MBS “A Downpour When It Rains” Mellow Rain

Even though he loves her, he can’t understand her. Because he loves her, he wants her to understand him. A value-gap romance comedy about a feminist girlfriend and a self-proclaimed kind boyfriend Starring Mei Nagano. With solid acting, she vividly brings to life “her,” a woman who became a feminist for a certain reason. Playing the self-proclaimed kind boyfriend who wants to get back together with her is Taisei Kido. He portrays Haruki, the former boyfriend who is still hopelessly in love with “her,” with a relatable, endearing charm as he’s tossed around by the girl he can never forget. In the newly released footage, Haruki’s sweet recollections begin with the innocent, happy couple from their college days, accompanied by his lines: “You always smile so happily” and “I want to protect you.” But seven years after their sudden breakup, the girl he once loved (“her,” played by Mei Nagano) unexpectedly appears before Haruki, who turns around after being called out to by her. What stands there is his first love, transformed in every way from the “cute, earnest girlfriend who healed me” he once knew—. Even while struggling to accept that the woman he has reunited with has become a feminist, Haruki throws himself into trying to win her back because he loves her. But whenever they meet face to face, they clash head-on over what is “normal” and what is “obvious.” As a fast-paced battle of words unfolds, can the two of them, burdened by such a gap in values, really get back together!? What does the message on the T-shirt, “GOOD GIRLS GO TO HEAVEN, BAD GIRLS GO TO EVERYWHERE,” mean—? She was always smiling beside me—“her.” But after one certain incident, Haruki is unilaterally dumped by his first love. Even though he resents her, he can’t forget her. Seven years after their breakup, “her” still lingered in his heart. Now a company employee working for a stationery manufacturer, Haruki one day encounters a group of women protesting on his way home from work. The one who calls out to him there is the girl he once loved so deeply. But the woman he reunites with is nothing like the earnest, adorable “her” who once comforted him. She’s become a feminist!? To Haruki, who wishes, “I want to date you again,” “her” shuts him down flatly with, “No way.” Whenever they face each other, a battle erupts over what is “normal” and what is “obvious.” Can these two, whose values are completely out of sync, become lovers again?

Seiichi Tanabe and Shunsuke Kazama co-star! The story of two brothers who pioneered Japan-U.S. trade during the turbulent transition from the late Edo period to the Meiji era. TV Aichi is airing and streaming in prime time this November, the milestone 150th year, the first-ever television drama adaptation of the story of the two brothers who founded Morimura Gumi (now Morimura Shoji), the forerunner of global manufacturing companies such as Noritake, TOTO, NGK, and NICHIAS. Their relentless challenge to open up Japan-U.S. trade through private-sector power and conquer the world with a “pure white dinner set” is also a message of encouragement to modern-day Japanese people, who are losing their sense of conviction and adventurous spirit. The Morimura brothers are played by actors Seiichi Tanabe and Shunsuke Kazama. Also look out for Yokohama Port as it was when it first opened, and the streets of Japan and the U.S. in the early Meiji period, recreated using the latest generative AI technology. 150 years ago, we set out to change Japan for real and take on the world— In the late Edo period, Japan was forced to open its doors, and although it began trading with the Western powers, vast amounts of gold (kobans) were flowing out of the country. “If Japan is to prosper, we must recover the gold taken by foreign countries,” Morimura Ichizaemon, driven by righteous indignation, founded the trading company Morimura Gumi with his younger brother, Yutaka. Dividing their efforts between Japan and New York, they launched into Japan-U.S. trade, exporting and selling general merchandise. Amid countless hardships, including anti-Asian discrimination and the decline of Japonisme, they found a breakthrough in original domestically produced ceramics and eventually achieved explosive success with their “pure white dinner set.” Why were Japanese people from a small island nation in the Far East able to succeed? Why did “Made in Japan” astound the world? This is the story of the courage and decisions of those who turned the upheaval that began with the opening of Yokohama Port into an opportunity.

A Sunday drama from the network that created buzz with “Yell for Love” and “Ossan’s Love” A gentle, medicine-like story that wraps around the hearts of exhausted modern people 40 years old, a shut-in for 12 years A woman who had given up on life is about to step back into the “outside world” Tamura Uzume, 40 years old. She was once a child actress who dreamed of becoming a performer who could make people smile. But at 28, after one certain incident, she quit acting and withdrew into her room at her parents’ home. Twelve years have passed since then. Having neither married nor worked, Uzume spends her days in self-indulgence, until her mother, Sakiko, can no longer stand to watch and finally calls a “handyman service” to have her daughter’s room cleaned up. The person who arrives is Koorogi, the representative of the handyman service “Kyu-chan.” Noticing from a photograph in the room that Uzume had once acted as a child performer, Koorogi scouts her, asking if she would like to work as a substitute staff member. “Maybe you’ve been given a chance to start over in life. I want to tell you that the time of despair has ended, and the time of hope has come.” And so, Uzume is half-forced into society by Koorogi. Through a variety of jobs, such as pretending to be a lover’s affair partner and apologizing to his wife, or impersonating the “secret child” of a famous female author in order to meet the man she once loved, she begins to interact with other people. Though bewildered at first, as she comes into contact with the lives of her clients, Uzume herself also begins to confront the life that had stopped moving, as well as the wounds of her past. And the people she meets through Uzume, too, come face to face with the emotional scars and worries they had been carrying, and slowly begin to move forward. Uzume, who had stopped living for 12 years, starts walking again. Her name comes from the myth of Amano-Iwato, where the goddess Ame-no-Uzume-no-Mikoto lured Amaterasu-Omikami, who had hidden herself inside a rock, back out into the world through dance. Delicate, yet fundamentally powerful. At times comical and somewhat clumsy, Uzume opens the doors to people’s hearts—. “Life can be restarted at any age.” A human drama of recovery and hope that gently stays close to the hearts of weary modern people and tenderly gives a push to those who have been hurt. Please look forward to this warm, gentle story that softly supports the backs of those who have been hurt.

