over this sort of pristine, highly polished look/sound. I also had the same issue with the plot; it was just really hard to get genuinely invested in something so clearly contrived to bring about a particular final result. That said, there is an earnestness to this show's production that starts to come through, and I think that's what kept me interested. This show clearly wasn't produced just to look/feel good, but with a very specific artistic intention in mind. In spending some time going through BTS clips and learning more about Takeru Satoh's process as co-producer, I found a lot to appreciate about this work as a passion project, and have developed an annoying love for it despite how ridiculously contrived some of it is (the yacht scene in particular comes to mind). Add to that the final episode—literally just an entire live show from start to finish—and Naoki's extremely well-written monologue about why we make music (and art more broadly) that genuinely resonated with me on a profound level—I had a pretty good time all things considered.

Something I definitely want to mention is how authentic all the music in the show and its associated performances were. While they of course didn't write and produce the music themselves (it was the combined effort of 26 brilliant artists from all over the industry), the actors all put tremendous effort into learning their instruments to be able to actually play while acting, which, beyond just being a really impressive feat, gives this show a uniquely authentic aura that I wouldn't have expected after the pilot.

I could say a lot more about this, but anything more would probably wind up repetitive, so I'll keep it at that. If you're a musician, you will almost certainly have a good time with this, especially if you're willing to overlook a few contrivances. 7.5/10

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can music carry the series?

this drama is carried by two things: the acting, and the music. unlike other people, i personally see music part is more of a weakness. the heavy reliance on music makes the dialogue between characters feel a bit monotone, especially since the story itself is quite straightforward and easy to follow. the performances especially by the lead actors are strong and give the story emotional weight in slice of life genre, making the characters believable and easy to connect with. also, their on screen chemistry is another highlight in this series. i'd recommend this drama to anyone who likes music centered stories with a tip of slice of life.

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Confused About the Genre

The music is good, but I honestly feel like there is too much music. It's kind of the whole point of the story, but at a certain point the story itself started to drag because of the music. I think this overall could've been tightened in the script and fit into eight episodes instead of ten. It was quite long, and I struggled with motivation to finish the series after hitting episode 6. It was exhausting to think about investing four more hours of my life into the show.

It's a good watch, but at the same time I'm hesitant to recommend it. It feels like the labels for it should be more along the lines of tragedy rather than romance. It didn't feel like a romance at all, and even though the story ended on what people would call a "hopeful" note, it wasn't what I was expecting from the story at all. I have a lot of wishes for how I would've written the story, but it's obviously not mine to do that. I wish it would've been more upfront about the actual storyline. Perhaps I misunderstood something when watching the trailer.

The acting and music is phenomenal. I will be adding the music to my playlists, but I'm still just so confused about the main idea of the show. What was it trying to achieve?

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Why is it so gay and cliche?

Okay, so this drama has some extremely good elements, and then they just completely fail on others.


First the good:

- Character design: not all were great, but Naoki was really well written and portrayed by the actor — easiest the best performance. Yukino was also great, the best written character by far. But the list stops there. Also, for acting/casting in general, I think all actors did well. I also suspect they all knew how to play instruments, it looked like it, at least. Another great thing, is how they created characters that represent minorities. So, a female drummer in a rock band? Not the usual pick. A seductive female singer who’s actually not that bad of a person? Great. A dude who is fangirling (might be a slight overstatement)? That’s what I dream about. What I think is a gay character in a place you wouldn’t expect one? Funny (not in a bad way) and great.

- Music: no one’s surprised there. I’m willing to bet quite the sum that 99% of the reviews are praising the music. It’s not the great music they make it out to be in the drama, because that’s not how music works, but we’ll get back to that. But rather it’s a type of music almost anyone can like, which is well done if you can achieve that since a film production would never want to push parts of the audience away if it can avoid it.

- Cinematography: so many times watching this, did I find myself just staring at the beautiful composition and interesting filming techniques. They did a lot of stuff I can’t say I’ve seen elsewhere, but it’s not the highlight of the drama, that’s made clear. It’s spice, if you will, to flavorblast the drama, nothing more. The colors were really well tended to, and costume design too. All the characters had such unique styles that worked together yet still separated them. You could show me an outfit from the drama, without the person who wore it, and I could tell you whom it belonged to, even without remembering from the drama.


