A 2023 romantic jdrama about Issei, a Deaf man with an enthusiastic approach to life, and Suzu, an older doctor who is burnt out and trying to recover.

Country: Japan 
Local Title: 星降る夜に
Year Released: 2023
Number of Episodes: 9
Genre: Romance, Healing, Slice-of-Life

Main Actors:

Yoshitaka Yuriko as Yukimiya Suzu
Kitamura Takumi as Hiiragi Issei
Dean Fujioka as Sasaki Shinya

Pre-Recap Thoughts:

On A Starry Night/Hoshi Furu Yoru ni caught my eye because it has a Deaf male lead and an older female lead, and that’s all I needed to give it a try. From the first episode, I was hooked. Issei is a character who is Deaf, but the show is not about his deafness. Suzu is an older woman, but the show is not about her age. The main focuses of the show are life, death, and healing. The transitory nature of life is a frequent theme in Japanese stories, but here I found it to be positive and not too heavy.

It was also an interesting watch after Silent, which had a male lead who had lost his hearing. One of the problems with shows that feature characters outside of the imagined ‘norm’ is that they are expected to stand in for the experiences of everyone within that minority group. Not only do Issei and Sakura (of Silent) have completely different experiences as far as hearing goes, they are completely different people regardless. I hope we continue to get to see more shows that depict the uniqueness of individuals no matter what various groups they belong in.

I’m really looking forward to going back over this sweet, meaningful, deep, and funny show.

Recap and Thoughts:

Final Mostly Non-Spoilery Thoughts:

On rewatch I enjoyed this show even more.

It’s not without its flaws.

The plot is pretty thin and at times hits some typical tropes, if you’re in the mood for a show that moves or does something unique in that area, this is not a great option.

If you’re in the mood for strong characters and want to watch them heal and live their lives, something along the lines of Hometown Cha Cha Cha, this is a great option.

If you’re in the mood for a romantic show where one of the characters has a disability but that’s not the focus of the show, this is a great option.

If you’re in the mood for a sweet older woman/younger man romance where the woman is still strong and capable and good at her job, this is a great option.

If you want to imagine you live a slow, peaceful, healing life in a seaside town in Japan, this is a great option.

To me, those are the top reasons to watch or not watch the show.