The Days

Quite disappointing compared to « Chernobyl » which was more complete, although shorter (5h30).

Although this series lasts 7h, it omits several important information: -when the radioactive cloud escaped from the Fukushima nuclear power plant, favorable winds sent it towards the sea. But if winds had sent it towards Tokyo, then Tokyo should have been evacuated, as said Naoto Kan, the Prime Minister at the time.

• In 2009, two years before the disaster, a report had stipulated that the dykes of two power stations had to be raised because of the risk of a tsunami: the Fukushima power station and the Onagawa power station, further north which did not depend on Tepco. But it cost millions, and Tepco buried the report. On the contrary, the Onagawa power plant raised its dikes and was therefore spared during the tsunami.

I was drawn into the seriousness of the situation that the series present. Many people say it is too long and boring, but for me, if you look to see what really happened on that day and see it from the eyes of those who had to deal with the situation, it is absolutely worth watching. I don't feel that the characters are wooden, it's just the way Japanese people are when they have to deal with such urgency. They obey the commands promptly. I think the cast did great job.

By the way, you don't have to watch the series all at once. So it's not going to be too long if you are interested to know the detail of what happened. For me, the series blew me away. I didn't even know that such an event happened and so many people had to come together to stop it from escalating to the worst. It's an interesting true story that we can learn from.

The biggest problem I have with many of the series based on true events is that they are overly dramaztized to the point that they appear more like hollywood thrillers than a theatrical account of true events.

This is where The Days shines. This series is credible. One can totally imagine that that's how the real situation must have unfolded. Of course, the events have been stitched together to create a narrative that the vieweres can follow but it doesn't betray the authenticity of the events.

We see the characters only within the confines of the Fukushima station but the characters develop nicely even within this limited space and situation. As a viewer, you start to feel their frustrations, fears and trepidations.

The only notable shortcoming that I can point out is that some sequences are unnecessarily long because of which the time urgency of the situation may either be lost on the viewers or may lead to a disconnect for the viewers between time urgency and the actions of the characters.

Overall, I would definitely recommend this series to anyone who is looking for a break from unrealistic, incredible and untrue stories based on true events.

If you are expecting a Japanese Chernobyl then this may not be for you. This is a much slower more considered portrayal of a nuclear accident which could have been 100 times worse than Chernobyl. Layered and highly observational The Days is just as much about Japanese hierarchy and customer than the disaster itself. Personally I felt watching in Japanese with subtitles was much better than the terrible dubbed english. The quality of the Japanese cast comes through in the original language. A salutary lesson in how corporate greed and arrogance can be completely and literally overcome by the power of nature. Koji Yakusho is stand-out as station manager Masao Yoshida. Settle down and immerse yourself in this high quality drama that will stay with you long after viewing.

Yes, it had to have the inept advisors like all the shows of this type.

And it had the questionable politicians and business leaders. That's a given.

But it stays the course and delivers an enjoyable ride of technical expertise and problem-solving. This is NOT the Japanese version of the show Chernobyl. That show was much more focused on government ineptitude. If I had to compare it to another show, I would compare it to the Tom Hanks movie Apollo 13. Lots of "make it work with what we have" and grit and determination.

Sure, the end is a bit soft and a tad anticlimactic. But that's a good thing. A climactic finish to a movie about a nuclear reactor would be...umm...bad. And a BANG!