The Rime Of The Modern Hikikomori: "0.5 no Otoko"

 
Caught a new show called which reminds me not just a little of the Toma Ikuta drama "Ore no Hanashi wa Nagai"- In that one, we heard the story of a young man named Mitsuru (Toma) who, thanks to the spoiling by his older mother (Mieko Harada), has become a hikikomori of sorts, what they call a shut-in (though he isn't as extreme as some since he does come out of his room and even venture outdoors at times). He is content to live this way forever, without working and living off his mother, until his older sister (Eiko Koike) moves in with husband (Yasuda Ken) and teenage daughter Harumi (Kaya Kiyohara)  in tow. This catalyst shakes things up and we see the young man's journey out of his room back into the working civilization!

In this new drama "0.5 no Otoko", we hear the story of a young man named Masaharu (Ryuhei Matsuda) who, thanks to the spoiling by his older mother (Fubuki Jun), has become a hikikomori of sorts, what they call a shut-in (though he isn't as extreme as some since he does come out of his room and even venture outdoors at times). He is content to live this way forever, without working and living off his mother, until his older sister Saori (Asami Usuda) moves in with husband (Atsushi Shinohara) and teenage daughter Ema (Tamaki Shiratori)  in tow. This catalyst shakes things up and we see the young man's journey out of his room back into the working civilization!

The main difference in the new show is that the sister Saori's clan isn't technically "moving in" to the old family house, rather, the entire family is moving into a new duplex made to house two families: on one side, Saori , her husband and her kids will reside, and on the other Mom and Dad. and upstairs in a single room all for himself, will reside Masaharu, the titular "0.5th" of the household!

How can this introverted guy cope with a new family situation??

REALLY loved Ore no Hanashi wa Nagai, So I have high hopes for this new one as well, in any case, it's only 5 episodes long so will be an easy watch regardless!

Isu おわり

Just a quick note to say how pleasantly surprised I was at how good the short-story anthology ISU turned out to be!!! For a drama about a bunch of tales with a chair as a common set-piece, they managed to create some wonderfully varied stories ranging from winsome, insightful poignant, and even downright hilarious!

Some of my favorites include "I Want To Change The Light Bulb" (with Riho Yoshioka as a girl who just wants a chair so she can change her burnt-out light) and the young man she meets along the way...

"Towards The Sea", about three friends (Serena Motola, Yumi Kawaii and Mayu Hotta) who wistfully reminisce about their best friend who has just passed away

 "Memories", about a girl (Serena Motola) who is at the crossroads of a long-term relationship when it dawns on her how little her boyfriend (Kaito Yoshimura) seems to regard her dreams and desires...

and the SUPER FUN "Hear the Voices of Humans" starring Muro Tsuyoshi as a bored bartender whose night is enlivened by the arrival of a svelte, mysterious woman in red (Haru Kuroki, the prettiest I've ever seen her)!

Sadly, it all ended ALL too soon, and I'm still clamoring for more!!!

An Ex-Yakuza's Work Is Never Done: Ninkyo Nuttiness in "Gokushufudo"

Tamaki Hiroshi as Ex-Yakuza Tatsu

 Tatsu was once a legendary Yakuza by the name of “Immortal Tatsu” who single-handedly took down an enemy organization …before leaving the business to start a family!

Now his focus is on the well being of his wife Miku (Haruna Kawaguchi) and their precocious daughter Himawari (Shiratori Tamaki) and his yakuza skills are now used to better his home life!

His Yakuza Tanto Blade, once a sign of fear...

...is now used to slice veggies...

...for making cute bentos!!

Sadly Wife Miku (Haruna Kawaguchi) is running late and can't stay...

...So breakfast ends up just Tatsu and Himawari!

A peaceful mealtime!

His fastidiousness has made him a hit with all the neighborhood wives, including Tanaka (Megumi) and Ota (Michiko Tanaka) who hilariously take advantage of Tatsu’s skills (and naive sense of camaraderie) to get him to help with all sorts of housewive things!

His past cannot help but creep back into his life, however. There is unrest within the Yakuza families and his former clan boss Kikujiro (Naoto Takenaka), Hibari (an almost unrecognizable Izumi Inamori) and Tatsu’s former kohai Masa (Jun Shison) are desperate to have him back and help abolish their foes.

Masa finds Tatsu out grocery shopping and cannot believe the once mighty warrior has been reduced to becoming a Mother Hen!

Tatsu would like to ignore things and stay committed to his family, but a confrontation with a rival gang lets him know that some Mob altercations are unavoidable and that he may have to step in…

This is a problem because though wife Miku is a scatterbrained and seemingly sweet natured woman on the outside (who can’t even make dinner without reducing the kitchen to rubble, LOL)…

…once she hears about Tatsu interacting with his old Yakuza colleagues, transforms into a LION and properly lays him OUT! Seems there’s ONE person whom Tatsu can only bow his head to, and that’s his lovely wife!!

So far seems like a pretty good dynamic, with shades of Ayase Haruka’s “Okusama wa, Tori Atsukai Chui” or Chiaki Kuriyama’s “Himitsu Chohouin Erika”, though a LOT more on the slapstick side!

Love the running gag of how lazy Miku can be in regards to housework, there’s this scene where Tatsu’s folding t-shirts and she tries to "help” in this utterly useless way that had me laughing out LOUD!

Also love the way that naughty Himawari keeps getting Tatsu into trouble by tattletaling on him, she is such a rascal! Loved her roles in “Nagi No Oitoma” and the recent “Kanojo ga Joubutsu Dekinai” and she continues her adorable troublemaking here!

PS: Jun Shison surprised me in this role as kohai Masa- when I first saw him in Heaven Gokuraku Restaurant, he was SO flamboyantly girly that I thought it was the ONLY kind of role he could play! Nice to see him in a straightforward role for a change!

Hey, come to think of it, he’s ALSO in Hanbun Aoi , as one of the manga employees!!! 

And speaking of Hanbun Aoi, Kenichi Takito is in this drama TOO, as another yakuza sprung from prison! Chalk up two MORE actors linked to that fateful asadora!

posted by zdorama @ zdoramaagain.blogspot.com