Official Website
www.nhk.or.jp/drama/drama10/mistress

Broadcast
From 10.00 p.m., Fridays, 19 April 2019

Network
NHK

Story
Four women who became close friends through a chance encounter have frequent gatherings where they drink, converse and vent their frustrations. However, they actually have serious issues which they cannot tell others. Shibasaki Kaori is a doctor who feels burdened by the suicide of her lover Kido Koichiro. Although his son Takashi suspects her involvement in his death, they are drawn to each other. Noguchi Tomomi’s husband Toshiya went missing overseas and she recently received an insurance payout after he was deemed to be dead. She meets a new man Yasuoka Shuhei who makes her feel excited about romance for the first time in a long while, and feels depressed when their date is cancelled. Harada Saeko has a disagreement with her husband Satoshi who wants children. As they grow apart, she ends up getting close to her colleague Sakaguchi Arata and has a one night stand. Mizushima Juri has had a string of lovers. But when she meets a lesbian who is about to get married, she finds herself attracted to her and experiences true love for the first time in her life. Will the four women find their happy ever afters?

Characters
Hasegawa Kyoko as Shibasaki Kaori
A doctor of psychosomatic medicine. She took over the small hospital in Tokyo that her parents left behind and lives alone. The girls-only gatherings are mainly held at her house. She is suspected of being the lover of Kido Koichiro who was her patient, by his son Takashi.

Sugino Yosuke as Kido Takashi
A university student who is studying architecture. He respects his father Kido Koichiro, who was a well-known architect very much. Wanting to know the truth of his father’s death, he follows Shibasaki Kaori around.

Aso Yumi as Kido Yoshie
Kido Takashi’s mother. Although she had suspected that Shibasaki Kaori was the lover of her husband Koichiro, she firmly believed that she was loved by him.

Hashimoto Satoshi as Kido Koichiro
An architect. Kido Takashi’s father. He had an affair with Shibasaki Kaori, and asked her to prescribe morphine.

Mizuno Miki as Noguchi Tomomi
A housewife who works at a bread shop. After her husband went missing in an accident overseas seven years ago, she raised their daughter on her own. She recently received an insurance payout for his death, and a man whom she is interested in has appeared and unsettles the people around her.

Yoshizawa Hisashi as Noguchi Toshiya
Noguchi Tomomi’s husband. A construction company employee who was posted overseas but went missing after getting involved in an accident. He was a caring husband to his family but … …

Komoto Masahiro as Yasuoka Shuhei
A translator of foreign picture books. A single father raising a daughter of elementary school age, he gets close to Noguchi Tomomi. Is this pure love or does he have an ulterior motive?

Kakei Miwako as Miki
A woman with a young boy who approaches Noguchi Tomomi. She seems to be having difficulty with life but her identity is a mystery.

Hyunri as Harada Saeko
A businesswoman who works for a cosmetics company. Things are going fairly well at work and she is all lovey-dovey with her husband Satoshi. She has no complaints about life but she disagrees with Satoshi who wants to start having children and that causes their relationship to get awkward.

Sato Ryuta as Harada Satoshi
Harada Saeko’s husband. He is a outstanding graphic designer and cares for his wife. But his desire to start having children results in differences with Saeko.

Hosoda Yoshihiko as Sakaguchi Arata
Harada Saeko’s younger colleague. He appears to be an unreliable, mild-mannered man and admires Saeko who is great at her job. He is also her confidant at work.

Omasa Aya as Mizushima Juri
A fitness gym trainer. She loves sweat and muscles. She has had many romances and changed men repeatedly. However, her perspective of love completely changes when she meets Sudo Rei and she awakens to true love.

Shinoda Mariko as Sudo Rei
A stylist who declares that she is a lesbian. A stylish woman who strives to diet at the gym where Mizushima Juri works, before her marriage.

Mori Yusaku as Sokabe Naoki
Mizushima Juri’s fiance. A man who is detached from reality, he idealises Juri as an angel. He is never discouraged no matter how many harsh she is to him.

Scriptwriters
Yoshida Noriko (Kataomoi, Chuushingura no Koi)
Yokota Rie (Daisy Luck, Koi ga Heta demo Ikitemasu)

Original Work
Mistresses by BBC

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Jikou Keisatsu 2019
Date: 2019
Station: TV Asahi
Scriptwriter: Miki Satoshi (Atami no Sousakan, Jikou Keisatsu Series)
Genre: Comedy mystery
Cast: Odagiri Joe, Aso Kumiko
Synopsis: Kiriyama Shuichiro (Odagiri Joe) returns to Japan after a 12-year secondment to the FBI in the US, and rejoins the Statute of Limitation Management Division at Sobu Police Precinct. The primary job of this division is to send documents on cases where the statue of limitations have run out to the prosecution, and to manage these investigation materials. However, ever since the statue of limitation was abolished for serious cases such as murders, the division has become more redundant than ever. Kiriyama returns to his old haunt and gets started on his hobby again with his assistant Mikazuki Shizuka (Aso Kumiko). It is to personally investigate cases where the statute of limitation is expiring. He is not particularly concerned about identifying the criminal or the size of the cases. All he wants to do is to make sure his deductions are correct.
Website: www.tv-asahi.co.jp/jikou2019

Ai Naki Mori de Sakebi
Date: 2019
Network: Netflix Japan
Scriptwriter: Sono Shion (Tokyo Vampire Hotel, Minna ESPer dayo! Series, Jikou Keisatsu Series)
Cast: Shiina Kippei, Mitsushima Shinnosuke, Denden
Synopsis: Murata Jo (Shiina Kippei) is a ruthless criminal. On the surface, he is cheerful and lively. But he emotionally controls other people, milks them for money and makes them commit brutal crimes.
Website: –

Boku wa Mada Kimi o Aisanai Koto ga Dekiru^*NEW*
Date: 2019
Station: Fuji on Demand
Scriptwriters: Arai Yuka (Kimi wa Petto (2017), Watashi no Uchi ni wa Nanimo Nai, Tokyo Sentimental), Koga Fumie (Kimi wa Petto (2017), Itazurana Kiss 2 (2014))
Original Work: In Time with You
Genre: Romance
Cast: Adachi Rika, Shirasu Jin
Synopsis: Mitari Yo (Adachi Rika) is a career woman who works for a shoe maker. She finds her work rewarding and has successfully advanced in her career. But she keeps having her heart broken and her romantic life has not gone very well lately. Ishida Ren (Shirasu Jin) works for a developer and is Yo’s best friend. An ex-classmate from both high school and university days, he understands her the best and is the only person she pours her heart out to. On Yo’s 29th birthday, the two friends place a wager to give 300,000 yen as a congratulatory gift to the one who is the first to get married by the last day they are 30. Although they declare that it is impossible for them to fall in love with each other, this wager as well as advances by Ren’s junior in the company and Yo’s reunion with her ex-boyfriend lead to gradual changes in the relationship of the two best friends.
Website: www.cinemart.co.jp/dc/j/bokumada

Ossans’ Love Season 2
Date: From 11.15 p.m., Saturdays, 2019
Station: TV Asahi
Scriptwriter: –
Genre: Love comedy
Cast: Tanaka Kei, Yoshida Kotaro, Hayashi Kento
Synopsis: –
Website: www.tv-asahi.co.jp/ossanslove
Related: Ossans’ Love Season 1

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Official Website
www.wowow.co.jp/dramaw/akutou

Broadcast
From 10.00 p.m., Sundays, 12 May 2019

Network
WOWOW

Story
Saiki Shuichi is a former detective who now works for an investigation agency. One day, a couple called the Hosoyas asks him to track Sakagami Yoichi, the man who killed their son and has reintegrated with society after leaving a juvenile correctional institution. Saiki begins investigating on the orders of agency chief, Kogure Masato. But he personally lives with the desire for revenge as his older sister Yukari was murdered in his childhood. As the investigation progresses, Saiki finds out that Sakagami has turned to crime again and is involved in a bank transfer scam. After careful deliberation of the couple’s feelings as the victim’s family, Saiki reports on his investigation. The couple make another request, asking him to find materials that will form the basis for deciding whether Sakagami should be absolved. So Saiki reaches out to Sakagami and tells the Hosoyas his conclusion. Even after that, he continues follow-up investigations on perpetrators of crimes and their circumstances since then are revealed through these findings. Then with the help of a hostess called Haruka, Saiki gets to the villainous trio – Enoki Kazuya, Terada Masashi and Tadokoro Kenji – who drove his sister to her death years ago. What final action will Saiki take?

Characters
Higashide Masahiro as Saiki Shuichi
A former police officer who is now an investigator at the investigation agency called Hope. His older sister Yukari was murdered after she was raped when he was a child. He tackles all sorts of requests as an investigator as he searches for the whereabouts of the three men who killed Yukari.

Matsushige Yutaka as Kogure Masato
The head of the detective agency, Hope. He is the man who pulled Saiki Shuichi into the world of investigators after Saiki was dismissed as a police officer. He has an easygoing personality and cannot get enough of money and sweet things.

Itaya Yuka as Sometani Kumiko
A clerk who works with Saiki Shuichi and Kogure Masato at the investigation agency. Her pet phrase is “I don’t know” which she says with feigned indifference.

Shinkawa Yua as Haruka
A hostess whom Tadokoro Kenji, one of Saiki Yukari’s murderers, is enamoured with. She meets Saiki Shuichi when he comes to investigate Tadokoro and soon helps with his investigation.

Aoyagi Sho as Sakagami Yoichi
The leader of a group of fraudsters. He is the target of Saiki Shuichi’s investigation and was once served a sentence for violence that cause the death of Hosoya Hirobumi’s son.

Emoto Tokio as Suzumoto Shigeki
A lawyer who has a good track record in criminal cases involving juvenile, and becomes one of the investigation agency’s clients. He wants to know if the youth he once defended in these cases have reformed. He was also in charge of the defence in Saiki Yukari’s case.

Miura Masaki as Tadokoro Kenji
One of Saiki Yukari’s murderers. He has been running a ramen shop after reintegrating into society.

Ikeda Akana as Saiki Yukari
Saiki Shuichi’s older sister. She was raped and murdered by Enoki Kazuya, Terada Masashi and Tadokoro Kenji on Shuichi’s birthday 15 years ago.

Masuoka Toru as Saiki Toshio
Saiki Shuichi’s father. He runs a barber shop and watches over his son who wavers between forgiveness and vengeance.

Oshima Hako as Saiki Naoko
Saiki Shuichi’s mother. She has built an emotional wall ever since Yukari’s case.

Scriptwriter
Suzuki Kenichi (Bye Bye Blackbird, Medamayaki no Kimi Itsu Tsubusu?)

Original Work
Akuto by Yakumaru Gaku

Click here for photos from the press conference.

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Official Website
www.ytv.co.jp/buzz

Broadcast
From 11.59 p.m., Thursdays, 4 April 2019

Network
NTV

Story
Kagari Akari, the manager at a cafe called Corona, comes from an ordinary family. Her mother Hinako is a full-time housewife, her father Atsushi is a drama producer while her younger brother Makito is a student hunting for a job. An earnest young lady, she plays the good child who conforms to the expectations of the people around her. However, she truly has no interest in her family and knows nothing about them. Until one day … … On the way to work, an insolent salaryman jumps the queue for the train Akari is trying to board but she simply smiles. At the cafe, a regular customer, Minato Ryota, comes when it opens for business. He is Akari’s crush. She is nervous but excited as she serves him. Then an angry voice rings out. A middle-aged man yells at her staff Morita Momo for giving him the slight. Akari sincerely apologises to him in a firm manner as the manager of the cafe, while Ryota watches on with concern. With the rest of the customers staring at them, the man feels awkward and hurriedly leaves the cafe. On the way home, Akari heads somewhere on her own. She takes out a black bag from a coin locker and enters a karaoke box. Placing a smartphone on a stand in front of her, Akari vents her feelings as she hides behind a demon-like mask of a namahage. This is Akari’s other side, one that she keeps a secret from her family, friends and even colleagues. When she gets home, her grandfather Kiyoshi has come over. The whole family sits round the dining table with smiles. But these smiles disappear once the get together is over and he goes back. They are playing a happy family in front of Kiyoshi and trying hard to avoid upsetting him. In truth, no one cares about the family. While Akari is relaxing in the living room, her brother suddenly calls her over. Some customer had recorded and posted a video of the man who complained earlier in the day, and this video has gone viral. The comments are not about Akari or the cafe, but abusive comments directed at the man. In the bedroom, Hinako watches her own cooking video on a tablet. There are many comments as usual. However, the comments are not about the food. The next morning, when Akari gets to work, there is a queue outside which is unusual for the cafe. She later discovers from Momo that the video Makito showed her yesterday was re-edited to focus on her, and has been trending. Customers crowd into the cafe to see Akari and even take pictures with her. She has become a popular person overnight. Akari finds herself elevated to an influencer which upends her family’s quiet life.

