Bhavna

“Love at First Sight is a Horrible Thing”

After watching a couple of other series starring Haruka Ayase, like “I Want to Die Alone” (Hitori de Shinitai), and Hotaru no Hikari, and seeing that our birthdate is just a few days apart in the same year, and seeing how she plays empowered, independent and quirky women characters that are very similar to my own personality and mindset, and taking into her account her exquisitely beautiful face, I’ve decided that she is one of my most favorite Japanese actresses.

This series does not disappoint. Starting with that super catchy samba style intro theme song/music, and Nami’s badass ninja fighting skills, the story goes into how she is a woman who just wants love and has been fighting and defending herself and protecting others in this dangerous world. It’s a very interesting set of stories. Except for a few, many of the “bad women” are not actually bad but are trying to create justice for a terribly unjust situation. The men on the other hand are all portrayed as selfish, bullying, narcissistic, entitled, exploiting, misogynistic, and controlling- especially in marital and family relationships. This is not far from the truth obviously. It shows how marriage is basically a soul trap for women, where they are reduced down to objects wearing a happy mask that cook, clean, and wake up the man, pouring their life and soul and love into him and the kids, while he’s busy having affairs.

I don’t understand the martyr complex that the women have. Like Kyoka- she trails and finds her husband cheating and still says that she loves him and is waiting for him even when her own mother in law kicks her cheating son out of the house. She puts on this “brave, martyr, saintly face” in from of her friends Nani and Yuri as if bearing the torture somehow makes her a good saintly person. It doesn’t. Her husband doesn’t respect or love her any more for her saintly doormat act, and nor does anyone else. Then she misses him and like a soggy doormat, she ruins her own self empowerment and leverage in the situation and calls her cheating husband crying and saying “I miss you, please come home!” While the husband basically says no and disempowers her further. Can the wives be any more powerless? Why do they have to be like this?

I wonder why everyone is so two faced- I get it, it’s part of the culture. Not just Japanese but worldwide too. In marriages and social interactions people put on a happy clown face to others and show off and brag while hiding the horrors underneath. Marriage and family are a kind of performance for show. This series exposes that so well. Even Nami finds out that her charming husband is not the person she thought and hoped he was- whatever these women are in love with is a projection of their own longing. But the men in reality are despicable as husbands. For example, Yuri’s husband was her college professor who basically decided that he wanted to “have her and keep her” so he got her pregnant immediately so that she would get married to him and never leave the house. Possessing her like an object and treating her like utter trash. He is such a loathsome creature. If it weren’t for survival and having a roof over their heads, I’m sure most women would leave these ball and chain marriages where they are treated as indentured servants who should be grateful for their servitude. It is utterly deplorable. I’m glad that Haruka Ayase brings these shows where the woman is a little more empowered- even though her characters do want love deep in their soul, they are true to themselves and authentic and to some extent, free.

As Nami starts to find out that her own husband is a shady character, and that scene where the husband comes back from home and she’s cutting the cabbage and then throws a knife at him, and he blocks it with his suitcase- that moment when the mask drops is just so satisfying and thrilling to watching as they get down and dirty in the fight. It’s bizarre how married people live together for decades and are essentially strangers wearing masks in front of each other, trying to cover up over their true identity and seething hatred for each other, all in the name of a “stable life”, status, image or for survival or financial reasons. All so bizarre and all so fake. It would be one thing if it were just a TV show- but this is exactly how it is in this world. Nishijima is the perfect charming handsome fake husband with a streak of danger. There is something terribly romantic about one party coming to arrest another party but upon meeting her he forgets his mission and falls in love. But is it romance or thrill? Well there is no better way of controlling, subjugating, and surveilling a woman than to marry her. I was very impressed and squealing with excitement at Ayase’s fighting and stunts- she’s a true badass.

A very chilling dialog between husband and wife in the last episode.
Wife: “How long will I be watched? Until I die? I’ll have to live like I have a collar around my neck right?”
Husband: “If you behave yourself and live like an ordinary housewife, the day you can take the collar off, will come.” OUCH. This is the status of women in marriages. Treated as objects, slaves to serve the man and child.

