Matsushita Nao starts as Momoko in a family drama set in the 80s. I really like the setting because its a different time and people have different views on things compared to today. It was a time one could find public phones on every street corner and people didn't have video cassette players. NHK doesn't have the budget to reinforce the 80s look but that's understandable.
If there is one word to describe Kurumi no Heya, its charming. Its not dark and dreary but it doesn't have the bright light artificiality of a prime time dorama like Freeter. Its a fun show without having to make everything happy. Momoko is the second oldest sister among 4 children and one day her father goes off to work and never returns home. Its turns out that he had been fired and is now living with a woman. This sets of a chain of events which exposes problems in the Mitamura household.
Matsushita Nao does a decent job as Momoko. Talent-wise, she's not really main actress material but for doramas where the main character is a nice, strong girl she does ok. She just doesn't have the ability to speak with her eyes like Mitsushima Hikari.
You get your usual family drama plotlines of affairs, suffering housewives and money problems. Nothing we've not seen before but unlike Freeter, it knows what it wants to be and does it well. I've got no complaints about Kurumi no Heya. This season has been awesome. We've got a 3 pretty good shows and now with Kurumi no Heya, we've got two very watchable shows as well.
I'm with you on this. Definitely love the 80s flavor of this show. And plot wise, it's turning out to be pretty decent. And it's a story line I can relate to on a personal level as my own father struggles with retirement decision after almost 4 decades of tireless service. For many salary men his age, work meant something more personal than how most people treat work these days; it was their second wife. And sadly for many, first wife.
ReplyDeleteLooking forward to watching ep3 and on.
i didnt know that this was set in the 80s after watching episode 1. hmm.. now i know why the maid costume was not sexy enough. haha..
ReplyDelete6 episode nhk dramas. it already got my attention and definitely one of this season's best. afterall, the tragic earthquake has nothing to do with bad season doramas.
Its still relevant today but more so in the 80s when Japanese still imagined a job was for life.
ReplyDeleteJung, you should intro your dad to jdoramas, lol.
What did you think of the whole series? I couldn't find anywhere else to discuss this show. It lost me at the scene of the three sisters throwing fruits and spray water at each other, the tanto music every time Nao Matsushita's character resolve to become warrior Momoro to protect her family.
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