Chimudondon
Date: From 8.00 a.m., Mondays – Fridays, Spring 2022
Station: NHK
Scriptwriter: Habara Daisuke (Spiral, Showa Genroku Rakugo Shinjuu, Godan)
Directors: Kimura Takafumi, Matsuzono Takehiro, Nakano Ryohei
Cast: Kuroshima Yuina, Nakama Yukie, Omori Nao, Ryusei Ryo, Kawaguchi Haruna, Kamishiraishi Moka
Synopsis: Higa Nobuko (Kuroshima Yuina) lives with her family in Hinabita Village on Okinawa’s main island in the 1960s. They ran a sugar cane farm. At that time, the island was still under the American troops. The second daughter of four children (Ryusei Ryo, Kawaguchi Haruna, Kamishiraishi Moka), Nobuko is the one in the family who loves eating delicious food. One day, her heart is stolen by her first taste of Western cuisine on the only occasion when the whole family eats at a restaurant in town. However, her kind father Kenzo (Omori Nao) suddenly passes away, leaving her mother Yuko (Nakama Yukie) to work and raise four children on her own. They are financially strapped and the children are each put in charge of a household chore to help their mother. Nobuko is responsible for their meals. After graduating from high school, she dreams of going to Tokyo and becoming a Western cuisine chef. With the support of her family and siblings, Nobuko heads to Tokyo in a dream come true. While she spends time undergoing strict training in the kitchen of a famous restaurant, her brother and sisters also set out on their own paths. Although they may have grown apart, the hometown food that they have always eaten together and the memories of family are bonds that connect the siblings. They offer mutual support in adulthood. As Nobuko comes in contact with different people, falls in love and grows as a chef, she and starts wanting to open a restaurant serving Okinawan cuisine in Tokyo … …
Website: –
Twitter: twitter.com/nhk_dramas
Motokare no Yuigonjou
Date: From 9.00 p.m., Mondays, April 2022
Station: Fuji TV
Genre: Legal
Original Work: Motokare no Yuigonjou by Shinkawa Hotate
Scriptwriter: Sugihara Noriaki (Mamagoto, Mega Bank Saishuu Kessen)
Directors: Suzuki Masayuki, Sawada Kensaku
Cast: Ayase Haruka, Oizumi Yo
Synopsis: Beautiful, stylish Kenmochi Reiko (Ayase Haruka) works for one of the country’s top law firms. Although everyone regards her as a very outstanding lawyer, she has made enemies for stopping at nothing to win. She merely boasts that she is honest about her desire for money. One day, her bonus gets cut after a client accuses her of extortion. Feeling indignant about the way she has been treated, Reiko blusters that she is going to quit and takes a brief leave of absence. With time to spare, she sends emails at random to acquaintances. The only person who replies is an ex-boyfriend Morikawa Eiji whom she had only dated for six months when they were in university. But the email response contains shocking news of his death. The sender is a mysterious man called Shinoda Keitaro (Oizumi Yo). What is even more surprising is Eiji’s strange will that bequeaths his huge fortune to the person who killed him. However, it is the inheritance and not the fact that he died that sways Reiko. She comes up with a plan to make Shinoda the “murderer” and conspires to split the fortune equally with him but … …
Website: www.fujitv.co.jp/motokare
Twitter: twitter.com/motokare_cx_
Koi Nante, Honki de Yatte Dousuru no?*UPDATED*
Date: From 10.00 p.m., Mondays, 18 April 2022
Station: Fuji TV
Genre: Romance
Scriptwriter: Asano Taeko (Digital Tattoo, Tasogare Ryuuseigun, Gomen Ai Shiteru)
Directors: Miyawaki Ryo, Kitagawa Hitomi
Theme Song: Hatsukoi ga Naiteiru by Aimyon
Cast: Hirose Alice, Matsumura Hokuto, Nishino Nanase, Iitoyo Marie, Okayama Amane, Kashii Yu, Fujiki Naohito
Synopsis: Sakurazawa Jun (Hirose Alice), the young chief designer of a company that manufactures Western tableware, has a fulfilling life in Tokyo and has no wish for it to be disrupted. At 27, she has no experience in romance or men and insists that she does not want to waste her feelings and time on something as uncertain as love. There is actually a reason why she is adamant about it. Nagamine Shuma (Matsumura Hokuto), an apprentice chef and waiter at a French bistro, is strikingly handsome and also has a gentle smile and way with words that captures female hearts. His philosophy regarding love is to live in the moment and he is not serious about relationships. However, he seems to be concealing the emptiness inside him. An encounter between Jun and Shuma, who both think that they do not need true love, starts to bring about changes in each of them when he takes an interest in her for some reason … … in this story of six men and women who find the greatest love of their lives.
