Ep 10 (Final) O.A. 18 June 05
Ratings: 13.3%
As a result of his real identity being revealed, the islanders treat Takahara (Takenouchi Yutaka) coldly with the exception of few. Jie comes to Yuzo and asks the latter to get Takahara to leave on his own accord. Ruri overhears this and gets angry at them for treating Takahara this way,
Ruri's mother, Nao comes to Hatomijima and asks to take Ruri back to Tokyo. Ruri feels that Nao is just doing this at whim since she deserted Ruri when she remarried and runs out of the house.
Ruri meets Takahara and he remarks that it will be good to return to somewhere which you really belong to. At the same time, Sanae-sensei is getting worried over how to set up the junior high school for Ruri and Izumi while Nao senses that Ruri and Yuzo are looking more like a family to her.
Ruri and Nao go on a walk and Nao remarks that Yuzo and Ruri are so close while her distance with Ruri is widening. However, when Ruri overhears Yuzo discussing with Megumi on whether he can still work for another few more years to bring up Ruri, she ponders whether her presence would be a burden to them. Ruri goes to Sanae and asks whether there is any hope of opening a junior high school on Hatomijima. Although Sanae tries to look positive, Ruri realises that the possibility is low due to a lack of students.
When Nao prepares to leave Hatomijima, Ruri rushes to the pier and rides the boat with her. At the same time, the islanders find out that Ruri had left the island with Nao and are waiting for her to return since she did not say goodbye to Yuzo and the rest. Ruri finally returns in the evening and apologizes for being unable to get the authorities to change their minds. Actually, Ruri had went to the ministry of education in Ishigaki to ask for the junior high school to be opened and wasn't going to return to Tokyo with Nao.
Takahara is leaving Hatomijima and everyone comes to see him off. He is touched by their concern and promises to be back again.
In March, Nao calls Ruri and tells her that there was an article on Hatomijima. The principal of the orphanage where Ruri used to be introduced a number of students to go there thus the junior high school can be opened.
Ruri makes it to the junior high school and to her surprise, Sanae who was supposed to be posted elsewhere, ends up teaching at Hatomi Junior High school. At the same time, Takahara becomes a hairstylist at a seaside salon and is reading Ruri's letter happily...
This is the first drama which finished this season. Well, it's an all ends well finale to the story although I thought that the twist about them being able to open the junior high school was quite... unconvincing. Trust them to come up with that just before the academic year ended in March...
Other than that, I thought that this drama was a refreshing change from the selection we have this season. It may seem plain, slow and boring just like Yasashii Jikan last season but human dramas tend to focus more on human interaction than making the plot interesting with lots of twists. And one common trait between the two would be the beautiful scenery.
However, some lacking aspects would be:
-The Takahara/Kawashima thread could have been further explored. It seems like everything ended so quickly. The suspense built up over so many episodes and the explanation just took less than 1 episode. Takenouchi Yutaka's airtime is so little and he rarely speaks. What a waste!
-The overly "perfect" ending. Of course, making Ruri leave the island serves no purpose since the title is Ruri no Shima but the junior high school issue just seems to make reality so "unrealistic". Imagine the trouble they took to set up the junior high school and in the end, everything gets done just because of an article.
Will assess how this drama ranks among the others which I've watched this season when everything finishes.
Thank you for reading the reviews so far and hope that you will enjoy the new season drama reviews too! Do post here if you have any comments on the drama!
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