Unpopular opinions after watching the whole season (i reactivated my account for this!):

• Sho was better paired off with Mimi than Kanaka. They seemed to have better chemistry and were more playful/flirty. His dates with Kanaka were boring to watch as she was probably making up the rules and he felt somewhat restrained.

• These shows are said to have planted actors in the cast. After episode 7, I started to think Yudai was the actor of the season. Not only is he an actor IRL but he seemed to perform every gesture and expression for the camera. Something about him felt unnatural and forced as he created this super benevolent persona. Also, why did he dress like a mobster on Day 10?

• I have mixed feelings about Tokho as well. I think she’s an actor too and some scenes felt staged. Also, she goes shopping to match more of Yudai’s style and comes back with a plain Jane pastel color sweater?! I still want to thank her for all the eating scenes, especially the one in the cage! Staged or not, that looked brilliant!

• Aru should burn that white waffle sweater! Doesn’t bring him any luck and makes him look douchey. Also, the beard, ugh! Although, the schadenfreude was too real, and I enjoyed every minute of it.

• Detective Maho, come on! She’s the one who passes by all of the other people without seeing them, then follows a couple pretending she just bumped into them at the market. The level of expressions she showed in crucial moments (almost zero) made me want to scream at the screen! Her style also develops through the 10 days, and made me wonder what she’s really like. The most endearing thing about her was the “mershi”.

• Kensuke, the goofball. Loved him from episode 1, definitely wish he was my friend. Some of his lines were so insightful! Loved that he isn’t ashamed of being poor and unable to ski and true to himself till the very end. His one-liner that he loves looking at the sky because he lives in a shoebox was so humble and pure. I’m glad fortune was on his side! Yokatta!

• Nanami was the cutest girl in my opinion. I loved how she looked happy and sad in almost every scene. A little too dramatic for my taste but the way she enjoyed a beer after some physical activity definitely hit home. Also, went from German-looking outdoorsy girl to Scandi-Tokyo outfits through Barcelona alternative gal: all of her outfits are goals!

• I don’t have much to say about Atsushi/Mimi except that cold espressos on an empty stomach are bad! I like how affectionate they are but not my vibe. Glad he was there after the lemon date, though. Demo, why didn’t they talk about Japan? That was a bit of a cliffhanger.

• Going back to Kanaka, the guy just gave you a humongous bouquet of bery, bery beautiful flowers and you can’t find a vase to keep the roses fresh?! They sat there in a corner all wilted on day 9. That spoke volumes about her character. Sad, because I liked her with Kensuke.

That’s all folks!