Drama Season: Spring 2022
Maybe I'm late because many of these already started or will start imminently, but considering that I have finished only one drama from the previous season... I'm late in general, I think.
Winter season was pretty dull, but I have my hopes up for this one!
(yeah I want to watch too many things, yeah I won't be able to do it)
My Family
Preview
Date: From 10.00 p.m., Sundays, 10 April 2022
Station: TBS
Scriptwriter: Kuroiwa Tsutomu (Tokyo MER, Kikenna Venus, Grand Maison Tokyo)
Cast: Ninomiya Kazunari, Tabe Mikako, Kaku Kento, Takahashi Maryjun, Otomo Kohei, Kanno Misuzu, Sakoda Takaya, Yamada Kinuo, Watanabe Kunito, Fujima Sawako, Oshima Miyu, Nasu Yuto, Matsumoto Koshiro, Tomizawa Takeshi, Hamada Gaku, Tamaki Hiroshi
Synopsis: Narusawa Haruto (Ninomiya Kazunari), the CEO of a game company, is the darling of the moment. He has a house in Shonan in Kamakura where he lives with his wife Michiru (Tabe Mikako), a celebrity of sorts with over 10,000 followers on social media. The couple have a daughter who attends elementary school. While there is a sense of something complicated between Haruto and Michiru, he seems to have it all. That is until tragedy strikes when their daughter is kidnapped. The desperate situation puts their family ties to the test. They face a number of trials with the loss of their most precious child. Haruto and Michiru eventually realise that the only way to get her back is not through the police but to join hands to fight against the kidnappers. Will the two of them be able to get their daughter back safely and have a happy ending?
Yeah Neen's presence is a big factor, but it really seems good.
Will it actually come to Disney+ worldwide? A woman can only hope.
Yangotonaki Ichizoku
Preview
Date: From 10.00 p.m., Thursdays, 14 April 2022
Station: Fuji TV
Scriptwriters: Kamimori Marie (Kono Koi Atatamemasu ka, Kioku, Love Song), Aotsuka Miho (Gossip, Janai Hou no Kanojo, Kono Koi Atatamemasu ka, Yowamushi Pedal Series)
Cast: Tsuchiya Tao, Matsushita Kohei, Onoe Matsuya, Matsumoto Wakana, Watanabe Keisuke, Matsuomoto Kiyo, Baba Fumika, Sasaki Nozomi, Ishino Mako, Baisho Mitsuko, Kimura Tae, Ishibashi Ryo
Synopsis: Shinohara Sato (Tsuchiya Tao) grew up in a working class neighbourhood and runs an eatery with her mother Yoshie (Ishino Mako). She is a cheerful and steely young woman whom regular customers are fond of. She has been dating Miyama Kenta (Matsushita Kohei), the second son of a distinguished old family that runs a real estate business and has vast assets. Since he was a child, Kenta abhorred his authoritarian father Keiichi (Ishibashi Ryo) and the family’s customs. He left home during his student days, and eventually got a job with a company unrelated to the family. Keiichi and his wife Kumi (Kimura Tae) are strongly against a union between their son and Sato due to the disparity in status. Believing in the honest and unpretentious Kenta, Sato elopes with him and registers their marriage at the same time. At first, she cannot accept many of the family’s outdated customs that are characteristic of high society. However, she learns of Kenta’s desire to turn the Miyamas into a normal family where no one gets hurt and sacrificed for the family’s sake and there are no battles between relatives, and decides to enter the family. The true nature of the magnificent family that everyone envies is gradually revealed by Sato.
Everybody is excited about this, mostly because of the 2 leads, and I get it.
I already know she will get mistreated by evil relatives and I'll get mad, but I PRAY FOR THE ROMANCE.
Waru (2022) ~ Hataraku no ga Kakko Warui Nante Dare ga Itta?
