Can a man without conscience learn to love? The short answer is yes. The long answer is this unforgettable, zany drama.

I'll start off by warning you that there is no sugarcoating the fact that the main character, Otaro Dojima aka Eight (Yamazaki Kento), is a gigolo. If you are sensitive to that sort of thing, then you are in for a rude awakening. I don't think I have ever seen a drama character kiss and sleep with this many women. He does it with zeal, and obviously for money. It isn't like he is taking advantage of them, however. Everyone he is involved with is clear about his intentions. But there is no doubt about his profession. You'll need some patience and tolerance for the first two episodes. But once you start to get a clearer picture, you'll be awestruck by the clever plot and ready to immerse in all the craziness.

After learning that a strange woman, Sato Saiko (Kadowaki Mugi), who keeps appearing before him, can kill with a kiss, but also bring you back to life 7 days in the past, Eight begins to scheme to use her to land the biggest prize of his life: marry the wealthy heiress, Namiki Mikoto (Araki Yuko). The one endearingly known to him as "10 billion."

Here's where the really fun part begins. Eight's relentless attempts to woo Saiko so she would kiss him are both comical and cute. She isn't going to make it easy for him. There is this scene in the show where he asks her flirtatiously, "What kind of man is your type? Could it be...me?," as the camera zoomed in on his pretty, smiling face. What is even more adorable is her answer, because she shuts her eyes completely and points to an ugly stuff doll by the road. And I could not stop laughing at Eight's utter disbelief of: "That?!" This is the one woman who wouldn't get in his bed! It's an excellent example of their dynamic throughout the drama that is so entertaining to watch. Saiko is a little odd and that's because she grew up lonely from the burden of the curse. Unlike what we were led to believe in the beginning, she is actually very kind. Eventually, they come to an agreement. You should see the way he looks every time he is about to kiss her to go back in time, like he couldn't get enough of her. Don't be fooled though. It is his enthusiasm for money that is fueling this desire to kiss her. The kisses, of course, sends them back in time, for better or for worse. They are always accompanied by a montage of images and a vibrant soundtrack that got me excited in anticipation for a different story to unfold. Eight never strays from his goal of marrying rich and he does everything in his power, whether that be manipulating, lying, or blackmailing, in order to accomplish that. Nevertheless, I could not help liking him. All I could do was shake my head at his scheming, but I kept watching. Maybe it's Yamazaki Kento's charm but it works!

As they spend more time together, we started to see subtle hints that indicated Eight is falling in love with Saiko, like him stealing glances at her when they got close, or hug her instead of kissing her. It's ironic because despite the onslaught of kisses, it is these understated acts that are touching and sweet, and conveyed sincere feelings. But I guess it's hard to change a person fundamentally because despite Eight's obvious feelings, he proceeds to go ahead with the wedding even though he is clearly unhappy about it. His reluctance finally surfaces when it is time to kiss the bride and he simply cannot. At this point, Saiko arrives to protect him from a knife wielding antagonist and subsequently dies. Though this scene felt bizarre and lacking in emotion, the next scene of tearful Eight desperately trying to start their time traveling clock in the hopes of reviving Saiko was poignant. In the following days, the realization of his love for Saiko hits him hard. When he learns that there is a chance to go back 3 months in time, the choice is clear to him and for the first time, he shows his true self to Mikoto. With apologies, he tells Mikoto that he loves Saiko and all he wants is Saiko's happiness. And there, I melted into a puddle.

This is a zippy drama with peculiarities attached to it; I enjoyed it immensely. And in spite of the premise, it also portrays one of the sweetest romances I've ever seen. Though the ending is bittersweet, in a way, I get why it ends the way it does. After all the terrible choices he made, Eight deserves some time alone to reflect and pay for his sins. But I still wanted my happy ending after all the love I developed for these two though, which is why I'm glad we have Todome no Parallel, which is sort of like an extension to this, that will provide (in the last episode) the (happy) closure we wanted to see.