(Jdrama Review) Date My Daughter

Other title: My Daughter Doesn't Have A Boyfriend

Original title: Uchi no Musume wa, Kareshi ga Dekinai (

Director: Seiichi Nagumo, Hidemi Uchida

Writer: Eriko Kitagawa

Network: NTV

Episodes: 10

Release date: January - March 2021

Genre: Romance, family, comedy

Casts:

Miho Kanno as Aoi Minase

Minami Hamabe as Sora Minase

Kenshi Okada as Hikaru Irino

Ikki Sawamura as Gon-chan

Yoohei Kawakami as Soseki Tachibana

Keisuke Higashi as Wataru sensei

Haruka Fukuhara as Sally

Have you ever watched a drama that you don't to see it end? For me, there are some, but this drama is really addictive that I don't want it to end this soon. at least, give me more 5 episodes than typical Jdramas have. But, what can I do? It's edning soon, and I'm gonna miss this drama so much.

Let's start from the synopsis. i promise, i won't give you any spoilers. But, spoilers alert when I discuss the characters one by one, later. 🤭

Aoi Minase is a popular novelist whose hit novel was a boom when she was 20s. Now, she's in her 40s, she starts to get writer's block. Aoi lives with her only daughter, named Sora Minase, who is an otaku. They live in a luxurious high rise apartment, a perk of her successful career.  Sora is 20 years old but she never dated anyone in her life. Her love life is full of 2D boys from manga she reads.

Aoi is worried about her daughter not having a boyfriend at her age. In turn, Sora is also worried about her mother who seems naive and doesn't care about what might happen in the future if her writer's block continues. 

Sora never meets her father. She hardly knows who her father is. Both mother and daughter decide to meet someone to fall in love.

Now, let's start with the characters and the casts. Spoiler alert. But don't worry, I won't be too vivid in giving the spoilers here 🤭

Miho Kanno as Aoi Minase

The girly flirty novelist

Aoi is a kind of person who is easily swayed with her emotion, a typical romance novelist, I guess. In the beginning of the drama, it's no information about Sota's father, or her husband. Never have I thought that it would be a great issue later on.

Aoi is really girly compared to her daughter. Her makeup, her dress, and the way she talks are always on point. No wonder, many people around her find her attractive. However, she suddenly could appear innocent and naive when it comes to love. In one episode, Aoi's heart was full of Wataru sensei, a osteopath from nearby clinic. At another time, she was swayed by her editor, Soseki. Does she use all her emotions to write in her novels?

About Sora's father, she keeps the secret tightly.

Frankly, this is my first time seeing Miho Kanno on this drama. As a senior actress, she has performed in many dramas and movies. I wonder how she acted in those movies since she's really flirty yet naive to her environment.

Minami Hamabe as Sora Minase

The adorable otaku

Sora is described as an otaku whose world is full of manga and never falls in love. In her 20s, she wants to experience to fall in love. One day, she meets someone by accident, and she falls in love at the first sight. This lucky guy is Wataru sensei, who works in a clinic nearby. Without her notice, her mother, also falls for him. It's like a love battle between a mother and her daughter. LOL.

Sora has sharp tongue when speaking about she doesn't like, straight-forward and honest. these characters differ her from other girls her age. She's a loner who thinks it's enough to be together with the manga characters by her side.

An inevitable incident happened that changed her.

I've seen many of Minami Hamabe's dramas and movies. From the beginning, I already fell in love with her acting. (minus Anohana, I didn't realize she was there before she gained her popularity like these days. I didn't really like Anohana live action, to be honest) . When I heard she would play in this drama, together with Kenshi Okada, I was flying. I love both of them.

As Sora Minase, and as an otaku who loves BL manga, she doesn't really appear as a fujoshi who ships guy characters. But, as an otaku, she performed very accurately. Her bond with her mother, is something everybody got inspiration from. Who doesn't want to have a relaxed, easy going mother like Aoi Minase, and who doesn't want to have a very understanding daughter like Sora chan?

Ikki Sawamura as Gon-chan

The everlasting childhood crush

Too close to be a boyfriend, that is Gon-chan. Is he a boyfriend? Nope. There is a saying what wecall as friends with benefits. Well, Gon-chan is not really like that.

Gon-chan is Aoi's childhood friend who grew up together and stay side by side ever since. Gon-chan runs a taiyaki restaurant while looking after the Minases. Sora happened to work in his restaurant and feels at home every time she has problems. Similar to Aoi, whenever she needs comfort, she would hurriedly go to Gon-chan's place. Gon-chan is like the air for both of them.

However, it is heart-breaking to see their relationship. Maybe it's kind of platonic relationship. Still, I want them together.

I can say, I want to have a Gon-chan in my life. Someone who is not family related, but cares each other, more than a family. What about you?  

I've seen Ikki Sawamura in a couple of movies and dramas. But, one drama I do remember is Grand Maison Tokyo where he acted together with Kimura Takuya. Since I got acquainted with Japanese dramas and movies not too long ago, I didn't watch most of his movies, but his dimple on his cheeks only belong to Ikki Sawamura, something easy to recognize from him.

