Another outstanding drama about love from Japan. Not a straightforward romcom but a love story for sure, with some really interesting things to say about what love is and what love isn't.

I gave this drama 8.5/10 because it lost its way a little toward the end. Or rather it lost its focus a little bit. The core of the drama was the relationship between the mother and daughter, and it was pretty much perfectly executed. Tender, frustrating, a little confusing, it was so believable and so warm. Sadly, toward the end of the drama far too much time and focus was given to someone with whom the mother had only interacted for one week some 20 years earlier. Not only was the duration of their connection short, there was no depth to it, and yet when this person was introduced to the story in the final quarter of the drama, they were given lines which indicated a very deep awareness of the mother's character, as if they had been very much closer than they were and for for very much longer. It was not credible that this person could know so much about the mother in such a brief and fleeting interaction as theirs is described in the drama.

Nevertheless, 8.5/10 is a very good score and it reflects that with the above exception, the drama really painted the relationships between the characters deftly with skill and a light touch. It's that light touch, that hint of subtlety, which really distinguishes J doramas from K dramas. That and the ability to tell a complete story in ten 50 minute episodes, proving that "less is more". I highly recommend this very, very satisfactory family love story.