Tuesday, April 29, 2025

Quick Review #113: Boku dake ga inai machi - Autumn 2017


Title: Boku dake ga inai machi / 僕だけがいない街

Rating: 5 / 10

Recommended for
Those who like time-travel or time-loop stories with a suspense element

* Disclaimer: I have not read the manga nor watched the anime or real-life movie versions.
* Potential spoilers ahead!

Liked:
- The child actors especially Uchikawa Reo and Kakihara Rinka who played Satoru and Kayo respectively were very impressive. Coupled with the fact that the childhood arc was quite concentrated in the earlier part of the drama, it further accentuated the impact of their acting as compared to the adult arc which were very scattered and comparatively disconnected until the last few episodes. I especially liked the friendship formation phase of Satoru and Kayo as it was heartwarming yet bittersweet at the same time.

- The beautiful snowy scenery in Hokkaido during the childhood arc was such a joy to admire.

Disliked: 
- The suspense was quite a letdown since it was too obvious from the start who was the culprit. Going by the rule of "the most unexpected person closest to you is the most suspicious", it was a no brainer that the teacher of Satoru's class was the one who had the biggest advantage of being able to execute the scheme of killing children. As such, the part until Satoru reached the answer was quite yawn-inducing. Even the confrontation at the end finished on a weak note.

- As mentioned above, the adult arc didn't feel so engaging to watch because it was so disconnected and that the constant time travel disrupted the slow of the story. This also made it difficult for me as a viewer to enjoy the performances of the adult actors so they didn't really leave a deep and good impression on me. I wouldn't say that the adult actors didn't do well but it was more of their characters not growing on me and the story arrangement didn't work in their favour.

- The length of the drama could be shorter. Despite the fact that each episode was about 30 mins or lesser, 12 episodes still felt too dragged out and the suspense/excitement factor was inevitably lower due to the length of the drama. The ending also felt underwhelming as the ex-teacher's fate was not clearly indicated and there wasn't any gratification felt about nabbing the culprit. To begin with, since I'm not a fan of stories about time travel and repeating the experiences in life, I would have preferred this drama to have half the number of episodes so that the pace of the storytelling could be faster.

Monday, April 28, 2025

Keeping things platonic: The "strictly business" mixed-gender work partners in Japanese dramas


While Japanese dramas featuring male-female partners at work are commonplace, this article highlights an interesting phenomenon in the Winter 2025 season - there are as many as 5 titles featuring such combinations and 3 of them involve lawyers*:
  • "Tokyo Sarada Bouru" - Nao x Matsuda Ryuuhei
  • "Mondai Bukken" - Kamikawa Takaya x Uchida Rio
  • "Houtei no Dragon" - Kamishiraishi Mone x Takasugi Mahiro *
  • "Ensemble" - Kawaguchi Haruna x Matsumura Hokuto *
  • "Kujaku no dansu, dare ga mita?" - Hirose Suzu x Matsuyama Kenichi*
The nature of the relationship between the pairings and the storyline pretty much determine if romance will be in the picture. On one end of the spectrum, "Kujaku no dansu, dare ga mita?" features the "client" i.e. Komugi who approaches a lawyer Matsukaze to help her in the investigation of her father's arson-murder case. Considering their business-only relationship and that the story has a strong mystery/suspense angle, there is no room for romance to bloom between the characters. On the other hand, "Ensemble" features the leads as colleagues in a budding romantic relationship with a love triangle thrown in from the start due to the appearance of the female lead's ex-boyfriend.

Looking back at the past mixed-gender pairings in the past, while there were some workplace pairs who eventually became lovers onscreen, there were also quite a number of dramas with such pairings that either had no romance or a comparatively faint/hinted romance angle:

  • "Keizoku" - Nakatani Miki x Watabe Atsuro
  • "Trick" - Nakama Yukie x Abe Hiroshi
  • "HERO" - Kimura Takuya x Matsu Takako
  • "Galileo" - Fukuyama Masaharu x Shibasaki Kou & Yoshitaka Yuriko
  • "SPEC" - Toda Erika x Kase Ryo
  • "Legal High" - Sakai Masato x Aragaki Yui
  • "Ishiko to Haneo" - Arimura Kasumi x Nakamura Tomoya
  • "Unfair" - Shinohara Ryoko x Nagayama Eita
  • "Jikou Keisatsu" - Odagiri Jo x Asou Kumiko
  • "Strawberry Night" - Takeuchi Yuko x Nishijima Hidetoshi
  • "Liar Game" - Toda Erika x Matsuda Shota
  • "Kyousou no bannin" - An x Sakaguchi Kentaro
  • "RoOT" - Kawai Yumi x Bandou Ryouta
  • "Okuto" - Iitoyo Marie x Asaka Koudai
  • "Invisible" - Takahashi Issei x Shibasaki Kou
  • "Motokare no Yuuigonjou" - Ayase Haruka x Ooizumi Yo
  • "Tengoku to Jigoku" - Ayase Haruka x Takahashi Issei
As seen from the list above, a large number of these platonic pairings appeared in investigative/legal/suspense stories. Over time, the stories would show the gradual development of the characters' relationships as they solved cases or dealt with issues together. A reason cited in the media for the inclusion of romance for such mixed-gender pairings was said to be related to the viewing preferences during the "trendy dramas" era i.e. late 1980s to early 1990s. Back then, "squeal-worthy" scenes featuring popular actors and actresses who played characters transitioning from colleagues/buddies/enemies/rivals to lovers were pretty well-received and in demand. As such, it became sort of a standard formula for such relationships to head towards the romance direction rather than keep things strictly professional.

However, as times have evolved, there are more titles these days featuring platonic working relationships for such mixed-gender pairings. While it is perfectly normal for love to blossom when people work together, it is also natural for mutual respect rather than romantic feelings to be developed between such pairings. As such, when such dramas do not add in romance in an "artificial" or "unnatural" manner, they are generally well-received and readily accepted as the norm reflective of current times. 

In recent years, I would say that "Ishiko to Haneo" was one of the more successful examples at eliminating the romance factor from the leads' relationship. Frankly speaking, I didn't expect this initially since there was no indication pre-season that the work buddies would have no romantic feelings for each other. In the end, the female lead ended up with the second male lead rather than her partner at work which was unexpected and somewhat unconventional but I really liked this arrangement.


On the contrary, there have been examples where adding romance when it's unnecessary or illogical can backfire. For example, "Mystery to iu nakare" depicted Ito Sairi's police detective character having feelings for the lead played by Suda Masaki. This went against the nature of their relationship described in the original manga and attracted criticism from viewers.

Personally, I am more inclined towards the notion of keeping things platonic for mixed-gender pairings especially if the drama is not positioned to be a romance-themed one. While I get it that some viewers may like to see their favourite pairings engage in a romantic relationship onscreen, the manner of how this develops is crucial. As such, keeping it naturally-flowing and not forcing things to head towards the romantic genre would be the best. Especially when dealing with stories based on original material like novels and manga, it would be simply reckless and foolish to spoil the relationship dynamics crafted by the original works' authors for no apparent or justifiable reason.

