“My Happy Marriage” has finally arrived on Netflix with its first episode airing only recently this month on July 5th, setting the stage for a promising and heartwarming romantic story. With her story being based on that of Cinderella, The first episode worked as a perfect expositional breakthrough for Miyo, the main character, as well as the unfortunate conditions her family puts her through.
Episode Summary
Miyo’s story is started with a dramatic monologue in which she reflects on the hopeless nature of her life. She is constantly treated like a servant by her father, stepmother, and younger sister, Kaya, having only her friend, Koji, to treat her kindly. It is hinted at the fact that the two love each other, causing the next scenes to be even more heartbreaking.
Her father eventually requests her presence and she finds her family as well as Koji seated. Here, Miyo is informed that Koji will be marrying Kaya by the decision of the two families. In turn, Miyo will be marrying Kiyoka Kudo from the Kudo family.
Kiyoka is said to be merciless and cold-hearted and to have lost many fiancées due to their own leaving, though Miyo still hopes that she will be granted some sense or opportunity for freedom and happiness. She is then told to be ready to depart to the Kudo estate by the next day.
A short scene is shown from Koji’s perspective where he is seen arguing with his father over the marital agreement. It is revealed that his father was the one that set up the terms and recommended Miyo’s marriage to Kiyoka.
After visiting her mother’s (who passed when she was young) tree and speaking to Koji one final time, Miyo prepared her minimal belongings and set off to the Kudo residence. There, she meets Kiyoka for the first time, having minimal interaction with him and one of his servants before the end of the episode.
‘My Happy Marriage’ Episode 1 Review
The characters themselves are well-made and structured, with great introductions provided to Miyo’s family and Kiyoka. Miyo’s feelings and hopelessness are displayed in a realistic manner which makes the show all the better, allowing viewers to connect to her as a character.
Her hope for a better life also constructs a balance within her character that allows the viewer to hope with her. At the same time, the relationships she holds with her family and with Koji show different sides of herself in the sense that, with Koji, she is happy and completely different when treated well.
In my personal opinion, being able to see these different sides of Miyo’s character in the first episode was an expert way to introduce her and made me want to find out what happened next with Kiyoka.
Speaking on the cinematography, this show is absolutely beautiful! With a unique art style, the vibrancy and picturesque settings create beautiful landscapes as well as create a certain depth and immersive nature to the show.
In terms of pacing, I have mixed feelings about the way the timeline of events is presented. While the start of the show is slow-paced and takes time to introduce the different feelings of Miyo, it felt as if the marriage announcement of both Miyo and Kaya were a bit rushed as well as Miyo’s introduction to Kiyoka. While these scenes and this episode in general tackled prominent issues and feelings in the characters, I felt the pacing could’ve been adjusted a bit.
Overall, I’m loving this show so far and am so excited to see what happens next!
Rating: 8/10
Stay tuned for the next episode of My Happy Marriage coming out on July 12th on Netflix and our review on it for more!
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