The first episode of the drama series "Winter Something, Spring Something" (NTV, Wednesdays at 10pm), starring actress Hana Sugisaki Hana, aired on January 14th. The episode featured a scene in which novelist Tsuchida Fumina (played by Sugisaki) chats with senior novelist Yamada Sen (played by Uchibori Taro) at an izakaya, drawing attention to both Yamada and Uchibori.
◇The following contains spoilers.
In the first episode, novelist Fumina is waiting for her laundry to finish, listening to music and writing down words in the notebook she carries with her every day to organize her thoughts at a nearby laundromat. There, she meets Yukio (Ryo Narita), a hairdresser who happens to be using the laundromat because the washer-dryer at the store has broken down.
At the laundromat, Fumina and Yukio have a casual conversation, and then, out of curiosity, she follows him to the hair salon.
After leaving the beauty salon, Fumina goes to Yukio's house. After Yukio tells her, "I think I like you already," Fumina sleeps on the sofa and spends the night at his house. In the morning, after reading a letter from Yukio asking, "Are you sure you want to go out with me?", Fumina decides to go out with Yukio and leaves her contact information in the letter.
Afterwards, Fumina goes to the second-hand clothing store where she works part-time, and when she sees her senior from her student days, Hayase Kotaro (Okayama Amane), she tells him that she has a boyfriend... and so the story unfolds.
In this story, the setting suddenly shifts to one year later. Fumina meets up with Yamada, a senior novelist, at an izakaya and they drink together, then the two go to a hotel. Fumina and Yamada, both of whom have boyfriends, flirt around in the room and talk about their feelings for their partners. Fumina then kisses Yamada and leaves the room.
On social media, many were confused by Yamada's sudden appearance after the scene of his meeting with Yukio was depicted. Comments included, "Who is he?", "Who is the Yamada Line?", and "Who exactly is this Yamada?" Attention was also drawn to Uchibori, who plays the role of Yamada, with comments such as, "Who is the actor who plays Yamada?", "I didn't know him at all, but he's very charming," "Uchibori Taro's way of speaking and sense of distance were really good," "Uchibori is great," "I'm glad I got to know him," and "I like the good aura he exudes."
Uchibori was born in Fukuoka Prefecture in 1983. She gained attention for her leading role in the film "Goodbye to Boring Days" (2017), which was written, directed, and edited by Imaizumi.
