Truthful, serious, and full of kids. But is it enjoyable?

Standard Description

Saito Masako is a mother of one child. Unafraid to speak her mind, she constantly confronts people who violate proper manners and other rules of society.

Our Description

Although Saito may have her name in the title, she really is not the main focus. The series really focuses on the effect that Saito ends up having on the people of this small community. We come into the story through the point of view of Mano, a happy although timid housewife. She is goofy and mostly in a cheery mood which is a almost direct parallel to Saito, who is mostly serious. Through out the course of the series we are introduced to different families and how Saito’s matter-of-fact always-do-good attitude can affect them for better or worse. There is a big focus on this do good motif, but there also is a huge focus on family and what that truly means to a person. The series does bounce around from family to family but it always comes back to how Saito shows people that you cannot simple hide from your problems, which is a fear all cultures have. She is never scared and her strength never wavers. By the end of the show you know where this great strength comes from and it makes perfect sense.

This may not be the most original drama on TV but it definitely is one of the most truthful. At times it can be cheesy but more often than not this series manages to tug at the heart strings and brings up personal and communal issues that you may or may not have been to scared to face yourself.

5/5 Booyas