This new J-dorama is coming in very low profile with the promotions but it’s high on my personal interest radar. The NTV dorama Kyou wa Kaisha Yasumimasu (Today I’m Not Going to Work) is adapted from the popular shoujo manga of the same name and stars Ayase Haruka, Fukushi Sota, and Tamaki Hiroshi in an interesting love triangle of sorts. This is Ayase Haruka’s first dorama since she wrapped filming the year long Taiga Yae no Sakura and it’s probably a great choice for the extreme change of pace from dramatic to light and frothy.
The story centers around 30-year old office lady Aoshi Hanae, a girl who is a virgin, never dated, and has never missed a day of work. She’s not frigid but is very inexperienced with romance. At an office drinking party, she gets drunk with college part timer Tanokura Yuto and ends up in bed with him. She freaks out the next morning and takes her first day off work ever to work through the shock. She ends up running into Yuto at work and finds out he’s genuinely interested in her and wants to day despite their ten year age different. Hanae gradually warms up to sweet and sincere Yuto only to find herself crossing paths with an older CEO in the same office building Asao Yu who finds himself amused and intrigued by her.
This story doesn’t have a lot of gotcha moments or oomph but instead glides comfortably on the great connection between Hanae and both male leads and centers around how she grows after getting the courage to date a man for the first time in her life. I’ve read all the available manga chapters (the story isn’t done yet) so I can’t tell you who Hanae is supposed to end up with per the mangaka’s original concept but thus far she’s been happily dating Yuto with only Yu making subtle plays for her that she doesn’t reciprocate. There remains the underlying hint that Hanae and Yuto’s age-and-life experience gap will eventually lead them to split. I love the cast and the story so whatever ending the dorama has in store is fine by me. Check out the preview below and the dorama premieres this Wednesday October 15th.
Preview for episode 1:
I’m so excited for this, I’m already prepared for her to pick the younger guy ala Last Cinderella and leave Tamaki for the fans. I just need to know how/where to watch.
So if they make a drama based on an unfinished manga, they are allowed to come up with any ending they want? Wouldn’t that kind of spoil the experience for the manga reader if the remaining chapters turn out to be totally different from the drama?
It’ll probably be an open ending a la the Nodame Cantabile dorama – when they filmed it, the manga wasn’t finished and the dorama only filmed the first nine volumes.
I’m excited for Tamaki Hiroshi <3 He's obviously the second lead in this and unlikely to get the girl, but I'll be rooting for him anyhow. He already looks hot in the suit, haha. I just hope the story won't be as lame as Last Cinderella.
I like Hiroshi so I’ll definitely be rooting for him.
I’m so tired of the innocent, klutzy, unexperienced and timid heroines that the show will have to get rave reviews to make me watch. Can’t we have a confident heroine who knows her way around men?
Last Cinderella v2.0
Like all 3 leads, so will watch out for this. 🙂
hi does anyone know where i can watch this series online with english subs? tried to find it but cant find any working links T.T
Hasn’t Ayase Haruka played this type before? In two seasons and a movie?
But I felt like I was reading the synopsis of Last Cinderella.
I like 2/3 of the cast, but this synopsis doesn’t interest me.
Sounds like Last Cinderella and even some of Ayase’s last drama. Buchou FTW. Oh well. Will wait to see if it’s good.
Echoing what almost everybody said, strong shades of both Last Cinderella and Hotaru no Hikari in this story…
I’ll probably still give it a shot though: I’ve been waiting for a new rom-com J-dorama
Sounds good to me! I need some good dorama in my life.