Thoughts about "Nichiyou no yoru gurai wa..." Ep 1 (spoiler alert!)

This turned out to hit closer to home than expected.

I was already prepared for this to be an emotional ride considering that the three lead characters each had their life struggles and the story was going to show how their newfound friendship is going to help provide a little emotional boost to make things slightly easier for themselves. However, diving straight into their issues in an as-a-matter-of-fact manner meant that there was no gradual transition or soft landing into the heavy parts of this story so it might be a bit uncomfortable for some viewers.

Of the three, Sachi's story (Seino Nana) was described in greater detail in this first episode. The key facts known so far are:

* Sachi's mother Kuniko (Wakui Emi) was still fine up to the point Sachi was in high school so that means the accident which caused Kuniko to be wheelchair-bound took place sometime between her high school days and the time she became an adult.

* Sachi feels guilty every time she experiences a brief moment of joy because she feels like she doesn't deserve to feel happy. Which means that she could have been the reason why Kuniko became wheelchair-bound so she feels obligated to work herself to the max so as to take care of her mother. 

* Despite her frustration at Kuniko trying so hard to liven things up and claim that she can do things on her own although there are limitations, Sachi uses silence to respond to the incessant "nagging" from Kuniko instead of flaring up with angry words. This ignoring gets on Kuniko's nerves since she has no one to talk to due to being confined at home all day due to her condition. Besides Sachi's mental fatigue at doing everything on her own and having to hear Kuniko rattle on from the time she gets home, the lack of energy from working as much as she can must have taken a toll on Sachi physically. I get it because I don't talk too when I'm exhausted.

* Both mother and daughter know that they are stuck in a loop of never-ending frustration towards their situation and with each other but the good thing is, they both realise that they have to let off steam from time to time. That's better than letting the anger pent up and explode in a big way where things go out of control.

The part about them buying the most expensive ice cream in the convenience store - it's probably more than the most expensive ice cream tasting fantastic. Honestly speaking, they can't be that financially well-off given Sachi's single income but an once-in-a-while indulgence helps them to get out of that routine which frustrates them on a daily basis. The other significance in this action is probably for Kuniko to get out of their small apartment which is like a prison for her. That is why Sachi has to go through the trouble of bringing Kuniko along with her to the convenience store instead of just buying the expensive ice cream for them to eat at home.

As for Shoko (Kishii Yukino), what is known for now is that she's living on her own and seems to be estranged from her family for some reason. Under her loud and cheerful demeanour, there seems to be a deep sense of sadness and craving for company. Compared to Sachi or Wakaba (Nukumi Meru) who seem to be stuck in a rut due to their circumstances, Shoko looks as if she is carefree and enjoys the freedom of being on her own but the truth should be far from that.

Wakaba's situation is somewhat like Sachi but the only difference is that she doesn't have caregiving duties to juggle since her grandmother Fujiko seems healthy and well. However, Wakaba is stuck in the countryside and a factory where she doesn't enjoy working at and doesn't see any way for her to break out of this situation. It looks like Wakaba used to be in a rich family but something probably happened for her and Fujiko to have to work in low-paying jobs and rent a house. And the deep seething resentment towards Wakaba's mother (Yada Akiko) probably has something to do with their predicament.

As such, after having been subjected to such "heavy material" for about half of this episode, the bus trip turned out to be a total game changer in showcasing how the three women develop a friendship quickly and seem to be able to empathise with one another. However, it's more of like an unspoken kind of mutual understanding between them since they did not go into details on what is difficult in their respective lives. And what was unexpected was how they did not actually "continue" their friendship by choosing not to exchange contact details and keep the bus trip as a pleasant memory that they could reminisce from time to time. Of course, they will reconnect very soon again in the next episode or else the story cannot continue.

Although there are two guys introduced at this stage i.e. Ichikawa Mine (Okayama Amane), their guide for the bus trip and Sumida Kenta (Kawamura Kazuma), who will be paired up with them as love interests is still unknown. However, I have a feeling that Shoko will have the hots for Kenta because of her obsession with the name "Kenta" - the reason was explained in this episode. Sachi looks likely to fall for Kenta because of the "shining future" that he probably symbolises (reference to the shop which he owns) but Mine looks like he will be pining for Sachi at some point in time or at least take an interest in her life because of his "obasan" nosey-parker personality. 

In summary, I thought that this drama started off really well in showing the tough things we have to deal with in real life through the three main characters. There were some points when I felt so choked up and could really empathise or identify with the deep-seated frustration of the characters. Then again, it's not all gloom and doom since there are highlights and things to look forward amid the deep pain and sorrow. As such, this looks like a pretty good booster to get everyone in a better mood on Sunday night before starting a new week of tackling the challenges we all face in our lives as the title suggests.