Preview of "Doctor Price" - Summer 2025

Title: Doctor Price / ドクタープライス

Official website: here

Official Instagram: here

Official TikTok: here

Official X: here

O.A. Start Date: 6 July 2025

Timeslot: Sundays at 10.30pm

Broadcast by: YTV / NTV

Original manga by: Sakatsu Tsukasa & Ayuzu Masaki

Theme Song: "Fake Show" by Omoinotake

Cast: Iwata Takanori, Makita Aju, Miura Takahiro, Narumi Riko, Kitayama Hiromitsu, Hayashi Yasufumi, Tsubokura Yoshiyuki, Yusuke Santa Maria & Shinohara Ryoko

Preview of "Replica Mototsuma no fukushu" - Summer 2025

Title: Replica Mototsuma no fukushu / レプリカ　元妻の復讐

Official website: here

Official Instagram: here

Official TikTok: here

Official X: here

O.A. Start Date: 7 July 2025

Timeslot: Mondays at 11.06pm

Broadcast by: TV Tokyo

Original manga by: Tanaka Tomo / Hirai Hacchi

Opening theme song: "CHEAT" by Kis-My-Ft2

Ending theme song: "B.U.G." by Dios

Cast: Triendl Reina, Miyamoto Mayu, Kimura Ryo & Senga Kento

Preview of "Konbanwa, Asayama-ke desu" - Summer 2025

Title: Konbanwa, Asayama-ke desu / こんばんは、朝山家です。

Official website: here

Official Instagram: here

Official TikTok: here

Official X: here

O.A. Start Date: 6 July 2025

Timeslot: Sundays at 10.15pm

Broadcast by: ABC TV / TV Asahi

Theme Song: "Come back home" by FUNKY MONKEY BABY'S

Cast: Nakamura An, Ozawa Yukiyoshi, Satou Honami, Kojima Ken, Kageyama Yuka, Watanabe Miyu, Shimada Tetta, Tosa Kazunari, Sano Hiroki, Takezai Terunosuke, Kawai Aoba, Maruyama Tomomi, Uno Shohei & Matsuo Satoru

Preview of "Revenge Spy" - Summer 2025

Title: Revenge Spy / リベンジスパイ

Official website: here

Official Instagram: here

Official TikTok: here

Official X: here

O.A. Start Date: 5 July 2025

Timeslot: Saturdays at 11pm

Broadcast by: TV Asahi

Theme Song: "Asymmetry" by Naniwa Danshi

Cast: Ohhashi Kazuya, Shibuya Nagisa, Takahashi Mitsuomi, Oriyama Nao, Tsukaji Muga, Seino Asahi, Nakajima Hiroko, Shimizu Shin, Ito Shuko, Yui Karen, Daichi Nobunaga, Saeki Arata, Bona, Mizobata Junpei & Takashima Masanobu

Preview of "DOPE Mayaku torishimaribu tokusouka" - Summer 2025

Title: DOPE Mayaku torishimaribu tokusouka / ドープ　麻薬取締部特捜課

Official website: here

Official Instagram: here

Official TikTok: here

Official X: here

O.A. Start Date: 4 July 2025

Timeslot: Fridays at 10pm

Broadcast by: TBS

Original novel by: Kisaki Chiaki

Theme Song: "Never ends" by Uru

Cast: Takahashi Kaito, Nakamura Tomoya, Araki Yuuko, Miura Masaki, Toyoda Yuudai, Kumada Rinka, Oshinari Shugo, Iriyama Noriko, Sano Kazuma, Fernandez Naoyuki, Kumai Keita, Aoto Niko, Koike Teppei, Matobu Sei, Ito Atsushi & Iura Arata

Preview of "Renai Kinshi" - Summer 2025

Title: Renai Kinshi / 恋愛禁止

Official website: here

Official Instagram: here

Official TikTok: here

Official X: here

O.A. Start Date: 3 July 2025

Timeslot: Thursdays at 11.59pm

Broadcast by: YTV / NTV

Original novel by: Nagae Toshikazu

Theme Song: "Koe prod. * Taku Takahashi (m-flo)" by IS:SUE

Opening theme song: "Kyoshoku no kisu" by shallm

Cast: Ihara Rikka, Sato Daiki, Konishi Sakurako, Kokubo Toshihito, Ishikawa Manahiro, Ishii Masanori & Watanabe Keisuke

Preview of "Laundering" - Summer 2025

Title: Laundering / ロンダリング

Official website: here

Official Instagram: here

Official TikTok: here

Official X: here

O.A. Start Date: 3 July 2025

Timeslot: Thursdays at 12.15am

Broadcast by: Kansai TV

Theme Song: "Black Nightmare" by Naniwa Danshi

Cast: Fujiwara Joichiro, Sugai Yuka, Hashimoto Ryo, Kubota Maki, Chou Tamiyasu, Wada Masato, Tanimura Mizuki & Ohtani Ryohei

Preview of "Ameagari no bokura ni tsuite" - Summer 2025

Title: Ameagari no bokura ni tsuite / 雨上がりの僕らについて

Official website: here

Official Instagram: here

Official TikTok: here

Official X: here

O.A. Start Date: 2 July 2025

Timeslot: Wednesdays at 12.30am

Broadcast by: TV Tokyo

Original manga by: Rakuta Shouko

Ending theme song: "Petrichor" by SG

Cast: Ikeda Masashi, Hori Natsuki, Watanabe Miho, Yamada Maho, Takasugi Kou & Kirishima Reika

Preview of "40 made ni shitai 10 no koto" - Summer 2025

Title: 40 made ni shitai 10 no koto / ４０までにしたい１０のこと

Official website: here

Official Instagram: here

Official TikTok: here

Official X: here

O.A. Start Date: 4 July 2025

Timeslot: Fridays at 12.12am

Broadcast by: TV Tokyo

Original manga by: Mamita

Theme Song: "Sumire" by Chevon

Ending theme song: "Maboroshi" by the shes gone

Cast: Kazama Shunsuke, Shoji Kohei, Hirai Amon, Takayama Riko, Watanabe Keisuke & Hirako Yuki

Preview of "Kita-kun ga kawaisugite te ni amaru no de, 3 nin de shea suru koto ni shimashita." - Summer 2025

Title: Kita-kun ga kawaisugite te ni amaru no de, 3 nin de shea suru koto ni shimashita. / 北くんがかわいすぎて手に余るので、３人でシェアすることにしました。

Official website: here

Official TikTok: here

Official X: here

O.A. Start Date: 1 July 2025

Timeslot: Tuesdays at 11pm

Broadcast by: Kansai TV

Original manga by: Sakaki Kotsubu

Theme Song: "Love Syndrome" by CENT

Opening Song: "Numakoeteko" by This is LAST

Cast: Honda Tsubasa, Shida Mirai, Iwase Yoji, Mashiko Atsuki, Oideyasu Oda, Takatsuka Hiromu, Yokomizo Naho, Hashimoto Wataru, Hano Aki, Maggy, Ozawa Maju & Manda Hisako

Preview of "Kanzen Furin - Kakusu bigaku, Abaku kakugo -" - Summer 2025

Title: Kanzen Furin - Kakusu bigaku, Abaku kakugo - / 完全不倫 - 隠す美学、暴く覚悟 -

Official website: here

Official Instagram: here

Official TikTok: here

Official X: here

O.A. Start Date: 1 July 2025

Timeslot: Tuesdays at 12.24am

Broadcast by: NTV

Theme Song: "Shurabanban" by Yayoi

Cast: Nimura Sawa, Maeda Gouki, Nomura Shuhei, Ohnishi Ayaka, Kaya Souya, Hori Miona & Naenano

Ex-TOKIO member Matsuoka Masahiro meets the press for the first time following the band's sudden disbandment

After TOKIO’s sudden disbandment on 25 June 2025 following Kokubun Taichi’s indefinite hiatus from 20 June due to reported compliance violations, Matsuoka Masahiro faced the press for the first time on 27 June 2025 and answered their questions for about 20 minutes. This was done outside the Tokai City Arts Theater after his rehearsal for the stage play “Kaseifu no Mitazono THE STAGE Les Mizera Furo” which will be held on 28 and 29 June. 

Matsuoka was the first ex-TOKIO member to speak out openly on these issues and here are the key points as gathered from various sources:

• Matsuoka was dressed in a black T-shirt and brown pants and wore a cap and glasses. 

