Feb 23, 2015 9:21 AM
The Friendly Winter Reaction
Anime Relations:
Clannad: After Story, Usagi Drop
As a fan of heartwarming drama stories, I went into The Friendly Winter with high expectations. Turns out that not only were those expectations of mine met, they were exceeded by a fairly wide margin. It's a darn shame that this series isn't more popular, because it really deserves to be experienced by more people, given how genuine and profound it is in portraying a wide range of human emotion in its characters. When it comes to drama, one needs to be attached to the characters to feel any kind of sympathy for what happens to them. What makes characters likable, then? Well, there are several factors, but perhaps the most common reason to like a character for many of us, would be our attraction towards the character's personality. A distinctive, strong personality can make a character memorable, and in turn, it makes them affable. Not only does TFW deliver satisfying characters, that are both endearing and memorable, it also manages to create some incredibly well-thought-out drama involving those characters in a seamless manner. Let me explain why I consider TFW a huge hit.
The story revolves around a 19-year-old girl named Da-Jeong, who is physically stuck in a child's body, and a 17-year-old boy named Min-Seong, who is mentally handicapped with a child's intellect. So, we have two characters who are disabled for the rest of their lives, desperately trying to live their lives earnestly. Problem is, the society doesn't see them as "normal" people, and oftentimes they are looked down at for being different. At the beginning, Da-Jeong constantly feels anxious about revealing her real age, since it would get her many strange looks from outsiders, so she pretends to be a 9-year-old girl to protect herself from getting hurt; Min-Seong is extremely clingy around his mother, because he's not able to do things well by himself and he fears that he will be abandoned [again] if he continues to make trouble for her. The same could be said for Da-Jeong, as she was also once an abandoned child; her mother left her when she was a child, in order to live with another family. She lives with her father, who's a kindred spirit, but is hopeless at making money. And since she's stuck in a 9-year-old's body, Da-Jeong can't even go out to get a job to help her dad out, let alone make friends with anyone. Her life was pretty much miserable, until she met Min-Seong for the first time.
Their first encounter took place in a shopping mall. Min-Seong was crying from not being able to find his mother, and it was Da-Jeong who helped him locate his mother. From that moment on, the two of them would often hang out together. They can understand each others' pain better than anyone else, and they would cheer up each other when something bad happens. Da-Jeong, being the older sister, often takes care of Min-Seong and protects him from the bullies who take advantage of his kindness. Whereas for Min-Seong, he acts as the pivotal mental support for Da-Jeong, as he promised to never abandon her and always stay by her side no matter what. The two leads compensate for each others' shortcomings as they stick together through difficult times. When Da-Jeong is feeling dejected from spending her Christmas all alone (because her dad's busy with work), Min-Seong comes to visit her despite having to take the train to get to her place, and being the poor sap he is, it took him half a day to finally get on the right train and land on the right stop. Or how about the time when Min-Seong is accused of having attempted rape on a young girl, where a group of people are talking about how dangerous it is to let a mentally-handicapped person like that on the loose, to which Da-Jeong angrily rebukes the gossipers that such a thing can never happen and does her best to defend her friend from the false accusations. It's scenes like these, where the two characters genuinely wish the best for each other, that hit me the most, emotionally.
But wait, if you think Min-Seong and Da-Jeong are the only characters worth caring about in this story, then you're sadly mistaken, my friends. The side characters are all worth mentioning, as they contribute significantly to the story's success in conveying what I believe to be the main theme of TFW: Compassion. Remember Da-Jeong's mother? Well, it turns out that she isn't a coldhearted person, but rather a very compassionate mother who still yearns to see her daughter, and has never once forgotten about her over the years that they were separated. Da-Jeong, of course, hates her mom for leaving her when she was young, and vows to never meet her again in her life. But, thanks to the support of her family and friends, she eventually reconciles with her mother after learning of her true feelings for her. And then we have characters like Shiwoo and Min-Seo, who act as Da-Jeong's other mental supports. Shiwoo, serving as an older brother figure to Da-Jeong, constantly comes to her rescue whenever she's in trouble. Despite the fact that Da-Jeong has been keeping her real age a secret in order to get closer to him (she secretly has a crush on the guy), when she eventually spills the beans by telling him the truth, he benevolently accepts her for who she is, without a trace of contempt for her deceit. Min-Seo, being the new daughter of Da-Jeong's mother, learns of Da-Jeong's secret at an earlier point. Ever since she knew about the secret, Min-Seo has treated Da-Jeong with unconditional kindness, as if she were her real sister. It's through these kind, selfless characters that Da-Jeong eventually finds the courage to trust in others again.
