The second episode of the January Sunday Theatre drama " Mikami Sensei " (TBS, Sunday 9pm), starring actor Tori Matsuzaka , aired on January 26th. The completely original school drama is produced by Iida Kazutaka, who has been in charge of popular Sunday Theatre dramas such as "Anti-Hero" (2024) and "VIVANT" (2023). In an interview, Iida spoke about the actor who will play the murderer, which was revealed in the second episode, as well as hints at future developments. (There are spoilers for the second episode in the text.)
◇ The murderer who was revealed at the end of the film was chosen because of his "transparency"
" Mikami Sensei" tells the story of Migami Takashi (Matsuzaka), a Ministry of Education bureaucrat who wants to change education in Japan, who is ordered to transfer to a private high school called Rintoku Gakuin. In reality, he is demoted, but Migami takes to the podium himself and leads 18-year-old high school students living in the Reiwa era while standing up to authority... This is a "great reversal story of education revival." It is a completely original work, and Shimori Roba, who will be teaming up with Matsuzaka for the first time since the movie "The Journalist" (2019), is in charge of the script for the first time in a prime-time drama series.
At the beginning of the first episode, a candidate was stabbed to death at the national civil service examination venue. In the second episode, a scene was inserted in which the person believed to be the culprit was in detention, and at the end, when Mikami went to visit him, he found Mayama Yuzuru (Takako Tokiwa), the daughter of Saejima Yuko (Tokiwa Takako), who was effectively fired from Rintoku Gakuen after her affair with a teacher was discovered.
Regarding the reason for casting Hotta, Iida explained, "When we worked together on 'Anti-Hero,' I felt that Hotta has a transparency, or rather, a sense that you can see into his heart, which I thought would be very important in playing the character of Mayama Yuzuru. When he played Murasakinomiya in 'Anti-Hero,' he was someone who acted so deeply that you could hear his heartbeat. Going forward, Mayama Yuzuru's tragic circumstances will be revealed one after the other, and I felt it would be better if that didn't become 'acting.'"
Yumizuru revealed, "When we first started planning the project, we had a man in mind," and continued, "We deliberately avoided saying 'daughter' so that it would be unclear whether it was male or female, and always said 'child.' I felt that a male would be quite typical, and also, I really wanted Hotta to play the role, so we changed the setting from male to female."
When he was offered the role, he said, "I said, 'It's going to be tough this time too' (laughs). Yumizuru is a role that is the complete opposite of the one he played in (the previous season's) 'Little Women' (Nippon TV), and I think it's a role that's not too far from being an 'anti-hero'. It may sound arrogant, but I conveyed my feelings that I think it would be meaningful for him as an actor to play Yumizuru now."
Although Yumizuru does not appear in many scenes, he said, "This character has more of a story than any of the students. That's why we want to challenge ourselves to express the difficulty within the limited time frame, so I told Hotta-san, please help us out."
Regarding the murder scene at the beginning of episode 1, he revealed, "As expected, he said, 'it's very difficult.' The full story of Yumizuru's murder scene can be seen in episode 3, and it is crafted to include his expression when he stabs the victim, why he was overcome with such emotion, and what went through his mind to get to that point, so he said, 'It's very difficult, but I'll do my best.'"
◇Who will play the mysterious young man who stares at the headlines about murder cases with a serious expression?
Also, in the second episode, Kyohei Takahashi of the popular group "Naniwa Danshi" appeared as a mysterious young man who picked up a weekly magazine he had dropped in the downtown area and looked gravely at the headline about a murder case.
Iida said of his impression of Takahashi, "I felt he was a very earnest young man. He was very serious about his acting, and my first impression was that he was a good young man." He was chosen because he was suited to the character's atmosphere, but the nature of the role has not been revealed. He may be a person somehow involved in the murder case.
◇What will happen after episode 3?
I was surprised at how quickly the culprit was revealed in just the second episode, but what will happen next?
Iida said the basic premise of the drama is that "this drama is not about finding the culprit." He continued, "The incident is merely the catalyst, and both the killer and the killed have their own stories. Behind Yumizuru's statement, 'I killed someone I didn't like,' there are various factors, such as his family environment, which all lead to the idea that 'Personal is political.' The murder is depicted as one of those factors. The newspaper article written by Kanzaki (Daiken Okudaira) is the central focus, and the story unfolds like a butterfly effect, with various things actually connecting together. I think viewers will feel that this is not something that happens to other people."
Regarding future plans, he revealed, "I think the story will revolve around Kanzaki, telling the story of the parent-child relationship between Saejima (Tokiwa) and Yumizuru, and how Kanzaki approaches Yumizuru. In the first episode, Mikami tells Kanzaki, 'That (murder) incident, my wrongdoing, this school, and the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology may be connected,' and as various things gradually connect, it becomes clear that 'so that's how they're all intertwined.'"
Iida praised Okudaira for being "an actor who can express the human conflict delicately through the trembling of his facial muscles." How will the students of Class 3-2 of Rintoku Academy grow in the future? How will Mikami Sensei and the Ministry of Education get involved? The third episode and beyond will be even more exciting to watch.
