Yr/TV Stn: 2012/Fuji TV
Cast:
Nakai Kiichi ~ Kurashiki/the navigator (ep1-11)
Karasawa Toshiaki ~ Ishigami Junichi (ep1) Tanaka Rena ~ Mochizuki Naomi (ep1)
Sakaguchi Kenji ~ Sato Takuya (ep2)
Matsushita Nao ~ Tamura Atsuko (ep3)
Mizuki Alisa ~ Asano Yoko (ep4)
Sorimachi Takashi ~ Nakagawa Nobuhiko (ep5) Kato Ai ~ Nakagawa Naomi (ep5)
Nagasawa Masami ~ Aoyama Yayoi (ep6)
Toda Erika ~ Nakamachi Yukiko (ep7) Hiraoka Yuta ~ Morita Hisashi (ep7)
Miura Haruma ~ Nakaoka Ryo (ep8)
Hirosue Ryoko ~ Iida Tomomi (ep9)
Shinohara Ryoko ~ Yamaoka Asako (ep10)
Tanabe Seiichi ~ Murakami Teruhiko (ep10)
Suzuki Kyoka ~ Nakao Akiyo (ep11)
Synopsis: (edited from Dramawiki)
11 mysteries, 11 actors. Japan's favorite mystery author, the world of Higashino Keigo comes to life on screen through an assortment of short stories. For every episode, there will be a different lead actor and story, it's themes varying from mystery to comedy to horror to human drama. Kurashiki is the navigator as he takes you on a journey through each episode, seasoned with Higashino's authentic spices, failing your assumptions with vivid story composition and an even bigger betrayal before the finale.
Review:
It has been sometime since I last watched a Japanese drama which consisted of several stories. If you're familiar with J detective dramas or novels, Higashino Keigo would be a familiar name to you as many of his works were adapted into dramas and movies. I did not know that Higashino has written so many short stories, as his usual novels are much more popular.
The drama managed to secure many Japanese A-listers to act as the story lead, but the drama flopped in ratings. Once again, it's proven that plot is an important factor that determines whether the drama wld do well. Actors are somehow secondary.
Personally, I only found some of the stories entertaining, like Ep 1 featuring Karawsawa, Ep 2 featuring Sakaguchi, Ep 7 featuring Toda (who performed very well), Ep 9 featuring Hirosue (the story got a nice twist, but Hirosue's acting was average) and Suzuki's Ep 11. The rest was medicore in terms of plot, mystery factor and acting.
The stories are not connected to each other, so you can just watch the episode featuring your favourite actor. It's a pity that this drama somehow affected Higashino's "brand name", but then again, there are too many mysteries authors who wrote similar stuff.
