Asadora

Renzoku Terebi Shōsetsu (連続テレビ小説^?, "serial TV novel"), also known as asadora (朝ドラ^?, "Morning Drama"), is a serialized television series broadcast in the mornings by Japanese broadcaster NHK. The asadora started in 1961 with the black-and-white Musume to Watashi (娘と私), starring Takeshi Kitazawa. Today, works in the first half of the year are produced by the NHK Tokyo Broadcasting station and works in the second half of the year are produced by the NHK Osaka Broadcasting station.

Asadora currently airs in Japan Monday through Saturday morning on NHK General TV from 8:00 to 8:15, with a rebroadcast the same day from 12:45 to 13:00. The asadora have become some of the most popular shows on Japanese television, with series such as Oshin, earning an overall 52.6-percent ratings for the series.

Virtually all of the storylines center on the life of a female heroine who faces challenges while working to achieve her dreams. The heroine is chosen by NHK through an audition that involves interviews with several thousand applicants. The winning actress not only stars in an asadora, but also becomes a spokeswoman for NHK, and is usually involved in NHK-sponsored events—including the annual Kōhaku Uta Gassen New Year's Eve event. Often, the asadora serves as a springboard for the actress to bigger and better opportunities within the Japanese entertainment industry.

The current series is Asa ga Kita (2015–2016).