The wife says: “There are couples who can be happy without telling each other what they really think right? But I don’t want that. Because I love you. I adore you. I want us to be honest with each other. We’ve been deceiving each other until now, so I want us to fight with all our might and make up with each other. And yet you want to put a collar around my neck? Do you not love me?” The woman, the wife is trying to break free from this torture.

Then a housewife who decided to have a short affair as a way to escape her husband who was literally being an emotional abuser and acting like slave owner, then gets blackmailed and subsequently beat up by men, while the “boss” says how boring it is. These scenes are very disturbing to see that much misogyny and it made me very sad.

It did make me happy to see Nami beat up guys in the warehouse to the legendary title samba music. But why do they approach her one by one like zombies? Anyways.. Shes a true hero. And very thrilling to watch. The last scene, the last moment was.. WTF .. a cliffhanger??

With all that said, even though I did not watch it and have no plans to, it seems like the story may have been inspired by Mr and Mrs Smith- an ode to the boring middle aged married couple that are secretly assassins. It explores the idea of a double life among all the characters very well, with a Japanese twist. I can confidently say that this series would be far more enjoyable than subjecting myself to the pompous nonsense of Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt.

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Japan does this story better

Is this drama a remake of the story Ghost from Hollywood? Yes. Does Japan do it better? Absolutely. The story and vibe gets a major upgrade, where I can actually feel the love between the two rather than just some steamy lust filled scenes from Hollywood. When Satoh repeats “Aishteru” at the end, pouring out his heart as he fades away, it encapsulates a love that has not been spoken and hidden, repressed which represents the Japanese manner of hiding one’s emotions. And the hiding of it just builds it up even more. It’s a beautifully made drama that makes me actually feel their love. And many tears were shed.

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Beautiful final season!

Well now that I finished all the episodes, all that sticks with me is the last couple of episodes- where Hachisuka (the internal medicine director dude) takes Michiko out for dinner and wine. And at first Michiko just eats the food and bails, and I thought it’s just another director schmoozing and trying to manipulate and use her skill to their advantage and agenda, but after Hachisuka catches Michiko when she trips on her high heels and is about to fall, they have this moment of embrace. And this is a first for the gorgeous model Michiko who intimidates every man around her, while being innocent as a doe. She doesn’t know what to do in these romantic situations since all she knows is “surgery and food,” but it reveals a beautiful (short lived) colleague relationship of mutual respect and admiration. Hachisuka ends of getting cancer like everyone else in the show and needs immediate surgery but then quarantines himself in the internal medicine research lab because there’s some new outbreak. But Michiko goes in there and saves him and does immediate surgery. During the surgery his heart stops and he has a cardiac arrest, but she physically pumps his heart back to life kind of like in the 2nd Matrix movie! How romantic is that! And Hachisuka is the only one who is truly grateful to Michiko and says “With the life you saved, I am going to help billions of others now.” Now that is true respect of Michiko’s miraculous surgical power. Only he deserves to associate with her. Everyone else especially people like Hiruma get the surgery from Michiko and then try to destroy her which is unfathomable betrayal and low moral character. The last scenes show Hachisuka asking Michiko if she wants to join him and they can go to Africa together and save lives while “eating octopus” but Michiko takes it as “Let’s meet again at the sushi bar.” So in the innocent comedy of errors, Hachi waits for her at the airport while Michiko waits for him in the sushi bar. Sigh… so innocent, and yet a little heartbreaking. But perhaps Michiko being the Godlike main character in this show is not meant to be with anyone. She is meant to stay where she is and not following some man around. So while the mutual respect and admiration and even love was present, it was something to let go of in the end.

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Daimon Michiko is a national treasure! A Diamond! Protect her at all costs!

I’m back for the 3rd season of Doctor X, and Michiko’s back at it again- the stakes are higher than ever. She saves lives like nobody’s business, and is even personally requested by Hiruma, the previous hospital president, as he is dying of some stage 4 cancer (seriously everyone and their mom has cancer in this series!). He doesn’t even trust his own doctors that he raised him like Ebina, Haru, and Kaji- he’s like I want Daimon Michiko. When it comes to saving his life, he knows that she is the only one he can trust who will not fail him as a doctor. Other doctors have ulterior motives and their mind is not so pure. But Michiko is so pure- a pure hearted soul who doesn’t desire other worldly things that the corrupt doctors do, and so in the operating room, Hiruma is like “oh you are all like my sons, but I want my daughter Michiko, where is she??!” After all the image making and corruption, he knew that only she could save him. And she does not fail!

