Suika (2003)

SUIKA!

This slice-of-life drama was a quirky concoction of midlife crises, emotional constipation, and nostalgia. It’s not going to set your pulse racing or redefine the genre, but it got enough charm to keep you interested, for the most parts. The story follows Motoko, a 34-year-old woman whose life got a kick in the pants when her friend absconded with 300 million yen. Then, there was a sexually frustrated manga artist, a melancholic professor, and an emotionally stunted young landlord. It was basically the setup for a comedic entanglement, but instead, you get slow-burning introspection with the occasional dash of the familiar Japanese absurdity. There’s something hypnotic about watching these women fumble their way to self-discovery, finding happiness in their mundane fractured lives. It had this warm nostalgic glow all over it but that couldn't save it from some inconsistencies and shortcomings. Particularly with its 2nd half where the drama already exhausted most of the personal stories around the housemates and what left was a lot of emptiness. There was an opportunity to dedicate an episode for the young landlord since she was the fourth wheel in the dynamic. Suika was the kind of drama that doesn’t try too hard to impress, and somehow that was its biggest charm. It wasn't revolutionary, but if you’re in the mood for a contemplative drama with a few laughs and a lot of heart, this one might be worth it.

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Im actually surprised that Im the first one writing a review for this drama.

And Im sorry that is no the most positive....
But still here is my opinion:

Suika actually has an interesting setting.
4 single woman living in a share house. All with their particular hobbys and quirks.

Each episode has a little life lesson shared from the proprietress wich I think is a good detail.

For the series they decided to make 34 year oldbank worker hayakawa san the main person. A typical 39thies office woman still living with her parents. And ending up at happiness sancha.
Here is the thing. I don't have a problem to make an average person the fml. I actually think its a nice change.
But still even if your character is written all to ordinary you still need to make the character somewhat interesting.
I found evry other other person in the share house more interesting than her.

The acting was for me all in all very bland.
I ended up forgetting what happened in the last episode because it didn't leave an impact.
There were no "memorable moments" ao to speak.
And I have to say the drama did not get better in the second half for me.... Actually it was going down hill.

The baba mariko 3 million dollar embezzling story could have been interesting. But it wasn't. I mean there are alot of ways to make that side plot more funny and enjoyable. Still the interaction between baba chan and mariko san were bland. Like most interactions with the characters. There didn't seem livelyness or witt in any of the conversations.

What makes a character interesting for me are how they interact with people, how they have surten characteristics or strengths and weaknesses. And I just didn't really care about the characters in the drama. I couldn't connect to them or was impressed by the acting.

In the end it did feel washed out to me and I thought that it was a waste of time. I didn't think the ending was satisfying or made sense.

(Please don't let my review demotivate you from watching the drama. This is just my opinion)

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