Who doesn't ship Aoi and Gon chan here?

Kenshi Okada as Hikaru Irino

The disguised flashy otaku

I'm sure, if this drama has 150 episodes, just like Hanbun, Aoi or other Asadora dramas, Irino would grow not too much different from Gon-chan. It seems that The Minases have this charm that attracts guys to have platonic love. It's painful from the audience who watch them. LOL.

Hikaru Irino is a fashionable popular guy in campus. He's Sora's classmate who seems to have very far different world from Sora's. He's busy dating, flirting with girls and going karaoke. It's a surprise when he was discovered to have a great interest in Sora's doodle while in the class. No one would have thought he is one of a kind of an otaku himself. I can say that Irino might have attention to Sora from the very beginning since he saw her in comiket. Irino is an otaku in disguise!

Their relationship develops into a manga partner whose aim is to be published in JUMP! Is that all? It's heartbreaking to see how Irino hides his feeling while Sora is enthusiastically telling him about her date with Wataru sensei.

Kenshi Okada as Irino is my primary reason to watch this drama. I got to know him the first time in Chugakusei Nikki, as a junior high schooler who fell in love with his class teacher. His debut rocketted his name. From then on, I would always look forward to his projects. As Irino, no doubt, he nailed his character. I want to see him more with Sora. But, well, you know, Japanese dramas always only give hints what might happened after the episodes end.

 Keisuke Higashi as Wataru sensei

The towering dimpled sensei

The first time I saw his appearance in this drama, I thought he was Kenshi Okada since he would be the important male character here. I was deeply disappointed to see it was not Kenshi. But, Wataru sensei is not bad at all. He can be eye candy in this drama. LOL.

I wonder how someone could hold his feeling towards his old crush until he's adult. No wonder, he doesn't have any experience with any girls. Sora might be his first date ever in his life. You can picture two of them, who don't have any experience in having romance relationship.  Irino who is quite expert in that kind of relationship tries to interpret the kind of relationship they have. We, as the audience, already see the love spark doesnt spark between Sora chan and Wataru sensei, instead, we see it from Sora chan and Irino.

This is the first tme I see the actor, Keisuke Higashi. He's a bit awkward tho, I mean his acting compared to the other leads in this drama. But his dimple would save your day. :d

  Yoohei Kawakami as Soseki Tachibana

The easily swayed editor

I never thought that to be and editor for a novelist could be this hard. Soseki happened to be Aoi's editor after her writing block came.

He patiently accompanied her to write, jotted down some ideas to write, and even gave a ticket to wacth a music performance together with Gon chan, to see if love sparks between them. One more thing, he is available to be swayed by Aoi'd flirty figure. I wonder what will happen between the if Gon chan is not there between Aoi and Soseki. Their merely attempted kiss, was it Aoi's purpose or both of them expected it? Wakaranai.

I knew that the actor, Yoohei Kawakami, is actually a singer, a lead vocalist of Alexandros rock band before episode 3. You know, in the beginning of episode 3, Sora interviewed Soseki, revealing his real identity as a singer. What a hilarious entertaining short show was!

Spoiler alert: I was expecting to see Soseki to be Sora and Irino's editor in their next manga. But, well, yeah, the ending....

Haruka Fukuhara as Sally

The Google map stalker

I thought that Sally is a very minor character here. But, her appearance here helped Sora in some ways, and made her realize a lot of things. In the beginning, she looked really annoying, but as the episodes grew, she developed her traits into someone better. She even became Sora's best friend, something Sora never had, I guess.

Sally is a kind of today’s girl who is so crazy in love with her boyfriend that she checks his whereabouts almost every time. I wonder how she could manage her feelings when she found out that her boyfriend dropped by somewhere she’s not familiar with. Thanks to the drama writer to change her annoying character into someone better and mature. We know that having that kind of character would kill yourselves.

I knew Haruka Fukuhara the first time when I watched Good Morning Call. The drama is so popular that I wanted to try to watch it. But then, I was annoyed with her character there. Some people might find her cute to have that kind of clingy character, but for me, it’s a BIG NO. In the beginning of this drama, she seemed to have the same character, but then turned into more mature after meeting someone. (spoiler alert, I wonder if their relationship would continue regarding their age gap). :D

All in all, this is a kind of drama you would rewatch as time goes by. I even rewatched it when the episode was not out yet, or when the raw ones were uploaded. I don't mind watching it without subtitle only to see what would the story go. The storyline is brilliant, no to mention the dialog, the casts and others. This is like a drama you yourself want to be in it without being too dramatic and living in a dream. 

Who is waiting for second season, if there's any? I want to see Sora-Hikaru's projects in manga, Aoi-Gon chan's relationship, Hikaru's family as he could show that he finally could create a manga and have it published. And I don't mind to have other conflicts as long as I see the same casts 😂.

It's 10/10 rating from me. What about you?

  

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