1) KENJA NO AI IS A VISUAL FEAST FOR THE EYES.
Jdoramas usually light everything up and look like a crappy soap opera. WOWOW and NHK shows usually have a grittier more movie like look. Ken no Ai reminds you that this is a visual medium and creates so many stunning images.
2) GREAT MOVIE LIKE SOUNDTRACK
I'm not talking about memorable tunes cause there are non in Kenja no Ai. I'm talking about how the music doesn't overpower the scenes but rather enhances them.
3) DARK STORY ABOUT REVENGE AND FRIENDSHIP.
Every single revelation instead of being just a twist for the sake of a twist adds another complicated layer to the relationship between Mayuk-chan and Yuri-chan.
4) ITS NOT A SHOW ABOUT HOW COMPLICATED AND SOMETIMES ILLOGICAL HUMAN RELATIONSHIPS ARE.
Sick of the 'hey let's just all get along and be nice to each other' jdoramas? Kenja no Ai is about how a lot of times in real life, we have to pretend to get along. My favourite character is Yuri-chan. She's the bad guy but I can't hate her because how damaged she is. Everyone in this show is kind of trapped by past sins and don't know how to set themselves free and instead smile and pretend to be happy while living with great burdens.
5) GREAT ACTING BY EVERYONE INVOLVED.
I was expecting to hate Naomi but I didn't mind his acting.
WHAT I HATED
There is one thing I hate about Kenja no Ai and that is the fight scene in the last episode. The music and shot composition was great but the fight itself was so fake. It was like those sentai shows where the bad guys just throw themselves on the ground. How could the director be satisfied with that crappy performance. It felt like the two actors were so scared of physical contact and I'm not talking about the fake ass punching.
SUMMARY
I do not have enough superlatives to describe Kenja no Ai. I'm just sad that it so much better than most jdoramas but not many people have seen it. Definitely deserves to be subbed.