"Mare" is my 17th asadora and I confess that I was a bit disappointed. I wish I had watched this asadora earlier on in my journey, especially since I've had it downloaded for quite a while. I think "Mare" would appeal to newer viewers of asadora but if you've seen more than 10+, I think it'll leave you a bit frustrated.

Let's talk about what I liked first. Tsuchiya Tao plays an aspiring patissier named Mare. Tao basically sells this role because Mare could've easily been annoying. [Though if you don't like Tao, you'll probably hate Mare lol.] I really enjoyed Mare's journey. Her initial hesitation to chase her dream was a tad exasperating, but I also felt that it was realistic. Not everyone goes head first into doing what they want like most asadora heroines. I'm not such a fan of her relationship with Keita, but we'll get into that later. However, I do like Mare's struggles with marriage and motherhood. Essentially trying to "have it all." Though the storyline stumbled a bit, I think this is an important storyline for modern day Japanese women.

I also liked the supporting cast, except for Ichiko (played by Sengen Yoshiko) during her "I hate Mare" phase. It was a delight to see Tanaka Yuko again. She starred in the 1980s hit asadora "Oshin." [Ishimatsu Guts from "Oshin" was also in this asadora.] Tanaka plays Mare's adoptive grandmother and my only complaint that we don't see her nearly as much as I want to. Then there's the patissier, Ikehata Daigo (Kohinata Fumiyo), whom Mare apprentices for. He's one of those typical eccentric mentor characters you see a lot of in asadoras. I really disliked him at first, but he ends up being so sweet by the end. Tokiwa Takako as Mare's mother Aiko is a delightful mix of emotion and comedy. I really like how she supports Mare and encourages her to leave when she realizes that Mare is trying to protect her. I'll stop here, but there are a quite a few interesting and fun characters.

On to Mare's father, Toru (Oizumi Yo). I honestly don't know what to think of this character. He abandons his family not once but twice. But in a sort of noble way... I guess? I liked his character at times when he was trying to do things for his family. Him being a big dreamer wasn't really the problem like the drama tries to say. It's his bad decisions in the process of trying to achieve that dream. And honestly did the writer hate Toru? Lol this man literally could not do anything right.

Now on to Mare's backstabbing friend, Ichiko. Oh my good I hated Ichiko even as a child lol. She was so rude even then. The real hate came when she started dating Keita (Yamazaki Kento). Mare had not said that she liked Keita to Ichiko, but I will maintain that that b*tch knew what she was doing. She only gets worst tbh and I could never forgive her after she said that she hated Mare. I don't care that they essentially made up and became good friends again. I really don't care.

Finally, on to the last thing that irritated me. I'm not a fan of Mare's love interest, Keita. Not only does he date Mare's best friend after confessing to Mare just a few episodes before that he loved her, but his personality is also just annoying. And he's a freaking hypocrite. Him and Mare then get together and married way to quick. There was hardly any romance to it. There relationship gets better once they become parents. I like them as a family unit and I think Keita is a good father. I really Mare had dated Daisuke (Yagira Yuya) for longer than one episode. I preferred him as her love interest. He was more interesting and was showing a clear interest in Mare, while Keita was still all about Ichiko (for some reason). Anyway, justice for Daisuke. He was way better than Keita.

In conclusion, I think "Mare" is a good asadora but the romance aspect of it is a dud in my opinion. It also left me wondering why every asadora heroine has to get married. I wish in this case that they had decided to focus on her career instead. I would recommend "Mare" to beginners since it has a lot of good points to it. I especially liked the music, which a lot of effort was put towards. However, veteran viewers will be able to spot the flaws easily.