Characters
Uchida Rio as Kagari Akari
The manager of a cafe. The eldest child of the Kagaris. She is cheerful and affable but secretly has another side to her. She becomes an influencer when a video goes viral.

Takaoka Saki as Kagari Hinako
Kagari Akari’s mother. She started posting cooking videos on YouTube after she was done with raising her children.

Kinoshita Takayuki as Kagari Atsushi
Kagari Akari’s father. A producer at a TV production company. He does not use social media and does not care about the opinions of netizens.

Ono Takehiko as Kagari Kiyoshi
Kagari Akari’s grandfather. He lives near the Kagaris and is the only person whom Akari can open her heart to. It is a family rule that when he comes to the house, everyone has to sit around the dining table.

Shirasu Jin as Minato Ryota
A regular customer at the cafe Corona. Kagari Akari has a crush on him. He works at a sports gym and dreams of having his own gym in the future. He has a prejudice against people who post anonymously on social media.

Scriptwriter
Magy (Kanna-san!, Rinshou Hanzai Gakusha Himura Hideo no Suiri)

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Official Website
www.nhk.or.jp/drama/dodra/tatoo

Broadcast
From 9.00 p.m., Saturdays, 18 May 2019

Network
NHK

Story
Iwai Kentaro was a prosecutor with the Tokyo District Public Prosecutors Office’s Special Investigation Department. A graft case that he pursued ended with the suicide of politician Ito Hidemitsu’s secretary. He quit in despair and became a lawyer. One day, a young man called Taiga visits Iwai. He is a popular YouTuber who makes tens of millions annually. However, he says one of his videos stirred up a storm online and he was shoved by someone on a train platform. Iwai is asked to identify the person who warned of killing Taiga. When Iwai begins investigating, he discovers that Taiga is the second son of that politician he pursued as the mastermind in the graft case. He has misgivings about Taiga’s story and intentions. But first this analogue man must start grappling with the internet … …

Characters
Takahashi Katsumi as Iwai Kentaro
A former prosecutor turned lawyer in his 50s. When he was in charge of a graft case involving influential politician Ito Hidemitsu while at the Special Investigation Department, he drove Ito’s eldest son Sosuke to suicide, and later left the Tokyo District Public Prosecutors Office in despair.

Seto Koji as Taiga (Ito Daisuke)
A popular YouTuber in his 20s. He is actually the second son of Ito Hidemitsu who is an influential figure in politics. He was on good terms with his older half-brother Sosuke and feels depressed about his suicide.

Karata Erika as Iwai Saki
Iwai Kentaro’s only daughter. A third-year university student. Although her mother passed away when she was young, she has a distant relationship with her father and started living alone after she went to university.

Ibu Masato as Ito Hidemitsu
An influential figure in politics and the leader of the casino bill. Taiga’s father.

Takezai Terunosuke as Ito Sosuke
Ito Hidemitsu’s eldest son and secretary. He committed suicide right after being interrogated by Iwai Kentaro.

Asaka Mayumi as Yoshikawa Mieko
Ito Hidemitsu’s ex-wife. Ito Sosuke’s mother. She suspects her ex-husband is connected to her son’s death.

Iida Kisuke as Takashima Koichi
Ito Hidemitsu’s first secretary. He cannot stand Taiga.

Scriptwriter
Asano Taeko (Tasogare Ryuuseigun, Gomen Aishiteru)

Click here for photos from the press conference.

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Date: From 9.00 p.m., 19 May 2019
Scriptwriter: Iwashita Yuko (Kasouken no Onna Seasons 14 – 18, Tokyo Scarlet, Keiji no Manazashi)
Original Work: Shimei by Yakumaru Gaku
Cast: Yoshida Kotaro, Kaku Kento, Renbutsu Misako, Nakao Akiyoshi, Moro Morooka, Kanai Yuta, Yamaya Kasumi, Oji Megumi, Kurosawa Asuka, Ogi Shigemitsu
Synopsis: Sakaki Shinichi (Kaku Kento), a young day trader who lives alone in a high-rise apartment building, is hearing impaired and wears a hearing aid. One day, Sakaki meets a group of former volunteer members from his student days including childhood friend Yamaguchi Sumino (Renbutsu Misako) who also used to be his ex-girlfriend. Although they are envious of the luxurious life that Sakaki now leads, he is actually facing a life crisis like no other. Sakaki has been diagnosed with illness and his days are numbered. This is the turning point that makes him decide to be true to himself and give in to the mysterious homicidal impulses that he had been suppressing all this while. The next day, a young woman Okamoto Maki is found strangled to death. Detective Aoi Ryo (Yoshida Kotaro) from the Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department’s First Investigative Division teams up with Yabe Tomoki (Nakao Akiyoshi), a detective from Nippori Police Precinct, and begins an investigation into the case. Although Aoi feels in poor health due to a recurrence of the illness he had three years ago, he presses on. However, his condition turns out to be severe enough to threaten his life. Despite being seized with fear of death, Aoi resolves to focus on arresting the murderer. Meanwhile, Sumino learns that Sakaki does not have long to live, and decides to stand by him. Sakaki is comforted by her presence. But he is unable to control this strange impulse to kill people and roams the streets at night. Then the body of another woman is discovered. Aoi who has been tracking Maki’s last moments by checking security camera footage, soon finds out that a man in sunglasses had called out to her. Guessing from the man’s actions that he is hearing impaired, Aoi makes every effort to gather eyewitness statements from this new angle. However, he collapses all of a sudden while interviewing an eyewitness and is taken to a hospital. Aoi’s daughter Mizuki (Yamaya Kasumi) is notified and rushes over. However, the person who approaches her is none other than Sakaki … …
Official Website: www.tv-asahi.co.jp/shimei

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Official Website
www.nhk.or.jp/natsuzora

Broadcast
From 8.00 a.m., Mondays – Saturdays, 1 April 2019

Network
NHK

Story
When Okuhara Natsu was nine, she lost her parents in the war and was separated from her older brother Saitaro and younger sister Chiharu. In the summer of 1946, she arrives in Tokachi in Hokkaido with her adoptive father Shibata Takeo who was her father’s comrade in arms. The men had promised to look after each other’s family in case anything happened. The Shibatas are dairy farmers who settled from the Hokuriku region. Takeo’s father-in-law Taiju, a first-generation immigrant to Hokkaido, is known to be a crusty old man. Although he calls Natsu a burden, he feels sorry for her deep down. Natsu girds herself and helps in caring for the cows and horses and milking. Moved by her hard work, Taiju begins to drill the spirit of the settlers and the importance of life into her. As Natsu helps out with dairy farming, she regains her cheerfulness. In elementary school, Natsu meets a youth called Yamada Tenyo who draws wonderful sketches of horses. Introduced to animated films, which had become popular in America at that time, by Tenyo, she is moved by this dreamlike world. By the time she is a high school student, Natsu hopes to get a job where she can draw due to the influence of Tenyo who aspires to be an artist. However, Takeo wants her to marry his only son Teruo and take over the farm. At this point, Natsu is informed that her brother is working in Tokyo. The day when she leaves draws near … …

Characters
Hirose Suzu as Okuhara Natsu
Her parents died in the war and she was separated from her siblings. Her father’s comrade in arms Shibata Takeo adopted her and she migrated to Tokachi in Hokkaido. As she helps out at the Shibatas dairy farm under Takeo’s father-in-law Taiju, she regains her cheerfulness. After graduating from high school, she goes to Tokyo and takes a plunge into the world of animation during the early days. As an animator, she demonstrates fresh sensitivity influenced by the great outdoors that she grew up in.

Yoshizawa Ryo as Yamada Tenyo
Although he has a flair for art, he has to help out in farming and cannot further his education because his family is poor. In between farm work, he would draw on plywood. He is good at drawing horses with a sensitivity that expressed bold dynamism. He teaches Natsu, who aspires to be an animator, artistic taste and has a great influence on her life.

Okada Masaki as Okuhara Saitaro
Okuhara Natsu’s jovial older brother. He loves singing and tap dancing. Even after their parents died and he became a surrogate parent to their younger sister Chiharu, he never stopped smiling and did his best to bring her up. After Natsu is entrusted to the Shibatas and Chiharu to relatives, he spends some time at an orphanage but later runs away and goes missing. He is reunited with Natsu in Shinjuku after nine years.

Kusakari Masao as Shibata Taiju
He settled in Tokachi alone at the age of 18 in 1902. He cleared the wilderness and tried rice cultivation but it would not take root so he began dairy farming. After his wife died of illness, he raised their daughter Fujiko on his own. He is eccentric and obstinate but is a man with deep affection. He instills in Natsu the skills to get through life.

Fujiki Naohito as Shibata Takeo
He married into the Shibata family. He and Okuhara Natsu’s father who was a comrade in arms made a promise to take care of each other’s family if either of them died. To make good of his word, he takes Natsu to Tokachi. He is a loyal and kind man but is always mindful of his father-in-law and is no match for him.

Matsushima Nanako as Shibata Fujiko
Shibata Takeo’s wife. A woman with great fortitude, she gets her kindness and toughness from her father Taiju. She is the only one in the family who is able to speak to her father as equals. Although she does not know what to make of her relationship with Okuhara Natsu, she tries her best to raise Natsu like her own child. She has a cheerful and positive personality, and is good at cooking and making confections using milk and butter.

Kiyohara Sho as Shibata Teruo
An earnest young man with a strong sense of responsibility like his father Takeo. As the heir, he is being groomed by his grandfather Taiju and Takeo in raising cattle. But he is always bested by Okuhara Natsu because he is inept. Although his marriage with Natsu is encouraged by Taiju, he secretly wishes it will happen.

Fukuchi Momoko as Shibata Yumiko
The Shibatas’ eldest daughter who is the same age as Okuhara Natsu. At first, she has something against Natsu. But as they start living together, they grow to become like real sisters who confide in each other. She used to detest milk but is able to drink it thanks to Natsu.

Yamada Yuki as Obata Yukijiro
Okuhara Natsu’s classmate in agricultural high school. He is a frivolous attention seeker. When they were in high school, he was crazy about the drama club and asked Natsu to the club’s activities. After graduation, he went with Natsu to Tokyo to train to become a confectioner. He is her good friend and she brightens up when they are together.

Higa Manami as Maejima Koko
The owner of Kawamuraya, a bakery and cafe in Shinjuku since the pre-war period. She has an air of mystery and is called “madam” by the people around her. She has in-depth knowledge of the arts and supports talented young people. She ends up taking care of Okuhara Natsu for some reason.

Yamaguchi Tomoko as Kishikawa Ayami
She was very popular as a dancer at the legendary theatre Moulin Rouge Shinjukuza. After she retired, she opened an oden shop in a back alley of Shinjuku. Many regulars visit her shop, drawn to her bold and bright personality.

Iura Arata as Naka Tsutomu
The leader of Toyo Animation’s animators. He is the director of Japan’s first feature-length animation. He has a gentle manner and is popular. He is good at cute character design and delicate expressions. Everyone looks up to him as a mentor.

Kanjiya Shihori as Osawa Asako
A remarkable animator who joined Toyo Animation after graduating from an art college. She supports animation director Naka Tsutomu and settles things on set. She seems cool but is passionate deep down. She has alienated herself within the company because of her fearless personality.