In this season, the issue of “Where is all her money going?” really started to bother me, as it did Michiko herself. It causes a rift (not quite a falling out) with Akira San, but when she finds out at the end of the season that he has some incurable brain cancer (everyone is just floating around with stage 4 cancers in this show geez!), a very touching finale ensues. Akira makes himself unavailable to Michiko and gives up on his own life, prohibiting Michiko to see him, but she perseveres. It’s heartbreaking to see her going to her usual spots like the bathhouse, or table tennis place or their eatery spots alone without her favorite teacher, friend, manager, and guardian, Akira San. She misses him dearly and cannot give up on his life.

Akira isn’t just her manager — he is her last link to family, to a sense of home, to being cared for outside the operating room. His betrayal (or what she thinks is betrayal) is devastating because he is the only one she fully trusts. When she confronts him about the money, it isn’t greed that’s driving her — it’s pain. She feels as if the one person she’s allowed herself to depend on has failed her. That’s why her leaving is so powerful: she isn’t walking away from money, she’s testing what she has left without him. Outside the OR, Michiko is almost childlike — awkward, impulsive, sometimes naive. That’s what makes Akira’s role so essential. He’s the one who holds her life together so she can pour her entire being into surgery. When he collapses, it’s not just a medical emergency — it’s like the ground is ripped out from under her. The show turns the tables: now she is the one begging to save him, refusing to give up even when he tells her to let him go. His refusal is a test — not out of cruelty, but because love that can’t withstand separation isn’t yet whole. Michiko’s choice to decline Tendo’s lucrative offer is a pivotal moment. She could have chosen prestige, money, and her own “brand,” but she chooses the one patient who matters to her most. That moment is her true declaration of who she is — not just a surgeon, but a fiercely loyal soul who refuses to abandon the one who believed in her first.

Finally when the colleagues Ebina, Haru, and Kaji and the head nurse bring Michiko to the operating room when Akira collapses, Daimon is there to save the day- but unlike other surgeries, she is in tears as she operates, and she is reminded of her own training by Akira himself, teaching her to never give up on her patient. She leaves a very lucrative position and job offer from Tendo as the president of the chairman of the health ministry of whatever.. it doesn’t matter to Michiko in that moment. She declines the offer, overturns the desk and says in effect, “What good is all of this if I cannot even save the one I love?” That was so deeply touching. Because until then, we see Dr. Daimon as this hard shelled person with a childlike quirky personality with Akira San after work, but to see her heart bared open like that was truly touching and I was crying through the whole thing. The surgery itself was almost liturgical — Michiko crying while she operates, remembering the lessons Akira drilled into her: “Never give up on the patient.” It’s like the entire series brought her to this moment where her skills and her heart meet. She saves him not just with her technique, but with her devotion. It’s almost a prayerful act — her tears are part of the healing. This final surgery scene of Akira was truly heart wrenching to watch and I was praying that he would live. He didn’t want Michiko to fail but she never gave up on him. Akira says something important to Ebina, “Do you know why Michiko says these careless things like I never fail? It’s because of her determination. She will never give up on the patient.” And to see that Akira San didn’t swindle her money, but rather invested in her own future to build her a hospital in her own name where she can be free to do surgeries and save lives was truly honorable. Forgive me Akira San- you are a saint. And yes he was right to protect Michiko from her own money, because in the end she ends up saving Akira’s life but blowing all the money by going to outer space.

But the ending with her spending the money on space travel is so fitting — because Michiko is free. She doesn’t hoard, she doesn’t cling. She’s already received what she really wanted: Akira’s trust, his life, and the proof that she could save him. The space trip is almost her way of saying, “I won’t be tied down by this world.” She laughs, she returns to her silly self, but she’s been transformed.

This whole season is a parable -it’s not about money, status, or getting credit — it’s about staying faithful to the one thing that matters even when every ego system tells you to look away. It’s about never abandoning what you love, even when it seems impossible.

