Takuya Kimura and Takako Matsu in Anticipated J-Dramas

J-drama fans are in for a treat with two new year specials – La Grande Maison Tokyo Special starring Takuya Kimura explores the world of haute cuisine, while the heartwarming Slow Train, led by Takako Matsu, dives into changing nature of family bonds amid modern times.

Takuya Kimura is the Comeback Chef

Despite being the first Asian female chef to earn three Michelin stars within a year of opening, Hayami’s (Kyoka Suzuki) business is hit hard by the pandemic. Forced to collaborate with a large corporation for survival, she loses her pure passion for cooking and saw the restaurant’s quality declining, leading to the loss of all its stars. Disheartened, she visits a French restaurant in Kyoto called Meilleur Kyoto, where she experiences a course meal that rekindles her belief—and is convinced that it is the work of Natsuki Obana (Takuya Kimura), its disgraced former head chef, who was supposedly making his mark in Paris.

Why did Obana suddenly return to Japan? Can Grand Maison Tokyo, now devoid of its star ratings, make a glorious comeback?

Sharing on the impact of the pandemic on the food and beverage sector, lead actor Takuya Kimura, who returns with a brand-new blonde hairstyle, emphasized that the special episode “could not avoid addressing this reality”. He expressed his hopes for the drama to authentically portray how restaurants cope and persist in the face of such challenges.

Also joining the cast are heavyweight actors Masataka Kubota – who plays the head chef of Meilleur Kyoto Riku Yuasa, as well as Kazuki Kitamura. Kubota revealed that Kimura personally taught him how to perfect a chef’s hand movements and gestures while Kitamura, who plays a corporate executive expressed his excitement at the opportunity to be part of the cast.

Slow Train, A Heartwarming Family Journey

Led by Takako Matsu and co-starring Mikako Tabe, Tori Matsuzaka, Gen Hoshino, and Joo Jong-hyuk, Slow Train is set in both Kamakura, Japan, and Busan, South Korea and follows three siblings—Yoko (Takako Matsu), Miyako (Mikako Tabe), and Ushio (Tori Matsuzaka)—who share the tragic experience of losing their parents and grandmother in a traffic accident. Returning from a memorial service for their parents, Miyako suddenly announces her plan to go to Korea, marking a pivotal moment in their lives.

Asked about a defining moment in her life, Takako cited her role in the acclaimed Long Vacation, revealing that she hesitated to accept the role at first as she wanted to focus on stage acting. However, after much persuasion from those around her, she took the leap into the career-defining role.

Portraying an eldest sibling onscreen, Matsu, who was the youngest in her family, shared that she “grew up watching her older siblings get scolded while sneaking around herself.” Playing the eldest sister was thus a new and enjoyable experience for her.

Reflecting on working with her co-stars for the first time, she recalled an amusing moment—both actors were very quiet while waiting on set, making her wonder if they had a bad relationship. Concerned, she discreetly asked Tabe about it, only to receive a surprised response: “Huh? We even played a couple before! We’re great friends!”, which left Matsu laughing at her needless concern.

Source: 1

Related Articles

Responses