Suna no Tou - Shiri Sugita Rinjin (2016)

What I can definetely say is that the drama is not lacking in suspense. It really makes you keep clicking “next episode”. The air around this drama is heavy. Dark and heavy. It is heart-warming and emotional, but that usually comes in between really dramatic scenes. It’s an emotional rollercoaster. Pretty much all of the characters feel like they’re on the edge all the time. It makes you feel really sorry for everyone. The Japanese are as always, really good at making dramatic dramas, if you know what I mean :)

I give the story a 10/10. The story was well-made, full of twists, it constantly gives off the feeling that you have a clue of what’s going on, but then you realise it’s more complicated than what you thought or even exactly the opposite. There are a few slower paced episodes, around the episodes 3-4-5, when you kinda think “I already figured everything that’s going on, so what are you going to fill the next 5-6-7 episodes with?!” Or at least that’s what I thought, but my advice is don’t drop it, they’re just tricking you, after episode 5 the plot pretty much goes “boom”.

The take on the “family” subject is very Japanese-like. I see that many people find the mother character a bit pushover. It certainly is so for us, but unfortunately, that’s the Japanese society for you. And I think this type of dramas are trying to do exactly that: raise awareness of the public. Yes, in Japan the education of the kids is left almost entirely to the mother, and yes, if anything goes wrong with the kids, she is to blame. And yes, she is supposed to handle all the family affairs by herself, because the husband is the one providing for the family, and he thinks he’s entitled to doing nothing else but that, going to work and providing. You will become really frustrated with the relationship husband-wife throughout the series, and you will be surprised how much the wife can actually take without saying a single word. You would probably make your husband sleep on the doormat if he treated you that way, but for the Japanese, it’s totally understandable and acceptable. The wife is to sacrifice herself for the well-being of her kids and home. So instead of thinking how push-over the character of the mother is, take it as a cultural lesson. Personally I’ve become greatful I was born in a different part of the planet ? and also really sad while watching the drama that there are still places in this world where women are being forced by society to go through so much. I do love Japan, but I don’t think I could live in their society. By the end of the drama the Japanese are all like “Yes, you can see some developpment in her character” and you’re like “No, Japan...you don’t get it..she shouldn’t have waited 10 whole episodes to finally open her mouth...She should have punched everyone who deserved it in the face from the very first episode!”

The music was great. I give that a 10/10. They have creepy music, emotional music, suspence music. I still listen to the soundtrack even after I finished the drama, it sticks to you. The music is really fitting every scene and it sets up the mood perfectly. You know something bad is about to happen when the creepy tune kicks in :)

Rewatch value...I would give it a 8/10. I’m not really a rewatcher, I would need at least 5 years to pass before I can rewatch something, but I would definetely rewatch this drama after 5 years, haha. It’s on the rewatchable side.

I started watching this drama because of Kanno Miho-san, I really like her as an actor. I think she did a great job in portraying the mother. The fact that her character gets you, frustrates you, angers you sometimes, is proof that she actually did justice to her character. I don’t know most of the other actors but they did a good job as well. Not amazing, but good. So I would give the acting an overall 8/10.

All in all, I give this drama a 9 because it really got me. I finished it in two days. It was getting so emotional and heavy with each episode but it had me clicking the Next Episode button every time, hoping to eventually get to that one typically Japanese scene, when after the darkest dark, the characters can finally see the sky clearing and the nice emotional music starts playing in the background. Not a clear blue sky though, just a glimpse of sunshine coming through the clouds, to keep it realistic.

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I'm still shaking from the thrill I got from the last few episodes.

This was an amazing and emotional roller coaster ride! I got sucked in immediately with the first episode. The foundation was set and the suspense really crept in during the first few episodes. I can't write a review without spoiling it so these has mostly spoilers below this paragraph so be warned.

I love how the drama didn't shy away from presenting us the ultimate person who we should be suspicious of in the first episode. They clearly showed the creepy neighbor's disgusting actions to drive our female lead to isolation and despair. Yet, the drama series didn't lack in suspense. What I thought was a clear cut solution that the creepy neighbor was already the Hamelin culprit at the beginning forked into multiple paths and possibilities during the fourth episode and so on. The last few episodes took my breath away as everything is pieced together beautifully and emotionally. This was also made possible with credits to the amazing acting of ALL of the cast! Our female lead really stood out among the pack as you can't help but root for her and her character development until the end of the series was superb. I love her acting especially her sometimes funny facial expressions! Also kudos to the actress who played the creepy neighbor because she really made me hate her character and her acting was also great during the emotional scenes.

In a sense, there are multiple ways a mother shows her love to her children. There were some twisted ways of showing love in this drama but it still kept its track on the theme of mother hood and love. Although it was dark and twisty, typical of a Japanese drama, this was still a solid and a surprising 9.5/10 for me!

Arigatou, Suna no Tou team!

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