Do share with me your favourite mixed-gender work partners in J-dramas and movies and let me know if I've missed any significant/popular examples from my list above!

Sunday, April 27, 2025

Quick Review #112: Private Banker - Winter 2025


Title: Private Banker / プライベートバンカー

Rating: 6 / 10

Recommended for
Those who are interested in a finance & investment-themed drama with mind-boggling concepts packaged in easy-to-understand formats, want to see a family fight over their fortune and inheritance and/or are fans of Karasawa Toshiaki and Suzuki Honami

* Potential spoilers ahead!

Liked:
- I liked how the drama managed to break down very difficult and complicated financial and investment concepts into very easy-to-digest and perfectly understandable titbits while not sacrificing the entertainment factor. While I already knew most of the topics mentioned in this drama, it was refreshing to see them explain things in this manner so you will still pick up some knowledge and new understanding of the things you may already know very well.

- Karasawa Toshiaki's acting as Anno was very interesting on various levels because he could be dorky, charming, serious yet somewhat sinister and switch between these facades at ease. His chemistry with Suzuki Honami who was like his mentee and assistant throughout this drama was intriguing and fun to observe from the sidelines. Her character also served as a representative for viewers and asked seemingly silly but very useful questions to make the financial explanation parts flow more naturally. I also thought that the parents of the Tenguuji family played by Hashizume Isao and Natsuki Mari were especially brilliant and definitely carried the family feud part of the story very well. 

Disliked: 
- Due to the fact that the family feud part of the story took up a significant share of the airtime, it was essential that this had to be exciting enough to hold the viewers' attention. Unfortunately though, it was not meant to be and the way things were going, it was easy to see where it was heading towards i.e. nobody in the family would win the fight. The sole saving grace was seeing Suzuki's character Iida Kumiko i.e. the unexpected outsider taking on the role of being the new president of the company which I thought was a nice ending note to a somewhat meh part of this drama. It would have been disastrous if Anno ended up taking this post for himself because that defeated his purpose and mission as a private banker.

- While Hashizume and Natsuki were great in their roles, their children and the actors playing them were comparatively weaker both in terms of onscreen presence and within the story. It would have been better if the kids gave the parents a run for their money instead of being overpowered completely since this would have provided better dramatic effect to last the entire season. A tug-of-war featuring equally matched-sides is better than an one-sided affair where the winner is clear from the start. Nonetheless, I liked Tamaki Hiroshi's guest appearance as the meek son-in-law who stood up for himself in the end but it was too bad he only starred in one episode.

- Given that Anno is a key figure in this story, I was disappointed to see that there was very little about his background and his motivation for being a private banker. At the end of the story, there was a hint suggesting that he works for someone even more influential and has darker motives when compared to the Tenguuji patriarch. It looks like TV Asahi is leaving the possibility of a sequel or SP open for now depending on the response to the drama series but the incompleteness of Anno's narrative left much to be desired, at least for me personally.

Saturday, April 26, 2025

TBS releases follow-up report on its investigation on inappropriate behaviour involving its employees


Following the furore over the Nakai Masahiro & FujiTV sexual violence scandal, various TV stations in Japan conducted their own internal investigations to identify similar instances of inappropriate behaviour such as sexual harassment towards and/or involving its employees and work associates in the entertainment industry. It wasn't surprising then that the "common answer" was that there were no such cases uncovered.

Although TBS had released an initial report on 21 February 2025 claiming that there was no instances of such behaviour, it conducted a follow-up investigation which uncovered several cases, albeit way back in the past. As such, the TV station had to issue a follow-up report on 25 April 2025 in which it apologised for its inadequate initial investigation and will take measures to prevent future recurrences. However, it would not reveal any information which could lead to the identification of the parties involved so as to prevent secondary damage to those affected.

As to other TV stations will follow suit with more in-depth investigations and if any cases uncovered will be revealed, only time will tell.

The 4 cases uncovered by TBS are as follows:
  • About 25 years ago, a TBS announcer suffered inappropriate bodily contact initiated by a cast member of a programme at the side of the stage while recording was going on. Although the announcer and the staff present had told the cast member to stop, the person did not change his attitude nor stop his actions.
  • About 20 years ago, a TBS announcer was invited to a meal gathering by a cast member of a programme who persistently asked her to date him. Although the announcer concerned had complained to her superiors about this behaviour and asked for action to be taken, the person-in-charge had only warned this cast member verbally but did not take any action such as removing him from the programme. The announcer was extremely dissatisfied with how TBS had handled the matter.
  • About 15 years ago, multiple TBS announcers had complained of being touched inappropriately by a cast member at the recording studio but there was no action taken to resolve this.
  • About 15 years ago at a programme gathering, a cast member had persistently tried to kiss a TBS announcer but the producer and other staff members present did not step in to help and stop the cast member.
As to why TBS did not take action then for these cases, it acknowledged that its awareness of harassment as an organisation was inadequate and there was no proper training nor reporting mechanism in place at that time. They also cited the testimony of one victim who had suffered the indignation for a long time and revealed how difficult it was to talk about this again. TBS apologised for its inability to protect its employees and to the victimised employees who had suffered throughout the years.

With regard to how TBS plans to handle such situations in future, it said that it was fully aware of and recognised its duty to bring about a positive change to the TV media industry's long-standing bad practices and condoning such behaviour as highlighted by the third-party investigation committee's report on FujiTV released in March 2025. They will do their best to protect the human rights of everyone, not just their own employees but also those who work with them and make sure that they themselves will not be the ones perpetuating or abetting such inappropriate actions. Going forward, TBS will make sure that they will announce major compliance violations as soon as they are aware and called upon the public not to make baseless claims or defamatory claims online with regard to this matter. 

Quick Review #111: Yutori desuga nani ka Junmai ginjou junjou hen (Drama SP)


Title: Yutori desuga nani ka Junmai ginjou junjou hen / ゆとりですがなにか 純米吟醸純情編

Rating: 7 / 10

Recommended for
Those who want to see an update in the lives of the Yutori trio and the people around them after watching the drama series

Liked:
- If you enjoyed watching the Yutori trio in the drama series, this is a must-see for the sake of seeing how their lives have changed one year after the end of the drama. The friendly banter and humour were still present in this SP although there were some issues that cropped up which ended up being largely resolved. 

- The acting from the cast again was the highlight here - in fact, more so than the story itself. Keep a lookout for the cameos here which I thought were pretty surprising.

Disliked: 
- Since the SP was a continuation of the drama series, not watching that beforehand or forgetting the prior storyline might make it difficult for you to remember some of the past references made in the SP. As such, there were quite a lot of flashbacks to the series in the SP. In my case, I watched the SP straight after finishing the series so the high proportion of such flashback scenes got on my nerves at times since these disrupted the flow of the SP's story to a certain extent.

- Given that the SP felt more like an update rather than a new story, it felt as if the goodness or tricks from the series were "rehashed" so the novelty factor was somewhat lacking. It made me wonder if some developments were included as fillers because there surely wasn't a need to split this SP's story into "two episodes" and could have been squeezed into a single 2-hr special or even shorter. For one, the part about Akane's pregnancy which was so obvious just seemed simply ridiculous since there were people in the Sakama household who had gone through pregnancy before and could certainly have noticed the change in her appearance way before the revelation. That hoo-ha over the brewery's survival was also too drawn out.

