
SMAP×SMAP was an ongoing weekly Japanese variety show on Kansai TV and Fuji TV starring the members of SMAP. The show began on April 15, 1996 and it aired from 22:00 to 22:54 every Monday. The show's usual ratings were higher than 20%, which is considered high since most variety shows range from 10-20%. Each episode begins a variety of skits, comedic performances, and/or games. These are followed by Bistro SMAP, in which the SMAP members compete against each other to impress celebrity judges with their gourmet cooking. Last is a musical performance by SMAP which may include celebrity guests, as well.


Satoshi Itomura is an assistant police investigator who belongs to the Metropolitan Police Department’s Scientific Investigation Team. Reenactments, fingerprint and voice data collections, profiling... His team collects scientific evidence and pieces together fragments of information in order to help build evidences. However, Itomura often does not care about the scientific approach and instead pays a great deal of attention to the things that the victims always carried with them or treasured. And he focuses on these things because they usually carry the victim’s dying wishes, understanding that last message not only helps solve the cases but also brings closure to the depressed family of victims.

Uno Meiko is the daughter of parents who run a western style restaurant in Tokyo. She marries and moves to Osaka with her husband. Meiko experiences cultural differences between Tokyo and Osaka, as she lives as a mother and wife in Osaka.

Yoshitsune is a Japanese television drama series originally broadcast between 9 January and 11 December 2005, with a three-part special compilation being aired from 24 December to 25 December 2005. The 44th Taiga Drama, the original work is by Miyao Tomiko, screenplay by Kaneko Narito and starring Hideaki Takizawa.

Murasaki Shikibu (Yoshitaka Yuriko), the heroine of this story, wrote the bestseller 'The Tale of Genji,' transcending a thousand years during the Heian period. She weaves the story of Hikaru Genji, fueled by her love for Fujiwara no Michinaga (Emoto Tasuku), with her hidden passion and incomparable imagination. It is a tale of a woman who lived with unchanging love in an ever-changing world. (From TV JAPAN)

Born in 1937 in Osaka as the eldest daughter, Kawahara Kimiko moves to Shigaraki with her family at the age of 9. She works to support her family from a young age. Eventually, she jumps into the male world of pottery and becomes a pioneer of female ceramic arts. After marrying her husband who is also involved in ceramics and owning her own kiln, she raises her two children while struggling to create unique ware.

Hanasaki Mai is but an ordinary employee of a bank, with zero diplomacy. She doesn't think twice about pointing out her boss' mistakes. Her job is to investigate any wrongdoings in the bank branches. She is the voice of the suppressed staff who are unable to go against their bosses. Her partner is the veteran staff, Soma Ken, whose career with the bank had reached a dead end, no promotions in sight. Together, they resolve all the non-compliance issues at the bank.

Naotora Ii is a woman given a male name, who succeeded as the head of the Ii family during the Warring States period when her father passed away. With her wisdom, courage and affection for loved ones, Naotora lived through turbulent times and paved the way for the future of her clan.

University student Sawano Natsumi lives in Shonan, Kanagawa Prefecture. An encounter in Hawaii makes her decide to bring the popular pancake restaurant Eggs n’ Things to Japan, which sparks a pancake boom in the country. Despite suffering difficulties and setbacks, Natsumi fulfils her dream, motivated by thoughts of her father as well as the support of family and friends.

Detective Goro Akechi has a passion for fine dining. Good-looking but incredibly quirky, he solves food-related crimes by using, well, food. He treats Ichigo Kobayashi like his assistant and drags her into all sorts of cases, even though she's perfectly happy just running her food truck.

Detective Goro Akechi has a passion for fine dining. Good-looking but incredibly quirky, he solves food-related crimes by using, well, food. He treats Ichigo Kobayashi like his assistant and drags her into all sorts of cases, even though she's perfectly happy just running her food truck.

Though handsome and successful, Satoru Mukai suddenly realizes he's been single for ten whole years and has no idea how to initiate a new relationship


Born and raised in Hasami, Aoko works as a porcelain painter, taking pride in the quiet rhythm of her craft and the town’s long tradition of pottery. When a solitary ceramic artist from Finland arrives and dismisses painted decoration, Aoko is initially offended, but as she discovers the beauty of his work, she finds herself increasingly drawn to both his art and the man behind it.