Website: www.ktv.jp/koimaji
Twitter: twitter.com/koimaji_ktv
Kanakana
Date: From 10.45 p.m., Mondays – Thursdays, 16 May 2022
Station: NHK
Genre: Comedy
Episodes: 28
Original Work: Kanakana by Nishimori Hiroyuki
Scriptwriters: Arai Shuko (Dear Patient, Nodoka no Niwa, Tsubaki Bunguten), Kitaki Rima (Unmei kara Hajimaru Koi)
Directors: Kawahara Yo, Morishita Toshiyuki
Cast: Maeda Gordon, Shiraishi Sei, Maeda Oshiro, Kato Yuzuna, Shinkawa Yua, Hashimoto Jun, Miyazaki Yoshiko, Takeda Shinji
Synopsis: Higurashi Masanao (Maeda Gordon), nicknamed Masa, is a legendary former delinquent who won a fight against 100 opponents. He now runs a small pub near the sea. Masa looks scary with a large cut on his face that gets him mistaken and feared as a gangster by people on the street. But he is in fact a kind-hearted young man who is knowledgeable about wild flora and fauna. One day, Masa comes across a girl Kanaka who is fleeing from a suspicious-looking man. Kanaka has possessed a curious ability to read people’s minds since birth. Her father’s younger brother Sawada is aware of this and has made life a living hell by taking her around for gambling. Although Kanaka has only known ugly adults whose true intentions differ from how they behave publicly, Masa gives her a feeling of quiet reassurance and she instinctively seeks his help. Sawada tries to get her back by using his position as her uncle. However, Masa sees Kanaka’s fear and decides to run away with her. What will become of Masa, the “kidnapper”, and Kanaka?
Website: –
Twitter: twitter.com/nhk_dramas
Shoujiki Fudousan
Date: From 10.00 p.m., Tuesdays, 5 April 2022
Station: NHK
Genre: Workplace comedy
Episodes: 10
Original Work: Shoujiki Fudousan by Otani Akira and Mizuno Mitsuhiro
Scriptwriter: Nemoto Nonji (Hakozume, Kansatsui Asagao Series, Fruits Takuhaibin)
Directors: Kawamura Taisuke, Kanazawa Tomoya, Noda Kenta
Theme Song: so far so good by Oda Kazumasa
Cast: Yamashita Tomohisa, Fukuhara Haruka, Ichihara Hayato, Izumi Rika, Hasegawa Shinobu, Kinoshita Houka, Kurashina Kana, Daichi Mao, Kusakari Masao
Synopsis: Property agent Nagase Saichi (Yamashita Tomohisa) boasts the top sales at Tohan Real Estate due to his eloquence and competence. He has stayed the number one salesman for his willingness to lie in sales pitches. The destruction of a small shrine on the construction site for an apartment building one day results in divine punishment that makes him unable to tell lies. As he rattles on about things he does not need to say, clients naturally get enraged and this ends up undermining a string of contracts that were close to being signed. How will Nagase be able to survive in the cutthroat real estate industry now that he is a property agent with honesty as his only weapon?
Website: –
Twitter: twitter.com/nhk_dramas
Jizoku Kanouna Koi desu ka? Chichi to Musume no Kekkon Koushinkyoku
Date: From 10.00 p.m., Tuesdays, April 2022
Station: TBS
Genre: Romance
Scriptwriter: Yoshizawa Tomoko (Dream Team, Byoushitsu de Nenbutsu o Tonaenaide Kudasai, Hajimete Koi o Shita Hi ni Yomu Hanashi)
Directors: Doi Nobuhiro, Yamamura Daisuke, Komaki Sakura, Kato Akiko
Cast: Ueno Juri, Tanaka Kei, Isomura Hayato, Igawa Haruka, Matsushige Yutaka
Synopsis: Yoga instructor Sawada Kyoka (Ueno Juri) returned to her family home after her mother passed away two years ago and now lives with her father Rintaro (Matsushige Yutaka), a Japanese language scholar and lexicographer. He has been compiling a dictionary and thinks about words 24 hours a day, 365 days a year. As Rintaro left all household matters to his wife and is barely able to carry out daily life, he always vexes Kyoka. The death of his wife almost drained all energy from him but when he finds divorce papers while organising her belongings, he resolves to find a partner for the second half of his life and gets the idea to have Kyoka look for a marriage partner too. However, Kyoka does not have much desire to marry. Despite keeping up the appearance of calmness in mind and body in front of her students, reality has been quite different. She wishes to use her own time for herself but she has had to take care of her father who is a burden. Even though Kyoka got dragged into looking for a spouse by him, she starts to awaken to the idea of living with someone. At this time, she encounters Higashimura Seita (Tanaka Kei), a divorcee and single father with a 7-year-old son, and is also reunited with her childhood friend Fuwa Hayate (Isomura Hayato) after 18 years.
