(Jdrama Review) The Reluctant Peacher

 

I’ve watched countless dramas about teachers dealing with troubled students — from Gokusen, GTO, Mr. Hiragi’s Homeroom, and probably a few more. In those dramas, the teacher often has some kind of strength or martial arts skill. But in this drama, the teacher has none of that. On the contrary, she seems weak, often talks to herself, and lacks the motivation to teach.

Synopsis

Urumi Shizuka became a high school teacher for no particular reason in an attempt to escape a life of unemployment. The motto of the teachers at the private Meishin Academy, where Shizuka works, is ‘Maintain a reasonable distance from students. Don’t get angry, don’t praise them, don’t get involved in their problems.’ Shizuka follows this approach, aiming to live a peaceful teacher life without stirring up any trouble. However, she soon gets caught up in the situations of her troublesome students and finds herself in a position where she has to give them "lectures" (even though she doesn’t want to). She doesn’t want to get too involved with the students... but she can’t let them take her lightly!

"Why do I have to give them a lecture?!" While shouting in her mind, her innate competitiveness forces her to rush into action... Compliance issues, power harassment, monster parents... This story blends the teachers' true feelings with the public facades, and with real shouts of "Why me!?"

Shizuka Urumi isolated herself for two years and became a NEET after discovering that her boyfriend cheated on her. During those two years, she ran a blog under the name SEE, where she shared stories from people who were bullied. One day, SEE suddenly disappeared when Shizuka officially became a teacher at Meishin Private High School.

taken from MDL

As a teacher, Shizuka is not someone skilled at standing in front of the class. She often wants to quit teaching. The school principal, Kyoko Kago, repeatedly convinces her that she can be a teacher. Kyoko knows Shizuka well—back in their school days, Shizuka was always argumentative and determined to win.

Unfortunately, Shizuka finds herself among teachers who live by the rule: “Don’t praise too much, don’t get too close to students.” When a student has a problem, it’s better not to get involved. Whenever Shizuka unintentionally gets caught up in a student’s issue, the other teachers warn her to stay away. What’s worse, the vice principal and the chairman of the school board often catch her meddling in student matters.

At first, every character feels irritating—including Shizuka, the main lead. After being disconnected from the outside world for so long, she struggles to express her feelings. From her expressions, I could tell that Shizuka wanted to teach her troubled students a lesson. Fortunately, her hidden strength finally emerges. :D By writing her thoughts on her phone, Shizuka delivers heartfelt speeches to her class.

Shizuka’s struggle is not only about dealing with her students and fellow teachers but also about confronting herself. She realizes that back in her school days, she was always at the top—her intelligence gave her control over her environment. But one tragic incident made her reflect deeply on her past attitude.

At the beginning of this review, I mentioned that I’ve watched several school dramas centered on teacher-student conflict. Usually, in the end, the students realize their mistakes and become very close to the teacher. But in this drama, I feel that Shizuka only forms a truly close bond with one student—Iroha. The others, though touched by her speeches, still seem distant, sometimes even cynical and judgmental.

Hirose Alice plays Shizuka Urumi. Seeing her stand in front of the class giving a speech reminds me of her younger sister, Hirose Suzu, in Gakkou no Kaidan. Another key character is Kimura Yoshino, who plays the principal Kyoko Kago, always encouraging Shizuka to keep going. Watanabe Shota plays Hikaru Urami, a teacher full of positive energy even though he’s often unsure of what to do in difficult situations. Shida Mirai plays Aika Suzuki, the teacher whom Shizuka replaces—she harbors resentment toward Shizuka, whom she blames for her sister’s suicide.

The most annoying antagonist role goes to Ito Atsushi as Kai Moriguchi, a school board adviser who tries to change school policies arbitrarily. Honestly, the school conflict here is rather strange. If in Meteor Garden poor students are bullied by rich ones, in this drama, it’s the school board that wants to expel poor students and turn Meishin Private School into a place only for wealthy kids. With rules like “Don’t praise, don’t scold, don’t get involved with students,” the school will only produce spoiled children who will cause problems after they graduate.

Well, overall, I really enjoyed this 10-episode drama. The legal streaming platform is Netflix. I kept waiting for the moment when Shizuka would explode with one of her speeches that could touch anyone’s heart.

Highly recommended.

Story: 8

Casts: 9.5

Music: 8

Re-watch value: 7.5

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