Aishiteru (2009)

I started watching this six hours ago and I already finished. This proves how ADDICTIVE this drama was. From it you'll smile and cry, you'll understand a bit of japanese culture and family living... and how everything may turn upside down for a single act... how that could sometimes happen to any family, even yours.

The actors played their roles well. Not to mention the small Tomoya, what a cute and smart kid. He was able to make us feel his emotions, and his love towards his mom. ´
Even though he was the 'killer', I couldn't help but fall for him, wish I could go there and hug him right now.

Please watch it. I have no regrets, and I'm sure you won't either :)

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From the very first episode, I was hooked to the story. The story was interesting and intriguing too since we are eager to understand the motives behind Tomoya's action. We are given bits and pieces of the puzzle at a time and are eager to know if our hypothesis is correct or not. The acting was really great. We get to experience the pain of both parties and see the extend of how this incident affects them. The music was just so perfect for the drama and I fell in love with the ending song. I'm not too sure if I would rewatch this drama, though. Overall, it's a beautiful drama that will get you to reflect upon your life and your relationships with others.

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Did I really just give a full score?! YES!

Overall: This is one of the most intense, heartbreaking, addicting dramas I've watched. All in all, a truly amazing drama.

Story/Acting: I usually dislike too much melodrama, but this drama is on a whole different level.
Be warned: this is a tearjearker! I honestly don't cry much at most dramas, so if I tear up more than once, it usually guarantees waterfalls for others. Heck, my own mother only watched half an episode and she was bawling within 10 minutes. The realistic, yet surprising script, along with Kakazu Issei's fantastic acting are really what pull this along. He outshined the adult actors in this movie. I don't often find endings that satisfy me, but this one was great.

Watch it, everyone! I recommend this drama because it is very sobering. Among the many lessons this drama teaches, it helps you to re-examine the relationships in your family, and helps you realize that there is a story behind everything.

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Aishiteru (2009) is story of a tragedy: A 10 year-old boy kills brutally a younger kid, aged 7. Everything is falling apart. However, taking responsibility in its right sense and showing empathy toward other people involved help both families to move forward. The drama is about this.

Specifically, the sympathy of the victim's mother toward the perpetrator's mother is out of this world, reminding 'Yui' in Haha ni Naru (2017). This doesn't mean that in the end, there is total forgiveness and peace between the two families. It's not supposed to be like that. But the sympathy helps everyone understand their own role, as well as others', rather than only blaming 'enemies'. Now, instead of living in the dark, they know why the tragedy happened: There is some prospect for getting over it and having a brighter (less dark) future.

I don't know what percentage of Japanese people can act like this in the horrible situation, but it seems to be a meaningful difference between the Japanese society and many other countries. I like to think in this way.

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