Website: www.tbs.co.jp/jizokoi_tbs
Twitter: twitter.com/jizokoi_tbs
Fukushuu no Miboujin
Date: From 12.00 a.m., Wednesdays, 9 March 2022 (airs on TV Tokyo in July)
Network: Paravi
Genre: Suspense
Original Work: Fukushuu no Miboujin by Kurosawa R
Scriptwriters: Matoba Tomomi (Surrogacy), Akutsu Tomoko ( Douki no Sakura)
Directors: Igashi Aya, Mizuta Naruhide, Nagao Raku
Cast: Matsumoto Wakana, Hiraoka Yuta, Kiriyama Ren, Fuchikami Yasushi, Adachi Rika, Morinaga Yuki, Konishi Sakurako, Maekawa Yasuyuki, Matsuo Satoru
Synopsis: Suzuki Mizuki (Matsumoto Wakana) is a talented programmer working at an IT company as a contract employee. She has a reason for changing her name to Mitsu to work at this place. Her husband Yugo (Hiraoka Yuta) suddenly took his own life at the company one morning. The people who drove him into a corner were his colleagues. In order to take revenge on each of the people who were responsible, Mitsu enlists the help of Yugo’s younger brother Yoji (Fuchikami Yasushi) who is an investigator and starts to set a meticulous and elaborate trap. Using her allure and fury as weapons, she kicks off her revenge plot.
Website: www.tv-tokyo.co.jp/fukusyunomiboujin
Twitter: twitter.com/tx_fukusyu
Preview: Fukushuu no Miboujin Teaser
Murai no Koi*UPDATED*
Date: From 12.58 a.m., Wednesdays, 6 April 2022
Station: TBS
Genre: Love comedy
Original Work: Murai no Koi by Shima Junta
Scriptwriter: Kiyasu Kohei (Denei Shojo Series, Ito-kun A to E, Sayonara Enari-kun)
Directors: Imura Taichi, Matsuki Aya, Yamamoto Daisuke
Cast: Takahashi Hikaru, Miyase Ryubi
Synopsis: Tanaka (Takahashi Hikaru) has been given the nickname Iron Mask Tetsuko by students because she does not get involved with them more than required nor interacts with fellow teachers. In fact, she is a gamer who is in love with a character, Hitotose (Miyase Ryubi), in her simulation game. Tanaka gets a confession of love from Murai (Miyase Ryubi), an unfathomable A-student with long black hair. However, she flatly rejects him. She will never fall in love with a real man much less her own student. The next day, Murai comes to school looking like her favourite game character. Tanaka is swayed but takes steps so that she does not let down her guard around him. Despite her nickname, she begins to open her heart to Murai little by little as he tries hard to get close. But they are ultimately student and teacher. Furthermore, these emotions are mixed up with her feelings for her favourite game character.
Website: www.tbs.co.jp/drama_stream_tbs
Twitter: twitter.com/drama_streamtbs
Waru (2022) ~ Hataraku no ga Kakko Warui Nante Dare ga Itta?*UPDATED*
Date: From 10.00 p.m., Wednesdays, 13 April 2022
Station: NTV
Genre: Office romance
Original Work: by Fukami Jun
Scriptwriters: Goto Noriko (Kazoku no Katachi, Zeni no Sensou, Team Batista Series), Matsushima Ruriko ()
Director: Nagumo Seiichi, Uchida Hidemi, Yamada Nobuyoshi
Cast: Imada Mio, Eguchi Noriko, Suzuki Nobuyuki
Synopsis: Despite graduating from a third-rate university with even worse grades, Tanaka Maririn (Imada Mio) is lucky enough to be a new employee at a major IT company. However, she gets assigned to its equipment management division where Minegishi Yuki (Eguchi Noriko) works. Minegishi’s past is a mystery but she notices Maririn’s potential. Her words asking Maririn if she does not want to advance in her career, completely changes Maririn’s life at the company. There is a reason why Minegishi is guiding her. While the incapable but upbeat Maririn runs into workplace problems that employees in each division face, she moves up from the lowest rung with her innate cheerfulness and Minegishi’s rather shrewd advice. Maririn is working hard as she wants to get close to a senior colleague Ono Tadashi (Suzuki Nobuyuki) whom she fell in love with at first sight but whose name she does not even know.
Website: www.ntv.co.jp/waru2022
Twitter: twitter.com/waru_ntv
Nanba MG5*NEW*
Date: From 10.00 p.m., Wednesdays, 13 April 2022
Station: Fuji TV
Genre: Comedy
Original Work: Nanba MG5 by Ozawa Toshio
Scriptwriter: Kanazawa Tatsuya (Radiation House Season 1)
Director: Motohiro Katsuyuki
Cast: Mamiya Shotaro, Kamio Fuju, Morikawa Aoi, Morimoto Shintaro, Hara Nanoka, Suzuki Sarina, Ukaji Takashi
Synopsis: Nanba Tsuyoshi (Mamiya Shotaro) is the second son in a family of delinquents that is feared as “Kanto’s Strongest”. His father Masaru (Ukaji Takashi) made a name for himself back in his student days. Contrary to the hopes of his family, Tsuyoshi actually wants to be an ordinary student and enrols at a wholesome high school without their knowledge. He starts leading a double life, dressing like a delinquent – a long jacket favoured by bike gangs – in front of his family – but wearing his uniform like a respectable student at school. One day, Tsuyoshi cannot stand seeing his friend being bullied and changes into his long jacket to save him. Since then, students at his school have been talking about the mysterious, most powerful delinquent. Will Tsuyoshi be able to lead the ordinary high school life that he yearns for while keeping his secret? While this double life drives a wedge in his interpersonal relationships and distresses him, friendships and family love are also arise from this.