• He started off by apologising again to sponsors, everyone in Fukushima Prefecture, fans who had been supporting TOKIO for the past 31 years and all associates who they worked with in various programmes for the situation. With the liquidation of Kabushikigaisha TOKIO, they are in the midst of settling contracts with sponsors and various work parties following the disbanding of the band. Once everything is settled, the company will be officially shut down.

• With regard to why the decision was made to disband in just 5 days after Kokubun’s issue came to light, this move was made to limit the impact and inconvenience caused to their work associates and fans to the minimum. Matsuoka and Joshima Shigeru i.e. Leader met up in person on 24 June to reach the decision and called Kokubun on the spot to convey this.

• Matsuoka admitted that when he and Leader saw the NTV press conference which exposed Kokubun’s issue, they came to the realisation that they wouldn’t be able to protect TOKIO nor work using this name anymore. Honestly speaking, Matsuoka’s first thought was “not again, how many times has this been?” and also felt embarrassed because the band already had two members leave due to different reasons. In fact, when they set up Kabushikigaisha TOKIO, that was done with the understanding that if ever any one of the trio had to leave for any reason, that would mark the end of TOKIO. While it was a painful decision to make, this was a move which could not be avoided given the circumstances. While it was a cowardly and shameful manner of how TOKIO came to an end and they all felt really sorry to their fans, he stressed that this was something that they didn’t want to do but had to go ahead with it.

• When asked if there is a possibility that Matsuoka and Leader could meet fans again in person via other formats in future, Matsuoka said that assuming if they are forgiven for what happened in the future, they might be able to do something. However, at this stage, there is nothing they can really do and it is not in their position right now to even think about sounding fans on how they feel towards this kind of proposition.

• As for the current condition of Kokubun, Matsuoka revealed that he was in the doldrums and feeling remorseful for what happened. He also felt that Kokubun himself would have wanted more than anyone else to talk about what happened in front of the media because the latter is a man with a strong sense of responsibility. However, it was unlikely that Kokubun would be able to say anything even if he appeared in public given the confidentiality restriction so Matsuoka decided to be the one speaking up instead. This was also because Matsuoka was the PR director for their company.

• Although Kokubun kept apologising to him and Leader, Matsuoka didn’t think that this wasn’t an issue which could be brushed off easily. When he and Leader told Kokubun about the decision to disband TOKIO over the phone, all Kokubun could do was to apologise repeatedly. Considering that they had spent 36 years of their lives together, Matsuoka recounted that he had never heard Kokubun sound like that before. And since they are no longer band mates, he doesn’t think that whatever he says now would matter to Kokubun anymore.

• When asked about the relationships between the 5 ex-TOKIO members including Nagase Tomoya and Yamaguchi Tatsuya who left for their own reasons, Matsuoka felt that they each had their own ways of showing their love for the band. While they have not spoken to one another on this matter, he believed that Nagase and Yamaguchi would both have their own perspectives on this situation. Matsuoka and Leader did not contact Nagase and Yamaguchi on this and vice versa.

• As for his relationship with Kokubun going forward, Matsuoka said that although they have become ex-band mates now, he doesn’t think that this will mean the end of their longtime friendship even though he knows very well that there may be people who won’t look on this favourably. He and Leader are still contacting Kokubun time to time recently for business matters only.

• As for the question whether Matsuoka knew what Kokubun had done, he said that it was meaningless to pursue the reason for what led to this state of things. If asking for the answer to what Kokubun did would help salvage the situation, Matsuoka would do so but to him, dealing with the present situation matters more than delving into what caused it. 

• Due to the privacy protection measures, nobody including Leader and him and their staff members knew what had exactly happened and when the problematic actions took place. However, in response to media rumours that this may be related to DASH-mura, Matsuoka said that this was untrue. 

• With regard to recent media reports suggesting that Kokubun had engaged in bullying of fellow TOKIO members, Matsuoka denied this vehemently and stressed that there was absolutely no bullying within the group. He said that he was bewildered when he heard about such media reports and lamented how the unfounded rumours of late have been fueling lots of ridiculous theories that are going around.

• When asked if Leader and Matsuoka would continue visiting and interacting with Fukushima Prefecture which had deep and longtime ties with TOKIO, he said that they would definitely do so.

• As for the individual career plans of him and Leader, Matsuoka said that they are focusing on their respective projects on hand and the procedures to end their company for now. After the dust has settled and they take time to consider their options, they will then announce that in due course. The two of them will also be speaking to their 4 employees to find out their preferences and take the responsibility to secure re-employment for them if they wish.

Sources: 

Sponichi Annex 

https://news.yahoo.co.jp/articles/a6d7cfd2fa3c7d722cb9333bc41c124ece0d56fe 

https://news.yahoo.co.jp/articles/cfcbd95946174ec9c162c4c3422a902e414da068 

https://news.yahoo.co.jp/articles/0f45db33fd028ec35e4f62684bbe9a7f4f860ad9 

https://news.yahoo.co.jp/articles/0f45db33fd028ec35e4f62684bbe9a7f4f860ad9 

https://news.yahoo.co.jp/articles/40625553bb52f66f7bbd28356699e698592b53e7 

https://news.yahoo.co.jp/articles/037d6dbc428b96cec81236178ed58934c294ced2 

TV Asahi News

https://news.yahoo.co.jp/articles/d040ed97ce97e6166c990214a65c61cb3bd90586 

NTV News

https://news.yahoo.co.jp/articles/4f4ffae8bad555bf49ed24ac56f1a7c414754c8f 

Daily

https://news.yahoo.co.jp/articles/2ea07d3097d296b46bfea42088559bfe8f4f68c4 

https://news.yahoo.co.jp/articles/b62d0e57b684559b89086d324e62d6844d958990 

https://news.yahoo.co.jp/articles/e51140f4dba2b604f49eb42e5123f04a88cb107b 

Tokyo Sports

https://news.yahoo.co.jp/articles/8816f08545c58604ff77e1a5d67bb9305b477971 

Preview of "Cinderella Closet" - Summer 2025

Title: Cinderella Closet / シンデレラクロゼット

Official website: here

Official Instagram: here

Official TikTok: here

Official X: here

O.A. Start Date: 1 July 2025 (to be released via Netflix first from 24 June 2025)

Timeslot: Tuesdays at 12.58am

Broadcast by: TBS

Original manga by: Yanai Wakana

Theme Song: "Akuma" by Frederic

Cast: Osaki Ichika, Matsumoto Reo, Karuma, Mito Yuna & Hachimura Rintaro

Preview of "Hatsukoi DOGs" - Summer 2025

Title: Hatsukoi DOGs / 初恋 DOGs

Official website: here

O.A. Start Date: 1 July 2025

Timeslot: Tuesdays at 10pm

Broadcast by: TBS

Cast: Kiyohara Kaya, Narita Ryo, Na In-woo, Hagiwara Riku, Miyazawa Ema, Nadagi Takeshi, Noro Kayo, Miyazaki Shuto, Nagase Riko, NOA, Marui Wan, Jin Dae-yeon, Reo, mie, Sakai Maki, Fukada Kyoko & Kishitani Goro

Preview of "Watashi ga anata to iru riyuu ~ Guam wo otozureta 3 kumi no danjo no isshuukan ~" - Summer 2025

Title: Watashi ga anata to iru riyuu ~ Guam wo otozureta 3 kumi no danjo no isshuukan ~ / 私があなたといる理由～グアムを訪れた３組の男女の一週間～

Official website: here

Official Instagram: here

Official TikTok: here

Official X: here

O.A. Start Date: 1 July 2025

Timeslot: Tuesdays at 12.30am

Broadcast by: TV Tokyo

Cast: Renbutsu Misako, Mizobata Junpei, Nakai Tomo, Momose Takumi, Katsumura Masanobu & Ishino Youko

Preview of "Banshaku no ryuugi 4 ~ Natsu hen ~" - Summer 2025

Title: Banshaku no ryuugi 4 ~ Natsu hen ~ / 晩酌の流儀4 〜夏編〜

Official website: here

Official Instagram: here

Official TikTok: here

Official X: here

O.A. Start Date: 27 June 2025

Timeslot: Fridays at 12.42am

Broadcast by: TV Tokyo

Cast: Kuriyama Chiaki, Takeda Kouhei, Tsuji Nagiko, Baba Hiroyuki, Mister-chan & Okayama Hajime