Scriptwriter
Omori Sumio (Frankenstein no Koi, Seirei no Moribito Series, Nezumi Edo o Hashiru Series)

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Date: From 9.00 p.m., 22 – 26 May 2019
Scriptwriter: Habara Daisuke (Spiral, Showa Genroku Rakugo Shinjuu, Godan)
Original Work: Shiroi Kyoto by Yamazaki Toyoko
Cast: Okada Junichi, Matsuyama Kenichi, Sawajiri Erika, Terao Akira, Matsushige Yutaka, Kishibe Ittoku, Mitsushima Shinnosuke, Yashima Norito, Mimura Rie, Ichikawa Mikako, Kobayashi Kaoru, Kaho, Ichige Yoshie, Takashima Reiko, Iitoyo Marie, Shiina Kippei, Yanagiba Toshiro, Kishimoto Kayoko, Mukai Koji, Saito Takumi, Yamazaki Ikusaburo
Synopsis: Zaizen Goro (Okada Junichi) of the First Department of Surgery at Naniwa University’s Faculty of Medicine is well-known in the medical community as a specialist in laparoscopic surgery. A man with a friendly personality, he is the university’s star associate professor – idolised by students at the affiliated university and by his colleagues. One night, the condition of a special patient Yamada Otoichi, the Chairman of Kinki Shimbun, changes all of a sudden during a party to celebrate the 77th birthday of Naniwa University’s Professor Emeritus Takimura Kyosuke (Kobayashi Nenji). Yamada who is suffering from pancreatic cancer, designates Zaizen to be his operating surgeon. Yamada was originally the special patient of Zaizen’s boss Professor Azuma Teizo (Terao Akira). Zaizen appears to hesitate about going over Professor Azuma’s head to perform the surgery. But in his heart, he gloats over this opportunity that dropped in unexpectedly. The surgery is a success and Zaizen is given fine wine and several million in cash by Yamada. Although Professor Azuma feigns nonchalance over having his own special patient saved by Zaizen, he is bitter about it. Meanwhile, the elections for a professor at Naniwa University’s Faculty of Medicine is drawing near given Professor Azuma’s impending retirement. He murmurs to a patronising Zaizen that he intends to recommend him to be the next professor. But in truth, he privately starts to think of someone who is not Zaizen. At this point, Zaizen’s peer Associate Professor Satomi Shuji (Matsuyama Kenichi) of the First Department of Surgery, is shown the medical records of a patient who has had a relapse of stomach cancer. Zaizen’s diagnosis is that the primary lesion is the pancreas and not the stomach. He points out that the relapse is a misdiagnosis. But once he learns that this was made by Ugai Yuji (Matsushige Yutaka), the dean of Naniwa University’s Faculty of Medicine, he changes his mind. Satomi criticises Zaizen for trying to avoid opposing their higher-ups in preparation for the election. Before long, Professor Azuma fields someone other than Zaizen as a candidate to be professor. Zaizen makes maximum use of the financial and political clout of his father-in-law Zaizen Mataichi (Kobayashi Kaoru) and starts work to fulfil his long-cherished wish to become the professor of the First Department of Surgery at Naniwa University’s Faculty of Medicine. There are unforeseen developments in an election swirling with desires and cruel fate later makes sport of Zaizen.
Official Website: www.tv-asahi.co.jp/shiroikyotou

Click here for photos from the press conference.

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Natsuzora
Date: From 8.00 a.m., Mondays – Saturdays, 1 April 2019
Station: NHK
Scriptwriter: Omori Sumio (Frankenstein no Koi, Seirei no Moribito Series, Nezumi Edo o Hashiru Series)
Cast: Hirose Suzu, Okada Masaki, Kusakari Masao, Matsushima Nanako, Fujiki Naohito, Kiyohara Sho, Fukuchi Momoko, Kobayashi Takashi, Otoo Takuma, Yasuda Ken, Takahata Atsuko, Yamada Yuki, Yoshizawa Ryo, Totsugi Shigeyuki, Kobayashi Ayako, Sendo Nobuko, Hirao Nanaka, Tomita Miu, Inukai Atsuhiro, Emoto Tasuku, Nakahara Takeo, Kitano Kii, Yamaguchi Tomoko, Higa Manami, Kondo Yoshimasa, Lily Franky, Toda Keiko, Suzuki Anju, Mizutani Kaho, Kudo Asuka, Iura Arata, Kanjiya Shihori, Nakagawa Taishi, Sometani Shota, Watanabe Mayu, Ihara Rikka, Kawashima Akira, Kote Shinya, Kinoshita Houka, Kadono Takuzo
Synopsis: 9-year-old Okuhara Natsu lost her parents in the war and was separated from her older brother Saitaro (Okada Masaki) and younger sister Chiharu. In the summer of 1946, she is taken to Tokachi in Hokkaido by her adoptive father Shibata Takeo (Fujiki Naohito) who was her father’s comrade in arms. The Shibatas are dairy farmers from the Hokuriku region. As Natsu helps out with dairy farming, she regains her cheerfulness. She begins to learn about the spirit of the settlers and the importance of life from Shibata’s father-in-law Taiju (Kusakari Masao), a first-generation immigrant to Hokkaido. In elementary school, Natsu is introduced to animated films, which had become popular in America at that time, by a youth called Yamada Tenyo (Yoshizawa Ryo). She is moved by this dreamlike world. Under the influence of Tenyo who aspires to be an artist, Natsu (Hirose Suzu) hopes to get a job where she can draw. However, Shibata wants her to marry his only son Teruo (Kiyohara Sho) and take over the farm. At this point, Natsu is informed that her brother is working in Tokyo. The day when she leaves draws near … …
Website: www.nhk.or.jp/natsuzora
Preview: Natsuzora Introduction

Takane to Hana
Date: From 18 March 2019 (updated every Monday)
Station: Fuji on Demand
Scriptwriters: Takeda Juri (Juken no Cinderella, Rikon Bengoshi), Nishikori Iyo, Yamamoto Nana
Original Work: Takane to Hana by Shiwasu Yuki
Genre: Love comedy
Cast: Takasugi Mahiro, Takeuchi Aisa, Ito Asahi, Tozuka Junki, Kirizasaki Eiji, Endo Kenshin, Nagami Rea, Miyazaki Yu, Nishihori Ryo, Nito Yuko, Deguchi Arisa, Okada Koki, Shinagawa Toru
Synopsis: 26-year-old Saibara Takane (Takasugi Mahiro), the scion of the Takaba Group, has the perfect looks and perfect career but is a snob. One day, he is introduced to Nonomura Hana (Takeuchi Aisa), an ordinary high school student 10 years his junior, at an arranged marriage meeting. Disguised as her older sister Yukari (Deguchi Arisa) who refused to meet him, Hana intends to end things amicably. However, she is so infuriated with Takane’s haughty attitude and insulting words that she shouts defiantly at him and leaves. Takane is intrigued by Hana who is unaffected by his appearance and status while Hana accepts the match to bring him to his knees. As the two of them trade barbs, and run hot and cold, glimpses of pure love can be seen.
Website: www.fujitv.co.jp/takanetohana
Preview: Takane to Hana CM

Shousetsu Ou
Date: From 22 April 2019 (updated every Monday)
Station: Fuji on Demand
Scriptwriters: Koyama Shota (Zettai Reido Season 3, Inochi Urimasu, Career), Hikawa Kayo (Strawberry Night Saga, Cecile no Mokuromi, Kirawareru Yuuki)
Original Work: Shousetsu Ou by Hayami Kazumasa
Cast: Shirahama Aran, Koyanagi Yu, Sakuraba Nanami, Kajihara Zen, Nishioka Tokuma, Ono Yuriko, Morita Kanro, Rokkaku Shinji, Ikeda Ryo, Nagami Rea, Sudo Ren
Synopsis: Writer Yoshida Toyotaka (Shirahama Aran) is a one-hit wonder who once won a big award in the past but lived in obscurity after that. Feeling the limits of his talent, he is about to end his writing career when he meets Koyanagi Shuntaro (Koyanagi Yu), a third-rate editor who is actually a childhood friend that drifted apart, and Sakura Haruko (Sakuraba Nanami), a fan. Yoshida and Koyanagi try to change the publishing industry slump through the power a book.
Website: www.fujitv.co.jp/shosetsuoh
Preview: Shousetsu Ou CM

Yasuragi no Toki ~ Michi
Date: 12.30 p.m., Mondays – Fridays, 8 April 2019
Station: TV Asahi
Scriptwriter: Kuramoto Sou (Yasuragi no Sato, Kaze no Garden, Haikei Chichiue-sama)
Cast: Fubuki Jun, Seino Nana, Ishizaka Koji, Asaoka Ruriko, Kaga Mariko, Mickey Curtis, Yamamoto Kei, Kamijo Tsunehiko, Fuji Tatsuya, Nadaka Tatsuo, Kusakari Tamiyo, Itaya Yuka, Kazama Shunsuke, Hirayama Hiroyuki, Miyata Toshiya, Kishimoto Kayoko, Hashizume Isao, Yanagiba Toshiro (guest star)
Synopsis: Kikumura Sakae (Ishizaka Koji) begins writing a script based on the late “princess” Kujo Setsuko (Seino Nana/Fubuki Jun) from his recollection of a script set in a mountain village in Yamanashi Prefecture about a couple who lived through the Showa and Heisei periods, that was rejected in the past.
Website: www.tv-asahi.co.jp/yasuraginotoki

Radiation House ~ Houshasenka no Shindan Report
Date: From 9.00 p.m., Mondays, 8 April 2019
Station: Fuji TV
Scriptwriter: Okita Haruka (Good Doctor, Keiji Yugami, Sukina Hito ga Iru Koto)
Original Work: Radiation House by Mori Taishi
Genre: Medical
Cast: Kubota Masataka, Honda Tsubasa, Hirose Alice, Suzuki Nobuyuki, Endo Kenichi, Yamaguchi Sayaka, Asano Kazuyuki, Wakui Emi, Hamano Kenta, Maruyama Tomomi, Yano Masato, Issey Ogata (guest star), Nakagoshi Noriko (guest star), Uchiyama Rina (guest star), Yamamoto Maika (guest star), Sato Megumi (guest star)
Synopsis: Igarashi Iori (Kubota Masataka) is a talented radiographer who believes the “truth” is definitely captured in CT and MRI images. He and radiologist Amakasu An (Honda Tsubasa) work at a hospital’s radiology department where they determine the causes of patients’ illnesses and injuries.
Website: www.fujitv.co.jp/radiationhouse

Spiral ~ Machikoujou no Kiseki
Date: From 10.00 p.m., Mondays, 15 April 2019
Station: TV Tokyo
Scriptwriter: Habara Daisuke (Showa Genroku Rakugo Shinjuu, Kurokawa no Techou (2017), Godan)
Original Work: Hagetaka 4.5/Spiral by Mayama Jin
Cast: Tamaki Hiroshi, Kanjiya Shihori, Tozuka Junki, Fukushi Seiji, Nonami Maho, Mizusawa Erena, Maehara Ko, Watanabe Kunito, Shima Takeaki, Toyama Toshiya, Hasegawa Jun, Takarabe Kahomi, Ono Takehiko, Hiraizumi Sei, Mashima Hidekazu, Maya Miki, Kunimura Jun
Synopsis: Shibano Takeo (Tamaki Hiroshi) is a corporate restructuring expert. He shifts from a major electronics manufacturer to a small metal moulding factory called Majitech upon the sudden death of his benefactor, the talented inventor Fujimura Tokio (Hiraizumi Sei). Majitech is on the brink of bankruptcy and he has to turn it around. Shibano battles together with the late Fujimura’s daughter Asako (Kanjiya Shihori), her younger brother Nozomu (Tozuka Junki) who feels a sense of inferiority, Fujimura’s right-hand man Okemoto (Kunimura Jun) and others to save the factory. However, a vengeful Murao Koichi (Mashima Hidekazu), who had a connection with Shibano in the past, and a foreign fund Horizon headed by CEO Naomi Tominaga (Maya Miki), attempt to take over Majitech for some purpose.
Website: www.bs-tvtokyo.co.jp/spiral

Itsuka, Nemuri ni Tsuku Hi
Date: From 12.00 a.m., Tuesdays, 12 March 2019
Station: Fuji on Demand
Scriptwriter: Motoyama Kumiko
Original Work: Itsuka, Nemuri ni Tsuku Hi by Inu Jun
Cast: Otomo Karen, Koseki Yuta, Kai Shoma, Kita Noa
Synopsis: Morino Hotaru (Otomo Karen) is a second year high school student who has had an unrequited crush on Otaka Ren (Kai Shoma) since junior high school. One day, while on a school trip with Ren and her good friend Yamamoto Shiori (Kita Noa), their bus gets into an accident. When Hotaru wakes up, she is told by Kuro (Koseki Yuta) who is dressed fully in black, “I’m your guide. Morino Hotaru, listen carefully. You are dead.” Hotaru learns that if she does not get over her attachment to three things within 49 days, she will end up becoming a ghost bound to a specific physical location. And so, Hotaru sets out to settle the three lingering regrets with the limited time she has, in the company of Kuro.
Website: fod.fujitv.co.jp/s/genre/drama/ser4g87