Website: www.fujitv.co.jp/nanbaMG5
Twitter: twitter.com/nanbaMG5_
Sabishii Oka de Kari o Suru
Date: From 12.00 a.m., Thursdays, 10 March 2022
Network: Paravi (followed by TV Tokyo in April)
Genre: Crime suspense
Original Work: Sabishii Oka de Kari o Suru by Tsujihara Noboru
Scriptwriters: Masaike Yosuke (Gekikarado, Rental Nanmo Shinai Hito, Shiyakusho), Imanishi Yuko (Hoshi kara Kita Anata, Unmei kara Hajimaru Koi, Izakaya Fuji)
Directors: Hagiuda Koji, Gonno Hajime, Mori Yasunori
Cast: Kurashina Kana
Synopsis: Investigator Kuwamura Midori (Kurashina Kana) has been living in bliss after her boyfriend Asano, who is a police detective, proposes marriage to her. One day a woman called Nozoe Atsuko comes to the investigation agency. She wants them to track the movements of Oshimoto, who has been released from prison after serving a sentence for raping her seven years ago. She has lived in fear of the words “I’ll take revenge” that he uttered at the time of the trial. Midori herself has been a victim of stalking by Kuga, a photographer whom she once dated, and is emotionally traumatised. Although she accepts Atsuko’s request, Oshimoto relentlessly goes after Atsuko to attack her. At the same time, Kuga appears in front of Midori and tails her again. He seems to enjoy the “hunt”. This never-ending hell eventually makes Midori vow revenge.
Website: www.tv-tokyo.co.jp/sabishiioka
Twitter: twitter.com/tx_sabishiioka
Preview: Sabishii Oka de Kari o Suru Teaser
Mirai e no 10 Count
Date: From 9.00 p.m., Thursdays, April 2022
Station: TV Asahi
Genre: School
Scriptwriter: Fukuda Yasushi (Kakenai!?, Doctors Series, Good Partner)
Directors: Kawai Hayato, Hoshino Kazunari
Cast: Kimura Takuya, Mitsushima Hikari, Yasuda Ken, Baba Toru, Orakio, Yashima Norito, Ichige Yoshie, Tomita Yasuko, Uchida Yuki, Namase Katsuhisa, Emoto Akira
Synopsis: Kirisawa Shogo (Kimura Takuya) becomes the coach of Matsubadai High School’s boxing club some 30 years after he won four boxing titles as a high school student. However, his life shone for only a brief moment. In fact, he gave up boxing during his second year in university for some reason. After his beloved wife died, he experienced even more misfortune. Now he has completely lost any desire to live and even declares that he does not mind dying at any time. Kirisawa goes along with a concerned good friend Kai Seiichiro’s (Yasuda Ken) suggestion to become the coach of the boxing club at their alma mater. At first, he showed no enthusiasm to return as the coach and repeatedly clashes with Orihara Aoi (Mitsushima Hikari), the club’s reluctant adviser. But as he watches young boxers with the desire to become strong and to win, Kirisawa’s passion is slowly rekindled and he springs into action. He sincerely engages with the inexperienced, foolhardy students. At the same time he begins to transform them, he also goes through changes and begins to head towards a new future.
Website: www.tv-asahi.co.jp/10count
Twitter: twitter.com/miraten_tvasahi
Yangotonaki Ichizoku*UPDATED*
Date: From 10.00 p.m., Thursdays, 14 April 2022
Station: Fuji TV
Original Work: Yangotonaki Ichizoku by Koyama Yukari
Scriptwriter: Kamimori Marie (Kono Koi Atatamemasu ka, Kioku, Love Song)
Director: Tanaka Akira
Cast: Tsuchiya Tao, Matsushita Kohei, Onoe Matsuya, Matsumoto Wakana, Watanabe Keisuke, Matsuomoto Kiyo, Baba Fumika, Baisho Mitsuko, Kimura Tae, Ishibashi Ryo
Synopsis: Shinohara Sato (Tsuchiya Tao) grew up in a working class neighbourhood and runs an eatery with her mother. She is a cheerful and steely young woman whom regular customers are fond of. She has been dating Miyama Kenta (Matsushita Kohei), the second son of a distinguished old family that runs a real estate business and has vast assets. Since he was a child, Kenta abhorred his authoritarian father Keiichi (Ishibashi Ryo) and the family’s customs. He left home during his student days, and eventually got a job with a company unrelated to the family. Keiichi and his wife Kumi (Kimura Tae) are strongly against a union between their son and Sato due to the disparity in status. Believing in the honest and unpretentious Kenta, Sato elopes with him and registers their marriage at the same time. At first, she cannot accept many of the family’s outdated customs that are characteristic of high society. However, she learns of Kenta’s desire to turn the Miyamas into a normal family where no one gets hurt and sacrificed for the family’s sake and there are no battles between relatives, and decides to enter the family. The true nature of the magnificent family that everyone envies is gradually revealed by Sato.