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To be honest and open hearted in a cruel and callous world

This show really opened my eyes. On the surface, it’s a funny, comedic series about this real estate agent, formerly known as “Liar Nagase” and how an incident causes him to be blessed (although he says cursed) with the Spirit that blows through him whenever he is tempted to lie, and forces the truth out of him. He starts off as a lying, manipulative realtor that will do or say anything to get a contract, including all of its bells and whistles. Turns out he learned this from a former employee Kamiki, who taught him all the manipulative techniques to become number 1 at any cost. Tosaka Real Estate where Nagase works, along with its rival Minerva use this ranking system that pits salespeople against each other for some competition where the #1 salesperson for the month gets serious perks. Minerva is all around scammy and will go to any level to get money and contracts, but meanwhile Tosaka has a little more ethic- especially since Nagase’s Spirit blessing of honesty started, he starts to inspire others such as Tsukishita who is his younger female coworker who is open hearted, polite, people pleasing, and earnest. The series shows how this spirit of honesty and inner alignment with truth changes Nagase’s perspective on life, where he used to live for money, the flashy high rise life, hooking up with random women, and the number 1 sales spot, but now sees something more important than the number 1 spot, which is bringing joy to others, which makes him happy. He starts to feel for the first time a sense of happiness and meaning in his job, whereas before it was just a cold, hard game. His approach even softens the heart of Kamiki, his number 1 rival when Kamiki starts working for Minerva and becomes a villainous rival of sorts for Nagase. It’s like Nagase is battling his own former self or shadow, and sheds light on Kamiki’s obsession with #1 being an armor of protection and a way coping for immense grief and pain he hides inside. Kamiki was a fascinating character, and when his backstory was explained, I was in tears. All villains are hiding great pain, and if it was only allowed to process instead of the ego taking over and creating a mask where they felt powerless, there could be healing and restoration of the soul. But if it is given to the ego, then it creates this hardened, insensitive, manipulative mask, a false self and a shell in place of the suffering victim which becomes a dangerous force. In fact, all the unprocessed pain in the world creates this callous, harsh world and atmosphere that you see in the series. And Nagase along with Tsukishita become like beacons of light in such a world. Once you get past the grief inside, you find the joy of Spirit deep within, that radiates throughout the world. The title song “So far so good” by Kazumasa Oda that plays at the end of every episode is so touching and heartwarming. It really speaks to the healing and joy of Spirit that is brought to everyone at the end of the day when honesty and genuine intentions are extended to all.

As far as performances go, I grew to really love the guy who played Nagase (Tomoshima Yamashita)- at first I wasn’t used to his face, and he just looked like a total a-hole, but then as he went through this honest transformation by the spirit, I found him to be more and more attractive. Then I looked him up and I realized he was the naked dude in Alice in Boderland! Ohhh it makes sense now! In the second season they changed his haircut and he gained weight, so he was definitely not as attractive as the first season. He had more of a dad look in the second season lol. But his character was solid. I loved Tsukishita- she was so sweet and innocent, and when I would go out into the world and encounter mean and horrible people, I would remember her and her smile and it would make me feel better- like there is some light and kindness in this world. Kamiki was my other favorite- his charisma was off the charts, even though his tap dancing was strange and comical- it was very “anime” like for a villain so I thought that was cool too. His backstory was so sad and it gave him more depth as a character especially when seeing his grief and his transformation towards the end, where he questions everything- his philosophy and so even the unbeatable villain has this soft spot where he is humbled and brought to his knees. It was sweet to see the end where it showed that he could change too.

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A fun ride

Right after watching River, I couldn’t get enough, so I came back for more. So I was pleasantly surprised to see the same cast as River showing up in this time loop movie as well, for two minutes long as well! What made this so cool was the fact that the entire movie looks like it was done in a single shot! The camera simply follows the people everywhere. It’s an incredible experimental film where all the actors are always coming in and out of the scene, almost like a play. It’s incredible. And to see all the intricacies of their plot lines as it weaves in and out of view- makes me think of a dream honestly

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The Sweetest

This was the sweetest movie.

I didn’t expect to laugh so hard, and I had so many LOL moments. It was endearing, sweet, funny, and heartfelt. To see that it was Mikoto’s desire for her love to come back to her that was driving the entire loop of time, shows just how powerful the heart and mind is. I love how the time loop was actually being created by the main lady Mikoto, but the nerdy scientist guy made up some explanation that it was about a cardboard Jim Henson looking Time Machine that glitched. No way, it was Mikoto who was creating the time loop. It was being created by her own desire to start over the love story between her and the hotel guest. The biggest tell what from the fact that the whole movie was from her perspective, and other characters were simply surrounding her. So the whole movie was her dream, her creation, appearing in her consciousness.

