Tonari no Kazoku wa Aoku Mieru (2018)

This will be a spoiler-free review, written by yours truly Raiho80 (the good young man who subbed this drama in English) so be at ease as there won't be major plot points whatsoever revealed.

Story:
If you've read the summary (or not) Tonari no Kazoku focuses on a couple namely Nana and Daiki in their endeavors of getting themselves a child. But, that's not what all the drama offers. Tonari no Kazoku also tells about 3 other families all with their respective problems. And to add up, all of them live inside the same residential complex. You know it takes a lot of getting used to warm up to your neighbours. The problems that exist in this drama are concurrent real life social problems and handles them really well. The many plot points nearing the finale lines up and creates a satisfying continuity, making the viewers feel a sense of connection between the characters.

Acting/Cast:
Speaking of which, the many characters that exist in Tonari no Kazoku is another great example of how to portray 'real' people in a sense. Each actors and actress in this drama outdid themselves, from the important main couple to the guest stars that appear in one or two episodes. My personal favourite character in the entire drama goes to Igarashi Satoko, or Daiki's mother just for the sheer amount of greatness in her character throughout the whole journey from start to finish. The emotions of the characters were on point, expressing their tears, smiles and laughs that I can believe the situations and conversations that take place in this drama can occur in a household in Japan. 'Antagonistic' characters are nothing too amazing but they're there. The main selling point is the rest of the relevant cast, which matters more. 

Music:
Ah, music. For every J-Drama that I watch, the music aspect is one that I have really high expectations of (being a sucker for Japanese songs myself). Tonari no Kazoku did not betray my expectations. One thing I'd like to point out and give credit to is Mr.Children for delivering such a powerful and meaningful theme song in 'here comes my love'. The first time I heard the theme song was played, I knew I was in for a ride. The tone of the theme song was somewhat melancholic and the lyrics play a lot with metaphors and the likes. The OST for the drama was okay, nothing too spectacular but once again, the instrumental version of 'here comes my love' hits my heart every single time. The overall OST is nothing bizarre but special enough for you to reminisce about the show once you finish it. 

Rewatch Value:
As with most J-Drama that I've watched before, rewatching was never really something I tend to do with them as most air around 40 mins+ per episode which would cause me to skip most of the part. Tonari no Kazoku doesn't escape that pattern, although there are some neat tidbits that you can better understand or if put in better words, understand earlier why certain characters act the way they do. Certainly not entirely as enjoyable as your first watch, but certainly some scenes that attacks you mentally would probably still do same (I'm looking at you Episode * and *).

Overall:
So, would I recommend this Drama? Yes. Totally. Although some might complain that a certain aspect in this drama will turn off some portion of the viewers, my advise is to either avoid those scenes completely or just pretend it didn't happen. I, myself am not fond of said elements but I take into account Tonari no Kazoku as a whole, and for me it did a splendid job in making a family-drama turned neighbours wars.

P.S.~ Every minute spent on subbing this drama has been a blast. Please do spread the words on what an amazing drama Tonari no Kazoku wa Aoku Mieru (Residential Complex) is!

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How to do a family heartwarming drama RIGHT

In recent months,it hasn`t escaped my attention that many dramas are cashing in on "nostalgic setting and simple relationships" in order to raise viewership as we comfortably sit in our homey cages.And the world around us all but collapses,with one bad situation happening after another in a frenzied sequence.Thus,it is not too farfetched to call dramas dealing with issues "Tonari no Kazoku wa Aoku Mieru" presents a welcome change of pace.And what a welcoming change it is!

This drama is so...simple.But not in the mundane repetition repackaged every few weeks for massive consumption simple."Tonari no Kazoku wa Aoki Mieru" is simple in its earnestness to showcase and shed light on important topics while presenting interesting characters with their own issues and dilemmas outside of the primary storytelling perspective.Simply put,this drama throws us in the shoes of four different families inhabiting the conjoined living facility "Puzzeal".And those are:Igarashi family(made up of a husband Daiki and wife Nana,whose infertility issues and subsequent treatment are threatening to put a neverending damper on their healthy marriage),Komiyama family(made up of incessant wife Miyuki,mousey yet good hearted husband Shinichiro and their two daughters Yuka and Moeka,with the former wanting to decide her own future and wishing for a freedom she could do that with),Kawamura family(made up of lovers Chihiro and Ryouji,and a new,welcomed(?) addition,Ryouji`s son Ryota) and Hirose family(made up of lovers Wataru(n) and Saku,the only gay relationship in this drama).

