As one of the first neighbors Kotaro helps upon moving in, we see Mizuki at her highs and at her lows. But we never see her give up, and above all, you see how wonderful her heart is, beaming whenever she can help Kotaro with baking snacks or helping make bentos for school. 
I love this character!! Mizuki is someone you would want to know, someone so friendly and easy to talk to, and I love how they dedicate moments just to reflect this, whether it be talking story by the trash with Shin (Yu Yokoyama, in one of his best roles as well) in the morning;
Or taking Kotaro to the park to play, she seems so genuinely sweet!
And I love how she is dressed. The outfits we see her wear show her smart sense of what makes a gal look GOOD! Even in jeans and a sweater she looks great (and ooh, that derriere, I must confess…)
And FASHIONABLE! I look forward to seeing what she will be wearing in every scene!
I particularly love this ensemble, sadly the only way I could see the whole length body shot was in group shots:
I first fell in love with Maika in the psychologically dense drama “Shinitai Yoru ni Kagitte” with Maika as the tragic heroine Asuka, a girl struggling with manic depression…
Then, more happily, I saw her in "Ano ko no Yume wo Mitan Desu" as the spirited “Black Belt” girl who tells nerdy hopeful Ryota Yamasato (Taiga Nakano) that she will date him if he can take the red ribbon from her hair.
Oh, how I loved her in this! It was an overall good drama anyway, but the chapter with Maika was by FAR my favorite!!
After that I saw her in the Ryoko Shinohara "Haken No Hinkaku" sequel as temp Chiba Konatsu...
Been clamoring for her to get a starring drama of her own, but while we wait for that lead drama for Maika to come along, for now I will enjoy seeing her each week as the charming Mizuki in Kotaro wa Hitorigurashi!
posed by zdorama @ zdoramaagain.blogspot.com