Osozaki no Himawari - JDrama of the season

OK, I know this is early, but I'm going to declare this fall's JDrama of the season to be Osozaki no Himawari ~ Boku no Jinsei Renewal (遅咲きのヒマワリ〜ボクの人生、リニューアル〜) which could be titled in English something like: the Late Blooming Sunflower - My Life Renewal.

The video above is the opening title for the show, which is a very rare spectacle of the actors of a TV show singing its theme song.

Airing on Fuji TV Tuesday nights at 9PM, it stars Toma Ikuta (生田斗真) as a kid who couldn't quite make it in the big city, and on a whim takes a low-paying job in the middle of nowhere in southern Japan because the rent there is so cheap.

While on the surface the job seems like doing a bunch of menial chores for the aging population of the area, he quickly learns that life in little towns isn't at all simple. Yes, the story in many ways is an almost cliched portrayal of the gossipy, in-your-face style of rural (especially southern) Japan, it has charm, and honest heart, and that's why I'm calling it out as the show to watch this fall.

In addition to Ikuta, the show is overflowing with talent. Maki Yoko (真木よう子) of the Grudge fame lends her talent as the main female lead; she plays a bright research doctor sent back to her home town to work in a failing local hospital. You also have the incredibly talented Yuu Kashii (香椎由宇, here's a cm she did a while back), Kenta Kiritani (桐谷健太), who has really proved himself as a versatile and able actor these last few years, and Yutaka Matsushige (松重豊) playing a nice city official for a change - a bit of a break from the hard-assed cops and thugs he's best known for.

Overall I would say the talent involved alone is enough to make the show worth watching, and so far the story suggests the actors involved did their homework before signing on. Watch it if you can.