Home Drama (2004)

#It's not good If I hadn't done this and if I hadn't done that'' It's not good to think like that, so I stopped. ''# this sentence reflects perfectly what ''Home Drama'' is about and Eiko was right because in life sometimes we have to move on and stop feeling guilty for something we haven't done . Keeping this kind of feeling for oneself is way too bad and will never bring happiness! And what is done is done we can't go to the past and change history.

I'll be frank, I came accross this drama when I was looking for Domoto Tsuyoshi' dramas to watch as I fell so hard for him in ''Bokura no Yuuki'', I wanted to see him in another drama and he did not disappoint once again, he seriously did such a great job, and then of course the synopsis seemed super catchy and I was so right, actually I'm always right when I sense a drama will perfectly fit my mood.

And now I'll get into the main topic, if you read the synopsis you already know that 8 strangers decided to live in the same house considering that they haven't anything in common other than they all lost someone dear to them in a bus accident while they were in Thailand. A few days after they all gathered in a thai restaurent , they then joked around saying they could be a family, of course it was not a serious talk but Shogo our main character who is now left alone in a big house thought it could be a good idea to send them a letter and ask them to move into his house and live together . That is not surprising because Shogo is really obsessed by the idea of having a large family as he grew up alone, he doesn 't have siblings and his parents died when he was young, he felt emptiness and wanted to fill this void by all means.
All the members of the accident finally accepted Shogo's request, they probably wanted to cheer them up and overcome the obstacles + find happiness together. And being together brought them so much : a new warm family, smiles, laughs, happy tears ...
I loved how they shared absolutely everything both good and bad, and went through all this without judging each others. 

There are lot of reasons which explain why I loved this show so much : it brillantly succeeded in making me smile and cry ; I was in tears in each episode but I have to blame this sad (but beautiful) piece of music which was always displayed at the right time, that is to say when Shogo was lost in his thoughts filled with moments he shared with his precious wife.
I felt 100 % connected with the characters, they are simply like ''any ordinary persons'' dealing with their own problems together hand in hand without any shame because there's no such a word like ''shame'' between a family. They all wanted to stay with each other and not leave the house no matter what others think about '' their strange cohabitation'', they were poorly regarded by the society ( school and work, neighborhood). It was hard for all of them but still they did not care cause they know what they're doing is not wrong. And nobody has the right to stick its nose in their family business. Spolier///////// I hated when people treated them like they were some ''circus freak'' and wanted to split them up. Whether what they're doing is right or not they are not in position to judge them\\\\\\\\\\End of Spoiler. 

I loved all the characters as they were all unique in their own way and were very compatible as if they have known each other for a very long time. There is one leader without whom nothing would have been possible  ''Shogo'', he is an altruistic person and does not mind to share his big house because he values all of them as if they were part of his family actually they really are his family now. He is always here when something goes wrong or good, taking care of them, and that's simply love in all its splendor. I can't hide it, he is simply my favorite character of the drama and definitely among my all time faves'. Tsuyo was really natural, he succeeded in conveying Shogo's feelings very well, a great actor indeed.
Then Eiko, the mother she's always smiling and hiding her deep feelings cause she's now with young persons and that probably reminds her the moments she shared with her sons and she also wants to be happy with all of them.
Akiba san was the most reluctant about this cohabitation however he finally realized that he needed to be with people who understand the pain of losing a precious family to overcome his problems and to be himself without worrying about what others would think about him.
Kono San he's not a talkative grandpa but he surely says heartwarming words and give strenght to the troop at the right moment ;)
Shoko, she has a steady temperament we could often see her getting jealous and that was pretty hilarious. My only regret about Shoko played by Inoue Mao is that she exagerrated a little bit at times, she was very young so that may explain why her acting was not always natural.
Hitomi, I don't have much to say about her but she's such a courageous woman, always smiling and sharing her fears with others probably to seek good advice and at the end she always takes the decision she thinks is the best for her.
Mayumi, her main personality trait is that when she's drunk she could be very frank and funny ;)
Kota , when I think of him there's only word that pops into my mind :chocobars. No seriously he is an attentive and loyal kid who will never let others insult his family.
Here finally comes the youngest of the family ''Hiroki'', he is such a cute kid full of confidence, I liked that and despite his young age he managed to find his place within this family.

Last words? this is another drama full of reflections about life and I think that's why I loved it so much. It may deals with death but it's not a depressing drama cause I think the writer probably wanted to show that anybody can move forward even if the wounds of the past are still here.
And yes the Japanese are for me the best when it comes to capture and move the audience. Of course It goes without saying I'll rewatch this drama cause it's now in my top 5 and there's a reason for it, hence my review ;)

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This drama was an emotional roller coaster. I went into it after read a portion of the synopsis

*In a house in the outskirts of Tokyo, there lives a family of eight. Such a large family is rare these days, however not one of them is related by blood.*

I did not read the rest so the first episode shocked me, but it also hooked me. In this drama, we meet nine individuals, of different background and diverse age, at their most vulnerable moment in their life. It was a moment where they had lost what was most precious for them in the world, and were left stranded. Some were at the point of reaching their dreams, while others had taken what they love for granted. That weakness I saw in the characters is what made me emotionally attached to them. I cared so much. Watching every episode transformed from enjoying a drama to watching over them, making sure they are fine, and that, somewhere, somehow, they can find happiness again. That is to what point I got attached.

