“Asura no Gotoku” (ASURA)
What is this drama about?
One winter day, the four adult Takezawa sisters find out that their father is cheating on their mother and that there may be a child from this relationship. Tsunako (an ikebana teacher and widow), Makiko (a housewife with two children), Takiko (a librarian) and the youngest Sakiko (a waitress) try to keep it a secret from their aging mother at all costs.
It was a slice-of-life story with betrayal as the main character. The drama was based on a novel by Mukoda Kuniko. It was incredibly easy to watch thanks to the amazing family whose daily life and problems we were given a glimpse of here. The father’s problem begins to be a catalyst for the personal problems of each of the sisters. They all had very close relationships with each other (even the youngest ones, although stormy), they had support in each other and I think that this is due to their wise parents. Despite what the father did, it was clear that he had a good relationship with his daughters, full of respect.
his drama also perfectly shows the dynamics of the relationship between the individual sisters. It is clear that the two oldest sisters get along best with each other, they are friends and confidants of each other’s secrets. They were my favorite characters. The widow had a rather feminist approach to life, through which she went her own way, thinking about her needs (including physical ones). I think her scenes with the housewife are the best in the drama. When these two met, humor and optimism always emanated from the screen, even when they were facing various crises. In contrast, the younger sisters were constantly arguing, it was clear that they had been competing with each other since childhood. The difference in their characters and approach to life was huge, but when a situation of extreme crisis came, they could also count on each other.
The housewife’s husband and the detective showed that there are still decent men in this world. They both fit in perfectly with this female family, they were extremely helpful, understanding and supportive.
The drama wonderfully recreated the 70s of the 20th century in Japan. I admired the old traditional house of the sisters’ parents, the classic furniture, accessories, beautiful ceramic dishes and great clothes (including traditional kimonos). This is a feast for lovers of Japanese culture but also for people who appreciate the beautiful setting of dramas.
These 7 episodes were the perfect length for this story. Everything was in the right proportions. If someone likes a real-life story about women and family, they should definitely see it. I liked everything in this drama, although I missed more information about the father and his mistress. Was it a classic physical betrayal, or did he just like spending time with them, how did this relationship even happen? That’s all I missed.
The drama is available on Netflix.