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The Height of Japanese Spirit

I’ve seen this movie at least 3-4 times in the past 3 days. I adore this movie. What is it.. it has that Je Ne Sais Quoi that is the essence of everything I love about Japan and the spirit it embodies. It has all the beautiful aspects of spirit embodied in Japanese culture and aesthetic, that has its foundation in reverance for nature, all packaged in a heartwarming tale with comedy and heart all throughout. I don’t know any movie that ends with a long rendition of “You are my Sunshine but I realized it was the happiness of Spirit singing throughout the movie. Everything about it has so much soul. The picturesque sceneries are like paintings, and the music is otherworldly. I discovered this famous song “Ue o muite” from this movie as Chris Hart’s character sings in the bathhouse with his mother after being released from prison. Ahh I was a puddle of tears. I can feel so much heart and soul and the Spirit just speaking to my heart in every moment and I had so many moments of tears, and gratitude behind it all. This isn’t just a kiddie pool. Yudo, the way of the bath is as deep as it gets. And it touched the very bottom of my soul. Happiness is not pursued, it is realized!

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Incredible

I was looking for a Japanese movie or drama that is similar to The Truman Show, that would inspire lucidity and this did not disappoint. The story is incredible- it only uses the subway station as the backdrop for the entire movie and yet it’s more engaging than anything I’ve seen in recent times. The main actor is incredible and the little boy is so adorable and innocent and brilliant. I was concerned that it might be too scary for me because it was listed as a horror movie but it was more interesting than scary- eerie and surreal would be a better word to describe it. After watching it once I watched it again. It’s quite addicting and even in a simple storyline there is so much hidden depth and meaning to each scene.

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A match made in hell

A disempowered woman seeks a relationship dynamic where she can feel wanted, and in power. This is what the age stuff is really about- younger people tend to look up to those who are older, and she clearly had an advantage in the relationship with the boy compared to that of her boyfriend who was an abusive, ugly, angry slob. It doesn’t justify how she seduced the high school kid though- that scene in the karaoke booth was incredibly disturbing- to think that she would do that to a kid who’s never had experience with that, and it’s just taking advantage of the power dynamic- but yeah it becomes a match made in hell really. With the kid who has been traumatized by that early sexual encounter and abuse by her, he acts out the unresolved trauma of the boundary violations later. Sexual abuse always results in rage and unresolved anger in the victim, no matter how much it is denied, and the poor kid uses that same act back at her to try to regain control. His life becomes confused, as she injects her own confusion into it. It is a sad predicament- and yeah even though she seem to be together in the end, is it really a choice, or grooming by the abuser? I can understand the feelings of the disempowered, invalidated woman, but I also understand the feelings of the victim and this is not a match made in Heaven, that’s for sure. Dysfunction begets more dysfunction.

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Hollow, flat, lacks depth and life of the anime

As a longtime lover of the anime, I’ve tried to watch this first movie several times, and I get that they don’t follow the anime timeline or stories exactly and that’s fine, but what I’m looking for is more of the vibe, the soul, the essence of the anime. And like many live action movie versions of great anime’s (My Happy Marriage is another example of this), this live action movie fails to capture the magic and essence of the anime. It’s not about the story or the plot points, this live action version is like kenshin with no soul. Don’t get me wrong, Takeru Satoh has done an incredible job playing Himura Kenshin, and he is the only character worth watching and embodies some of the soul of the anime. He has that purity, innocence, but the deadly strength. The rest are hollow, flat, and very one note. Kaoru, Yahiko, Sanosuke, heck even Jinei- how is it that all of them are like flat 2d puppets that lack the depth of the anime? Kind of ironic right? The “real” human actors -when they try to mimic the depth of a 2d animation, they fail miserably and look hollow and flat.

Why does Kaoru let Kenshin get arrested even though he saved her and the school from the rowdy men? At the very least, she would need him for protection. It’s obviously not in the original story, and is totally useless, and just makes her look like an ungrateful person. So weird. The scene with Jinei is so lackluster- she overcomes the trance in 2 seconds and they’re like “Uh oh the spell broke!” It’s so lame!