Preview
Date: From 10.00 p.m., Wednesdays, 13 April 2022
Station: NTV
Scriptwriters: Goto Noriko (Kazoku no Katachi, Zeni no Sensou, Team Batista Series), Matsushima Ruriko (Ie Uru Onna no Gyakushu)
Cast: Imada Mio, Eguchi Noriko, Suzuki Nobuyuki, Takahashi Fumiya, Mukai Osamu, Shida Mirai (guest star), Ishida Hikari (guest star), Aramaki Yoshihiko (guest star), Wada Masanari (guest star)
Synopsis: Despite graduating from a third-rate university with even worse grades, Tanaka Maririn (Imada Mio) is lucky enough to be a new employee at a major IT company. However, she gets assigned to its equipment management division where Minegishi Yuki (Eguchi Noriko) works. Minegishi’s past is a mystery but she notices Maririn’s potential. Her words asking Maririn if she does not want to advance in her career, completely changes Maririn’s life at the company. There is a reason why Minegishi is guiding her. While the incapable but upbeat Maririn runs into workplace problems that employees in each division face, she moves up from the lowest rung with her innate cheerfulness and Minegishi’s rather shrewd advice. Maririn is working hard as she wants to get close to a senior colleague Ono Tadashi (Suzuki Nobuyuki) whom she fell in love with at first sight but whose name she does not even know.
I love all these dramas lately with young women in love with Mukai Osamu (and him never being the final love interest), I easily relate to them.
Anyway it looks fun and has a nice cast!
(but I feel bad for her for that ugly hair)
Invisible
Preview
Date: From 10.00 p.m., Fridays, 15 April 2022
Station: TBS
Scriptwriter: Izumi Yoshihiro (Alibi Kuzushi Uketamawarimasu, Shudan Sasen!, Todome no Kiss)
Cast: Takahashi Issei, Shibasaki Kou, Arioka Daiki, Hotta Akane, Tani Kyosuke, Itagaki Rihito, Ono Ito, Sakou Yoshi, Nishimura Motoki, Yuki Moe, Tanaka Makoto, Murai Ryota, Harada Taizo, Kiritani Kenta
Synopsis: Detective Shimura Takafumi (Takahashi Issei) belongs to the Special Investigation Unit which investigates unsolved cases that happen within the Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department’s jurisdiction. He used to be in charge of investigating cases on the First Investigation Division’s front line. However, his zeal for arresting criminals was particularly strong among the detectives of the division and the extremes he would go to in investigations led to his demotion. He is considered dangerous by the people around him in certain situations and his sense of justice is close to an obsessiveness. Shimura ends up having to work with Kiriko (Shibasaki Kou), a crime coordinator who is the representative of “evil” so to speak. Called “Invisible” because she is known only to a group of people within the police organisation and no one has seen her real image, Kiriko dominates the underworld and brokers deals for violent criminals. One day, she suddenly offers to help the police arrest criminals. Her only condition is that she wants to work with Shimura. She is privy to information on criminals that the police has yet to grasp and seems to hold the key to solving a lot of the unsolved cases that Shimura is pursuing. What is her motive for getting close to him?
I mean.
Look at those two.
From the preview, the drama seems pretty cool too but. Look at them.
Ore no Kawaii wa Mousugu Shouhi Kigen!?
Preview
Date: From 11.30 p.m., Saturdays, 16 April 2022
Station: TV Asahi
Scriptwriter: Tanabe Shigenori (Oh! My Boss!, In Hand, Tokusatsu Gagaga)
Cast: Yamada Ryosuke, Yoshine Kyoko, Ohashi Kazuya, Nishida Naomi, Furuta Arata
Synopsis: 29-year-old Maruya Kosuke (Yamada Ryosuke) works for a beer company’s sales department. Since he was a child, he has been popular with people due to his charming features and friendly personality. With his cuteness as his greatest weapon, he is at the top of his game at work and has never had a problem having a girlfriend. Just before he turns 30, Kosuke is confronted with something shocking. That is, his cuteness has an expiry date. Before this, everything used to go well once he unleashed his killer smile. But he starts facing difficulties in both work and romance, and his life goes downhill. Meanwhile, 26-year-old Sanada Izumi (Yoshine Kyoko) has considered herself to be a secondary character in life as a result of a childhood experience. She works for the same beer company in a research job at the product development department which does not require much involvement with people. However, she gets transferred to the sales department of all places and ends up being paired with Kosuke. Kosuke’s killer smile has no effect on Izumi who has stayed away from romance with the stubborn thought that she will never be chosen by someone. She easily ignores him but...
