Wakako Zake

In general, I’m not good with slice of life dramas. It’s not the genre that’s the problem but rather me and my attention span. Of course, I haven’t watched very many dramas in this genre, and so far, I’ve only had good luck with them, but I do tend to gravitate towards stories that have a little more going on to keep me interested. So when I started Wakako, it took me some time to really get into it. It truthfully wasn’t until starting season 2 that things really began to click for me, and now I’m sad that there doesn’t appear to be anywhere to watch the future seasons.

Of course, the Wakako series as a whole has everything to commend itself. A really interesting female lead, lots of delicious looking food, an overall cozy feeling, an unspoken exploration of belonging and purpose. (There’s a lot going on in the subtext that I think most viewers probably don’t notice.) Each episode hosts, so to speak, 2 real-life restaurants and some of their dishes and spirits, and the show serves as a lovely way of advertising for what look like some really great mom and pop restaurants. I imagine the viewers found themselves frequently compelled to seek these establishments out after each episode.

Really, there’s just nothing outside of the slice of life element that could deter someone from watching this drama or it’s future seasons, and I would caution anyone from letting that stop them from at least giving it a chance. There’s no hyped up drama or high stakes or heartbreak, just lots and lots of charm.