Friday, April 25, 2025

Preview of "Series Yokomizo Seishi tanpenshuu IV" - Spring 2025


Title: Series Yokomizo Seishi tanpenshuu IV / シリーズ横溝正史短編集 IV 
Official website: here
O.A. Date: 25 April 2025 
Timeslot: Thursdays at 8.30pm
Broadcast by: NHK
Original novel by: Yokomizo Seishi
Cast: Ikematsu Sousuke, Nakajima Tomoko, Kaho, Tsukishiro Kanato, Uno Shohei, Kukkii!, Itaya Yuka, YOU & Inowaki Kai etc.

Thursday, April 24, 2025

Winners of the 34th Japan Movie Critics Award (2024)


The award ceremony will be held at Tokyo International Forum on 9 June 2025.

For the full list of the winners, please refer here.

Best Movie: "Boku ga ikiteru, Futatsu no sekai"

Best Director: Irie Yu - "An no koto"

Best Leading Actor: Yoshizawa Ryo - "Boku ga ikiteru, Futatsu no sekai"

Best Leading Actress: Kawai Yumi - "An no koto"

Best Supporting Actor: Ayano Go - "Maru" / Mori Yuusaku - "Missing"

Best Supporting Actress: Oshidari Akiko - "Boku ga ikiteru, Futatsu no sekai"

Best New Director: Yamanaka Yoko - "Namibia no sabaku"

Best Male Newcomer: Saito Jun - "Karaoke iko!" / Motoyama Chikara - "Juuichinin no zokugun"

Best Female Newcomer: Nagasawa Itsuki - "Ai no yukue"

Best Scriptwriter: Kai Sayaka - "Adabana"

Best Editing: Tabata Hanako - "Boku ga ikiteru, Futatsu no sekai"

Golden Glory Award: Negishi Toshie - "Sayuri"

Diamond Award: Kusabue Mitsuko - "99-sai, nani ga medetai"

Preview of "PJ ~ Koukuu kyuunantai ~" - Spring 2025


Title: PJ ~ Koukuu kyuunantai ~ / PJ ~ 航空救難隊 ~
Official website: here
Official Instagram: here
Official X: here
O.A. Start Date: 24 April 2025
Timeslot: Thursdays at 9pm
Broadcast by: TV Asahi
Theme Song: "Boku niwa doushite wakarundarou" by Vaundy
Cast: Uchino Seiyo, Kamio Fuuju, Ishii Anna, Maeda Kentaro, Watanabe Aoto, Kusama Richard Keita, Inukai Atsuhiro, Maeda Oushiro, Yoshikawa Ai, Mashima Hidekazu, Hasegawa Tomoharu, Takagishi Hiroyuki, Nomura Masumi, Shishido Kai, Hamada Gaku & Suzuki Kyoka

Wednesday, April 23, 2025

Bunshun's latest scoop on the alleged extramarital affair of Tanaka Kei & Nagano Mei + her rumoured relationship with "Caster" co-star Kim Mu-jun

This big Bunshun bombshell of today actually started making its rounds online since last night.

Usually, when a celebrity's name becomes a trending word on social media like X, it can only mean one of these things:
  • Something good has happened or the person's work attracts positive responses
  • The person is involved in some negative news. 
As such, when I happened to see Nagano Mei's name trending on X last night, I somehow had the hunch that it should be the second scenario. The reason being, yesterday was not the day when "Caster" was shown on TV and I didn't recall her having any recent movie releases.

As it turned out, the reason why her name was trending was because of the following post which Bunshun posted on their account last night which said that they were going to release a scoop at 12 noon today (JST) about an affair between a "very popular heroine" who is appearing in an ongoing drama and a "big name actor":


As of today at 4.30pm JST, there are as many as 31 million views of this post, 1,100 comments and 5,300 reposts which shows how much attention this piece of news has attracted.

I was truly surprised to see Nagano being named as the heroine in question but what was more unexpected was that the guy said to be having an affair with her is Tanaka Kei. No offence to him and his fans but honestly, I don't really see him as a big name actor...as yet. And I remember them acting together as father and daughter before and Tanaka is a good 15 years older than Nagano. Much as they may be on good terms, it was a bit difficult to imagine them being linked in this manner especially since Tanaka has been married for so long and has 2 kids. As such, I was quite skeptical about them being named by netizens as the people involved in this scandal and didn't want to post about it until the news was revealed by Bunshun today.

What's interesting to note is that, while Nagano's name became a trending keyword last night, Tanaka didn't. It may be due to the fact that he isn't a stranger to controversy so people might not have been so shocked to see his name linked to such a scandal. As seen from some of the comments, many were saying that it was a matter of time for him to do something like this, not whether he would be capable of doing it. Most recently, his big party for more than 10 people held in 2021 during the COVID pandemic at that time when close contact and big events like these were discouraged to stop the infection from spreading attracted lots of criticism. Tanaka himself came down with COVID as well which meant that he had to take time off work and risked spreading the virus further through the people who were with him at that time. On the other hand, Nagano's image was comparatively much cleaner so I guess the shock from seeing her name being implicated in this kind of negative news was greater.

The best is yet to come.

If you thought that the affair is already raising eyebrows, imagine the double whammy of being told that Nagano may be two-timing Tanaka with another actor. This part was not mentioned in Bunshun's post last night so it was something totally unexpected. What's more, the actor concerned is Kim Mu-jun who is currently working together with Nagano in "Caster".

Now, I don't know which is worse - the alleged affair or the two-timing?

Since Bunshun's article is behind a paywall, the key points about the story are collected based on various sources such as other media outlets which reproduced parts of the story and netizens who shared screenshots of the article. If you are interested, you can sign up for Bunshun's subscription to gain access.

The Alleged Affair & The Unexpected Catch
- Nagano and Tanaka met after working together in the 2021 movie "Soshite, baton wa watasareta". According to an "associate", their relationship began last Sep after they reunited at a meal gathering in July for the first time in a long while. Back when they were filming the movie in 2020, there was nothing unusual observed in their interactions.

- Due to this scandal, the fact that they both announced having tested positive for COVID in July 2021 within a span of 3 days from each other became talked about again and fueled much speculation on the state of their relationship from back then.

- Bunshun reportedly received a tip-off last autumn about Nagano and Tanaka and subsequently caught them going to a theme park together in Dec 2024 and him picking her up from the TV station on 7 Apr 2025 after she knocked off and them going off to spend the evening together.

- While Bunshun's target was initially Nagano and Tanaka, they unexpectedly found that Kim Mu-jun who is Nagano's co-star in "Caster" also went on a date with her on 15 April and spent the night at her place. Up until Kim left her house on 18 April to return to South Korea, he was found to have been staying there on consecutive nights. The explanation given by both sides was that they were never alone together and that Nagano's mum was there as well.