Preview of "Ayaka-chan wa Hiroko-senpai ni koishiteru 2nd Stage" - Summer 2025

Title: Ayaka-chan wa Hiroko-senpai ni koishiteru 2nd Stage / 彩香ちゃんは弘子先輩に恋してる 2nd Stage

Official website: here

Official Instagram: here

Official TikTok: here

Official X: here

O.A. Start Date: 26 June 2025

Timeslot: Thursdays at 1.29am

Broadcast by: MBS

Original manga by: Sal Jiang

Cast: Kato Shiho, Mori Kanna, Honda Kyoya, Yuki Mio, Yamashita Eiku, Someya Yuka, Taira Minori, Kojima Riria, Nasu Hohomi, Kurata Ema, Matsumura Sayuri, Seto Kazuya & Nanami Hiroki

Preview of "Ryousangata Ruka - Puramo buin no aoki gyakushuu -" - Summer 2025

Title: Ryousangata Ruka - Puramo buin no aoki gyakushuu - / 量産型ルカ - プラモ部員の青き逆襲 -

Official website: here

Official Instagram: here

Official X: here

O.A. Start Date: 3 July 2025

Timeslot: Thursdays at 12.30am

Broadcast by: TV Tokyo

Ending theme song: "Puratomo" by LINKL PLANET

Cast: Kaki Haruka, Tsutsui Ayame, Yamasaki Ryutaro, Kobayashi Momoko, Omoto Yukina & Okada Yoshinori

Preview of "TOKAGE Keishicho tokushu sousagakari" (Drama SP)

Title: TOKAGE Keishicho tokushu sousagakari / TOKAGE 警視庁特殊犯捜査係

Official website: here

Official X: here

O.A. Date: 30 June 2025 at 8pm

Broadcast by: TV Tokyo

Original novel by: Konno Bin

Cast: Sorimachi Takashi, Kuriyama Chiaki, Ryuusei Ryo, Fukikoshi Mitsuru & Shiina Kippei

TOKIO's Kokubun Taichi goes on an indefinite hiatus due to supposed "compliance violations"

This piece of news saddens me because it has to do with TOKIO, one of my favourite Japanese artists who I have been supporting for a long time since I came to know about them in 1996.

Over the last decade or so, the band has already gone through a number of hurdles and challenges which led to its members leaving one by one, be it voluntarily or not. The problem this time though is, nobody is saying what exactly is the issue other than it's a compliance violation. This will no doubt fuel lots of speculation and rumours swirling around that could be potentially even more damaging than the actual reason for Kokubun Taichi having to go on an indefinite hiatus. What could be serious enough to warrant him being taken off the shows but not to the extent of having a criminal complaint filed against him? So it's something that morally incorrect but legally OK? 

I just cannot wrap my head around this.

I think everyone is waiting for an answer but whether there will be one or if the official explanation reveals the reason in its entirety, only time will tell.

Here's the timeline of what's known so far based on various news reports (all dates/times in JST):

27 May 2025

NTV was said to have uncovered the multiple incidents involving Kokubun's compliance violations and shared information on this with relevant departments within the TV station. It then engaged external lawyers to conduct investigations. (Sports Hochi)

19 June 2025

Rumours of Kokubun quitting from his TV shows started circulating late in the evening and that official announcements will be made on the following day. The reason for the move was said to be due to "serious compliance violations" but at this point, nobody knew what exactly was the reason. (Sponichi Annex)

20 June 2025

- NTV's president Fukuda Hiroyuki announced on 20 June 2025 during a last-minute press conference at 1pm that the TV station had ascertained "multiple compliance violations in the past" by Kokubun thus the decision was made to take him off the variety show "The Tetsuwan DASH". 

• He had been appearing in this programme as a member of TOKIO since it started in 1995. 
• Fukuda revealed that he was informed of this matter on 27 May 2025 and that following the investigation by external lawyers, it was deemed that it would be inappropriate for Kokubun to continue appearing in the show. 
• However, despite persistent questioning by the media at the press conference, Fukuda refused to reveal details of what happened or when it happened, citing privacy concerns. 
• This attracted criticism from the media and online that the press conference did not answer any of the critical questions and was meaningless other than a display of NTV cutting off Kokubun first before his agency and company made his hiatus announcement.
• What was only ascertained during the press conference was that this matter had nothing to do with anti-social forces, involved multiple people but was not a "large-scale case".
• It was reported that an emergency board of directors meeting was called earlier in the morning to approve this decision.

- Kabushikigaisha TOKIO and STARTO ENTERTAINMENT released their statements announcing the indefinite hiatus of Kokubun:

• It had come to their attention that Kokubun Taichi had been involved in multiple incidents of compliance violations. After discussing this issue with him and as a way of taking responsibility to reflect on his actions, he will be going on an indefinite hiatus with effect from 20 June 2025.
• In the statement from Kabushikigaisha TOKIO which was signed off by the president cum TOKIO's leader Joshima Shigeru, it apologised to work associates and fans for the sudden announcement and causing them worry and inconvenience as a result. 
• As of now, they have not made any decisions on what to do in future and all queries on this matter should be directed to STARTO ENTERTAINMENT which the company has a group agent contract with because Kabushikigaisha TOKIO does not have a designated channel to handle such queries.
• Kokubun himself apologised for the concern and inconvenience caused to everyone and that his lack of self-awareness and complacency despite having worked in the entertainment industry for so many years were what led to his inadequate actions. At the moment, the period of his hiatus has not been fixed and he will take time to reflect on himself and change his ways.
• STARTO ENTERTAINMENT's statement was similar to that of Kabushikigaisha TOKIO's which mentioned Kokubun's hiatus and apologised for the sudden announcement and inconvenience caused to everyone.

The work situation of Kokubun

The following information was compiled by Sponichi Annex and FLASH:

• Co-vice president of Kabushikigaisha TOKIO and in charge of planning since April 2021
• President of TOKIO-BA, a new project under Kabushikigaisha TOKIO. Joshima Shigeru & Matsuoka Masahiro are the vice presidents for TOKIO-BA
• TOKIO entered into an agency contract with STARTO ENTERTAINMENT in April 2024
• Had 6 regular shows on TV and radio i.e. The Tetsuwan DASH (NTV), Danshi Gohan (TV Tokyo), Sekai kurabetemitara (TBS), TOKIO Terrace (Mainichi Housou), Kokubun Taichi no THE CRAFTSMEN (BS10) and Kokubun Taichi Radio Box (JFN).
• CM: Japan Net Takata Fukushima Prefecture "Fukushima Pride" - Japan Net announced on 20 June that it had taken off his CMs.
• It had been announced on 12 June that Kokubun is to host TV Tokyo's "TV Tokyo Ongakusai 2025 ~ Natsu ~" in July. 
• Kabushikigaisha TOKIO had already informed various TV stations and work partners of Kokubun's resignation from these shows.
• Despite TOKIO not doing any music-related activities in recent years following the departure of Yamaguchi Tatsuya and Nagase Tomoya in 2018 and 2021 respectively, Kokubun was still involved in making music as recently as in March this year. He was the producer (using the name Mitazono Kaoru) for the digital single "clock" by special unit Shima Shigeko & Hikaru i.e. Joshima and Inoo Kei which was the theme song for the drama "Kaseifu no Mitazono" starring Matsuoka.
• Over the past 4 years since the official LINE accounts of Kabushikigaisha TOKIO and Kokubun were set up on 10 June 2021, he had been sending daily morning greeting messages without fail through his official account between 6am and 7am to his followers which exceeds 128,000. However, the last message he sent was on 19 June and there was nothing for today i.e. 20 June which attracted speculation online prior to the hiatus announcement this afternoon.

Preview of "Kanshu no ryuugi" (Drama SP)

Title: Kanshu no ryuugi / 看守の流儀

Official website: here

Official Instagram: here

Official X: here

O.A. Date: 21 June 2025 at 9pm

Broadcast by: TV Asahi

Original novel by: Shiroyama Shinichi

Cast: Takeuchi Ryoma, Kimura Fumino, Kitamura Kazuki, Hoshino Mari, Ozawa Maju, Watanabe Dai, Terajima Susumu, Naitou Takashi, Emoto Akira, Yamada Jundai, Kondo Koen, Hamatsu Takayuki, Yamaguchi Yoshiyuki, Rozariino, Inoue Yuki & Asa Tatsumi

Quick Review #137: Koi wa yami - Spring 2025

Title: Koi wa yami / 恋は闇　　　　　　　　　　　

Rating: 6 / 10

Recommended for: 

For those who want to watch an engaging and romantic love story with murder suspense as a subplot and/or are fans of Kishii Yukino and Shison Jun

* Potential spoilers ahead!

