Drama Topics from July 12th to 18th (Part 2)

"Drama 1 Week" introduces the main drama news of the week. This time (July 12th to 18th), the topics of conversation are the appearance of Kubo Shiori of the idol group " Nogizaka46 " in the NHK morning drama " Anpan " starring Mio Imada , and the role of a high school student in the drama " Ubai Ai, Manatsu " starring Marika Matsumoto . We will cover these topics in two parts.

On July 16th, the new cast of the NHK morning drama " Anpan " (General Asadora , Monday to Saturday 8:00am and others), starring Mio Imada , was announced on the official SNS, revealing that Nogizaka46 member Kubo Shiori will play the popular singer Shiratori Tamae. This is Kubo's first appearance in a Asadora . Tamae, who she plays, is a popular singer who sings " Te no Hira wo Taiyou ni ), written by Takashi ( Takumi Kitamura ). Her character is one who asks Takashi for one favor after another, such as arranging her recital. Kubo commented, "I hope that I can convey to everyone the preciousness of 'living', which never changes even as time passes, through my songs. Thank you for your support."

It was also revealed that the number of viewers for the first half of the story of " Anpan" (weeks 1-13, broadcast from March 31st to June 27th) on NHK Plus, either simultaneously or on catch-up (from the day of broadcast to the seven days after catch-up), was the highest ever recorded for a morning Asadora. Chief producer Ken Kurasaki, who oversees production, commented, "The whole team is encouraged that Anpan has reached so many people through streaming." He went on to say, "The story has already entered the second half. How will Nobu and Takashi end up together? And new, fascinating characters are constantly appearing, so we hope you won't miss a single day of the series."

On the 17th, KABA.chan, also known as Ryu Ichika, made a guest appearance in the second episode of the drama series " School of love. " (Fuji TV, Thursdays), starring Fumino Kimura , which aired from 10:20 pm. KABA.chan, who works as a choreographer and talent, made her drama debut under the name "Ryu Ichika" as an actor. Before the broadcast, Ryu commented, "I started attending acting school in 2023 and have been learning from the basics. So I thought this would be a good opportunity to test how much I can act, and I was really happy to be asked to appear as Ryu Ichika for the first time and to be involved in this work!"

On the 17th, WEST member Ryusei Fujii attended the preview screening of the drama series " Stingers " (Fuji TV, Tuesdays at 9pm, starts on the 22nd), starring Aoi Morikawa , held in Tokyo. When asked what he would do and what he would dress up as if he were an undercover investigator, he said, "I'd like to dress up as a woman and infiltrate the audience at our live show." Fujii stated his opinion, saying, "I want to be the first to scream 'Scream' in the audience at our live shows. People who take the initiative are quite important!" At one point, co-star Tetsuji Tamayama commented, "If you're in the audience, that means you're not on stage, right?"

On the 17th, the first episode of the TV drama series " Shiawase na Kekkon " starring Sadao Abe (TV Asahi, Thursday 9pm) was broadcast, with surprise guests Koyuki, Noro Kayo, and Junki Tozuka making an appearance without prior notice. Koyuki appeared as Naito Tsubasa, the ex-girlfriend who caused the protagonist, lawyer Harada Kotaro (Abe), to be rushed to the hospital. Noro played the role of a wife who came to Kotaro's law firm to discuss compensation for her husband's affair. Tozuka appeared as Isomura Tadashi, an actor who is the son of a minister and was arrested after running naked through Roppongi while drunk. Also, in the scene where Kotaro is recording an information program, TV Asahi announcer Ayaka Hironaka made an appearance, though only for a few seconds.

On the 18th, Marika Matsumoto attended a press conference for her lead drama "Ubai Ai, Manatsu" (TV Asahi, Friday 11:15pm *excluding some regions) held at the TV Asahi headquarters (Minato Ward, Tokyo). In the drama that started on the same day, Matsumoto plays a high school student and revealed, "I'm 40 years old and wearing a sailor uniform (lol)!". When screenwriter Osamu Suzuki offered her the role of a high school student, she said, "Every department told me not to do it, but Osamu said to do it, so I said I'll do it! I played a high school student." She introduced it as a scene where she co-starred with Miki Mizuno, who played her mother, and looked back on the filming, saying, "This scene made me feel the worldview of 'Ubai Ai'."

On the 18th, it was revealed that Leo Matsumoto will be making a guest appearance in the third episode of WOWOW's "W-30: My murdered husband has returned" (Fridays at 11pm), which will be broadcast on July 25th. Matsumoto will play Mase Tadahito, the first love of the protagonist Mana Suzukura (Mizuki Mizuki Yamashita) when she was a teenager. Mase is portrayed as a presence like hope for life, supporting Mana, who lives in despair in a harsh environment. Since he lived near the apartment in Morioka where Mana lived, he became her confidant as they often ran into each other, and the two gradually became closer. What will be the outcome of the sad and faint love between these two people? The drama is a suspense and mystery based on the novel of the same name by Mina Sakurai (Shogakukan, 2021).