- Later in the same evening, Nagano went to meet Tanaka at 7pm for a 3-hour meal at a high-class izakaya before going to a bar in Roppongi. They returned to Nagano's apartment around 3am.

- Around 3am on 19 April 2025, Tanaka was caught in a drunken state at the entrance of Nagano's apartment block with her by his side. He reportedly spent the night at her place and left around 11am the following day. In response to this, Nagano claimed that her mother was also in the apartment so they were not alone there.

- When Tanaka was interviewed in person by Bunshun as he left Nagano's apartment, he denied that he was romantically involved with Nagano but acknowledged for his behaviour that caused this misunderstanding. His somewhat conflicting answers also gave much room for imagination on the nature of their relationship which seemed to be too close for comfort in the case of a married man 
(Just my personal opinion here: It may have been best for him to shut up and not make the situation worse with his choice of words and way of answering the reporter.)
  • Tanaka insisted that he and Nagano are just very good friends.
  • He apologised for causing inconvenience and trouble to her simply because of her helping him when he was drunk.
  • When asked if he and Nagano are in a romantic relationship, Tanaka said that "they can't have such a relationship. However, there were times when he did think that he would enter into a relationship with her if it was possible in reality". In his exact words: 男女の関係にはなれないです。なれない、なれないです。なりたいのにって言われたら、そりゃなれるもんならなりたいと思う時もありますけど
  • When asked if he and Nagano were together during Halloween, he admitted that they did meet but there were other friends around. As the reporter probed further if the meeting was at Nagano's house, Tanaka did not give a clear answer.
  • When asked if their relationship had ended, Tanaka replied that it was difficult to say. However, when the reporter mentioned very specifically that the two of them had decided to put some distance between them since April this year as first initiated by Nagano, Tanaka was very flustered and kept asking the reporter how they came to know about this matter.
  • The problem was, Tanaka was caught spending the night at Nagano's apartment as recent as 19 April. As such, it was clear that his answer above was contradictory. 
  • While Tanaka apologised for causing inconvenience to Nagano by spending the night at her place in a drunken state, he denied initially that he had a spare key to her apartment but he inadvertently admitted that he had "returned the key to her a long time ago". This suggested that he indeed was in possession of the spare key to Nagano's place, albeit probably not now anymore.
  • Tanaka admitted that his wife did not know about him spending the night at Nagano's place and acknowledged that it was inappropriate for him to do so and let a junior take care of him when he was drunk.
- With regard to the Halloween party in question and to substantiate their claims in the report, Bunshun included the following photos taken in Oct 2024.




- In response to the news, Tanaka's agency released a statement that Tanaka denied having an affair and the agency believes him and will not conduct any investigation or is worried about this situation since they know that he has a habit of drinking with work colleagues. Although they do acknowledge that he can't hold his liquor well and yet still likes to drink and had gotten into some embarrassing situations in the past because of his drunken state, he had never been involved in a romantic scandal like this and is working hard in his acting career. However, the issue this time stems from a misunderstanding due to his actions which could be misinterpreted and viewed negatively. They admitted that he was at fault as well and had firmly requested Tanaka to be more mindful of his actions.

- Tanaka also issued another written explanation to Bunshun to clarify his stance after the in-person interview done when he left Nagano's place. He revealed that his friends had reminded him before that it was problematic for him to meet Nagano so often. That was when he first realised that this could be an issue for both of them even though they really enjoyed each other's company. He said that if he remembered correctly, what he meant by "it had ended" when he talked to the reporter was that he decided to stop meeting her so frequently. As he was still hungover at the time of the interview, he said that this was why his words did not convey accurately what he meant.
As for the part about having her house's spare key, Tanaka clarified that she did give him the carpark key to her apartment block so as to make it convenient for her friends to park there when they came over. However, he had already returned that to her long ago.

- As for Nagano's agency, they released a statement to deny that she was romantically involved with Tanaka and they just have a close relationship as senior-junior who meet up for meals and drinks. Nagano also has the habit of inviting her friends of both genders to her house for gatherings so this was not something restricted to Tanaka or Kim. However, what happened did create a misunderstanding so they have issued a firm warning for Nagano to be more mindful of her behaviour and apologised to all work parties and sponsors for causing worry and inconvenience to them.
With regard to her relationship with Kim, the agency also denied that they are dating and just colleagues.

- Meanwhile, Kim's agency also denied that he and Nagano are an item.

- Perhaps the immediate concern is how sponsors and work associates such as TV stations would see this scandal. Based on the estimation of Nagano currently holding 11 CM deals, the potential financial damage including loss of the deal and compensation could go up to JPY 700m. Sponsors can also choose to cancel CM deals or hold off the broadcast of CMs for the time being until the scandal dies down. Then it will be the TV stations which have to decide what to do next depending on the sponsors' preferences.

- According to Bengoshi.com News, the spouse i.e. Sakura in this case has the right to launch a civil suit against Nagano if it is proven later that the affair is indeed true. The market rate for damages to be paid to the spouse depends on whether the marriage ended up in divorce or not. If the couple divorces, the range will be from JPY 1.5 million to JPY 2.5 million. Otherwise, it will be up to JPY 1.5m. However, damages may not be awarded if it is proven that the other party did not know about the existing marriage.
Given that his marital status is widely known, there is no way Nagano can claim ignorance of this fact especially since they had worked together before. Then again, even for celebrities, the market rate for damages would not surge to hundreds of millions though. 

- The curse of Prada strikes again? Coincidentally or not, Nagano was named last Sep as a brand ambassador for Prada which has seen a string of its ambassadors end up in trouble over various reasons. The most recent example would be Kim Soo-hyun who is currently in the midst of his dating controversy with the late Kim Sae-ron since the time she was still a teenager and had his endorsement deal cancelled in just three months.

Just my personal view here:
I think the phrase "too close for comfort" probably sums up the root cause of this scandal best. Men and women can be good friends but there is a certain boundary to observe especially when one or both parties are attached. Letting a married man stay overnight at your place and him not letting his wife know where he was when he failed to return home - no matter how you look at it, it's hard not to let your imagination run wild. 
Given the nature of their occupations, being mindful of how they are perceived is even more important.
Holding hands - I don't know how you can justify that.
There have been countless examples of how young promising actresses go down the path of doom because of their involvement with a married colleague, whether it was true or not. In Japan, the scales are tipped even more unfairly against women because the guy always gets out unscathed after a while but the girl gets banished to the depths of hell. Even though both may be at fault. While there may have been some women who do get out of these scandals, that's the minority.
I find it a bit hard to understand and see why this kind of thing keeps happening over and over again despite the painful examples seen so far.
My biggest wish now is that "Caster" will not be affected because of what happened. I'm sure more people will be tuning in from now on but most likely, it's out of curiousity to see how Nagano and Kim interact on screen after the scandal. That's a shame though because the drama potentially can do well on its own merit.
I'm also curious, how would Oguri Shun react to this since he is the CEO of Tanaka's agency?

