The fifth episode of the drama series " Taigan no Kaji ~Kore ga, Watashi no Ikiru Michi~" (TBS, Tuesdays at 10pm), starring actress Mikako Tabe , aired on April 29th. The scene featured a fierce argument between working mother Nagano Reiko ( Noriko Eguchi) and her husband Ryohei (Kawanishi Kenshiro), which became a hot topic on social media.
◇The following contains spoilers
The Nagano family goes on a glamping trip with the Murakami and Nakatani families. While everyone is enjoying the barbecue, Reiko is left feeling unsatisfied with the fact that Ryohei, who doesn't help with the housework at home, is always working efficiently and with a good outward appearance.
When they got home, Ryohei collapsed into a sleep with the children. Reiko was in charge of packing up the luggage.
One night, Reiko tells Ryohei about how Shiho (Tabe) looked after her eldest daughter, Hoshina (Yoshitama Hoka-chan), and her eldest son, Atsumasa (Kotobuki Shoma-kun), when she had the mumps. She reveals that she gave Shiho 80,000 yen in exchange for looking after her children, but she did not accept it.
Ryohei was surprised, saying that he had never heard of this before, and asked, "In the first place, isn't it a bit prioritizing to pay 80,000 yen to go to work?"
She couldn't bring herself to cause any more trouble at work, and she couldn't get her husband, Ryohei, to help her. Reiko was annoyed by Ryohei's words and told him, "Then you should take the day off from work this time," but Ryohei said, "That's impossible. It's work."
Reiko said in a strong tone, "Me too. I work too. You don't do any housework, you should at least clean up after yourself!" When Ryohei said, "I'm sorry about that, but I do it on my days off too," Reiko retorted, "It's great that you feel like you've done something just because of that."
Reiko, who was getting heated up, raised her voice and said, "Why are you always talking about other people's problems? Hey, are you even listening to me?" Ryohei replied, "I'm tired too! To be honest, it's bothersome. I'm the only one who's being blamed."
On social media, comments such as, "I watched the couple's quarrel, and it's so common and I think it's all over the place," "Noriko Eguchi's working mom and her husband are so real lol," "I'm tired too, you say? Reiko is tired from working too!! On top of that she does housework and childcare so it made me irritated watching it!" and "The interactions between the Nagano couple were so real. People who are planning to get married and have children should watch this."
The film is based on the novel "Taigan no Kaji" (Housework on the Other Side) by Kiko Akano (published by Kodansha Bunko). It depicts the "endless work" of housework through the protagonist's interactions with "people on the other side" who have different positions and ways of thinking than her.
