Alternative Title: Tokyo "What If" Girls
And I'm soooo back from the blazing pit of laziness for another unsolicited opinion about Asian dramas. :D Since Strong Woman Do Bong Soon ended, I've been really in the slumps because I honestly don't know what to do with my life anymore. I've tried watching Chicago Typewriter since I'm all up for the supernatural stuffs. It's also interesting but it's a bit dragging and mind straining for me so I dropped it for now and let's see if I get the urge to continue it. Oh, and I also started watching The Liar and His Lover and I'm pretty much enjoying it at the moment. I'll drop by a quick review about it once it's done.
So, going back with our main topic. I'm here to share with you this Japanese drama that I just finished watching so without further ado, let's get started!
Plot
30-year-old Rinko Kamata works as an unpopular screenwriter. She doesn't have a boyfriend, but she has two female friends Kaori and Koyuki. They meet regularly at a bar. There, they complain about their situations and go through what if scenarios. One day, Rinko Kamata decides to go for happiness at love and work.
(Credits to: Asianwiki.com)
My Opinion
To be honest, I initially watched it because I'm Sakaguchi Kentaro's (the one playing the role of Key) fan since Heroine Shikkaku. I wanted to see him rock the blonde hair cause I seriously hate it but surprisingly, it's tolerable. Lol. It's not that bad since he has the overall feel and he has that face.
(WARNING: I might spill a bit of spoilers from here on out so forgive me.)
This drama tells about the story of three high school friends: Rinko, Kaori and Koyuki, who are currently on their thirties. They wanted to be stable on both career and relationship department before Tokyo Olympics but instead of going out and meeting people, they spent most of their time having joshikai or girl's night out at the restaurant that Koyuki's father runs. They have a share of misfortunes in life but their girl bond is what holds them up together. Then comes Key, a young model, who ruthlessly told them that they're just a bunch of "what ifs" women who will never get what they want in life since instead of doing something to get what they want, they'll just run off a talk about their "what ifs." Those words became some sort of a wake up call for all of them. Afterwards, little by little, they started striving to get what they want in a funny, stupid and yet really heartbreaking way.
It's so freaking realistic
Since it's realistic, it's relatable. I'm only on my twenties but the scriptwriter kind of made me want to sympathize with the characters. In real life, my character is really similar to Koyuki so this really hit me in the heart so bad. Although, I definitely won't jump into an affair, I feel like in a few years time, I'll end up just like her personality wise. (Please don't self)
Since it's realistic, it's relatable. I'm only on my twenties but the scriptwriter kind of made me want to sympathize with the characters. In real life, my character is really similar to Koyuki so this really hit me in the heart so bad. Although, I definitely won't jump into an affair, I feel like in a few years time, I'll end up just like her personality wise. (Please don't self)
The characters
Tbh, those three girls are all stupid. But that stupidity is what made them human. That made them to be a characters who can really be one of us because come on, nobody's perfect. All of us makes mistakes but it's okay as long as we learn from it. Those bad decisions should've shaped us into a better and wiser person, correct?
Tbh, those three girls are all stupid. But that stupidity is what made them human. That made them to be a characters who can really be one of us because come on, nobody's perfect. All of us makes mistakes but it's okay as long as we learn from it. Those bad decisions should've shaped us into a better and wiser person, correct?
I really liked how the story is progressing especially when Hayasaka-san and Rinko finally became a couple but I should've hold on to that thought---because surprise, surprise! They ended up with guys that I don't want them to end up with. Why???? Just whyy??? Up until the end, why didn't you learn? Ugh. This was why I paused before watching the last episode. I had a feeling that this would happen and for the first time, I really hated Sakaguchi for this role.
Why? I mean, I love Sakaguchi but that doesn't make up for how horrible his character was being condescending and all. I also hated Rinko's fickle mindedness mostly because I'm all for Hayasaka-san but girl.... you moron. You deserve to be a "what if" woman forever. Same goes with her other friends. I mean, I kind of understand their life choices but I'm just too dumbfounded on how stupid they could get just because they wanted to escape the loneliness.
Gosh, this was so frustrating. I really liked the drama but this has the worst ending any drama could ever have.
Moving on to the guys, I really liked Hayasaka-san. He was like the only character (and the cute but creepy imaginary friends of Rinko) that I really loved in this series. Gosh, I've been waiting for the time that his love for Rinko would finally be fulfilled but that idiot went ahead and ruined everything. Ryo-chan, Key and Marui are f*cking assholes. Gaad. I want to scratch their faces.
And, oh oh! I forgot about Mami-chan. I really loved her. Her presence and her being a blabbermouth added some sort of comic relief in the series. Plus she's so adorable.
The character dialogues
These lines totally broke my heart and made me ponder what am I doing with my life right now.
These lines totally broke my heart and made me ponder what am I doing with my life right now.
"Compared to that, we’re just always on the bench. We never participate on the game. While people are trying hard, we watch from the bench, and just say self-important stuff from afar. And like that, we’re very confident that if we had the chance it would happen, and believed that we could hit a home run. But, in reality… we stand on the batter’s box, but without a scratch, we get 3 strikes. That’s who I am today.” - Kamata Rinko
“And just like that, I fooled myself counting “the good enoughs”. But in reality I know the truth. No matter how many “good enoughs” I can count, my life isn’t happy right now. With just good enough situations, there’s one thing that won’t happen. What I want. A very cliche word, very obvious and simple. I’m sorry to say, but that word probably is “love”." - Kamata Rinko
“I think I can hear the voice of my own self in ten years saying, “Chase him and grab his hand! If not, you will be alone in 10 years. You’ll be lonely and regret this.” But my feet won’t move. My hand that should be trying to grasp happiness won’t move as if it was frozen.” - Kamata Rinko
Most of the lines that I liked is from Rinko, obviously, because she was the main narrator of the story.
The song
I specifically liked Tokyo Girls by Perfume. It's so catchy.
I specifically liked Tokyo Girls by Perfume. It's so catchy.
The Tara and Reba Pair...
I don't know what should I call them because I seriously don't know what they are. Lol. They're the perfect way to slap those idiots' faces when they're making bad decisions in life.
My Final Verdict
I can totally see a lot of people being disappointed about how this drama turned out because this was really good if you omit the horrible ending. I'm a Tarareba woman too and I don't want to end up like them in the future so I need to get a hold of myself. This could be one of my favorites if the ending turned out differently. I'll try to read the manga and hope that this didn't end this way there because seriously, this was just so wrong.
Rating: 3/5
xxx
Janey
Credits to: bean5spilled.wordpress.com for the quotes
You can view the compilation of the memorable quotes here