Many years ago I used to really dislike Yamada, for absolutely no reason, but he's actually a pretty good actor and a nice dude. It's a random info, I know.
Anyway, I see a lot of potential, him used to have his way with people and her not giving a fuck.
Motokare no Yuigonjou
Preview
Date: From 9.00 p.m., Mondays, 11 April 2022
Station: Fuji TV
Scriptwriter: Sugihara Noriaki (Mamagoto, Mega Bank Saishuu Kessen)
Cast: Ayase Haruka, Oizumi Yo, Ikuta Toma, Sekimizu Nagisa, Manda Hisako, Kaname Jun, Fueki Yuko, Satoi Kenta, Sasano Takashi, Nomaguchi Toru, Mori Kanna
Synopsis: Beautiful, stylish Kenmochi Reiko (Ayase Haruka) works for one of the country’s top law firms. Although everyone regards her as a very outstanding lawyer, she has made enemies for stopping at nothing to win. She merely boasts that she is honest about her desire for money. One day, her bonus gets cut after a client accuses her of extortion. Feeling indignant about the way she has been treated, Reiko blusters that she is going to quit and takes a brief leave of absence. With time to spare, she sends emails at random to acquaintances. The only person who replies is an ex-boyfriend Morikawa Eiji (Ikuta Toma) whom she had only dated for six months when they were in university. But the email response contains shocking news of his death. The sender is a mysterious man called Shinoda Keitaro (Oizumi Yo). What is even more surprising is Eiji’s strange will that bequeaths his huge fortune to the person who killed him. However, it is the inheritance and not the fact that he died that sways Reiko. She comes up with a plan to make Shinoda the “murderer” and conspires to split the fortune equally with him but...
I'm not THAT excited about this one, but I can recognize it will be good and I will most probably like it!
Koi Nante, Honki de Yatte Dousuru no?
Preview
Date: From 10.00 p.m., Mondays, 18 April 2022
Station: Fuji TV
Scriptwriter: Asano Taeko (Digital Tattoo, Tasogare Ryuuseigun, Gomen Ai Shiteru)
Cast: Hirose Alice, Matsumura Hokuto, Nishino Nanase, Iitoyo Marie, Okayama Amane, Ono Karin, Ando Nico, Osada Seiya, Makino Rika, Miura Ryota, Tozuka Junki, Mikata Ryosuke, Akira 100%, Furukawa Yuta, Kashii Yu, Fujiki Naohito
Synopsis: Sakurazawa Jun (Hirose Alice), the young chief designer of a company that manufactures Western tableware, has a fulfilling life in Tokyo and has no wish for it to be disrupted. At 27, she has no experience in romance or men and insists that she does not want to waste her feelings and time on something as uncertain as love. There is actually a reason why she is adamant about it. Nagamine Shuma (Matsumura Hokuto), an apprentice chef and waiter at a French bistro, is strikingly handsome and also has a gentle smile and way with words that captures female hearts. His philosophy regarding love is to live in the moment and he is not serious about relationships. However, he seems to be concealing the emptiness inside him. An encounter between Jun and Shuma, who both think that they do not need true love, starts to bring about changes in each of them when he takes an interest in her for some reason... in this story of six men and women who find the greatest love of their lives.
I mean, from the preview it seems a really spicy thing but also really awkward so I don't know??? I want to try it.
I don't know if they count as spring dramas since they've already started in the beginning of March, but I'm watching Shizuka-chan to Papa and it's really sweet ;_; and I'm debating whether to start Hiru, but only because Sakaguchi Kentaro looks really sexy in the poster and because Akaso Eiji best boy.
