News
Live-Action Gokusen to Air Graduation Special in March
posted on by Egan Loo
Producer Masatoshi Katō and the NTV network will air a "Graduation Special" for the live-action version of Kozueko Morimoto's Gokusen school comedy manga in Japan in March. Yukie Nakama will reprise her award-winning role as Kumiko "Yankumi" Yamaguchi, the teacher with a hidden yakuza past and a knack for bringing the most out-of-control students in order. Haruma Miura (Ren Kazama), Katsuhisa Namase (Vice Principal Goro Sawatari), and Yuuya Takaki (Yamato Ogata) will return from this year's third live-action Gokusen series as "Yankumi's" newest class faces graduation. (March is the traditional month for school graduations in Japan.)
NTV announced that the third live-action Gokusen series was the highest rated television drama series of 2008. The 11 episodes scored a record 22.8% average rating in the Kanto region of metropolitan Tokyo. The first episode alone earned a 26.4% in April. The 2003 graduation special of the original 2002 Gokusen television series earned an 18% rating, while the special for the second live-action series (2005) garnered a record 32.5%. Media Blasters released the television animated version of the manga in North America from 2004 to 2005.
Source: Sports Hochi