Atama ni Kitemo Aho to wa Tatakauna!
Date: From 12.59 a.m., Tuesdays, 23 April 2019
Station: NTV
Scriptwriter: Fukihara Kota (Yube wa Otanoshimi deshite ne, I”s, 99.9 Keiji Senmon Bengoshi Series)
Original Work: Atama ni Kitemo Aho to wa Tatakauna! by Tamura Kotaro
Genre: Semi-autobiographical
Cast: Chinen Yuri, Jinbo Satoshi, Wakatsuki Yumi, Hasegawa Tomoharu, Shibuya Kento, Okumura Kae, Sumida Kyoka, Aoyama Megu, Naritto, Sato Ryuta, Namase Katsuhisa
Synopsis: Tanimura Kotaro (Chinen Yuri) was granted an early entry into Cambridge University in the UK and returned to Japan after obtaining his MBA. He joined an established toy manufacturer as a new recruit. He has big ambitions but there the fools that he must deal with on the road to success – fools that rob people like him of precious time, energy and opportunities and get in his way. This passionate young man will have to use his wits and energy to deal with the fools of this world without a fight as he paves the way to his future.
Website: www.ntv.co.jp/Ahodrama
Preview: Atama ni Kitemo Aho to wa Tatakauna! CM

Perfect World
Date: From 9.00 p.m., Tuesdays, 16 April 2019
Station: Fuji TV
Scriptwriter: Nakatani Mayumi (Tonari no Kazoku wa Aoku Mieru, Jimi ni Sugoi Series, Last Cinderella)
Original Work: Perfect World by Aruga Rie
Genre: Romance
Cast: Matsuzaka Tori, Yamamoto Mizuki, Seto Koji, Nakamura Yuri, Matsumura Hokuto, Kimura Yuichi, Mizusawa Erena, Horiuchi Keiko, Toyota Maho, Aso Yumi, Matsushige Yutaka
Synopsis: Architect Ayukawa Itsuki (Matsuzaka Tori) is paralyzed from waist down. Although he was the ace of the basketball club back in high school, he injured his spinal cord in an accident while in the third year in university. After that, he decided that he would not play basketball or fall in love ever again because he is wheelchair-bound. Itsuki was Kawana Tsugumi’s (Yamamoto Mizuki) classmate and her first love. Tsugumi liked drawing and her ambition was to get into art college. But she lacked confidence and gave up on the entrance exam. Even though she got into an interior design firm, it is a clerical position. Itsuki and Tsugumi happen to meet again at a work-related drinking session. The two of them are attracted to each other. However, they face problems including disapproving parents, the appearance of a love rival and illness as they search for the meaning of happiness.
Website: www.ktv.jp/perfectworld
Preview: Perfect World Teaser

Watashi, Teiji de Kaerimasu
Date: From 10.00 p.m., Tuesdays, 16 April 2019
Station: TBS
Scriptwriters: Okudera Satoko (Reverse, N no Tame ni, Yakou Kanransha), Shimizu Yukako (Aino Kekkon Soudanjo, Reverse, Fukigenna Kajitsu (2016))
Original Work: Watashi, Teiji de Kaerimasu by Akeno Kaeruko
Genre: Office
Cast: Yoshitaka Yuriko, Mukai Osamu, Nakamaru Yuichi, Emoto Tokio, Izumisawa Yuki, Shishido Kafka, Sakurada Dori, Eguchi Noriko, Kajihara Zen, Sakai Toshiya, Uchida Yuki, Santamaria Yusuke
Synopsis: 32-year-old Higashiyama Yui (Yoshitaka Yuriko) is a director at Net Heroes, a web production company. Her motto has been to leave work on time ever since she suffered some past trauma when she was a fresh graduate. Yui does not believe in living for work. She tries to be effective and productive while at work and cherishes her personal life, enjoying beer at her regular Chinese restaurant after she leaves office. However, when a new department manager Fukunaga Seiji (Santamaria Yusuke) comes on board, Yui’s life starts to change. She struggles between her boss and colleagues Taneda Kotaro (Mukai Osamu), her workaholic ex-fiancee; Azuma Toru (Emoto Tokio), the inefficient front-end engineer who lives in the office; Kurusu Taito (Izumisawa Yuki), the unmotivated newbie who always talks about quitting; Mitani Kanako (Shishido Kafka), a fellow web director with a perfect attendance, and Shizugatake Yae (Uchida Yuki), her mentor who has just had twins; but pulls off small miracles every day.
Website: www.tbs.co.jp/watatei
Preview: Watashi, Teiji de Kaerimasu CM

Otto no Chinpo ga Hairanai
Date: From 20 March 2019
Station: FOD & Netflix Japan
Scriptwriter: Kurosawa Hisako (Minshuu no Teki, Tokyo Joshi Zukan, Arechi no Koi)
Original Work: Otto no Chinpo ga Hairanai by Godama
Cast: Nakamura Aoi, Ishibashi Natsumi, Ono Machiko, Sakai Maki, Eguchi Noriko, Hamano Kenta, Matsuo Satoru, Ochiai Motoki, Tsutsui Mariko, Harumi Shiho, Kunihiro Tomiyuki, Chiba Masako
Synopsis: Kumiko (Ishibashi Natsumi) enters university and begins dating Kenichi (Nakamura Aoi) who has moved into the same apartment. On the first night that they try to sleep together, Kenichi cannot perform at all. Even after that, the two of them are unable to make love. However, their desire to be together because they love each other is stronger and they decide to get married. Kumiko feels a strong sense of inferiority that she cannot do something normal like this while an anguished Kenichi thinks he is “defective” and cannot make her happy. The couple gradually drift apart.
Website: fod.fujitv.co.jp/s/genre/drama/ser4f47

Toritsu Mizusho! ~ Reiwa
Date: From 1.28 a.m., Wednesdays, 8 May 2019
Station: TBS
Scriptwriter: Mori Hayashi (Himomen, Saki Series, Nou ni Sumaho ga Umerareta!)
Original Work: Toritsu Mizusho! by Murozumi Hikaru
Genre: School
Cast: Ryusei Ryo, Tsunematsu Yuri, Seto Toshiki, Kamio Fuju, Ohara Yuno, Iikubo Haruna, Ogura Yuka, Onodera Akira, Bhandari Asaya, Tomita Kentaro, Hamatsu Takayuki, Suzunosuke, Nagao Mariya, Hotta Akane, Matsui Rena, Masu Takeshi
Synopsis: It is a new era, Reiwa. A high school located in Kabukicho in Tokyo’s Shinjuku ward. Known as Toritsu Mizusho for short, it is a metropolitan school which provides education related to the night entertainment business. 23-year-old Ishiwata Naoki (Ryusei Ryo), who has been job hunting, finds employment in the night entertainment business for the title of “teacher” because of his girlfriend Haruka (Hotta Akane). After getting a job, he learns for the first time that this school specialises in the night entertainment business. It conducts four courses – cabaret, host, manager and soapgirl. Naoki feels uncomfortable after he learns the truth about the school such as “champagne calls” at morning assembly and the fierce competition at cabaret practice. He ends up being put in charge of Class 3C but quickly gets involved in unending and unexpected trouble caused by his students.
Website: www.mbs.jp/mizusho

Hakui no Senshi
Date: From 10.00 p.m., Wednesdays, 10 April 2019
Station: NTV
Scriptwriter: Umeda Mika (Seigi no Se, 37.5°C no Namida, Hanasaki Mai ga Damattenai Series)
Genre: Comedy
Cast: Nakajo Ayami, Mizukawa Asami, Kotaki Nozomu, Katase Nana, Suzuki Sarina, Komatsu Ayaka, Yamazaki Moka, Miyake Ryosuke, Yasuda Ken, Sawamura Ikki, Tomita Yasuko (guest star), Suzuki Jin (guest star), Hotta Mayu (guest star), Zaizen Naomi (guest star), Shirasu Jin (guest star), Kawashima Ririka (guest star), Kirishima Reika (guest star), Tonesaku Toshihide (guest star), Saeki Daichi (guest star), Omura Ayako (guest star), Kaneda Akio (guest star), Umezawa Masayo (guest star), Tanaka Kotaro (guest star)
Synopsis: Cheerful, unconventional Tachibana Haruka (Nakajo Ayami) used to be a delinquent but is now a rookie nurse. She is compassionate and easily moved to tears. She hates anything crooked and unreasonable. Although Haruka fulfilled her dream to become a nurse, she is constantly shocked by the gap between the world she had imagined and reality, and repeatedly makes blunders. Her supervisor is Mihara Natsumi (Mizukawa Asami), a veteran nurse who has the disposition of a caring big sister. Natsumi is trusted by their superiors, colleagues as well as patients. A hopeless romantic who wants to pampered by a man, she has been proactively hunting for a marriage partner so that she can quit being a nurse. But she has not been successful yet. As Natsumi guides Haruka, her feelings begin to change.
Website: www.ntv.co.jp/hakui
Preview: Hakui no Senshi Teaser

Iyasaretai Otoko
Date: From 1.35 a.m., Thursdays, 11 April 2019
Station: TV Tokyo & Paravi
Scriptwriters: Yoshimoto Masahiro (Onna no Naka ni Iru Tanin, Kageri Yuku Natsu, Bokura Playboys Jukunen Tanteisha), Tanaka Shinichi (Sasurai Onsen, Fuhatsudan, Shitsuji Saionji no Meisuiri), Mizoi Eiichi Davis (Shogi Meshi, Hana no Zubora Meishi)
Cast: Suzuki Kosuke, Uno Misako, Takasaki Shota, Hankai Kazuaki
Synopsis: 44-year-old Akiyama Hiroshi (Suzuki Kosuke) is an ordinary salaryman who works for a small toilet manufacturer. He feels stressed daily as a middle manager, having to guide his subordinates (Uno Misako, Takasaki Shota) and clean up mess. As a way to relieve his stress, Akiyama targets the beautiful women he sees on the streets, at the convenience store and client companies, and has sexual fantasies about them. He is a pure pervert with the imagination of an average junior high school student. Akiyama often goes to a convenience store near his job. There, he meets a convenience store clerk and a married woman whom he gives the nicknames Puniko Irojiro and Mureko. His sexual fantasies now involves these women.
Website: www.tv-tokyo.co.jp/iyasaretai
Preview: Iyasaretai Otoko CM

Kinkyuu Torishirabeshitsu Season 3
Date: From 9.00 p.m., Thursdays, 11 April 2019
Station: TV Asahi
Scriptwriter: Inoue Yumiko (Kinkyuu Torishirabeshitsu Series, Pandora Series, 14-sai no Haha)
Genre: Investigative
Cast: Amami Yuki, Tanaka Tetsushi, Hayami Mokomichi, Suzuki Kosuke, Okura Koji, Denden, Tsukaji Muga, Kohinata Fumiyo, Nakamura Shizuka, Ikushima Yuki, Asano Atsuko (guest star), Ichikawa Yui (guest star), Konno Mahiru (guest star), Matsui Jurina (guest star), Kakei Miwako (guest star), Imai Yuki (guest star), Matsumoto Marika (guest star), Washio Machiko (guest star), Maya Kyoko (guest star), Kokubu Sachiko (guest star), Yamazaki Shigenori (guest star), Kurashina Kana (guest star), Okubo Kayoko (guest star)
Synopsis: Makabe Yukiko (Amami Yuki) is a detective in the First Investigative Division’s Emergency Investigation Response Team. They are a team of interrogation experts that goes by the name of Kintori. Surrounded by idiosyncratic veteran interrogators (Tanaka Tetsushi, Denden, Osugi Ren, Kohinata Fumiyo), she pursues the truth hidden behind cases as she plays mind and word games with tough criminals.
Website: www.tv-asahi.co.jp/kintori
Related: Kinkyuu Torishirabeshitsu Season 2

