At The Front Desk with "Uketsuke No Jo"

An up-and-coming saleman for an advertising company named Takumi Jo (Yuta Jinguji) comes up with a dramatic proposal: Replacing the current reception desk area with an interactive state-of-the-art computer system to help speed up efficiency and save on labor!

 His presentation manages to catch the attention of the execs, in particular superior Todo (Jun Hashimoto), who calls him up to his office with thrilling news: That they have decided to GO AHEAD with Takumi’s proposal and have even created a new department for it, which both he and Todo will be a part of!

Back in the office, Takumi is congratulated by everyone, including his friend and colleague Mitsusaki Haruguchi (Airi Matsui), who has been supporting him since they were both newbies years ago!

But the happiness is short-lived when someone points out that by implementing this new computer proposal, he will be eliminating the receptionist posts and effectively laying all of them off!!!

This is horrible news to hear, as the Women of the Reception Desk have always been radiant, competent and friendly towards all! The desk is currently occupied by four women: 

Prim and efficient Karen Hanafusa (Reina Triendl)

The brash and sassy Niko Ieda (Momoko Tanabe) and the stoic and reserved Yoshiko Kumamoto (Karen Miyama)...

and above them all, the strict and commanding leader Hitomi Sachiyama (Aki Nishihara).

The four women are impeccable at their jobs (well, they all have their personal quirks) and the bottom floor runs like a fine-tuned engine when they are in control. But they have no idea of the proposal which threatens to replace them all!

Back at home, Takumi agonizes over what his plans have set in motion, crying out to his best friend Chikuwa (his stuffed dog) “I never meant to have anyone laid off!”. In the end, he wants to go ahead with the plans with the assurance to the girls that they can find other things to do in the company. But will they accept it?

As expected, when he sends out the proposal to Sachiyama, it is met with cold indifference. In the end he has to confront Sachiyama herself, stammering that he believes his computer plans will be able to do the job as efficiently as them, and to tell them that they will of course be given new opportunities in the company. 

Though she keeps her composure and smiles through her teeth, you can feel the contempt Sachiyama has inside for this brash man and his naive plans- even as he digs out the brochures to show them all about it!

Takumi tells her he wants to know everything about running the desk to incorporate it into his computer system, but as Sachiyama hands over the book of rules, she warns him that it is the things that are NOT in the book that he will have a hard time replacing so easily!

Poring over the rule book that evening, Takumi can’t see what Sachiyama is getting at. Everything in the book seems like it can be easily replicated via computer, and in fact, looks like it might make the girls lives easier. But he worries about the intangible factor that Sachiyama referred to.

Haraguchi calls him out for a beer to talk things through like they did in their rookie days, and reminds him that his greatest strength is thinking outside of the box to get solutions. She reminds him of a time when he even took the job of a waiter in a restaurant to get a client, and it’s here he has his epiphany!

The next morning, as the receptionist women are getting ready for the busy day, that they are met with a MOST curious sight: Takumi HIMSELF dressed up in a receptionist outfit and ready to join their team! 

He announces that he cannot realize what makes the job special unless he HIMSELF has the experience of it. And against their stunned faces, he declares: “From today… you can call me: Jo- the Receptionist!!!” 

And so begins his new days working the front desk with the ladies of the company!!!

What will become of this unlikely partnership?!

This is the first drama I am seeing with this actor Yuta Jinguji, whom I have just learned is a member of “King and Prince”. An instantly likeable guy, he’s a good lead here but of course it helps that he is supported by a GREAT team of actresses, most of whom I absolutely LOVE and would watch no matter WHO the main character was; Airi Matsui, Reina Triendl, longtime fave Karen Miyama, and another sassy role for Miss Momoko Tanabe, whose character Niko seems s lot like her blind character in Koi Desu...but hopefully not as much trouble as her character in Rikokatsu!!! 

So great to see all of them here!

Is This The Real Life? Riho Nakamura Shines in "Cinderella Is Online"

In the online gaming world of "Tenkyo", Riho Nakamura plays a badass character named ViVi, highly skilled and respected by all her colleagues. She has an unusual relationship with an online character named Leon, who marries her out of convenience for the game and drops her just as quickly! But it's all in a day for the vivacious Vivi who doesn't let anything bother her!

That's in the gaming world- In reality, she is a humble student named Ichika Arisawa who unlike her online persona, has no interest in love or romance (a tried and true trope for the ages!), unlike her best friend Umi (Anna Tsuihiji) , who is swooning because a popular boy named Asahi Onoda (Toshiki Seto) is coming!

Ichika herself has no interest in boys- but the two already have a connection that she doesn't know about...that this boy Onoda is in fact Leon, her online partner for months!!!

Fate steps in one day when Ichika is at a restaurant blissfully playing Tenkyo when who should walk in but the Big Man on Campus Asahi Onoda!

He sees the girl playing on her laptop and doesn't give it much thought...

...until he walks by her...and realizes SHE is VIVI!!!

He makes no attempt to approach Ichika, but keeps his eye on her and thus is there when she happens to lose a sneaker when chucking it at the head of a bully. Rushing to slip the shoe back on, in complete Disney Cinderella style, he is immediately captivated by her....

But when Ichika realizes she is interacting with that super popular boy, she instantly becomes shy and with a quick, "Will ya look at the TIME?!"...DASHES away!!!

LOL, seems that though she may be as tough as nails in the gaming world, in real life she isn't QUITE as brave! A very UN auspicious first meeting between the two! LOLOL

I will be the first to admit that this kind of drama with High School Kids, High School Romances and the World of Video Gaming isn't my cup of tea at all, but Riho Nakamura is SO DOGGONE CUTE in this that I just HAD to check it out!!! 

The first episode of this drama was very charming , but I can already see by the previews of the upcoming episodes that it will soon fall into the usual boring and trite make-up-and-break-up teenage romance tropes that all these school dramas do. Will see how long I can stick to it!