Kekkon Aite wa Chusen de (2018)

The plot reminds me of a lot of the movie Ikigami where they solve Japan's problem with absurd laws that no matter how you think of it, has no chance to exist in the real world. In Ikigami they try to solve Japan's high "suicide" rate by randomly selecting a citizen to die within 24 hours of notification because they believe this will remind all people how precious life is and will make them productive. In this drama due to nations "low birth and aging population", they implement a law where every single men and women from age of 25 to 39 to go on government planned blind dates. If you can't find a marriage partner in three tries you go fight the terrorist LOL. If you can overlook that unrealistic plot and if you like fascinating story then this is a must watch as it tackles the theme "marriage" quite profoundly and that is what is important.

This stupid law serves as the plot device for the character development of these characters, it taught them a lot about themselves, what they want in a partner and also what they lack as a person. It also raised a lot of question on peoples view on marriage, how it affects their lives and especially the role of minorities in a society where this law is implemented such as people who don't have Japanese citizenship, people who are sick and members of LGBT, so in some way this law is not pure negative but there is also positive like the awareness this law brought up. With so many layers and prejudices in this 8 episode drama, it may sound so ambitious but in my opinion they pull it off quite brilliantly.

Romance is not the main point in the story, it is the philosophy of marriage, but it doesn't mean there is no couple we can root for in this story. Acting is quite good from the actors but the stand out is definitely Nomura Shuhei, who brilliantly portrays this character who suffers from OCD (Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder). Music by Yu Takahashi is so good and damn catchy that it always managed to hype every episode.

The ending is cute and you can tell this law is the best thing that happen to our leads. They grow up to a person they wanted as their partner, which makes them suited for each other in the end, and I love the phrase "Marriage isn't a human obligation, but you also have the right to get married".

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I assumed this drama would be about couples finding love and eventually marrying, but it touched on many topics that some may consider controversial, and I really appreciate it. Topics such as bullying, being sterile, to LGBTQIA+ topics were discussed throughout the drama.

Most Japanese dramas that I've watched so far, usually stick with the more light hearted topics and they don't usually go into the deeper conversations, but this was one that dealt with with topics that people are to afraid to talk about in the open. I definitely recommend this drama to everyone. While this may not be light-hearted and full of cute romantic moments, it will talk about topics that may be sensitive to some.

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Spouse Lottery: A bill from dystopia for character growth

From the moment I read the synopsis, I was quite taken by the prospect of this drama. A law that requires you to enter into a dating lottery system? With consequences should you come out unmarried? That sounds so much like something you would find in a dystopia! The only other things I knew coming in was that there was social commentary including LGBTQ+ issues and possible ace rep.

And then quickly after starting, i became taken with all the various issues and concerns all the characters, main and supporting, had for choosing or winding up single between the ages of 25-39. Not only were their respective experiences well included, but also the surrounding societal commentary that people seem to think marriage (and having children) is a requirement of being human, instead of a right that people may or may not personally partake in. We see people struggling with this societal ideal for reasons such as career aspirations, infertility, physical or mental health, trauma, gender norms and expectations, sexuality, and many more. It really showed just how many victims of this mentality there are, even if the context it was brought up in during this drama was an exaggeration of real life - as Japan's decreasing birth rate has become a subject of economic and infrastructural concern even in real life.

While we did see lesbians and gay characters, I cannot really confirm any ace/aro rep. Most people were single for other reasons than a lack of sexual/romantic attraction. One could make an argument for our male lead Tacchan (Tatsuhiko), but there's so much intersectionality going on between the plot and his mental illness to say with any certainty. Everything could be explained away. So, a decent headcanon for those who think so (though you don't really need any permission for headcanons, lol), but I wouldn't really advertise it as a story with ace rep.

Another key topic i'd like to discuss is the rep of mental illness. Tacchan has OCD, mysophobia, and misanthropy. I liked that these weren't the product of a gruesome trauma, but rather a moment of humiliation and insecurity that stuck in a different way than most. I liked that it was consistently shown and not forgotten about when convenient. Indeed, the only time he forgets about it is when he's so busy with something else, something that he finds fulfilling and helpful - something that he established in the very beginning of the drama (yay, internal consistency, and i have heard of similar cases in reality). However, I did have a problem with how close we got to "love cures all" with the OCD and mysophobia. We got very close folks. Like a strong hand from a person he cares about will make such an instant improvement. It wasn't cured, but it was so greatly reduced that, well, it could've been. Not to mention that she quite literally says "it's not an illness, it's a habit" and "doctors are just looking to diagnose you" without ever being called out on it.

My main other complaints are that the ending speeches were not satisfying, and even seemed to excuse this inhumane bill to a point. If a government ever did do something of this sort, it should be a program to opt in to, not a bill that has hypothetically severe consequences if you do not follow.

But, I did enjoy the drama for the characters, their growth, and the various perspectives shown in relation to the plot. I can see myself watching this again - especially for the notable character growth from 3 of the 4 main characters that were well paced.


Quotes:
"Saying that marriage is our duty as a human... is a joke."

"If we don't get married, does that mean the country won't acknowledge us as humans?”

"Because all sorts of people live in Tokyo. They're chasing after all sorts of dreams. And escaped from all sorts of things. They may look satisfied... but that's not the case. There are things that they can't let go of. Their feelings become complicated and entangled. It's just a melting pot of those types of people... Tokyo is."