Website: www.fujitv.co.jp/yangoto
Twitter: twitter.com/yangoto_fuji
Invisible*UPDATED*
Date: From 10.00 p.m., Fridays, April 2022
Station: TBS
Genre: Investigative
Scriptwriter: Izumi Yoshihiro (Alibi Kuzushi Uketamawarimasu, Shudan Sasen!, Todome no Kiss)
Directors: Takemura Kentaro, Tanazawa Takayoshi
Cast: Takahashi Issei, Shibasaki Kou, Arioka Daiki, Hotta Akane, Harada Taizo, Kiritani Kenta
Synopsis: Detective Shimura Takafumi (Takahashi Issei) belongs to the Special Investigation Unit which investigates unsolved cases that happen within the Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department’s jurisdiction. He used to be in charge of investigating cases on the First Investigation Division’s front line. However, his zeal for arresting criminals was particularly strong among the detectives of the division and the extremes he would go to in investigations led to his demotion. He is considered dangerous by the people around him in certain situations and his sense of justice is close to an obsessiveness. Shimura ends up having to work with Kiriko (Shibasaki Kou), a crime coordinator who is the representative of “evil” so to speak. Called “Invisible” because she is known only to a group of people within the police organisation and no one has seen her real image, Kiriko dominates the underworld and brokers deals for violent criminals. One day, she suddenly offers to help the police arrest criminals. Her only condition is that she wants to work with Shimura. She is privy to information on criminals that the police has yet to grasp and seems to hold the key to solving a lot of the unsolved cases that Shimura is pursuing. What is her motive for getting close to him?
Website: www.tbs.co.jp/invisible_tbs
Twitter: twitter.com/invisible_tbs
Hiru Seasons 1 & 2
Date: From 11.00 pm., Fridays, 4 March 2022
Network: WOWOW
Genre: Suspense
Episodes: 12 (6 episodes per season)
Original Work: Hiru by Imai Daisuke
Scriptwriters: Aoshima Takeshi (dele, Hitori Shizuka), Kakesu Natsumi
Director: Suzuki Kosuke
Cast: Akaso Eiji, Yoshikawa Ai, Iitoyo Marie, Yanagi Shuntaro, Itagaki Mizuki, Sakuma Yui, Tanaka Kotaro, Matsuzawa Takumi, Miura Masaki, Riju Go, Itao Itsuji, Konishi Manami, Sakaguchi Kentaro
Synopsis: 21-year-old Shinomiya Yuki (Akaso Eiji) has no friends and spends his days alone working part-time jobs. One day, when he returns home as usual after a night shift, a male stranger (Yanagi Shuntaro) who has been stabbed in the abdomen with a knife is sitting in his room. The man wakes up at the hospital that he has been taken to and identifies himself as Shinomiya Yuki to detectives. Then he points to Yuki and states that he was stabbed by him. Yuki flees the hospital right away and becomes a fugitive in an instant. At that moment, a mysterious woman called Zoka (Yoshikawa Ai) appears right before Yuki and asks him to help her take revenge on her father’s killer. He decides to collaborate with her. Zoka is a “leech” who goes from one house to another while its occupants are away. The two of them eventually encounter Kara (Sakaguchi Kentaro), a legendary leech who lives like an empty shell solely for the purpose of revenge.
Website: www.wowow.co.jp/drama/original/hiru
Twitter: twitter.com/drama_wowow
Aono-kun ni Sawaritai kara Shinitai
Date: From 11.30 p.m., Fridays, 18 March 2022
Network: WOWOW
Genre: Romance
Episodes: 10
Original Work: Aono-kun ni Sawaritai kara Shinitai by Shiina Umi
Scriptwriter: Tamada Shinya (40-man km Kanata no Koi, Densetsu no Okaasan, Joker x Face)
Director: Smith
Cast: Sato Shori, Takahashi Hikaru, Kamio Fuju, Ririka, Mizusawa Erena, Shuhama Harumi
Synopsis: Aono Ryuhei (Sato Shori) gets a love confession from Kariya Yuri (Takahashi Hikaru) who has fallen for him just because he was the first guy to talk to her and they start dating. But two weeks later, Aono tragically dies in a traffic accident. Yuri attempts to follow him and take her own life. However, Aono appears to her as a ghost and does his best to soothe her. He persuades her not to die, promising that he will always be by her side. This is the start of a peculiar and heart fluttering life. One day, Yuri suggests that Aono try to possess her. From then on, Aono becomes a darker person. Disturbing incidents that happen because of Aono begin to cast a pall around him. As Aono, his good friend Fujimoto Masayoshi (Kamio Fuju) and horror movie fan Horie Mio (Ririka) gain insights into the secrets of this darker person, their friendship deepens. What will happen to the passionate yet impossible romance between Aono and Yuri?
