The 100th Drama Academy Awards (Winter 2019) - Best Drama

Overall Ranking Top 3
1) Sannen A gumi - Ima kara minnasan wa, hitojichi desu -
2) Hajimete koi wo shita hi ni yomu hanashi
3) Manpuku

Voters Ranking Top 5
1) Hajimete koi wo shita hi ni yomu hanashi
2) Trace ~ Kasouken no Otoko ~
3) Sannen A gumi - Ima kara minnasan wa, hitojichi desu -
4) Manpuku
5) Good Wife

TV Reporters Ranking Top 5
1) Sannen A gumi - Ima kara minnasan wa, hitojichi desu -
2) Hajimete koi wo shita hi ni yomu hanashi
3) Tokusatsu Gagaga
4) Manpuku
5) Good Wife

Judges Ranking Top 5
1) Manpuku
2) Sannen A gumi - Ima kara minnasan wa, hitojichi desu -
3) Tokusatsu Gagaga / Good Wife / Fruits Takuhaibin / Yotsuba Ginkou Harashima Hiromi ga mono mousu! ~ Kono onna ni kakero ~ / Zettai Seigi

Source: The Television

The 100th Drama Academy Awards (Winter 2019) - Best Leading Actress

Overall Ranking Top 3
1) Fukada Kyoko - Hajimete koi wo shita hi ni yomu hanashi
2) Ando Sakura - Manpuku
3) Kitagawa Keiko - Ie uru onna no gyakushu

Voters Ranking Top 5
1) Fukada Kyoko - Hajimete koi wo shita hi ni yomu hanashi
2) Ando Sakura - Manpuku
3) Kitagawa Keiko - Ie uru onna no gyakushu
4) Tokiwa Takako - Good Wife
5) Koshiba Fuuka - Tokusatsu Gagaga

TV Reporters Ranking Top 5
1) Fukada Kyoko - Hajimete koi wo shita hi ni yomu hanashi
2) Ando Sakura - Manpuku
3) Koshiba Fuuka - Tokusatsu Gagaga
4) Kitagawa Keiko - Ie uru onna no gyakushu
5) Tokiwa Takako - Good Wife

Judges Ranking Top 5
1) Ando Sakura - Manpuku
2) Fukada Kyoko - Hajimete koi wo shita hi ni yomu hanashi
3) Tokiwa Takako - Good Wife
4) Kitagawa Keiko - Ie uru onna no gyakushu
5) Yamaguchi Sayaka - Zettai Seigi

Source: The Television

The 100th Drama Academy Awards (Winter 2019) - Best Supporting Actor

Overall Ranking Top 3
1) Yokohama Ryuusei - Hajimete koi wo shita hi no yomu hanashi
2) Hasegawa Hiroki - Manpuku
3) Nakamura Tomoya - Hajimete koi wo shita hi no yomu hanashi

Voters Ranking Top 5
1) Yokohama Ryuusei - Hajimete koi wo shita hi no yomu hanashi
2) Nakamura Tomoya - Hajimete koi wo shita hi no yomu hanashi
3) Funakoshi Eiichiro - Trace ~ Kasouken no Otoko ~
4) Suda Masaki - Manpuku
5) Hasegawa Hiroki - Manpuku

TV Reporters Ranking Top 5
1) Yokohama Ryuusei - Hajimete koi wo shita hi no yomu hanashi
2) Hasegawa Hiroki - Manpuku
3) Nagayama Kento - Hajimete koi wo shita hi no yomu hanashi
Nakamura Tomoya - Hajimete koi wo shita hi no yomu hanashi
5) Chiba Yuudai - Ie uru onna no gyakushu

Judges Ranking Top 5
1) Hasegawa Hiroki - Manpuku
2) Yokohama Ryuusei - Hajimete koi wo shita hi no yomu hanashi
3) Kaname Jun - Manpuku
4) Suda Masaki - Manpuku
Nagayama Kento - Hajimete koi wo shita hi no yomu hanashi
Nakamura Tomoya - Hajimete koi wo shita hi no yomu hanashi

Source: The Televison

The 100th Drama Academy Awards (Winter 2019) - Best Supporting Actress

Overall Ranking Top 3
1) Nagano Mei - Sannen A gumi - Ima kara minnasan wa, hitojichi desu -
2) Matsuzaka Keiko - Manpuku
3) Adachi Yumi - Hajimete koi wo shita hi ni yomu hanashi

