Mayu Yokota："Ryusoulger" star Hayate Ichinose plays the heroine in the drama "Hustlin' Boy" starring Shotaro Mamiya; she plays the "mysterious young man" who disrupts the underworld of Ikebukuro (full comment)

It has been revealed that actress Yokota Mayu will play the heroine in the serial drama W-30 "Hustlin' Boy," starring Mamiya Shotaro and scheduled to be broadcast and streamed on WOWOW from November 1st. Yokota will play Satonaka Yukako, a university classmate who the protagonist Kubota Tamotsu (Mamiya) has a crush on. It was also announced that Ichinose Hayate will play Utsuro, a mysterious young man who disrupts the balance of Ikebukuro's underworld.

"Hustlin' Boy" is a new type of crime suspense that sometimes humorously and sometimes full of tension depicts Tamotsu, a dull university student who enters the Ikebukuro underworld as a "tool dealer" who deals in illegal tools, as he survives among tricky villains such as yakuza, half-criminals, and the Chinese mafia. The original work is a manga of the same name that was serialized in "Weekly Big Comic Spirits" (Shogakukan) in 2018 by writers and authors Shinya Kusaka and Yuki Honda.

　A "tool shop" is a professional in the underworld whose source of income is arranging and selling "illegal tools" such as tobashi (cell phones and SIM cards contracted under someone else's or fictitious names), boards (bank accounts under someone else's name), and forged documents, which are mainly used for fraud and other purposes, to those who live in the underworld.

　Tamotsu, played by Mamiya, is a dull university student who is burdened with "debt" in the form of a scholarship and spends his days working part-time jobs. He gets scammed in an attempt to get rich quickly and faces the biggest crisis of his life. At that time, he meets a "tool shop" who saves him from his predicament, and he steps into the underworld of Ikebukuro.

　Yukako, played by Yokota, is a carefree and innocent girl with many friends, both male and female, and is like a madonna of the university. She is also the one whom Tamotsu, who is a rare character at school because he spends all his time working part-time jobs, has a secret crush on. At first glance, she is a rich young lady with no connection to the underworld, but for some reason she is interested in Taiga, a semi-criminal group with which Tamotsu does business as a tool dealer.

Ichinose made her debut as Ryusoul Red/Kou in "Kishiryu Sentai Ryusoulger" (2019). In this work, she plays Utsuro, who suddenly appears in the underworld of Ikebukuro with a certain person as her partner. Until then, the underworld of Ikebukuro had been dominated by three major forces: Jinbokai, its opposing force Gozugumi, and Taiga, a semi-criminal group that has risen to power through special fraud, but Utsuro's appearance causes dark clouds to gather over the underworld. He enjoys toying with yakuza, gangsters, Chinese mafia, and other bad guys like an innocent boy, and upsetting the balance of the underworld. He eventually becomes Tamotsu's greatest enemy.

The serial drama W-30 "Hustlin' Boy" will be broadcast and streamed on WOWOW Prime, WOWOW4K, and WOWOW On Demand from 11:00 pm on November 1st. There are 8 episodes in total. The first episode will be broadcast for free.

The full comments from Yokota and Ichinose are below.

◇Comment from Yokota Mayu

--How did you feel when you received the offer for this work, and what were your thoughts after reading the script and the original work?

It was my first time to be asked to work on a story like this, so I was happy, and since there are almost no female characters, like the only red character, I was very excited to encounter a new sensation. I remember being drawn into the world of Hustle Boy when I read the original work and the script. I found it really interesting, and I was engrossed in the story of a world I had never known before, and I was surprised to see that there was a job like that. I could feel the bonds between people, and it was a work that made me think that what is good for me can be bad for someone else.

　--How did you perceive the heroine Yukako as a person when you played her? Please tell us what you kept in mind when playing her, and if there were any difficulties.

　It's a bit misleading to say she's normal, but I got the impression that she's a kind, strong-willed girl who has her own thoughts. She's also proactive, and even though she gets hurt when she finds out things, I think her good point is that she's able to act without getting discouraged. I hope I was able to express well the sad emotions of Yukako, who has a complicated past, when she finds out Tamotsu's true nature.

　--Please tell us your impression of Mamiya-san, with whom you shared many scenes, and any memorable shooting episodes from the set.

　Mamiya-san's good personality made the set peaceful and harmonious. She treats everyone kindly, so I think it's thanks to Mamiya-san that the set was a good one. In the final scenes of the story, my hands and legs were tied for a long time during filming, so I couldn't drink water or deal with itches on my own. I had to ask someone to help me with everything, so I'm sorry (laughs).

--Please give a message to the viewers.

In addition to the original work, the drama's original background and feelings of each character are depicted in detail, so I think you'll enjoy it even more. Also, we took a lot of time to create the costumes and tattoos, so I think you'll enjoy the world view, so I hope you'll watch until the end.

◇Comment from Ichinose Hayate

--Please tell us how you felt when you received the offer to appear in this work, and what you thought after reading the script and the original work.

I was drawn into the original work, which depicts the underworld in detail from a new perspective as a "tool shop," and I was thrilled with a mixture of joy and excitement at being able to live in that world as "Utsuro." Also, in the script, the character Utsuro was portrayed in more detail and with more charm, so I'm even more excited.

--How did you perceive the character Utsuro, an important character in this film, and how did you play him? Please tell us what you kept in mind when acting, and if there were any difficulties.

Utsuro is a character who is cold-hearted like no other human being, but at the same time, I think he is a very human character in the sense that his fundamental human desires are the driving force behind him. In playing him, I tried to portray him as a person who lives in the underworld, where he would be caught off guard if others saw his weakness, and who wears a mask that would deceive even himself.

--I believe this is your first time acting with Mamiya-san. What were your impressions of him? Also, please tell us if there are any stories from the filming on set.

There weren't many scenes where you acted directly with Mamiya-san, but when I acted with him, I was very impressed by how he was able to naturally become Utsuro and bring out the best in the other person. Thanks to that, I was able to confidently play the character of Utsuro, and I am truly grateful.

--Please give a message to the viewers.

This work is a little different from previous works that depict the underworld, and through the eyes of college student Tamotsu, you can feel that the underworld exists close to home. I hope you will enjoy it by applying the realistic and thrilling experiences that come from being so close to home to yourself.