Hiramasa, a shy computer engineer in his thirties hires Mikuri, a pretty young twenty-something with a master's degree in psychology to be his "wife." Mikuri jumps at the chance as she has struggled with her self-esteem after being let go from her temporary job. Hiramasa is just glad to have someone to do the cooking and cleaning. Their relationship brings Mikuri's hard-working 49 year old "spinster" aunt, Yuri, into the orbit of Hiramasa's thirtyish co-worker, the purposefully unromantic Kazami who become drinking buddies. While bringing these disparate individuals together, this series explores the themes of work, identity, age and gender roles in society. The narrative is punctuated by Mikuri's flights of fancy which cause her to interpret the events in her life as participation in news programs, Japanese game shows and sports events (and I think you have to be Japanese to fully appreciate these parts).
Despite having some very specific themes, the series never loses sight of these characters as people. The reserved Hiramasa slowly begins opening up to Mikuri's persistent attempts to get closer to him by slowly disclosing more and more about himself to her. One nice moment is when Mikuri gets depressed and shuts Hiramasa out and he uses Mikuri's methods to get HER to open up, knowing how she has helped him do the same. Another moment marks a turning point in Yuri and Kazami's relationship. Yuri has been distrustful of Kazami because he's so good-looking and one evening does something that hurts his feelings. His stunned reaction forces her to reevaluate and start treating him as a human being not a "hot guy." The series is full of funny, tender, human moments like these. It's probably the best "fake marriage" series I've seen.
Despite having some very specific themes, the series never loses sight of these characters as people. The reserved Hiramasa slowly begins opening up to Mikuri's persistent attempts to get closer to him by slowly disclosing more and more about himself to her. One nice moment is when Mikuri gets depressed and shuts Hiramasa out and he uses Mikuri's methods to get HER to open up, knowing how she has helped him do the same. Another moment marks a turning point in Yuri and Kazami's relationship. Yuri has been distrustful of Kazami because he's so good-looking and one evening does something that hurts his feelings. His stunned reaction forces her to reevaluate and start treating him as a human being not a "hot guy." The series is full of funny, tender, human moments like these. It's probably the best "fake marriage" series I've seen.