Now the bad (buckle up, this is going to be long):

- So goddamn gay: these writers don’t know how to make friendships seem genuine without making them gay. There’s so much physical contact — which can be good, don’t get me wrong — but when two guys are staring into each other’s souls while holding hands, I can’t help but wonder if they’re gay at least a little bit. They also say so many things that would be cringe or cliche even for a romantic interest to say. And I’m not talking about one or two male characters here, no, I'm talking about the all of the main male characters.

- Cliches: the things they say, do and apparently feel are all so cliche. The stare into each other’s eyes, they lean in close to look out the window, the character who was closed off but now has opened his heart, I could go on.

- That’s not how music works: I must admit: I don’t know much about music, but I know a lot about many other art forms. And from what I know, that’s not how music works. It’s not like everyone agrees that someone is just amazing and a god, because it all comes down to preference. Of course, you can tell when someone’s good, but to call them a god and think that everyone knows them (including fans who doesn’t know much about music) is ridiculous. Tell me, when you were first introduced to Picasso, did you go “oh my god, what a masterpiece. This artist is a god!”? ‘Cause I sure as hell did not.
Also, that with your “own sound” and stuff, I don’t believe it. Might be true, but I’m just not buying. Sure, people playing their instruments probably sound different to others on that same instrument, but I think it still comes down to preference, not a sound from inside you that determines how you play.

- Reveals and pacing: first off, this drama loves to give you something to wonder about the literal minute before it happens. Imagine a crime drama, and they’re about to reveal the killer, but right before they do, they give you (the viewer) an obvious clue as to who it was. So, you just think “oh, it must be them!” and then right after you think that, they reveal it to you. It gives you nothing to hold on to while watching, because the adrenaline (which makes you excited and wanting to know what will happen next and if you’re right about your guess) runs out the moment it’s revealed.
Secondly, they also love to hide things from you, and then after the reveal, they start showing the hints/signs of this being the case. So, as an example, let’s say someone’s sisters, but the drama hides it from you, but then you find out, and now they’re suddenly calling each other “sister” when they never did so before. You had no chance of guessing earlier, because nothing about them could’ve suggested to you that they were related. And now, after you know, they’re suddenly drowning you in signs that simply weren’t there before? Cheap.

- Character design: yes, it’s back. Just now I praised Naoki’s character for being well written, but he isn’t really that well written, a lot about him doesn’t make sense, and he constantly walks the line between fun genius and a baby who can’t take care of himself. Besides, the whole show revolves around him, but he doesn’t really care for anyone else. Sure, he says it’s because he was locked away or something, but it’s still possible to acknowledge that someone is in the room with you. Every character just wants to take care of him so badly “oh, it’s a pleasure to take care of him, that’s enough reward for me”. Like, seriously? If he was a baby I would understand, but it’s a grown ass man you’re talking about here, much less your boss/leader.
The villain character here is also just sloppily done. He doesn’t really make sense, he is so little impactful I actually groaned whenever he came onscreen, and he just did nothing for the plot — everything he did was behind the scenes, we never saw him actually doing the things, we just heard about the things he did.


I’d recommend this drama to people who like drama, music (rock or pop) and who can appreciate cinematography and visuals. I can’t imagine anyone truly loving this, but there’s probably someone who fits those criteria.

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epic ❤️

Oh my God, the last episode was absolutely epic.
Takeru Satōh’s character honestly broke my heart — he’d been hurt by his closest friend, had a messed-up relationship with his brother, and carried so much pain on his own. But thanks to this group and everything they went through together, he finally found some peace, and I’m really glad he did.
About the story… I kinda wish they’d revealed their past earlier. One thing that always gets me uncomfortable with Japanese dramas is that they save the main emotional reveal for the very end, and it makes it harder for me as a viewer to fully connect with the characters while watching. I want to feel with them earlier, not all at once at the end.
But overall, the drama was super well-made. The production was great, the group dynamic was amazing, their bond felt really genuine, and the little romance was cute — I actually enjoyed it a lot.

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this drama is just a gem!!

I started this kinda randomly because I saw Machida Keita in the cast and I found a gem!!

some of the reviews say that music is the true protagonist of the show, even overwhelming the plot at some point, but honestly as a music lover myself, I loved that so much focus was on the music. Honestly they did such a good job with the songs, the performances, the set-ups, it all felt kinda real and helped the immersion.