Voters Ranking Top 5
1) Adachi Yumi - Hajimete koi wo shita hi ni yomu hanashi
2) Nagano Mei - Sannen A gumi - Ima kara minnasan wa, hitojichi desu -
3) Araki Yuuko - Trace ~ Kasouken no Otoko ~
4) Matsuzaka Keiko - Manpuku
5) Koyuki - Trace ~ Kasouken no Otoko ~

TV Reporters Ranking Top 5
1) Nagano Mei - Sannen A gumi - Ima kara minnasan wa, hitojichi desu -
2) Matsuzaka Keiko - Manpuku
3) Adachi Yumi - Hajimete koi wo shita hi ni yomu hanashi
4) Uchida Yuki - Manpuku
5) Nagasaku Hiromi - Mikazuki

Judges Ranking Top 5
1) Matsuzaka Keiko - Manpuku
2) Nagano Mei - Sannen A gumi - Ima kara minnasan wa, hitojichi desu -
3) Imoto Ayako - Ie uru onna no gyakushu
4) Uchida Yuki - Manpuku / Shiraishi Sei - Zettai Seigi / Nagasaku Hiromi - Mikazuki

Source: The Televison

The 100th Drama Academy Awards (Winter 2019) - Best Theme Song

Overall Ranking Top 3
1) HAPPY BIRTHDAY - back number (Hajimete koi wo shita hi ni yomu hanashi)
2) Ikiru - The Cro-Magnons (Sannen A gumi - Ima kara minnasan wa , hitojichi desu -)
3) Anata to turattatta - DREAMS COME TRUE (Manpuku)

Voters Ranking Top 5
1) HAPPY BIRTHDAY - back number (Hajimete koi wo shita hi ni yomu hanashi)
2) crystal - Kanjani 8 (Trace ~ Kasouken no Otoko ~)
3) Ikiru - The Cro-Magnons (Sannen A gumi - Ima kara minnasan wa , hitojichi desu -)
4) Anata to turattatta - DREAMS COME TRUE (Manpuku)
5) Hakujitsu - King Gnu (Innocence Enzai Bengoshi)

TV Reporters Ranking Top 5
1) HAPPY BIRTHDAY - back number (Hajimete koi wo shita hi ni yomu hanashi)
2) Ikiru - The Cro-Magnons (Sannen A gumi - Ima kara minnasan wa , hitojichi desu -)
3) Hakujitsu - King Gnu (Innocence Enzai Bengoshi)
4) Gagagagagagaga - Golden Bomber (Tokusatsu Gagaga)
5) Anata to turattatta - DREAMS COME TRUE (Manpuku)

Judges Ranking Top 5
1) Anata to turattatta - DREAMS COME TRUE (Manpuku)
2) Ikiru - The Cro-Magnons (Sannen A gumi - Ima kara minnasan wa , hitojichi desu -)
3) Hakujitsu - King Gnu (Innocence Enzai Bengoshi)
4) crystal - Kanjani 8 (Trace ~ Kasouken no Otoko ~)
5) Aurora - BUMP OF CHICKEN (Good Wife) / Hadashi no Kajitsu - EGO-WRAPPIN' (Fruits Takuhaibin)

Source: The Televison

Winners of the 15th Confidence Award Drama Prize (Winter 2019)

Best Drama: Tokusatsu Gagaga (NHK)

Best Leading Actor: Mitsuishi Ken - Designer Shibui Naoto no Kyuujitsu (TV Tokyo)

Best Leading Actress: Tokiwa Takako - Good Wife (TBS)

Best Supporting Actor: Matsuo Suzuki - Fruits Takuhaibin (TV Tokyo)

Best Supporting Actress: Matsuzaka Keiko - Manpuku (NHK)

Best Script: Muto Shogo - Sannen A-gumi - Ima kara minnasan wa hitojichi desu - (NTV)

Best Newcomer: Shiraishi Sei - Zettai Seigi (Tokai TV/FujiTV)

Source: Oricon

Winners of Nikkansports Dorama Grand Prix (Winter 2019)

There were 857 valid votes for this round of voting between 7th and 14th March where the top 5 for each category in each season would then be eligible as nominees for the annual awards.The numbers in brackets indicate the number of votes received for the drama and/or actor/actress.

Best Drama
1) Manpuku (158)
2) Sannen A-gumi - Ima kara minnasan wa, hitojichi desu - (142)
3) Aibou season 17 (79)
4) Trace ~ Kasouken no otoko ~ (62)
5) Idaten ~ Tokyo Olympic Hanashi ~ (50)

Best Leading Actor
1) Suda Masaki - Sannen A-gumi - Ima kara minnasan wa, hitojichi desu - (255)
2) Mizutani Yutaka - Aibou season 17 (143)
3) Nakamura Kankuro - Idaten ~ Tokyo Olympic Hanashi ~ (87)
4) Nishikido Ryo - Trace ~ Kasouken no otoko ~ (86)
5) Sawamura Ikki - Keiji Zero (57)

Best Leading Actress
1) Ando Sakura - Manpuku (222)
2) Kitagawa Keiko - Ie uru onna no gyakushuu (115)
3) Fukada Kyoko - Hajimete koi wo shita hi ni yomu hanashi (91)
4) Tokiwa Takako - Good Wife (76)
5) Koshiba Fuuka - Tokusatsu Gagaga (58)

Best Supporting Actor
1) Hasegawa Hiroki - Manpuku (190)
2) Sorimachi Takashi - Aibou season 17 (73)
3) Ikuta Toma - Idaten ~ Tokyo Olympic Hanashi ~ (44)
4) Shiina Kippei - Sannen A-gumi - Ima kara minnasan wa, hitojichi desu - (35)
5) Funakoshi Eiichiro - Trace ~ Kasouken no otoko ~ (33)

Best Supporting Actress
1) Matsuzaka Keiko - Manpuku (152)
2) Nagano Mei - Sannen A-gumi - Ima kara minnasan wa, hitojichi desu - (96)
3) Araki Yuuko - Trace ~ Kasouken no otoko ~ (62)
4) Suzuki Anju - Aibou season 17 (44)
5) Kimura Tae - Gosaigyo (38)

Source: Nikkansports

Key ratings highlights for NHK morning drama "Manpuku"

Although I have not been posting anything about drama ratings in recent years, I think that it's only right for me to share these key highlights in Manpuku's ratings for the past 6 months especially as it is the very first morning drama which I managed to complete in real time. Be prepared for more Manpuku-related posts in the days to come especially my review of this drama!

- Manpuku started airing from 1 October 2018 and ended its run on 30 March 2019 with 151 episodes.

- The average rating for the Kanto region was 21.4% while it was 19.5% in the Kansai region. Compared to the drama preceding it i.e. Hanbun Aoi which got an average of 21.1% in the Kanto region, Manpuku did better.

- The first episode registered a rating of 23.8% and 20.4% in the Kanto and Kansai regions respectively. This was the highest debut episode rating so far in the asadora history.

- The last episode got an average rating of 22.1% and 22.4% in the Kanto and Kansai regions respectively. Figures of the Kanto region for the last week were 22.7% -> 22.0% -> 21.8% -> 20.6% -> 21.3% -> 22.1%.

- The highest single episode rating for the Kanto region was the first episode while for the Kansai region, it was the last episode.

- Here are the average ratings for the five dramas preceding Manpuku (first figure is for Kanto while the second figure is for Kansai):
"Hanbun, Aoi" - 21.1% / 19.3%
"Warotenka" - 20.1% /  19.6%
"Hiyokko" - 20.4% / 20.3%
"Beppin-san" - 20.3% / 20.2%
"Toto Nee-chan" - 22.8% /  20.4%

- Ever since "Asa ga kita" in 2015, this is the 7th consecutive asadora which has registered an average rating of above 20%. Manpuku's average rating was higher than the 6 dramas preceding it, with the sole exceptions being "Toto Nee-chan" (22.8%) and "Asa ga kita" (23.5%).

- The ratings trend: Manpuku started off very well in its first episode and maintained an average rating of above 20% up till the 13th week before the New Year break. The only episodes when it went below 20% was on 4th and 5th January i.e. straight after the New Year break. It returned to the 20s region from the 15th week all the way to the end of its run.

Sources: Oricon / Sponichi

Winners of Nikkansports Dorama Grand Prix (Autumn 2018)

There were 1,076 valid votes for this round of voting between 13th and 20th Dec where the top 5 for each category in each season would then be eligible as nominees for the annual awards.The numbers in brackets indicate the number of votes received for the drama and/or actor/actress.

Best Drama
1) Boku to shippo to Kagurazaka (209)
2) Shitamachi Rocket 2 (121)
3) Segodon (108)
4) Kyou kara ore wa!! / Dairenai ~ Boku wo wasureru kimi to (78)

Best Leading Actor
1) Aiba Masaki - Boku to shippo to Kagurazaka (225)
2) Suzuki Ryohei - Segodon (174)
3) Abe Hiroshi - Shitamachi Rocket 2 (149)
4) Mizutani Yutaka - Aibou season 17 (91)
5) Kaku Kento - Kyou kara ore wa!! (90)

Best Leading Actress
1) Ando Sakura - Manpuku (232)
2) Yonekura Ryoko - Legal V ~ Moto Bengoshi Takanashi Shouko ~ (198)
3) Toda Erika - Dairenai ~ Boku wo wasureru kimi to (157)
4) Arimura Kasumi - Chuugakusei Nikki (128)
5) Aragaki Yui - Kemono ni narenai watashitachi (121)

Best Supporting Actor
1) Muro Tsuyoshi - Dairenai ~ Boku wo wasureru kimi to (121)
2) Hasegawa Hiroki - Manpuku (85)
3) Eita - Segodon (77)
4) Issey Ogata - Boku to shippo to Kagurazaka (64)
5) Ito Kentaro - Kyou kara ore wa!! / Sorimachi Takashi - Aibou season 17 (52)

Best Supporting Actress
1) Hirosue Ryoko - Boku to shippo to Kagurazaka (150)
2) Matsuzaka Keiko - Manpuku (92)
3) Kuroki Haru - Segodon (88)
4) Imoto Ayako - Shitamachi Rocket 2 (67)
5) Shuri - Boku to shippo to Kagurazaka (66)

Source: Nikkansports

Oricon's interview with Fukuda Yasushi, the scriptwriter of NHK morning drama "Manpuku"

Oricon published an interview with Fukuda Yasushi, the scriptwriter of NHK morning drama "Manpuku" back in October where he revealed some behind-the-scenes stories about the drama. I won't be translating the whole interview but will just mention some of the key points here.

- After he wrote the script for the Taiga drama "Ryomaden", he actually thought that there might be a day when he could be asked to write a script for a morning drama. As such, when the offer came for him to write "Manpuku", his first thought was that "this has finally come!".

- However, Fukuda had written stories mostly about adults so he was unsure how he could do the same for a lead character who is a young woman. The fact that each episode was just 15 minutes also made him worried if he could tackle this. When he remembered that he did a similar project back in 2004 for NHK i.e. "Tokio Chichi e no dengon" (starring Sakurai Sho) which had 20 episodes of 15 minutes each, he became confident that he could manage this and changed his mindset to make this into something which is not just about a young woman's life.

- Initially, there was a discussion with the producer on whether they should do an entirely original story on a fictitious character or use a real-life model instead. Among the choices they came up with, they finally decided on Ando Masako who was the wife of Nissin Foods' founder Ando Momofuku. Unfortunately, although there were tons of information about Momofuku who had many superb achievements such as creating the instant ramen in packets and cups, there was nothing about Masako even after searching on the Internet, using a database used by the media or going to museums. This was because Masako was someone who seemed to stay in the background rather than share the limelight with her famous husband. As such, "Manpuku" can be considered as an original story since it is actually 80% fiction.

- He spoke to Masako's descendants and heard many touching stories about the couple and how she was a very kind and gentle person. However, to create a "selling point" in the story rather than just make it into one where the wife simply follows the lead of her husband, he created Fukuko as someone who is optimistic, flexible enough to adapt to changing situations such as the initial conflicts between her husband and mother and become a peacemaker between Manpei and Suzu rather than be a modest and quiet supporter of Manpei.

- He created Manpei with the image of Steve Jobs. Back then in Manpei's era, nobody actually expressed a need or demand for instant ramen so Manpei's invention / business venture was very risky because it could have flopped with no demand and no consumer market to sell to.

- He imagined that Suzu would probably find it hard to understand her son-in-law's "crazy ideas" and deliberately designed her to be someone who would keep making discouraging remarks about her son-in-law. This indirectly created a form of comedy between Suzu and Manpei which would make the story more interesting.

- What's real and identical between Masako and Fukuko were that the two of them were both the third daughter in the family and their eldest sisters were so beautiful and popular with men. Their second sisters were both married to artists whose houses attracted lots of birds for some reason. And to top it off, there was a dentist who did come riding a horse to their house and kept making marriage proposals to the eldest sister. Fukuda joked that Maki Zennosuke (Hamano Kenta), the dentist who liked the eldest sister Saki (Uchida Yuki) was probably his most favourite character! He expected that NHK would have a way somehow in bringing a horse into the studio for the filming and was pleasantly surprised that they managed to do it.

Preview of "Manpuku" (NHK morning drama)

Title: Manpuku まんぷく
Official website: here
Official Instagram: here
Official LINE: here
Official Twitter: here
O.A. Start Date: 1 Oct 2018
Timeslot: Mondays to Saturdays 8am
Total number of episodes: 151
Scriptwriter: Fukuda Yasushi
Music: Kawai Kenji
Theme Song: "Anata to turattatta" by DREAMS COME TRUE
Narrator: Ashida Mana
Cast: Ando Sakura, Hasegawa Hiroki, Matsuzaka Keiko, Uchida Yuki, Ootani Ryohei, Matsushita Nao, Kaname Jun, Kishii Yukino, Kiritani Kenta, Seto Koji, Nakao Akiyoshi, Kataoka Ainosuke, Hashizume Isao, Hashimoto Manami, Fujiyama Senjiro, Narumi, Soganoya Kantaro, Hamano Kenta, Matsui Rena, Kureshiro Kumi etc.

Hasegawa Hiroki to play Ando Sakura's husband in new NHK morning drama "Manpuku"

Hasegawa Hiroki was revealed to be playing the heroine's husband in the upcoming NHK morning drama "Manpuku" starring Ando Sakura during a press conference at NHK Osaka on 6 February. The drama which will begin its run from 1 October 2018, is set from the days before WWII to the period of high economic growth in Osaka and will feature a heroine modelled after Ando Masako and her husband Ando Momofuku who created the instant ramen. Ando Sakura will play the heroine named Tachibana Fukuko from the age of 18 to her 60s who tries to survive the tough times in Osaka with her husband Manpei (Hasegawa) from before WWII to the rapid economic development era as they overcome various setbacks before they succeed in creating instant noodles. Manpei lost his parents at a young age and had lived with his relatives during his childhood. With his vivid imagination and enthusiasm, he set up his own company at 25 and later met Fukuko. After they got married, Manpei was involved in many different businesses which all flopped. Having lost his entire fortune at the age of 47, Manpei was encouraged by Fukuko to start anew and later brought about an invention which revolutionised the world's eating culture. Hasegawa is expected to play Manpei from the age of 28 to his 60s.

Ando Sakura announced to be the lead of NHK's 99th morning drama "Manpuku"

Ando Sakura was announced to be the lead of NHK's 99th morning drama "Manpuku" during a press conference held at its HQ in Tokyo on 31 January. The drama which consists of 151 episodes, will begin its run from 1 October 2018 to 30 March 2019. Filming is expected to begin in the middle of May 2018. This will make Ando as the first "mother-heroine" in NHK's morning drama history to date. She had appeared in a supporting role in 2011's morning drama "Ohisama" before.

The story will be written by Fukuda Yasushi who is known for his works such as "HERO", "Galileo" and "Ryomaden" and this will be his attempt at writing a morning drama. The story set from the days before WWII to the period of high economic growth in Osaka will feature a heroine modelled after Ando Masako and her husband Ando Momofuku who created the instant ramen. "Manpuku" will be the 99th morning drama in the history of NHK's morning dramas and the 42nd production by NHK Osaka. Usually, the morning dramas produced by NHK Osaka will choose their heroines during an audition. However, Ando was selected without an audition thus making her the second to be picked in this way since 2013's "Gochisousan" when An also became the heroine in this manner.

New NHK morning drama "Manpuku" to be shown from autumn 2018

NHK announced on 14 November that it will be showing a new morning drama "Manpuku" (All health and happiness) which consists of 151 episodes and will be shown from 1 October 2018 to 30 March 2019. The story will be written by Fukuda Yasushi who is known for his works such as "HERO", "Galileo" and "Ryomaden" and this will be his attempt at writing a morning drama. The story set from the days before WWII to the period of high economic growth in Osaka will feature a heroine modelled after Ando Masako and her husband Ando Momofuku who created the instant ramen. "Manpuku" will be the 99th morning drama in the history of NHK's morning dramas and the 42nd production by NHK Osaka.