Actor Alice Hirose will star in the drama series "The Reluctant Preacher" (Nippon TV, Saturday 9pm) which will begin on April 12th. The drama is a school entertainment with a "sermon" theme, with an original script by Okura, who has also worked on "Nursing Aide At Your Side" and "Yips". This will be Hirose's first lead role in a drama on the station, and her first role as a teacher, as Urumi Shizuka, the homeroom teacher of Class 10, Year 2, at the private Meishin Gakuen.
Shota Watanabe, the homeroom teacher of Class 2-9, the math teacher, Okazaki Sae will play Hayashi Seira, the homeroom teacher of Class 2-8 and the English teacher, Noro Kayo will play Oguchi Miyuki, the homeroom teacher of Class 2-1 and the head of the grade, and Horiuchi Keiko will play Shizu's mother, Kanako.
Also appearing in the series are Reiyo Matsumoto Reise as Kobayakawa Mai, a student in class 2-10, where Shizuka is the homeroom teacher, and Shida Kohaku as Ando Yurina, a student in class 2-10. Kote Shinya will play Shinjo Tamotsu, the vice principal of Meishin Academy, Ito Atsushi will play Moriguchi Kai, the homeroom teacher of class 2-5 and a political science and economics teacher, and Kimura Yoshino as Kago Kyoko, the principal of Meishin Academy.
In the first episode, Shizuka, a 28-year-old who has been living as a NEET at her parents' home for two years for some reason, is persuaded by her mother, Kanoko, and her friend, Kyoko, to reluctantly return to society. Despite her reluctance, she becomes the homeroom teacher for Class 10 of the private school, Meishin Gakuen, where Kyoko is the principal.
The homeroom teachers for the second year are the math teacher Urami, who has a strong sense of justice, the English teacher Seira, a modern female who values her private life, the head of the grade Oguchi, who guides teachers and students with a unique gentle tone, and the political and economics teacher Moriguchi, who is calm but obsessed with data. Shizuka is discouraged by being surrounded by such troublesome people.
Meishin Gakuen was a traditional and prestigious preparatory school, but the number of applicants has dropped dramatically over the years. In order to turn the school around, the school reform committee, led by vice principal Shinjo, came up with a policy of "maintaining a good distance from students, not getting angry, not praising, and not giving advice." The policy was to treat schools as a service industry, do things that would please students, and avoid trouble with them.
Shizuka also tries to greet the students in a friendly manner, but she becomes flustered when Urami urges her on. While she is thinking about this and that, the students start to look down on her, and no one listens to what Shizuka has to say. However, Shizuka, who hates to lose, loses her temper and tells Hina (Kiyono Asahime), the leader of the first-string girls, to "shut up, brat," making Hina and the others her enemies. Then, Ayaka (Toyoshima Hana), who is being bullied by Hina, perhaps thinking that Shizuka is a hero, comes to Shizuka and asks for her help, saying, "Please help me."...