Series

	Title	Debut	Ending	Notes
1	Musume to Watashi (娘と私)	1961	1962	Starring Takeshi Kitazawa in a story of a father taking care of his step-daughter, born between his now-deceased wife and a Frenchman.
2	Ashita no kaze (あしたの風)	1962	1963	Starring Fumiko Watanabe in drama of a poor family after the war. The first Asadora to be broadcast in 15-minute episodes Monday through Saturday.
3	Akatsuki (あかつき)	1963	1964	Starring Shin Saburi as a professor who quits the university to become a painter.
4	Uzushio (うず潮)	1964	1965	Starring Michiko Hayashi as a woman born in poverty who lives a brave life. Based on a novel by Fumiko Hayashi.
5	Tamayura (たまゆら)	1965	1966	Starring Chishū Ryū as an old man who begins to travel after he retires. From a story written for television by Yasunari Kawabata.
6	Ohanahan (おはなはん)	1966	1967	Starring Fumie Kashiyama as a woman, born in the Meiji era, who raises a family by herself.
7	Tabiji (旅路)	1967	1968	Starring Tadashi Yokouchi in a narrative about an employee of the national railroad living through 50 years of modern history with his wife.
8	Ashita koso (あしたこそ)	1968	1969	Starring Yumiko Fujita in a family drama. The first color Asadora.
9	Nobuko to obāchan (信子とおばあちゃん)	1969	1970	Starring Naoko Otani as a young woman living with her grandmother.
10	Niji (虹)	1970	1971	Starring Yōko Minamida as a woman who supported her family during and after World War II.
11	Mayuko hitori (繭子ひとり)	1971	1972	Starring Karin Yamaguchi. Second highest rated Asadora with an average rating of 47.4%.
12	Ai yori aoku (藍より青く)	1972	1973	Starring Hiroko Maki. Screenplay by Taiichi Yamada. Third highest rated Asadora at 47.3%.
13	Kita no kazoku (北の家族)	1973	1974	Starring Yōko Takahashi in a story about a brother and sister coming of age in Hakodate and Kanazawa.
14	Hatoko no umi (鳩子の海)	1974	1975	Starring Mihoko Fujita as a woman who lost her memory after experiencing the atomic bombing of Hiroshima.
15	Mizuiro no toki (水色の時)	1975	1975	Starring Shinobu Otake in a story about a young woman striving to become a doctor and her mother, who is a nurse. The first six-month Asadora. Average rating of 40.1%.
16	Ohayōsan (おはようさん)	1975	1976	Starring Yoko Akino in a contemporary story about a woman office worker.
17	Kumo no jūtan (雲のじゅうたん)	1976	1976	Starring Yōko Asaji as a woman who wants to become a pilot.
18	Hi no kuni ni (火の国に)	1976	1977	Starring Keiko Suzuka about a woman who strives to become a landscape gardener.
19	Ichibanboshi (いちばん星)	1977	1977	A dramatization of the life of the singer Chiyako Sato. Michiko Godai replaced Haruna Takase in the lead two months into the series when Takase became ill.
20	Kazamidori (風見鶏)	1977	1978	Starring Harumi Arai as a woman who marries a German and starts a bakery in Kobe.
21	Otei-chan (おていちゃん)	1978	1978	Starring Chikako Yuri in a dramatization of the life of Sadako Sawamura.
22	Watashi wa umi (わたしは海)	1978	1979	Starring Tomoko Aihara. About a woman raising war orphans.
23	Mā-nē-chan (マー姉ちゃん)	1979	1979	Based on autobiographical stories penned by manga artist Machiko Hasegawa and featuring her older sister. Starring Mami Kumagai and Yūko Tanaka.
24	Ayu no uta (鮎のうた)	1979	1980	Starring Senri Yamazaki as a woman who makes her life at a fishing port.
25	Natchan no shashinkan (なっちゃんの写真館)	1980	1980	Starring Tomoko Hoshino as a woman who strives to become a photographer.
26	Niji o oru (虹を織る)	1980	1981	Starring Misako Konno as a woman from Hagi, Yamaguchi, who joins the Takarazuka Revue.
27	Mansaku no hana (まんさくの花)	1981	1981	A rare Asadora that is wholly set in contemporary Japan.
28	Honjitsu mo seiten nari (本日も晴天なり)	1981	1982	Starring Hideko Hara as a woman who becomes a radio announcer and then a writer.
29	Haikara-san (ハイカラさん)	1982	1982	Starring Satomi Tezuka as a woman who starts a hotel in the Meiji era.
30	Yōi don (よーいドン)	1982	1983	Starring Kumiko Fujiyoshi as a woman who suffers family hardships before achieving success as a marathon runner.
31	Oshin (おしん)	1983	1984	Starring Ayako Kobayashi, Yūko Tanaka, and Nobuko Otowa – Oshin's perseverance pulls her through various challenges during her life. Episode on November 12, 1983 is the highest rated in Japanese television drama history, with 62.9 percent.
32	Romansu (ロマンス)	1984	1984	Starring Takaaki Enoki as a young man who becomes a film director. The first Asadora with a male lead since 1967.
33	Kokoru wa itsumo ramune-iro (心はいつもラムネ色)	1984	1985	Starring Eisaku Shindō as a man who loves manzai. Average rating of 40.2%.
34	Miotsukushi (澪つくし)	1985	1985	Starring Yasuko Sawaguchi. Average rating of 44.3%.
35	Ichiban-daiko (いちばん太鼓)	1985	1986	Starring Shin'ichirō Okano. About a man who enters the world of popular theatre.
36	Hanekonma (はね駒)	1986	1986	Starring Yuki Saito. Average rating of 41.7%.
