Anata wo Ubatta Sono Hi Kara 終わり

The final episode of the Keiko Kitagawa child abduction revenge drama Anata wo Ubatta Sono Hi kara wrapped tonight, and, as expected, was full of gripping and emotional scenes from beginning to end! Anata Ubatte was my favorite drama this season (of the small handful I checked out), and it had me on the edge of my seat as the emotional story played out, keeping me guessing just what was going to happen next!

One thing this drama had going for it was a really really great cast, led by the amazing Nao Omori and Keiko Kitagawa as the parents pitted against each other for the loss of a daughter.

Sawa Niimura and Michitaka Tsutsui 

Ryohei Abe

Yukiko Koshikawa

Must mention newcomer Kasumi Isshiki who played the central daughter figure Mimi/Moeko, the aforementioned "abducted child" who was the heart that held the whole drama together.

Also must mention how great Yuna Taira was in this as the daughter Ririko. In my initial post I remarked that she was the one character who seemed to be unpredictable as she kept her true motivations close to her chest, and indeed, had one of the most pivotal arcs in the series.

I've loved Yuna for some time now, but was really impressed with her acting in this one!

While the Dan Rei Drama "Youkami No Semi" remains my favorite in the kidnapped/abducted child genre, Anata wo Ubatta Sono Hi kara was a compelling show in its own right, and is certainly another one of Keiko Kitagawa's finer efforts!

Looking forward to Keiko's upcoming film "Night Flower"!

Detectives For the Deceased: "Go Home~Keishichou Mimoto Fumeinin Soudanshitsu"

Fuka Koshiba and Yuko Oshima are on the Case in "Go Home"

The new criminal drama GO HOME reminds me of unsolved crime mystery dramas like COLD CASE and UNNATURAL, but what it perhaps reminds me MOST of is the 2017 Arisa Mizuki  drama “Beautiful Bones~ Sakurako’s Investigation” (Sakurako-san no Ashimoto ni wa Shitai ga Umatteiru), with Forensics expert Sakurako (Mizuki) solving cold case crimes via analysis of the deceased person’s bones.

GO HOME (or, rather, it’s complete name  Go Home Keishichou Mimoto Fumeinin Soudanshitsu ) concerns the Metropolitan Police Department Unidentified Person Consultation Office, the division of the Police dealing with dead bodies that, for one reason or another, the authorities have not been able to identify. Examining the remains (as well as clothing and other accessories), this specialized team hope to put a name to the deceased and “Send them back home”.

Our main character is the passionate Sakura Mita (Fuka Koshiba), who cares deeply for the deceased, and, experiencing personal tragedies of her own, hopes to ease the pain of the victim’s loved ones and put the spirit of the dead to rest by solving the mystery of the body.

We have her senior Makoto Tsukimoto (Yuko Oshima), a woman who, unlike the exciteable and spazzy Mita, is gruff and no-nonsense. She also has lost a loved one in her past, and, seeing Mita's zeal, inevitably ends up partnering with Sakura to crack the cases even after the department has officially dropped it!

Kotaro Yoshida plays Joji Tonegawa, the girls’ long-suffering supervisor who must put up with their gung-ho attitude and must frequently rein in their overeager activities once they go beyond their jurisdiction! Half his time is spent reprimanding them and arguing with them!

Also on the team we have Naofumi Horiguchi (Shigeyuki Totsugi) and Haruo Muto (Kazuaki Hankai) as sketch artist….

Investigative agent Junnosuke Teshima (Ryohei Abe), the driven "Cop" of the show....

…forensics expert Natsu Serizawa (Miki Yanagi) who is frequently inundated with requests from the overachieving girls, much to her consternation...

She'd just as soon turn them away, if not for the intervention of the Forensics department head Ikumi Hayase (played by the awesome Reiko Takashima!!!) who doesn't hesitate to help....

Reiko Takashima! Now THERE'S a face  I haven't seen in awhile!

Truly a mish-mash of personalities at THIS Metropolitan Station, but when they come together using all their own unique skills, there isn’t any case they can’t solve!

So far a very entertaining show and I like the partnership of Fuka Koshiba and Yuko Oshima as a veritable “Cagney and Lacey” of the Unidentified Person Division! Their colorful banter and cool crackerjack attitude makes for fun watching!

Several "Backstories" to these characters, and though I'm interested in them (especially Fuka Koshiba's character), I'm dreading the eventual corrupt cops cliches and overused tropes that will surely infiltrate the show. Sigh, would be wonderful to have an original ending, guess we can only wait and see....