Thomas Storai 
“Burn The House Down is a riveting revenge drama filled with exciting plot twists and it’s also a beautiful slow burn love story.”
Burn The House Down is the latest Japanese drama from Netflix. It’s an 8-episode revenge drama based on the manga of the same name by Moyashi Fujisawa and published by Kodansha.
STORY
Burn The House Down follows Anzu Murata (Mei Nagano) as she tries to prove the innocence of her mother (Michiko Kichise) in the fire of their home 13 years ago. She goes undercover as a housekeeper in her father’s home to gather evidence that her stepmother Makiko (Kyoka Suzuki) was actually responsible for the fire.
Even though Anzu thinks it’s her stepmother who’s responsible, the answer is not that easy. As usual with revenge drama, it’s filled with exciting plot twists. The series keeps you entertained all the way to the end. That’s what I love about this type of series, you can think you guessed something but a twist will prove you wrong. And when you think everything has been revealed, there is still more to come. Burn The House Down is a clever and riveting story. It’s not twists to shock the audience but twists that are interesting and makes sense storywise.
Beyond the revenge aspect of the story, it’s also a beautiful slow burn love story between Anzu and Kiichi (Asuka Kudo). I really was rooting for the characters. Additionally, with the character of Makiko, it’s an intriguing character study of how far can a person go for fame.
CAST
Moreover, this series gathers an amazing cast. Mei Nagano delivers an heartfelt performance as Anzu. She brings a lot of sensibility to her character. On top of that, Kyoka Suzuki is deliciously mean as Makiko. Her smile and her haughty presence is everything. She plays so brilliantly this unlikeable character. Asuka Kudo also beautifully plays this broken character. You can feel the evolution of Kiichi through his performance.
VISUALS AND SOUNDTRACK
Furthermore, this series has nice and slick visuals showcasing the beautiful scenery of the Tokyo area. Takeshi Kobayashi has composed a tensed score. The main theme is electrifying and is often used throughout the series. It can also be heard during the opening theme. The opening is quite stylish. The end credits feature the song Carnival by Vaundy. It’s a dark and rock song that fits perfectly for a revenge drama.
VERDICT
Burn The House Down is a riveting revenge drama filled with exciting plot twists and it’s also a beautiful slow burn love story.
Burn The House Down is now streaming on Netflix.
Collectables Editor at Future Of The Force.
Star Wars and Marvel specialist, anime expert