Strawberry Night Saga
Date: From 10.00 p.m., Thursdays, 11 April 2019
Station: Fuji TV
Scriptwriters: Tokunaga Yuichi (Good Doctor, Kuragehime, Keiji Yugami), Hikawa Kayo (Cecile no Mokuromi, Kirawareru Yuuki, GTO (2014)), Seki Erika (Gosaigyou, Kekkon Aite wa Chusen de, Hello Harinezumi)
Original Work: Himekawa Reiko Series by Honda Tetsuya
Genre: Detective
Cast: Kamenashi Kazuya, Nikaido Fumi, Hayama Shono, Shishido Kai, Nakabayashi Taiki, Shigeoka Daiki, Konno Hiroki, Kikuchi Momoko (guest star), Ibu Masato, Jinbo Satoshi, Yamaguchi Makiya, Okada Koki, Eguchi Yosuke, Horii Arata (guest star), Terawaki Yasufumi (guest star), Kurosawa Asuka (guest star), Yamamoto Koji (guest star)
Synopsis: Himekawa Reiko (Nikaido Fumi) became an assistant inspector with the Tenth Homicide Section at the young age of 27 even though she was not on the career track. As the only female section chief in the First Investigative Division, she leads Team Himekawa, armed with her intuition, dramatic ideas and energy, and has solved many challenging cases. Her older subordinate Kikuta Kazuo (Kamenashi Kazuya), a sergeant, is initially skeptical of her when he is transferred to the team. However, he gradually comes to realise her competence and charm, and special feelings begin to grow. Reiko’s nemesis is Katsumata Kensaku (Eguchi Yosuke), an assistant inspector with the Fifth Homicide Section. Although he boasts an overwhelming lead in the number of arrests, his illegal investigation methods have also drawn suspicion.
Website: www.fujitv.co.jp/strawberrynight
Preview: Strawberry Night Saga Teaser

Mukai no Bazuru Kazoku
Date: From 11.59 p.m., Thursdays, 4 April 2019
Station: NTV
Scriptwriter: Magy (Kanna-san!, Rinshou Hanzai Gakusha Himura Hideo no Suiri)
Genre: Comedy
Cast: Uchida Rio, Takaoka Saki, Shirasu Jin, Kinoshita Takayuki, Nachi, Ogawa Sara, Nagano Munenori, Yamanaka Takashi, Fujii Takemi, Ono Takehiko
Synopsis: Kagari Akari (Uchida Rio) is the manager of a cafe. An earnest young lady, she plays the good child who conforms to the expectations of the people around her. But on the internet, she is a completely different person and she keeps this “dark side” a secret from her family, friends and even colleagues. Then one day, Akari’s life totally changes with the sudden appearance of the perfect love and a video that can happen to anyone. She gets elevated to an influencer after the video goes viral on the internet, and upends her family’s quiet life.
Website: www.ytv.co.jp/buzz
Preview: Mukai no Bazuru Kazoku CM

Yuri da no Kanda no^*UPDATED*
Date: From 24 May 2019 (updated on Fridays)
Station: Fuji on Demand
Scriptwriter: Nojima Shinji (Kareshi o Loan de Kaimashita, Papa Katsu)
Cast: Baba Fumika, Kojima Fujiko, Zaiki Takuma, Nakao Yuka, Tomaru Sayaka, Kasahara Hideyuki, Miyamoto Maki, Ishiguro Ken
Synopsis: University student Shinohara Yuri (Baba Fumika) is troubled by a stalker and decides to move because of continuous harassment such as used tissue stuffed inside her mailbox at home. At the real estate company, Yuri is recommended a new property. She is called Yuri-chan by Ninomiya Kairi (Kojima Fujiko), the female employee who shows her around, and told that they were elementary school classmates. Yuri recalls that Kairi was a junior idol back then. The two of the hug each other and rejoice in their reunion. However, Yuri feels something more than the joy of meeting again in Kairi’s words and the length of her hug, and experiences discomfort … …
Website: –

Kakafukaka ~ Kojirase Otona no Sharehouse
Date: From 12.59 a.m., Fridays, 26 April 2019
Station: TBS
Scriptwriter: Aso Kumiko (Gosaigyou, Double Fantasy, Yami no Bansosha Series)
Original Work: Kakafukaka by Ishida Takumi
Genre: Romance
Cast: Morikawa Aoi, Nakao Masaki, Yuki Kousei, Nakamura Risa
Synopsis: 24-year-old Terada Aki (Morikawa Aoi) failed in her job hunt and is going through an existential crisis when she happens to meet her ex-boyfriend, Hongyo Tomoya (Nakao Masaki) who was the first guy she slept with, at a sharehouse. They unexpectedly begin sharing a bed together.
Website: www.mbs.jp/kakafukaka

Shitsuji Saionji no Meisuiri Season 2
Date: From 8.00 p.m., Fridays, 19 April 2019
Station: TV Tokyo
Scriptwriters: Fujii Kiyomi (Keiji Yugami, Utsubokazura no Yume, Renai Jidai), Oishi Tetsuya (Kirawareru Yuuki, Shitsuji Saionji no Meisuiri Season 1, Scapegoat), Mira Shunsuke, Manabe Chiaki (Shitsuji Saionji no Meisuiri Season 1, Tokusou 9, Saikyou no Futari), Sakamaki Koji (Akuryo Byoto, Hontou ni Atta Kowai Hanashi Series 2015 – 2018)
Genre: Mystery
Cast: Kamikawa Takaya, Yoshiyuki Kazuko, Mizuki Arisa, Sato Jiro, Asari Yosuke, Morinaga Yuki, Satomi Kotaro, Furuya Ikkou, Hirayama Yusuke, Sakurano Ayane, Iketani Nobue, Asano Yuko (guest star), Princess Tenno (guest star)
Synopsis: Saionji Hajime (Kamikawa Takaya) serves the wealthy Ijuuin family. He graduated at the top of the London school for butlers. As the perfect butler, housekeeping skills and management of the mansion go without saying. He mastered martial arts and also has knowledge of all sorts of genres including science and history. Saionji has established a firm relationship of trust with Yuriko (Yoshiyuki Kazuko), the widow of the head (Satomi Kotaro) of the Ijuuin family. He abides by the wishes of the inquisitive Yuriko and independently investigate difficult case. No matter how capable he is as a butler, he should be an amateur at investigating cases. However, nothing is impossible for Saionji who brilliantly figures out the mystery with his knowledge and skills.
Website: www.tv-tokyo.co.jp/shitsuji

Mushikago no Jomae
Date: From 10.00 p.m., Fridays, 22 March 2019
Network: WOWOW
Scriptwriters: Shimizu Masashi (Otoko Meshi), Kodera Kazuhisa (Shinjuku Seven)
Original Work: Mushikago no Jomae by Narita Ryogo
Genre: Action suspense
Cast: Suzuki Hiroki, Kiyohara Sho, Uno Shohei, Kuroda Daisuke, Ikeda Akana, Hagiwara Minori, Sadamoto Fuma, Matsumoto Ukyo, Suzuki Shinsuke, Yamanaka Takashi, Murakami Wataru, Izawa Yuki, Akazawa Tomoru, Niina Motohiro, Chiba Masako, Tanigawa Shoichiro, Kobayashi Ryuju
Synopsis: A religious cult called Mushikago no Niwa that secretly developed hidden human potential existed in the past. However, one such person, whose potential was unleashed, rose in rebellion. After the cult was destroyed, the members dispersed and only the rumour of a vast fortune on the cult’s grounds is whispered in the underworld. Nanami (Kiyohara Sho) is a go-between and trades information with people of the underworld. One day, he meets Kagoroku (Suzuki Hiroki) who happens to be there when he is in a tough spot in a secret deal. The two of them eventually team up to solve all sorts of issues. They get involved in a fight between the former Mushikago no Niwa members that went through human experiments and the people of the underworld over the mystery of the cult’s assets.
Website: www.mushikago-pj.net

In Hand
Date: From 10.00 p.m., Fridays, 12 April 2019
Station: TBS
Scriptwriter: Yoshida Yasuhiro (Cold Case Series, Kounodori Season 2, Plage)
Original Work: In Hand by Akato Ao
Genre: Science mystery
Cast: Yamashita Tomohisa, Hamada Gaku, Nanao, Fujimori Shingo, Takahashi Haori, Sakai Takahiro, Taguchi Tomorow, Matsuo Takashi, Mitsuishi Ken, Kazama Morio (guest star), Aijima Kazuyuki (guest star), Masana Bokuzo (guest star), Mizuki Arisa (guest star), Matsumoto Wakana (guest star), Yoshikawa Ai (guest star), Kizu Takumi (guest star), Yamanaka Takashi (guest star), Tokito Saburo (guest star), Kiyohara Sho (guest star), Nukumizu Yoichi (guest star), Ishii Masanori (guest star), Okayama Hajime (guest star)
Synopsis: Himokura Tetsu (Yamashita Tomohisa) is a scientist who specialises in the study of parasites. He loathes people and is very sadistic. Tetsu bought a huge botanical garden in Hakone which he converted into his home and lab. He holes up in the conservatory where he researches his favourite parasites. His right arm is fitted with a black robotic hand. However, it is not known how this artificial hand came about. Tetsu is an eccentric genius who solves a series of difficult cases with astounding scientific methods.
Website: www.tbs.co.jp/inhand
Preview: In Hand CM

Mistresses ~ Onnatachi no Himitsu
Date: From 10.00 p.m., Fridays, 19 April 2019
Station: NHK
Scriptwriters: Yoshida Noriko (Kataomoi, Chuushingura no Koi, Henshin), Yokota Rie (Daisy Luck, Koi ga Heta demo Ikitemasu, Hairbrush Onna Tomodachi)
Original Work: Mistresses by BBC
Cast: Hasegawa Kyoko, Hyunri, Omasa Aya, Shinoda Mariko, Sugino Yosuke, Hosoda Yoshihiko, Mori Yusaku, Koshino Ena, Kanie Ippei, Kakei Miwako, Hotaru Yukijiro, Koyanagi Yukimi, Hashimoto Satoshi, Sato Ryuta, Yamadera Koichi, Yoshizawa Hisashi, Komoto Masahiro, Aso Yumi, Mizuno Miki
Synopsis: Four women who became close friends through a chance encounter have frequent gatherings where they drink, converse and vent their frustrations. However, they actually have serious issues which they cannot tell others. Shibasaki Kaori (Hasegawa Kyoko) is a doctor who feels burdened by the suicide of her lover Kido Koichiro (Hashimoto Satoshi). Although his son Takashi (Sugino Yosuke) suspects her involvement in his death, they are drawn to each other. Noguchi Tomomi’s (Mizuno Miki) husband went missing overseas and she recently received an insurance payout after he was deemed to be dead. She meets a new man who makes her feel excited about romance for the first time in a long while. Harada Saeko (Hyunri) discovers that her husband who wants children, is sterile. As they grow apart, she ends up having a one night stand. Mizushima Juri (Omasa Aya) has had a string of lovers. But when she meets a lesbian who is about to get married, she finds herself attracted to her and experiences true love for the first time in her life. Will the four women find their happy ever afters?
Website: www.nhk.or.jp/drama/drama10/mistress
Preview: Mistresses CM

Kaseifu no Mitazono Season 3
Date: From 11.15 p.m., Fridays, 19 April 2019
Station: TV Asahi
Scriptwriter: Yatsu Hiroyuki (Rikuou, Kaseifu no Mitazono Series, Chiisana Kyojin)
Genre: Home
Cast: Matsuoka Masahiro, Ino Kei, Kawaei Rina, Hirata Atsuko, Yo Kimiko, Owada Shinya (guest star), Ota Rina (guest star), Aoyama Noriko (guest star), Kiriyama Ren (guest star), Mizushima Marina (guest star), Chibana Kurara (guest star), Kosakai Kazuki (guest star), Tonesaku Toshihide (guest star), Yamazaki Hajime (guest star), Nakajima Hiroko (guest star), Adachi Yumi (guest star), Hasegawa Tomoharu (guest star), Kobayashi Takashi (guest star), Fuse Eri (guest star)
Synopsis: Mitazono Kaoru (Matsuoka Masahiro) is a superb housekeeper who belongs to Musubi Housekeeping Agency. Although he is a male in an industry dominated by females, he handles housework such as cleaning, laundry, cooking and babysitting perfectly. However, it is not just the dirt in the house that Mitazono cleans. He learns the family secrets and exposes the family for who they really are. Then he gives the last push that breaks up relationships. However, this becomes the catalyst for the family to start again and solve the problems they have. This time Mitazaono is in the service of a family that drills for oil in Arabia. He is summoned back to Japan by Musubi Yoriko (Yo Kimiko) and is tasked with teaching her newphew Murata Hikaru (Ino Kei) to stand on his own two feet. And so Mitazono takes Hikaru and the young housekeeper Onda Moe (Kawaei Rina) and act as a trio.
Website: www.tv-asahi.co.jp/mitazono
Related: Kaseifu no Mitazono Season 1