The villain is wearing this weird fake Halloween teeth on his lower row of teeth and with that haircut and that ridiculous pompous background music theme, he just comes across as a joker. A joker is fine- the anime has plenty of that, but like I said, it is hollow.

The music of the Kenshin anime series is like the heart and soul of it- the music breathes life into it. The music here is again hollow, adds nothing to the movie at all. People rated these movies highly for their star power and keep marveling at “wow it’s one of the best anime adaptations!” If this is the best, then I don’t want to know what the worst is. I don’t plan to find out. Stick with the anime. It has soul that these movies don’t have.

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What happened?

The director and screenwriters for this movie must be totally different people from the series because the movie sucked despite having the same actors in the lead.

The only thing I was interested in was seeing Nami get her memory back, and see who see saves from there. But instead I got a two hours of boredom. I waited so patiently for something interesting to happen, but no. The only interesting thing was the moment when Nami got her memory back. Although even that was anti climactic. The story was incredibly boring so the stuff that didn’t concern me whatsoever. Whatever made the series interesting- the neighborhood drama was cut from the movie and they were somewhere else doing some other thing with stuff blowing up and the politicians and the Russians and who cares what else. So boring.

Why is the husband monitoring his wife like a robot as if she’s an object 24/7? Is 24/7 surveillance considered romantic? Is that a relationship or a science experiment? And the Russian or random white guy villain? As usual the foreigners are terrible low budget actors. Yawn.

Sooo she gets shot in the heart by her husband and somehow survives it because… Why? How? I got royally pissed when she was shot but seriously how much does this poor character need to endure?

Who was the director? It couldn’t have been the same person as the series. It was the typical sequel letdown, but because the series was so good (I gave it a 10, this movie in comparison gets a 1.

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Meh..

I was looking for more things from Issey Takahashi coming off Kishibe Rohan, and I landed on this story. I thought the premise and the title sounded super interesting and was eager to watch it. The whole movie has a slow, dark, and gloomy vibe- not a bad thing but it wasn’t very interesting. I’m all about slow but it was missing real juice and life. The whole movie felt lifeless. I literally watched it for him, but after a very short while I couldn’t bring myself to care about any of the characters. Also the Takahashi character’s flashback about his wife killing their kid and then killing herself reminded me a lot of Shutter Island- where the man basically loses himself after that incident. Never thought I would say it but in this particular case I would prefer the Hollywood version (which I usually don’t).

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The whole show is shallow, childish, and annoying

The alien coming to earth is likeable enough, I mean who doesn’t like an outsider who transcends time and has superpowers and unlimited wealth but is beyond the world? The alien guy has loads of interesting things about him and they could have explored this angle- I mean he’s lived for 400 years starting from the Edo period, but the director of the show never once explores where he came from or what he knows through all his life on earth even, but instead he chose to focus on…

The female lead who is a vacuous has-been airheaded actress and obsessed with her looks and self image, not unlike a regular instagram model. What?! Wow! So original! The show chose to focus on the most mundane character and her narcissism above the cool alien who has super powers? Apparently she and her shallow life is more interesting than what Alien guy has been doing on earth for 400 years or where he came from? Ok let’s talk about the fantastic female lead this show chooses to waste all its time on. She is extremely annoying- because she’s been an actress since the age of 12, perhaps the idea is that she is mentally and emotional stunted or damaged. She surrounds herself with posters and billboards of her own image. Her facial expressions are terribly self conscious and her face contorts itself into new shapes every second with every word, as if she’s trying really hard to be cute or adorable or “an actress,” but just ends up looking like a weirdo. It’s the “socialite” kind of self-absorbed, unbearably bad actor. I mean a grown adult making the expressions of a toddler 24/7 with the emotional intelligence and maturity of a peanut and the narcissism, self importance, and intelligence of an toddler stuck to a mirror all day, I can’t fathom how the alien guy likes her except for the fact that they live close to each other and so the sparks must fly out of sheer proximity? But out of 400 years of being on the earth is this the best the alien guy could do? She is not a catch but keeps telling herself and everyone else that she is in order to keep her fragile ego running. As for the alien says he never felt lonely for 400 years being alone on his own but now all of a sudden he feels lonely because he’s fallen into an instagram romance with this actress? The director squeezes the infinitely more interesting alien and his powers into a cheap party trick for human perception. How come nobody is curious about his powers or where he came from? This self centered actress never once asked about his place or researched how he got to this planet. Only her brother who’s a space enthusiast bothers to look up the comet that came and dropped Alien dude off during the Edo period. All the actress could say is “He’s not leaving anymore! He’s staying here for ME! Must be the power of love! Yay!” Her curiosity about his ends there. What kind of love is that except her own narcissism about her “desirability and charm” to seduce men? Is this actress’s hollow socialite charm, seduction born of desperation, and “sex appeal” forced from childhood trauma and loneliness from lacking a father figure equal to “love?” This show’s director seems to think so.