Preview of "Nami uraraka ni, Meoto biyori" - Spring 2025


Title: Nami uraraka ni, Meoto biyori / 波うららかに、めおと日和
Official website: here
Official Instagram: here
Official TikTok: here
Official X: here
O.A. Start Date: 24 April 2025
Timeslot: Thursdays at 10pm
Broadcast by: FujiTV
Original manga by: Nishiga Hachi
Theme Song: "Muchuu" by BE:FIRST
Cast: Yoshine Kyoko, Honda Kyoya, Yamamoto Maika, Koseki Yuuta, Komiya Rio, Tozuka Junki, Namase Katsuhisa & Wakui Emi

Tuesday, April 22, 2025

Preview of "Ameku Takao no suiri karute" - Spring 2025


Title: Ameku Takao no suiri karute / 天久鷹央の推理カルテ
Official website: here
Official Instagram: here
Official TikTok: here
Official X: here
O.A. Start Date: 22 April 2025
Timeslot: Tuesdays at 9pm
Broadcast by: TV Asahi
Original manga by: Chinen Mikito
Cast: Hashimoto Kanna, Miura Shohei, Hata Mei, Sasaki Nozomi, Takashima Reiko & Yanagiba Toshiro

Monday, April 21, 2025

Third-party Investigation Committee's Report on the Nakai Masahiro sexual violence case & FujiTV's role in it - Part 4: Immediate actions taken by Nakai


In this part, the focus will be on what Nakai Masahiro did from the time after the incident to when the victim A was hospitalised:

12 July 2023
B and J (Director of Planning and Strategy, Programming Department, Programming Strategy Center, Programming Bureau, Programming Directorate) received phone calls from Nakai who said that he had an urgent matter to discuss and wanted them to come to his office. 
  • Due to scheduling conflicts, B was unable to make it. 
  • Nakai then gave a brief outline of what happened between him and A over the phone. 
  • He described it as "the two of them having an opportunity to meet alone after the BBQ gathering at the apartment where the BBQ gathering had taken place but a dispute happened between him and A".
After the phone call, B and Nakai communicated via SMS as follows:

11.55am - Nakai: I contacted J. Let's meet from 5pm tomorrow at my agency's office. Sorry about this. I am counting on your assistance.

12.10pm: B: I understand! I will go together with J. I will do my best to help you.

13 July 2023
B and J visited Nakai's agency around 5pm. This was what B said that Nakai had told them:
  • There was an opportunity to meet A after the BBQ gathering on 31 May at the apartment where that gathering had taken place.
  • Nakai had asked A if she was OK with just the two of them meeting up. A had agreed and came to his apartment.
  • After what happened, he realised that A was in a worsening condition.
- Nakai asked for help in getting A to recover. B and J said that they would contact him if there was anything that came up.

- Nakai told them that this matter was to be confidential and not revealed to others.

- B said during the hearing with the committee that he was surprised to know that Nakai and A had exchanged contact details, met on their own and what Nakai did to A. However, from the way he heard things from Nakai, B came to the conclusion that this was a private dispute between a man and a woman.

- J also had a similar understanding and assumption as B based on past instances of celebrities and athletes who dated and married female announcers.

Later at night, B and Nakai had the following exchange via SMS:

Nakai: B, I heard from her again. She was hospitalized for contact disorder (her mother believes that it was an eating disorder) and depression. She couldn't do the work she wanted, her salary was reduced, she had no money, and she kept having regrets about that day. Please delete this after reading.
What should I do?
B: That sounds quite serious. How about I try to send a LINE message innocently? (i.e. pretending that he has no knowledge of what happened)

Nakai expressed his wish of discussing more with B on how to deal with A and made plans to do so after a programme recording on 17 July.

The interactions between A and Nakai
  • After the incident, Nakai continued to send SMS messages to A which she testified to the committee "had been unbearable and destroyed her heart".
  • A replied to Nakai on 6 June that she couldn't accept what had happened. 
  • On 15 June, she told him that she had to rest from work due to the shock of what happened to her on 2 June. 
  • On 11 July, she replied that she couldn't eat because of the 2 June incident and had to be hospitalised due to an eating disorder and depression. She also shared how she faced the loss of income due to her long hospitalisation period.
  • Although B followed Nakai's instruction to delete the SMS messages he received on A, the data was still present in his phone so the forensic investigators managed to restore that.
  • A told Nakai on 14 July about how her doctors had suggested suing Nakai for what he did to her on 2 June in view of the severe physical and psychological damage she suffered. She also wanted Nakai to foot her hospitalisation bill which was growing since her income was getting lesser and she couldn't afford the bills.
  • In response to this, Nakai told A that he would be giving her solatium money within taxation limits and that this would be done through their common acquaintance B. A said that she needed time to discuss this with her doctors so she did not accept his suggestion.
  • Nakai continued to send messages saying that the money could be seen as a congratulatory gift after she was discharged from hospital. A said that she did not understand what Nakai meant by solatium or congratulatory money and replied on 22 July that she would get a third party such as lawyers to deal with this in a precise and honest manner.
  • Nakai expressed concern about them being put into conflicting camps, legal fees will be incurred and how important it was to resolve this amicably. He suggested that A should focus on her recovery and if they needed a mediator, someone from CX would be ideal.
  • A rejected Nakai's proposal because she didn't think that her being a fairly new employee of CX would have her interests prioritised by the company as compared to Nakai who had contributed to CX greatly over many years. She firmly believed that Nakai would be at an advantageous position if his suggestion was adopted.
  • Nakai testified at the committee's hearing that he didn't think that A's sickness and hospitalisation was due to the incident and felt that it could have been due to her work or family relations.
  • Nakai asked B to bring JPY 1 million to A despite her saying that she needed time to talk to legal experts and her doctors about this. 
  • B agreed to help Nakai and sent a LINE message to A on 26 July saying that Nakai passed him something to give to A. As she had no intention of accepting anything from Nakai at this stage, she replied to B if it was OK for her doctors to inspect the contents first before passing it to her. B said that Nakai was OK with this after he spoke to the latter.
  • In view of the fact that A still wanted to return to work, she was in a situation where she couldn't bear the risk of antagonising B by being too insistent on this matter. 
  • B then asked J to pass a bag containing various items and an envelope containing JPY 1m cash to the hospital where A was at.
  • Based on the judgement of her doctors, A did not get to see the contents but was told by them that they believed money was inside the bag. As such, A refused to accept it and replied to B on this.
  • Since A's condition was getting worse, her doctors decided that having to deal with Nakai was putting a huge toll on her and that she should cut off contact with him. As such, A sent a SMS to Nakai on 1 August that he should not contact her anymore as she wanted to concentrate on her treatment.
  • However, Nakai continued to send messages at the rate of at least once a week until mid September despite A not replying to him at all.
  • At the hearing with the committee, B explained his action as a show of consideration to a junior at work who was concerned about her increasing hospital bills but the committee said that his action was in blatant disrespect of A's circumstances and medical condition. 
  • A testified that she believed B would have known what happened given his close relationship with Nakai even though B pretended not to know in front of her.
  • A also told F on 31 July on what transpired between her, Nakai and B but F was initially skeptical about how close B and Nakai were since F did not know about the suite room and BBQ gatherings. 
  • Nonetheless, F still sent an email to E and G on the same day about what A said but nobody responded to F on this matter.
  • Nakai continued to ask B to find out how A was through his connections in CX and that B should report this to him. B initially agreed to help Nakai with this matter.
  • However, when A posted a photo of her being hospitalised on Instagram in late October 2023, B was concerned that since all contact with A had to go through F now, he rejected Nakai somewhat indirectly and even told Nakai that it would be best for them to cut down on their contact frequency for the time being.

