2018 Tokyo Drama Awards

by Ceki, November 4, 2018

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The 11th Tokyo Drama Awards, part of the International Drama Festival in TOKYO, was held on October 26, 2018. Some of the best Japanese dramas were judged based on their quality and marketability in order to promote this aspect of Japanese culture on a global basis.

Check out the 2016 and 2017 winners as well!

Ossans' Love _{Best Drama Series}

Haruta Soichi is a 33-years-old single man who isn't popular with women. He works at a real estate office and lives with his parents. However, one day, his mother walks away from him, and he has to live independently. Soichi doesn't know basic things such as cooking or washing his clothes. He then decides to live with Maki Ryota, a coworker who is good at housekeeping. One day, Ryota and Kurosawa Musashi, a gay coworker, both confess their feelings to Soichi.

Ossans' Love was a very popular drama on MDL too, scoring the rating of 8.5 and dealing with some touchy subjects such as gay relationships and office romance among men.

Excellence Awards for Drama Series

Hiyokko: The year is 1964, Tokyo is hosting the Olympics and the country is experiencing rapid economic growth. Mineko, a 17-year-old, born in a farming family, is also facing a major turning point in her life. Her father went to work in Tokyo but has gone missing. Mineko decides to leave her hometown and go to the big city to find her father and work there so she can support her family. This is a story about a country girl coming into bloom in the big city through her love and losses, hellos and goodbyes.

The Confidence Man JP: The main character, Dahko, is a confident woman whose age and real identity are unknown. She is a woman prone to making silly mistakes and with a soft spot for money, fashion and food. Her partners in crime are a serious, dedicated and confident young man, Bokuchan, and a battle-hardened veteran man, Richard. The team of three resorts to any means necessary to steal money from money-mad unscrupulous company bosses and Mafia dons. Watching them cheat and be cheated, sometimes even deceived by their friends, and wonder what tricks they will use next in order to take money from their targets. And so, an unpredictable game of deception begins.

Overprotected Kahoko: is not a simple drama that chronicles the growth and transformation of an overly protected child. Similar to Princess Ann in "Roman Holiday", this drama depicts the various experiences and struggles of a young woman who finally ascends to the throne and becomes the queen of her small kingdom called "family".

Unnatural: The drama takes place at a newly established lab named "Unnatural Death Institute (UDI) Lab" where specialists investigate the cause of unnatural deaths. There is a truth to be discovered under the unnatural deaths. The heroin Mikoto cooperates with her intensive co-workers, dealing with many bodies of "unnatural deaths" that are carried into UDI every day. The theme of the drama is to change the world by facing death. Each episode is a complete story disclosing the secrets and truths behind the different cases of deaths. It is a story full of suspense and entertainment. Unnatural also won the Special Award.

Ishi Tsubute: Inspector Saimi feels alienated on his first day as the Intelligence Unit manager. He transferred from Criminal Investigation Division 4 to 2 and is reunited with an old colleague, Inspector Kizaki, who bears a grudge against him. Kizaki is tipped off about a corrupt official from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs as they prepare for the G8 summit in Okinawa. Kizaki knows the official will be tempted by the astronomical funds and he sees a chance to apprehend the corrupt official who believes he's above the law. Kizaki won't accept Saimi's help after a Cabinet Secretariat bribery case he worked on was sabotaged. However, when the Foreign Affairs corruption develops into a national scandal, it could be too big for them.

Best Drama Special

Kurara Hokusai no Musume _{Best Drama Special}

The act of painting was always kurara to O-Ei, the daughter of the Edo period master painter Katsushika Hokusai. Since her childhood, she was captivated by painting. O-Ei marries a town painter, but she soon chooses art over marriage and divorces him. Once she returns to the family home, she begins assisting her father. O-Ei is by his side as he completes his iconic "Thirty-six Views of Mount Fuji" series. When Hokusai grew too old to wield his brush freely, O-Ei becomes his "brush" and paints on his behalf. It's during this time that she starts to grow a strong fascination with colours as she finally develops her own painting style.

Excellence Awards for Drama Specials

Older Brother, Younger Sister: One day, Momoko reveals she had a miscarriage, but refuses to say who the father is. Inosuke, over-protective as ever out of his love of his little sister, is outraged. In a fit of anger, he hits her. Not one to take such abuse lying down, Momoko bites his arm. Soon, the two are fighting like cats and dogs. That pulled the trigger, Momoko moves out of the house.

Kohaku no Yume: Katsumi Yoneda is a police sergeant who is about to retire. One day at his favourite café, he finds a booklet featuring a café called Kohaku, which is located in Uozu, Toyama. Soon after he rushes into a bullet train to make his way to the café, holding documents regarding an unsolved case of 25 years ago.

The Murder of Roger Ackroyd: Based on the novel of the same name by Agatha Christie.

Miss Sherlock: Wato Tachibana has just returned to Japan after working as a volunteer doctor in Syria. She's greeted at the airport by her mentor, Takayuki Mizuno. He suddenly collapses and dies after his stomach explodes. The case is assigned to Inspector Reimon and Sergeant Shibata of the Tokyo Metropolitan Police. They work alongside Miss Sherlock, a talented and arrogant consulting detective. Wato helps out, determined to understand Mizuno's death and give closure to his widow. Sherlock discovers the cause of death was a remotely triggered bomb. Will they find the culprit before more deaths occur?

Hashi Monogatari: Chiisana Hashi de: A story of a struggling mother and her two children in the heart of Edo, whose father had suddenly disappeared. It's been four years since Tamizo has gone missing, 10-year-old Koji lives with his mother Omaki and sister Oryo. His mother works tirelessly to make ends meet while grudging over her missing husband. Koji sees her with mixed emotions. One day his sister Oryo, who constantly had fights with her mother runs away from the family...

Mothers 2017 - The pregnant homeless women: is a drama that depicts the bonds of life. It is set in a house called" Smile Baby" that is run by an NPO, which through special adoption is able to connect mothers who cannot raise their babies with those who are not blessed with children. Chukyo drafted an original script and created this story based on extensive coverage of the actual NPO.

You May Dream: This story depicts the path how the legendary band "SHEENA AND ROKKETS" was born.