Pandoraspace

The Ultimate Slob Girl:  Hotaru no Hikari (The Glow of Fireflies)

Hotaru no Hikari is a Japanese romantic comedy series that was broadcasted in 2007 by NTV.  Unlike Full House or other more popular dramas, which were widely discussed,  there is relatively little talk on Hotaru No Kikari. In fact, it was only when I accidentally stumbled upon it on the internet while reading about another Asian drama that I learned about it.

Surprisingly, I like Hotaru No Hikari because, to a certain extent (not the butt scratching part), I can relate to the lead female character, Hotaru.

Hotaru Amemiya works in an architectural (or interior design) firm. She is unattached and single. At work, she is neat in appearance and very efficient. Amemiya does not, however, go out with friend on a Friday night or after office hours. She would rather stay home, read her mangas and live the life of a slob.  As she lives alone, Amemiya rarely cleans her house. She eats junk food and drinks a lot of beer. At home, she only wears old baggy jogging pants and a t-shirt, ties her hair in a way that gives her a Samurai look and does not give hoot about her appearance. During weekends, she sleeps most of the time.

The house where Amemiya lives in is owned by an old couple who live abroad and allowed her to stay in their house for free. When the couples’ son who also happens to be Amemiya’s boss, Seiichi Takano, is divorced by his cheating wife, he decides to move back into his parents’ place and is surprised to discover that Amemiya lives in his parents’ place and is a slob.

Nevertheless, Takano and Amemiya agree to live together provided they do not tell anyone about their living arrangements. At first, Takano the neat freak and Amemiya the slob have a difficult time living together. So, they come up with a set of rules about their living arrangement. They eventually become accustomed to each other and develop a friendship. Being older than her, Takano encourages the shy Amemiya to express her feelings for an officemate of her who seems to like her.

Amemiya eventually starts dating her officemate and ends up living with him. Amemiya is, however, uncomfortable about the whole situation as she cannot tell her officemate-lover that she is a slob who lived with their boss and for some reason, she cannot be herself around him. Amemiya and her officemate lover break-up not because she is a slob but because the lover finds out that she lived with their boss. After, Amemiya starts living alone until she realizes that the only person she could be herself with is Takano. So, she goes back to his house to live with him.

Hotaru reminds me of me when I was living away from home during my college days. During weekends (when my mom was not at my back telling me to clean up my mess), I would just laze around in my pajamas the whole day and read. I would eat canned food and instant noodles.

After I watch Hotaru No Hikari, I immediately took a survey of how many of my girl friends could relate to Hotaru. Of course, all of the girls I asked could relate. And this mainly is why I like Hotaru No Hikari, the character of Hotaru is so real and unpretentious.

I also like it because the way the relationship of Hotaru and Takano develops from an uncomfortable acquaintance into love is gradual and very subtle. The story does not force the viewer to immediately accept them as a couple.

So, to all the slobby girls out there, this is a story for you.

This entry was posted on Thursday, February 26th, 2009 at 1:08 am and is filed under Pursuits and Pastimes. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.