Asian Drama

After her divorce, Kariya Mako returned to work as a contract editor for an economics magazine. There, she is ordered to be in charge of a serialization based on the theme of women in poverty. She interviews people living in various difficult situations, and it gradually makes her realize that this is a widespread problem that she herself is not entirely impervious to, as she is also someone dealing with employment instability while struggling to raise her children.

(Source: Drama Otaku)

~~ Adapted from the book "Tokyo Hinkon Joshi. Kanojotachi wa Naze Tsumazuita no ka" (東京貧困女子。彼女たちはなぜ躓いたのか) by Nakamura Atsuhiko (中村淳彦).

Episodes: 6

The Tenpo period near the end of the Edo period. Katsuie's wife, Onobu, struggles to make ends meet, but never ceases to smile innocently. Her husband is Katsu Kokichi. His arms are very strong and she can't say she doesn't like it when asked. Her son, Rintaro, is clever, intelligent, aspiring to study Dutch studies, and eventually saves the people of Edo as "Katsu Kaishu."

The era is the reform of Tenpo. In addition to the noisy world, every time Kokichi brings in trouble, he is confident. Furthermore, Rintaro falls in love with Fukagawa geisha! Katsuya continues to make a fuss.

The Tenpo period near the end of the Edo period. Katsuie's wife, Onobu, struggles to make ends meet, but never ceases to smile innocently. Her husband is Katsu Kokichi. His arms are very strong and she can't say she doesn't like it when asked. Her son, Rintaro, is clever, intelligent, aspiring to study Dutch studies, and eventually saves the people of Edo as "Katsu Kaishu."

The era is the reform of Tenpo. In addition to the noisy world, every time Kokichi brings in trouble, he is confident. Furthermore, Rintaro falls in love with Fukagawa geisha! Katsuya continues to make a fuss.

A story of youths in their 20's. I meets her at a boring, drinking meeting and falls in love with her.

Adapted from the novel "The End of the Pale Hour" (明け方の若者たち) by Katsuse Masahiko (カツセマサヒコ).

N/A

Single 38 year old editor and food writer Kikuchi Izumi works for a small publishing company. She hasn't heard from her partner of 10 years in the last 5 months after lending him 2 million yen. After she suddenly receives a call on her phone, she is yelled at by an older woman. The older woman even enters the same cab with her and they are both heading to the same location. By chance, Izumi learns that the older woman is Nakajima Haruko, the owner of a very popular Tokyo beauty clinic.

Adapted from a novel of the same name.

Single 38 year old editor and food writer Kikuchi Izumi works for a small publishing company. She hasn't heard from her partner of 10 years in the last 5 months after lending him 2 million yen. After she suddenly receives a call on her phone, she is yelled at by an older woman. The older woman even enters the same cab with her and they are both heading to the same location. By chance, Izumi learns that the older woman is Nakajima Haruko, the owner of a very popular Tokyo beauty clinic.

Adapted from a novel of the same name.

Seino, a manga artist, who lives in Tokyo realises belatedly one day that there are many towns which he has never known when he looks at the map. He goes on a journey to explore these places since he doesn't want to die without knowing about them.

Adapted from a manga of the same name.

Hanako Haibara was born and raised in the city of Tokyo. After she gets dumped by her boyfriend, while in her late 20's, she goes on blind dates to find a man to marry.

Miki Tokioka was born in a province. She studied very hard and entered a prestigious university in Tokyo. She experienced difficult financial times, but she now works at an IT company.

Due to a man, Hanako Haibara and Miki Tokioka meet each other.

Adapted from the novel "Ano Ko wa Kizoku" by Mariko Yamauchi.

It follows Kanda and Fukumaru as they experience the joys of living together and learning about each other.

Adapted from a manga of the same name by Umi Sakurai.

Kimichika Kazama is an instructor at the police academy. He teaches a new class of students having conflicts and holding secrets.

Kazama Kimichika is an instructor at a police academy. He is keenly observant and watches over his students. He is calm as an instructor and has charisma, but strict. Students with various backgrounds attend the police academy with their own reasons of becoming police officers. They feel pressure having to follow the strict rules and have anxiety about getting kicked out of the academy. How many students will graduate among the 90 students? What is the real purpose of Kimichika Kazama giving hardship to the students?

