The 90th Drama Academy Awards (Summer 2016) - Best Theme Song

Overall Ranking Top 3
1) Hanataba wo kimi ni - Utada Hikaru (Toto Nee-chan)
2) Koi wo shiranai kimi e - NEWS (Toki wo kakeru shoujo)
3) Comet - Spitz (HOPE ~ Kitai zero no shinnyu shain)


Voters Ranking Top 5
1) Koi wo shiranai kimi e - NEWS (Toki wo kakeru shoujo)
2) Comet - Spitz (HOPE ~ Kitai zero no shinnyu shain)
3) Kin no Ai, Gin no Ai - SKE48 (Shihei)
4) Hanataba wo kimi ni - Utada Hikaru (Toto Nee-chan)
5) Oni - CreepHyp (Soshite, Dare mo inakunatta)

TV Reporters Ranking Top 5
1) Hanataba wo kimi ni - Utada Hikaru (Toto Nee-chan)
2) Oni - CreepHyp (Soshite, Dare mo inakunatta)
3) Koi wo shiranai kimi e - NEWS (Toki wo kakeru shoujo) / Aria - BUMP OF CHICKEN (Aogeba Totoshi)
5) Sekai ni wa ai shika nai - Keyakizaka46 (Tokuyama Daigorou wo dare ga koroshita ka?

Judges Ranking Top 5
1) Hanataba wo kimi ni - Utada Hikaru (Toto Nee-chan)
2) Onna wa dakarete ayu ni naru - Sakamoto Fuyumi (Kami no shita wo motsu otoko)
3) Bara no you ni saite sakura no you ni chitte - Matsuda Seiko (Seiseisuru hodo, Aishiteru) / Riyuu - Makihara Noriyuki (Hajimemashite, Aishiteimasu)
5) Comet - Spitz (HOPE ~ Kitai zero no shinnyu shain) / Aria - BUMP OF CHICKEN (Aogeba Totoshi) / Hidarimune - Sakura Shimeji (Koe Koi)

Source: The Televison

The 90th Drama Academy Awards (Summer 2016) - Best Leading Actor

Overall Ranking Top 3
1) Fujiwara Tatsuya - Soshite, Dare mo inakunatta
2) Nakajima Yuto - HOPE ~ Kitai zero no shinnyu shain
3) Terao Akira - Aogeba Totoshi

Voters Ranking Top 5
1) Nakajima Yuto - HOPE ~ Kitai zero no shinnyu shain
2) Fujiwara Tatsuya - Soshite, Dare mo inakunatta
3) Yamada Takayuki - Yamikin Ushijima-kun Season 3
4) Terao Akira - Aogeba Totoshi
5) Higashiyama Noriyuki - Keiji Shichinin 2

TV Reporters Ranking Top 5
1) Fujiwara Tatsuya - Soshite, Dare mo inakunatta
2) Yamada Takayuki - Yamikin Ushijima-kun Season 3
3) Nakajima Yuto - HOPE ~ Kitai zero no shinnyu shain / Terao Akira - Aogeba Totoshi
5) Mukai Osamu - Kami no shita wo motsu otoko

Judges Ranking Top 5
1) Terao Akira - Aogeba Totoshi
2) Fujiwara Tatsuya - Soshite, Dare mo inakunatta
3) Nakajima Yuto - HOPE ~ Kitai zero no shinnyu shain
4) Yamada Takayuki - Yamikin Ushijima-kun Season 3 / Higashiyama Noriyuki - Keiji Shichinin 2

Source: The Televison

Mukai Osamu, Kimura Fumino & Sato Jirou to be back in the movie version of "Kami no shita wo motsu otoko"

The movie version of TBS Summer 2016 drama "Kami no shita wo motsu otoko" starring Mukai Osamu will be shown in cinemas from 3 December. The film which is titled "RANMARU Kami no shita wo motsu otoko ~ (abbreviated) ~ Hoozuki Death Road Hen", will be written and directed by Tsutsumi Yukihiko who was also responsible for the drama series.