Tokyo 23-ku Onna
Date: From 12.00 a.m., Saturdays, 13 April 2019
Station: WOWOW
Scriptwriter: Nagae Toshikazu
Original Work: Tokyo 23-ku Onna by Nagae Toshikazu
Genre: Horror mystery
Cast: Kurashina Kana, Tsukifune Sarara, Sakata Masanobu, Sano Shiro, Adachi Yumi, Kamimura Ami, Kuno Makiko, Hasegawa Tomoharu, Suzuki Sawa, Sakuraba Nanami, Fujiwara Kisetsu, Kohinata Fumiyo, Dan Mitsu, Onishi Shima, Takenaka Naoto, Nakayama Miho, Mafia Kajita, Asakawa Yu, Ogi Shigemitsu, Shimazaki Haruka, Shirasu Jin, Yamasaki Mami, Fujiki Yuki, Okayama Amane
Synopsis: Freelance writer Harada Ririko (Shimazaki Haruka) and former lecturer on folklore Shimano Hitoshi (Okayama Amane) go around to Tokyo’s hidden spots with horror stories. They encounter many apparitions in places that everyone knows about in the 23 wards. There is the office lady (Kurashina Kana) who wanders the subterranean drains of Shibuya ward in search of her missing mother. The mistress (Adachi Yumi) who hides a dead body in Koto ward’s Yume no Shima. The riddle of the Ikebukuro woman and romance in old age. The secret of the female CEO (Dan Mitsu) who encounters an apparition in a late night taxi plying Minato ward. The doctor’s wife (Nakayama Miho) whose fate is at the mercy of Itabashi ward’s tree which is supposed to severe ties between man and woman. The mystery of a woman and the Suzugamori execution grounds related to crime scenes in Shinagawa ward.
Website: www.wowow.co.jp/drama/tokyo23ku

Kinou Nani Tabeta?
Date: From 1.12 a.m., Saturdays, 5 April 2019
Station: TV Tokyo
Scriptwriter: Adachi Naoko (Toumeina Yurikago, Daibinbo, Shitsuren Chocolatier)
Original Work: Kinou Nani Tabeta? by Yoshinaha Fumi
Genre: Food
Cast: Nishijima Hidetoshi, Uchino Masaaki, Makita Sports, Isomura Hayato, Yashiba Toshihiro, Tanaka Misako, Marin, Chan Kawai, Takaizumi Atusko, Nakamura Yurika, Yamamoto Koji, Tayama Ryosei, Sato Hitomi (guest star), Megumi (guest star),
Synopsis: Kakei Shiro (Nishijima Hidetoshi) is a lawyer who works at a small law firm. He is a good cook and a meticulous and thrifty person who keeps the monthly food budget to 25,000 yen. Shiro’s daily routine is to leave work on time and head to a discount supermarket nearby. His partner Yabuki Kenji (Uchino Masaaki) is the affable hairdresser. The two of them share a two-bedroom apartment and the finer points of two men living together comes up at the dining table every day.
Website: www.tv-tokyo.co.jp/kinounanitabeta

Digital Tattoo
Date: From 9.00 p.m., Saturdays, 18 May 2019
Station: NHK
Scriptwriter: Asano Taeko (Tasogare Ryuuseigun, Gomen Aishiteru, Hapimari ~ Happy Marriage!?)
Genre: Suspense
Cast: Takahashi Katsumi, Seto Koji, Karata Erika, Ibu Masato, Takezai Terunosuke, Asaka Mayumi, Iida Kisuke, Yashima Norito, Konno Hiroki, Ike Nwala, Kubota Sayu, Arai Atsushi, Kondo Koen, Nakamura Yasuhi, Nakagoshi Noriko, Tokunaga Eri, Yada Akiko
Synopsis: Iwai Kentaro (Takahashi Katsumi) was a prosecutor with the Tokyo District Public Prosecutors Office’s Special Investigation Department. A graft case that he pursued ended with the suicide of a politician’s secretary (Takezai Terunosuke). He quit in despair and became a lawyer. One day, a young man called Taiga (Seto Koji) visits Iwai. He is a popular YouTuber who makes tens of millions annually. However, he says one of his videos stirred up a storm online and he was shoved by someone on a train platform. Iwai is asked to identify the person who warned of killing Taiga. When Iwai begins investigating, he discovers that Taiga is the son of that politician (Ibu Masato) he pursued as the mastermind in the graft case. He has misgivings about Taiga’s story and intentions. But first this analogue man must start grappling with the internet … …
Website: www.nhk.or.jp/drama/dodra/tatoo
Preview: Digital Tattoo CM

Dying Eye
Date: From 10.00 p.m., Saturdays, 16 March 2019
Station: WOWOW
Scriptwriter: Yoshida Noriko (Kataomoi, Chushingura no Koi, Manmakoto)
Original Work: Dying Eye by Higashino Keigo
Genre: Suspense
Cast: Miura Haruma, Takahashi Maryjun, Matsumoto Marika, Kakizawa Hayato, Onozuka Hayato, Fuchikami Yasushi, Kimura Yuichi, Horiuchi Keiko, Namase Katsuhisa
Synopsis: One night, Amemura Shinsuke (Miura Haruma), a bartender at a Nishi Azabu bar in Tokyo, is attacked by a male stranger and loses a part of his memories. However, he soon learns that he caused the death of a woman called Kishinaka Minae (Takahashi Maryjun) in a traffic accident one and a half years ago. And the man who came to attack him and later committed suicide, was her husband Reiji (Kakizawa Hayato). For some reason, Shinsuke is frequently advised by the people around him that it is better not to recall bad things. He begins to have misgivings about the truth of the accident. Then when Shinsuke returns to the bar on one rainy night, Ruriko (Takahashi Maryjun), a woman in mourning clothes and of unworldly beauty, shows up all of a sudden. From the time of her appearance, Shinsuke descends into a world of madness and anguish. Does she truly exist or is she a figment of imagination conjured by a guilty conscience?
Website: www.wowow.co.jp/dramaw/dyingeye
Preview: Dying Eye CM

Ore no Sukato, Doko Itta?
Date: From 10.00 p.m., Saturdays, 20 April 2019
Station: NTV
Scriptwriters: Sakurai Tomonari (Zombie ga Kita kara Jinsei Mitsumenaoshita Ken), Kato Takuya (Miki Clinic de Kanpai o)
Genre: School
Cast: Furuta Arata, Matsushita Nao, Nagase Ren, Michieda Shunsuke, Nagao Kento, Arakawa Yoshiyoshi, Okura Koji, Takahashi Hikaru, Jiro, Kiriyama Ren, Onishi Ayaka, Koichi Mantaro, Kataoka Yuki, Ito Asahi, Tanokura Yuta, Nakagawa Daisuke
Synopsis: 52-year-old Harada Nobuo (Furuta Arata) is a gay, cross-dressing Japanese language teacher who has joined a private high school that touts diversity. The wacky and extraordinary Harada is unbeatable in the face of authority and sets the hearts of students (Nagase Ren, Michieda Shunsuke, Nagao Kento, Takahashi Hikaru) free.
Website: www.ntv.co.jp/oresuka
Preview: Ore no Sukato, Doko Itta? CM

Tokyo Dokushin Danshi
Date: From 11.15 p.m., Saturdays, 13 April 2019
Station: TV Asahi
Scriptwriter: Kaneko Arisa (Chugaku Seinikki, Final Cut, Watashi Kekkon Dekinai Janakuta Shinain desu)
Genre: Love comedy
Cast: Takahashi Issei, Takito Kenichi, Naka Riisa, Takahashi Maryjun, Sakurai Yuki, Saotome Taichi, Nishina Ai, Naito Risa, Miyamoto Mayu, Nozoe Seiji, Ono Takehiko, Saito Takumi
Synopsis: Ishibashi Taro (Takahashi Issei) works for a major bank. He is an organisation man with a fine sense of balance. However, his analytical skills and observant eye gets in the way of romance. Miyoshi Reiya (Saito Takumi) heads a dental clinic. He is a divorced man who was “released” after a two-year”sentence”. Iwakura Kazuhiko (Takito Kenichi), the ultimate bachelor, is like an older brother to Ishibashi and Miyoshi. He is a lawyer with his own practice. These three men with better than average looks and qualities, are not bothered about marriage. They hang out with like-minded buddies and enjoy single life. One day, Ishibashi happens to meet Takeshima Mai, an ex-girlfriend who broke up with him three years ago. He begins to feel quiet regret for the “marriage” he had once dreamt of. Although Miyoshi is happily divorced, he faces a serious problem about his own identity and feels anxious while Iwakura finds himself at a critical juncture when his father falls ill in his hometown and he starts to reconsider love and marriage.
Website: www.tv-asahi.co.jp/tokyo-dokushin-danshi

Fujoshi Ukkari Gay ni Kokuru
Date: From 11.30 p.m., Saturdays, 20 April 2019
Station: NHK
Scriptwriter: Miura Naoyuki (Koekoi)
Original Work: Kanojo ga Sukina Mono wa Homo de Atte Boku de wa Nai by Asahara Naoto
Cast: Kaneko Daichi, Fujino Ryoko, Ogoe Yuki, Ando Tamae, Tanihara Shosuke
Synopsis: Jun (Kaneko Daichi), an 18-year-old high school student, has been hiding the fact that he is gay. One day, Jun comes across his classmate Miura-san (Fujino Ryoko) just as she is buying a comic on love between gays in a bookstore. He tells her this is fantasy and that gays in reality are filthy. She vehemently objects that he is being disrespectful to gays. Jun has also been hiding his sexual orientation from his mother Yoko (Ando Tamae). He is interested in Miura-san and accompanies her to an event for the fan magazine that she loves. Miura-san is drawn to Jun who has been sincere to her. The two of them quickly get close. One day, Miura-san finally confesses her feelings for Jun on a date set up by childhood friend Ryohei (Ogoe Yuki). The two of them start dating and get to the point where they are about to have sex but the situation becomes strained because of something unexpected and they head to a hot spring. However, Jun unexpectedly runs into his gay partner Makoto-san (Tanihara Shosuke) at the hot spring … …
Website: www.nhk.or.jp/drama/yoru/fujoshi
Preview: Fujoshi Ukkari Gay ni Kokuru CM

Mirror Twins Season 1
Date: From 11.40 p.m., Saturdays, 6 April 2019 (followed by Season 2 in June on WOWOW)
Networks: Fuji TV & WOWOW
Scriptwriter: Takahashi Yuya (Hi no Ko, Angel Heart, Tenshi to Akuma)
Genre: Suspense
Cast: Fujigaya Taisuke, Kurashina Kana, Takeda Rina, Watanabe Dai, Nukumizu Yoichi, Murakami Tomoko, Sakurai Atsuko, Nakamura Kumi, Satoi Kenta, Takahashi Katsunori, Ishiguro Ken
Synopsis: Katsuragi Keigo (Fujigaya Taisuke) is detective with the Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department’s First Investigative Division. The only evidence discovered at the scene of a case that he is investigating, is DNA that is exactly the same as his and he finds himself under pursuit. He wonders if the criminal is his older twin brother Yugo (Fujigaya Taisuke) who was abducted and went missing as a child. Despite having the same genes, their lives have turned out like two sides of a mirror. That is why deep in their hearts, each twin thinks that he is different from the other. Which one is truly evil and which one is righteous?!
Website: mirror-twins.com
Preview: Mirror Twins CM

Kamen Dosokai
Date: From 11.40 p.m., Saturdays, 1 June 2019
Station: Fuji TV
Scriptwriter: Yamaoka Junpei (Perfect Crime, Daisy Luck, Seigi no Se)
Original Work: Kamen Dosokai by Shizukui Shusuke
Genre: Crime suspense
Cast: Mizobata Junpei, Takimoto Miori, Sano Gaku, Kimura Ryo, Hirose Tomoki, Hinagata Akiko, Nagai Masaru, Watanabe Hiroyuki
Synopsis: Shintani Yosuke (Mizobata Junpei) is a salesman for housing equipment. After graduating from high school, he left his hometown. There are two reasons for this. He wanted to leave behind memories of his older brother who died in an accident 18 years old and of an abominable teacher who cast a shadow over his life in his youth. However, due to a personnel transfer, Shintani returns to the very hometown he had fled as if he were running away from his past several months earlier. He happens to meet Takenaka Misato (Takimoto Miori), an ex-classmate whom he admired, again and is invited to a high school reunion. He reluctantly attends the event and has a lively conversation with childhood friends Minagawa Kazuki (Sano Gaku), Omi Kazuyasu (Kimura Ryo) and Kataoka Yamato (Hirose Tomoki). The four of them relive their younger days and plan to get their revenge on their former disciplinary teacher Kashimura Sadashige (Watanabe Hiroyuki) who controlled students with brute force. They kidnap and punish Kashimura, and then disperse. They intended it as a prank. But the next day, that teacher is found death at some other place. Did one of the four of them return to the crime scene and kill him? Everyone denies this but they are filled with doubts and fears. This case will cause their beliefs to crumble.
Website: tokai-tv.com/kamendosokai