Tachibana Haruka is a rookie nurse with a bright personality. Mihara Natsumi is 34-year-old veteran nurse. She is struggling at work and with her love life. While Tachibana Haruka and Mihara Natsumi work as nurses at a place that deals with life and death, they laugh and cry. The two women grow as persons in the process.

Hikari Ichinose failed at work and in love. She is desperate but finally lands a new job. Her employer is a production company which currently creates a variety show. Hikari Ichinose works with Director Chiba at the variety show. He has a foul mouth but is passionate about his work. Hikari Ichinose as an AD (assistant director), has difficult times at her job. One day, she sees Oji-san who introduces himself as a fairy. Nobody can see or hear Oji-san except for Hikari Ichinose. Since then, Oji-san follows her.

(Source: AsianWiki)

Episodes: 8

Duration: 48 min.

Aired On: Friday

Natsuko Miyamoto (48), a full-time housewife and mother of two (daughter Hana, 20, and son Kotaro, 17), is shocked when her husband Akira (54) announces that he will quit his job to explore his long-term interests in agriculture. In turn, Natsuko decides to seek employment of her own, but faces rejection due to inexperience and age. After a confusing mishap, she finds new hope for her life skills in an unexpected place -- a poorly managed supermarket.

Adapted from the book Sengyou Shufu ga Shuushoku Suru made ni Yatteoku beki Yatsu no Koto by Cynthia Usui

Mizuno Gota, an aspiring musician, finds himself in a quandary when the convenience store where he works part-time suddenly closes down. One day, he catches sight of a newly-opened hamburger shop called Yankee Burger. When Mizuno enters, he is asked by the owner Ozeki Katsuya for feedback on the taste. He condescendingly tells Ozeki that the burger lacks punch, and the next thing he knows, he is offered a full-time job at the shop. Thinking that he can put his mother at ease and at the same time be able to drive a Ferrari some day if he stops living as a part-time worker and joins the hamburger shop, Mizuno decides to take the company entrance exam.

Dojima Otaro works as a popular host. Because of a past incident, he believes that love makes people unhappy. He now only pursues money and power.

A mysterious woman appears in front of Dojima Otaro. The mysterious woman has a pale face with red lips. She kisses him and he dies, but the next moment he regains consciousness. He realizes he is now 7 days in the past. The mysterious woman alsofollows him. Due to her kiss, Dojima Otaro dies and goes back to the past over and over again.

What would happen if Otaro wouldn't be able to go back in time with a kiss and be revived?

A real world like parallel timeline about what happens after Otaro's deaths.

Snack bar owner and her regular patron tell 11 different stories about the worst day in the lives of people in their neighborhood of Shimokitazawa, Tokyo. One of those instances involve a Tokyo politician being kidnapped during an S&M session. ~~ 11 screenwriters contribute 11 different stories with different casts under the theme of “The worst day of their life.”

Kahoko Nemoto is a naive 21-year-old university student. She relies on her mother, Izumi (Hitomi Kuroki), for everything in her life. Her mother wakes her up everyday, picks up her clothes, while Kahoko Nemoto has never done housework or driven a car. One day, Kahoko Nemoto meets a young man who grew up in a completely opposite environment.

Surgeon Daimon Michiko is sent to Totei University Hospital this time. Although it reigns as the top university hospital in the country, the hospital’s reputation has suffered greatly from various cover-ups, medical malpractice and fighting factions. Furthermore, the person who has snatched the seat of the new hospital director with the plan of reestablishing the hospital’s brand and gaining great power, is none other than the strategist Hiruma Shigekatsu, who has a longstanding grudge against Michiko. At Totei University Hospital, the medical departments have weakened as the administrative department increases control. Only doctors who have powerful brands are kept to run the hospital, which has transformed into a mere business organisation. What will Michiko stand up against in a power game rife in the healthcare setting?

25-year-old Moriyama Mikuri graduated but had no job offers. She became a temporary employee but was even laid off. So while she is taking a break right now, Mikuri feels unwanted and displaced. She starts work as a housekeeper for bachelor Tsuzaki Hiramasa by chance. One day, he proposes a contract marriage to her. The two of them get married in secret, but will their married life work out?