Winter season was pretty dull, but I have my hopes up for this one!
(yeah I want to watch too many things, yeah I won't be able to do it)
My Family
Preview
Date: From 10.00 p.m., Sundays, 10 April 2022
Station: TBS
Scriptwriter: Kuroiwa Tsutomu (Tokyo MER, Kikenna Venus, Grand Maison Tokyo)
Cast: Ninomiya Kazunari, Tabe Mikako, Kaku Kento, Takahashi Maryjun, Otomo Kohei, Kanno Misuzu, Sakoda Takaya, Yamada Kinuo, Watanabe Kunito, Fujima Sawako, Oshima Miyu, Nasu Yuto, Matsumoto Koshiro, Tomizawa Takeshi, Hamada Gaku, Tamaki Hiroshi
Synopsis: Narusawa Haruto (Ninomiya Kazunari), the CEO of a game company, is the darling of the moment. He has a house in Shonan in Kamakura where he lives with his wife Michiru (Tabe Mikako), a celebrity of sorts with over 10,000 followers on social media. The couple have a daughter who attends elementary school. While there is a sense of something complicated between Haruto and Michiru, he seems to have it all. That is until tragedy strikes when their daughter is kidnapped. The desperate situation puts their family ties to the test. They face a number of trials with the loss of their most precious child. Haruto and Michiru eventually realise that the only way to get her back is not through the police but to join hands to fight against the kidnappers. Will the two of them be able to get their daughter back safely and have a happy ending?
Yeah Neen's presence is a big factor, but it really seems good.
Will it actually come to Disney+ worldwide? A woman can only hope.
Yangotonaki Ichizoku
Preview
Date: From 10.00 p.m., Thursdays, 14 April 2022
Station: Fuji TV
Scriptwriters: Kamimori Marie (Kono Koi Atatamemasu ka, Kioku, Love Song), Aotsuka Miho (Gossip, Janai Hou no Kanojo, Kono Koi Atatamemasu ka, Yowamushi Pedal Series)
Cast: Tsuchiya Tao, Matsushita Kohei, Onoe Matsuya, Matsumoto Wakana, Watanabe Keisuke, Matsuomoto Kiyo, Baba Fumika, Sasaki Nozomi, Ishino Mako, Baisho Mitsuko, Kimura Tae, Ishibashi Ryo
Synopsis: Shinohara Sato (Tsuchiya Tao) grew up in a working class neighbourhood and runs an eatery with her mother Yoshie (Ishino Mako). She is a cheerful and steely young woman whom regular customers are fond of. She has been dating Miyama Kenta (Matsushita Kohei), the second son of a distinguished old family that runs a real estate business and has vast assets. Since he was a child, Kenta abhorred his authoritarian father Keiichi (Ishibashi Ryo) and the family’s customs. He left home during his student days, and eventually got a job with a company unrelated to the family. Keiichi and his wife Kumi (Kimura Tae) are strongly against a union between their son and Sato due to the disparity in status. Believing in the honest and unpretentious Kenta, Sato elopes with him and registers their marriage at the same time. At first, she cannot accept many of the family’s outdated customs that are characteristic of high society. However, she learns of Kenta’s desire to turn the Miyamas into a normal family where no one gets hurt and sacrificed for the family’s sake and there are no battles between relatives, and decides to enter the family. The true nature of the magnificent family that everyone envies is gradually revealed by Sato.
Everybody is excited about this, mostly because of the 2 leads, and I get it.
I already know she will get mistreated by evil relatives and I'll get mad, but I PRAY FOR THE ROMANCE.
Waru (2022) ~ Hataraku no ga Kakko Warui Nante Dare ga Itta?
