Dragon Sakura (2005 TV Series)

Dragon Sakura is a Japanese television drama series that aired on the TBS network from July 8 to September 16, 2005. The series consists of 11 episodes and was broadcast during the Friday 22:00–22:54 time slot.

Plot

The story follows Kenji Sakuragi, a lawyer and former member of a motorcycle gang. Facing professional failure, Sakuragi accepts a position at a high school. He initiates a project to prepare a special class of students for admission to the prestigious University of Tokyo, commonly known as Toudai.

Production

The series is based on the manga Dragon Sakura, written and illustrated by Norifusa Mita. The source material was serialized in the seinen manga magazine Weekly Morning between 2003 and 2007. The television adaptation was directed by Takashi Komatsu and Akihiro Karaki, with a screenplay by Takehiko Hata.

Cast

The series features an ensemble cast including Hiroshi Abe as Kenji Sakuragi and Kyoko Hasegawa as Mamako Ino. The student characters are portrayed by actors including Tomohisa Yamashita, Masami Nagasawa, Akiyoshi Nakao, Teppei Koike, Yui Aragaki, and Saeko.