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| New Special TV Asahi Drama “Kanshu no Ryugi” Stars Takeuchi Ryoma and Kimura Fumino |
Human mystery meets emotional redemption in TV Asahi’s powerful June special drama.
Get ready for something a little different this June—TV Asahi is serving up a proper slice of raw, emotional drama with Kanshu no Ryugi (“The Way of the Prison Guard”), and it stars none other than Takeuchi Ryoma and Kimura Fumino in their very first on-screen pairing.
Set to air on 21 June 2025 at 9pm, this one-off drama takes us behind the heavily guarded walls of a prison in Kanazawa, where life isn’t just about rules and punishment—but about second chances, quiet kindness, and the ripple effects of compassion in the unlikeliest of places.
A prison mystery with heart—and high stakes
Based on the award-winning novel by Shinichi Shiroyama (who bagged the Kono Mystery ga Sugoi! grand prize), Kanshu no Ryugi has already been called “the Reiwa-era Shawshank Redemption”—so, yeah, expectations are high.
But it’s not your typical crime drama.
This story zooms in on the deep and often messy humanity inside a prison: the regrets, the quiet battles, the hope, and the slow, painful process of change.
Takeuchi plays Akihiro Munakata, a passionate, fiercely principled prison officer who believes that every inmate deserves a shot at rehabilitation.
He’s the kind of guy who sees more than just a rap sheet—he sees the flicker of a future.
But when he shows a small act of kindness to one inmate, it unexpectedly sets off a chain of events that could bring the entire prison to its knees.
Opposite him is Kimura Fumino as Tsukasa Hiishi, a top-tier, high-IQ officer with a mysterious past—including experience working in a French prison.
With a sharp mind and a scar across her face that hints at untold stories, she’s as unshakeable as they come—and not easily impressed by Munakata’s idealism.
The two often clash in intense scenes, adding even more tension to the already simmering prison setting.
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Real-life research, raw emotions
Before filming kicked off, Takeuchi took the extra step of visiting a real prison to understand his character’s world.
“It was surprisingly clean,” he said.
“There are tough rules, sure, but it felt like a place designed to help people get back on track.”
He even got insights from the prison warden, who told him something that stuck: a good day in prison is a day when nothing happens. That quiet truth became the foundation for how he approached his role.
He added that working under director Yoshihiro Fukagawa (God’s Medical Chart, Court Game) was a daily surprise.
“He always had these unexpected angles—literally and figuratively—that made me rethink everything. It kept me on my toes, and it really helped me grow into the role.”
A first-time pairing full of sparks
As for working with Kimura, Takeuchi described it as “thrilling” and “a bit of a mind game.”
Their characters butt heads a lot, and because Kimura’s character wears her cap low and barely makes eye contact, Takeuchi joked that he had to work hard just to catch her gaze.
“When our eyes finally met? I’d get a bit of a jolt—no lie!” he laughed.
Kimura, for her part, had nothing but praise for her co-star.
“He’s warm and curious, always asking ‘why’ about everything. Even with all the heavy scenes, he kept the set bright with his energy.”
She admitted that playing Hiishi was a challenge, especially with the character’s habit of reading two or three steps ahead in every conversation.
“I had to resist the urge to look people in the eye—it was tough. I ended up staring at his mole and pretending it was an eye!” she said with a laugh.
More than just bars and bunks
This drama isn’t just about the inmates—it’s just as much about the people who try to help them change.
It looks at the weight carried by prison officers, who aren’t just enforcing rules, but helping lost people redefine what it means to live as human beings again.
“This isn’t a story of criminals,” Kimura said. “It’s a story of the ones who push them forward and quietly let them go.”
With a script penned by veteran screenwriter Hiroshi Hashimoto (The Grand Family, Sky Castle Japan remake), and a stellar director at the helm, Kanshu no Ryugi promises a slow-burn, mystery-laced human drama that hits hard when it counts.
So if you're into stories with thick atmosphere, moral grey zones, and a gut-punch of emotion—you might want to cancel your Saturday plans.