The movie continues from the last episode of the drama when Ranmaru (Mukai) finally finds the only woman he can kiss i.e. Miyabi (Hirosue Ryoko) but falls out of love nonetheless. After solving the last case at an onsen resort, he parts ways with his "partners" Kamekanbo Hikaru (Kimura Fumino) and Miyazawa Kanji (Sato Jirou) and embarks on a journey of self-discovery. During the trip, he collapses at a village where he meets another woman who his mouth "favours" and begins to work at the local onsen resort when another murder case takes place.
　
Besides the three main cast members, Kimura Tae will join the movie as Takeda Rindou, a beautiful doctor at the village. Co-stars also include Ichihara Hayato who plays Nonomura Ryuunosuke, the young master of the onsen ryokan Bohemian and is dressed in western-style clothes but speaks the Yamagata dialect, Zaizen Naomi who plays Katsuragi Yuki, the female manager at the ryokan and Kurotani Tomoka who plays the president of the local water factory.
　
As the full title of the movie is very long i.e. "RANMARU Kami no shita wo motsu otoko Sakagura wakadanna kaishi jiken no kage ni hisomu Tekisasu otoko to Bohemian Okami, soshite bijinmura ishi wo oitsumeru nazo no kagome kagome rouba gundan to sankensha no mura no noroi ni 2 sasu mania with miyaken to goddotan, beroncho adobencha! ryaku shite...Ranmaru wa nido shinu. Hoozuki Death Road Hen" which means "RANMARU the man who has God's tongue The Texan man and Bohemian female manager who hide behind the weird death case of the brewery's young master, and the mysterious old women's woven-bamboo pattern group who force the beautiful female doctor into a corner and the curse of the Sankensha Village and 2 suspense maniacs with Miyaken, Goddotan and Beroncho Adventure! abbreviated to...Ranmaru dies twice Ghost Light Death Road Chapter", it was thus decided that most of the central portion would be abbreviated to make the title shorter.

Filming took place in places like Shizuoka, Kyoto and Yamanashi during June and July. Mukai commented that he didn't expect the drama to be made into a movie and hopes that viewers will enjoy the scaled-up images shot during their tough summer filming. Tsutsumi commented that the passion of the staff and cast knows no boundaries so they are able to make this movie. He hopes that everyone will continue to support and offer them encouragement and criticism. at the same time.

Source: Oricon

Hirosue Ryoko to play the role of Miyabi in TBS Summer 2016 drama "Kami no shita wo motsu otoko"

Hirosue Ryoko will be appearing from the 4th episode of TBS Summer 2016 drama "Kami no shita wo motsu otoko" due to be shown on 29 July at 10pm and plays the role of the mysterious onsen geisha Miyabi who the lead character Tomonaga Ranmaru has been searching for. To date, the name of the actress playing Miyabi has been indicated as a secret in the ending credits of the drama.

Ranmaru is able to detect the contents of anything he tastes including saliva and gastric juice thus he is unable to kiss any woman nor get into a relationship. However, when he kissed Miyabi on the night of his grandfather's wake, he was surprised to find that his ability to taste was rendered powerless and all he could remember was the feeling of happiness. As such, he wants to find Miyabi again to find the reason thus embarks on the journey to various onsen resorts to look for her.

Hirosue commented that she is honoured to be able to play a mysterious woman in this drama full of Tsutsumi Yukihiko's ideas and called upon viewers to continue watching in order to find out what will happen. It was also revealed that it was Tsutsumi's idea to keep her identity a secret during the first few episodes so as to keep the viewers in suspense.