The story itself is well thought out. It's very reflective of life, death, choices, and what is truly important. While it deals with such a heavy subject, it is very much a slice-of-life dorama, and watching it is more heartwarming than sad, hopeful than despairing, and gives you the most beautiful emotions. The dialogs however, can sometimes be preachy, but, being this connected with the family, the cheesy dialog becomes believable. The quality of the video I watched wasn't good, but the setting and the choice of music made it all fitting. And one of the most important aspect about it is having a satisfyingly perfect ending.

What I find that is most well thought out is how the characters were written, and the performance did not disappoint. Being character centric, there is a nice balance between uplifting bonding and the individual struggles. Society's cruelty is also exposed here, while people's kindheartedness, as little as it is, is well displayed. The drama carefully used many subtleties to give us hints, as well as effective revelations. I'm really glad how the attention was spread out. It isn't perfect. There are some stories that I wish were explored on a deeper scale, but at the very least, the writer made sure to touch up on them. Most of the drama time however, was used for family interactions, which is a lot of fun. I felt like joining them every single time.

I really want to add a comment on each of the family members, but I know if I start, it'll take me all night to write, and I don't think anyone would be interested to read a review that long :P

All I can say is, if you like slice-of-life dramas, family dramas, and emotional drama, that is one for you to check out. You won't end up watching a drama, you will end up meeting the most beautiful family. You will become their guest that refuses to leave.

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A tender, delicately crafted story of healing through found family

This drama has so few reviews I decided to copy my feed post from a month ago to the page as a review; other reviews give you the story details, so I feel okay just gushing in my stream of consciousness fashion here. :) (It is a given that not many titles are still at the forefront of my brain a month later for being so wonderful-only the wretched titles tend to lurk that long!)

The short summary: This is a highly emotional slice of life with performances that are a balance of charming, funny, and naturally sad at times as 9 people who’ve lost the people they love most in the world are faced with a world that doesn’t understand what they are dealing with and makes them want to be further isolated as no amount of “stay strong”isms will do any good… Those people come together and find a place they can breathe, people they don’t have to pretend to be okay around and eventually get okay around. Tearjerker moments paired with gentle humor, character growth and the best example of a true “found family” story I’ve seen… that is what you are signing up for if you watch this drama which I HIGHLY RECOMMEND.

The lengthy version (my brain splatting out its thoughts without censorship-pardon the mess):

I hovered between 9.5 and 10 for the rating here, but I really can’t find fault in it, especially since I had to naturally watch some pretty compressed video (it was uploaded long before the era of full HD gigabyte plus episode files being common) that lost a lot of the color in it but still found myself crying a bit, smiling, and crying again for all the pain and happiness alike… yeah, this deserves a 10. It is a heavily character-centered slice of life about found family (admittedly a weakness of mine that will warm my heart more than almost every other trope when it is done well, and man, this is your platinum star for that!), so instead of plot twists and turns or intense feuds of family dramas that have scheming at the forefront, this is bringing together people who are as different as you will find but who share one crucial thing: they all just lost the most important people to them because of the same tragic accident.

Granted, you need to WANT something that explores grief, loss, and pain from MANY perspectives and showcases a really complex set of character dynamics as they cope with trauma, loneliness (to extremes), survivor guilt (a couple of them weren’t there at the scene of the accident at all, but their guilt, while a little different, is no less intense, and their isolation and alienation no less saddening).

Stunning performances across the board. This managed, in 9 hours, to let me see deeper into the stories of the characters (despite there being several to peer into, some more deeply than others) than most dramas can in 20 hours, but unlike many (most) quick works that aim for the same “tell a lot with little time” result, it never felt like they were just gluing together tiny skits. It flowed exceptionally well, and I ended up deeply loving the characters thanks to how thoughtful I found both the writing and portrayal of them.

Emotional train wreckage, yep, and it is beautifully handled. I feel both amazing warmth and a tiny bit of exhaustion from so much emotion pulled from me as I couldn’t stop watching after a point. I didn’t want to let go of them, any of them. They really managed to end it pretty perfectly while leaving a big part of me wanting to forget much I’d just seen so I could watch it for the first time again even though it is not throwing a thrilling twist-filled plot that justifies forgetting before rewatching. I want to see their initial encounters and growth from the start with no knowledge of it. I want to watch them grow together and heal together in this gentle haven. The blend of heart, humor, pain, and characters who grow to trust and feel truly comfortable like family, real lasting family, with one another is worth anyone watching who wants to throw their hearts into something. (I am really glad I watched it far in advance of the Korean adaptation coming out-the Kdrama has only cast 3 potential house members, and I am excited for it, but I think it’ll be very different… still, what a fantastic title to remake in HD, hopefully with all the charm of the house this one features which really is just a perfect setting for this story!)

This is certainly not for people primarily looking for pretty faces and sharp cinematography. It is 20 years old this year and what is online, fan subbed, is compressed to under 1/5 the file size it would be if released now. I didn’t actually find it detracted too much after a brief adjustment for my eyes since I was there for the characters’ story, story, and more story and it fully delivered. The OST, while the start and end are consistent, has some fitting songs. In particular, a couple of instrumental numbers threw my brain back to an album I had, might still have, that I think was the Tokyo Kosei Wind Orchestra. At least that is the cover that is in my head (it is not at all a weird song of theirs-they have lots that are non-traditional-just one that I remember the flute player’s sound from and think this might be that same player). No huge wow factor anywhere… but that is why it shines. It is delicately handled, full of tiny details (both through setting/cast/prop visuals and in character traits and dynamics), and nuanced, and it feels deeply honest, authentic, in terms of the emotions of every character.

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