Summer Nude

Summer Nude was such a feel-good, pleasant surprise. With the title, I could have expected any number of things, but in reality it was a story of youth and moving on and finding happiness. It's safe to say I was impressed.

Featuring a stellar cast, Summer Nude focuses around the lives of a group of friends who live in a seaside town. Specifically, that of Mikuriya Asahi, a photographer who was abandoned by his girlfriend three years ago and has never been able to move on. He happens to be hired at the wedding of fantastic chef Chiyohara Natsuki, and witnesses as her Husband runs after the ceremony. It's safe to say they don't have a fantastic first meeting. When he discovers the local restaurant won't be opened for the summer, though, Asahi decides to bring Natsuki to the town for the summer to run it. Although she's initially reluctant, she agress and becomes close with him and his friends, including Taniyama Hanae, a girl who has loved Asahi for ten years. But summer will eventually have to come to an end, and when it does these young adults will need to grow up and take steps into the real world.

The best thing about this drama was that all I expected was a fluffy romance, but what I got was far more meaningful. The story initially centered around Asahi and his struggles alone, but once he was free of his pain the attention expanded to the other characters. They all had their own woes about the future, about living town and persuing their dreams, and it made them all feel that much more real. Whilst the romance was adorable, I was happier to have a story about people trying to find their way in the world. It's easy to see why Yamashita Tomohisa and Karina chose this project.

  I thought his was quite an odd choice for Yamashita, though, honestly. Not that I mind - Yamashita really got to show off his tears here. He usually chooses all the best things - Buzzer Beat was phenominal, From Five to Nine was laugh-out-loud crazy - but in comparison, Summer Nude just seems a little off-beat. I was a little sad that we didn't get much of Yamashita's unique brand of comedy, because Asahi was a little bland and lacked the funny quirks most of his other characters have. Karina has always chosen slightly unconventional projects like Misaki Number One!! and Love Shuffle so the more grounded Summer Nude seemed a little odd for her too, but I really liked their pairing. 

  The one thing I didn't like was that all the conflict was never resolved in a satsifying way, but nevertheless Summer Nude proved to be a fairly good watch overall. If just for the fantastic actors, I would recommend this.