Daibinbo

Official Website
www.fujitv.co.jp/daibinbo

Broadcast
From 9.00 p.m., Sundays, 8 January 2017

Network
Fuji TV

Story
Saegusa Yuzuko is a single mother who is raising two children. On New Year’s Day in 2017, she makes the first visit of the new year to a small shrine in the neighbourhood with her son Shota and daughter Miyu. They make her smile with their earnest prayers and the paper fortune slip predicting that something good is going to happen this year puts her in a happy mood. She drops her high school reunion RSVP into a post box and goes back home. At the same moment, Kakihara Shinichi who runs a law firm, is praying at a big shrine. His paper bag containing money offerings to the gods is bulky. He self-consciously unrolls a paper fortune slip which predicts excellent luck for love and he smiles broadly. When Yuzuko arrives at her apartment, her happy mood vanishes instantly. A large amount of water pours out from her apartment and even the apartment downstairs is flooded. Because this is not covered by insurance and she has to finance the actual costs, the money she had saved up little by little has almost been depleted. Even so, Yuzuko psyches herself that things will be all right if she does her best at work. However, on her first day of work in the new year, there is a commotion outside the office building when she comes to work. A notice that her recruitment agency Dimensions of Humanity, or DOH in short, is ceasing business has been pasted there. Yuzuko is stunned. So is Kase Haruki, her colleague from the sales department whom she knows by sight. The sudden bankruptcy of her company in the wake of the flooding of her house means she has completely lost a total of 3.12 million yen of her in-house deposit. She is practically penniless. Yuzuko puts in an appearance at her high school reunion at the suggestion of her friend Sakurazawa Marie who thinks it is a shortcut to finding a job. Her old friends laugh at how the girl who had once been the school’s beauty has thrown away her pride. Even though she gets an introduction to another job through their connections, it does not go well. Just as Yuzuko is at her wits end, she gets a phone call out of the blue by Kakihara. However, she is the only one who thinks he is a complete stranger. In fact, Kakihara is her former high school classmate. He may not appear dependable from his small build and good-natured appearance, but he is an elite lawyer whose annual income is over 10 billion yen. He has liked Yuzuko since high school days and mustered the courage to get in touch with her after hearing about her situation. Although Kakihara advises that there has to be another side to her company’s bankruptcy, Yuzuko is more concerned about finding employment to support her kids rather than the reason why her life has been thrown into upheaval and ignores him. However, she is struck by Kakihara’s words questioning why she has no misgivings that she has been robbed of her peaceful life with her precious family. His research reveals the possibility that there was a mysterious large sum of money which appears to be part of what triggered the bankruptcy of Yuzuko’s company. As they close in on the truth, they get caught in the dark side of corporate world … …

Characters
Koyuki as Saegusa Yuzuko
A 38-year-old single mother who has been raising her son Shota and daughter Miyu, who are now 8 years old and 6 years old respectively ever since her younger husband cheated on her. Despite the hardships, the development of her two children are her greatest motivation and she cherishes living with them. She detests dishonesty and is a strait-laced person. She lives modestly and faithfully saves a small sum each month. But she becomes penniless after a series of misfortunes.

Ito Atsushi as Kakihara Shinichi
He handles many M&As of large corporations and big lawsuits, and his law firm is one of the top three in the business. He has a sharp mind, great negotiation skills and is extraordinarily fast in his work. He was a straight-A student who studied hard but lacked self-confidence and was introverted. This is why he remains terribly bad at romance. However, he is reunited with Saegusa Yuzuko, his classmate whom he had a crush on in high school. He learns that she is caught in a dilemma and offers her a helping hand that gives him the chance to get close to her.

Narita Ryo as Kase Haruki
The young, streetwise high-flyer of the sales department at Dimensions of Humanity, or DOH, where Saegusa Yuzuko works. He has been with the company for three years and is such a capable salesman that he has been headhunted. He possesses everything that people would envy. He is handsome, smart and good at winning people’s hearts. In fact, he secretly harbours some thoughts about DOH and ends up looking for the truth behind the company’s bankruptcy, together with Yuzuko and Kakihara Shinichi.

Takito Kenichi as Asaoka Reiji
The head of accounting at Dimensions of Humanity. A gentlemanly boss who is a quiet man and even speaks to his subordinates using honorifics. Because he is one of the few people who knows the true state of affairs regarding the establishment of the recruitment agency, he holds the key to the continuous wave of trouble surrounding DOH’s bankruptcy.

Okuda Eiji as Tenma Toshiaki
The managing director of Dimensions of Humanity. He is sincerely receptive to what his employees say and is an honourable man who is trusted by those within and outside of the company. He is also Saegusa Yuzuko’s benefactor for creating a conducive work environment for her. An incident prompts him to declare DOH’s bankruptcy and plunges to the depths of despair.

Scriptwriter
Adachi Naoki (Furenabaochin, Underwear, Shitsuren Chocolatier)

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