With such a peculiar set of characters,one would think at least some parts of the free flowing storyline would suffer.And while I do have minor complaints(as I often do) this is a group character study I was invested in from start to finish.As previously promised,I will not be diving into spoilers regarding the actual story,but I will touch on these precious relationships that have painted a huge picture for me to delightfully dissect and gawk at.First off,our main protagonists(if we can call them that) Nana and Daiki are an amazingly healthy couple,in terms of their interactions,all things considered.For the most part,they communicate very well,whether outwardly or in non communicational ways,feeding a certain dose of realism to their little family.They have to go through a lot and be ready to learn and educate themselves about things they seldom thought about before.And this experience is not only educational for them,it is very much educational for us,the viewers,as well.With each new obstacle becoming grander and harder to tackle,we also manage to learn something new about this clumsy,but well-meaning couple.So we root for them to suceed.And mostly,I love their story.And while I`m in no way spoiling the conclusion to their fight,I`ll say it`s heartwarming in a realistic way.It`s beautiful and it feels just right. I had no problems relating to their struggles,even when I haven`t experienced them myself.They are both their own people,with wishes and goals separate from their relationship,but a sense of togetherness never fails to follow them through every twist and turn they face.

On the other hand,as a complete opposite to our lovely pair,Komiyama family just feels and looks like a nuclear family gone wrong without adapting to current times.It is flawed,ugly and superficial in the worst of ways.And yet,it is a family that could exist somewhere right as we speak.Miyuki and Shinichiro are a weird mismatch of propriety and hidden ambition that just isn`t working and I`ve got most of my bones to pick with their storyline and how it concluded,but I`ll still say they`re incredibly compelling.Every messy decision they make directly affects their two adorable daughters,who each have their own ideas and goals and for that,the writers are to comended.I didn`t feel like either of the daughters felt like mere plot devices to move the story along(nudge nudge "Hometown Cha Cha Cha").At times,they were even more mature than their parents and that can be perceived as rather realistic as well.We do have this inane perception of kids being utterly hopeless and childish,but children can,if there`s a chance presented,be wiser than most adults I`ve met.To sum it up,Komiyama family is the detonator to most issues that follow this small commune.But they still somehow didn`t get on my nerves as much as they should have(except for Miyuki,she can eat grass).

Kawamura family is perhaps the most modern take on an actual family in this drama,since it`s made up of an engaged couple Chihiro and Ryouji,who have both decided against having kids,as metropolitans who`d simply rather enjoy each other`s company.And at first,this arrangement worked.But then Ryouji`s tucked away son Ryouta appears and this attractive pair are suddenly faced with a huge change in their lifestyle.And while Maryjun Takahashi is probably the least equipped,acting wise,I did sympathize a lot with her character Chihiro,as someone who also lacks that motherly instict so many women supposedly ought to have.Despite this though,due to her past,she is in my eyes,ironically best equipped to parent Ryouta,something she realizes rather late as well.It`s a beautiful secondary plotline I found very satisfying and fun to witness,especially when it comes to Ryouta`s and Chihiro`s bickering.

And finally,we come to the most progressive couple(who are again ironically,quite traditional in their approach to love)Aoki Saku and Wataru Hirose,the Hirose family. Their relationship is most likely,very controversial for their loved ones(for whatever reason,equality for all) which is very much depicted by the older partner Wataru,being ashamed of his sexuality and how it might affect other people`s perception of him.As a successful architect,coming from a good family and as a good looking man,Wataru`s grapple with whom he actually loves creates a great deal of rift between him and his adorable,bubbly younger partner Saku,an orphaned young adult who,unlike Wataru,is very conscious of his sexuality and proud of it,while still being aware of the issues it might create for Wataru.Even though he is younger,Saku is incidentally more mature and understanding than perhaps any character in this drama.And after the main couple Hirose household turned out to be my favorite as well,and their romance is quite sweet and unassuming.

After so many accolades and praises,I do have a few minor inconveniences when it comes to this drama and those are mainly regarding the way they decided to present changes of heart of some characters and the lack of variety when it comes to music.As some might know already I`m a huge fan of JDramas understated cinematography,so I had no issues in that matter.

Finally,this drama`s way of posing questions leading to discussions regarding infertility,acceptance,LGBTQ+ rights,the idea of a healthy family,prejudices etc.while still being light and amazingly easy to relate to,made it one of my favorites when you simply want to watch people deal with life in a rather realistic way and a fun approach.It feels very universal and I`d recommend it to most friends.Let`s all open our hearts a little bit more today,everyone!