37	Miyako no kaze (都の風)	1986	1987	Starring Miyuki Kanō. A woman from Kyoto moves to Nara and runs a ryokan and then enters the fashion industry.
38	Chotchan (チョッちゃん)	1987	1987	Starring Hiro Komura. Based on the autobiography of Tetsuko Kuroyanagi's mother.
39	Hassai Sensei (はっさい先生)	1987	1988	Starring Mayumi Wakamura. About a woman from Tokyo who goes to teach at an all-boys school.
40	Non-chan no yume (ノンちゃんの夢)	1988	1988	Starring Tomoko Fujita. About a woman who struggles to survive after World War II and starts a magazine. Average rating of 39.1%.
41	Jun-chan no ōenka (純ちゃんの応援歌)	1988	1989	Starring Tomoko Yamaguchi in her acting debut. Average rating of 38.6%.
42	Seishun kazoku (青春家族)	1989	1989	Stars Misa Shimizu and Ayumi Ishida. Average rating of 37.8%.
43	Wakko no kin medaru (和っこの金メダル)	1989	1990	About a female volleyball player who helps out the local community. Starring Azusa Watanabe.
44	Rinrin to (凛凛と)	1990	1990	About a man who developed an early television system. Starring Minoru Tanaka.
45	Kyō, futari (京、ふたり)	1990	1991	Set in an old Kyoto tsukemono store, this series depicted the conflicts between a woman, her daughter and her father-in-law.
46	Kimi no na wa (君の名は)	1991	1992	The first year-long series since Oshin. Starred Kyoka Suzuki, but ended up being the first Asadora with an average rating under 30%.
47	Onna wa dokyō (おんなは度胸)	1992	1992	Chronicles the conflicts between a woman and her step-daughter in a hot springs town. Starring Pinko Izumi and Sachiko Sakurai.
48	Hirari (ひらり)	1992	1993	Starring Hikari Ishida. Screenplay by Makiko Uchidate, who is a member of the Japan Sumo Association, and is involved in sumo matters, such as advancing rikishi to the rank of Yokozuna. The storyline evolves around sumo - as the heroine become a nutritionist and works within the sumo system. Average rating of 36.9%.
49	Ee Nyobo (ええにょぼ)	1993	1993	A woman works hard to become a good doctor even though she is separated from her husband. Starring Naho Toda.
50	Karin (かりん)	1993	1994	A young woman, whose family runs an old miso company in Nagano Prefecture, lives through the hardships of postwar Japan. Starring Naomi Hosokawa. Last Asadora to top 30% in ratings.
51	Piano (ぴあの)	1994	1994	About the youngest of four sisters, all raised solely by their father, who wants to write children's books. Starring Risa Junna.
52	Haru yo, koi (春よ、来い)	1994	1995	A successful screenwriter looks back on her life when she learns her husband has cancer. A year-long series, starring Narumi Yasuda.
53	Hashiran ka! (走らんか!)	1995	1996	Set in Hakata, the series is about a young man who wants to play rock music even though his father expects him to follow him in making Hakata ningyō. One of the few Asadora starring a male character.
54	Himawari (ひまわり)	1996	1996	About a woman, played by Nanako Matsushima, striving to become a lawyer.
55	Futarikko (ふたりっこ)	1996	1997	About a female professional shogi player and her twin sister. Starring Hiromi Iwasaki and Maiko Kikuchi, with Kana Mikura and Mana Mikura (ManaKana) playing them as children. Average rating of 29.0%
56	Aguri (あぐり)	1997	1997	Based on the life of the beauty stylist Aguri Yoshiyuki, who married the novelist Eisuke Yoshiyuki and became the mother of the novelist Junnosuke Yoshiyuki and the actress Kazuko Yoshiyuki. Starring Misato Tanaka and Mansai Nomura.
57	Amakarashan (甘辛しゃん)	1997	1998	About a young woman who hopes to become a sake brewer. Starring Yumiko Sato.
58	Ten Urara (天うらら)	1998	1998	About a young woman training to be a carpenter who, through her own family situation, learns about the need for a barrier-free world. Starring Risa Sudo.
59	Yanchakure (やんちゃくれ)	1998	1999	About a young woman in Osaka who helps resurrect a shipbuilding company. Starring Miho Konishi.
60	Suzuran (すずらん)	1999	1999	Follows the life of a woman, raised in a coal town in Hokkaido by a father who worked on the railroad, from the 1920s to the 1930s. Starring Nagiko Tōno and Chieko Baisho.
61	Asuka (あすか)	1999	2000	Asuka learns to become a wagashi maker, even though wagashi is a heavily male-dominated field. Starring Yūko Takeuchi.
62	Watashi no aozora (私の青空)	2000	2000	About a young woman whose fiancé leaves her, pregnant, at the altar. With her son, she leaves for Tsukiji to make it on her own. Starring Tomoko Tabata.
63	Ōdorī (Audrey オードリー)	2000	2001	About a young woman involved in the Japanese film industry in Kyoto. Starring Aya Okamoto.
64	Churasan (ちゅらさん)	2001	2001	The first Asadora set in Okinawa. Starring Ryōko Kuninaka.
65	Honmamon (ほんまもん)	2001	2002	About a young woman striving to become a chef in Wakayama Prefecture. Starring Chizuru Ikewaki.
66	Sakura (さくら)	2002	2002	Sakura Matsushita is a third-generation Japanese-American, living in Honolulu, Hawaii. Her dream is to become an ESL teacher in Japan, and moves there to achieve her dream.