Website: www.wowow.co.jp/drama/original/aonokun
Twitter: twitter.com/drama_wowow
Kamisama no Ekohiiki
Date: From 12.00 a.m., Saturdays, 19 March 2022
Network: Hulu
Genre: Romance
Episodes: 8
Original Work: Kamisama no Ekohiiki by Komura Ayumi
Scriptwriter: Kitagawa Ayako (Tokyo Love Story (2020), Sono Goen Otodoke Shimasu, Watashi ni XX Shinasai!)
Directors: Matsumoto Yusaku, Sugioka Tomoya
Cast: Fujiwara Taiyu, Sakurada Hiyori, Kubozuka Airu, Arai Myra, Furukawa Yuki, Matobu Sei, Morishita Hisae, Yoshida Oolongta, Otani Mai
Synopsis: High school student Amano Yashiro (Fujiwara Taiyu) visits a desolate shrine a 100 times to ascertain his feelings for his good friend Nanahara Kenta (Kubozuka Airu). Right after confessing his feelings and getting flatly rejected by Kenta, Yashiro dies in a traffic accident. However, due to the “grace” of the shrine god (Furukawa Yuki), who has too much free time on his hands, Yashiro is given a chance at new life as the type of girl that Kenta likes. Only his appearance that has changed into a girl, Tendo Kagura (Sakurada Hiyori), and he remains himself on the inside. Yashiro is unable to bring out the feminine charms he had envisioned and does not get closer to Kenta. And yet, he gets a confession from Kenta’s ex-girlfriend Torii Rin (Arai Myra). Then it is discovered that Yashiro’s body is still alive but Kagura is inside him?! What has happened to him?
Website: www.hulu.jp/static/kamieko
Twitter: twitter.com/kamiekoHulu
Preview: Kamisama no Ekohiiki Teaser
Sensei no Otoriyose
Date: From 12.52 a.m., Saturdays, 9 April 2022
Station: TV Tokyo
Genre: Food comedy
Original Work: Sensei no Otoriyose by Eda Yuri
Scriptwriters: Miura Kisa (Kanojo wa Kirei datta, Guilty, Watashi Danna Share Shiteta), Taniguchi Junichiro (Shiro to Kiiro, Universal Koukokusha, Hanzai Shokogun Series), Fujihira Hisako (Kore wa Keihi de Ochimasen!, Tantei ga Hayasugiru, Miss Devil)
Directors: Moriya Kentaro, Honma Toshiyuki, Hosaka Katsumi
Cast: Mukai Osamu, Kitamura Yukiya, Hashimoto Manami, Kamio Fuju, Zaizen Naomi
Synopsis: Enomura Haruka (Mukai Osamu), a brusque writer of erotic novels, has sadistic tendencies while Nakata Miruku (Kitamura Yukiya), a cheerful, feminine artist who draws manga of beautiful girls, has masochist tendencies. A publishing company requests a collaboration between Enomura and Nakata. The two men are fans of each other’s work. However, when they finally meet, they are shocked that the other person’s looks and personality are different from what was imagined. While Enomura and Nakata cannot get along, they have one thing in common – their love for delivery food. It is through this common interest that they slowly open up to each other.
Website: www.tv-tokyo.co.jp/otoriyose
Twitter: twitter.com/tx_otoriyose
Shoutai
Date: From 10.00 p.m., Saturdays, 12 March 2022
Network: WOWOW
Genre: Suspense
Episodes: 4
Original Work: Shoutai by Somei Tamehito
Scriptwriter: Maekawa Yoichi (Karei Naru Ichizoku, Tetsu no Hone (2020), Lady Joker)
Directors: Nakata Hideo, Taniguchi Masaaki
Cast: Kamenashi Kazuya, Kuroki Hitomi, Ichihara Hayato, Kanjiya Shihori, Tsuruta Mayu, Hamada Takahiro, Otoo Takuma, Wakamura Mayumi, Takahata Atsuko, Kamikawa Takaya
Synopsis: Kaburagi Keiichi (Kamenashi Kazuya) has been arrested for the murder of a couple and sentenced to death. While he is being transferred to a prison, he manages to get away and becomes a fugitive. Changing his name to Endo Yuichi, he encounters all sorts of people at his hide outs and helps them out of tight spots. When these people realise that he is a criminal on death row and on the wanted list, they begin to question whether he is truly a murderer. Why is Keiichi saving people? Is this his revenge for being framed? And what is his true self?
