It was revealed on May 26th that actress Eiko Koike will star in the Fuji TV Tuesday drama "Sayonara Noir" (Tuesdays at 9 PM), which will begin airing on July 7th. Actress Kana Kita will also appear in the drama.
◇Scriptwriter Yumiko Inoue and director Shunsaku Kawage team up again after 8 years
This drama is a police human drama about a former detective and a psychologist who work in the newly established Crime Victim Support Office at the Nishi-Ikebukuro Police Station of the Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department, providing initial support to crime victims and their families so that they can move forward in their lives again. Koike plays the protagonist, a former detective in the Organized Crime Countermeasures Unit (renamed the Organized Crime Countermeasures Unit from October 2025), while Kita plays a psychologist who is highly knowledgeable in psychology but struggles with interpersonal communication. Although Koike and Kita have appeared in the same works before, this is their first time working together in a major role. They will become partners who support crime victims with different approaches, complementing each other's shortcomings.
The story shines a spotlight on a real-life department called the Crime Victim Support Office (which actually exists within the Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department, but in this work it is set as a newly established department in a fictional police station called the Nishi-Ikebukuro Police Station). The script is written by Yumiko Inoue and directed by Shunsaku Kawage, a duo who have previously worked together on "Kirakira Hikaru" (1998), and this marks their first collaboration in eight years since "Pandora IV: AI War" (2018, WOWOW).
A Crime Victim Support Office has been established at the Nishi-Ikebukuro Police Station, which maintains public order in Ikebukuro, an area where various incidents occur daily. In this department, police officers stand by victims of crimes and their families, helping them to move forward in life again. Because victims suffer in a variety of ways, what helps them is different for each individual. In this department where there is no right answer and no end, Kuroki Natsumi (Koike) is joined by Shiraishi Eriko (Kita), a psychologist, as a dispatched support worker. Natsumi is able to empathize with victims on an equal footing, while Eriko has knowledge but struggles to communicate with victims effectively. At first glance, the two are complete opposites, but each carries their own emotional scars, and these two misfits become partners, complementing each other's shortcomings as they face the victims. "We want those who have suffered crime to look forward. We want them to smile again." This shared desire drives Natsumi and Eriko, who are different in personality and circumstances, in the same direction.
◇The head of the organized crime countermeasures unit has been transferred to the victim support office.
Koike, in her first leading role in the network's "Tuesday 9pm" time slot, plays Natsumi Kuroki, a police inspector belonging to the Crime Victim Support Office of the Nishi-Ikebukuro Police Station. She is friendly with everyone and treats crime victims as individuals rather than as police officers. She never talks down to them, nor does she pretend to understand their feelings. Before being assigned to the support office, she worked as the team leader of the organized crime unit, but a certain incident leads to her transfer to the newly established victim support office.
Shiraishi Eriko, played by Kita, who is making her first regular appearance in a drama series produced by the same network, is a psychologist belonging to the Department of Psychology at Teito University, holding qualifications as a certified public psychologist and clinical psychologist. She comes to the Nishi-Ikebukuro Police Station as a temporary employee. While she has academic expertise and motivation, she is new to the field of victim support, and perhaps because she thinks too quickly, she has low empathy and can be self-centered. She is a person who has difficulty grasping the nuances of people's hearts and tends to think in logic first, either by lecturing crime victims with psychological theories or by talking in a purely businesslike manner.
The comments from Ms. Koike, Ms. Kita, and others are as follows:
◇Comment from Eiko Koike
--Please tell us your thoughts when you received the offer and your enthusiasm for this project.
The film crew for this project were the same people I worked with on "Shinjuku Field Hospital" (2024), so I was thrilled to be working with them again, and with Kana-chan playing my buddy, I immediately said, "I'd love to do it!" It's the first time I've acted in scenes with Kana-chan, but we've been able to discuss even the smallest details of how to perform each scene. We both share a love for acting, so it's great that we can trust each other. It's really fun to work together, exploring and discovering things as we go. I've had many discussions about the project with Kana-chan, of course, but also with the staff, and we're able to create the film carefully in a very open and communicative environment.
--What kind of preparation did you do for the main character before filming?
I think it's a very complex and difficult role. All the characters that appear in the story carry wounds from their past, but they support the victims while carrying those wounds themselves. And sometimes, their own wounds are healed by the act of support. I am taking great care to portray these delicate nuances. When I find it difficult, I often recall the director's words: "The job of supporting crime victims is to stop the bleeding of those who are bleeding invisibly." I keep in mind that the first step of the job is to rush to the scene when an incident occurs and stay by the victims' side to prevent them from bleeding any further. And as Eriko's senior partner, I am trying to be a reliable senior who can lift Eriko up when she is about to give up.