Preview
Date: From 10.00 p.m., Wednesdays, 13 April 2022
Station: NTV
Scriptwriters: Goto Noriko (Kazoku no Katachi, Zeni no Sensou, Team Batista Series), Matsushima Ruriko (Ie Uru Onna no Gyakushu)
Cast: Imada Mio, Eguchi Noriko, Suzuki Nobuyuki, Takahashi Fumiya, Mukai Osamu, Shida Mirai (guest star), Ishida Hikari (guest star), Aramaki Yoshihiko (guest star), Wada Masanari (guest star)
Synopsis: Despite graduating from a third-rate university with even worse grades, Tanaka Maririn (Imada Mio) is lucky enough to be a new employee at a major IT company. However, she gets assigned to its equipment management division where Minegishi Yuki (Eguchi Noriko) works. Minegishi’s past is a mystery but she notices Maririn’s potential. Her words asking Maririn if she does not want to advance in her career, completely changes Maririn’s life at the company. There is a reason why Minegishi is guiding her. While the incapable but upbeat Maririn runs into workplace problems that employees in each division face, she moves up from the lowest rung with her innate cheerfulness and Minegishi’s rather shrewd advice. Maririn is working hard as she wants to get close to a senior colleague Ono Tadashi (Suzuki Nobuyuki) whom she fell in love with at first sight but whose name she does not even know.
I love all these dramas lately with young women in love with Mukai Osamu (and him never being the final love interest), I easily relate to them.
Anyway it looks fun and has a nice cast!
(but I feel bad for her for that ugly hair)
Invisible
Preview
Date: From 10.00 p.m., Fridays, 15 April 2022
Station: TBS
Scriptwriter: Izumi Yoshihiro (Alibi Kuzushi Uketamawarimasu, Shudan Sasen!, Todome no Kiss)
Cast: Takahashi Issei, Shibasaki Kou, Arioka Daiki, Hotta Akane, Tani Kyosuke, Itagaki Rihito, Ono Ito, Sakou Yoshi, Nishimura Motoki, Yuki Moe, Tanaka Makoto, Murai Ryota, Harada Taizo, Kiritani Kenta
Synopsis: Detective Shimura Takafumi (Takahashi Issei) belongs to the Special Investigation Unit which investigates unsolved cases that happen within the Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department’s jurisdiction. He used to be in charge of investigating cases on the First Investigation Division’s front line. However, his zeal for arresting criminals was particularly strong among the detectives of the division and the extremes he would go to in investigations led to his demotion. He is considered dangerous by the people around him in certain situations and his sense of justice is close to an obsessiveness. Shimura ends up having to work with Kiriko (Shibasaki Kou), a crime coordinator who is the representative of “evil” so to speak. Called “Invisible” because she is known only to a group of people within the police organisation and no one has seen her real image, Kiriko dominates the underworld and brokers deals for violent criminals. One day, she suddenly offers to help the police arrest criminals. Her only condition is that she wants to work with Shimura. She is privy to information on criminals that the police has yet to grasp and seems to hold the key to solving a lot of the unsolved cases that Shimura is pursuing. What is her motive for getting close to him?
I mean.
Look at those two.
From the preview, the drama seems pretty cool too but. Look at them.
Ore no Kawaii wa Mousugu Shouhi Kigen!?
Preview
Date: From 11.30 p.m., Saturdays, 16 April 2022
Station: TV Asahi
Scriptwriter: Tanabe Shigenori (Oh! My Boss!, In Hand, Tokusatsu Gagaga)
Cast: Yamada Ryosuke, Yoshine Kyoko, Ohashi Kazuya, Nishida Naomi, Furuta Arata
Synopsis: 29-year-old Maruya Kosuke (Yamada Ryosuke) works for a beer company’s sales department. Since he was a child, he has been popular with people due to his charming features and friendly personality. With his cuteness as his greatest weapon, he is at the top of his game at work and has never had a problem having a girlfriend. Just before he turns 30, Kosuke is confronted with something shocking. That is, his cuteness has an expiry date. Before this, everything used to go well once he unleashed his killer smile. But he starts facing difficulties in both work and romance, and his life goes downhill. Meanwhile, 26-year-old Sanada Izumi (Yoshine Kyoko) has considered herself to be a secondary character in life as a result of a childhood experience. She works for the same beer company in a research job at the product development department which does not require much involvement with people. However, she gets transferred to the sales department of all places and ends up being paired with Kosuke. Kosuke’s killer smile has no effect on Izumi who has stayed away from romance with the stubborn thought that she will never be chosen by someone. She easily ignores him but...
