"Drama Week" brings you the latest drama news from the past week. This week (August 23-29) we'll be covering the wrap-up of the NHK morning drama " Anpan, " starring Mio Imada , and the first-ever drama adaptation of the popular baseball game "Powerful Pro Baseball" (hereafter referred to as "Pawapuro") by Konami Digital Entertainment on ABC TV. We'll be covering this in two parts.
On August 22nd, it was announced that filming for the NHK morning drama " Anpan " (General Asadora , Monday-Saturday 8:00 AM), starring Mio Imada, had wrapped up. Imada, who plays the main character Nobu, revealed her feelings, saying, "There were many fun times, but also difficult and worrying times. Nobu's words, 'I'll never amount to anything,' really struck me, and I sometimes questioned myself." She continued, "But looking back, I have memories of laughing so much, and also of crying, and I cherish them all, and I'm truly glad I was able to play Nobu. I'm also really glad that Takumi Kitamura was playing Taka. He saved me a lot. Thank you."
On the 24th, additional cast members were announced for the drama series "Even if All Love Ends" (ABC TV/TV Asahi, Sundays 10:15 PM), which will begin airing on October 12th and stars Aoi Wakana and Fuju Kamio. Naniwa Danshi's Joichiro Fujiwara, Miyu Honda, Koki Yamashita, Moka Otsuka , Shirasu Jin, and Ichikawa Yui will appear. Fujiwara will play Nishi Hayate, a high school classmate of the two main characters, Hazawa Yu (Aoi) and Osaki Mao (Kamio). Mao's parents live nearby, and she has been his best friend since middle school. Honda will play Osaki Ritsu, Mao's younger sister.
On the 24th, it was announced that Hiroiki Ariyoshi will be appearing in the NHK Taiga drama " UNBOUND (Berabou) " (General TV, Sundays at 8 PM and other times), starring actor Ryusei Yokohama . In the 33rd episode, airing on August 31st, he will play Hattori Hanzo, a descendant of the famous Hattori Hanzo. Regarding his own performance, Ariyoshi gave himself a score of "100 points." Hattori Hanzo, played by Ariyoshi, is a man who was entrusted with Shirakawa by Matsudaira Sadanobu (played by Yuki Inoue) while he was away, and comes to deliver some news to Sadanobu. The NHK program "Ariyoshi's Money Discovery: Attack! Kaneo-kun UNBOUND& Luxury Collaboration! Flower Capital Edo SP!", which aired on the 24th, featured a behind-the-scenes look at Ariyoshi's recording.
On the 24th, the 32nd episode of the historical drama "UNBOUND," "Shinnosuke no Gi," aired, featuring Kairi Jo as Tokugawa Ienari. Speaking of Jo, he gained attention for his role as the son in the 2018 film "Shoplifters" (directed by Hirokazu Koreeda), which won the Palme d'Or, the highest award at the 71st Cannes Film Festival, and also appeared in the historical drama "Segodon" that same year. He was 12 years old at the time. Now 18, social media has been filled with comments of surprise, such as, "The boy from Shoplifters has really grown up," "Kairi Jo has completely grown up," and "Kairi Jo has a long career in the entertainment industry, but he's still only 18. I hope he becomes a good shogun..."
On the 26th, it was revealed that Toshiaki Karasawa will star in "Coach," a TV Tokyo drama series that begins on October 17th (Fridays at 9 PM, with the first episode extended by 15 minutes). This will be Karasawa's first starring role in a TV Tokyo drama series in seven years, since "Harassment Game" in October 2018. The series is based on the police novel of the same name by Shunichi Doba (Sogen Mystery Bunko). After a failed investigation, a group of young detectives reach a dead end and want to run away, and a "dull old man" named Kotaro Mukai (played by Karasawa) appears before them. In fact, Mukai is a special agent dispatched from the Metropolitan Police Department's Personnel Division 2. With Mukai's accurate advice, the detectives grow not only as detectives but also as people... and so the story unfolds.
On the 26th, it was announced that the popular baseball game "Powerful Pro Baseball" (hereafter referred to as "Pawapuro") (Konami Digital Entertainment) will be adapted into a drama for the first time on ABC TV. Titled "Pawapuro Drama 2025 - The Story of My Success as an Ordinary New Worker," it will be broadcast locally in the Kansai region from 12:24 AM on September 26th. Pawapuro is a popular baseball game series that has been around for over 30 years, with the first game, "Jikkyo Powerful Pro Baseball '94," released in March 1994. The drama follows the protagonist, Nishino, who has been traumatized by a failure in a baseball game during his high school days and has been losing all his life, as he begins a strange new life as a working adult after playing the mysterious game "Powerful Working Adult."
On the 26th, it was revealed that Mizuki Yamashita, who plays a maritime officer in the October drama series "Shin-Tokyo Water Police" (Fuji TV, Tuesdays at 9 PM), has obtained a first-class small boat operator's license (first-class boat license) for the drama. Unlike a second-class boat license, which limits the waters in which a boat can be operated, this is the highest level of boat license, allowing boats to be operated anywhere in the world. In the drama, Yamashita plays Arima Reiko, a maritime officer who operates a patrol boat and conducts water patrols to ensure the safety of the seas and rivers. Immediately after receiving the offer, she decided to obtain her boat license, and after learning about boats in her spare time and actually boarding a boat to master her boating skills, she successfully passed the national exam.