Shudan Sasen!
Date: From 9.00 p.m., Sundays, 21 April 2019
Station: TBS
Scriptwriter: Izumi Yoshihiro (Todome no Kiss, Aogeba Toutoshi, Death Note)
Original Work: Shudan Sasen! & Shinsouban Ginkou Shitenchou by Ebato Tetsuo
Genre: Corporate
Cast: Fukuyama Masaharu, Kagawa Teruyuki, Kamiki Ryunosuke, Nakamura Anne, Inowaki Kai, Takahashi Kazuya, Sakoda Takaya, Masuda Shuichiro, Taniguchi Shota, Hashimoto Mami, Ichimura Masachika, Kote Shinya, Akahori Masaaki, Papaiya Suzuki, Sakou Yoshi, Hashizume Jun, Tsukayama Masane, Yagi Akiko, Nishida Naomi, Omi Toshinori, Mikami Hiroshi, Bengal (guest star), Umezawa Masayo (guest star), Hirayama Hiroyuki (guest star), Nakamura Shizuka (guest star), Lilico (guest star)
Synopsis: Banker Kataoka Hiroshi (Fukuyama Masaharu) is promoted to branch manager before his 50th birthday. However, his joy is doused once he learns that he is taking up a post at the bank’s Kamata branch which is slated to wind up business. He is told that he does not need to put in hard work since the closure of the branch has been decided, and he is promised preferential treatment by senior management. When the branch is closed without a hitch, he will return to headquarters. Kataoka is uncomfortable with being told not to work hard for the first time in his life. However, he cannot bring himself to say the same to the unsuspecting employees at the branch. He is conflicted about his position and as he sees their efforts, he begins to wonder whether he should leave things as they are.
Website: www.tbs.co.jp/shudan-sasen
Preview: Shudan Sasen! CM

Saka no Tochuu no Ie
Date: From 10.00 p.m., Saturdays, 27 April 2019
Network: WOWOW
Scriptwriter: Shinozaki Eriko (Hanzai Shokogun Series, Rakuen, Copyface)
Original Work: Saka no Tochuu no Ie by Kakuta Mitsuyo
Genre: Suspense
Cast: Shibasaki Kou, Tanabe Seiichi, Ito Ayumi, Mashima Hidekazu, Sakurai Yuki, Matsuzawa Takumi, Matsumoto Emika, Nishida Naomi, Baisho Mitsuko, Takahata Atsuko, Sato Megumi, Takizawa Saori, Riju Go, Sakai Miki, Mitsuishi Ken, Fubuki Jun, Mizuno Miki
Synopsis: Yamazaki Risako (Shibasaki Kou) lives with her husband Yoichiro (Tanabe Seiichi) and 3-year-old daughter Fumika (Matsumoto Emika). One day, she receives a notification from the court that she has been selected as an alternate member of the jury for a shocking criminal case. The defendant in the case is Ando Mizuho (Mizuno Miki), a full-time housewife who is the same age as Risako. She is on trial for causing the death of her 8-month-old daughter by dropping her into the bathtub. As a mother herself, Risako feels repulsed that Mizuho killed her own child. However, after the trial opens, Mizuho’s circumstances remind Risako of her own past and she soon becomes confused with the chaotic feelings that have lain dormant in her.
Website: www.wowow.co.jp/dramaw/sakaie
Preview: Saka no Tochuu no Ie CM

Wagaya no Himitsu
Date: From 10.00 p.m., Sundays, 3 March 2019
Station: NHK BS Premium
Scriptwriters: Watanabe Chiho (Holiday Love, Beppin-san, 5-nin no Junko), Arai Shuko (Pretty ga Oosugiru, Tsubaki Bunguten, Higanbana)
Original Work: Wagaya no Himitsu by Okuda Hideo
Cast: Sato Hitomi, Tanaka Naoki, Yashima Norito, Nagai Masaru, Kishitani Goro
Synopsis: An omnibus drama about four wives (Sato Hitomi), one addicted to internet auctions, the others anxious about their husbands who (Yashima Norito, Nagai Masaru, Kishitani Goro) keep changing occupations and starting businesses.
Website: www.nhk.or.jp/pd/himitsu
Related: Wagaya no Mondai

Zekkyou
Date: From 10.00 p.m., Sundays, 24 March 2019
Network: WOWOW
Scriptwriter: Ikeda Natsuko (Shin Hannin, Miyazawa Kenji no Shokutaku, Algernon ni Hanabata o (2015))
Original Work: Zekkyou by Hamanaka Aki
Genre: Suspense
Cast: Ono Machiko, Yasuda Ken, Konishi Manami, Katagiri Jin, Maekawa Yasuyuki, Koyanagi Yu, Kaku Tomohiro, Hamatsu Takayuki, Okunuki Kaoru, Sakai Wakana, Kaname Jun, Aso Yumi
Synopsis: Suzuki Yoko (Ono Machiko) is an ordinary woman who grew up in a typical family. She was not loved by her mother who doted on her talented younger brother, and she concealed that loneliness as she worked as an office lady. However, Yoko’s life took a turn for the worse after her father disappeared one day. She was forsaken by society and turned to killing people for insurance money in order to survive.
Website: www.wowow.co.jp/dramaw/zekkyo

Dai Zenryoku Shissou
Date: From 10.00 p.m., Sundays, 7 April 2017
Station: NHK BS Premium
Scriptwriters: Shimada Ureha (Zenryoku Shissou, Koekoi, Sumika Sumire)
Cast: Harada Taizo, Ogawa Tamaki, Yuki Mio, Asano Atsuko, Yamada Yuki, Tezuka Toru, Ishimaru Kenjiro
Synopsis: Seven years after his disappearance, Isoyama Takeshi (Harada Taizo), who returned home, runs a bakery with his wife Seiko (Ogawa Tamaki) and daughter Nanami (Yuki Mio), but it has been in the red. The only happy news is that Nanami is engaged to Shirokane Masaya (Yamada Yuki), the son of the family that runs a long-established trading company. However, Masaya’s father (Ishimaru Kenjiro) shows contempt for the poor Isoyama and wants to break off the engagement. One day, Isoyama happens to meet an old friend Kurebayashi (Osumi Kenya) again. He is asked by Kurebayashi, who seems to be in poor health to deliver something to someone and spends a night in his car. The next morning, Isoyama encounters Meguro Yuki (Yokomizo Naho) who says she wants to escape from her father’s abuse. In order to save her, he pretends that they are father and daughter and flee from Tokyo … …
Website: www.nhk.or.jp/pd/daizen
Related: Zenryoku Shissou

Oshii Keiji
Date: From 10.00 p.m., Sundays, 5 May 2019
Station: NHK BS Premium
Scriptwriter: Uda Manabu (Tantei ga Hayasugiru, 4-go Keibi, 99% Keiji Senmon Bengoshi Series)
Original Work: Oshii Keiji by Fujisaki Sho
Genre: Comedy mystery
Cast: Kazama Shunsuke, Inukai Atsuhiro, Ishikawa Ren, Tsurumi Shingo, Sano Shiro
Synopsis: Oshii Takashi (Kazama Shunsuke), the legendary detective with a 100% arrest rate, is transferred to scandal-hit Udobashi Police Precinct. Although he finds evidence through his exceptional powers of deduction and brilliantly corners criminals, the tables are always turned at the very end. He always falls a step short of clues which get snatched by colleagues. The way he is called by the people around him sounds like “disappointing detective”. How will Oshii be able to solve cases?
Website: www.nhk.or.jp/drama/pd/oshii

Akuto ~ Kagaisha Tsuiseki Chousa
Date: From 10.00 p.m., Sundays, 12 May 2019
Network: WOWOW
Scriptwriter: Suzuki Kenichi (Bye Bye Blackbird, Medamayaki no Kimi Itsu Tsubusu?, Akuto Byouto)
Original Work: Akuto by Yakumaru Gaku
Genre: Mystery
Cast: Higashide Masahiro, Matsushige Yutaka, Shinkawa Yua, Aoyagi Sho, Renbutsu Misako, Yamaguchi Sayaka, Kanichiro, Shinohara Yukiko, Nakajima Ayumu, Watanabe Ikkei, Miura Masaki, Yamanaka Takashi, Namioka Kazuki, Emoto Tokio, Itaya Yuka, Masuoka Toru
Synopsis: Saiki Shuichi (Higashide Masahiro) is a former detective who now works for an investigation agency. His older sister Yukari was murdered in his childhood and he lives with the desire for revenge. One day, a couple (Watanabe Ikkei) asks him to track Sakagami Yoichi (Aoyagi Sho), the man who killed their son and has reintegrated with society after leaving a juvenile correctional institution. Saiki finds out that Sakagami has turned to crime and is involved in remittance fraud. With the help of a hostess called Haruka (Shinkawa Yua), Saiki gets to the villainous trio who drove his sister to her death years ago. What final action will the vengeful Saiki take?
Website: www.wowow.co.jp/dramaw/akutou

Nodoka no Niwa
Date: From 10.00 p.m., Sundays, 2 June 2019
Station: NHK BS Premium
Scriptwriters: Arai Shuko (Pretty ga Oosugiru, Tsubaki Bunguten, Mother Game), Obayashi Rieko (Inochi Urimasu, Karikare, Kuro no Onna Kyoushi)
Original Work: Nodoka no Niwa by Akiyama Kaori
Genre: Romance
Cast: Hashimoto Ai, Kudo Asuka, Nakamura Yurika, Nishida Naomi, Hiraizumi Sei, Saito Yuki, Tanaka Min
Synopsis: Motoko (Hashimoto Ai) is a 23-year-old graduate student who is learning German culture. She falls in love with a professor called Sakaki (Tanaka Min) who is 41 years her senior.
Website: –

Anata no Ban desu
Date: From 10.30 p.m., Sundays, 14 April 2019 (for two seasons)
Station: NTV
Scriptwriter: Fukuhara Mitsunori (Gokudo Meshi, Makanai-sou Series, Shikaku Tantei Higurashi Tabito Series)
Genre: Mystery
Cast: Harada Tomoyo, Tanaka Kei, Nishino Nanase, Asaka Kodai, Nao, Yamada Maho, Mikura Kana, Otomo Karen, Kanazawa Miho, Tsubokura Yoshiyuki, Nakao Masaki, Koike Ryosuke, Isaka Ikumi, Araki Towa, Hakamada Yoshihiko, Katagiri Jin, Matobu Sei, Wada Soko, Nomaguchi Toru, Hayashi Yasufumi, Kataoka Reiko, Minagawa Sarutoki, Tokui Yu, Tanaka Yoji, Nagano Satomi, Sakata Masanobu, Okata Hisako, Minemura Rie, Takenaka Naoto, Ando Masanobu, Kimura Tae, Namase Katsuhisa
Synopsis: A newlywed couple move into an apartment near the Sumida River in Tokyo. Tezuka Nana (Harada Tomoyo) is a designer of sportswear. She was pursued by sports gym trainer Shota (Tanaka Kei) whom she met through work and they got married despite their 15-year age gap. What they share in common is a love of mysteries. Seeing the close families and couples, they imagine a bright and happy future for themselves. However, the fates of the Tezukas are rocked by a residents meeting that Nana attends. The residents of the apartment building start dying around them. Those with motives to kill have alibis and the murderers cannot be arrested in any of the cases. The riddle lies in a game that the residents are playing among themselves. 13 of them have written down the people they want to kill for offending them and started this murder game where these slips of paper are randomly drawn. At first, it was something that none of them took seriously. Then the people whose names were written started getting killed one after another and another threatening note is delivered with the warning, “You are next”. There is no turning back even if they have regrets.
Website: www.ntv.co.jp/anaban

