Kemono ni Narenai Watashitachi (2018)

Being in your 30s isn't an easy feat.....

...cause we are weak beasts after all!

Kemono ni narenai watashitachi is truly a masterpiece of an adult comedy about people in their late 20’s and 30’s working a job they don’t necessarily like but one you have to grudgingly live with cause it pays the bills. That feeling of dissatisfaction leads us to fill that hole with something/someone to make us feel complete ergo - weak beasts!

We have Aragaki as Akira, a Yes-woman with a less than stellar boyfriend/partner and Matsuda as an accountant who acts with a superbly blasé attitude as if the struggles of ordinary mortals are above him.

The story starts in a bar cause that where working people frequent if they are unattached or depressed. I loved that bar. There was one I frequented when I started working too and that’s why this story is so relatable. Everyone knows that colleague who can’t say no and just keeps taking shit from the boss. Yes, that’s Akira! And that colleague who acts cynical and worldly but is as confused as the rest of us - Kosei!

This show is about how these two seemingly different people meet, engage with each other and eventually come to terms with themselves as well as the crap that’s been handed to them. Yes, Akira can be quite irritating with how slow she is on the uptake but I am sure we’ve all been through that when it comes to some trouble in our life.

The pace is melancholic and the sepia coloured cinematography inspires an atmosphere that is somber just like the ambivalent contemplations of our leads that can barely clutch onto the problematic realism of their lives. This is not an over the top drama, it pivots on the subtle desperations of working class people who care about solving their issues silently so as not to enrage public sentiments. This show is Asian reality to the T. Stuck with parents who balanced between their jobs and age old traditions, this generation (x) still cares about appeasing parents and society though a part of them rebels inside. Every character has a story, they could very well be people you know, your colleagues, friends or acquaintances.

This show definitely creeps up on you when you least expect it. Supported by stellar acting all around this Japanese gem is definitely in my recommend list though the slow pace sometimes might get to be frustrating. You may not like some characters while some might tickle your fancy. But hey, isn’t that life?

8.5/10 from me. Go watch it when you are in the mood for some contemplation.

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Slow-paced but heartwarming drama

I started watching the drama two days ago but even back then, I had wanted to watch this for Gakky and Matsuda Ryuhei. Two of my favorite actors. But given that the drama has aired for quite some time, I was bound to see reviews from people back then when it aired on real time. Sadly, the ones I have seen were far from positive review. They were mostly saying how the drama was plain boring.

Well? I do agree that there were such moments. The drama started out in a slow-paced manner and was consistent with that throughout the drama. We were introduced to the characters through their conversations at the bar and it actually isn`t a bad way of storytelling or fleshing out of character. Although the fact that the setting of the drama is mostly at the bar, I don't think it is something that works well with most audience as it may feel like 'nothing is happening'.

But the charm of the drama lies in its 'slowness' with the ability to build up an attachment to the characters and their relationships as we paced through the episodes.

The drama made many attempts to call out on the Japanese work culture as well as what it truly means to form a relationship. I think that watching this drama will give you the essense of Japanese slice of life dramas that amidst its exaggeration at times, it never forgets to insert meaningful dialogues along the way to remind you what it means to be a human and how life should be lived.

What I dislike on the drama may be the way the supporting characters are writtenー they were very annoying to me despite their comical presence or whether their main purpose was just that; to entertain or provide comedy to the audiences. Both Matsutoya and Ueno, who were our protagonist's colleague, felt like they were not necessary to the drama at all. Though slightly relatable for the dialogues, they didn't really shine on me despite the sudden development later on.

On the other hand, I like the lightheartedness that the drama offered as well as the pacing that I mentioned above. In terms of romance, it was built up slowly that it makes you wonder whether the supposed main couple of the drama would get together in the end or stayput in their current relationship. But along the way, the drama allows you to view a wider scope of what it truly means to be in a relationship: to be there for one another in your lowest and happiest moment in life and to offer comfort in your own ways, not just physically. The main characters, to me, were written realistically in a way that they were both flawed, even in their thinking and while they may not complete one another as cliched as that sounds, they slowly form a friendship that allows them to slowly change for the better unconsciously because of their comfort level with one another.

I think that this drama may not be as worth the watch as compared to most of what I have seen in the past (thus the ratings from me) but if you're curious and want to check it out for Aragaki Yui, I think it is still fine to go on. There will still be some beautiful points to pick up from the drama still.

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