Preview of "Anata wo ubatta sono hi kara" - Spring 2025


Title: Anata wo ubatta sono hi kara / あなたを奪ったその日から
Official website: here
Official Instagram: here
Official TikTok: here
Official X: here
O.A. Start Date: 21 April 2025
Timeslot: Mondays at 10pm
Broadcast by: Kansai TV / FujiTV
Cast: Kitagawa Keiko, Nimura Sawa, Taira Yuna, Abe Ryohei, Mizusawa Shingo, Ogawa Rina, Isshiki Kasumi, Hara Hideko, Tsuruta Mayu, Nakahara Takeo, Tsutsui Michitaka, Kurata Ema & Oomori Nao

Sunday, April 20, 2025

Preview of "Damemane! - Dame na tarento, manejimento shimasu -" - Spring 2025


Title: Damemane! - Dame na tarento, manejimento shimasu - / ダメマネ! - ダメなタレント、マネジメントします -
Official website: here
Official Instagram: here
Official TikTok: here
Official X: here
O.A. Start Date: 20 April 2025
Timeslot: Sundays at 10.30pm
Broadcast by: NTV
Theme Song: "Watashitachi no Canon (VS. Chevon)" by Tokyo Ska Paradise Orchestra
Opening theme song: "DARE ME" by IVE
Cast: Kawaei Rina, Yasuda Ken, Chiba Yuudai, Terajima Shinobu, Hashimoto Jun, Hamada Mari, Suzuki Jin, Nagano Munenori, Furuta Airi & Kichise Michiko

Saturday, April 19, 2025

Preview of "Musashino Rondo" - Spring 2025


Title: Musashino Rondo / ムサシノ輪舞
Official website: here
Official Instagram: here
Official TikTok: here
Official X: here
O.A. Start Date: 19 April 2025
Timeslot: Saturdays at 11pm
Broadcast by: TV Asahi
Original manga by: Kawachi Haruka
Theme Song: "Destiny" by Ae! group
Cast: Masakado Yoshinori, Takanashi Rin, Inaba Yu, Ichikawa Yu & Kochi Yugo

Friday, April 18, 2025

Top 20 FujiTV drama theme songs as chosen by 10,000 people

FujiTV's variety programme "Kono sekai wa 1derful" aired a top 20 ranking of FujiTV drama theme songs as chosen by 10,000 people on 17 April 2025. 
  • The dramas' titles are reflected within the brackets. 
  • The links lead to music videos or live performances of the theme songs.
  • The years when the dramas were aired are reflected at the end of each line.
What is clear from this ranking:
  • FujiTV's golden age for its dramas were indeed the 90s - the top 10 were all from this era.
  • The most "recent" entry in this ranking was already 3 years ago.
  • Seems like the dramas from the past 2 years haven't left as much of an impact on viewers unlike some from decades ago which are still remembered fondly.
Are your favourites in this list? 


1) "Love Story wa totsuzen ni" by Oda Kazumasa (Tokyo Love Story) - 1991

2) "SAY YES" by Chage & Aska (101 kaime no proposal) - 1991

3) "Ima sugu Kiss Me" by LINDBERG (Sekai de ichiban kimi ga suki) - 1990

4) "Kimi ga iru dake de" by Kome Kome Club (Sugao no mama de) - 1992

5) "Makenaide" by ZARD (Shiratori Reiko de gozaimasu!) - 1993

6) "Sekaijuu no dare yori kitto" by Nakayama Miho & WANDS (Dare ka ga kanojo wo aishiteru) - 1992


8) "YAH YAH YAH" by Chage Aska (Furikaereba yatsu ga iru) - 1993

9) "Kanashimi wa yuki no you ni" by Hamada Shogo (Ai to iu na no moto ni) - 1992

10) "Saboten no hana" by Zaitsu Kazuo (Hitotsu yane no shita) - 1993

11) "Sora mo toberu hazu" by Spitz (Hakusen Nagashi) - 1996

12) "HANABI" by Mr.Children (Code Blue) - 2008

13) "Sekai ni hitotsu dake no hana" by SMAP (Boku no ikiru michi) - 2003

14) "TRUE LOVE" by Fujii Fumiya (Asunaro Hakusho) - 1993

15) "Gin no ryu no se ni notte" by Nakajima Miyuki (Dr. Kotoo shinryoujou) - 2003



18) "Tomorrow never knows" by Mr.Children (Wakamono no subete) - 1994

19) "Love Somebody" by Oda Yuji (Odoru Daisousasen) - 1997

Preview of "Ignite Hou no muhousha" - Spring 2025


Title: Ignite Hou no muhousha / イグナイト 法の無法者
Official website: here
Official Instagram: here
Official TikTok: here
Official X: here
O.A. Start Date: 18 April 2025
Timeslot: Fridays at 10pm
Broadcast by: TBS
Cast: Mamiya Shotaro, Kamishiraishi Moka, Miyama Ryoki, Ryou, Oikawa Mitsuhiro & Nakamura Tooru

Thursday, April 17, 2025

Preview of "Mamono / Mamul" - Spring 2025


Title: Mamono / 魔物 / Mamul / 마물
* Note that there are two titles i.e. one in Japanese and Korean since this is a Japan-Korea joint production.
Official website: here
Official Instagram: here
Official TikTok: here
Official X: here
O.A. Start Date: 18 April 2025
Timeslot: Fridays at 11.15pm
Broadcast by: TV Asahi
Cast: Asou Kumiko, Shiono Akihisa, Kita Kana, Ochiai Motoki, Miyamoto Mayu, Uraji Nuno, Wakabayashi Jiei, Ookura Koji, Miyazaki Tomu, Kanno Misuzu & Sano Shiro

Wednesday, April 16, 2025

Preview of "Dr. Ashura" - Spring 2025


Title: Dr. Ashura / ドクター・アシュラ
Official website: here
Official Instagram: here
Official TikTok: here
Official X: here
O.A. Start Date: 16 April 2025
Timeslot: Wednesdays at 10pm
Broadcast by: FujiTV
Original manga by: Koshino Ryou
Theme Song: "Namae no nai hibi" by imase
Cast: Matsumoto Wakana, Sano Masaya, Tanabe Seiichi, Koyuki, Arakawa Yoshiyoshi, Izuka Kenta, Yuki Moe, Arai Reira, Anami Atsuko, Sano Shiro, Suzuki Kosuke, Katahira Nagisa & Watabe Atsuro