Furthermore, TFW knows how to construct believable scenarios that make us feel for its characters. To us normal folks, venturing out into society is hardly a challenge, since we don't have distinguishable traits that make us stick out like sore thumbs. When it comes to the physically/mentally disabled people, though, even simple errands like buying certain stuff or going to certain places can prove to be a challenge. Take Da-Jeong, for example. She wants to procure makeup like any girls of her age would, but when she asks the clerk to give her the item, her request is brushed off as a joke, and she's told that children do not need makeup. I'm sure many of you can see how such a scenario can be hurtful to a person who's trying to live life normally. And Min-Seong has it even worse, for his innocent, childlike mind cannot discern when he's being taken advantage of by others, and oftentimes he would find himself in situations where he's completely misunderstood and scorned for doing a good deed. One time, he finds a girl whom he mistakenly believes to be lost, and so he tries to take her by the hand to find her mother. But when they finally meet the girl's parent, she immediately jumps to the wrong conclusion that he was a pervert and was trying to do bad things to her. To a normal person, he may have easily been able to clear away the misunderstanding with a proper explanation. Not Min-Seong. He's not quick enough on his wit to openly deny that accusation, and he gets branded as a molester by those near him. Having promised earlier to Da-Jeong that he will no longer cry, Min-Seong struggles to hold back his tears at such an unfair treatment. And I, too, couldn't help but stifle a tear or two. It goes to show that subtle drama can be just as effective as conveying emotion as utterly tragic drama, when done right.
To conclude my thoughts on TFW, I have enjoyed everything that this little story has to offer. Not only does it get the audience invested in its characters before putting them into difficult situations, situations that anyone with a human heart should feel sympathy or empathy for the characters, it also presents fundamental human themes such as parenthood, friendship, companionship, forgiveness, and most of all, compassion. This work would not have been so enjoyable for me had it been all about making its characters suffer. Underneath all the unfairness of the world, lies an optimistic worldview, bringing us the message that, no matter how difficult life is for an individual, that person should know that he's not alone in this world, because there's bound to be someone out there who cares for him. Sure, the world isn't always fair and there will be times when we'll get hurt, but as long as we cherish the people dear to us, we'll find our own happiness in the end. I implore everybody to give this short webtoon a try, especially if you want to experience a heartwarming story that also teaches valuable life lessons.
My Scores:
Story: 8/10
Character: 8/10
Enjoyment: 9/10
Significance: 8/10
Overall: 8.2/10
The story revolves around a 19-year-old girl named Da-Jeong, who is physically stuck in a child's body, and a 17-year-old boy named Min-Seong, who is mentally handicapped with a child's intellect. So, we have two characters who are disabled for the rest of their lives, desperately trying to live their lives earnestly. Problem is, the society doesn't see them as "normal" people, and oftentimes they are looked down at for being different. At the beginning, Da-Jeong constantly feels anxious about revealing her real age, since it would get her many strange looks from outsiders, so she pretends to be a 9-year-old girl to protect herself from getting hurt; Min-Seong is extremely clingy around his mother, because he's not able to do things well by himself and he fears that he will be abandoned [again] if he continues to make trouble for her. The same could be said for Da-Jeong, as she was also once an abandoned child; her mother left her when she was a child, in order to live with another family. She lives with her father, who's a kindred spirit, but is hopeless at making money. And since she's stuck in a 9-year-old's body, Da-Jeong can't even go out to get a job to help her dad out, let alone make friends with anyone. Her life was pretty much miserable, until she met Min-Seong for the first time.
Their first encounter took place in a shopping mall. Min-Seong was crying from not being able to find his mother, and it was Da-Jeong who helped him locate his mother. From that moment on, the two of them would often hang out together. They can understand each others' pain better than anyone else, and they would cheer up each other when something bad happens. Da-Jeong, being the older sister, often takes care of Min-Seong and protects him from the bullies who take advantage of his kindness. Whereas for Min-Seong, he acts as the pivotal mental support for Da-Jeong, as he promised to never abandon her and always stay by her side no matter what. The two leads compensate for each others' shortcomings as they stick together through difficult times. When Da-Jeong is feeling dejected from spending her Christmas all alone (because her dad's busy with work), Min-Seong comes to visit her despite having to take the train to get to her place, and being the poor sap he is, it took him half a day to finally get on the right train and land on the right stop. Or how about the time when Min-Seong is accused of having attempted rape on a young girl, where a group of people are talking about how dangerous it is to let a mentally-handicapped person like that on the loose, to which Da-Jeong angrily rebukes the gossipers that such a thing can never happen and does her best to defend her friend from the false accusations. It's scenes like these, where the two characters genuinely wish the best for each other, that hit me the most, emotionally.
