User Reviews

Yoshino Koharu is a young woman looking for work. She wants a job in Tokyo but accepts a job in the small town of Manoyama. Manoyama is a town in decline; many younger inhabitants have left and businesses have closed down as the owners retire; this gives the shopping district a forlorn air with many shops permanently shuttered. She is to act as 'Queen' for the local tourist board; she believes it is a one day job for a specific event but soon learns she has been contracted to work there for a year! Over the course of the series she, and the other members of the tourist board must come up with ideas to revitalise the town and bring in tourists it won't be easy though; the tourist board's previous efforts have alienated some locals and there is an awkward past shared by the head of the tourist board and the head of the traders' association. Some of their ideas will involve doing new things, others will involve trying to bring back old traditions.

This was an enjoyable series that provided gentle laughs and a good story. It also shines a light on the problems of depopulation in rural areas of Japan as the overall population falls and what young people there are seem drawn to the big cities. This doesn't mean the series is depressing; the characters are interesting and many of the situations they find themselves in provide a ripe source for humour. Yoshino Koharu is a fine protagonist who develops nicely over the course of the series. Not all of her ideas are a success but her heart is in the right place as she works to bring the sometimes conflicted townspeople together. Overall I'd definitely recommend this series to anybody wanting a gentle comedy with some impressive character development.

These comments are based on watching the series in Japanese with English subtitles.