fragmentsofescape

I rushed to check but couldn't find the episode on the channel? :(

I have to disagree with the comments that this special is just a rehash of the original drama. It might seem to be the case because the outcome is the same, but there's actually a very important difference. In the drama, no one wished for Night to die, least of all himself. The implication was that if he hadn't died, Riiko would have stayed by his side. But this special is far more realistic, and Night's death was his own choice - the choice of someone who loved Riiko so much that he realised he could never give Riiko the kind of life that most women (and men) want when they find love. Night's humanity also comes through in his decision to save himself from the pain of having to be in love with Riiko forever. It's human to be "selfish" that way; only robots can exist entirely for another person.

Actually that's not true. I hate unhappy endings but this one didn't fall into that category for me. At the end, I still felt hopeful and happy - exactly what Night wanted for Riiko.

Jeepers, please be considerate and mark your comment as a spoiler!

Totally agree with you re:Tada-san. I know it's supposed to make the ending more dramatic but that's so unfair to the poor guy who's done nothing to deserve losing the woman he loves in front of everyone. And he even deliberately gives her his blessing to go after Ken! That's true love - wanting the person you love to be happy, even if it's at your own expense. I actually don't blame Ken as much as Rei. Rei accepted Tada-san's proposal immediately after Ken tells her he loves her (kindof). It felt like she was using Tada-San to soothe her disappointment, especially since there was no hurry for her to give him a reply.

I think the main problem with this drama, as many have said, is the ending. The series seemed to be building up to some kind of breakthrough for the main character - forgiveness, redemption, or love - but nothing of the sort happened in the end. Kurosaki was a tortured, angry and cold character throughout the series, and I really though we would see some character development or self-realisation at the end for him, but er....status quo. It's frustrating because the show had so much potential - each episode was exciting and dramatic, there was the catch-me-if-you-can game between the detective and Kurosaki, the whole Robin Hood storyline, even a jealousy/friendship subplot. I'm not saying that we need a love-conquers-all ending, but after all the buildup with the female lead's actions, I'm not surprised that people found the ending extremely unsatisfying. And don't bother turning to the movie in the hope that it'd remedy this ending, because it doesn't.