It was recently announced that actress Yuumi Kawai will star in the 2028 NHK Asadora drama series, "Hon no Mokichi." Kawai is still fresh in people's minds for her appearance in the 2025 morning Asadora, "Anpan," exactly one year ago, where she played Ranko, the second of three sisters and younger sister of the protagonist (heroine), Nobu (Mio Imada). At the time, Kawai captivated many viewers with her remarkable presence, making her a noteworthy candidate for a future Asadora heroine. It could be said that her return to Asadora in a leading role is the best possible outcome.
Kawai is only the third person in the last 10 years to return to a Asadora as the lead after playing the heroine's younger sister. The other two are Hana Sugisaki and Kaya Kiyohara.
Sugisaki played the heroine's younger sister (the youngest of three sisters) in "Toto Nee-chan" in the first half of 2016, and then starred in "Ochoyan" in the second half of 2020. Kiyohara played the heroine's younger sister in "Natsuzora" in the first half of 2019, and then starred in "Okaeri Mone" in the first half of 2021. Both Sugisaki and Kiyohara have continued to be active since starring in Asadora, with Sugisaki receiving an individual award at the "62nd Galaxy Awards" (2024) and Kiyohara winning the Excellent Actress Award and the Haruko Sugimura Award at the "31st Yomiuri Theater Awards" (2023).
This makes me wonder, besides Sugisaki, Kiyohara, and Kawai, who else has played the heroine's younger sister in Asadora over the past 10 years? It's hard to say whether three people in the last 10 years is a lot or a little (is it really that difficult to get the role?), but the role of the heroine's younger sister in a Asadora is, in a sense, a "glorious" position. It's undeniable that it's a position that easily generates buzz during the broadcast period, just like Kawai and others.
From "Toto Nee-chan," which aired exactly 10 years ago, to "Kaze,Kaoru," which is currently airing, there are Asadora in which the heroine's younger sister has appeared: "Toto Nee-chan," "Hiyokko" (first half of 2017), "Warotenka" (second half of 2017), "Natsuzora," "Scarlet" (second half of 2019), "Yell" (first half of 2020), "Okaeri Mone," "Chimudondon" (first half of 2022), "Anpan," and "Kaze,Kaoru" (first half of 2026).
In "Toto Nee-chan," Sagara Itsuki and Sugisaki played the heroine's younger sister; in "Hiyokko,"Mayu Hotta; in "Natsuzora," Kiyohara; in "Scarlet," (at the time) Nanami Sakuraba and Fukuda Mayuko; in "Yell," Mori Nana; in "Okaeri Mone,"Aju Makita Aju; in "Chimudondon," Kamishiraishi Moka; and in "Anpan," Kawai and Nanoka Hara have all played the heroine's younger sister. In addition, Hayasaka Miharu is currently appearing as the heroine's younger sister in "Kaze,Kaoru."
Will one of them ever follow in Kawai's footsteps and land the lead role in a Asadora series...?