There is a scene in the 5th episode where the female is drugged and put in a moving car- when she wakes up she’s at the driver’s seat of this speeding car headed for a cliff and the brakes don’t work. Instead of opening the door and getting the hell out, she screams “Help me Professor Toyama!” Like hello do you see that he’s not in the car? How stupid is this woman to call upon someone who’s not even in the scene? Lucky for her Toyama happens to be a teleporting alien who has great skills and can save her ridiculous self. One has to wonder how this actress has managed to stay alive all these years with nothing but a self important ego and narcissism in her toolbox. She is only good for two things: making ridiculous baby expressions and passing out/getting drunk/sleeping.

Another even more ridiculous scene is where this woman says she can make any man fall for her in 15 seconds and she sets a timer and starts doing the top 10 most ridiculous “charming” “Look at me I’m a baby” expressions- and somehow at the end of it even she runs of out ideas but Mr alien dude falls for it and kisses her because her toddler charm worked on him. And then cue the melodramatic K drama music at full volume! What a caricature. There’s nothing romantic about this show. So this incredible alien guy who has lived and watched humanity for 400 years falls in love with a toddler woman who justifies him throwing away his wisdom of impermanence over centuries and extraterrestrial powers for a cheap K drama relationship?? Then the actress lady brags about the earth “The whole earth is a delicacy!” As if to poo-poo alien guy’s planet because she doesn’t care to know where he came from, but they’re in a love relationship right? All centered around her and her petty shallow human whims like taking selfies with the stereotypical “Hai cheezu!” Is that a relationship? Oh God what am I going to do with these characters who have the depth of a sheet of paper?

The show seems to tip toe around her large baby ego and it’s annoying to watch. I came her for the cool alien powers not the usual K drama style romance, yawn! Watching this show is hardly bearable due to the female lead but I was still interested in what the murder mystery story was about.

It reminds me of the maturity level of a K-drama which tends to be at a middle school or high school level of pettiness and performance. It reeks of that same kind of “Means Girls” K drama pettiness and fluff, with exaggerated facial expressions and bad acting.

Also, I have to give the music a 1 star as well because it reminds me of those hollow K dramas that have to fill every second with mind numbing noise, aka melodramatic violin music, because the show is made for toddlers with no attention span, and no tolerance for silence and stillness that other J dramas have.

Also there are many scenes where it’s obvious that they’re using green screen and not a real background but it looks incredibly cheap.

Then Mr alien drops the biggest bomb of all- he wants a K drama happily ever after complete with 24/7 melodramatic violin BGM and “to grow old with her” because he envies the fleeting impermanent life of humans that grow old, decay, and die. This show needs a dose of Buddha’s teachings seriously. There is nothing glamorous or romantic about the life of a human that is characterized by suffering, sickness, and death. But if it’s wrapped in melodramatic romantic music and some nice filters then surely it’s enviable! Give me a break. Mr Alien is ready to those away a life of infinite power to be a finite creature chasing after a toddler minded narcissistic actress who obsesses and brags about her “charm” and “desirability” and making some magazine list for “Best girlfriend material.” There is no depth! No real love! Just a narcissist trying to prove to herself that she’s still desirable and can make a man desire her. How is this love? I just can’t with this show.