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Cute, funny, touching and says many things that need to be said

This is one of those feel everything dramas, that show a lot of interesting issues thru the lives of a pretty miss-mashed group of people who share a common space but other than that have nothing in common.

The different lifestyles and interest of the family's here is shown both at the first meeting but also thrue how differently they decorate their homes and well keeps on from there with conflicts, arguments, slammed doors and broken plants... However every single character in this drama (yes even the shortest roles) show great growth,

Why I rank this so highly is because of the way they say and show many things that rarely get to be said but truly need this space. Though there where times I was annoyed at how they portrayed the some of the characters as time went by they grew on me and I seem to have forgiven the writers (seeing I rated it highly) for making the pros cover the cons.

Important issues covered here are voluntary and involuntary childlessness, women's rights, men's mental health, depression, LGBTQ, found family, domestic violence, divorce, children's rights, self value etc. All well packaged with a lot humour and fun situations.

So yep go watch it enjoy and do learn from it!

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4 established couples including one m/m couple, moved me to my core (minor spoilers)

Overall: I loved how this series focuses on established couples and realistic problems that they might encounter. This series touched on many real life problems, several of which are rarely discussed in media. I sobbed multiple times during this series which rarely happens (sometimes due to being happy and sometimes due to being sad). The series touched my soul, but I do recognize that it is not perfect, so hence a 9.

Content Warnings: homophobia, mention of past abuse, past character death off screen, trauma, fertility struggles, slap between a mother and daughter

What I Liked
- talking about rarely discussed issues
- the communication between characters
- characters supporting one another through various challenges
- character growth from several characters

Room For Improvement
- there were times that things got a bit too preachy/PSA (public service announcement)
- this kissing was bad, especially considering that these characters are in established relationships
- the cliche plot point in the m/m relationship with the woman, but I appreciated it that they didn't do the full cliche
- the new mom says men were not good/pure and germy, it was odd
- one couple especially annoyed me, although I was happy there was some character growth. I needed more backstory sooner in order to not really dislike one character.

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I mentally rated this drama an 8 when I finished Ep01. It was a nice-feeling drama but one I thought wasn't going to be too memorable. Boy, I was wrong. When I finished ep02 I was loving it and by the end of Ep03 I was a crying mess.

The story is a bit idealistic mixed with realistic. Idealistic when it comes to live in a residential complex and being friends after a few disagreements and also the support and acceptance of the ones who were close-minded at first (Komiyama-san; the mother-in-law and Ryota). But highly realistic when it comes to women who have troubles to conceive (Nana) or women who do not want to be a mother (Chihiro), and of course, the ignorance and discrimination of people like Komiyama-san.

All 4 stories were good: the gay couple (the older, closeted guy with his much younger boyfriend); the family (the mother who is more concerned about the "what would people think"); the soon-to-be-married couple (Chihiro does not want to have a baby but eventually learns how to be a mother of the son of her fiancee) and my favorite, Nana and Daiki who are struggling to have a baby.

I liked most actors except for the boy who played Ryota and Nana, played by Fukada Kyoko. She can't act; she thinks that the silly bambi face she makes is acting, but my, every time she cried, I was crying :( Her story was too sad, every day trying to get pregnant till the "reset" day, which was when she had her period and it was starting all over again. Her scenes, along with her mother-in-law (interpreted phenomenally by Takahata Atsuko), made me cry like a baby :( I think Nana and Daiki are my favorite married couple in Doramaland... all her struggles and all his support were outstanding.

The annoying characters have a good redemption at the end, so there is no bad person in the whole drama. So it is one of those uplifting dramas that at the same time, are a bit sad since real life happens and not everything is white or black.

I've read that several people were not satisfied with the ending, but I loved it.

Thanks a million to the subber, Raiho80 ^_^

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Se vc viu e não gostou, veja de novo

Quando assisti esse drama a primeira vez, em 2018, sinceramente achei chato e enfadonho. Esses dias resolvi rever, e para minha surpresa ele me prendeu do início ao fim, chorei e sorri junto com os personagens, consegui ver que cada história tem muita complexidade e lições valiosas.

Vamos lá. Para entender a série, também é preciso entender o contexto sociocultural em que ela estava inserida quando foi lançada (Japão - 2018). Quando conseguimos fazer isso, é quase impossível não achar o diretor e toda a equipe gigantes, pois vários temas que seriam muito polêmicos foram abordados da melhor forma possível, sem enfrentamento, sem deboche, com respeito e responsabilidade, a ponto de se impor seu ponto de vista sem agredir os que pensam diferente.