The band is AMAZING. it looks like they shouldn't work because they're the "i only play alone" type (save for Akane of course) but at the end of the series I love the bond they've crated among themselves.
And the visuals my GOD they all look so good and stylish every single scene, I wanted to cry with how beautiful everyone was (we won't talk about Akane's orange hair, that was a fever dream)
I thought my crush on Machida Keita couldn't get bigger but I was sO WRONG. Every scene in which he had a ponytail was a gift to humanity.
Satou Takeru played the role brilliantly. he really felt like a music genius all the time. And him always being in an overside winter coat, hoodie, or blanket and popping up from random spots on the floor was such a mood.
Kazushi my boy... the most stylish of them all. I wish he had more screen time!! He's such an interesting character, I am so weak for tsundere types, I can't believe he was a victim of the second male lead syndrome.
And Akane-chan!! She's such a pure and positive spirit, she brings so much joy and earnestness, you just can't help but root for her!!

Were there some overexagerated moments that felt a bit too cringe or stupid? yes, like lady manager locking Akane in a room and literally shipping her away because she was jealous. don't even let me start on the fact that Touya was stabbed and no one thought to call the police and find out who stabbed him and why?? and arrest him?? also, the dude was performing like his life depended on it on a hospital rooftop as if he didn't almost bleed to death the very same day,,,, man what about stiches??? ANYWAY, it's a drama so we'll forgive it

the only regret I have for this show is that I wished they expended on the characters more because they're so interesting and potentially and emotionally profound but why don't know much about them! we have lots of moments between Naoki and Akane but we barery know their backstory, let alone Kazushi's or Sho's.

Also, the ending: the last episode was epic with the concert and the duets with some familiar faces. I don't know why but it reminded me of the final section in the movie "Bohemian Rhapsody" where there's the whole Live Aid Queen performance and afterwards it ends like that, in this case letting you wonder what will happen to Naoki and if Tenblank will ever return. It felt a bit rushed, as it they chose the easiest way out not to deal with it :/

This was so long and messy but in any case, this show is amazing PLEASE GIVE IT A GO!!

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I will hardly get over it

Let me start with the negative sides (if there are any): it's true that the plot is rushed, maybe weak and the characters deserved more time to be better defined and described. Akane character could have been better written because too often she appears like the usual jdrama FL unable to do anything on her own and waiting for her Prince Charming to come and save her.
After this premise, here's why for me it's an absolute 10: the very first scene left me breathless and all songs are an explosion of emotions and power. The acting is top notch and Takeru Satoh shines as he always does in all the series I've seen.
It's like a long music video with a little story in between the singing and I find it perfectly balanced like this.
Few are the dramas that make me want to start over again once finished, but this is one of them. As soon as the last episode ended, I felt the urge to go back to that incredible first scene and the one in which Naoki and Toya sing together on the roof of the hospital.
Maybe too many things were left inresolved or poorly depicted, but they did the best with the time given and a longer series wouldn't have been so powerful and perfect as it is now.

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A Musical Drama That Hit All the Right Notes

I may be biased, but I haven’t seen a truly great musical drama in ages that had all the elements I love as a music enthusiast. Usually, these shows lean more on drama and less on music - but this one blew my mind.

Story - Refreshing! As a music enthusiast, I was instantly drawn in. Musicians often meet their bandmates just by jamming (even though finding someone that good isn’t very realistic - but hey, it’s a show). And I loved that 🥹.

The actors - Every single one of them nailed their roles.
Why does Jun remind me so much of Younghwa and also Shinwoo from You’re Beautiful? For both those characters, I had a second-lead syndrome 😭. But here, the ML definitely deserves Akane - no doubt about that.

The music - The entire OST was incredible. The writing and composing involved some amazing Japanese artists - a few of them are my personal favourites - so of course, I loved every single song. This show is basically a movie told through a concert, but it has a heart and soul. The storytelling was heartwarming and surprisingly deep - each song carried emotions only music can express better than dialogue. And even the dialogues were beautifully written.

I love how Aoki is portrayed as a crazy-ass musician prodigy who knows everything. I’ve known such people in real life, and trust me, it’s not always easy being around them - they got that right. The “never meet your idols” concept? Nailed it. I’ve seen musician friends meet theirs, and it didn’t go well.

Overall - This show made me laugh, but cry even more - both happy and sad tears. I loved the open ending because in my head, Tenblank is doing fine, having fan meets in Japan and gearing up for future concerts.

To the actors who actually trained for their roles in Tenblank, to the director, and to the entire team who made this show happen - a big, heartfelt thank you! ❤️

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