Drama Review- 101st marriage proposal

This is a very old drama released in 1991. It had very high vieweship ratings (around 36%) and became a defining japanese drama. The theme song is 'Say Yes' by Change and Aska which became one of the best selling singles in japanese music history. This song fits the theme of the drama very well and is a great song that is worth buying. It became the best selling single for Chage and Aska.

The story is about a man called Hoshino san (Takeda Tetsuya) a supervisor for a construction company who has not got a promotion for twenty years. He lives with his brother. His love luck is as bad as it can get. He has gone through 99 omiai or arranged dates with the intention of marriage but has been rejected everytime. His confidence is not existant and he gives up too easily. He meets Kaoru Yabuki, cellist at his 100th omiai and knows that it would fail. She is beautiful and graceful and cannot forget her dead fiance. However, when he tells her of his terrible luck, she encourages him to keep going and never give up. He mistakes it for love but she rejects him over the phone the next day. However, he doesn't give up and keeps pursuing her to the end. She finally agrees for marriage but breaks the engagement on seeing someone who looks like her dead fiance. Still, he keeps going and in the end manages to capture her heart. The last scene is great! He ends up losing his bonus, promotion and job all for Kaoru but she marries him in the end as a jobless man who failed in law entrance.

I will start with the pros as usual. The story was good. I loved the second episode when he loses money in horse racing for Kaoru. It was touching. All the love scenes in the drama were great. It was very touching and emotional and felt like true love. The last scene was excellent and gave a meaning to this drama. However, when they return to normal life, it seems like a dream. It is not sustained and doesn't influence their life.

Hoshino's brother and Karou's sister could make a good couple but did not fall in love. Fujii san was just a test for their love.
Hoshino san's character is good as he is selfless and considerate. Karou seems to be fluctuating always and she cries for almost everything which seems rather absurd. She is also a little selfish. Naoto was bad in the beginning and became good. His role was done well. Momoko san is the cupid who always tells Hoshino to pursue Kaoru.

I like how Hoshino sacrifices everything for the sake of love and never gives up. From his side, the love seems true. But Kaoru takes a long time to make up her mind but in the end, leads to an unforgettable ending. I don't want to spoil the fun by giving a description of the ending.


The theme 'Say Yes' is the saving grace of this drama. Whenever this songs plays, the moment suddenly becomes special. It plays during all the touching scenes.

As for cons, the actress was terrible. She cried too much which is very irritating. She cries for things that are trivial. She looks blank sometimes too. The actor was nothing great but at least lived up to the role. The two were an unlikely pair. Their faces were not in the least similar. The side characters were better at acting than the main ones.
The characters were realistic and three dimensional. The story is easy to relate to. It maintains a good pace and keeps going well till the last episode. I didn't like episodes 7-10 but these are some important episodes in the course of the drama.

I watched Kekkon dekinai otoko, kurosagi, Abarenbo mama, Beach boys and this drama together and this one clearly had the best ending. TThe ending is what makes this one unforgettable and the others inferior. The ending is an examples of true love where the female lead marries a bankrupt male lead with no job prospects or great looks for love. The last scene was not a church or something grand. It looked like a poor, cheap wedding but that's what makes it unique and unforgettable.


Story- 4.4/5
Acting 4.1/5
Setting- 4/5
Script- 4.2/5
Overall- 4.1/5

Might be good for people who can't get married for a long time and even those who are married. Generally targeted at older audience even though it contains no adult content. It is an inspirational drama worth watching.

Pros

Story/ script
Ending
Theme song 'Say Yes'
Realistic and three dimensional characters

Cons

Inconsistency
Acting