The first episode of the drama series " Since I Took You Away " (Kantele/Fuji TV, Mondays at 10pm), starring actress Keiko Kitagawa , was broadcast on April 21st. The scene in which Hiromi (Kitagawa), who lost his daughter in a food accident, expresses his emotions and cries, sparking a stir on social media.
◇The following contains spoilers.
Hiromi worked as a cook at a nursery school and lived a happy life with her husband Keigo (Takahashi Mitsuomi) and their daughter Akari (Ishihara Shuma). On Akari's third birthday, they bought pizza from the delicatessen "YUKI Deli". However, that night, after eating the pizza, Akari began to suffer and passed away in the hospital. The cause of death was anaphylactic shock caused by shrimp. Hiromi had confirmed that there was no shrimp in the pizza, but the police investigation determined that it was unknown how the allergenic ingredient had ended up in the pizza.
At a press conference for "YUKI Deli," the president, Asahi, makes a statement that upsets the family. "YUKI Deli" is forced into bankruptcy, and Asahi and Kosuke Mochizuki (Michitaka Tsutsui), who set up the store with her, are forced to change jobs. Unable to bear the guilt and sadness of losing her beloved daughter, Hiromi divorces Keigo and chooses to live alone.
One year later, Hiromi was attending a cooking class. There, he met Asahi, the former president of "YUKI Deli," who was raising his eldest daughter, Ririko (Yuna Taira), a high school freshman, and his second daughter, Moeko (Eima Kurata), on his own. Hiromi's grief over losing his daughter transformed into a desire for revenge, and he was waiting for an opportunity to make Asahi suffer the same pain.
Hiromi went to Asahi's house, but was seen by his tutor, Kumura (Abe Ryohei), and left the scene in his car. However, Moeko was in the car without his knowledge. Shocked, Hiromi took her back to his house and tried to kill her, but...
After losing Akari, a scene was shown of Hiromi talking to the children at the nursery school. Hiromi was sitting there in a daze, and when a child called him "teacher," he denied it, saying, "You're not teacher," with a blank look on his face. He then recalled Akari calling out to him, and urged, "Not teacher, I'm mom. Say it, mom." When the child remained silent, Hiromi, with tears in his eyes, said, "Please, say it. Please," and finally hugged the child, crying, "I'm sorry, I couldn't protect you. I'm sorry, I'm sorry," until other staff members rushed to his side.
Hiromi also tries to kill Moeko, who is looking out the window, by tying the ribbon that Akari used to wear around her neck, but is unable to do so. He remembers Akari and begins crying. Hiromi clings to Moeko, who tries to comfort him, and again wails, sobbing, "I'm sorry, I'm sorry..."
On social media, the crying scene of Kitagawa's character Hiromi became a hot topic. Comments included, "Kitagawa's acting was so good I was drawn in...", "I burst into tears all at once", "She was sobbing so hard I couldn't stop watching", "I empathized, even I cried", "I've never cried so much at the first episode of a drama", "Her eyes are amazing... I got goosebumps", "Her acting was so convincing I forgot to breathe", "Her crying face is incredible", and "I'm overwhelmed".