Then there is the “suspense” and murder mystery part of the show which is equally lame. Bad guy chasing a flash drive with evidence, and acting like it can’t be erased, another guy with recorded evidence on a pen who naively shows it to the bad guy without making any backups in this day and age… who is then beat up and his pen evidence crushed! But then it’s revealed that alien guy stopped time and retrieved the real pen! But does no one have an ounce of curiosity about alien guy, where he comes from, and how he can do all this? How come the level of higher level curiosity in a human being is so low only to the point of “how can he use his powers to help us with our dumb human problems?” The show presents a very self centered, myopic human perspective and doesn’t see past it to the alien guy’s vast expansive experience, and he’s reduced down to cheap party tricks of turning lights on and off and making things fly…

Finally in the very last episode, narcissistic actress lady asks him “Hey where’s the star you came from?” WOW! Some curiosity finally. Then she ends it with “You came from really far right? To this little island country..” Cue the proposal scene with the ring and the melodramatic k drama music! Oh darn the curiosity about the supernatural has already died and rotted into the usual romance. Then actress lady says “I was interested in dating an alien, but I get bored easily so I’ve had enough. Just like you were curious about dating a famous person like me. You’ll be young forever and I’ll be old soon and I can’t tolerate that. That other actress’s death wasn’t my fault and my career’s getting back on track so I’m going to marry Hiroya. If I marry him now, the people will love me. ” What!!? This has to be the most shallow dialog I’ve ever heard in my life. This socialite airhead got bored of an alien with infinitely more experience and depth than her and wants to marry the other dude because “the people will love me?” This shows how shallow this show, the director and all the characters are. I’m so done. The alien guy deserves so much more. Let the humans have their low level romances. Go home alien! You deserve better! The alien crying on his balcony after the shallow actress dumps him is the low point of the entire series (other than the dialog she just gave). As if they had something so deep to grieve about.

As they sit on a bench waiting for the comet to come that evening, alien guy and his only friend are siting on the bench and the friend says the most sensible dialog to him, “You’re finally leaving tonight. It must be tough for you but I’m actually relieved. A flower must return to its roots, the bird to its nest. Everything must return to where it must be. You will be where you must be. I wish for you to live a healthy life where you belong.” Then just when some sense was spoken into the script, this guy hiroya comes along and says “No it was all an act by the actress because she snooped through your diary and found out you’ll die if you stay past 400 years so she acted like she wanted to break up. But she still loves you! Now it’s up to you!” Cue the K drama violin. The Moor comet comes in an hour… then 15 minutes. Actress gets drunk in her usual style with her friend. Then Alien guy comes to her room. It’s time to say bye bye to alien guy and let him be free and be back home where he belongs. Will the shallow K drama sentimental romance prevail or will the truth of alien guy going to his true home prevail? Then this long drawn out dialog on the balcony which ends in “Tsubaki aishteru”… where the k drama music is just dying to burst through the scene and there it is! Then he disappears for a second and actress lady cries but she still looks like she’s so self conscious of her expressions and literally looks like she’s acting as if she’s crying. It’s so cringe to watch. My patience wears thin.. will he go home on not?

Then 3 years later it shows how this actress lady has grown in her career, running her own company, and wrote a book about her alien boyfriend. Again the director descends into the lower realms of being so enamored by the shallow human realms of fame, success, and money, that again he fails to go into where this alien comes from and what his existence is. So he go back to the focusing on the shallow actress’s life and how she has basically made money off the alien guy relationship and recovered her career. She and Hiroya focus on how big of a hit her book about the alien guy was and how it will be made into a movie, and entertainment is the future of investment! Typical selfish narcissistic human stuff. Yawn.

Actress goes back to talking like a baby and hugging a new dog, complete with baby talk. Then she wins some award and alien guy comes back. Now he’s magically accustomed to earth. So now they’re back to dating but now the alien guy is back to dating her and the usual human life. Alien guy is partnering with NASA and whatever else to make joint ventures and whatever. They do tv interviews together like a perfect celebrity couple. All is well in K drama land. Now and then he disappears. And then he shows up. At this point I’m sick of seeing close ups of both of their faces. They said they are living and enjoying every second they have together because they don’t know how long they have to live. Oh good now it’s over. That was long and exhausting. I’m glad it’s over. It was really bad guys. If the most shallow idol fame obsessed pop culture was put into a J drama, this would be it.

For some reason in the version I watched on Prime, there were “Behind the Scenes” after every single episode and everyone saying “Ganbari masu!” I don’t care! The show sucks. I don’t need a behind the scenes of a garbage pile.

This rating is for the weakest link of the show, and it can’t be higher than this.

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