Liked:

- The romance i.e. koi part of this drama was definitely the highlight, thanks to the great acting of Kishii and Shison. Not only did the two of them look so compatible visually, their chemistry from the early stage of their relationship to when they were so deeply in love with each other was very engaging to watch. 

Disliked: 

- As I mentioned before in a post about my impression of Ep 1, this drama might have initially given off vibes as a romantic version of "Anata no ban desu" but sad to say, it just didn't have the same kind of engaging lure like the latter. One key difference between these two stories was the fact that "Anata no ban desu" did not hesitate to "kill off" key characters and often at very surprising paces and junctures of the story. And that's what kept viewers going on and talking about it online week after week even though "Anata no ban desu" stretched across two seasons and yet didn't feel draggy until the finale was such a huge letdown. However, the victims in "Koi wa yami" were not regular cast members to begin with so the serial murders just didn't have the same kind of "significance" to make viewers care about how the suspense plot would unfold. The only surprise was the death of the police detective Owada who figured out the real identity of the killer way earlier than everyone else. What made things even worse was the whole deduction process came across as "lacking in urgency" and there were so many loopholes in the plot along the way that it felt very anti-climatic by the time the finale came about.

- The same issue with "Anata no ban desu" was replicated here - the motive of the killer, modus operandi and Shitara Hiroki's involvement in the whole scheme didn't make sense or you could find lots of illogical stuff to find fault with. Pardon me for saying this but the motive just came across as terribly senseless and trivial for the killer to unleash so much hatred against the female victims over such a long period of time. And if Hiroki had been in cahoots with the real killer for as long as a decade, what happened to the murders that happened before the current string of 5+1 murders (1 survived the attack) was linked to one another by the police and media? And Mikuru's animosity towards Makoto initially - it was not as if she had romantic feelings for her half-brother so why did she behave like that at first? Why would Hiroki have knowingly let his father take the blame for him with regard to Hiroki's mother's murder (well, it turned out that the father went to jail actually not for his son but the real killer)?

Frankly speaking, it was not difficult to guess from the start who the real killer was because he already looked so suspicious in many ways. However, I find it hard to be convinced by his rationale so I couldn't help but roll eyes as I saw the part about his confession.

- NTV is up to its Hulu antics again - in order to find out why the killer behaved the way he did and possibly some new titbits in the romance department, there is a spinoff/special that's on Hulu exclusively. So if you are like me who only watched the full drama and have no intention to pay for Hulu just to watch this spinoff, you'll probably not be able to make much sense of the killer's mentality and possibly change your perception of him. Makes me wonder why NTV just cannot learn its lesson from the criticism it got some years ago by doing the same. Is it really that hard to tell the story in its entirety within the drama series instead of resorting to spinoffs that contain critical parts of the plot? 

Quick Review #136: Mamono - Spring 2025

Title: Mamono / 魔物　　　　　　　　　　　　

Rating: 7 / 10

Recommended for: 

For those who fancy the fatal attraction-type of romance involving an older woman and a younger man and/or are fans of Asou Kumiko, Shiono Akihisa and Kita Kana

* Potential spoilers ahead!

Liked:

- As the drama was only 8 episodes long, the story didn't take too long to ignite the sizzling and fatal romance. At least for the first 3 episodes, this felt like a really mind-blowing rollercoaster romance until the deadly parts of this intense attraction surfaced as quickly in the second half of the drama. The ending was handled pretty well too especially the part of who-killed-the-guy making more sense than what was hinted at initially. I may have been concerned about this drama being draggy before I started watching it but thankfully, my worries were unfounded.

- The onscreen chemistry between Asou and Shiono was absolutely sizzling right from the onset and way better than I expected initially. As the romance soured due to the domestic violence inflicted by the guy, the tension between them changed and was very compelling to watch. Even the love-hate marriage which Shiono and Kita's characters were stuck in was interesting to observe from the sidelines.

While Shiono may not have left much of an impression on me with his past works which I saw before, I think this drama made me remember him in a good way. Likewise for Asou, I've seen her works many times to date but this was probably the first time that I thought she looked and acted very different from her past roles. Kita was pretty good at showing the multiple facades of her character and I thought she balanced these aspects well enough to make it believable.

Disliked: 

- This being a Japan-Korea joint production, I can understand if there's a need to include Korean influences and elements into the drama. However, inserting the names of Korean dishes into the sub titles for each episode just felt out of place and sometimes did not really gel with the main developments of that episode. As such, while I don't see an issue with featuring Korean elements in the story (despite this being set in Japan), it is best not to try too hard and end up spoiling the vibe in the drama.

- As the story was heavily centered on the two pairings i.e. Ayame-Iteya and Kanon-Iteya, the other characters felt more like an afterthought and didn't make as much of an impact, at least to me. I would have thought that the relationships between the Nada family members would be quite interesting to delve into but the story barely scrapped the surface of that aspect.

- While this was supposed to address the important question of who killed who that resulted in Ayame becoming the accused in a murder trial, I thought that the police's investigative work was slipshod. Ultimately, it depended on someone's confession for the truth to be out rather than the police doing what they were supposed to do. I would have expected the police to be able to force Ayame's side into a corner with more compelling evidence and facts to prove her guilt but alas, this didn't happen.

Preview of "Ballet Danshi" - Spring 2025

Title: Ballet Danshi / バレエ男子

Official website: here

Official Instagram: here

Official TikTok: here

Official X: here

O.A. Start Date: 1 May 2025

Timeslot: Thursdays at 1.29am

Broadcast by: MBS

Theme Song: "Mahou no kotoba" by Funatsu Manato

Ending Theme: "Finale" by Chikaishi Ryo

Ballet Director: Kusakari Tamiyo

Cast: Tozuka Junki, Daito Shunsuke, Yoshizawa Kaname, Minakami Kyoka, Fukuda Momoha, Miyazaki Kokoro, Matsunaga Reiko, Kohashi Megumi & Kuze Seika

Quick Review #135: Caster - Spring 2025

Title: Caster / キャスター　　　　　　　　　　　　

Rating: 2 / 10

Recommended for: 

For those who don't mind watching a messed up story promising too much but delivering too little

* Potential spoilers ahead!

Liked:

- While I do not have very nice words for most of this drama, some cast members did try their best to deliver their best despite the limitations they faced especially Otoo Takuma and Tsukishiro Kanato. 

- The production team's courage to pick up and cover some controversial real-life examples in the earlier episodes.

Disliked: 

- The biggest problem was with the story. As I wrote before, the fact that this drama had as many as 6 scriptwriters, the illogical settings and developments were the root cause that resulted in the story losing focus and going in various directions but lost its way at the end. Not only were the loose ends not tied up properly, the ending and so-called truth/revelations were just so slipshod that I wondered why I wasted three months on this. It felt like the production team couldn't wait to wrap up this whole thing even though the big topic in the end could have been dealt with in a deeper and more thoughtful manner. And to think that the ending hinted at the possibility of a sequel! I'm sorry but I don't think I can watch anything more from this series.

I really should have given up much earlier like what I did with "Get Ready!" which had a similar problem. 

And TBS does need to be more careful about using keywords like unconventional, break out of the norm or shocking in its promotional slogans. The sense of disappointment gets bigger when the actual product turns out to be much less than promised.

- To be honest, some may argue that the inability by many viewers to enjoy the drama arose from Nagano Mei's two-timing scandal which was exposed soon after the first OA. To be fair to her, the fundamental cause of this drama's failure was still the poorly-structured story. However, the fact that her character Sakikubo Hana was two-faced and had double standards when it came to dealing with issues dear to her or detached from her situation made her lines and behaviour in the story very difficult to resonate with. Her scandal only served to amplify how hollow her words and actions came across because they were like boomerangs that went straight back to her as thinly-veiled criticism towards her real-life actions (whether intended or not). As such, to see a heroine go on and on as if she is some righteous person on a crusade to take down the lead character - that just came across as nonsense and downright hypocritical.

- Although Kim Mu-jun's significance in this story wasn't big to begin with and I am not a fan of him, I felt that how he was effectively erased from the drama without a trace after the scandal broke was distasteful to say the least. 