A escolha das famílias e o fato delas irem morar todas no mesmo complexo nos passa a ideia de que é possível conviver com as diferenças, mudar nosso comportamento para melhor e aceitar que nem sempre as coisas serão como queremos.

O complexo tinha 4 famílias:

A primeira era de um casal jovem e feliz que queriam muito ter filhos, mas mesmo não existindo problemas de saúde, não conseguiam. Essa família trouxe o tópico de que casais sem filhos não são inteiros, que existe a necessidade de crianças para a família ser completa. Confesso que chorei de alegria quando Nana conseguiu engravidar, e de tristeza quando ela perdeu o bb. Chorei ao ver ela e o esposo sofrendo ao tomarem a decisão de desistir, e antes disso, ela abandonando o esposo pq entendia que não podia dar "felicidade" a ele, deixando claro que a sociedade entendia que uma família só era feliz e completa com descendentes. Ainda sobre essa família, quando a cunhada de Nana engravidou, também foram abordados alguns tabus, como o parto cesariana, que é alvo de preconceito até hoje, uma vez que o natural seria o parto normal, o desespero e insegurança dela quando não se achou suficiente para ser mãe, e o suporte das mães de Nana e seu esposo, que foram fundamentais. Isso para não falar do anjo que foi o patrão dela, que simplesmente jogou na cara dos telespectadores que mulheres devem ser valorizadas em seus empregos.

O segundo casal morava junto antes de serem casados, isso por si só já é algo um pouco disfuncional. Fica mais tenso ao se descobrir que eles optaram por não terem filhos, fato que, de acordo com o exposto acima, já esclarece que eles seriam alvo de preconceitos.
A situação piora quando descobre-se que o marido já foi casado e tem um filho a quem nunca (aparentemente) deu atenção. A ex esposa faleceu e o menino ficou com sua avó, agora precisa ir morar com o pai e simplesmente ele tem que convencer sua amada a aceitar um filho de outro relacionamento que ela nem sabia que existia, sendo que ela não quer filhos de jeito nenhum. O plot acontece pq o menino é bem maduro e entende que não ir com o pai vai causar problemas à sua avó doente (sinceramente ainda estou me perguntando quem ficou tomando conta dela), enquanto o pai está lidando com o dilema de escolher entre o filho e a noiva, que acaba cedendo, e afinal acaba amando o menino. Justamente ela, que não queria crianças de forma alguma, recebeu e amou o menino como se fosse dela.
O terceiro casal é um clichê que não é clichê. Um casal homossexual que mora junto, porém sem que ninguém saiba de seu relacionamento. Esse segredo todo se dá por três motivos: 1. Eles tem uma diferença de idade de mais de 20 anos. 2. O mais novo foi criado num abrigo, por isso não tem ninguém nem muita perspectiva de futuro (é o que veremos hahaha), e o mais velho é filho único de uma mãe que espera ver seus netos antes de morrer, além de ser muito homofóbica. 0 3 é que o mais velho mesmo não admitindo também tem muito preconceito, ele se auto discrimina, e não permite que ninguém saiba sobre sua sexualidade. Claro que uma tempestade vem a seguir, pois uma louca é apaixonada por ele e sai colocando cartazes no complexo e no trabalho dele informando que ele é gay, a ponto dele ser alvo de fofocas por todos os lados. Por um lado isso foi bom, pq ele tascou um foda-se e enfrentou a todos em nome de seu amor, que por sinal, depois de ouvir da desquerida que gostava do mais velho que ele não o merecia por causa do status, simplesmente terminou o ensino médio e lutou até entrar em uma faculdade.

O último casal é mais problemático. Eles tem a família de comercial de margarina, tudo aparentemente é perfeito! O marido é uma pessoa maravilhosa, porém está desempregado e sofre com a pressão da mulher. A filha mais velha está sendo obrigada pela mãe e fazer um curso que não quer, pois ama dançar e quer isso para seu futuro, mas a mãe não aceita. A mãe é fofoqueira, preconceituosa, vive de aparências pq quer ser bem vista na sociedade, mesmo com sua família afundada em problemas. Ela é a personagem que tem mais mudanças ao fim de tudo, pq todos os outros 3 casais foram vítimas de seu preconceito cruel, mas são essas famílias que ajudam ela quando ela está em apuros. Só depois de levar muito tapa na cara é que ela entende que viver de aparências não é viver bem.

Enfim, uma série preciosa, profunda, uma ost linda, atuação perfeita, não tenho absolutamente nada para criticar.

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