-- Do you have a message for our viewers?
First and foremost, I would be delighted if everyone could learn about the existence of a department and job called the "Crime Victim Support Office." I hope this work can offer some guidance to those who are currently in trouble and don't know who to ask for help, or how to get out of the darkness. Also, there will be many wonderful cast members appearing in the show, so I hope you will look forward to that as well!
◇Comment from Kana Kita Kita
--Please tell us your thoughts when you received the offer and your enthusiasm for this project.
I was so happy to be a regular cast member in a Fuji TV drama series for the first time. I've worked with Eiko-san on the same projects before, but this is the first time we've really worked together. I was also looking forward to working with her as a buddy. During filming, whenever I ask her, "What do you think about this?", she listens attentively, and I might be relying on her a little too much (laughs). Every day I look forward to going to the set, thinking, "Today I'll talk to Eiko-san about this scene."
--What kind of preparation did you do for the character of Eriko Shiraishi that you play, before filming?
Eriko has trouble with personal space and often ends up overthinking things, but she always tries to remember to be earnest. Despite her weaknesses, I hope that her hard work will be seen as a positive trait and create a nice contrast in her character. Natsumi (played by Koike) is a reliable boss, but when her "noir" side is occasionally revealed, I try to portray Eriko as exploring what she can do for Natsumi, and that they complement each other by adding what they lack.
-- Do you have a message for our viewers?
This drama focuses on the "Crime Victim Support Office," a subject not often explored in police dramas, so it offers a fresh perspective. Furthermore, the cast is comprised of individuals who genuinely love acting, so I hope you'll pay close attention to their performances.
◇Comment from producer Yuta Kano (Studio Strategy Headquarters, Studio 1, Drama & Film Production Center)
I've been discussing this project with Professor Inoue and Director Kawage since last year, and it's now complete. To my embarrassment, I knew absolutely nothing about "crime victim support" until now. I spoke with the supervising professor and read several documents, and I learned that in Japan, the "Basic Law on Crime Victims" has only been in effect for a little over 20 years, and that Japan has a history of lagging behind other countries in victim support. "The life and happiness that we took for granted can be taken away in an instant by crime." Faced with such a nightmarish event, I learned that police officers provide victim support as an initial response, and although it's fiction, I wanted to create a story about such support workers. Anyone could become a perpetrator or a victim tomorrow. I realized that this is not something that only happens to other people. With that in mind, I hope this can be an opportunity for people to learn even a little about crime victim support.
After much discussion with Mr. Inoue and Director Kawage, we came up with several titles that conveyed the meaning of "saying goodbye to the dark feelings and situations that had been holding us captive," and finally decided on "Goodbye Noir."
While Ms. Koike is known for her unconventional characters like in "Shinjuku Field Hospital" and her bright image in variety shows, we wanted to see the flexibility, sensitivity, and kindness that she herself possesses in this project, which is why we asked her to appear in it. We are grateful that she readily accepted. Filming is already underway, and we are simply impressed by the incredible concentration she has shown in her acting.
Ms. Kita has played a wide variety of characters with her outstanding acting skills, and I have always wanted to work with her, so I am thrilled that this opportunity has finally come true. Eriko is a bit of an intellectual, but she also has a cute and slightly funny side. I hope you will pay attention to the story, but I would also like you to pay attention to the interactions between Ms. Koike and Ms. Kita, as well as their subtle facial expressions.
◇Comment from screenwriter Yumiko Inoue
It's a suffocating world, isn't it? The world is unstable, and there's nothing but news that makes you want to look away. I think what's needed in times like these isn't a cool heroine who brilliantly solves problems, but unpretentious women who are there to stand by you.
Many crime dramas and movies end with the arrest of the perpetrator. However, the pain of the victims does not end with the arrest of the culprit. Supporting these wounded people are Natsumi Kuroki (a police officer), played by Eiko Koike, and Eriko Shiraishi (a psychologist), played by Kana Kita. They have no special abilities or extraordinary techniques. They simply offer support, asking, "Can I stay by your side?", listening to what the victims have to say, and helping them to stand on their own two feet.
The highlights are the combination of Kuroki, a gruff former organized crime detective burdened by his past, and Shiraishi, a slightly annoying psychologist lacking in empathy (not that he's exceptionally good at it!), and his ability to break through obstacles.
These two individuals, who are by no means exemplary figures, overcome their differences in personality and life experiences to accept the victims.
And they themselves forge a bond. Sometimes senior and junior, sometimes sister and sister, sometimes female friends. Ms. Koike and Ms. Kita richly portray the ever-changing relationship between the two. Look forward to this lonely and awkward duo, who, because of that, possess the power to support each other.