- I watched this for the sake of Abe Hiroshi but sad to say, this really wasn't one of his best performances to date. My biggest grouse was, Shindo came across more as an investigative journalist rather than a newscaster and he simply didn't behave like a newscaster especially when it came to his posture and way of speaking on air. I get that he was supposed to be unconventional but the basics of being the lead caster weren't even there. Compared to his co-caster played by Tsukishiro who looked extremely convincing, the contrast was even harder to ignore.

Quick Review #134: Taigan no kaji - Spring 2025

Title: Taigan no kaji / 対岸の家事　　　　　　　　　　　　

Rating: 7 / 10

Recommended for: 

For those who want to watch a meaningful story about respecting one another's life choices and lifestyles with a heartwarming vibe but do not mind it for being a tad slow at times

* Potential spoilers ahead!

Liked:

- The drama stayed true to its central theme of showing understanding for people in different circumstances and one another's life choices and lifestyles. As such, the vibe of the story was thoughtful and meaningful yet it didn't prescribe a single solution to the problems featured nor push one school of thought over the other. I think this approach would resonate well with a wide audience regardless of your life situation and the feeling of being understood and heard made it enjoyable to watch this. And it was good that the drama did not try to push for a happily-ever-after and expected ending especially the part when Nakatani (Dean Fujioka) wanted to have time to think about when he was ready to forgive his mother.

- The casting was quite unconventional in the sense that Tabe Mikako was paired with Ichinose Wataru while Dean Fujioka played a couple with Shimabukuro Hiroko. While their acting was good and brought out the signature traits of their characters, I found Eguchi Noriko's character to stand out more as she managed to display the struggles and vulnerabilities of a working mother very well. 

Disliked: 

- The side plot which dragged on for a few episodes i.e. the threats against Shiho (Tabe) for being a housewife was terrible and totally redundant. I get that the issue featured was important in a sense but the mis-directed anger towards Shiho for nothing was hardly convincing. The so-called resolution to the situation was even more ridiculous.

- As a former SPEED fan during their heydays, much as I was surprised to see Hiroko act in this drama, the amount of airtime she had was simply too little and hardly satisfying even though the character had the potential to be quite interesting.

- To be honest, the story lost steam in the second half and I was getting a tad bored with the slowness especially when they spent so much time on the threats made towards Shiho. If the drama had dragged on for another episode or two, I might have given up before the finale.

Preview of "Ayashii Partner" - Spring 2025

Title: Ayashii Partner / あやしいパートナー

Official website: here

Official Instagram: here

Official TikTok: here

Official X: here

O.A. Start Date: 29 April 2025

Timeslot: Tuesdays at 12.59am (MBS) / 1.28am (TBS)

Broadcast by: MBS & TBS

Original Korean drama by: Kwon Ki-young

Opening theme song: "Unmei nante" by FANTASTICS

Ending theme song: "Lovey Dovey" by Kami wa saikoro wo furanai

Cast: Yagi Yuusei, Saito Kyoko, Kusakawa Takuya, Morita Kokoro, Ijima Ku, Tosa Kazunari, Takasugi Kou & Watanabe Ikkei

Preview of "Aozora Biiru" - Spring 2025

Title: Aozora Biiru / あおぞらビール

Official website: here

Official Instagram: here

Official X: here

O.A. Start Date: 16 June 2025

Timeslot: Mondays to Thursdays at 10.45pm

Broadcast by: NHK

Total number of episodes: 32

Original book by: Morisawa Akio

Theme Song: "Aozora" by Ueno Daiki

Cast: Kubozuka Airu, Fujioka Maito, Toyoshima Hana, Minamide Ryoka & Sato Eriko

Guest Lineup: Matsuo Satoru, Kobayashi Ryoko (Week 1) / Ken Naoko (Week 2) / Tokunaga Chikara (Week 3) / Takenaka Naoto, Negishi Toshie, Hoshida Hidetoshi, Hamatsu Takayuki (Week 5) / Nozomi Futo, Murai Ryota (Week 6) / Miyake Hiroki (Week 7)

Winners of the annual edition of Nikkansports Drama Grand Prix (2024)

Here are the winners for the annual edition of Nikkansports Drama Grand Prix in 2024. Numbers in brackets indicate the number of votes received:

Best Drama

1) Minami-kun ga koibito!? (138,310)

2) Umi no hajimari (16,351)

3) Tokyo Tower (10,739)

4) Umi ni nemuru daiyamondo (10,546)

5) Hidamari ga kikoeru (10,403)

6) Hikaru kimi e (10,330)

7) Unmet Aru nougekkai no nikki (6,742)

8) Onzoushi ni koi wa muzusugiru (6,379)

9) Saionji-san wa kaji wo shinai (6,116)

10) 95 (4,315)

Best Leading Actor

1) Yamashita Tomohisa - Blue Moment (37,977)

2) Kubota Masataka - Sora wataru kyoushitsu (36,709)

3) Ninomiya Kazunari - Black Pean Season 2 (36,077)

4) Nakano Taiga - Shinjuku Yasen Byouin (34,860)

5) Nakazawa Motoki - Hidamari ga kikoeru (29,162)

6) Meguro Ren - Umi no hajimari (19,027)

7) Nagase Ren - Tokyo Tower / Onzoushi ni koi wa muzusugiru (14,828)

8) Yagira Yuuya - Lion no kakurega (5,621)

9) Takahashi Kaito - 95 (4,410)

10) Kyomoto Taiga - Omukae Shibuya-kun (4,359)

Best Leading Actress

1) Ito Sairi - Tora ni tsubasa (46,601)

2) Ichikawa Mikako - Hotspot (37,337)

3) Nao - Ano kuzu wo nagutte yaritainda (36,386)

4) Iinuma Ai - Minami-kun ga koibito!? (35,114)

5) Sugisaki Hana - Unmet Aru nougekkai no nikki (17,692)

6) Matsumoto Wakana - Saionji-san wa kaji wo shinai / Watashi no takaramono (15,792)

7) Yoshitaka Yuriko - Hikaru kimi e (13,878)

8) Hirose Suzu - Kujaku no dansu, dare ga mita? (11,979)

9) Imada Mio - Hanasaki Mai ga damattenai (11,128)

10) Yoshine Kyoko - Madoka 26-sai, Kenshui yattemasu! (3,299)

Best Supporting Actor

1) Yagi Yuusei - Minami-kun ga koibito!? (138,574)

2) Matsumura Hokuto - Saionji-san wa kaji wo shinai / Ensemble (22,342)

3) Bandou Ryouta - Lion no kakurega (17,727)

4) Nishihata Daigo - Onzoushi ni koi wa muzusugiru (11,740)

5) Fukazawa Tatsuya - Watashi no takaramono (10,728)

6) Ikematsu Sousuke - Umi no hajimari (7,503)

7) Ozaki Takumi - Unmet Aru nougekkai no nikki (5,950)

8) Matsuda Genta - Tokyo Tower (5,076)

9) Wakaba Ryuuya - Unmet Aru nougekkai no nikki (3,497)

10) Kobayashi Toranosuke - Sora wataru kyoushitsu (3,421)

Best Supporting Actress

1) Amami Yuki - Believe - Kimi ni kakeru hashi - (51,691)

2) Kuroki Haru - Hikaru kimi e (51,230)

3) Kimura Yoshino - Minami-kun ga koibito!? (35,006)

4) Takeda Rena - Minami-kun ga koibito!? (34,951)

5) Izumitani Rana - Umi no hajimari (15,034)

6) Kurata Ema - Saionji-san wa kaji wo shinai (8,412)

7) Itaya Yuka - Tokyo Tower (8,110)

8) Sugisaki Hana - Umi ni nemuru daiyamondo (7,195)

9) Koshiba Fuuka - Berabou ~ Tsutajuu Eiga no Yumebanashi (6,050)

10) Noro Kayo - Unmet Aru nougekkai no nikki (4,608)

Preview of "Nihon Touitsu Tokyo hen" - Summer 2025

Title: Nihon Touitsu Tokyo hen / 日本統一　東京編

Official website: here

Official Instagram: here

Official TikTok: here

Official X: here

O.A. Start Date: 2 July 2025

Timeslot: Wednesdays at 1am

Broadcast by: TV Tokyo

Cast: Motomiya Yasukaze, Yamaguchi Yoshiyuki, Shinoda Mariko, Tachi Yoshimi, Kitadai Takashi, Katsuya, Nakazawa Tatsuya, Honda Hiroto, Kawasaki Kenta, Kyan Yutaka, Nakaya Kazuhiro & Katase Rino

Quick Review #133: Kuuhaku (movie)

Title: Kuuhaku / 空白　　　　　　　　　　　　

Rating: 7 / 10

Recommended for: 

For those who want to watch a story featuring different perspectives on who's at fault and who's the victim and/or are fans of the cast especially Furuta Arata and Matsuzaka Toori

* Potential spoilers ahead!

