Title: Giver Taker / ギバーテイカー
Rating: 8.5 /10
Recommended for:
Those who like psychological suspense stories with a humanity theme and are fans of the cast especially Nakatani Miki, Kikuchi Fuuma and Ikeuchi Hiroyuki
Liked:
- The length of the drama was just right at 5 episodes so the pacing of the story was never draggy and had an adequate amount of tension balanced with the emotional scenes. As for the suspense element, it was never a question of who did it but rather why did he do what he did but I didn't think that it was much of an issue. While the story shuttled between the past i.e. 12 years ago and the present day, the transition between the timelines was smooth and provided some nice and subtle comparisons between the key characters for the viewers to observe and notice. For example, the colours of the clothes worn by Itsuki (Nakatani) when she was still a school teacher and leading a happy life were largely warm pastel tones while she was largely in black by the time she became a police detective and after her daughter was murdered. On the other hand, Ruoto's (Kikuchi) clothes back when he was a kid had comparatively brighter colours than when he returned as an adult and always wore white shirts - I assume that this is supposedly with reference to the assumption that his dirty past had been "washed away" after being locked up and undergoing psychiatric treatment for years.
- The acting from Nakatani, Kikuchi and Ikeuchi were simply fantastic. Although the current timeline showed Itsuki mired largely in angsty, distrusting and sad moods due to the tragedy, Nakatani was able to show the "before" stage so well that the contrast from having fallen from heaven to hell came across more convincingly. And her emotional struggle caused by her multiple identities as a police officer, a mother, former teacher and family of a crime victim was compelling to watch.
As for Kikuchi, he really gave me the shivers as Ruoto even when he was putting on an angelic face. To be honest, my image of Kikuchi is largely influenced by what I've seen in variety shows or on Yonino Channel so I've always wondered if I can take him seriously as an actor. If "Tonari no otoko yoku taberu" made me sit up and take notice of him as an actor for the first time, this is definitely his signature work which I suppose his fans wouldn't want to miss.
I haven't watched Ikeuchi in action for so many years so it was such a surprise to see how he managed to nail the role of Imai and exude so much masculine charm. I'm glad that the story didn't try to introduce a romantic angle between Imai and Itsuki and think that they really fit each other well as work partners. Would be nice to see Ikeuchi and Nakatani in action again.
Disliked:
- Despite the title, the "giver" part of the story was not so obvious compared to the "taker" aspect. Most of the episodes focused on Ruoto's murderous nature and it was quite late in the story before the "giver" element was described, albeit a bit in a light touch-and-go format. As such, it might have been better if there was a bit more time devoted to contrast between both elements of the title and make the theme of the drama more memorable as a result.
- The thing about stories like this where a psychopath like Ruoto is featured, there is always a "redeeming factor" or rather justification as to why he had turned out like this. I personally would have preferred Ruoto to be a more hardcore psychopath who was born like this rather than changing his character artificially due to external influences. And because the explanation came so late in the story, it felt like the development was shoved right into my face. I didn't really see the logic nor could accept how the story tried to change my opinion of Ruoto by making him look like a tragic baddie. One plausible reason for this late timing though could be to emphasize how Ruoto's mother's final action was simply too little and too late to help him change his fate.
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