Burn the House Down Review: Drama-Thriller is a Whirlwind of Emotions

Burn the House Down Review: Written by Arisa Kaneko and directed by Yuichiro Hirakawa, the Japanese drama-thriller-mystery TV series (御手洗家、炎上する) stars Mei Nagano, Asuka Kudo, Taishi Nakagawa, Yuri Tsunematsu, Michiko Kichise and Kyoka Suzuki, alongside others. The series, with 8 episodes, has a runtime of around 50 minutes each. The series is based on the Manga series Mitarai ke, Enjou Suru by Moyashi Fujisawa.

The series is a thrilling ride into the lives of a young woman whose mother was wrongfully accused of a horrible incident. Years later, she decides to take matters into her own hands and find the truth once and for all.

– Burn the House Down Review Does Not Contain Spoilers –

Burn the House Down Plot

Anzu Murata’s entire world came crumbling down 13 years ago when she, her mother and her sister were forcefully thrown out of their house after their house burnt down. Convinced that her ailing mother, then accused of being the perpetrator, is actually innocent, she infiltrates her once-home, now inhabited by her father’s new family, to find justice and reveal the truth about her stepmother’s real face.

Burn the House Down Review

A terrible tragedy resulting in a burnt house, a divorce and two kids being abandoned by their father – Burn the House Down starts with a tragedy and a revenge plot on steroids. Thankfully, it doesn’t spend any time dumping a ton of exposition on us but, rather, slowly gives us an account of the past as and when required. This is a slow burn that takes its time to serve its revenge on a platter and bring the truth out. There are a ton of thriller shows these days, and Burn the House Down isn’t too different. However, it is definitely less of a revenge thriller and more of a tense drama.

There’s something very eerie about the series, although sometimes it feels like it doesn’t know what tone it wants to set. However, these moments do give the series a different feel and break the monotony, especially because it is just so slow. If you’re someone who likes slow burns, you will enjoy this one. It takes its sweet time to give us even the tiniest bit of information, and it takes a lot of time to grind that. In the meantime, we learn about the characters and witness their different faces.

The series, however, thrills us with different situations in the meantime. Anzu finds herself in less-than-favourable conditions, and you are constantly left paranoid for her safety. However, everyone is given enough backstory and arc for you to have a grey outlook on them – it’s not just black and white. Our protagonist is a determined but a human character – she’s very calculated but has moments when she is soft.

However, the really moving moments are the more dramatic and human moments, moments wherein the characters are looking for support, validation or love. Yet, only Makiko feels like a Disney villain straight out of some stepmother hell. The way she grins at others’ misery seems a bit much, especially since she usually does it on people’s faces. And sure, it might be a power move (it definitely is), but you know, subtlety would’ve gone a long way. Either way, it’s on the nose.

That being said, one thing I really did like was how they gave us glimpses into Makiko’s character. There are deeper issues at stake here, which you might be able to understand from the first episode itself. But we are slowly made to see the different sides to her character as well as why she has a hold on everyone around her. Her character, although a Disney villain, will still creep up on you at times.

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Another thing that I disliked quite a bit is the fact that she is portrayed as this all-powerful being that no one can stand up against. Sure, Anzu is trying and all. But man, everyone else, especially the men, feels like mere pawns in her game and flails about, unsure of what to do. Thankfully, after a while, at least some people start to find a voice, so that’s a breath of fresh air. Up until then, you would be screaming at the screen, wondering why no one is standing up for themselves.

Either way, if you give Burn the House Down some time, it does end up becoming a heartbreaking and, at the same time, an angering show. It’s not really thrilling, in the sense that it doesn’t keep you at the edge of your seat wondering who caused the fire. However, it’s still a harrowing tale that will keep you hooked. It’s a tale of actions and consequences and a baffling account of where greed and desperation can take you. It’s just a spiral down the rabbit hole that is an unwell person’s mind.

Although Makiko’s character is a bit over the edge, she’s still a great TV villain. The slow-moving drama-mystery format works so well with her character and its downfall. Kyoka Suzuki is really good as the grinning antagonist who will stop at nothing to get what she wants and keep everyone at bay. Mei Nagano is great as well and makes for a fine protagonist. You really would like to follow her journey and root for her. Everyone else also does a great job with their roles and is very believable. Man, you’re gonna hate Mitsuhiro Oikawa’s character with a passion, although he isn’t even there for too long!

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Burn the House Down, however, ends with an unexpected twist that goes a completely different way than what you might expect. However. when it finally becomes clear, the shocking twist leaves you rather uncomfortable. After all of these episodes, keeping people at arm’s length, you (and Anzu) are stabbed in the back one last time, leaving you reeling from the realisation. After all is said and done, the last little dramatic face-off is a bit much and, again, ends up leaning more towards a drama than a thriller. That being said, I liked the background score – very upbeat and goes with the content being marketed.

Burn the House Down Review: Final Thoughts

This slow burn is a watchable series that has moments of a different kind of thrill. Although there aren’t a lot of moments where you will be forced to sit at the edge of your seat, wondering who the killer is; however, the series offers a heartbreaking look into people and how they can truly be. It gives an intriguing look into different characters that makes it even more interesting when the truth finally does come out.

However, that last episode is the only one where you are left on the edge of your seat. If you’re a fan of slow-burn drama thrillers, this one should be on your watchlist, but emphasis on drama.

Burn the House Down is streaming on Netflix.

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