Tadashi Agi’s eponymous manga has inspired Quoc Dang Tran to create the Apple TV show Drops of God, which focuses on the unexpected rivalry between the daughter of an enologist and his mentee. Camille and Issei find themselves locked in competition over who gets to inherit Alexandre’s estate and wine collection, sparking off a series of events where each competitor’s past life is brought up. In the previous episode, Camille and Issei undertook the first round of competition, but due to self-doubt, she input the wrong answer, leading to Issei getting the first victory. Here’s what happens in Drops of God Episode 4:
Spoilers Ahead
The Aftermath
In the 4th episode of Drops of God, Camille and Issei are preparing for pictures to be taken following the first round of the challenge, where Camille lost. The Japanese makeup artist is speaking with Issei in their native tongue, with no idea that Camille is fluent in Japanese. The artist is ridiculing Camille for losing out to a Japanese man in a wine-tasting contest despite being French herself. Apparently, this has become the whole point of attraction attached to the story, and Issei is being treated as the Golden Boy of wine tasting, destined to make Japan globally famous. Having her patience reach a limit, Camille blurts out at the artist that it was only the first challenge, with two more left where she can prove her mettle, and that too in fluent Japanese.
A Failed Marriage
Having mistreated him her entire life, Honoka is finally coming to her senses and is taken aback to learn that Hirokazu is not at the breakfast table with her. She learns from the maid that Hirokazu did not come to his bed the previous night, and neither has he made any effort to contact Honoka. She does not understand this sudden change of heart of the man whom she has ill-treated their entire married life, and it is only when the belongings he had left for his wife at the reception arrive that Honoka realizes the man is gone from her life for good.
We are taken back to 1990, when Hirokazu and Honoka, both young back then, came to Domaine Chassangre for the wine, and we can also find Thomas there with infant Phillippe. Alexandre comes to the gathering in a rusty-looking car and gives off the vibe of an unkempt professor. Right from the first time they meet each other, Alexandre and Honoka form a mutual liking, and it only grows with time. However, back then, Alexandre was married to Marianne, and they were still happy in their marriage. Even Honoka was already married to Hirokazu by then, but none of that stopped either of them from having an extramarital affair. Although, for Honoka, it was a little easier since she had made it clear to Hirokazu that their marriage would only be a formality and they would not be sharing the marital bed. Alexandre was a rebellious man whose inflammatory comments landed him in trouble with the French top brass, and situations forced him to travel to Japan and take up a job as a teacher on the study of wine. He’d go on to make millions thanks to the guides he provided on the various kinds of wine, but before all that, Honoka had already formed a liking for Alexandre while attending his classes as a student.
The rule at the university also helped, which stated that students could not be allowed to drink wine in the university. That is why Alexandre had to take his students to a nearby bar to get them acquainted with the various kinds of wines. In Drops of God Episode 3, we had seen the picture that Issei had found at Alexandre’s home and that he had been distracted by during the entire ride back to his place. Confused about his true parentage, Issei asked his mother, Honoka, if she was close to his mentor, Alexandre. However, Honoka chose to lie and said that she had been in the wine professor’s class only a few times and was really not that acquainted with him.
The Infidelity
However, it is the flashback that tells the true story of what happened between Honoka and Alexandre and how Issei came to be born. Honoka was one of Alexandre’s favorite students because of her talent for wine. But Alexandre’s teaching career came to an abrupt end when a student was found drunk on campus, and considering this as Alexandre’s failure to control his students, he was fired from his position. This student was none other than Honoka’s husband, Hirokazu, and this was probably a reaction to him finding out about his wife’s infidelity. Honoka had come to Alexandre’s place to hand him a letter from Hirokazu in which he apologized to his teacher for his actions. However, it was this letter delivery that sparked the physical relationship that Honoka and Alexandre started. Honoka and Alexandre had consummated their relationship at Alexandre’s place for the first time, but afterward, it was several hotels where they chose to meet.
What Do We Learn About Issei’s Parentage?
When Alexandre and Marianne went to Thailand for a vacation, his wife informed him that she was pregnant. This made Alexandre reconsider his life choices, and he decided he could no longer pursue the extramarital affair he had with Honoka. Alexandre ended things with Honoka, but he wasn’t aware that she, too, was pregnant with his child. Hirokazu, ever the hapless man, accepted Honoka and her child from an extramarital affair, promising to raise him as his own. Although he was aware that Alexandre had his wife’s entire admiration, Hirokazu did not stop loving his wife, and it continued until the very end when she publicly humiliated him. Ironically, Alexandre only learned about Honoka’s pregnancy when he found her in the same hospital where Marianne had been admitted for her delivery. Therefore, Issei is undoubtedly Alexandre’s child, making Issei and Camille half-siblings. However, neither child is aware of Alexandre’s infidelity yet.
In all probability, Marianne did not find out about Alexandre’s infidelity while he was involved with Honoka. Marianne’s contempt for her husband is well founded; while she was gathering deals with a French publisher to help her husband sell his wine guides, Alexandre was having an extramarital affair with his student. Therefore, it’s no wonder that when Marianne eventually found out about Alexandre’s faithlessness, she became furious. Camille losing consciousness from drinking the wine was the last straw in the marriage she was struggling to keep together, and when her daughter’s life was threatened, she thundered out of Alexandre’s life and took Camille with her. Therefore, Marianne cannot be blamed for the way she ended things, although it seems Alexandre still has hopes that his wife will forgive him someday.
