The Fuji TV drama series "Ramune Monkey" (Wednesdays at 10pm) stars Takashi Sorimachi, Nao Omori, and Kenjiro Tsuda. The synopsis and stills from the second episode, which will be broadcast on January 21st, have been released.
Three junior high school classmates, Yuta Yoshii (Sorimachi), Hajime Fujimaki (Omori), and Kikuhara Kisuke (Tsuda), sneak into the construction site where the human bones were discovered, along with cafe employee Hakuba Nishino (Riko Fukumoto). There, they discover the same ballpoint pen used by a substitute teacher from their junior high school days, Misa Miyashita (played by Aso Kiryu), also known as "Matilda."
Yuta and his friends go to the local police station and ask Officer Tsurumi (Hamao Noritaka) to investigate Matilda's murder, but he ignores them. They try to investigate the case themselves, but they have no other friends from that time and their memories are hazy. Seeing the three at a loss, Hakuba starts gathering information on social media.
Yuta, who was suspected of bribery, has been released from his suspension but has been relegated to a less-active position. His wife, Emi (Maho Nonami), a cooking expert, and their high school daughter, Aya (Maika Miura), are also affected by the incident, and the atmosphere at home is heavy.
Hakuba receives a message on social media from his former classmate, Ishii Yoko. The four meet at the cafe where Hakuba works. Yoko is nostalgic about their reunion, but Yuta and the others have no recollection of her. When Yuta asks about Matilda, Yoko says that she had appeared in adult videos and had been registered with a mistress bank, but was forced to quit school after the school found out. The three are stunned.
A strange memory comes to Yuta's mind. At the time, Matilda had a duel with Ohba Akari (played by Izumi Arino), also known as "Minmei," who was close to Yuta, and was then killed and drowned in a swamp.
The original story and screenplay was written by Ryota Furusawa. The film is a "youth-recovering human comedy" that depicts the reunion and rebirth of two middle-aged men who were passionate about making kung fu movies together in their junior high school days in 1988, but now feel stuck in life and realize that "this isn't how it was supposed to be."