Liked:

- This story will invoke changing emotions and interpretations as the movie progresses with regard to the topic of who's at fault and who's the victim in the case of an accidental death of a junior high school girl caught for shoplifting. I liked the fact that there was no standard answer given and showcasing different perspectives was a good way to highlight the dilemma of how difficult it is to view an issue objectively especially when emotions and our values come into the picture.

- The cast boasted quite a number of good actors with Furuta Arata and Matsuzaka Toori hogging the limelight as characters on opposite sides of the spectrum. Furuta's portrayal as a father who kept looking outwards to justify and make sense of why his daughter behaved the way she did and the reason she died instead of reflecting on his own actions was very convincing. On the other hand, Matsuzaka managed to show the complexity of his character who was filled with conflicting emotions as he faced criticism and pressure from what he supposedly did rightly but ended with the wrong consequences. Likewise, the supporting actors like Terajima Shinobu, Shuri, Ito Aoi, Tabata Tomoko, Fujiwara Kisetsu and Kataoka Reiko all pulled their weight to make their characters come to life.

Disliked: 

- While the individual parts of the movie were good, I felt that the story lacked a strong central theme or rather, was weak in trying to convey it. The title which literally means "blankness" can indeed be interpreted in a variety of ways such as how the father-and-daughter who hardly knew and understood each other despite living under the same roof, the emptiness and isolation which the daughter felt both at home and in school or the supermarket owner whose life revolved around the supermarket but he never realised the value of it to himself, the employees and customers until it was too late. While this multi-pronged approach might give viewers the freedom to develop their own conclusions, this also diluted the power of the movie's messaging. I felt like I went through a pretty emotional and painful journey but with no tangible or obvious outcome just like how the supermarket owner got a very belated and ambiguous apology for the father who finally acknowledged that his late daughter did do something wrong which contributed to the accident. Perhaps this hollow feeling is meant to resonate with the title and make everything come full circle but I would have preferred a clearer delivery of any central theme which the director or scriptwriter had in mind.

Preview of "Gezanmeshi Takasaki hen" (Drama SP)

Title: Gezanmeshi Takasaki hen / 下山メシ　高崎篇

Official website: here

Official Instagram: here

Official X: here

O.A. Start Date: 26 June 2025 at 12.30am

Broadcast by: TV Tokyo

Original book by: Nishino Toshiko

Cast: Shida Mirai

Understanding "Kasumigaseki Bungaku" through TBS Winter 2025 drama "Mikami-sensei"

If you have watched "Mikami-sensei", you would have heard this term "Kasumigaseki Bungaku" being mentioned multiple times throughout the entire drama. So what is "Kasumigaseki Bungaku" and why was this being featured prominently in the drama?

To begin with, the literal translation of "Kasumigaseki Bungaku" / 霞が関文学 is Kasumigaseki literature. As you may already know, Kasumigaseki is a district in Chiyoda Ward, Tokyo, where most government ministries are located so the place name is often used as a metonym for the Japanese bureaucracy. Likewise, the term Nagata-cho is used to refer to the elected government or legislative branch since the Diet of Japan and the Prime Minister's residence are located here.

While the exact origin of Kasumigaseki Bungaku is not known, what sets this form of word usage apart from daily Japanese speech is the use of terms which on their own, are easy to understand but when pieced together becomes ambiguous, difficult to comprehend and often sounds ridiculous. As such, the term Kasumigaseki Bungaku actually contains a certain degree of mockery to mean that bureaucrats often speak in a hard-to-understand and somewhat unfeeling/robotic manner to complicate simple things. On the surface, they give the impression that things are progressing smoothly but nothing is said clearly so that they wouldn't be held responsible for their ambiguous words. This is said to be reflective of the bureaucrats' mindset of always looking for a way out in case things go wrong and their tendency to avoid having their mistakes being pointed out. 

Key characteristics of Kasumigaseki Bungaku speech include:

• Only answering things that they are asked
• Answering only the bare minimum and avoiding elaboration/clarification
• Using ambiguous expressions in written form which could be interpreted in various ways
• Making the subject vague, or in some cases omitting the subject, and obscuring who is responsible

Similarly, Nagata-cho Bungaku / 永田町文学 can be said to be the politicians' version of Kasumigaseki Bungaku. However, it is also said that Nagata-cho Bungaku is heavily influenced by the latter since a lot of ministers speak using scripts and statements prepared by bureaucrats in their ministries and heavily rely on them for advice since they are the subject matter experts. Over time, the use of Kasumigaseki Bungaku terms sort of "flowed over" to the political circle. Inevitably, both types of literature have identical characteristics i.e. complicated, ambiguous and unclear responsibility. 

Here are some examples of simple terms vs. their complicated versions in Kasumigaseki Bungaku style:

Rubbish / ゴミ ----> General waste / 一般廃棄物

Business District / ビジネス街 ----> Specified commercial cluster / 特定商業集積

Mother Complex / マザコン -----> Excessive mother-child contact / 過度な母子の密着

Boom in learning foreign languages /  外国語ブーム ----> Increased motivation to learn languages / 語学学習意欲の高まり

For those who may be interested in knowing more about Kasumigaseki Bungaku, you can read this article from NHK.

In "Mikami-sensei", the lead character Mikami Takashi played by Matsuzaka Toori is a bureaucrat from the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology who is dispatched to a senior high school to be a teacher for a designated period of time. Given his background, it is no wonder that the things he said were sometimes or rather often delivered in the Kasumigaseki Bungaku style especially in the earlier episodes. For example, you may have remembered the following:

If my memory is correct - 僕の記憶が確かならば

It is the result of my immorality - 不徳の致すところです (used when apologising for one's mistakes)

I cannot answer anything beyond this - これ以上はお答えできません

As I do not remember, I cannot say anything beyond this - 覚えておりませんので、これ以上のことは申し上げようがありません

We will continue to improve every day - 日々、精進してまいります

From these examples, it is quite clear that while some things can be spelled out more directly and clearly, the use of Kasumigaseki Bungaku actually muddles the meaning and where responsibility lies. It can also be difficult to say and understand even when compared to business-style formal speech.

Just as the picture in this post states, Kasumigaseki Bungaku is a literary form created by bureaucrats for bureaucrats to use. While it can difficult to make sense of it at times, hopefully you will be able to appreciate the nuance and hidden meanings better when you watch a drama/movie that features bureaucrats.

Preview of "Kaibutsu" - Summer 2025

Title: Kaibutsu / 怪物

Official website: here

O.A. Start Date: 6 July 2025

Timeslot: Sundays at 10pm

Broadcast by: WOWOW

Original Korean drama by: Kim Su-jin

Cast: Yasuda Ken, Mizukami Koushi, Gouriki Ayame, Fujimori Shingo, Matobu Sei, Saotome Taichi, Kubo Saori, Kote Shinya, Hashimoto Jun, Mitsuishi Ken, Takahata Atsuko & Watabe Atsuro

Quick Review #132: Tsuki no michikake (movie)

Title: Tsuki no michikake / 月の満ち欠け　　　　　　　　　　　　　

Rating: 6 / 10

Recommended for: 

For those who want to watch a love story but don't mind the illogical and harrowing reincarnation concepts in the movie and/or are fans of the cast

* Potential spoilers ahead!

* I have not read the original novel.

Liked:

- The love stories of the two couples i.e. the Osanais (Ooizumi Yo and Shibasaki Kou) and Ruri x Akira-kun (Arimura Kasumi and Meguro Ren) were depicted pretty well with the former being the heartwarming and brings-a-smile-to-your-face type of subtle love and the latter being more of passionate and somewhat intense kind of love. I actually prefer the Osanais' story especially the parts where they talked about how they fell in love with each other and eventually got married. Such a warm and fuzzy vibe and very blissful kind of love to watch. 