Drama adaptation of a medical novel depicting the light and shadow of the pharmaceutical industry, starring Satoshi Mukai! Co-starring Jun Kaname, Ryoki Masumoto (Aぇ! group), and Kosuke Toyohara! Is an MR (Medical Representative) there to save patients’ lives, or to maximize the profits of pharmaceutical companies――? A medical-business suspense drama that sharply confronts the essence of medicine and the realities of the pharmaceutical industry! Is it medicine for life, or medicine for profit―― A new “socially conscious medical drama” depicting the hidden side of the medical field and the pharmaceutical industry, as well as the struggles of those who face life head-on “Serial Drama W: MR – Medical Representative –” adapts the novel by Yoko Kusakabe, a celebrated medical mystery writer who is also active as a novelist and physician. Centering on an MR (= Medical Representative), essentially a sales representative for a pharmaceutical company who visits doctors, pharmacists, and other medical professionals to provide and gather information on prescription drugs and promote their proper use, this new “medical drama” portrays the hidden side of the medical field and the pharmaceutical industry, along with the struggles of those who confront life and death. Japan’s pharmaceutical industry is worth roughly 10 trillion yen. Bringing a single new drug to market takes 10 to 15 years and hundreds of billions of yen in research and development costs, yet the odds of actually reaching the sales stage are about 1 in 25,000. Pharmaceutical companies continue their research every day in order to break through this narrow gate. This drama offers a glimpse into the reality of the medical world, where many organizations and people are involved around a single drug—pharmaceutical companies, university hospitals, doctors, academic societies, guideline selection, and more—and powerfully depicts the convictions of those engaged in the “work of handling lives,” as well as their conflicts between sales competition and medical ethics. While drawing on the original work’s brisk human drama, the series also incorporates pharmaceutical supervision to reflect the industry as it is today, and weaves in issues surrounding modern medicine. As a drama about the familiar subject of “medicine” for everyone, not just medical professionals, it delivers deep empathy and thought-provoking questions to a wide audience. WOWOW’s screen adaptations of Kusakabe’s works, which have also drawn attention with the film Haibyōshin, are now in their third installment, following the shocking suspense Drama W: The Third Mist ~Throw the First Stone~ (2009), which exposed the dark side of modern medicine through the theme of medical error, and Serial Drama W: God’s Hand (2019), which tackled head-on the major social issue of whether euthanasia should be permitted in end-of-life care. Praised highly for the realism that comes from the author’s extensive experience as a physician and for its weighty themes centered on life and death, the works have won the support of many readers. The script is written by Takashi Kohsaka, known for Hayabusa Fire Brigade (2023) and Angel Flight: The International Repatriation of the Dead (2023), while direction is handled by the talented Hiroshi Kanai, who makes his first directorial effort on a WOWOW drama following Scandal Eve (2025) and Caster (2025), and with his film The Gate of Murder soon to be released. The lead role is played by Satoshi Mukai, who portrays Masaki Kionaka, an MR at Tenho Pharmaceutical who, torn between patients, doctors, and the pharmaceutical company, tries to uphold his own belief in “patient first.” Co-starring are Jun Kaname as Atsushi Samejima, Kionaka’s former colleague who now works for the foreign rival company Taurus and is an MR who pursues profit without compromise; Ryoki Masumoto (Aぇ! group), making his first appearance in a WOWOW drama, as Kazumi Ichihashi, a rookie MR at Tenho Pharmaceutical who admires Kionaka as the ideal MR; and Kosuke Toyohara as Kazuhiko Isogawa, a former MR and now an executive officer and head of sales at Tenho Pharmaceutical, who was once Kionaka’s direct superior. Also appearing are Yoshi Sakou, Satoru Matsuo, and Takeshi Masu as doctors with whom Kionaka becomes involved; Makiko Watanabe as an executive director at Tenho Pharmaceutical; Rena Takeda, Junya Kawashima, and Yasuomi Sano as members of the sales office MR team; and Mirai Morita and Yoshihiro Nozoe as patients and family members whom Kionaka becomes indirectly involved with. Be sure to look out for this colorful cast of accomplished actors. “Patient-first MRs” vs. “business-first MRs” vs. “pharmaceutical company executives protecting the company” vs. “medical professionals flocking to profit” … This work depicts the various positions and conflicts of people fighting over “profit” in the hidden world of the medical industry. Through the lives of people torn between the ideals of medicine and the realities of business, this weighty socially conscious human drama comes close to the essence of “life” and “medicine,” relentlessly confronting viewers with a reality that is “by no means someone else’s problem.”