Many years ago I used to really dislike Yamada, for absolutely no reason, but he's actually a pretty good actor and a nice dude. It's a random info, I know.
Anyway, I see a lot of potential, him used to have his way with people and her not giving a fuck.
Motokare no Yuigonjou
Preview
Date: From 9.00 p.m., Mondays, 11 April 2022
Station: Fuji TV
Scriptwriter: Sugihara Noriaki (Mamagoto, Mega Bank Saishuu Kessen)
Cast: Ayase Haruka, Oizumi Yo, Ikuta Toma, Sekimizu Nagisa, Manda Hisako, Kaname Jun, Fueki Yuko, Satoi Kenta, Sasano Takashi, Nomaguchi Toru, Mori Kanna
Synopsis: Beautiful, stylish Kenmochi Reiko (Ayase Haruka) works for one of the country’s top law firms. Although everyone regards her as a very outstanding lawyer, she has made enemies for stopping at nothing to win. She merely boasts that she is honest about her desire for money. One day, her bonus gets cut after a client accuses her of extortion. Feeling indignant about the way she has been treated, Reiko blusters that she is going to quit and takes a brief leave of absence. With time to spare, she sends emails at random to acquaintances. The only person who replies is an ex-boyfriend Morikawa Eiji (Ikuta Toma) whom she had only dated for six months when they were in university. But the email response contains shocking news of his death. The sender is a mysterious man called Shinoda Keitaro (Oizumi Yo). What is even more surprising is Eiji’s strange will that bequeaths his huge fortune to the person who killed him. However, it is the inheritance and not the fact that he died that sways Reiko. She comes up with a plan to make Shinoda the “murderer” and conspires to split the fortune equally with him but...
I'm not THAT excited about this one, but I can recognize it will be good and I will most probably like it!
Koi Nante, Honki de Yatte Dousuru no?
Preview
Date: From 10.00 p.m., Mondays, 18 April 2022
Station: Fuji TV
Scriptwriter: Asano Taeko (Digital Tattoo, Tasogare Ryuuseigun, Gomen Ai Shiteru)
Cast: Hirose Alice, Matsumura Hokuto, Nishino Nanase, Iitoyo Marie, Okayama Amane, Ono Karin, Ando Nico, Osada Seiya, Makino Rika, Miura Ryota, Tozuka Junki, Mikata Ryosuke, Akira 100%, Furukawa Yuta, Kashii Yu, Fujiki Naohito
Synopsis: Sakurazawa Jun (Hirose Alice), the young chief designer of a company that manufactures Western tableware, has a fulfilling life in Tokyo and has no wish for it to be disrupted. At 27, she has no experience in romance or men and insists that she does not want to waste her feelings and time on something as uncertain as love. There is actually a reason why she is adamant about it. Nagamine Shuma (Matsumura Hokuto), an apprentice chef and waiter at a French bistro, is strikingly handsome and also has a gentle smile and way with words that captures female hearts. His philosophy regarding love is to live in the moment and he is not serious about relationships. However, he seems to be concealing the emptiness inside him. An encounter between Jun and Shuma, who both think that they do not need true love, starts to bring about changes in each of them when he takes an interest in her for some reason... in this story of six men and women who find the greatest love of their lives.
I mean, from the preview it seems a really spicy thing but also really awkward so I don't know??? I want to try it.
I don't know if they count as spring dramas since they've already started in the beginning of March, but I'm watching Shizuka-chan to Papa and it's really sweet ;_; and I'm debating whether to start Hiru, but only because Sakaguchi Kentaro looks really sexy in the poster and because Akaso Eiji best boy.