Flora! (2020)

Probably everyone and their grandmothers has described this show and it's female lead as quirky at this point, so I won't do that, but I'm honestly not sure that quirky is the right descriptor anyway. Somewhere between peculiar and bizarre is more accurate, in my opinion. You see, Sayoko's love of bathing occasionally borders on the side of concerning. She never does anything particularly out there or disturbing, but her love for the bathtub can be...intense and a little too all-consuming. Of course, that's the entire premise of the show, and it's definitely played up for both laughs and heart, I just think if we were friends in real life, I might be a little bit concerned for her and would probably make an effort to get her out of the house more.

This is why, I think, that while I got the humor and the message and appreciated both, I didn't always enjoy the drama. I don't think I experienced a true guffaw until the last episode when she threw a rock into her tub, and the waxing poetic over bathing and how important it is for life had no affect on me. I wasn't touched by her emotional connection to bathing like the drama clearly wanted me to be. But that might just be me. I personally prefer showers to baths, so I don't have that same relaxed feeling when I think about taking a bath, and while I didn't connect with the story in an emotional way, I can at least agree with the drama's sentiments about the physical, mental, and emotional benefits bathing can have for some people.

I do like Sayoko, of course. She can be every bit as self-absorbed as what appears to be her only friend in the story, but if we really were friends in real life, I would probably come to find her obsession with the bathtub endearing rather than weird, and I would probably appreciate her unique view on life and the bathtub, even if it's not a view I share myself.

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