Himawari is an unsuccessful 39-year-old enka singer who has bad luck with men and money. Born into an Osaka takoyaki shop, the young Himawari was inspired by her father's words to immerse herself in enka. At the age of 13 her father disappears and her mother, bitter over the husband that left her, remarries--but Himawari has trouble adjusting to a new father and brother. With her father's words in her head--"You're the #1 singer in all of Japan!"--Himawari immediately heads to Tokyo after high school and makes her debut as an enka singer.

"I thought I might be using a lifetime's happiness in a moment. I was that happy and she was that beautiful." A young boy stands on the red earth of Australia under its blue sky. It is 17-year-old Sakutaro Matsumoto. His time with the girl comes back to him. The colored sand runs through his hands and a tear appears on his cheek. He wakes up. It's 2004 and he is 34 years old and in Japan. He thinks "I have been in a world without her for 17 years." Returning home to see his old high school for the last time before it is demolished, Saku confronts anew the loss of the love of his life, Aki, to leukemia 17 years ago. Now a medical researcher at graduate school, he has been living as if half of him died with her since then. Based on the bestselling novel that sold over 3 million copies, the past and present come together in this love story that is both pure and sad.

During the early years of liang, the Emperor ascends to Heaven, and Ye Xingyun was tasked to take over the Tian Yuan Deity Origin. As the last prince of Da Luo Kingdom, he decides to challenge the Qi Kingdom's new reign, and sets on a journey to avenge his country. In order to avoid direct confrontation, he sneaks into the Qing Yu family, and assumes the identity of the Prince Qi's estranged brother. In the midst of his journey, he meets the quirky and adorable Ye Yanran, and talented lady Ye Xueyun.

Setsuko Koda (Saki Aibu) is married to Kiichiro who runs a hotel. There is a large age difference between them. Her hobby is to write poems. She published her own poem collection "Garasu no Ashi" upon her husband's suggestion. One afternoon, Setsuko Koda is lying in bed with Masahiro Sawaki. They are having an affair. The police then contacts her and informs her that her husband was in a car accident. Setsuko Koda goes to the hospital. The doctor there informs Setsuko Koda that Kiichiro has severe brain damage and he won't live much longer. At this time, Setsuko Koda’s mother, Ritsuko Fujishima, arrives at the hospital. In the past, her mother was involved in a romantic relationship with Kiichiro. Her mother was also abusive to Setsuko Koda when she was a child. Due to this, Setsuko Koda hates her mother. When she sees her mother at the hospital, Setsuko Koda curses at her.

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Tokiwa Takako stars as Tamura Nozumi, with a cheerful outlook in life, always choosing to believe in everyone. Fukatsu Eri stars as Sakaeda Chiharu, an amanuensis (daisho) but goes way beyond her jobscope in carrying out her work. The duo...

Asahiyama Zoo in Hokkaido is the northernmost zoo in Japan. It was once in danger of being shut down but overcame this crisis. The leader of the zookeepers, Sakauchi Zen (Yamaguchi Tomomitsu), has become the zoo’s director. He works hard towards the construction of a new giraffe enclosure. On the other hand, the zookeepers Izumi Sawako (Toda Erika) and Nakagawa Shinichi (Koide Keisuke) privately have worries while being swamped with their job of raising animals. Sawako, who is in charge of the popular red pandas, sees signs of a pregnancy, but cannot feel genuinely happy. Having been present at the deaths of animals countless times in the past, she has developed a fear of witnessing the life and death of animals. Nakagawa, who has been appointed the leader of the breeding staff, even has strong ideas about the current state of the zoo. A part of him cannot agree with Sakauchi on the construction of the giraffe enclosure too. Veteran zookeeper, Makihara Yuichiro (Ito Shiro), who has known the zoo since the time it opened, cannot make up his mind about his own retirement. To compound matters, a flamingo escapes from the zoo. Sakauchi sets a trap which makes use of the flamingo’s behaviour, but the flamingo is killed by a wild fox. Nakagawa opposes Sakauchi’s decision which sacrificed an animal. Confidence in the zoo also plummets. Meanwhile, Okamura Tetsu (Joshima Shigeru), who has been an elementary school janitor for many years, comes as a zookeeper in a personnel reshuffle. Poor with both people and animals, Okamura is given the task to rear the zoo’s oldest animal, the hippopotamus, by Sakauchi. Okamura is uncomfortable with a job which does not have a manual. However, he takes Makihara’s advice and gradually becomes concerned about the hippopotamus more than anyone else. The new enclosure is completed. A young hippopotamus also arrives. These appear to be positive signs for the zoo. Then one day, a terrible sight unfolds before Okamura