- The acting of the four leads were definitely quite spot-on and very enjoyable to watch except for the scene when Ooizumi's character Tsuyoshi was crying at the sight of his loved ones' bodies after the accident where his cries sounded a bit odd. While Shibasaki may not have appeared a lot, I thought that the ending moments of her character Kozue telling her side of the love story were extremely well done. Fans of Meguro Ren would be quite happy to see him as a lovelorn chap but may not be so excited to see the bed scene with Arimura Kasumi (not explicit though since they were mainly long shots from a distance and there was a blanket covering the actors).

Much as I don't feel like praising Tanaka Kei, I have to give him credit when it's due - he's really suited to play this kind of obsessive/abusive husband and lover with a seemingly harmless and nice face.

Disliked: 

- This is my personal preference though but I am really not a fan of 転生 / reincarnation stories to begin with. While I understood that this was necessary for the purpose of this story, the loopholes and illogical execution of this concept made it impossible for me to like the movie. To be able to choose at will how or who you will be reborn as - that's already quite unbelievable. Not to mention waiting for the reborn version to grow up (which will take at least more than a decade) before resuming your love story from the last life - that just comes across as a horror and rather repulsive thing to happen and I certainly don't find it, romantic at all. Especially the final scene showing who Kozue was reborn as - that really killed any remaining positive feelings I had for the movie. This was quite a pity though because I did like specific parts of the movie as outlined above but it ended on such a sour note that I am not even sure if I want to finish reading the original novel which has been lying around since I bought it a while ago.

- Given that the story spans quite a number of years, I was surprised to see that there wasn't any attempt to distinguish between the 80s and 90s more distinctively. As such, in terms of clothing, the sets, surroundings and character images, they didn't feel that different from each other in the two timelines. That could be a bit confusing for viewers though so that's probably why the years kept appearing on screen to indicate the time when the development happened. 

- In relation to the above point, while Ooizumi and Shibasaki's characters did appear different in the two timelines, both in terms of mannerisms and appearance since the couple did evolve from newly-weds to parents of a 18-year-old senior high school kid, Meguro's character didn't really show the progression of time. He may have dressed more maturely as a guy in his 30s when he met Ooizumi's character for the first time but it felt like he was stretching it a bit too far and didn't come across as too convincing in this sense. On the other hand, his scenes as the university student-version of Akira-kun were definitely more natural since that's close to his actual age.

Preview of "Oi, Dazai" - Spring 2025

Title: Oi, Dazai / おい、太宰

Official website: here

O.A. Start Date: 29 June 2025

Timeslot: Sundays at 10pm

Broadcast by: WOWOW

Cast: Tanaka Kei, Koike Eiko, Miyazawa Ema, Kajihara Zen & Matsuyama Kenichi

When holding your horses may be better than trying to outsmart the competition - The strategic game of setting drama broadcast timeslots

Much has been said about how viewing habits have changed in recent years due to the increasing popularity of OTT platforms and on-demand viewing services which offer flexibility to viewers in watching what they want at a convenient time. This has inevitably led to lower real-time ratings across the board as TV stations struggle to pull in the audiences needed to sell commercial slots to sponsors and advertisers. Despite so, the TV stations still spend much time and effort in playing the strategy game of setting drama broadcast timeslots against their fellow competitors and other forms of entertainment, albeit with varying degrees of success.

This article examines the positioning of and strategies deployed in planning drama broadcast timeslots by the main TV stations. While this may not be so relevant to us outside of Japan who usually do not get to watch the dramas in real-time since we tend to rely on OTT platforms or delayed broadcasts, it is interesting to see the logic and justification behind these decisions.

TV Asahi

• Their core/signature timeslots are Wednesdays 9pm and Thursdays 9pm which are usually the ones with the highest real-time ratings.
• Signature offerings in the Wednesdays timeslot include the long-running series "Aibou" which entered its 23rd season last year.
• Other timeslots include Tuesdays 9pm and the late-night Fridays 11pm timeslot. 
• For dramas with lower real-time ratings such as those in late-night slots, the criteria to determine if the drama is doing well is also dependent on the number of views via on-demand platforms. For example, "Munou no taka" achieved the highest first-episode views to date for the Fridays 11pm timeslot with 2.13 million views.

FujiTV

• Its signature timeslot is the Mondays 9pm timeslot which used to be well-known as the leader for "trendy dramas" in the 90s along with three other timeslots i.e. Tuesdays 9pm, Wednesdays 10pm and Thursdays 10pm.
• Other offerings from affiliated TV stations in the same network include Kansai TV's Mondays 10pm timeslot and Tokai TV's Saturdays late-night timeslot.
• Movements in recent years include the establishment of the Fridays 9pm timeslot in autumn 2023 which was moved to Tuesdays 9pm in the following year.
• There have been a number of examples in recent years where some dramas perform very well on on-demand platforms such as "silent" which achieved record-breaking views despite relatively low real-time ratings and being in the Thursdays timeslot. However, "Umi no hajimari" which was made by the same team and featured the same lead actor Meguro Ren, was aired in the signature Mondays timeslot so the criteria for success and expectations were naturally higher as compared to the other timeslots.
• The Thursdays timeslot has a tendency to feature controversial or more adult themes such as extramarital affairs and adult romance which some viewers may not feel comfortable watching with others and family so the on-demand views typically see rather high numbers.
• The Tuesdays timeslot usually features workplace-related stories or those focusing on specific occupations such as "Jinji no Hitomi" in the Spring 2025 season.
• The Wednesdays season tends to feature edgy, unconventional and adventurous works such as "Zenryouiki ijou kaiketsushitsu" in Autumn 2024 and "Shinjuku Yasen Byouin" in Summer 2024. A lot of effort is put into collaborations with OTT platforms so these works are also put onto Netflix to target the international audiences.
• They are also experimenting with putting the next episode of their dramas onto their own on-demand platform FOD ahead of the live broadcast schedule since "Paripi Koumei" in Autumn 2023. This is said to be effective in attracting part of the viewers who watch on FOD to flow back to real-time viewing.

NTV

• Up till 2023, there were three 1-hr timeslots i.e. Wednesdays 10pm, Saturdays 10pm and Sundays 10.30pm.
• Since then, there were new 30-min late-night timeslots introduced i.e. Mondays 12.30am (produced by a local TV station in the Kanto region) and Fridays 12.30am. The Fridays slot has been shifted to Tuesdays from autumn 2024 while the original Fridays slot is no longer reserved for dramas only.
• Yomiuri TV in the same network produces the Thursdays 12 midnight drama.
• At one time, the Wednesdays timeslot was shifted to Saturdays 9pm i.e. two dramas back-to-back on Saturdays for a year but the Wednesdays timeslot was restored in April this year.
• As for the Sundays timeslot, the drama offerings tend to be those light enough for people to watch before starting a brand new week the following day.
• Compared to the past when most, if not all of its dramas were exclusively reserved for release on its own Hulu platform, there have been some which made it onto international platforms like Netflix e.g. "Houkago karute".
• In order to boost awareness of the drama before its release, the TV station is also experimenting with releasing a short clip of the first episode on TVer and YouTube before the first OA.
• One parameter for assessing whether viewers' interest and if they will be staying on for the long-term to watch a drama is the number of users who add the drama to their favourites list on platforms like TVer prior to the first OA.
• In the late-night timeslots, they tend to be dramas which female viewers prefer to watch on their own rather in the company of others thus this explains the high on-demand views on streaming platforms.

TBS

• The key timeslots are its signature Sundays 9pm along with Tuesdays 10pm and Fridays 10pm.
• The Tuesdays timeslot is targeted at female viewers in their 30s and 40s and had quite a number of romantic love stories or comedies to date. However, the trend has shifted to include other forms of love such as family love in recent years.
• The Fridays timeslot has a slightly higher target market in terms of age i.e. women from their 30s to 50s.
• As for the Sundays timeslot, it is meant to capture the attention of a wide range of viewers thus explaining the variety of offerings and not being bound to a specific genre.

TV Tokyo

• Its Mondays and Fridays late-night dramas are making waves on on-demand platforms such as its Monday offering in Summer 2024 i.e. "Otto no katei wo kowasu made" which generated total views above 30 million thus breaking TV Tokyo's record to date. This type of "affair-horror" or edgy stories are usually not meant to be watched together with family members thus explaining why the on-demand views are so high.
• In order to promote their dramas, signature scenes are made into short clips and released on platforms like TikTok which in turn generates more interest. Those who watch the drama are also drawn to these short clips and they even have one video which has registered as many as 116 million views to date.
• As for the Thursdays timeslot, one signature offering is the long-running series "Kodoku no Gurume" which had humble roots but grew to become so successful that it even had its own movie released in January 2025.
• Until three years ago, TV Tokyo didn't have a department handling the drama content streaming business since it was only focused on the rights business for anime series. As they believe that affair stories with a suspense angle and revenge stories go very well with online streaming platforms, they intend to go big on these while still tapping on their expertise in doing gourmet and horror dramas.
• It is also entering the short drama genre with its streaming app "BUMP" which releases dramas with 10 to 30 episodes of no more than 3 minutes long each and charges apply to each episode watched. These new content ideas are proposed by their younger employees and aimed at capturing new users and viewers.