Mikuri Moriyama (Yui Aragaki) is 25 years old. She doesn't have a boyfriend and doesn't have a job even though she holds a graduate degree. Everyday, Mikuri Moriyama has a feeling that she is not needed. Her father, unable to see her suffering anymore, arranges for her to work as a housekeeper. Her employer is 36 year old Hiramasa Tsuzaki. He is single and works for a company. A series of events leads them to marry as a working condition.

The eldest daughter of the Kohashis, Tsuneko, was 11 years old when her father Takezo died of tuberculosis. Taking her father’s teachings about the importance of ordinary life to heart, she became ‘Toto One-chan’, a paternal figure to her mother Kimiko and two younger sisters Mariko and Yoshiko. She struggles to sustain the family as the head of the household. Right after the war, she launches a lifestyle magazine created for the sake of females together with Mariko and Yoshiko in a devastated Tokyo. It is called ‘Your Life’ and was full of practical articles for readers. With the help of the genius editor Hanayama Isaji, the magazine grew to become essential to females living in the period of high economic growth.

The eldest daughter of the Kohashis, Tsuneko, was 11 years old when her father Takezo died of tuberculosis. Taking her father’s teachings about the importance of ordinary life to heart, she became ‘Toto One-chan’, a paternal figure to her mother Kimiko and two younger sisters Mariko and Yoshiko. She struggles to sustain the family as the head of the household. Right after the war, she launches a lifestyle magazine created for the sake of females together with Mariko and Yoshiko in a devastated Tokyo. It is called ‘Your Life’ and was full of practical articles for readers. With the help of the genius editor Hanayama Isaji, the magazine grew to become essential to females living in the period of high economic growth.

Toto Neechan (とと姉ちゃん?) is an upcoming Japanese television drama series and the 94th asadora on NHK. It will premiere on April 4, 2016 and will end on October 1, 2016. The theme song is "Hanataba wo Kimi ni", by Utada Hikaru.

Criminologist Himura Hideo gets so much pleasure out of being in crime scenes that he's even confessed to having wanted to kill someone. Constantly seeking out the ultimate crime, he is indeed a man with quite a few issues. Mystery writer Arisugawa Arisu, on the other hand, keeps a close eye on Himura's investigations and writes about them but at times completely misses the point. Not at all the type of guy you'd call dependable, Arisugawa nonetheless professes to be the protector of the clumsy Himura. Although these two men appear like they have no business being in crime scenes, they mitigate each other's shortcomings and use their compelling logic to unravel the elaborately woven tricks left behind by the criminals. It's almost as if Himura and Arisugawa use incredible magical powers to tease out unimaginable truths!

Criminologist Himura Hideo seeks the pleasure of murder scenes and announces “I’ve ever wanted to kill a person”. He appears to be a rather dangerous guy who pursues the ultimate crime. His buddy is the somewhat unreliable mystery novel writer Arisugawa Arisu who observes his investigations. His inferences keep missing the mark at times, but he regards himself as Himura’s protector. An unlikely pair for investigation scenes, the two of them make up for each other’s deficiencies as they figure out the complicated and mysterious “tricks” left behind by criminals, with exquisite logic.

Hana (Kobayashi Satomi), who had been living in Tokyo, starts life in the countryside with her friend Toki (Ichikawa Mikako) and Toki’s daughter Toshi (Sasaki Haruka), an elementary school student. It is a life that they are unaccustomed to. Hana is a writer and goes to Tokyo occasionally for work, but realises anew the merits of the life she has just begun in the countryside. She also brings her troubled nephew Akira (Ito Seiya) who has just graduated from junior high school. The two women and two children are helped in their new makeshift family life by the supportive couple Gen (Mitsuishi Ken) and Shiori (Takahashi Hitomi), who live nearby and give advice in various ways such as how to tend the fields and raise livestock. Little by little, they get used to the daily work. Toki’s natural ability to make things also becomes essential to their lives. In the middle of this, a new family member, Tom the cat, arrives. Kept to get rid of rats, the mischievous black and white feline twists the humans around a little and breathes new life into their lives.

