A perfectionist from the upper class, Chiaki (above right), meets his complete opposite in Nodame (above left), a disorganized but gifted middle-class musician, setting the stage for an unlikely dynamic.
As late to the game I am in watching this award winning mini drama series (11 episodes in total) – which was a 2006 live adaptation of the manga series by the same name – I can nonetheless safely conclude and console myself that my tardiness is all but negligible for it is none other than a classic case of “better late than never” and also – rather surprisingly – an unexpected occurrence of “I never would have thought”…
You see, my initial impressions of the drama series – particularly the first two episodes – was not largely positive. Apart from a recognisable and handsome face in Hiroshi Tamaki, the rest of the characters – Masumi, Mine, Eto, Stresemann, and – yes even – Megumi (played brilliantly by Juri Ueno) – was for a lack of a better term, weird, in hairstyles (Mine’s ostentatious blond hair, Nodame’s bed hair, Masumi’s afro?!), fashion style (outlandish colour configurations), accessories (what’s up with Eto sensei’s paper fan?!), and not to mention, their over-the-top mannerisms [and to be fair, also Chiaki’s (Hiroshi’s) awkward and (in all honesty) amateurish conducting which is a far-cry from how talented conductors conduct (I trained and was once an aspiring conductor and was fortunate enough to be exposed to good conducting)]. This, coupled with the old-fashioned grainy display of old film technology most certainly did not do any favours to the show’s draw especially in this Netflix generation of razor sharp images.
But as it was, I kept going, perhaps due to the environ of the plot which was based in a music college and its characters being student musicians with the addition of a rather frequent dose of classical music snippets peppered throughout the episodes – all these appealing to a musician and classical music lover – and so I watched on..
I knew not exactly when but strangely as I progressed in the series, I begun to appreciate and even found myself being tickled by the characters’ over-the-top mannerisms and slap stick style. Also, what I found strange and off-putting in most of the characters (except Chiaki whom I thought was the most “normal”), I slowly loved (?!)…
In retrospect, was it because of the skilful character development, gradually revealing their vulnerabilities, backstories and “soul”- expressed in acts of kindness and loyalty? Or their erratic-ness, childlike passion, and unabashed authenticity that artists often display and labelled as “crazy” and “weird” for it, which I actually identify and bear affinity with? Or could it be the ongoing ambivalence in the nature of the relationship between the protagonists, Chiaki and Nodame [which only later (the last episode) revealed] that left me, the viewer, in a state of guess work as to whether the odd couple would be together or not, other than it being the case of unrequited love (on poor Nodame’s part)? Yes, I would say that all of the above contributed in somehow striking a chord in me and pulling my heartstrings…
And consider this – related to the nature of beauty: can something or someone who might not be at face value attractive grow on the beholder and later become a subject of endearment as the other being is gradually revealed petal by petal leading to its full radiant bloom (beauty really, which, as St Thomas would define, the intersection of inner essence and outer radiance)? Well, it was certainly so in my relationship with the drama, and you could say, Chiaki too, with Nodame (?).
Not to be a spoiler to those who have yet to watch it, but I must say that the drama concludes on a crescendo, on a “high” (the choice of the exuberant fourth movement of Beethoven’s Symphony 7 in the show’s conclusion is wholly fitting in my view) with both protagonists and other supporting characters finding renewed vigour and clarity on their life’s journey after graduation from the music college.
Could they have landed themselves in such fortuitous unexpected states if not for their encounters with each other, dictating circumstances, and opportunities opening up? Absolutely not, but is it just mere “good luck” or – on the other extreme end – events caused by each individual’s sheer act of willpower and smarts? The latter, in my opinion delusional, and the former meaningless. So perhaps is it after all the mighty sweep of destiny divine working alongside (albeit paradoxically) our loves, passions, desires, and active choices that determine our future?
厳しくされてもされなくても、ダメになる奴はダメになるし、プロのピアニストになろうと思ってられるものじゃない。そういう世界ですから、成功するかどうかなんてわからない。俺もあいつも。でも、僕はあいつのピアノがすごく好きなんですよ。
Even if you’re treated strictly — or not — the ones who fail will fail anyway. You can’t become a pro just because you want to. That’s the reality of this world. We can’t know for sure that we will succeed. Neither me nor her (Nodame). But, I love her piano. A lot.
– Chiaki in Episode 11
Alas, will destiny bring them together? Watch to find out.
*Featured Image Source: Netflix
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