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Crazy Love

The Japanese drama series In Time with You is probably the best low-key, slow-burn romance I've ever watched, and possibly the most infuriating. There were several times as the storyline progressed that I became so absorbed by the craziness and poor choices of the characters that I actually yelled at my laptop. That said, this series had one of the most satisfying wrap-ups of all time, I think, which made up for all my frustration.

Since high school Yo Mitarai (Rika Adachi) and Ren Ishida (Jin Shirasu) have been best friends -- the real deal, too, as they confide everything in each other, laugh and enjoy themselves like pals in every way, and otherwise support each other's ambitions and dreams. Long-term, genuine male/female friendships are rare in Asian cultures, but Yo and Ren make it work.

In the present Yo works as a section chief at a luxury shoe brand (she has a thing for shoes, too) while Ren is a rising star at a property management company. They seem very happy with their lives and their friendship. As Yo turns 29 and is still unmarried, however, she freaks out a little, which leads to her making a bet with Ren. Whoever gets married first will get a very nice cash wedding gift from the other friend. What she doesn't realize is that Ren has secretly been in love with her since high school. Things only get worse when a conniving temp at Ren's workplace decides she wants to marry him, and then Yo's heartbreaker ex shows up to try to make ammends for the terrible things he did to her and get her back.

If it wasn't for the friendship between Yo and Ren I probably wouldn't have finished watching this drama, as Conniving Temp annoyed me terribly, and Heartbreaker Ex was beyond manipulative and patronizing. Both Ren and Yo also seemed incapable of resisting their traps (Yo especially -- how could such a smart woman be so blind?) Yet I realized both main characters were handling too much (emotionally speaking), so I hung in. It was worth it, too, as the resolution of the drama is realistic, wildly romantic, and wonderfully touching. Jin Shirasu just became my new favorite Japanese actor as well. :) Available to watch on Viki.com.

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