67	Manten (まんてん)	2002	2003	Starring Mao Miyaji. About a woman who studies to be a meteorologist.
68	Kokoro (こころ)	2003	2003	Starring Noriko Nakagoshi. Set in Asakusa, Tokyo.
69	Teruteru Kazoku (てるてる家族)	2003	2004	Starring Satomi Ishihara and based on a novel by Rei Nakanishi. First Asadora to average under 20% in ratings.
70	Tenka (天花)	2004	2004	Starring Ema Fujisawa as a young woman from Sendai, Miyagi
71	Wakaba (わかば)	2004	2005	Starring Natsuki Harada as a young woman who becomes a landscaper
72	Fight (ファイト)	2005	2005	Yuika Motokariya stars as 15-year-old Kido Yū, living with her family in Takasaki, Gunma Prefecture. Yū faces tough times, and relies on the friendship of a horse to keep her spirits up.
73	Kaze no Haruka (風のハルカ)	2005	2006	Starring Eri Murakawa. Takes place in Yufuin, Ōita Prefecture. Haruka's goal is to become a travel agent, and moves to Osaka, leaving her father and sister behind, to achieve her dream.
74	Junjō Kirari (純情きらり)	2006	2006	Starring Aoi Miyazaki. Sakurako's dream is to become a jazz pianist. Events take place in Okazaki, Aichi Prefecture.
75	Imo Tako Nankin (芋たこなんきん)	2006	2007	Based on a true story, Naomi Fujiyama plays the heroine role of Machiko Hanaoka - a 37-year-old woman who dreams of becoming a novelist. She marries into an extended family. Events take place in the city of Osaka.
76	Dondo Hare (どんど晴れ)	2007	2007	Stars Manami Higa. Screenplay by Eriko Komatsu. Natsumi marries an heir of a high class ryokan, located in Morioka, Iwate Prefecture. She then becomes the ryokan's okami or manager.
77	Chiritotechin (ちりとてちん)	2007	2008	Starring Shihori Kanjiya. The storyline focuses on the art of rakugo. Kiyomi's dream is to become a rakugoka, despite rakugo being a male-dominated field.
78	Hitomi (瞳)	2008	2008	Starring Nana Eikura. Hitomi's dream is to become a dancer of modern music.
79	Dandan (だんだん)	2008	2009	Starring identical twins Mana and Kana Mikura (of Futarikko fame). Finding each other years after being separated as children, they work together to achieve their dreams as singers.
80	Tsubasa (つばさ)	2009	2009	Starring Mikako Tabe as Tsubasa who works at a local radio station, and eventually becomes a disc jockey.
81	Wel-kame (ウェルかめ)	2009	2010	About a girl from Minami-cho, Tokushima who, inspired by seeing a sea turtle when she was six, strives to become a magazine editor. Lowest rated Asadora at 13.5%.
82	Gegege no Nyobo (ゲゲゲの女房)	2010	2010	Starring Nao Matsushita. Fumie is the wife of manga artist Shigeru Mizuki. The screen play is based on her rags to riches biography.
83	Teppan (てっぱん)	2010	2011	Starring Miori Takimoto and Sumiko Fuji. Akari's natural mother is originally from Osaka. She moves to Osaka to live with her grandmother to learn more about her mother. She learns that her grandmother closed the okonomiyaki restaurant after Akari's teenage mother ran away. Akari then re-opens the restaurant.
84	Ohisama (おひさま)	2011	2011	Starring Mao Inoue. The title refers to the sun, and thus also relates to the heroine Yoko, whose name means "child of the sun". Yoko's dream is to become a school teacher, but she also experiences tough times during the Pacific War.
85	Carnation (カーネーション)	2011	2012	Starring Machiko Ono. Based on the life of fashion designer Ayako Koshino. Her three daughters would eventually all become fashion designers.
86	Umechan Sensei (梅ちゃん先生)	2012	2012	Starring Maki Horikita, who plays a young woman striving to become a physician in post-World War II Tokyo.
87	Jun to Ai (純と愛)	2012	2013	Starring Natsuna as a young woman who wants to start her ideal hotel. Set in Osaka and Miyakojima.
88	Amachan (あまちゃん)	2013	2013	Starring Rena Nōnen as a young woman who becomes an ama and then an idol before returning to Tohoku to help revive the area after the earthquake.
89	Gochisōsan (ごちそうさん)	2013	2014	Starring Anne Watanabe as a young woman trying to learn how to cook Japanese cuisine during the Taisho and Shōwa periods.
90	Hanako to Anne (花子とアン)	2014	2014	Starring Yuriko Yoshitaka as Hanako Muraoka, the woman who first translated Anne of Green Gables into Japanese.
91	Massan (マッサン)	2014	2015	Starring Charlotte Kate Fox as Ellie Kameyama, wife of Masaharu Kameyama, portrayed by Tetsuji Tamayama, a man who starts whisky brewing in Japan. It is based on the life of Rita Taketsuru, a Scotswoman who married the Japanese man Masataka Taketsuru, the father of Japan's whisky industry. The title comes from Rita's nickname for Masataka.
92	Mare (まれ)	2015	2015	Starring Tao Tsuchiya as a young woman from the Noto Peninsula who wants to become a patissier.
93	Asa ga Kita (あさが来た)	2015	2016	Starring Haru as Asa Imai.
94	Toto Neechan (とと姉ちゃん)	2016	2016	Starring Mitsuki Takahata as Tsuneko Kohashi.
95	Beppinsan (べっぴんさん)	2016	2017

See also

• Television in Japan
• Japanese television drama
• Taiga drama

External links

• Official webpage (Japanese)