Tuesday, April 15, 2025

Preview of "Koi wa yami" - Spring 2025


Title: Koi wa yami / 恋は闇
Official website: here
Official Instagram: here
Official TikTok: here
Official X: here
O.A. Start Date: 16 April 2025
Timeslot: Wednesdays at 10pm
Broadcast by: NTV
Theme Song: "BEAT" by WurtS
Cast: Shison Jun, Kishii Yukino, Shirasu Jin, Nekoze Tsubaki, Hamano Kenta, Tanaka Tetsushi, Nishida Naomi, Kobayashi Toranosuke, Okayama Hajime, Takemori Sento, Yamamoto Mirai, Morita Misato, Mochizuki Ayumu, Namura Jin & Hagiwara Masato

Monday, April 14, 2025

Preview of "Zoku zoku Saigo kara nibanme no koi" - Spring 2025


Title: Zoku zoku Saigo kara nibanme no koi / 続・続・最後から二番目の恋
Official website: here
Official Instagram: here
Official TikTok: here
Official X: here
O.A. Start Date: 14 April 2025
Timeslot: Mondays at 9pm
Broadcast by: FujiTV
Theme Song: "mimosa" by Hamasaki Ayumi
Cast: Koizumi Kyoko, Nakai Kiichi, Sakaguchi Kenji, Uchida Yuki, Iijima Naoko, Kubota Maki, Matsuo Satoru, Satsukawa Aimi, Shiramoto Ayana, Hiroyama Kotoha, Miho Jun, Shibata Rie, Asano Kazuyuki, Watanabe Makiko, Moriguchi Hiroko, Ishida Hikari & Miura Tomokazu

Sunday, April 13, 2025

Preview of "Caster" - Spring 2025


Title: Caster / キャスター
Official website: here
Official Instagram: here
Official TikTok: here
Official X: here
O.A. Start Date: 13 April 2025
Timeslot: Sundays at 9pm
Broadcast by: TBS
Theme Song: "Damashiai" by tuki.
Cast: Abe Hiroshi, Nagano Mei, Michieda Shunsuke, Tsukishiro Kanato, Kimura Tatsunari, Kim Mu-jun, Sasaki Maika,  Hikorohii, Horikoshi Reika, Baba Ritsuki, Kitaoji Kinya, Tanida Ayumi, Uchimura Haruka, Kato Haruhiko, Kaji Masaki, Tamaoki Reo, Kikuchi Akiko, Miyazawa Ema, Okabe Takashi, Otoo Takuma & Takahashi Hideki

Saturday, April 12, 2025

Preview of "Nande watashi ga kamisekkyou" - Spring 2025


Title: Nande watashi ga kamisekkyou / なんで私が神説教
Official website: here
Official Instagram: here
Official TikTok: here
Official X: here
O.A. Start Date: 12 April 2025
Timeslot: Saturdays at 9pm
Broadcast by: NTV
Theme Song: "Aria" by Aina The End
Cast: Hirose Arisu, Watanabe Shota, Okazaki Sae, Noro Kayo, Horiuchi Keiko, Toyoshima Hana, Mizusawa Rintaro, Seino Asahi, Arai Miu, Hamura Jinsei, Hayashi Yuuta, Shida Kohaku, Yoshida Haruto, Matsumoto Reiyo, Shimamura Ryuunosuke, Kote Shinya, Ito Atsushi & Kimura Yoshino etc.

Friday, April 11, 2025

Preview of "Shissounin sousakuhan Kieta shinjitsu" - Spring 2025


Title: Shissounin sousakuhan Kieta shinjitsu / 失踪人捜索班 消えた真実
Official website: here
Official Instagram: here
Official X: here
O.A. Start Date: 11 April 2025
Timeslot: Fridays at 9pm
Broadcast by: TV Tokyo
Theme Song: "Masaka naku towa omowanakatta" by THE JET BOY BANGERZ
Cast: Machida Keita, Koizumi Kotaro, Sugou Araki, Izumi Rika, Takeda Rena, Katagiri Jin, Takahashi Katsumi & Mitsuishi Ken

Thursday, April 10, 2025

Preview of "Shikyuu Renai" - Spring 2025


Title: Shikyuu Renai / 子宮恋愛
Official website: here
Official Instagram: here
Official TikTok: here
Official X: here
O.A. Start Date: 10 April 2025
Timeslot: Thursdays at 12.59am
Broadcast by: YTV
Original manga by: Sasae Noriko
Opening theme song: "Bittersweet" by ONE N' ONLY
Ending theme song: "Aiwazurai" by Faulieu.
Cast: Matsui Airi, Oonuki Yuusuke, Sawamura Rei & Yoshimoto Miyu

Preview of "MADDER Sono jiken, watashi ga hannin desu" - Spring 2025


Title: MADDER Sono jiken, watashi ga hannin desu / MADDER その事件、ワタシが犯人です
Official website: here
Official Instagram: here
Official TikTok: here
Official X: here
O.A. Start Date: 10 April 2025
Timeslot: Thursdays at 12.15am
Broadcast by: Kansai TV
Theme Song: "CYM" by Billyrrom
Cast: Ioki Mao, Yamamura Ryuta, Higuchi Kohei, Yamashita Eiku, Kuwayama Ryuta, Yoshina Riru, Mizuno Hibiki, Kanon, Tsugumi, Rijuu Go, Nasubi, Iwakura, Okayama Hajime, Hama Shogo & Takeda Rina

Wednesday, April 09, 2025

Third-party Investigation Committee's Report on the Nakai Masahiro sexual violence case & FujiTV's role in it - Part 3: The Immediate Aftermath


In this installment, the focus will be on the immediate aftermath of the Nakai Masahiro sexual violence incident and FujiTV's initial handling of the incident up to the point when A was first hospitalised:

6 June 2023
  • In the morning, Victim A called Doctor C (the corporate doctor of CX) while in tears and complained of various symptoms such as insomnia after what happened on 2 June 2025. 
  • Doctor C booked a consultation for A with Doctor D (the physician in charge of CX's Health Consultation Room - Psychosomatic Medicine) in the afternoon. Doctor C joined the session halfway.
  • A voluntarily revealed in detail what Nakai did to her and her physical and psychological symptoms after the incident during the session.
  • Doctors C and D determined that A had suffered an act of sexual violence from Nakai and asked her to consider seeking legal advice. However, A was in a state of extreme psychological distress so it was difficult for her to make a judgement at that point in time.
  • A expressed that even though she wanted to continue working, she was plagued by symptoms such as insomnia, loss of appetite and giddiness. She also made comments reflecting the despair and distress she felt including "I feel that I cannot regain my previous self", "There is a huge gap between the world and the situation I am in and I cannot return to that", "I feel terrible when I see the food I had and the music I heard that night", "When I read the news about people who died, I wished that I could die in place of those people".
  • Doctor D diagnosed that A was suffering from acute stress response and prescribed medication to alleviate her symptoms.

On the same day, E who was the director of the announcers' department, found A with her face down on her desk and saw that the latter was in tears. E then asked A to move to a separate room to talk.
  • A was crying as she related what happened to her and E determined that she had suffered sexual violence from Nakai.
  • A said that she didn't want to tell anyone about this matter nor blow it up. She expressed that she wouldn't be able to live on if this incident came to light and wanted to continue working.
  • When E asked if she would like to avoid working with Nakai from now on, A insisted that she was fine with it because "she didn't want to be defeated" due to this incident.
  • E told A that E would consult a female manager F on this matter and informed F with the basic facts before F was to meet A.

