Mischievous Kiss (Japanese: イタズラなKiss, Hepburn: Itazura na Kissu, literally: "Playful Kiss" or "Naughty Kiss"), also known internationally as Mischievous Kiss or Playful Kiss, is an iconic Japanese shōjo manga series written and illustrated by Kaoru Tada. Telling the story of an innocent and stubborn high school girl, Aihara Kotoko, who falls in love with the smartest and coldest student at her school, Irie Naoki, the series has become a lasting pop culture phenomenon. Since it was first published in 1990, Itazura na Kiss has inspired various adaptations in several Asian countries, including television dramas, an anime, and films, making it one of the most famous and most frequently adapted shōjo manga of all time.
Despite its extraordinary popularity, the Itazura na Kiss manga holds a tragic story. The series was never finished because of the sudden death of the mangaka, Kaoru Tada, in 1999 from a brain hemorrhage after a household accident. However, her legacy lives on through various adaptations, especially the 2008 anime, which specifically included the ending planned by Tada based on notes she left to her husband.
Plot
The story focuses on Aihara Kotoko, a high school student in Class F, known as the class with the lowest-scoring students. She has long harbored feelings for Irie Naoki, the most genius, handsome, and popular student in Class A, since the first-year welcome speech. In a desperate act, Kotoko gives a love letter to Naoki, but she is coldly rejected, and the letter is not even read, because Naoki states that he hates stupid girls.
Fate seems to bring them together again when Kotoko's house is destroyed by a small earthquake. Kotoko's father then takes her to live with an old friend, who turns out to be Naoki's father. Life under one roof with the Irie family becomes the start of a series of funny and touching events. While Naoki continues to act cold and often belittles Kotoko, Naoki's mother, Machiko, is very fond of Kotoko and often helps bring the two of them closer.
Throughout the story, Kotoko tries hard to catch up, pursues the dream of becoming a nurse so she can be close to Naoki, who aspires to become a doctor, and proves that she is worthy at the side of her idol. Naoki, who initially shows total disinterest, slowly begins to realize his feelings for Kotoko. An important moment occurs when Naoki kisses Kotoko after an incident at the time of high school graduation. Their journey continues to university, where they face various obstacles, including romantic rivals, social class differences, and internal conflicts, before finally marrying and having a daughter.
Manga Development and Production
The Itazura na Kiss manga was first serialized in the magazine Bessatsu Margaret published by Shueisha in June 1990. The story quickly gained popularity, making Kaoru Tada one of the widely known mangaka in Japan. The manga succeeded in collecting a total of 23 tankōbon volumes. Tada's storytelling style, which combined comedy, romance, and everyday life drama, succeeded in captivating readers, especially teenage girls.
The manga's serialization lasted until March 1999. Unfortunately, in the same year, the manga world mourned because Kaoru Tada died suddenly. Two days after her family moved into a new house, Tada fell and struck her head on a marble table, which caused a fatal brain hemorrhage. As a result, the Itazura na Kiss manga was left unfinished, without a definitive ending.
Anime Adaptation
In 2008, Itazura na Kiss was adapted into a 25-episode anime series. The anime was produced by TMS Entertainment and directed by Osamu Yamazaki. The anime aired on the Japanese television station TBS (Tokyo Broadcasting System) from April 4 to September 25, 2008.
One of the most important aspects of this anime adaptation was the revelation of the original ending of the story. In an interview, Kaoru Tada's husband, Shigeru Nishikawa, stated that he provided notes about the ending planned by his wife to the anime production team. Thus, the Itazura na Kiss anime became the first medium to officially present the conclusion of Kotoko and Naoki's story according to the creator's wishes, giving satisfaction to fans who had long been waiting.
Drama Series and Film Adaptations
In addition to the anime, Itazura na Kiss has been adapted into various television drama series in a number of Asian countries, making it one of the manga titles most frequently brought to the screen. The following are some of the most well-known drama adaptations:
Itazura na Kiss (1996, Japan)
The first Japanese drama series, starring Takashi Kashiwabara as Naoki Irie and Aiko Sato as Kotoko Aihara. This series only covers the early part of the story up to their high school graduation.
It Started with a Kiss (2005, Taiwan) and They Kiss Again (2007, Taiwan)
This highly popular Taiwanese adaptation starred Joe Cheng as Jiang Zhishu and Ariel Lin as Yuan Xiangqin. The huge success of the first season gave rise to a sequel that tells of their married life.
Playful Kiss (2010, South Korea)
This South Korean drama starred Kim Hyun-joong as Baek Seung-jo and Jung So-min as Oh Ha-ni. Although ratings in South Korea were relatively low, the series succeeded in gaining international popularity and even had a special edition aired on YouTube.
Mischievous Kiss: Love in Tokyo (2013, Japan) and its sequel (2014)
This remake of the Japanese drama of the same title starred Honoka Miki as Kotoko and Yuki Furukawa as Naoki. The series was a success and was followed by a second season as well as a special film.
Kiss Me (2015, Thailand)
A Thai drama starring Sushar Manaying (Aom) and Pirath Nitipaisankul (Mike), bringing this popular story to Southeast Asian audiences.
Miss in Kiss (2016, Taiwan)
Another Taiwanese remake with an updated story and new cast, starring Esther Wu and Dino Lee.
In addition to television series, there are also several feature films, such as the Japanese film trilogy Mischievous Kiss the Movie (2016–2017) starring the same actors from Mischievous Kiss: Love in Tokyo.
References
Wikipedia bahasa Indonesia - "Portal:Jepang/Artikel Pilihan/10 2022"
Wikipedia bahasa Indonesia - "Playful Kiss"
Wikipedia bahasa Inggris - "Itazura na Kiss"
Wikipedia bahasa Indonesia - "Mischievous Kiss: Love in Tokyo"
IDN Times - "7 Drama Seri Adaptasi 'Itazura na Kiss' dari 5 Negara, Sudah Nonton?"
Postyrandom - "[Review Anime] Itazura Na Kiss (2008), Perjuangan Cewek Bodoh Mendapatkan Cinta Cowok Pintar"
TEGASIAN - "Itazura na Kiss: Love in Tokyo, Drama Romantis yang Tak Terlupakan"