Orange Days is an even-paced, bittersweet drama that causes us to reflect on our youth, be it middle school, high school, or college. The setting of the show is at a university, and the story revolves around what comes to be known as "Orange no Kai," the Orange Society. The small club is composed of five members and together they live out their last year on campus, their primary goal is to create many good memories before they graduate. Of particular focus is Sae, a deaf girl capable of hearing the occasional high pitch sound or vibration who is still trying to cope with her 4 year bout with her disability, and Kai, a student who's thoughts are dwindling between his carefree days as a student and the uncertainty of his future as an adult. This drama is reminiscent of Asunaro Hakusho which has a similar setting without a member with a disability. While Asunaro Hakusho thrives on it's jilting melodramatics and intense character situations, Orange Days shines in it's subdued situations and subtle but powerful moments of emotion. In this respect, Orange Days is calm and serene and urges us that while there are many hardships that we as members of society have to overcome, as long as one has the strength to rely on others as much as ourselves, we will have a fighting chance at overcoming the hurdles presented to us. The storyline was very well-written and absolutely never overdone. In fact, I'm somewhat surprised that something like this could come out of Japan as I am so used to dramas relying on shocking moments and "evil" characters to accentuate the happy moments they present. The only thing I didn't like were some of the actions of Sae's mother, who in later episodes did things almost opposite of what her character originally did -- it made me seem like I thought I knew her but didn't. It's very refreshing to see that no awkward zoom-ins or traditional Japanese-ish camera angles were used... if there was English dialogue, this could definitely pass as a Western show. However, the Japanese setting and social actions by the characters are what attracts me to these dramas in the first place, and are very welcome. Also of particular interest was the mild and emotionally sublime soundtrack. Naoki Sato did an incredible job of capturing the essence of the memories of college life. The feel-good mood of the entire series can be heavily attributed to the soundtrack. The end song Sign by Mr. Children was very well chosen and complimented each episode. And while some people thought Shanghai Honey by Orange Range was jarring in the middle of a particular episode, I thought it did well creating a specific memory for Orange no Kai. It's moments like those that make you wish you could relive your youth. Shibasaki Kou did a very good job at portraying a jilted, once-famous deaf person. Her character was annoying at times and forced the audience to feel what she herself was going through. At times I wish she could tear up a bit more, as I probably would have cried more myself if she did... it would have made her performance top notch. Tsumabuki Satoshi did very well himself. He never overacted and was able to convey every emotion required of his character. All the other actors did well, too, notably all of Orange no Kai. One of the few things the show lacked was a strong ending. I suppose this is hard to do with such a subdued, realistic story line. While I enjoyed the series from beginning to end, I think certain plot points could have been resolved in a way that could evoke more emotion than it did. Having been written more realistically, I felt I could associate myself with the main characters, but there were times where I wanted to cry more but realized there's no point in doing so if the character wasn't going to (although there were several points where they did emote well). Still, Orange Days is a refreshingly subdued drama that never overdoes the dramatics. It does a wonderful job of creating the memories that form the backbone of it's story and development of it's characters. For this reason alone, you maintain a good feeling after each episode and complete the series with a good memory yourself -- watching Orange Days. (Originally posted August 9th, 2006.)