This past week I got absorbed in this Japanese TV Drama Series, Itoshi Kimi e. The stars were the lovely actress Miho Kanno and actor Naohito Fujiki.
The broadcast period was April 19, 2004 through June 28th, 2004. The show was broadcast on Monday night prime time at 21:00.
The synopsis below is from Fuji-TV, the broadcast station:
What if the one you love were destined to lose his eyesight in three months?
What would you like him to see last?
If you were him, what would you want to see last?
Shiki Tomokawa is a new pediatrician who is enjoying her life. She falls in love with Shunsuke, a cameraman, who is destined to lose his eyesight in a couple of months. How will Shiki react when she finds out Shunsuke’s destiny?
“To the One I Love” takes place in two contrasting cities—in the hustle and bustle of Tokyo, and in the peaceful city of Nagasaki, and depicts both the joys and sadness of life, and the interaction with family and friends. — Fuji TV
This human drama/romance was quite popular during its broadcast period, and is still popular 5 years later. The above synopsis isn’t a spoiler. Similar words are on the cover of the DVD box.
Okay, here’s my reaction. This was a very well made dramatic series. Yes, it is easy to make viewers react tearfully when you involve an illness or a death. Yes, it is easy to manipulate the emotions of a viewer when you stretch a romance over 11 weeks. Of course there will be stressful moments. Just like in real-life.
But a script is more than just getting you to cry. They must get you involved first. And they must keep you involved. This is where direction, music, casting, and locations come into play. My view is that this a story where everything was done superbly. I’m calling it a home run, and recommending it.
You can get a good look at the cast and hear the beautiful, dramatic, and unforgettable theme song performed by Naotaro Moriyama on Youtube here. <—click
You can buy the Japanese language DVD with English and Chinese subtitles from a number of outlets. I used the California-based jdorama.com web-store. They do ship internationally. Here is the link:
The Arts - JustMeMike's New Blog 