We Married as a Job

Enjoyed this simple, unpretentious (inner joke!) comedy more than I thought I would.

All the actors did a wonderful job - well done, team!

The plot is straightforward and fun. Nothing unexpected would happen here, you know exactly what to expect. A few nice side-stories add variety.

I don't really have any criticism to offer, the show sets the expectations clearly and delivers on them. I loved that it doesn't take itself seriously and has some funny day-dreaming sequences.

The only thing is, it's "very Japanese" in terms of actors play style. A bit more exaggerated in intonations and gestures. I don't mind this, but to some audiences this may seem "artificial."

It also helps that the clear Japanese they speak helps keep my language skills up! Picked up a few fun phrases from the dialogues for my own use :)

Called "Full Time Wife Escapist" on Netflix, this is a cute and definitely innocent love story about a real geeky guy, who is so geeky he would never be able to even want nor find a wife and a girl who has a master's degree but can't find employment other than a housewife that has been contracted for house chores - a scheme she concocted and convinced the geeky guy to take. A cute comedy especially in the beginning when his co-workers at first are suspecting that there is something fishy when he puts his "wife" on the work insurance policy but no one has ever met her. They decide to go over to his house because they suspect it is a meta verse wife as he is so geeky there is no way it could be a real woman. They also suspect maybe he is gay. They snoop and find he has a twin bed which only gives them more suspicions. All in all, an innocent romance that is a Japanese drama with a bit of humor.

This movie is a satire of a phenomenon that occurs in Japanese culture. Like most Asian shows, it is based on a Manga story. Yes, he is a dweeb and you have to accept that as part of the writing. Usually male leads in these shows are model good-looking. However, in this one, you are getting a kind of Jerry Lewis. The characters in the show are all colorful. The satire is played up well. I found it to be very entertaining and the cast dancing at the end of the episodes adds to the fun.

The lead is a big pop star in real life and just does a stupendous job in this role. The main song with the whole cast dancing at the end of each episode became a big hit for him. You can find the music video.

There is a sequel special that was done a few years after the series. Be sure to watch that as well.

The two leads met on this show and are married in real life.

It's unfortunate that some of the negative reviewers are not familiar enough with Japanese culture to know THAT THIS IS A SATIRE.

It starts out with the female lead having just finished graduate studies and finding it difficult to land a job. After being let go from a previous employment her father gets her a job cleaning the male leads apartment. When her parents decide to move away she convinces the man to have a contractual marriage so that she can stay there as she did not want to move with her parents. He is very shy and closed off but she manages to get him to open up little by little. He became this way due to his past during his childhood. They eventually have a child and he starts to fall in love with her. She was already in love with him but was ready to give up when he wouldn't open up. Eventually he did. They rode out the pandemic together and in the end he tells her that he wants another child to correct his mistakes from when his first child was born. This is a must watch. At the end of each episode the female lead and the others do their dancing. She's sexy when she dances also the actress that plays her aunt. That was my favorite the ending of each episode. Eventually the male and female lead got married in real life. Now that's a happy ending.

As a drama, it covers the basic premise of romance developments, while also discussing more pairs and several topics that pertain to Japanese people. Specifically "de facto marriage" relationship (living together but not actually married), same-gender relationships, and other more general subjects. But the core is the main couple, and the evolution of their complicated arrangement.

I actually quite enjoyed it, but mostly because the drama revolves more around the character of "Mikuri". A very cute and approachable young lady, with a logical approach to things, while still being emotionally pushy. Certainly a journey to get to know her, and one I'm glad I went through. Aragaki-san is one of my favorite actresses , and is beyond delightful for her to do such a role! Mikuri's side of the family is just as appealing.

Gen Hoshino is definitely a talented singer and does well in his role as the cherry-boy, but his character is far from likeable a lot of the time. But, is this contrast that allowed the character of Mikuri to develop the way it does. Some other characters are well defined, but equally awkward. Still, everyone delivers with ample charisma and help build a world you'd be happy to be a part of.

Series has good production and very energetic segments that contrast well with the seriousness at times. And while not completely predictable, it rarely goes anywhere unexpected. But it keeps a joyful atmosphere and I laughed quite a bit. Would definitely recommend, because it is well written.. and the execution couldn't be better!! There's a movie, for anyone interested.. one that is even more serious still, and deals with the Pandemic and it's problems. As the series itself, all interesting content, educational and a different point of view to consider.