The ST team at the Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department consists of eccentric members. Akagi works as an analyst on the ST team. He won't appear in front of others, but his colleagues trust him as a leader. Yurine is tasked to manage the ST team. He experiences difficulties in dealing with the team. Meanwhile, the ST team come into conflict with other detectives at the police department over an indiscriminate gun firing case and a grotesque murder case. This forces Akagi to appear in front others. Akagi and Yurine work together to solve the case.

Maki’s mother commits assault and Maki is temporarily placed in the children’s orphanage, Kogamo no Ie. Post is a young girl who reigns as the leader at Kogamo no Ie. While she has lost her parents, she is remarkably strong, resilient and positive. There is also Piami and Bonbi who respect Post. These girls, who each have different backgrounds, do not appear sad and seem quite indifferent. When asked for the reason for the queer nicknames they call each other, Post replies that they have cast away everything they received from their parents including their pasts as well as their names. Even if they constantly think about their parents, there will be no happiness. She advises Maki to leave the past behind. Bravado is the only weapon to protect themselves in this harsh, cold world. However, Maki believes that her mother will come to get her.

The story revolves around the 38-year-old Usa Shijimi (Watanabe), who is a high school classical literature teacher. Her students are mean to her, but they don’t realize that she has another identity. Outside school, she lies about her age to be active as the super popular 17-year-old idol Watanabe Mayu, whom the students adore.

The murder of Emili, a young girl, leaves the inhabitants of a small Japanese village in shock. The raped body of Emily is found by the four classmates with whom she was playing. The murder is never solved. Emili's mother Asako is torn by grief and puts a curse on the four girls when they claim that they don't remember the killer's face. Each of the girls, in their own way, will do their penance for their silence. Deeply struck by the words of Asako and burdened with her curse, the four girls are forced into adulthood which eventually triggers a tragic chain of events.

Adapted from the novel by Kanae Minato.

Yukari Hayasaka is a high school student who has become tired of her life of constant schooling. She then comes across a group of student fashion designers in need of a model for their "Paradise Kiss" clothing label. Yukari knows nothing about the fashion world and is taken back by the group's eccentric ways, but she soon comes to admire their free thinking ways and ability to pursue their dreams with a one track mind.

A former psychologist, who has the ability to recognizes lies through behaviour and mimic, now works as a detective. He uses his ability for solving difficult cases.

Fujiwara stars as a man who was in an accident on a snowy mountain 46 years ago. His frozen body is discovered in the present day, and despite being actually 71 years old, he has the appearance and personality of a 25-year-old. He also learns that at his old home in Oshiage, Tokyo, his son is now 52 years old and is raising two children of his own – a 25-year-old son and a 20-year-old daughter.

Episodes: 8

Duration: 22 min.

Ratings: 7.2

Aired On: Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday

Robot maker, Kronos Heaven, finally develops "Night Tenjo", the perfect male humanoid programmed to be devoted and completely loyal to his lover. The company chooses temp worker Izawa Riko to take part in a 5-day free trial. At first, Riko only sees Night as a household appliance. But when she finds out how deep Night's devotion to herself is, Riko finds herself falling in love with him. Joining the love triangle is Asamoto Soshi, a distinguished young executive at her company who has feelings for her.

Filming began on 2008-April and finished 2008-June.

The story concerns a boy called Shuji, growing up in a rural area of Japan where the community is divided into "Shore" and "Offshore" - the latter so-named because it is built on reclaimed land. He meets a few main...

This is a love comedy that takes you behind the scenes of the latest bridal businesses, as well as the human drama of engaged couples, seen through the wedding planners' eyes, as they help to put on weddings.

Toru Oomori works in the accounting department of a medium-sized firm. Unable to escape restructuring by his company, he gets sent to work at an affiliated company, "Sweet Bridal," as its president. Toru realizes his days as a salaried worker are numbered. That's why he's determined to increase sales, and regain lost ground. But there's just one major problem though... An incident that happened one year ago makes work here, very miserable.

Someone has been stealing money within the company and the fingers are pointing to seven beautiful secretaries. Each who look so pure (well some of them) but at the same time, each can have a motivation for stealing the money. The company hires Ayumu and Go to find out who is stealing the money. The question is can they do so without getting involved with the women?