Website: www.wowow.co.jp/drama/original/shoutai
Twitter: twitter.com/drama_wowow
Imadoki no Wakaimon wa
Date: From 10.30 p.m., Saturdays, 9 April 2022
Network: WOWOW
Genre: Corporate
Episodes: 8
Original Work: Imadoki no Wakaimon wa by Yoshitani Kohei
Scriptwriter: Abera Hidenobu (Mushoboke)
Director: Yamada Yoshitatsu
Cast: Sorimachi Takashi, Fukuhara Haruka, Nakamura Kaito, Misaki Ayame, Shinohara Atsushi, Otomo Karen, Tomite Ami, Issey Ogata, Kinoshita Houka, Fujii Takashi, Hagiwara Masato
Synopsis: Ishizawa Hajime (Sorimachi Takashi), the fierce looking head of Mitsuhashi Trading’s sales department, shoots a sharp look at the young employees who lament about having to work overtime again and not benefitting from reforms of work practices. He makes a sound of exasperation at their complaints, but these young employees flee without waiting to hear his words. Mugita Ayumi (Fukuhara Haruka), a new employee who has been assigned to Ishizawa, arrives at work feeling nervous and anxious. She has not been able to keep up at work. The senior who has been giving her guidance keeps using words written in horizontal script that she does not understand. Everyone works quickly and she cannot get used to the atmosphere in the department. The only time she can relax is when she eats lunch at her desk. Ishizawa appears in front of her all of a sudden and Mugita feels intimidated. He starts to say, “Youngsters of today …” Mugita and the other young employees wonder whether Ishizawa is a good boss despite having some doubts about his personal life which is somewhat of a mystery.
Website: www.wowow.co.jp/drama/original/imadoki
Twitter: twitter.com/drama_wowow
Ore no Kawaii wa Mousugu Shouhi Kigen!?
Date: From 11.30 p.m., Saturdays, April 2022
Station: TV Asahi
Genre: Love comedy
Scriptwriter: Tanabe Shigenori (Oh! My Boss!, In Hand, Tokusatsu Gagaga)
Director: Shinjo Takehiko
Cast: Yamada Ryosuke, Yoshine Kyoko, Ohashi Kazuya, Nishida Naomi, Furuta Arata
Synopsis: 29-year-old Maruya Kosuke (Yamada Ryosuke) works for a beer company’s sales department. Since he was a child, he has been popular with people due to his charming features and friendly personality. With his cuteness as his greatest weapon, he is at the top of his game at work and has never had a problem having a girlfriend. Just before he turns 30, Kosuke is confronted with something shocking. That is, his cuteness has an expiry date. Before this, everything used to go well once he unleashed his killer smile. But he starts facing difficulties in both work and romance, and his life goes downhill. Meanwhile, 26-year-old Sanada Izumi (Yoshine Kyoko) has considered herself to be a secondary character in life as a result of a childhood experience. She works for the same beer company in a research job at the product development department which does not require much involvement with people. However, she gets transferred to the sales department of all places and ends up being paired with Kosuke. Kosuke’s killer smile has no effect on Izumi who has stayed away from romance with the stubborn thought that she will never be chosen by someone. She easily ignores him but … …
Website: www.tv-asahi.co.jp/orekawa
Twitter: twitter.com/oshidoraEX
Crosstail ~ Tantei Kyoushitsu
Date: From 11.40 p.m., Saturdays, 9 April – 28 May 2022
Station: Fuji TV
Episodes: 8
Scriptwriters: Yatsu Hiroyuki (Ochoyan, Miss Jikocho, Kaseifu no Mitazono Series), Yoshida Mayuko (Ochoyan, Miss Jikocho), Fukuda Takuro (Keibuho Yabe Kenzo Series, Uwasa no Onna)
Directors: Muguruma Shunji, Maihara Kenzo, Ishii Marina
Cast: Suzuka Ouji, Hotta Mayu, Itao Itsuji, Dan Rei
Synopsis: On the day of his graduation from university, Tobita Tasuku’s (Suzuka Ouji) father Jinpei (Itao Itsuji) suddenly goes missing. He left a letter that says, “Congratulations on your graduation. I’m also moving on from you” and a huge debt for him. Jinpei was a popular mystery writer who had even been a prize winner. But lately, he has been a mere shadow of his former self. Wanting to be a more pragmatic and proper person unlike his father, Tasuku sets his sights on getting a job at a top company or in the civil service but no organisation has hired him. When the police brush off Jinpei’s disappearance, Tasuku goes to Joker Investigation Agency after finding its name card in a book his father had written. The fees to investigate Jinpei’s disappearance are astronomical but when he sees that its school is accepting applications, he realises that the tuition fees is cheaper. If he graduates from school, he will be able to get employment with an investigation agency and also search for his father. And so, Tasuku decides to enrol at the school.
Website: www.tokai-tv.com/io/crosstail
Twitter: twitter.com/tokaitv_dodra
Shizuka-chan to Papa
Date: From 10.00 p.m., Sundays, 13 March 2022
Station: NHK BS Premium
Genre: Family comedy
Episodes: 8
Scriptwriter: Hiruta Naomi (Shiro demo Kuro demo Nai Sekai de Panda wa Warau, Kore wa Keihi de Ochimasen!)
