Top 10 bestselling paperback books in Japan for the year 2017 (Oricon)

This ranking lists the top 10 bestselling paperback books in Japan for the year 2017 as tabulated from 5 December 2016 to 27 November 2017. Sales figures for this period are reflected in brackets while those names in bold indicate that the book had been made into a drama or movie:

1) Kimi no suizou wo tabetai - Sumino Yoru (1,066,632)

2) Reverse - Minato Kanae (574,514)

3) Mame no ue de neru - Minato Kanae (471,526)

4) Hibana - Matayoshi Naoki (449,487)

5) Yukikemuri Chase - Higashino Keigo (351,494)

6) Namiya Zakkaten no Kiseki - Higashino Keigo (344,506)

7) Akira to Akira - Ikeido Jun (324,133)

8) Biblia Koshoudou no Jiken Techou 7 ~ Shioriko-san to Hatenai Butai  - Mikami En (316,861)

9) Shousetsu Kimi no na wa - Shinkai Makoto (316,193)

10) Sword Art Online 19 Moon Cradle - Kawahara Reki & abec (315,396)

Source: Oricon

Completion screening event of new WOWOW drama "Akira to Akira"

The completion screening event of new WOWOW drama "Akira to Akira" was held on 26 June which was attended by cast members Mukai Osamu, Saito Takumi, Ishimaru Kanji, Tanaka Rena and Kaku Kento. The drama which consists of 9 episodes, begins its run from 9 July in the Sundays 10pm timeslot.

The drama is based on the same-titled novel by Ikeido Jun which was first serialised between 2006 and 2009 in the monthly novel magazine "Mondai Shosetsu" before Ikeido gave it an overhaul and will be releasing it in the novel book format for the first time on 31 May. The story which is set during the days of the bubble economy, begins in April 1986 where Kaidou Akira (Mukai) who is an elite born as the heir of a large company Tokai Yuusen. On the other hand, his genius classmate from University of Tokyo, Yamazaki Akira (Saito) had a tough life due the bankruptcy of his father's company and having to run away from creditors but overcomes the odds to graduate from the top-notch school. The two of them enter the same bank and gets caught in a battle lasting over 10 years which causes upheavals in their lives.

Mukai and Saito revealed that they were surprised by the number of lines they had to memorise in the script which were peppered with banking jargon but were glad to be able to act in such a drama which reflects the little-known facts in the Japanese banking industry and how the industry affected the times. As this was the 4th time that the actors had worked together and they are close friends, Saito described his co-star as a smart guy who is full of warmth and manly charm. In response, Mukai said that Saito is someone who people can get close to and he's so comfortable with having Saito around that he doesn't mind the latter swinging by his place without prior notice.

Source: Nikkansports / Oricon / Sanspo / Eiga.com

Kaku Kento & Eikura Nana welcome the arrival of their first child

Kaku Kento and Eikura Nana welcomed the arrival of their first child on 12 June at a hospital in Tokyo as announced in their statements released by their agencies on 14 June. Both mother and child are doing well but there is no mention of the baby's gender.

In Eikura's statement she revealed that her baby weighed 2,700 grams at birth and thanked everyone for their support and advice from her pregnancy all the way till she gave birth. She also expressed her thanks to her husband for being always by her side and was grateful that the baby was born healthy. She ended her statement by pledging to support their child through life's many steps and encounters to come. As for Kaku, he expressed his joy at the arrival of a new family member and his increased responsibility in protecting his family. He also asked for the support of their fans and everyone around them.

The timing of Eikura's return to work will depend on her family situation and her health condition. On the other hand, Kaku is set to be very busy this summer with three dramas starting in July i.e. "Wanitokagegisu" from TBS, "Akira to Akira" from WOWOW and "Aishitetatte, Himitsu wa aru" from NTV as well as a musical which begins in August.

Sources: Nikkansports / Sanspo / Yomiuri Hochi / Oricon

Kaku Kento to take over Koide Keisuke's role in NTV Summer 2017 drama "Aishitetatte, Himitsu wa aru"

Kaku Kento will be taking over Koide Keisuke's role in the upcoming NTV Summer 2017 drama "Aishitetatte, Himitsu wa aru" starring Fukushi Souta which will be shown from 16 July in the Sundays 10.30pm timeslot. Koide was exposed for having alcohol and sex with a 17-year-old girl which led to his indefinite suspension of his acting career and being taken off the cast of this drama.

Fukushi plays the lead character Okumori Rei who killed his father (Horibe Keisuke) in the summer of when he was in the third year of junior high school so as to protect his mother Akiko (Suzuki Honami) who suffered from domestic violence inflicted by her husband. In order to hide his crime, Rei and Akiko decided to bury the corpse in the back garden of their house, report him as missing and share this dark secret between themselves. Rei strives hard to become a lawyer without making friends or falling in love. 11 years later, the 26-year-old Rei meets Tachibana Sawa (Kawaguchi Haruna) in graduate law school and the two of them fall in love with each other. Although Rei has made up his mind to get married to Sawa with his mother's blessings, someone who seemingly knows about his secret sends an alarming message to him. Co-stars include Endo Kenichi who plays Sawa's father and is the chief prosecutor, Koide Keisuke who plays Sawa's elder brother at odds with his father, Okae Kumiko who plays Sawa's mother and tries to keep her family together, Suzuki Kosuke who plays a doctor in love with Akiko, Shirasu Jin who is a mutual friend of Rei and Sawa, Yamamoto Mirai who plays a teacher of Rei and Sawa, Emoto Tokio who is a paralegal assisting Sawa during her internship and Yashiba Toshihiro who plays a police detective investigating the disappearance of Rei's father 11 years ago.

