Watashi ga Himo wo Kau Nante (2023)

Love, escort & revenge

I keep seeing a pattern in these japanese romance dramas: a woman down on her luck, loses job, gets dumped, falls and hurts herself and of course it rains, so she meets someone by accident who changes her life and she finds true love. This is mainly what happens here.

Sumire, the FL, has always been a doormat. One evening, looking like a drowned cat, completely drenched, she meets Yuri, the owner of a lingerie store whose words inspire her to change. The next day, after being rejected at a job interview, she meets Soichi in the rain. Sumire who finally gets a job with Yuri, starts dating Soichi without realizing that he is Yuri's live in escort. All hell breaks loose when a journalist humiliates Yuri during her fashion presentation.

The main characters are all greyish, unpredictable but ultimately they admit to their faults. And all is forgiven.

The drama deals with infidelity which is a topic highly hated on MDL. Even the fansubber hates this drama because of it! Go figure! People are human, we are not perfect or infallible, we make mistakes, we hurt others, we are sometimes unfaithful. I really do not like this puritan mindset: chaste and virtuous but really, are you all such saints? I am digressing! But I agree, adultery is wrong. Still it does not mean we cannot use this plot device in a drama.

In this drama a women had an relationship with a man without realizing he had a family. Why is she getting all the hate and the man (you need two people to tango!) nothing? Was she supposed to hire a detective to investigate the man who says nothing about himself in order to find out if he was married? The FL is also a victim of infidelity: her father abandoned her for another family which caused her a lifelong trauma!
Another character, a childhood friend who's had a crush on the FL for 20 years finally makes a move on her when she's on her lowest. The character was fun and funny but as far as his love life is concerned, I have zero respect for someone who is not brave enough and confess his feelings. For 20 years! I really hoped they would not end up together.
Soichi is the grayest of them all: a charming, handsome pianist, a kept man toying with the women's feelings until he finds the truth out. It is never too late to make amends!

The music is really good and the opening credits with the four main characters lost in a cobweb of relationships is quite eye catching. What is not eye catching is the main actress playing Sumire. She's a good actress and excels in this role of a mouse but because she's a mouse I cannot comprehend the escort's feelings for her. On the other hand, the actress playing Yuri impressed me with her voice: the way she speaks is alluring!

This is not a perfect drama: the episodes are short and the depth and the development of characters are somehow lacking. Nevertheless, I enjoyed it more than I expected and I guess the low ratings are the result of the unpopular MDL topic. But if you are openminded and like dramas who have drama, go for it!

NB This is my 200th review! Pat on my back!!!LOL

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Not as bad as the rating but also Not a masterpiece. It's OK.

Subjective Gut Rating: 7.75 ( a little bump to up the rating)

The English title, “Hide from the Rain” sounds so much more romantic than the other title “I Keep a Gigolo”. Yet according to Google translate, the translation of the official Japanese title “Watashi ga Himo wo Kau Nante” is “I Can’t Believe I Paid for It’. Three different titles and meanings, yet they all describe what this drama is about.

As a romance-at-heart, of course I like “Hide from the Rain” more. It gives us the background story of our female lead, a smooth transition of Soichi (ML) into her heart & life, and strength to move past a traumatic event. Rainy days no longer sadden her, as her memories were replaced by more pleasant ones.

It is not wrong that the other title talks about a gigolo. After all, ML is one and you will find out about it in the first episode (so, technically not a spoiler). However, I might think of him more of a sugar baby instead of a gigolo.

Throughout the drama, Soichi (ML) gives off a very mysterious and weirdly uneasy vibe. He's definitely not a very likable ML.
As viewers, you knew from the beginning he’s not what he appears to be, yet you don’t find out his secrets until about ep 7. I wasn’t expecting the secret to be like that, as it sort of came out of nowhere. I won’t say the execution is done very well, but it’s definitely quite surprising.

The acting is decent all around. I’m glad Sumire (FL) is not the typical naive and super shy girl. Yuri is pretty and elegant, but her philosophy of lingerie went over my head (let’s just say I don’t think too deeply about the meaning but I’m sure others are touched by what she had to say). Morio is usual friendzoned best friend, no surprise there. I’m surprised to see Izuka Kenta in a supporting role as Ryo. But why does he look older and older each time I see him these days. None of the characters annoy me, yet I also don’t love any of them either (including the leads).

Even though this is not a masterpiece, it definitely doesn’t warrant a low rating of 6.7. Maybe the drama is not cute or fluffy enough? Or maybe it’s not mature and angsty enough? Or the leads are not likable enough? I am not sure but I would rate this 7.0-8.0 (finalizing at 8 to increase the rating a little). It’s short and easy enough to binge.


Other Random Observations:
1. Kotatsu is such a cute robot! I thought we would see more of its function but am disappointed.
2. FL's fashion changes for the better throughout the show. Though not my taste, but I enjoy seeing the different styles, cuts, designs and combination.
3. Triendl Reina is so pretty!
4. Three cameos/guest stars that don't really add anything to the drama.

Completed: 2/17/2024 - Review #404

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