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Scarlet^*UPDATED*
Date: From 8.00 a.m., Mondays – Saturdays, 30 September 2019
Station: NHK
Scriptwriter: Mizuhashi Fumie (Haha ni Naru, Hayami-sensei Kekkon Surutte Hontou desu ka?, Sharehouse no Koibito)
Cast: Toda Erika, Kitamura Kazuki, Tomita Yasuko, Sakuraba Nanami, Fukuda Mayuko, Sato Ryuta, Oshima Yuko, Hayashi Kento, Zaizen Naomi, Magy, Mizuno Miki, Mizobata Junpei, Kimoto Takehiro, Hano Aki, Mitsubayashi Kyoko, Nishikawa Takanori, Matsushita Kohei, Issey Ogata
Synopsis: Shortly after the end of the war, Kawahara Kimiko (Toda Erika) moves to Shigaraki, a pottery town in Shiga Prefecture, from Osaka. The eldest of three girls, she is a hardworking person who has supported the family (Sakuraba Nanami, Fukuda Mayuko, Kitamura Kazuki, Tomita Yasuko) since she was a child. Having grown up around Shigaraki ware, Kimiko eventually plunges into the male-dominated world of ceramics where she proceeds to blaze a trail as a pioneering female ceramic artist. She falls in love and gets married to her husband who is also a ceramic artist. United by their aspiration to be the ideal creative couple, they strive to create unique Shigaraki ware with their own kiln. She becomes a mother of two children and also cultivates many disciples.
Website: –

Kekkon Dekinai Otoko Season 2
Date: From 9.00 p.m., Tuesdays, October 2019
Station: Fuji TV
Scriptwriter: Ozaki Masaya (Signal, Chinmoku Houtei, Kekkon Dekinai Otoko Season 1)
Genre: Romance
Cast: Abe Hiroshi
Synopsis: Kuwano Shinsuke (Abe Hiroshi), a successful architect, is well-to-do, knowledgeable and good-looking. He is now 53, still lives alone in the same apartment, which has the latest gadgets, and enjoys single life. Although he fell for Hayasaka Natsumi, the doctor who treated him and changed his perspective toward marriage, and even dated, they later broke up. So Kuwano’s heart is shut firmly to love again. He is even more eccentric now, and feels a little anxious when he thinks about the future. One day, the wheels of fate start to move all of a sudden after a chance encounter with some women.
Website: –

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Eru
Date: Spring 2020
Station: NHK
Scriptwriter: Hayashi Koji (Headhunter, Sniffer Series, Cold Case Season 1)
Cast: Kubota Masataka
Synopsis: In 1909, a long-awaited baby boy was born to a family which has run a dry goods store for generations in Fukushima Prefecture. He would later become the talented composer Koyama Yuichi (Kubota Masataka) who wrote many famous songs. Although Yuichi was brought up as the heir of the business, he was rather dreamy and considered a child with no redeeming traits by the people around him. However, when he encountered music, it sparked joy and unleashed his gift in composing music through self-study. As a youth, Yuichi secretly put his name down for an overseas songwriting competition. This would change his destiny. He won runner-up for the song he entered for the competition. As a result, he got to know a female student who wanted to be a singer. Despite the long distance between them – Fukushima and Toyohashi – the two of them tied the knot. When they came to Tokyo, they met all sorts of people and weathered a dark period to produce a number of hit songs. However, war broke out and Yuichi had to compose wartime songs at the army’s request. It pained him that young men died in battle after singing the songs he had written. After the war, the country began to recover amid the chaos. The couple made a new era of music in an attempt to encourage the wounded through the power of music.
Website: –

Hanzawa Naoki Season 2^*NEW*
Date: From 9.00 p.m., Sundays, April 2020
Network: TBS
Scriptwriter: Ushio Kentaro (Shitamachi Rocket Season 2, Black Pean, Chiisana Kyojin)
Original Works: Lost Generation no Gyakushuu and Ginyoku no Icarus by Ikeido Jun
Cast: Sakai Masato
Synopsis: Hanzawa Naoki (Sakai Masato) is seconded from Tokyo Chuo Banking Corporation to Tokyo Central Securities.
Website: –
Related: Hanzawa Naoki Season 1

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Official Website
fod.fujitv.co.jp/s/genre/drama/ser4h50

Broadcast
From 24 May 2019 (updated on Fridays)

Network
Fuji on Demand

Story
University student Shinohara Yuri is troubled by mysterious stalking behaviour. One day, she notices a lot of used tissue stuffed inside her mailbox at home and makes the decision to move in a bid to escape persistent harassment from her stalker. Yuri visits a real estate company where she is recommended a new property. She is called Yuri-chan by Ninomiya Kairi, the female employee who shows her around, and learns that they were elementary school classmates. Yuri recalls that Kairi was a junior idol back then. The two of them hug each other and rejoice in their reunion. However, Yuri feels something more than the joy of meeting again in Kairi’s words and the length of her hug, and experiences discomfort. They soon develop feelings for each other, and Yuri begins to realise the comfort of her relationship with Kairi, which is one of mutual support.

Cast
* Baba Fumika as Shinohara Yuri
* Kojima Fujiko as Ninomiya Kairi
* Zaiki Takuma as Tanabe Shuji
* Nakao Yuka as Harada Tomomi
* Tomaru Sayaka as Tsumura Shiho
* Kasahara Hideyuki as Miyake Yoshiyuki
* Miyamoto Maki as Ninomiya Mari
* Ishiguro Ken as Fuwa Makoto

Scriptwriter
Nojima Shinji (Kareshi o Loan de Kaimashita, Papa Katsu)

Related Post:

• Yuri da no Kan da no CM

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Followers
Date: 2020
Network: Netflix
Scriptwriter: –
Cast: Nakatani Miki, Ikeda Eliza, Kaneko Nobuaki, Itaya Yuka, Komu Ai, Yutaro, Uesugi Shuhei, Natsuki Mari
Synopsis: Nara Rimi (Nakatani Miki), an established and popular photographer, meets Momota Natsume (Ikeda Eliza) who has come to Tokyo with dreams of becoming an actress. Although Natsume suffers setbacks, she grows from these experiences in this story about the lifestyles of women whose lives intersect in this world dominated by social media.
Website: www.netflix.com/jp/title/80233221

Taiyo wa Ugokanai^*NEW*
Date: 2020 (followed by movie)
Network: WOWOW
Scriptwriter: Hayashi Tamio (Yokokuhan Series)
Original Work: Taiyo wa Ugokanai by Yoshida Shuichi
Genre: Suspense
Cast: Fujiwara Tatsuya, Takeuchi Ryoma
Synopsis: Takano Kazuhiko (Fujiwara Tatsuya), an agent for a secret organisation, has a small bomb embedded in his heart and is pushed to breaking point. His partner is Taoka Ryoichi (Takeuchi Ryoma). They begin a dangerous game of wits with agents from other countries over top-secret information about next-generation energy while facing the risk of death round the clock. Amid an extreme situation where they do not know who are their allies and foes, the bombs in their hearts approach the limit.
Website: www.wowow.co.jp/dramaw/taiyodrama

24
Date: 2020
Station: TV Asahi
Scriptwriter: –
Original Work: 24 by 20th Century Fox
Genre: Action suspense
Cast: –
Synopsis: The Japanese adaptation depicts a female prime ministerial candidate who is a terrorist target and the 24 hours until she becomes Japan’s first female Prime Minister. Jack Bauer’s previous missions include the rescue of Japanese nationals held hostage overseas and blowing up a chemical weapons factory used by terrorists.
Website: www.tv-asahi.co.jp/24japan

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Official Website
tokai-tv.com/kamendosokai

Broadcast
From 11.40 p.m., Saturdays, 1 June 2019

Network
Fuji TV

Story
Shintani Yosuke is a salesman for housing equipment. After graduating from high school, he left his hometown. There are two reasons for this. He wanted to run away from the dreadful memories of his older brother who died in an accident 18 years old and the corporal punishment he and his high school classmates were subjected to by an abominable teacher who cast a shadow over his life in his youth. However, Yosuke returns to the very hometown he had fled as if he were running away from his past due to a personnel transfer after he made a mistake at work. On his way home one day, he saves a woman who is being pursued by a stalker. This woman is Takenaka Misato, an ex-classmate whom he adored back in high school. Yosuke is pleased to meet her again by chance and Misato invites him to an upcoming high school reunion. Although Yosuke wants to run away from the past, the encounter with Misato puts him in good spirits. He attends the reunion and meets Minagawa Kiichi, Omi Kazuyasu and Kataoka Yamato, the childhood friends he used to hang around with. He had avoided seeing them after he left their hometown, but is immediately transported back to high school days from the moment they reunited. That detestable disciplinary teacher Kashimura Sadashige is also there. The sight of his face brings back the trauma of the past. After the high school reunion ends, Kiichi makes a shocking suggestion to Yosuke, Kazuyasu and Yamato. He proposes that they kidnap and punish Kashimura, and It is a prank to get their revenge on Kashimura who controlled students with brute force. They kidnap Kashimura, and leave him at a disused factory to scare him. Yosuke shows reluctance to go along with this childish plan but gets carried away by the mood of the others and persuaded to “settle the past”. But the next day, Kashimura is found death at some other place. Did one of the four of them return to the crime scene and kill him? Everyone denies this but they are filled with doubts and fears. This case will cause their beliefs to crumble.

Characters
Mizobata Junpei as Shintani Yosuke
A salesman who works for a housing equipment company. He feels a sense of guilt towards his older brother Masayuki who died in an accident 18 years ago. After graduating from Koriyama High School, he left his hometown but is made to return due to a personnel transfer. He is invited to a high school reunion by a former classmate Takenaka Misato whom he happened to meet, and is reunited with Minagawa Kiichi, Omi Kazuyasu and Kataoka Yamato when he attends. He participates in their plan to get revenge on their former disciplinary teacher Kashimura Sadashige without thinking anything about it. However, he gets caught up in an unexpected situation.

Takimoto Miori as Takenaka Misato
A graduate of Koriyama High School. She was in the same class as Shintani Yosuke, Minagawa Kiichi, Omi Kazuyasu and Kataoka Yamato in the third year. At that time, she was Yosuke’s dream girl because she was beautiful in addition to her good grades. She now works at the front desk of the local general hospital. She is saved by Shintani Yosuke while she was being followed by a stalker and this brings her closer to Yosuke.

Sano Gaku as Minagawa Kiichi
Shintani Yosuke’s childhood friend. He was pampered by his father as he grew up and became a person who always has to have his way and has no consideration for others. He now runs the property company that he inherited from his father. He plots a masked reunion to take out his anger at having been marked as a troublemaker by Kashimura Sadashige back in high school.

Kimura Ryo as Omi Kazuyasu
Shintani Yosuke’s childhood friend. He collapsed from heatstroke back in high school because of Kashimura Sadashige and that left him with a right leg that is still numb to this day. He has led a bleak life because of this and hates Kashimura. He is subservient and timid, and still lowly like the poop from Minagawa Kiichi’s goldfish even now.

Hirose Tomoki as Kataoka Yamato
Shintani Yosuke’s childhood friend. A calm and serious guy, he is now a university staff and gives advice to university students at the student affairs office. He had been dating the school beauty Hibino Mari but she jumped to her death after graduation. He is the person whom Yosuke is able to open up to the most among the three.

Hinagata Akiko as Uehara Kanako
An art teacher at Koriyama High School. A beauty whom the students idolise. She is actually obsessed with money and does dishonest things such as inflating teaching material fees because she is in debt for buying up branded goods. Besides having an affair with Kashimura Sadashige, she also gets close to the wealthy Minagawa Kiichi and this develops into a sexual relationship.

Nagai Masaru as Stalker
A mysterious man who is stalking Takenaka Misato. He also gets close to Shintani Yosuke who saved Misato.

Watanabe Hiroyuki as Kashimura Sadashige
Koriyama High School’s former disciplinary teacher who was also in charge of non-curricular educational guidance. He has antiquated views of education, believing that teachers who put down students with overwhelming force and compel them to walk the right path are doing the right thing. He was especially strict with male students. He is now a key person on the school’s board.

Scriptwriter
Yamaoka Junpei (Perfect Crime, Daisy Luck, Seigi no Se)

Original Work
Kamen Dosokai by Shizukui Shusuke

Click here for photos from the press conference.

Related Post:

• Kamen Dosokai CM

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