Yasashii Jikan
May. 3rd, 2010 08:54 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
Yasashii Jikan.
How should I put it?
It's...very Nino-ppoi.
Somehow, Nino gives me the image of depth. His works tend to go for depth instead of trendy idol-ish stories. Not that I have anything against the latter genre, but I appreciate that the two 'main' actors in Arashi are on different routes.
And Yasashii Jikan is a curious piece. It's not the tearjerking type (e.g. Door to Door, 1LOT, Smile), nor is it a heartwarming family 'preaching' type (e.g. Atashinchi no Danshi, Ryusei no Kizuna). It's mellow, slow, touching. Yet there's no explicit 'themes' or 'learning points' in each episode.
I like how each episode comes together, mainly by the interactions Yukichi (Nino's father in the show) has with the patrons of the cafe. Because most of them are from the neighbourhood, subplots from previous episodes get brought up in the later ones as part of their chat. Also, each subplot serves to draw out a side of the cast that we've never seen before, and to bring us further into the lives of Yukichi and Takuro (Nino) before the incident. So, with each episode, their story unfolds naturally.
Of course, I'd have enjoyed it more if Nino appeared more frequently, but even with Yukichi taking up most of the screentime, the gradually unfolding story was engaging enough to make me continue watching. This drama may be too slow and non-exciting for people with an appetite for funnier, trendier, louder dramas. But for me, I liked it.
The story is strung together by ordinary tales or the patrons of the cafe. Throughout the story I was really anticipating how the father-son dynamics would play out when there is still a wall between them in spite of them really caring about each other deep inside. This is one good example that such conflict (son causing the death of wife, and father not being there for son) does not have to lead to the typical kdrama plot of rebellious children or vengeful father. It can tug at your heart strings in modest ways, like Yasashii Jikan did.
Like how I cried when Takuro picked up that heated pottery piece and... But that act was understandable, not just a tearjerker device...it was...painful to watch. As for the ending, it was simple, without a climatic end typical of most dramas. Most dramas would end with a climatic father and son reunion after Takuro's pottery piecce wins at the competition, but in Yasashii Jikan, there was no mention of the competition results. What we had at the end were scenes of another ordinary day at the cafe, signifying that that was not the end of everything. Time still continues. Like what Yukichi said, it's not like he discovered anything (that taught him some life principles), he was just living his life....an ordinary story. It may feel boring and plain to some, but definitely not to me.
[EDITED]
Here are two youtube vids of the theme song, 明日 by 平原綾香 (Hirahara Ayaka). I enjoyed the ending of each episode because of her voice. And I'm glad that the director filled up that credits part with not just scenes from the episode but also shoots of Yukichi around the cafe and the forest. It feels like the story is still continuing...
The is a live version.
And this a studio version.----------------------------------------
Comments transfered from vox
marszz wrote:
May 3, 2010