Kaku will be taking on the role of Sawa's elder brother who is a journalist. However, as he is also involved in the TBS Summer 2017 drama "Wanitokagegisu" which begins its run from 19 July, adjustments need to be made to his schedule before he can join the filming for this drama. In addition, Kaku will also be appearing in the WOWOW drama "Akira to Akira" which starts from 9 July (filming had been completed) and the musical "Young Frankenstein" which will begin its run from 11 August.

Sources: Sanspo / Oricon

Preview of "Akira to Akira" - Summer 2017

Title: Akira to Akira アキラとあきら (Akira & Akira)
Official website: here
Official Twitter: here
O.A. Start Date: 9 July 2017
Timeslot: Sundays 10pm
Broadcast by: WOWOW
Total number of episodes: 9
Original novel by: Ikeido Jun
Cast: Mukai Osamu, Saito Takumi, Koizumi Kotaro, Tanaka Rena, Kaku Kento, Kinoshita Houka, Horibe Keisuke, Matsushige Yutaka, Takimoto Miori, Nagashima Toshiyuki, Omi Toshinori, Ishimaru Kanji

Supporting cast lineup of new WOWOW drama "Akira to Akira" announced

The supporting cast lineup of new WOWOW drama "Akira to Akira" starring Mukai Osamu and Saito Takumi has been announced. The drama is based on the same-titled novel by Ikeido Jun which was first serialised between 2006 and 2009 in the monthly novel magazine "Mondai Shosetsu" before Ikeido gave it an overhaul and will be releasing it in the novel book format for the first time on 17 May which was brought forward from the earlier date of 31 May. As such, this marks the "fastest" real-life adaptation for WOWOW since the original material's release. This will be WOWOW's 4th adaptation of a Ikeido work since 2011's "Shitamachi Rocket" and the longest drama to date i.e. 9 episodes.

The story which is set during the days of the bubble economy, begins in April 1986 where Kaidou Akira (Mukai) who is an elite born as the heir of a large company Tokai Yuusen. On the other hand, his genius classmate from University of Tokyo, Yamazaki Akira (Saito) had a tough life due the bankruptcy of his father's company and having to run away from creditors but overcomes the odds to graduate from the top-notch school. The two of them enter the same bank Sangyo Chuo Bank and gets caught in a battle lasting over 10 years which causes upheavals in their lives.

Koizumi Kotaro will be playing Andou Shoji who works in the HR department of Sangyo Chuo Bank and is the superior of both Akiras while Tanaka Rena plays Yamazaki Akira's classmate Kitamura Ai. Matsushige will play Yamazaki Akira's father Kouzou. Ishimaru Kanji will play Kaidou Kazuma, the president of Tokai Yuusen and Kaku Kento will be Kaidou Akira's younger brother Ryoma. Kinoshita Houka plays Kaidou Susumu, the president of Tokai Asahi Shohai and Takimoto Miori plays Kaidou Akira's colleague Mizushima Kanna. Horibe Keisuke plays Susumu's younger brother Takashi while Nagashima Toshiyuki plays Haneda Kazuo, the director of the bank's financing department. Last but not least, Omi Toshinori plays Ai's father Toshio.

The drama will begin its run from 9 July at 10pm.

Sources: Oricon / Eiga.com

Mukai Osamu & Saito Takumi to star in new WOWOW drama "Akira to Akira"

Mukai Osamu and Saito Takumi will be the double leads in the new WOWOW drama "Akira to Akira" (Akira and Akira) which will begin its run from July in the Sundays 10pm timeslot. The drama is based on the same-titled novel by Ikeido Jun which was first serialised between 2006 and 2009 in the monthly novel magazine "Mondai Shosetsu" before Ikeido gave it an overhaul and will be releasing it in the novel book format for the first time on 31 May. As such, this marks the "fastest" real-life adaptation for WOWOW since the original material's release. This will be WOWOW's 4th adaptation of a Ikeido work since 2011's "Shitamachi Rocket" and the longest drama to date i.e. 9 episodes.

The story which is set during the days of the bubble economy, begins in April 1986 where Kaidou Akira (Mukai) who is an elite born as the heir of a large company Tokai Yuusen. On the other hand, his genius classmate from University of Tokyo, Yamazaki Akira had a tough life due the bankruptcy of his father's company and having to run away from creditors but overcomes the odds to graduate from the top-notch school. The two of them enter the same bank and gets caught in a battle lasting over 10 years which causes upheavals in their lives.

As this is the 4th time that Mukai and Saito are working together, Mukai revealed that as they are both of the same age, they have always chatted a lot during their free time but he did have the feeling that Saito was a strange person when they first met. Although this is the first time that they will be clashing on screen, he thinks that it will be enjoyable and fascinating at the same time. He also commented that he will go to his uncle for advice as the latter worked as a bank employee in that era.

On the other hand, Saito will be making a change to his usual straggly hairstyle so as to look convincing as a bank employee. He expressed his joy at being able to work with Mukai again in this drama which describes a special period in Japan's history and will offer a different insight into the past and future when viewed in this era.

Sources: Sanspo / Yomiuri Hochi / Oricon