Actor Rihito Itagaki and popular group Hey! Say! JUMP member Yuto Nakajima star in the TV drama series "Himitsu ~THE TOP SECRET~" (Kansai TV/Fuji TV, Mondays at 10pm). The story is based on Shimizu Reiko's "Himitsu - Top Secret" published in the manga magazine "Melody" (Hakusensha) and its spin-off "Himitsu Season 0". The script is written by Sato Tsumako, who has worked on the "Unfair" series (same network) and the movie "Onmyoji 0" (2024). In mid-February, Shimizu and Sato visited the set of the "9th" investigation room in Chiba Prefecture together. After touring the drama's filming location, they sat down for a conversation. Based on questions sent to the two on the drama's official X (formerly Twitter), they talked about how the drama came to be, their impressions of the cast, and their thoughts on the drama.
The drama is set in the National Research Institute of Police Science's Forensic Science Laboratory No. 9, commonly known as "No. 9." Itagaki plays Maki Tsuyoshi, the head of No. 9, while Nakajima plays Suzuki Katsuhiro, a former member of No. 9 who lost his life in a certain incident, and Aoki Ikko, a rookie investigator who looks just like Suzuki and is assigned to No. 9.
◇The set is "interesting with its classical design"
--You've just finished visiting the filming location. What was the atmosphere like?
Reiko Shimizu: The contents of the drama are often tense, but everyone on set seems to be friendly and having fun. (The set) is interesting because it has a classical feel to it. It's a bit like the early Showa period.
Tsumako Sato: Yes, the Showa era feel. The set designer said, "I want to make it feel like an old secret base." It's nice to have the MRI footage spin around when you play it back in time.
Shimizu-san: Yes! I thought, "Oh, they're making use of the manga feel."
--Please tell us how you two met.
Shimizu-san: (Sato-san) was the director of Moto Hagio-sensei's CD-ROM collection of her works, right? So he came to interview me.
Sato-san: We got to know each other there, and after that I went to see her plays with Hagio-sensei. I was also often invited to parties for manga artists, so we met quite often.
Shimizu-san: Basically, he has a girl manga mentality (laughs). He's the kind of person who has images piled on top of that.
Sato: Yes, my basics are shoujo manga (laughs). I originally studied Hagio-sensei's works, and learned the beginning, development, twist and conclusion by looking at the page numbers and panel layouts. So even when I write a script, I base it on Hagio-sensei's manga.
◇A drama where human relationships are the highlight
--You mentioned that there have been several plans to turn "Secret" into a film, but how did it come to fruition this time?
Sato: It's a long story, so I thought it would be best to make it into a TV series, but it was difficult to get someone to take it on, as the content is quite intense (laughs).
Shimizu-san: That's right. I think that's something that readers were worried about, like, "Is it okay to broadcast it on terrestrial TV?" The manga is pretty gory (laughs).
Sato-san: In manga, the gore is wrapped up in beautiful images, but in drama it becomes too real. But I really wanted to do something like David Fincher's "Seven."
Shimizu-san: Ahahaha. In that sense, the highlight of this drama is not the scary images, but the "human relationships."
Sato: Yes. I wanted to create a story about how the relationships between the four people, Maki, Suzuki, Aoki, and Yukiko (Mugi Kadowaki), change. One of the questions I asked for X was, "How do you select episodes?", but I chose episodes in which the relationships between the four people change. There was also a question, "Why was (Tsuyuguchi) Kinuko's incident in the first episode?", but that's not a story in which the relationships between the four people change, but I definitely wanted to do it because it would be a waste (laughs). Because it was my favorite episode.
Shimizu-san: I understand. I also really like the episode about Kinuko out of the first 12 volumes of "Himitsu."
◇ I wanted the viewers to truly experience Maki’s feelings.
--What are your impressions after watching the drama?
Shimizu-san: I'm overwhelmed with emotion. I haven't drawn Suzuki alive much myself, so when I saw him fully alive in the first episode, I thought, "Ah, I should have drawn Suzuki a little more." So I drew it as a one-shot. It's a story that gives a little recollection of Suzuki.
--That's the special edition that will be published in the April issue of "Melody" (on sale February 28th). What did you think about Suzuki appearing in the first episode?
Shimizu-san: It's very sadistic, isn't it? (laughs) In the manga, he is depicted as dead from the beginning, but in the drama, Suzuki, who was so kind and reliable, disappears.
--What was your intention in having Suzuki appear in the first episode?
Sato: In a video work, flashbacks to the past that appear in flashes are inevitably weak. You're left wondering, "What is this?" and it ends before you can empathize with the characters. I want the viewers to meet Kainuma and Suzuki at the same time as Maki. And I want Suzuki to die, and I want Kainuma to die. I wanted the viewers to relive Maki's feelings before meeting Aoki. Otherwise, I think you won't understand why Maki is so worried, or why she faints so easily, unless you experience it with her.
--What kind of discussions did you go through to make these changes from the original work?
Sato-san: Originally, I showed Shimizu-san the composition I'd first created and asked him what he thought of it.
Shimizu: So, I knew from the beginning that Kainuma's setting was different.
Sato-san: Even after that, we would talk about any parts that we felt were different. If Shimizu-san said, "No, this is a bit off," I would fix it, and then I would consult with him and say, "I'd like to do this bit like this."
