Review: Summer Snow
A story of a diver and a girl who could never be part of his world.
He wanted to share his love of the sea with her. Her heart wouldn't let her go with him. Was life enough to come between their love? 7/10
Summary
Shinoda Natsuo is the older brother of his younger sister Chika, and brother Jun. Their parents passed away, leaving Natsuo with the responsibility of bringing up Chika and Jun, as well as maintaining the family bike shop. His concern for his siblings goes beyond a normal brother’s love, and reflects Natsuo’s maturity and acceptance of his position as the new head of his family. His only joy in life, besides his siblings, is his diving—scuba diving amongst the corals and fish of the sea seems to take his troubles away. Enter Katase Yuki, a young lady with a terrible heart condition that makes her rethink every decision she makes. Her weak heart has caused her to be a liability at her work, and makes it difficult to make friends, friends who’d understand her limitations. When she and Natsuo meet, it starts of a strange romance, with him compensating for her weakness, and her trying to keep up with his naturally vibrant personality.
Review
When I first watched Summer Snow, it was a fun-filled afternoon on a lazy weekend, and this Japanese series definitely reflected that mood at first. The innocent fun between Natsuo (played by Domoto Tsuyoshi) and his family makes for a delightful, light-hearted drama on life. (Many Japanese dramas have followed a similar suit: casting a small number of characters, and having mini-stories about them, portraying their character, and certain issues in their past that affect their decision-making.) This is wonderfully contrasted with Yuki's relationship with her father, a stern police chief, whose primary concern is the safety of his daughter. Kadono Takuso’s performance as the concerned father is absolutely fabulous—a reserved, stern-faced father, with obvious love for his girl (Hirosue Ryoko), who only reacts when she’s in danger. The acting in the Shinoda family is also fantastic, particularly Oguri Shun, playing the role of the younger brother Jun. His character has a voice defect, with causes him to speak with a slur, and Shun pulls it off perfectly.
The plot was interestingly spaced out, with less focus on the main love item, Natsuo and Yuki, until later in the series. The side stories were effective in establishing the viewer’s affection for Natsuo, however, which sets the tone well for the climax of the series. Without spoiling the end of the drama, the series ends on a bitter-sweet note, a welcome change that breaks from the traditional “to be continued” dramas, or the “happily ever after’s”. The amount of time and character development devoted to the side-plots was slightly overpowering, but it ended on a high note, which makes up for a lot of the problems in the plot. The soundtrack, for the most part, played to the mood very well. On a whole, this is a series well worth watching, with quality acting in a story that’s worth shedding a few laughs and tears over.