Source: Oricon

Production press conference of TBS Summer 2016 drama "Kami no shita wo motsu otoko"

The production press conference of TBS Summer 2016 drama "Kami no shita wo motsu otoko" was held on 4 July which was attended by cast members Mukai Osamu, Kimura Fumino and Sato Jiro. The filming of the drama started since March and lasted for more than 3 months. In this drama conceptualised over the last 20 years and directed by Tsutsumi Yukihiko, Mukai plays a man who has a tongue that can analyse whatever he has tasted and goes on a journey to various onsen resorts with Kimura's and Sato's characters so as to find a legendary onsen geisha.

Despite the seemingly senseless storyline, Mukai said that he had given his all through scenes such as sticking out his tongue all the time and wearing a fundoshi so he was already prepared to ditch his usual image to play this character. As such, he hopes that this drama will provide great comical relief to the viewers during this hot summer season. Kimura who plays a maniac lover of 2-hour suspense dramas, also echoed Mukai's view and that she was worried about her ability to take on other types of roles once people see what she did in this drama but she is confident that it will be enjoyable for the viewers.

Sakamoto Fuyumi who is singing the enka theme song "Onna wa dakarete ayu ni naru" for this drama, made a surprise appearance in a white kimono and revealed how happy she was to be given the chance to sing a drama's theme song.

Sources: Sanspo / Yomiuri Hochi 1 / Yomiuri Hochi 2

Preview of "Kami no shita wo motsu otoko" - Summer 2016

Title: Kami no shita wo motsu otoko 神の舌を持つ男 (The man who has God's tongue)
Official website: here 
Official Twitter: here
O.A. Start Date: 8 July 2016
Timeslot: Fridays 10pm
Broadcast by: TBS
Theme Song: Onna wa dakarete ayu ni naru by Sakamoto Fuyumi
Cast: Mukai Osamu, Kimura Fumino, Sato Jiro, Hino Shohei, Takuma Shin

Sakamoto Fuyumi to sing the theme song for TBS Summer 2016 drama "Kami no shita wo motsu otoko"

Sakamoto Fuyumi will be singing the theme song for the upcoming TBS Summer 2016 drama "Kami no shita wo motsu otoko" which will begin its run from 8 July in the Fridays 10pm timeslot. When asked about why he approached Sakamoto to sing the theme song, the director Tsutsumi Yukihiko revealed that he wanted to play an enka in the drama thus decided to approach Sakamoto directly. The theme song titled "Onna wa dakarete ayu ni naru" will be released on 17 August. Sakamoto will also be appearing in the drama along with the leads Mukai Osamu, Kimura Fumino and Sato Jiro who play characters on a journey to various onsen resorts to find the legendary onsen geisha Miyabi.

This is the first time since 1990 that an enka was used as the theme song for a TBS Friday drama. As such, Sakamoto commented that she felt honoured to be given the chance this time but wondered at first why she was chosen as she was surprised by the offer. Nonetheless, she was very happy about it and thinks of it as a memorable gift to commemorate her 30th anniversary in showbiz.

Source: Oricon

Mukai Osamu to star in TBS Summer 2016 drama "Kami no shita wo motsu otoko"

Mukai Osamu will be starring in the new TBS Summer 2016 drama "Kami no shita wo motsu otoko" (The man who has God's tongue) which will be shown from July in the Fridays 10pm timeslot. The drama will be directed by Tsutsumi Yukihiko who is famous for works such as the Keizoku series and TRICK series and features Kimura Fumino as Mukai's partner in the drama. It is said that this drama had been planned by Tsutsumi for 20 years and is an original work talking about how a trio go on the search for a legendary geisha at an onsen but finds themselves embroiled in various cases during their journey. Mukai plays the role of a naive and geeky man named Asanaga Ranmaru who is able to detect the composition of items just by tasting them thus is nicknamed "God's Tongue". Kimura plays Kamekanbo Hikari who is a big fan of 2-hour suspense dramas and works with Ranmaru and Miyazawa Kanji (Sato Jiro) to solve the cases they encounter.

Filming began in early March and is largely done at various hot spring resorts.

Source: Sanspo / Sponichi