Cursed In Love Review: Complex Plot Coupled With Young Love Makes This Drama Worth A Watch

Once again, I’m here with a drama I discovered through a fan-made video on YouTube. ‘Cursed In Love’ is a revenge drama mixed with some love and lots of deception. The show has some interesting characters that will leave you baffled by how conniving some people can be to get what they want.

Talented lead actors Ryusei Yokohama and Minami Hamabe are great to watch on-screen as they look and act their respective parts nicely. However, the best part about the show is that you get to see a lot of tempting Japanese sweets and gorgeous kimonos.  

 

Cursed In Love (Watashitachi wa Douka Shiteiru) (2020) (8 Episodes)

Nao Hanaoka (Minami Hamabe) works as a confectioner and participates in a competition to bag a big order for herself. Even though she is the clear winner, she does not bag the contract because the owner of Kogetsuan (an old and reputed Japanese confectionery), Takatsuki Sojyuro forces the jury to give the result in the favour of his grandson, Tsubaki Takatsuki (Ryusei Yokohama) who also participated in the competition.

Tsubaki Takatsuki notices Nao’s exemplary work at the competition and spontaneously asks her to marry him. Tsubaki is unaware that Nao is the daughter of Yuriko who was imprisoned for murdering his father, Itsuki Takatsuki. Nao, however, recognizes Tsubaki and remembers all that she and her mother went through after Tsubaki falsely accused Yuriko of his father’s murder around 15 years ago. She agrees to his sudden and random proposal as she wishes to re-enter Kogetsuan and destroy the family that falsely implicated her innocent mother that eventually led to her death in prison.

But revenge can be hard for Nao, as she is still in love with Tsubaki Takatsuki who was once her childhood bestie.

Let’s have a look at the suspense-revenge-love drama and see what makes this dorama interesting to watch.

I enjoyed watching ‘Cursed In Love’ because…

…of its complex and interconnected storylines. The Takatsuki family is traditional, rich, and influential. As a family, they have some hidden skeletons in the closet. No matter how hard they try to hide it with their money and power the truth eventually finds its way out.

Sojyuro Takatsuki, the owner of Kogetsuan is old and wishes to pass on the baton to his legal heir. Since his son was murdered several years ago, it leaves him with his grandson, Tsubaki who he despises for some reason. Tsubaki tries his best to make his grandfather proud of him but he harshly dismisses every attempt of the boy. To add to this, Tsubaki’s mother is always pushing him to do well so he can inherit the family business. His grandfather’s cold behavior and his mother’s selfish ambition make him feel sad and lonely.

When his mother forces him into an arranged marriage with a girl from an influential family, he rebels and decides to marry Nao who he thinks is a complete stranger to him. He is impressed by her skills at making confectionery and is also attracted to her. He slowly falls in love with her but their relationship crumbles when he finds out about Nao’s true past.

On the other hand, Nao has been struggling since her mother died while serving time in prison. Her mother, Yuriko was a skilled confectioner popular with her loyal clients who swore by the sweets she made. Nao inherits her mother’s skills and aims to become a confectioner more successful than Kogetsuan.

She enters the Takatsuki family by getting engaged to her childhood love, Tsubaki. She tries her best to sabotage the family’s reputation but seeing Tsubaki struggle to earn some respect in the eyes of his grandfather, she often wavers from her resolve.

Also, she has a tough time living with the Takatsuki family since Tsubaki’s mother Kyoko, is suspicious of Nao and works hard to find out her true past. Kyoko does everything to create a misunderstanding between Nao and Tsubaki so that he leaves her and marries the girl of her choosing.

…I liked Tsubaki’s mother, Kyoko. Now Kyoko is a negative character. She is the main villain of this story. She is an over-ambitious woman who can do anything to have her son own the Kogetsuan confectionary business. She is manipulative and has absolutely no morals or ethics. I liked Kyoko not because of her character but because of actress, Alisa Mizuki who I feel did a phenomenal job at portraying the evil woman. 

Kyoko’s piercing gaze can intimidate anyone. She is gorgeous and has her way with men who are willing to do anything for her. And this is portrayed effectively by Alisa Mizuki. At times, Kyoko would be shown to be doing some kind of black magic. With Kyoko’s intense gaze, strong voice, and scary background score the scene would send a chill down my spine.

…I loved Nao and Tsubaki. Nao loved Tsubaki as a child and even after he unfairly accuses her mother of murdering his father, her feelings hardly change for him. As she lives with him and knows more about him she is unable to control the storm of feelings he evokes in her. Circumstances, however, often push them apart but the two lovers always find a way to come together.

Tsubaki may not be aware of who Nao really is but he feels for her just the way he felt for his childhood love. He does doubt Nao of being his childhood friend but hardly does anything about it.   

Actors Ryusei and Minami are young talents who prove their mettle in this drama. From body language to facial expressions, they both nail it effortlessly. And their on-screen chemistry is fiery. I gave the show a try because I liked how they looked together on screen.  

I did NOT LIKE ‘Cursed In Love’ because…

…nah!! I loved this drama. It hooks you in from its very first scene. Its story, cast, and music are in sync to give you an entertaining show.

 

I watched ‘Cursed In Love’ months ago and still remember a lot about it, which means it left a good impression on me. This show should firstly be watched for the lead couple Nao and Tsubaki. It should then be watched for its complex and intriguing plot. Lastly, watch it for the sinister Kyoko who is sometimes too scary for a regular drama.

I give ‘Cursed In Love’ a 4 out of 5 rating. I liked almost everything about this show and would want anyone to give it a try.

 

Feature Image Courtesy: AsianWiki

Screenshots: Nippon TV

 

Also Read: