Upcoming Summer 2012 Dramas
Naniwa Shonen Tanteidan
Date: From 8.00 p.m., Mondays, 2 July 2012
Station: TBS
Cast: Tabe Mikako, Koike Teppei, Yamamoto Koji, Kimura Fumino, Maeda Koki, Hamada Tatsuomi, Yagi Yuki, Izawa Masaki, Yoshii Hajime, Ninomiya Akari, Hamabe Minami, Takahashi Akira, Maeda Oshiro, Saito Yuki, Nukumizu Yoichi, Kimura Yuichi (guest star), Hisamoto Masami (guest star), Rokkaku Seiji (guest star), Tomita Yasuko (guest star), Danta Yasunori, Kohinata Fumiyo, Matsuzaka Keiko
Synopsis: Takeuchi Shinobu (Tabe Mikako), who has elementary school teaching qualifications, is assigned to be a temporary teacher of Class 6/2 at Ooji Elementary School in Osaka City’s old town. As inquisitive and energetic as her young charges (Maeda Koki, Hamada Tatsuomi, Takahashi Akira, Yagi Yuki, Hamabe Minami, Ninomiya Akari, Maeda Oshiro), Shinobu would poke her nose into strange incidents that happen among people and be up to her neck in it. She loves mystery novels and detests dishonesty. Together with her students, she solves difficult cases that baffle even the police detectives, using her sensitivity and unmatched powers of deduction.
Rich Man, Poor Woman
Date: From 9.00 p.m., Mondays, July 2012
Station: Fuji TV
Cast: Oguri Shun, Ishihara Satomi, Aibu Saki, ARATA
Synopsis: 29-year-old Hyuga Toru (Oguri Shun) is the president of an IT company. He has a very flawed personality, but through a combination of chance and luck he has become a billionaire rich and appeared on Forbes. On the other hand, Sawaki Chihiro (Ishihara Satomi), a Tokyo University student, devoted herself to studying and getting qualifications to ease her way in life, but still has not been able to find employment. Chihiro and Toru meet through a strange turn of events and fall in love. They frequently have conflicts, but grow as they get to know each other … …
Soumato Kabushikigaisha
Date: From 12.20 a.m., Mondays, 16 July 2012
Station: TBS
Cast: Kashii Yu, Yokoyama Megumi, Bota Masataka (guest star)
Synopsis: Soumato Corporation is intriguing place where recorded images of one’s life can be viewed on DVD. A person who happen sto stray into Soumato Corporation, will be handed DVDs equivalent in number to his age by Kaminuma (Kashii Yu), the company’s mysterious guide. She will tell him to go back and watch his life to his heart’s content. What he will see on these DVDs is his own life through the eyes of other people. He will learn startling facts that are better left unsaid. What will he think after watching everything?
Iki mo Dekinai Natsu
Date: From 9.00 p.m., Tuesdays, July 2012
Station: Fuji TV
Cast: Takei Emi, Eguchi Yosuke, Kimura Yoshino, Kaname Jun, Nakamura Aoi, Asada Miyoko, Kitaoji Kinya
Synopsis: Tanizaki Rei (Takei Emi), a 19-year-old bright-eyed, naive girl-next-door, accidentally learns about the secret of her birth one day. She has no family register. Sinking into the depths of despair, she wonders if she exists in the world, on a social level. In the midst of this, she encounters a man old enough to be her father. 41-year-old Kiyama Ryuichiro (Eguchi Yosuke) is a former journalist who bears deep emotional scars. Once an ace on the city news team of a major newspaper, he covered many events and obtained exclusive scoops with his strong sense of justice and characteristic cool nerves. However, his destiny changed after something happened and he left the newspaper out of disappointment. He now works as a temp at night at the ward office, and lives in a corner of the city. The wheels of fate start moving silently as these two lonely people, whom society has given up on and live as if holding their breath, meet. Having distanced herself from the people she has got on well with up to now, Rei finds herself drawn to Ryuichiro who becomes her only friend and an “unacceptable” love grows. On the other hand, Ryuichiro’s encounter with Rei nudges him to face the sin(s) of his past and find the meaning of life.
GTO (remake)
Date: From 10.00 p.m., Tuesdays, 3 July 2012
Station: Fuji TV
Cast: AKIRA, Takimoto Miori, Yamamoto Yusuke, Takachi Noboru, Takizawa Saori, Yano Masato, Fujisawa Ayano, Nagasawa Nao, Kobayashi Yumi, Sugichan, Fuse Eri, Tayama Ryosei, Shirota Yu, Kuroki Hitomi, Kawaguchi Haruna, Takada Sho, Morimoto Shitaro, Nishiuchi Mariya, Honda Tsubasa, Miyazaki Karen, Shirahama Aran, Nakagawa Taishi, Yamada Yuki, Suzuki Nobuyuki, Sano Gaku, Takatsuki Sara, Takara Hikari, Shinkawa Yua
Synopsis: Through the introduction of his friend Danma Ryuji (Shirota Yu), Onizuka Eikichi (AKIRA), the former legendary bike gang member, visits Meishu Academy to tend to the trees in the garden as a part-time gardener. Learning that Yoshikawa Noboru (Nakagawa Taishi), a student in teacher Fuyutsuki Azusa’s (Takimoto Miori) class is being bullied by Uehara Kyoko (Shinkawa Yua) and other classmates, Onizuka befriends and saves Yoshikawa. Seeing Onizuka’s unprecedented but visceral, powerful response to problem solving, the school’s director and principal, Sakurai Yoshiko (Kuroki Hitomi), overrides resistance from her vice principal Uchiyamada Hiroshi (Tayama Ryosei) and makes Onizuka a teacher. Onizuka goes on to tackle many issues as the teacher in charge of the most problematic class, Class 2/4.
Tsurukame Josanin ~ Minami no Shima kara
Date: From 10.00 p.m., Tuesdays, 28 August 2012
Station: NHK
Cast: Naka Riisa, Yo Kimiko, Nakao Akiyoshi, Aso Yumi, Yanagisawa Shingo, Gori, Mizobata Junpei, Taira Tomi, Kaga Chikako, Ito Shiro
Synopsis: Onodera Mariya’s (Naka Riisa) married life was supposed to have been happy, but turns out shortlived when her husband Tatsuya (Mizobata Junpei) suddenly disappears without a trace. At her wits end, she heads for a heart-shaped island in Okinawa that Tatsuya had once spoken of. On the other hand, at a time earlier than this, Tsuruta Kameko (Yo Kimiko), who has been working as a midwife in Tokyo, gets disgusted with the mentality of frivolous girls who regard abortion as reasonable, and a compromise in natural childbirth because of the hospital, wins a large sum of money in a lottery and leaves for a trip around the world. However, she learns that the Okinawan archipelago that she first stopped at is suffering from a shortage of midwives and decides to set up the ideal maternity hospital down there. These two women of different generations meet in the southern islands. The islanders including Kameko warmly embrace Mariya just like the Okinawan words say, “If we meet by chance, we’re all brothers and sisters” … …
Dragon Seinendan
Date: From 12.55 a.m., Tuesdays, 17 July 2012
Station: TBS
Cast: Yasuda Shota, Renbutsu Misako, Endo Kaname, Honda Chikara, Araki Yuko, Santamaria Yusuke
Synopsis: A dragon appears in modern day Japan, causing a great uproar in Tokyo. On the other hand, at Mitsuyama City located at the foot of Mt Fuji, Yoshio (Yasuda Shota), Kenji (Endo Kaname) and Tamotsu (Honda Chikara), members of the young people’s association, talk idly at the cafe where Yoko (Renbutsu Misako) works. Yoshio, who had gone to buy a game, obtains a mysterious, old document at a secondhand bookstore. It is written literature about dragons. They learn that: warriors of the light had previously destroyed a dragon, Mitsuyama City is the town of their descendents, and a sword and crystal are needed to vanquish a dragon. And, the descendents of the light, who are the new heroes, have coats of arms. A good look reveals that Kenji and the others have them too. The four of them wonder if it is a joke even as they search for the crystal. A variety of reasons make them decide to destroy the dragon despite their conflicts. The spirit of adventure which they had almost forgotten, blossoms, and they take action, for world peace and regional devevlopment.
Shin Keishichou Sousa Ikka 9-Gakkari Season 4
Date: From 9.00 p.m., Wednesdays, 4 July 2012
Station: TV Asahi
Cast: Watase Tsunehiko, Inohara Yoshihiko, Hada Michiko, Nakagoshi Noriko, Fukikoshi Mitsuru, Taguchi Hiromasa, Tsuda Kanji, Hara Sachie
Synopsis: -
Tokkan ~ Tokubetsu Kokuzei Choushuukan
Date: From 10.00 p.m., Wednesdays, 4 July 2012
Station: NTV
Cast: Inoue Mao, Kitamura Yukiya, Suzuki Sawa, Kinami Haruka, Minami, Ikeda Tetsuhiro, Okayama Hajime, Kasahara Hideyuki, Shiomi Sansei, Iwamatsu Ryo, Wakamura Mayumi
Synopsis: Certain circumstances have made 25-year-old Suzumiya Miki (Inoue Mao) desire secure employment. So she became a public servant. However, her job is the most detested in the world. It is that of a national tax collector who collects taxes from those who default on payments. The special national tax collectors handle the worst of these cases. Miki is assigned to the Tokyo Regional Taxation Bureau’s Tax Office as a new tax officer under her superior, Kagami Masachika (Kitamura Yukiya), a special national tax collector whose coldheartedness has no equal and is called “god of death” by the people around him. Miki thus runs about each day as Kagami’s assistant to collect taxes from tax defaulters.
Iryu Sousa Season 2
Date: From 9.00 p.m., Thursdays, 12 July 2012
Station: TV Asahi
Cast: Kamikawa Takaya, Saito Yuki, Yashima Norito, Tanaka Tetsushi, Okada Yoshinori, Masana Bokuzo, Mashima Hidekazu, Miyake Yuji
Beginners!
Date: From 9.00 p.m., Thursdays, 12 July 2012
Station: TBS
Cast: Fujigaya Taisuke, Kitayama Hiromitsu, Goriki Ayame, Ishida Hikari, Yanagisawa Shingo, Kaga Takeshi, Sugimoto Tetta, Koyanagi Yu, Okamoto Azusa, Mizusawa Erina, Ishii Tomoya, Mori Ren
Synopsis: Shimura Teppei (Fujigaya Taisuke) grew up watching his policeman father who would ride side-by-side in marathons because he was a motorcycle cop, and dreamt of being a marathon runner as a child. But Teppei’s father lost his job and disappeared. Teppei ruined himself by becoming a well-known delinquent in the area. Under the influence of his childhood friend, Yuichi, Teppei chose to become a policeman after graduating from high school. He miraculously passed the recruitment exam and entered the police academy. However, he has been assigned to a “class of reserves” (Goriki Ayame, Koyanagi Yu, Okamoto Azusa, Mizusawa Erina, Ishii Tomoya, Mori Ren) which is a gathering of odds and ends. There are eight of them and each day they are only instructed by the assistant teacher, Ryuzaki Misaki, to sweep the academy grounds … …
Higashino Keigo Mysteries
Date: From 10.00 p.m., Thursdays, 5 July 2012
Station: Fuji TV
Cast: Nakai Kiichi, Karasawa Toshiaki, Matsushita Nao, Mizuki Arisa, Sorimachi Takashi, Nagasawa Masami, Tanaka Rena, Sakaguchi Kenji, Toda Erika, Miura Haruma, Hirosue Ryoko, Suzuki Kyoka
Synopsis: Omnibus drama of 11 works from Higashino Keigo’s collection of short novels: Sayonara Coach (Karasawa Toshiaki, Tanaka Rena), Endless Night (Matsushita Nao), Reiko to Reiko (Mizuki Arisa), Amai Hazu Nanoni (Sorimachi Takashi), Charade ga Ippai (Nagasawa Masami), Hannin no Inai Satsujin no Yoru (Sakaguchi Kenji), Shiroi Kyouki (Toda Erika), and Chiisana Koi no Monogatari (Miura Haruma), Kekkon Houkoku (Hirosue Ryoko) and Saisei Majutsu no Onna (Suzuki Kyoka).
Vision ~ Koroshi ga Mieru Onna
Date: From 11.58 p.m., Thursdays, 5 July 2012
Station: NTV
Cast: Yamada Yu, Kaneko Nobuaki, Katsumura Masanobu
Synopsis: One day, struggling model Kurusu Reina (Yamada Yu) suddenly has the special vision to see images of murderers come to her mind. Asano Kazama (Kaneko Nobuaki), a First Investigative Division detective pushed into temporary suspension because of a case, unluckily meets Reina. He makes use her special ability to solve difficult cases.
Sengoku BASARA Moonlight Party
Date: From 1.25 a.m., Thursdays, 12 July 2012
Station: TBS/MBS
Cast: Hayashi Kento, Takeda Kohei, Tokuyama Hide, Izawa Yuki, Arisue Mayuko, Nagasawa Nao, Higuchi Yuki, Shiina Taizo, Iwanaga Hiroaki, Gackt
Synopsis: Flanked by Sanada Yukimura (Takeda Kohei), who is in the company of the leader of the Sanada ninjas Sarutobi Sasuke (Izawa Yuki), Takeda Shingen (Iwanaga Hiroaki), the “Tiger of Kai”, charges forward. The Takeda army pushes ahead. The moment they approach Nagashino, they are faced with troops led by Date Masamune (Hayashi Kento), the leader of the Oushu … …
Hakuouki
Date: From 8.00 p.m., Fridays, 13 July 2012
Station: NHK BS Premium
Cast: Yamamoto Koji, Shibamoto Yuki, Takahashi Kazuya, Tomosaka Rie, Takashima Masanobu, Dan Fumi, Kusakari Masao, Katsurayama Shingo, Ishimaru Kanji, Ishigaki Yuma, Tatsumi Takuro, Kato Kazuko, Manda Hisako, Tsugawa Masahiko, Nagatsuka Kyozo
Synopsis: Tange Tenzen (Yamamoto Koji) is made a vassal to the shogun. He is a master of the single long sword fighting style. But in order to defend the honour of his wife, Nagao Chiharu (Shibamoto Yuki), he loses an arm and his family is also wiped out. Tenzen then becomes a wandering samurai and is saved by Horibe Yasube (Takahashi Kazuya) who subsequently goes on to be a vassal of the Ako domain. On the other hand, Tenzen becomes a bodyguard of Kira Kozukenosuke (Nagatsuka Kyozo) and ends up facing off against the Ako samurai as a one-armed swordsman … …
Yoru no Onnakyoushi
Date: From 10.00 p.m., Fridays, July 2012
Station: TBS
Cast: Eikura Nana, Matsumura Hokuto, Chiba Yudai, Ono Ito, Nishii Yukito, Tsuchiya Tao, Yamazaki Kento, Taketomi Seika, Hirose Alice, Taiga, Sugisaki Hana, Fujiwara Reiko, Katono Taikou, Nakajo Ayami, Kimura Fumino, Suruga Taro, Ichikawa Mikako, Mitsuishi Ken, Minami Kaho, Kobayashi Satomi
Synopsis: Takakura Yuko (Eikura Nana) is an ordinary chemistry teacher at a famous government-run preparatory school by day. But at night, she is a super teacher who solves a variety of difficult problems rampant on the school grounds that require more than sound arguments. From bullying to illicit sexual relations, marijuana and hallucinatory herbs. Her approach is “an eye for an eye”. She is willing to break the law in order to solve issues, and demand money from the people who seek help along with the classics teacher, Uchida Sumire (Ichikawa Mikako) and the art teacher, Fujii Aya (Kobayashi Satomi) whom she get on famously with despite their different personalities and interests.
Boys on the Run
Date: From 11.15 p.m., Fridays, 6 July 2012
Station: TV Asahi
Cast: Maruyama Ryuhei, Taira Airi, Saito Takumi, Ueda Tatsuya, Minami Akina, Asada Miyoko, Sato Eriko, Jinnai Takanori
Synopsis: Tanishi Toshiyuki (Maruyama Ryuhei), a salaryman who works for a small toy manufacturer, has never had a girlfriend in the 27 years of his life. Naturally he has no experience in women too. Ridiculed as uninteresting at his workplace, Toshiyuki is a hopeless employee nowhere near getting ahead in life. He is in love with his colleague, Uemura Chiharu (Minami Akina). However, he is not able to approach her, and relieves this dejection every day through telephone dating clubs and adult videos. Then one day, Toshiyuki appears to make progress with Chiharu following coaching by the elite salaryman Aoyama Takahiro (Saito Takumi) whom he got to know at his workplace, but … …
Ghost Mama Sousasen ~ Boku to Mama no Fushigina 100 Nichi
Date: From 9.00 p.m., Saturdays, 7 July 2012
Station: NTV
Cast: Nakama Yukie, Sawamura Ikki, Shida Mirai, Kimino Yuma, Tsukaji Muga, Namase Katsuhisa, Serina, Sanada Yuma
Synopsis: Tonbo (Kimino Yuma) is a timid first-grade elementary school student. One day, the ghost of Tonbo’s mother, Uehara Choko (Nakama Yukie), who died three months ago appears when he puts on her spectacles which he has kept as a keepsake. This is thus the beginning of a bizzare life for mother and son. Choko had been an outstanding policewoman while she was alive, and now ghosts with regrets gather around her. Meddlesome even when dead, Choko cannot turn her back on those in trouble. She partners Tonbo and takes on numerous cases. The two of them work together to solve various cases and settle trouble, until the day comes for them to truly part … …
Makete, Katsu ~ Sengo o Tsukutta Otoko . Yoshida Shigeru
Date: From 9.00 p.m., Saturdays, September 2012
Station: NHK
Cast: Watanabe Ken, Tanihara Shosuke
Synopsis: Yoshida Shigeru (Watanabe Ken) was a proud, stubborn man who stuck to his own principles even when tossed into jail during wartime. He also held his own against General MacArthur, the supreme commander of the allied powers. The two of them consequently collaborated in the revival of Japan.
Omoni Naitemasu
Date: From 11.10 p.m., Saturdays, 7 July 2012
Station: Fuji TV
Cast: Nanao, Nakamaru Yuichi, Kusakari Mayu, Takaizumi Atsuko, Kato Ryo, Aoyama Noriko, Tsubokura Yoshiyuki, Tajima Reiko, Adachi Yumi, Kazama Toru
Synopsis: No words are adequate to describe the beauty of the unfortunate Konno Izumi (Nanao). Nearly all the men who look at her fall in love at first sight, even if it is a fleeting encounter. Because they almost certainly bear down on Izumi to ask her to go out with them, her beauty is her ruin. She is not able to work and leads a lonely life concealed from society. And while she is mistress of the popular oil painter, Aoyama Jin (Kazama Toru), who is a playboy and professor at the Tokyo Institute of Art, she does not get any money from the series of paintings Aoyama had done with her as his model because his income is controlled by his wife.
Sprout
Date: From 12.50 a.m., Saturdays, 7 July 2012
Station: NTV
Cast: Chinen Yuri, Morikawa Aoi, Kojima Fujiko, Lewis Jesse, Yasui Kentaro, Jinguji Yuta, Maeshima Ami, Fujii Shuka, Kikkawa Yu, Tanaka Juri, Kawakita Mayuko, Hashimoto Ryosuke
Synopsis: One day, the father of Ikenouchi Miku (Morikawa Aoi) starts a boarding house and her high school classmate, Narahashi Sohei (Chinen Yuri), moves in to live under the same roof. Miku is initially opposed to it, but gradually falls for Sohei who does not have a care in the world. However, he already has a girlfriend … …
Beautiful Rain
Date: From 9.00 p.m., Sundays, July 2012
Station: Fuji TV
Cast: Toyokawa Etsushi, Ashida Mana, Miura Shohei, Denden, Yasuda Ken, Kokusho Sayuri, Takagi Serai, Kimijima Asaya, Yoshida Riko, Oka Mitsuko, Kanie Keizo, Nakatani Miki
Synopsis: Kinoshita Keisuke (Toyokawa Etsushi) has lived with his young daughter, Miu (Ashida Mana), at the factory’s detached dwelling ever since his wife died. He is a craftsman who has been supporting the metal processing factory in the old downtown neighbourhood and is even the coach of a youth baseball team. Keisuke is surrounded by compassionate friends and leads a happy life with Miu, but his memory has been failing lately. One day, he is diagnosed with the early onset of Alzheimer’s. On the other hand, Miu is level-headed but still a child at heart. The loneliness following her mother’s death has been warded off by her father’s cheerful personality. However, the days of closeness with her father changes dramatically with his sudden illness … …
Summer Rescue ~ Tenkuu no Shinryosho
Date: From 9.00 p.m., Sundays, 8 July 2012
Station: TBS
Cast: Mukai Osamu, Ono Machiko, Koike Eiko, Miura Reiko, Ichikawa Yui, Nonen Rena, Suda Masaki, Ozawa Ryota, Maeda Goki, Oriyama Miyu, Honda Miyu, Sasano Takashi, Sato Jiro, Matsushige Yutaka, Tokito Saburo
Synopsis: Hayami Keigo (Mukai Osamu) is a promising young heart surgeon at a university hospital, but is made to examine patients at a clinic in the mountains during summer on the orders of his superior. At a harsh environment 2,000 m above sea level, there is a very small quantity of testing equipment and medicine. It is a culture shock and setback for Keigo who is active in advanced medical care and the use of cutting-edge equipment. This is a place detached from modern medical care where doctors make all diagnoses by touching, looking at and talking to patients. Koyama Haruka (Ono Machiko) was raised by parents who ran a mountain lodge, but when she was 5, her mother died in an accident on the mountains. That influenced her to become a nurse in Tokyo. However, one day, an incident prompts her to escape from Tokyo and return to the mountain lodge. It is the same time that Keigo arrives at the clinic … …
Renai Kentei
Date: From 10.00 p.m., Sundays, 3 June 2012
Station: NHK BS Premium
Cast: Tanaka Rena, Seto Koji, Maiko, Saito Takumi, Takeda Shinji, Nonami Maho, Kimura Tae, Ishihara Yoshizumi, Hosshan, Matobu Sei, Arakawa Chika
Takahashi Rumiko’s Theatre
Date: From 10.00 p.m., Sundays, 8 July 2012
Station: NHK BS Premium
Akai Hanabata
Synopsis: One day, a ghostly middle-aged salaryman participates in his own funeral service naked. At the centre of this sad story is the fear of a housewife who discovers human bones in a flower pot left in her care by the widow next door, and the start of a high school girl’s suspicions of family suicide when is brought on a drive by her parents who abruptly try to leave for a family holiday … …
Cast: Kohinata Fumiyo, Harada Mieko, Yamada Mariya, Kataoka Reiko, Sugimoto Tetta, Yoshinaga Jun, Murakami Jun
Unmei no Tori
Synopsis: The owner of a cafe possesses a special ability to “see a red bird on the heads of unfortunate people”. A woman that this owner used to date is powerless against many thorny problems stemming from her husband’s indecisiveness. This gets mixed together with a former CEO who hates things that are not right and cannot bow to others, but ends up working at a bento shop through a strange turn of events. An uproar ensues.
Cast: Mizuno Miki, Inoue Waka, Katsura Kichiya, Azuma Mikihisa, Watabiki Katsuhiko
Magma
Date: From 10.00 p.m., Sundays, 10 June 2012
Station: WOWOW
Cast: Ono Machiko, Tanihara Shosuke, Ishiguro Ken, Tsuda Kanji, Komoto Masahiro, Shaku Yumiko, Watanabe Ikkei, Nagatsuka Kyozo, Osugi Ren
Synopsis: Since the Great East Japan Earthquake, geothermal power generation, which is safe and also emits little carbon dioxide, has become a subject among the natural energy sources that are getting attention. Taeko (Ono Machiko) who works at a foreign fund, is tasked by her company president, Machida (Tsuda Kenji) with restructuring an ailing company that has just been bought out. It is a small company in the countryside which develops and supplies geothermal energy. Taeko unhappily wonders if she has been demoted. She grills the present company president Ando (Tanihara Shosuke) about its finances and plunges forward with the conviction of turning the business around and securing its profitability. Taeko eventually learns of the employees thoughts of developing energy for Japan’s future and the potential of geothermal power generation. This makes her look hard again at the role she plays.
Platina Town
Date: From 10.00 p.m., Sundays, 19 August 2012
Station: WOWOW
Cast: Oizumi Yo, Dan Rei, Hirayama Hiroyuki, Tanaka Naoki, Watabe Atsuro, Tanimura Mitsuki, Emoto Akira (guest star), Aijima Kazuyuki, Kitamura Soichiro, Ishibashi Nenji, Itao Itsuji
Synopsis: Yamazaki Tetsuro (Oizumi Yo), an elite salaryman with Yotsui Corporation, returns to his hometown of Midorihara for the first time in years when his childhood friend, Kumazawa Kenji (Hirayama Koji), invites him to the class reunion. However, he can hardly recognise the Midorihara that he arrives at. The local town is experiencing a cash crunch. Tetsuro is asked by Kenji and others to rebuild Midorihara. He makes up his mind, resigns from his company and assumes the post of Midorihara’s mayor. Midorihara continued to inject money into financially unviable public work projects since the bubble era and now in debt to the tune of 15 billion yen. Tetsuro’s plan to save the town is to build a theme park for the elderly. It is an unprecedented proposal that Kamata Takezo (Emoto Akira), a senior town councilor, challenges. Tetsuro plunges ahead with transforming Midorihara into a ‘Platina Town’ where the elderly can live as they like, even as he faces a whirl of ulterior motives from proponents and opponents of the plan.
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