Directors: Matsubara Hiroshi, Shigeyama Yoshinori, Iwamoto Hitoshi
Cast: Yoshioka Riho, Nakajima Yuto, Inaba Yu, Fujii Mina, Hagio Midori, Toda Keiko, Kimura Tae, Shofukutei Tsurube
Synopsis: Nonomura Shizuka (Yoshioka Riho) lives with her father Junsuke (Shofukutei Tsurube) who runs a photography studio at a shopping street in the countryside. Junsuke was born with a hearing impairment. Her mother also suffered the same condition but passed away when Shizuka was very young. Unlike her parents, Shizuka is able to hear and has been her father’s ears and mouth from an early age. That is why she has a habit of staring at other people and gesturing while she speaks since visual information is important in conversations with him. However, this habit of hers is misconstrued as flirtation or inconsideration. Her colleagues at the family restaurant where she works part-time dislike her and the restaurant manager is under the mistaken impression that she likes him. She is hurt many times in a day. One day, Shizuka encounters Michinaga Keiichi (Nakajima Yuto), a customer at the family restaurant whom she knows personally. He is being censured at a kebab stall for placing an order even though he had no cash on hand, and is stuck with the stall owner whose words he does not understand. He manages to get out of trouble with Shizuka’s timely help. Keiichi is a guy who is bad at reading the situation. The two of them who have difficulty with regular communication are gradually attracted to each other, but … …
Website: www.nhk.jp/p/ts/KVZJ1V7MY5
Twitter: twitter.com/nhk_dramas
My Family
Date: From 10.00 p.m., Sundays, April 2022
Station: TBS
Genre: Family
Scriptwriter: Kuroiwa Tsutomu (Tokyo MER, Kikenna Venus, Grand Maison Tokyo)
Director: Hirano Shunichi
Cast: Ninomiya Kazunari, Tabe Mikako, Kaku Kento, Hamada Gaku
Synopsis: Narusawa Haruto (Ninomiya Kazunari), the CEO of a game company, is the darling of the moment. He has a house in Shonan in Kamakura where he lives with his wife Michiru (Tabe Mikako), a celebrity of sorts with over 10,000 followers on social media. The couple have a daughter who attends elementary school. While there is a sense of something complicated between Haruto and Michiru, he seems to have it all. That is until tragedy strikes when their daughter is kidnapped. The desperate situation puts their family ties to the test. They face a number of trials with the loss of their most precious child. Haruto and Michiru eventually realise that the only way to get her back is not through the police but to join hands to fight against the kidnappers. Will the two of them be able to get their daughter back safely and have a happy ending?
Website: www.tbs.co.jp/myfamily
Twitter: twitter.com/myfamily_tbs
Preview: My Family Teaser
Tokyo Vice
Date: From 10.00 p.m., Sundays, 24 April 2022
Network: WOWOW & HBO Max
Genre: Crime
Episodes: 10
Original Work: Tokyo Vice: An American Reporter on the Police Beat in Japan by Jake Adelstein
Scriptwriter: J. T. Rogers
Director: Michael Mann
Cast: Ansel Elgort, Watanabe Ken, Rachel Keller, Ella Rumpf, Kikuchi Rinko, Ito Hideaki, Kasamatsu Sho, Yamashita Tomohisa, Sugata Shun, Tanida Ayumi, Hagiwara Masato, Toyohara Kosuke, Ito Ayumi, Watanabe Makiko, Itaya Yuka, Matsuda Miyuki
Synopsis: After graduating from a Japanese university, Jake Adelstein (Ansel Elgort) became the first foreigner to work for a national newspaper when he got a job at a major newspaper in Tokyo and is put on the police beat. He meets Detective Katagiri (Watanabe Ken) on numerous occasions in the course of gathering information and begins to bond with him. A detective with the Tokyo Metropolitan Police’s Organised Crime Department, Katagiri has a complex relationship with the underworld. Even though Jake thrives in Japanese society through his association with Katagiri who becomes a father figure to him, he gets entangled in the dark underground world through his tenacious pursuit of scoops while providing assistance in law enforcement investigations. This is a terrifying side of Tokyo where wheeling and dealing, double crossing, and raw emotions of love and hate.
Website: www.wowow.co.jp/drama/original/tokyovice
Twitter: twitter.com/drama_wowow
Kindaichi Shonen no Jikenbo 2022*UPDATED*
Date: From 10.30 p.m., Sundays, 24 April 2022
Network: NTV
Genre: Mystery
Original Work: Amagi Seimaru and Kanari Yozaburo
Scriptwriters: Kawabe Yuko (Zero Series), Oishi Tetsuya (Ao no SP, Yoru ga Dorehodo Kurakutemo, Kirawareru Yuuki)
Directors: Kimura Hisashi, Maruya Shunpei
Theme Song: The Answer by Naniwa Danshi
Cast: Michieda Shunsuke, Kamishiraishi Moka, Iwasaki Taisho, Sawamura Ikki
Synopsis: High school student Kindaichi Hajime (Michieda Shunsuke), the grandson of the great detective Kindaichi Kosuke, has an IQ of more than 180 and unravels difficult murder mysteries with his intelligence. Although he is typically an unmotivated student, whenever a case occurs, he would dig up and expose daring and elaborate tricks, and get to the bottom of criminals’ motives together with his childhood friend Nanase Miyuki (Kamishiraishi Moka) and Inspector Kenmochi Isamu (Sawamura Ikki) from the Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department’s First Investigation Division.
Website: www.ntv.co.jp/kindaichi2022
Twitter: twitter.com/kindaichi_5
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