◇What are your impressions of Rihito Itagaki and Yuto Nakajima?
- Could you tell us your impression of Rihito Itagaki, who plays Maki?
Shimizu-san: With each episode, he really becomes more and more like firewood. Even when he's sleeping, he looks like firewood (laughs). I'd seen "Silent" (2022) and knew Itagaki-kun, but his face is different from the one in "Silent". His face hasn't changed, but it feels like he's changed so much. I was surprised.
--What is your impression of Yuto Nakajima, who plays the dual roles of Suzuki Katsuhiro and Aoki Ikko?
Shimizu-san: It's amazing. I think I'm going to become a fan of Nakajima-kun (laughs). The way you play the roles is amazing. Even in still images, Aoki and Suzuki look different. The way you use your voice is also different. I think you must have made the changes based on your feelings.
--As asked by viewers, why did you decide to have one person play two roles?
Sato-san: That's the only way. If it's a different person, the viewers won't think, "Oh, it's the same person." It's only when the same person changes the hairstyle and atmosphere that they become "similar," so I thought from the beginning that it had to be the same person.
Shimizu-san: That's right. But unexpectedly, Nakajima-kun's performance of two separate roles became one of the highlights.
◇ The reason for Kainuma's setting change was to "make Maki suffer more"
--Kainuma's character has changed completely from the original. How did you come up with this setting, Mr. Sato?
Sato-san: I just wanted to make the firewood suffer even more (laughs).
Shimizu-san: Hahahaha. That's why Maki keeps getting betrayed by people she trusts (laughs).
Sato-san: I also wanted Kainuma to have a relationship with Suzuki. In the original story, the relationship is only between Maki and Kainuma, but I wanted Suzuki to know about it and be involved in it. Also, MRI is very complicated and difficult to explain, so I thought it would be easier if someone who is an expert could explain it, so Kainuma became a professor.
Shimizu-san: Yes, when I was drawing, I wondered how a homeless Kainuma ended up in a juvenile detention center for therapy. Surely, a professor of brain science could do that.
Sato: I thought it would be easy to hypnotize someone who is a professor of neuroscience.
Shimizu-san: Moreover, the reason Kainuma targeted Suzuki was because "Maki was looking at Suzuki" and then he locked on to him. It's terrifying, isn't it? It's like he wanted to show Suzuki and make him go crazy. He even lit incense to hypnotize him from the beginning. That's also sadistic (laughs).
Sato-san: Maki will suffer even more (laughs). It goes without saying, but in the drama, the expressions are milder than in the manga. So I think we have to attack that with psychological warfare.
-What is your impression of Kainuma Kiyotaka, played by Kunimura Jun?
Shimizu: It's scary. It's like Anthony Hopkins. It's not easy to be scary just by standing there. Actually, I'm glad that Kunimura was my first choice for casting. Kunimura has a really good voice, and I wonder how he can be so scary when all he's doing is looking in the mirror and talking. So I think it's true that when Maki sees Kainuma's video and collapses, it's really scary.
◇ I want you to see how the relationship between Maki and Aoki becomes stronger as a buddy
--How do you feel about the reactions of fans of the original work and those around you?
Shimizu-san: I've read a lot of different opinions, but I thought, "Just watch the first three episodes." But there are also a lot of people who say, "I'm glad they chose this cast."
Sato: That's right. Whenever I do a drama based on an original work, I always get a lot of different opinions from all sides, but this time I feel like the casting and the story have been received positively. I'm a big fan of Shimizu-san's and I love "Himitsu," so I'd be really sad if the fans got upset, so I'm glad that didn't happen.
--Finally, please tell us what the highlights of the drama are and your message to viewers.
Sato-san: The theme of the story is "sin and forgiveness" and "death and rebirth." As we move towards that goal, the story will continue to be painful, but I think we will be saved in the end, so please watch until the end.
Shimizu-san: I hope you will also see how Maki gradually strengthens her buddy relationship with Aoki as she sees Suzuki's image. Aoki will have a hard time in the future, so Nakajima-kun, do your best (laughs).
◇Profile of the original author, Reiko Shimizu
She made her debut in 1983 with "Story of the Three-Way Crossing." In 2002, she won the 47th Shogakukan Manga Award for "Princess Kaguya," and in 2011, she won the Excellence Award at the 15th Japan Media Arts Festival for "Top Secret." She is currently serializing "Secret Season 0" in "MELODY" (Hakusensha), and her latest work, volumes 11 and 12 of the "DNA" series, were published simultaneously on February 20th. Her shojo manga works, with their beautiful and delicate drawings and deep, grand worldview, have won over passionate fans.
◇Profile of scriptwriter Tsumako Sato
Film director and screenwriter. After studying abroad at the London International Film School in 1987, he wrote and directed the Japanese-British co-production "Virginia" (1992), which won the Avoriaz Award at the Tokyo International Fantastic Film Festival. In 1995, his directorial work "Eko Eko Azarak" won the Critics' Award (Toshiko Minami Award) at the Yubari International Fantastic Film Festival. He has worked on a number of hits, including the film and drama "Unfair" series, the drama "Siren: Detective x Girlfriend x Complete Villain," and the film "Onmyoji 0."
