Innocent Love - Dangermousie's kinks hit in 1...2...3...
I have just finished watching the first episode of Innocent Love, a jdrama starring Horikita Maki and Kitagawa Yujin as fated (and very screwed-up) lovers.
Our heroine Kanon lost both her parents in a Christmas fire when she was 13. On the bright side, she and her older brother survived. On a less bright side, her brother was convicted of murder-arson, even if Kanon believes he is innocent.
Seeing that Kanon's only options in her small hometown are getting fired from jobs when the employers find out truth about her background and visiting her imprisoned brother:
She decides to move elsewhere:
In the new city and her new job as a cleaning lady, Kanon has one hobby - being a peeping tom stalker - she takes pictures of happy people and tacks it on her wall of stalk. I am not sure if it's supposed to be disturbing, but it sure as hell is.
Then there is Junya, a sweet, self-effacing pianist. He apparently has a girlfriend to whom he is always hurrying home. Did I mention that his best (male) friend seems to have love that dare not speak its name for him? Either that or I am hallucinating.
Junya and Kanon first meet when she is cleaning his apartment (except for one room into which nobody is allowed to enter and which is locked. Da-da-dun!) and decides to engage in her hobby via some photo-stealing.
He is not particularly eager to fire her, though, and just wants to know why. When she explains to him that she loves pictures of smiles - happiness trapped forever, instead of yelling or getting her fired or whatever, he gets them to take a smiling picture together. Junya really is a lovely, sweetheart of a guy.
Things are looking up for Kanon - she has a job, she has a crush, and nobody knows her true identity. Execpt, this being a jdrama, her true identity comes out and she also gets framed for theft - she is fired. Desperately down, she hears a chorus from a church and is inexorably drawn. Who is playing church organ? It's Junya of course - he is sweet with children, kind to strangers, and he plays organ at church. We know doom is coming.
How could you not root for Kanon? He is nice, she is nice, this thing will be wrapped up in two episodes, right?
Not so fast.
First we have Secondary Girl. As a survivor of many a kdrama, I recognize crazy when I see it.
We have Junya's best friend (honestly, if he isn't in love with Junya, I'll eat my shoes).
We have Kanon's brother (who has not taken the news his little sister is in love very well - hmmmm)
And above all, we have Junya's own bluebeard chamber - the place for that mysterious beloved girlfriend of his.
Still, Kanon is set on him, and who can say no to Horikita Maki?
And we end on this:
Bring on ep 2!
Here is a lovely shippy MV:
Our heroine Kanon lost both her parents in a Christmas fire when she was 13. On the bright side, she and her older brother survived. On a less bright side, her brother was convicted of murder-arson, even if Kanon believes he is innocent.
Seeing that Kanon's only options in her small hometown are getting fired from jobs when the employers find out truth about her background and visiting her imprisoned brother:
She decides to move elsewhere:
In the new city and her new job as a cleaning lady, Kanon has one hobby - being a peeping tom stalker - she takes pictures of happy people and tacks it on her wall of stalk. I am not sure if it's supposed to be disturbing, but it sure as hell is.
Then there is Junya, a sweet, self-effacing pianist. He apparently has a girlfriend to whom he is always hurrying home. Did I mention that his best (male) friend seems to have love that dare not speak its name for him? Either that or I am hallucinating.
Junya and Kanon first meet when she is cleaning his apartment (except for one room into which nobody is allowed to enter and which is locked. Da-da-dun!) and decides to engage in her hobby via some photo-stealing.
He is not particularly eager to fire her, though, and just wants to know why. When she explains to him that she loves pictures of smiles - happiness trapped forever, instead of yelling or getting her fired or whatever, he gets them to take a smiling picture together. Junya really is a lovely, sweetheart of a guy.
Things are looking up for Kanon - she has a job, she has a crush, and nobody knows her true identity. Execpt, this being a jdrama, her true identity comes out and she also gets framed for theft - she is fired. Desperately down, she hears a chorus from a church and is inexorably drawn. Who is playing church organ? It's Junya of course - he is sweet with children, kind to strangers, and he plays organ at church. We know doom is coming.
How could you not root for Kanon? He is nice, she is nice, this thing will be wrapped up in two episodes, right?
Not so fast.
First we have Secondary Girl. As a survivor of many a kdrama, I recognize crazy when I see it.
We have Junya's best friend (honestly, if he isn't in love with Junya, I'll eat my shoes).
We have Kanon's brother (who has not taken the news his little sister is in love very well - hmmmm)
And above all, we have Junya's own bluebeard chamber - the place for that mysterious beloved girlfriend of his.
Still, Kanon is set on him, and who can say no to Horikita Maki?
And we end on this:
Bring on ep 2!
Here is a lovely shippy MV:
Click to view