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Je ne vais pas vous parler du synopsis mais de mes impressions générales.

Après un long moment sans regarder de dramas (enfin surtout finir) , je me suis mise sur un coup de tête sur celui là. Et je l'ai dévoré, les 8 épisodes sont passés assez vite. Il n'y a pas de temps morts dans l'histoire et l'ost qui poppe vers la fin de chaque épisode, un régal.

Même si je suis un peu rester sur ma faim et n'aurait pas été déçu de voir un peu plus. Les personnages sont plutôt bien approfondies et évoluent au fil de l'histoire. C'est plus un drama social que romantique (si jamais le titre vous porte à confusion).

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After seeing the overall rating for the series I was honestly hesitant to watch it but after reading the synopsis I found it a bit interesting. I’ve decided to watch the series based on the synopsis and I am glad I did. The overall plot for the series is quite unique. Just the concepts alone made it fun to watch. Am I sent me that the series is somewhat slow however it is so relevant and unique that it captivate you. It’s only eight episodes but it is truthfully eight episodes of what dating looks like for those individuals they want to get married with those individuals that don’t want to get married but are being forced by others to marry or consider marriage. It also covers what it’s like for those individuals that are not so great with people skills and how they struggle to connect with other people. I know I know all of that just does not sound interesting but trust me it really is interesting. Imagine the government saying hey you’re a 26 and you’re still not married we need you to get married to help repopulate. This is not a sci-fi series or an overly politically driven series. The decision was made by the government and it shows how that decision impacted individuals lives for the better and how it somewhere in fringed upon other people.

In truth it was not overly romantic played it was somewhat deep. There were many strong elements to the series in some elements that were not so strong.

On the romantic scale I would rate this a 5 out of 10 because it really wasn’t that romantic.
On the comedy scale I would rate this a three out of 3 out of 10 because it had a few comedy moments.
On the drama scale I would rate this a 6 out of 10 because it had many elements of emotional drama than anything else.
On the action scale I would rate this a zero out of 10 because it was somewhat slow, almost melodramatic.

Overall very good concept. Very insightful and absolutely unique. Anyone that is in the dating world will put relate to this. Or anyone that has been through this cook completely understand the emotional impact of all of it. Definitely worth a watch.

I rated this series a 7 out of 10 because I honestly feel that the overall concept was unique and genuinely heartfelt. On a Nother note, the reason I did not write this hire was because I feel that the ending could have been better and it just somewhat feel incomplete almost although there was a fairly decent ending. The individual who I assume was the overall male lead seem to Connor come out of his shell what the ending for him didn’t seem as great as the ending for the other characters in I found it somewhat strange. There were also a few questions that just did not seem to get answered. Overall it was still a really great series but I assume that the length of it minimize the possibility for clear details and development along with a conclusive ending.

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Yep, this one was way better than I expected.

This one was way better than I expected, although things at the end seemed to happen really fast. But the story behind each character and their interections along the show were the main reasons why I gave this a high score. It was really emotional to see the protagonists development, it even brought me some tears haha.

This show gave attention to some topics that are still a 'taboo' in Japan (LGBT community, same-sex marriage), and of course, I know this is pure fiction, but maybe someday people get more sensitive and thoughtful about those topics along the future years.

Plus, the 'birth rate declining' scenario and laws for 'obligate', incitate people to get married, so they can help some rate rise, was perfect to see many of the charachters' anxieties, their worries, points of view on this and how stressful it is the pression of getting married and having a family in today's society, even for those with more age.

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Que isso nunca saia da ficção

Vi essa série por acaso, esperando um casal BL sair de dentro de algum armário, mas não rolou. Terminei a série pois percebi que o foco dele, apesar do título e do plot proposto, não focava em relacionamentos, e sim em política. Inclusive, fiquei até preocupada se algo assim poderia realmente acontecer por lá...

O roteiro é basicamente esse: Após determinada idade vc é obrigado a casar para melhorar as taxas de natalidade do país. O governo te permite 3 encontros, e vc que lute para escolher um desses 3 pretendentes, casar e ter filhos para não sofrer uma punição. espero sinceramente que essa ficção nunca saia do papel, bem como é interessante a abordagem que eles fazem sobre a cultura do casamento, trazendo diversas reflexões. São apenas 8 eps, mas trazem muito conteúdo! Mostram a falta de preocupação com a comunidade do LGBTQIAPN+, com algumas outras minorias, pessoas com baixo poder aquisitivo que não podem manter uma família... enfim, tem muitas variáveis que são motivos de questionamento, que fazem com que as pessoas olhem para dentro de si e revejam seus conceitos, será que numa sociedade tão conservadora, vc realmente quer seguir a manada, casar e ter filhos?

A atuação japonesa não deixa a desejar, e aqui encontramos uma atuação mais série, sem aqueles exageros ou excesso de cenas de comédia paspalhão. Contrariando minhas expectativas, no final os envolvidos entendem a proposta do governo é boa, tornou a cada um deles uma pessoa melhor e disposta a ser melhor pra alguém também, aceitando a ideia do casamento e até formando pares legais. Confesso que esperei até o fim alguém lutar contra o sistema, mas não veio aí. Enfim, por não ser BL, não é algo que eu veria de novo, mas com certeza recomendo.

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