　

What can be observed from the above:

• Some TV stations hardly change their timeslots while some are adopting a bit of a "trial-and-error" approach to see what works for them.
• Some TV stations are a lot more adventurous in trying new forms of PR and increasing access routes to their content rather than sticking to the usual.
• Parameters for judging success seems to be expanded beyond real-time ratings to include views on streaming platforms and user interest. However, real-time ratings haven't been ignored completely since this is still critical for securing advertising income.
• Some timeslots have a clearly defined target audience which shapes the nature of the content offerings while some have a defined type of genre instead.

The thing is, the decision of whether to hold the horses, create, cancel or move timeslots does come with a risk of failure, or at the very least embarrassment/ridicule by rivals and the industry insiders for the private networks. This article examines the rationale behind the strategy of drama timeslot planning and how the TV stations have fared in this game over the years.

When NTV resurrected its Wednesdays 10pm timeslot this spring after shifting it to Saturdays for one short year, it was inevitable that people would see this as a failure of its decision to move its long-running and considerably successful Wednesdays timeslot. Although the official reason given by NTV was to attract the female viewers who would already be tuning in to the variety show "Ueda to onna ga hoeru yoru" that airs before the drama to continue watching, the other side of the story was that the variety show "Sekai Itadaki Gurume" which was put into the original Wednesdays timeslot last year, isn't doing well and having two dramas back-to-back on Saturdays did not work out as planned. This type of change is often viewed as a blow to the morale of the staff and cast members of the shows/dramas involved and will affect the confidence of sponsors. On the other hand though, NTV has always been known to make decisions decisively when the going gets tough so being able to cut losses at such an early stage is also seen as beneficial to its long-term interests.

Actually, when NTV made the decision to shift its Wednesdays drama timeslot which had been around for 38.5 years, this was met with skepticism and dismay by the industry which failed to comprehend their reasons for doing so. One reason cited for NTV's decision back then was FujiTV creating a new drama timeslot which overlapped with NTV's since Spring 2022 but the performance of NTV's traditional drama timeslot was seen as still being able to hold its own against the new contender. Despite so, NTV probably felt that any small gains it had over FujiTV in this timeslot were not going to be enough to help it secure the top spot in the ratings race as a whole. Besides, seeing how FujiTV seemed to be able to achieve success with its back-to-back drama strategy on Mondays since autumn 2021, this was probably what tempted NTV to try doing the same on Saturdays by moving the Wednesdays drama to the weekend.

In FujiTV's case, it has probably seen even more missteps compared to NTV when playing around with its drama timeslots.

While NTV unexpectedly gave up the fight on Wednesdays last year and led to FujiTV hogging the drama timeslot, FujiTV actually had another short-lived fight against TBS' signature Sundays 9pm timeslot twice. From autumn 2010 to winter 2013 (2.5 years) and from spring 2016 to summer 2017 (1.5 years), FujiTV failed to break TBS' monopoly in this timeslot. FujiTV also created the Fridays 9pm timeslot to fight against TBS which barely lasted a year from autumn 2023 to summer 2024 until it was moved to the Tuesdays 9pm timeslot last autumn. 

Another classic example was FujiTV's Tuesdays 10pm timeslot which started in spring 1996 but was axed in summer 2016 despite seeing many past hits like "GTO" and "Kekkon dekinai otoko". A reason for the withdrawal from this timeslot was said to be NHK and TBS setting up new drama timeslots in spring 2010 and spring 2014 respectively. The result was that TBS managed to build the love story branding for this timeslot very quickly starting with the hit "Nigeru wa haji daga yaku ni tatsu".

These movements by FujiTV coincide with its slip from the No.1 position in the ratings race since 2010 and its desperate desire to improve its situation by doing something. However, it turned out that things got progressively worse for them no matter what they tried to do. 

While TV Asahi may have been seen as generating consistent hits through its reliance on long-running series like "Aibou" and "Kasouken no onna" which targets the middle-aged and elderly market segments, its willingness to change things around recently seems to suggest that it is also feeling the heat from the competition. For example, the end of its 23-year-old Thursdays 8pm mystery drama timeslot in summer 2022 and airing dramas in the Tuesdays 9pm timeslot were meant to capture viewers in the core market of teens to 40s but it seems like things aren't looking too rosy for them too.

TBS may be the odd one out in the field as it seems to be churning out consistent results while not making any changes to its primetime drama timeslots i.e. Sundays 9pm and Fridays 10pm. However, this is probably a chicken-and-egg issue where you risk being seen as a loser if you move your timeslot easily when faced with competition but if you don't, you might not be able to get the desired ratings which the TV station business focuses on. This has led to the phenomenon where any movement or changes typically last for just 1 to 3 years before things go back to how it is originally.

The unique nature of dramas as compared to other types of TV programmes like news, variety, infotainment and sports is also a key factor to consider. These programmes tend to rely on timeliness, how eye-catching they are and whether they are interesting so it's not so easy to record and watch/stream them later as compared to dramas. As such, many TV stations focus more on luring viewers to watch their dramas in real-time rather than work on quality instead thus creating the situation where some offerings are often mocked for being exaggerated, childish or silly e.g. NTV's Saturday dramas but very much talked-about, be it in the positive or negative sense.

It takes time to build up a viewing habit and for viewers to remember these timeslots. These constant changes to the programming schedule actually have a detrimental effect to cultivating the viewing habits needed to shore up the real-time viewing figures which the TV stations are seeking. Even for those who do not wish to view the dramas in real-time, having a grasp on the schedule helps in keeping track of when new episodes are uploaded to platforms like TVer which tends to erase episodes after 1 week or so (except the first three and last episodes). Speaking from personal experience, there were quite a number of instances to date when I dropped a drama because I missed an episode or did not manage to watch it in time on TVer before it got deleted, not because I lost interest and gave up voluntarily.

One other thing that gets in the way of cultivating real-time viewing habits is the disruption caused by variety show specials. Often, these ad-hoc shows tend to last for 2 to 3 hours at one go and inevitably eat into the timeslots usually meant for dramas. When that happens too often, viewers lose track of what is considered regular programming so this is especially problematic when a longtime drama timeslot gets shifted into a timing which has all along shown something else.

In comparison, NHK can do its own thing without being affected by what the private networks are doing because it has a different modus operandi. It is not bound by the seasonal cycle of new dramas shown every three months - its dramas have a variety of lengths and start/end dates can be anytime. From the perspective of the private networks, NHK is a competitor that "doesn't play by the rules" and thus is able to snatch away viewers at unexpected junctures, often without prior notice and giving the TV stations little room and time to react to the national broadcaster's moves. For example, just as FujiTV had to shift its Tuesdays 10pm timeslot to avoid a heads-on clash with NHK, NTV also had to bring forward its Saturday drama from 10pm to 9pm nowadays to prevent fighting with NHK. Besides, NHK has no need to consider ratings or sponsors due to its business model so it can afford to produce dramas with varied themes which often cannot be found on the private networks.

Even though this game of setting drama broadcast timeslots is hard to win, TV stations are unlikely and unable to give up on making dramas. This is because in this age of changing viewing habits, dramas and anime are actually the best intellectual property/content that can bring it the most money now compared to other TV shows. While it would be silly to keep banking on real-time ratings only to bring in the dough in the form of advertisement income, dramas can lead to an enormous amount of income through other channels such as:

• releasing the dramas on OTT platforms (both domestic and international)
• doing installments of successful series which can include spin-offs, movies, anime, stage plays, games, events, music and character goods
• corporate collaborations such as special menus and goods

As such, despite the low return on investment in terms of the real-time ratings as compared to the costs involved in drama production, dramas are still going to take up the golden and primetime slots as compared to variety shows which tend to see better ratings. Besides, each of the private TV networks have their own OTT platforms so the growth of such channels in the form of paid users can be sustained as long as they have a decent archive of their past and current dramas.