Being the last drama which Ogata Ken appeared in, it is natural for viewers to pay more attention to him. And the first impression I had upon seeing him in the first scene was how thin he had become. His cheeks had become rather sunken and his frame seemed much smaller than before. However, it was hard to see that he was unwell all this while since he didn't appear pale at all. Maybe it was the makeup, I guess. He still appeared as the kind old man like many of his previous dramas so it's still hard to accept that he will no longer appear in any drama or movie. Coming to the story, as per previous Kuramoto Sou's stories (I've watched Yasashii Jikan and Haikei, Chichiue-sama), nostalgia and warmth rule the day. The story is set in Furano which unlike big cities, have a strong nostalgic feel. It's as if everyone knows everyone and they are familiar with one another like family members. The warmth conveyed is usually absent from other dramas. This is probably why Kuramoto's dramas are a hit because the enviroment depicted is the exact opposite of the real world where people tend to keep their distance from others but still yearn for the feeling of warmth when it comes to interpersonal relationships.
It appears that something happened 6 years ago which led to Sadami (Nakai Kiichi) leaving Furano and promising his father Sadazo (Ogata Ken) that he will never set foot on his hometown again. However, Sadami may appear disinterested in the family he left behind but it seems that he does yearn to see them especially when he looks at Rui's (Kuroki Meisa) picture in the magazine. Now that he is down with cancer, his longing to be with his family will spur him to go back to Furano again as shown in the 2nd episode.
On the other hand, Rui may seem indifferent to the absence of her father in her life but the fact that she is dating a married man seems to suggest that this relationship is partly due to Sadami's departure. When this relationship comes out into the open, this will be a big issue of contention between her and Sadami. For Gaku, due to the fact that he has the intellect level of 8 years old, I doubt he even remembered much of Sadami. It is not even clear whether he is aware of the fact that he has a father. As for Sadazo, he may be hoping to see his son again despite the fact that he says otherwise.
I have a feeling that Sadazo's relationship with Sadami is quite similar to that shown in Yasashii Jikan. In the latter drama, the son doesn't dare to see the father because he indirectly caused his mother's death while the father is not sure how to interact with his son. It could be similar in the sense that Sadami's wife's death (i.e. Saeko) was the trigger of this breakdown in their relationship and why Sadami had to leave Furano. We will only know this answer in time to come.
For this debut episode, the production quality is pretty high considering the fact that they went to the trouble of creating a garden 2 years back and took close to 6 months for the filming. The pace wasn't as slow as in Yasashii Jikan and should keep viewers interested for some time. We'll see if interest is sustained in the 2nd episode's rating.
My only grouse is the theme song. The melody suits the "tinge of sadness" feel of the drama BUT I can hardly make out what Hirahara Ayaka is singing. I think she's singing English yet somehow they don't really mean anything. I've got to check out the lyrics first before deciding whether this is really a goner. Her PV for this song is bland too...it could have been better if scenes from Kaze no Garden were included. Her debut performance as an actress was OK though.
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