But wait, if you think Min-Seong and Da-Jeong are the only characters worth caring about in this story, then you're sadly mistaken, my friends. The side characters are all worth mentioning, as they contribute significantly to the story's success in conveying what I believe to be the main theme of TFW: Compassion. Remember Da-Jeong's mother? Well, it turns out that she isn't a coldhearted person, but rather a very compassionate mother who still yearns to see her daughter, and has never once forgotten about her over the years that they were separated. Da-Jeong, of course, hates her mom for leaving her when she was young, and vows to never meet her again in her life. But, thanks to the support of her family and friends, she eventually reconciles with her mother after learning of her true feelings for her. And then we have characters like Shiwoo and Min-Seo, who act as Da-Jeong's other mental supports. Shiwoo, serving as an older brother figure to Da-Jeong, constantly comes to her rescue whenever she's in trouble. Despite the fact that Da-Jeong has been keeping her real age a secret in order to get closer to him (she secretly has a crush on the guy), when she eventually spills the beans by telling him the truth, he benevolently accepts her for who she is, without a trace of contempt for her deceit. Min-Seo, being the new daughter of Da-Jeong's mother, learns of Da-Jeong's secret at an earlier point. Ever since she knew about the secret, Min-Seo has treated Da-Jeong with unconditional kindness, as if she were her real sister. It's through these kind, selfless characters that Da-Jeong eventually finds the courage to trust in others again.
Furthermore, TFW knows how to construct believable scenarios that make us feel for its characters. To us normal folks, venturing out into society is hardly a challenge, since we don't have distinguishable traits that make us stick out like sore thumbs. When it comes to the physically/mentally disabled people, though, even simple errands like buying certain stuff or going to certain places can prove to be a challenge. Take Da-Jeong, for example. She wants to procure makeup like any girls of her age would, but when she asks the clerk to give her the item, her request is brushed off as a joke, and she's told that children do not need makeup. I'm sure many of you can see how such a scenario can be hurtful to a person who's trying to live life normally. And Min-Seong has it even worse, for his innocent, childlike mind cannot discern when he's being taken advantage of by others, and oftentimes he would find himself in situations where he's completely misunderstood and scorned for doing a good deed. One time, he finds a girl whom he mistakenly believes to be lost, and so he tries to take her by the hand to find her mother. But when they finally meet the girl's parent, she immediately jumps to the wrong conclusion that he was a pervert and was trying to do bad things to her. To a normal person, he may have easily been able to clear away the misunderstanding with a proper explanation. Not Min-Seong. He's not quick enough on his wit to openly deny that accusation, and he gets branded as a molester by those near him. Having promised earlier to Da-Jeong that he will no longer cry, Min-Seong struggles to hold back his tears at such an unfair treatment. And I, too, couldn't help but stifle a tear or two. It goes to show that subtle drama can be just as effective as conveying emotion as utterly tragic drama, when done right.
To conclude my thoughts on TFW, I have enjoyed everything that this little story has to offer. Not only does it get the audience invested in its characters before putting them into difficult situations, situations that anyone with a human heart should feel sympathy or empathy for the characters, it also presents fundamental human themes such as parenthood, friendship, companionship, forgiveness, and most of all, compassion. This work would not have been so enjoyable for me had it been all about making its characters suffer. Underneath all the unfairness of the world, lies an optimistic worldview, bringing us the message that, no matter how difficult life is for an individual, that person should know that he's not alone in this world, because there's bound to be someone out there who cares for him. Sure, the world isn't always fair and there will be times when we'll get hurt, but as long as we cherish the people dear to us, we'll find our own happiness in the end. I implore everybody to give this short webtoon a try, especially if you want to experience a heartwarming story that also teaches valuable life lessons.
My Scores:
Story: 8/10
Character: 8/10
Enjoyment: 9/10
Significance: 8/10
Overall: 8.2/10
Posted by
Dashiawia
| Feb 23, 2015 9:21 AM |
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