7 June 2023
A and F met in person to talk about the case including how A was fearful of rejecting Nakai's invitation would have an adverse effect on her career and details about what happened. She also expressed her wish not to destroy her life because of this and that Nakai was still in contact with her at this point.
As A was in a state of confusion and distress when she made the comment about not avoiding Nakai at work, F stated to A that the latter should tell her if she had a change of mind going forward.
A was sent home from the office on this day.


8 June 2023
Doctor C asked for E and F to gather in the health consultation room where the three of them shared information about what A provided and came to the conclusion that A had suffered sexual violence from Nakai. At the advice of Doctor C, the following principles were decided mutually with E and F on how the announcers' department should deal with this case:
  • Confirming with A beforehand when sharing information about this case to others
  • Prioritizing the welfare of A as she was in a very unstable psychological state
  • Not cancelling her TV programme appearances unilaterally
  • Resuming or suspending work arrangements should be done based on doctor advice
E and F were very worried about A's physical and psychological states including the possibility of suicide.

10 June 2023
F discussed with A beforehand and allowed her to take a break from work for 1 week starting from the next Monday onwards. They decided that they would use the reason of being unwell to explain her absence.
  • In the meantime, other announcers gave feedback to F that they noticed A was unwell and displayed symptoms like shivering hands and walking in an unsteady manner. 
  • F consulted Doctor C and decided that they would respect A's wishes to work.
  • A went back to see Doctor C and D on the same day and complained of her worsening symptoms and it was obvious that she had lost too much weight in a short time due to her loss of appetite and poor health. 
  • The doctors decided that A was in the state of requiring immediate hospitalization and arranged for her to be treated at a hospital in Tokyo. A was then admitted to the gastroenterology ward first on the following day because it had available beds and would be transferred to the psychiatric ward later once there was space freed up. 
  • Doctor C contacted E and F about this development. F reassured A that she should rest for a while and not worry about taking time off work.
  • In the referral letter given to the hospital, A's diagnosis was stated as "depressive state and loss of appetite due to harassment by a related party at work".
  • A was worried that she might not be able to return to work and went to see Doctor D on 20 June. She returned to work briefly after that.

12 July 2023
To date, the only people who A had agreed to knowing about the incident were 4 people i.e. E, F and doctors C and D. 
  • However, to prevent speculation within CX and rumours surrounding A's absence, F sent an email to E asking for the reporting of this matter to the management. 
  • E replied that those who had deciding powers over the people who appeared in programmes should know about this and stated that three people should be informed i.e. Ohta Tooru - the executive director in charge of programming and production, G - the director of the programing and production department and H - the human resources director.
  • E also asked F to be the main contact person with A going forward. However, F was not equipped with the necessary knowledge and skills to deal with A who was in a serious condition due to depression and suicidal tendencies brought about by the sexual violence she suffered. This in turn caused F to be under severe mental stress due to taking on this role.

13 July 2023
E told G in person about what happened to A but did not ask F to join this session even though F was in direct contact with A and was together with A at her consultation sessions with the corporate doctor.
  • Due to the severity and sensitivity of this matter, G said that they needed to handle this with care and decided not to report this to the directors for now.
  • Although E felt that such a serious case should be made known to the directors immediately, E ultimately left the judgement call to G.
  • During the hearing with the committee, G revealed that the assumption he/she had back then was that this was a private dispute between a man and a woman. G misunderstood that the venue of where they met was Nakai's residence and that he and A had met with nobody else around on their own will. To date, there had been cases of celebrities and female announcers getting into romantic relationships and/or getting married so G didn't feel that this case was an infringement of human rights. 
  • As to why G did not inform his/her boss Ohta about this, it was because G had been told before the session started that A didn't want word of this matter to leak. G then determined that there was a risk of that happening even if only the directors were informed.
  • G also expressed his/her lack of understanding of how A came to be so ill and had to be hospitalized when she "went to Nakai's apartment voluntarily". He/she also didn't see A's point of her fear about rejecting Nakai would affect her career.
  • Despite G's claims, E testified that he/she had made it very specific and clear what A had reported to them about the incident.
  • It was also pointed out that G did not inform CX's compliance department despite protocols in place. G explained that if the report made it to the compliance department, it would blow things up and cause word of the incident to spread. 
  • G also believed that CX was a company where "information would leak outside easily" so there was a concern that this might cause A to suffer from further unwanted attention and defamation.
  • G held the opinion that female announcers were generally afraid to speak their mind and didn't want to push through things which might jeopardise their careers, affect how people view them or cause problems for the company. While G understood back then why A was so insistent on keeping this matter under wraps, he/she thought that it was wrong of him/her not to report this to the compliance department on hindsight.

On the same day, E informed H that A was going to take time off work for health reasons due to this incident.
  • While H thought that this was a private issue, he/she stated that this was also a matter of duty of care for the employee concerned.
  • H also realised that there was a possibility of A filing a criminal suit against Nakai and asked E if he/she knew what Nakai's stand and understanding of this case was but did not get a definitive answer from E.
  • H explained the possible HR measures to take for this case and asked E to report A's situation directly to him/her going forward.
  • H found out from E that G had withheld the case from Ohta and asked to be informed if this changed so that he/she could inform his/her superior accordingly. 
  • H did not tell the rest of the HR department about this case and simply explained that A was taking time off work due to illness.

E told the corporate doctor C that since the case had been raised to the management, C and doctor D would only need to focus on taking care of A's physical and psychological conditions. 
  • C was of the understanding that the management referred to by E included then-president Minato, Ohta, G and E and they would be in charge of CX's handling of this case as well as dealing with Nakai. 
  • C assumed that this meant that Nakai's programme would be ended eventually when the new programming schedule kicked in as part of the measures to be taken by CX. This opinion was based on the previous example of "Matsumo to Nakai" being "ended" (albeit relaunched with a different title and host lineup) when Matsumoto Hitoshi took a break from work from January 2024 due to his own issue.
  • CX did not seek professional advice from both doctors on the potential impact it will have on A if Nakai's programme was to continue airing on TV.
  • Both doctors also did not make any statements pertaining to whether Nakai's programme should continue and if letting things remain as they are would be best in terms of not aggravating A's condition. Neither did they state that reporting this case to the compliance department would worsen A's condition.
  • Doctor C had never spoken to G until 25 July 2024 for the purpose of discussing A's resignation.

Preview of "Tokusou 9 final season" - Spring 2025


Title: Tokusou 9 final season / 特捜9 final season
Official website: here
Official Instagram: here
Official X: here
O.A. Start Date: 9 April 2025
Timeslot: Wednesdays at 9pm
Broadcast by: TV Asahi
Theme Song: "Nebagiba ~ Never Give Up! ~" by 20th Century
Cast: Inohara Yoshihiko, Hada Michiko, Fukikoshi Mitsuru, Taguchi Hiromasa, Mukai Koji, Fukagawa Mai, Nakagoshi Noriko & Hara Sachie