"Cinecon e Ikou!" drama: Episode twelve of thirteen recap

 

 Air Dates: July 4th until September 26 on BS Matsutake Tokyo TV, Mondays at 10:30 pm

Also known as 'Let's go the Cinema Complex', subs are being done by GEO0975 at DA

Main Cast: Is there a location a drama hasn't been set in?! This one takes place at a Cinema Complex in the fictional city of Mirai. Looks to be a small complex but there are twelve theaters with the largest holding 510 movie fans. The cinema is part of the Tochiku Corporation which own many theaters in Japan. However the fans haven't flocking to this cinema which has some less than stellar employees, will some new blood shake up things? Will update the bios as we go along and an episode is 25 minutes in length.

Kii(e) Kitano as Kaori Nakatsuka... The 'new blood' at this cinema which is located in a remote region. Kaori has been transferred from the home office in Tokyo and though she knows so much about the business end of theaters she doesn't know what it takes to operate one. She's a very strict young woman who was sent to bring in more customers and straighten out this bunch of daffy employees.

Dai Watanabe as Kenta Mizusawa.... The manger of the cinema complex and he may be the only employee I wouldn't call daffy. Mizusawa has been the manager for some years and is a huge film buff but he's not running a tight enough ship at the complex and was shocked when Kaori was sent to help him.

Tateto Serizawa as Kanji Shibui.... The assistant manager and also the oldest by far at the cinema. His main duty is to run the projections for the films and have things changed over the years! Shibui is quite scared of woman and can't even look Kaori in the eyes.

Nana Akuzawa as Tomomi Marukawa.... Runs the ticket and info booth, like every other part time employee she's a bit lazy and really has no interest in movies.

Shingo Nakayama as Kohei Matsumaru.... Male employee who is the usher but helps out doing many other assorted jobs.... when he has time from not talking to the other employees!

Risako Miki as Shiina Takemura.... Head of the concession stand but like everyone else doesn't have to work hard due to the lack of customers.

Sara Saito as Akane Umemoto.... Ex-cleaner at the cinema who was a horrible worker, she spends most of her day on the phone!

Asumi Kuon as Yume Hongo.... New woman introduced in the fifth episode who is a PT cleaner, replacing the above one? It appears so as Akane hasn't been seen since.

Previous recaps

Episode one .... Episode two .... Episode three .... Episode four

Episode five .... Episode six  .... Episode seven .... Episode eight

Episode nine .... Episode ten

Mini preview of this twelfth episode: Video

 

 In most shows the opening scene has been with Shibui and Matsumaru discussing various things about the world of movies. Their scene didn't take place until the five or so minute mark but will mention them first as it's become a sort of tradition! Matsumaru is the younger worker and he was telling Shibui how he kept falling asleep the previous night watching a film at home. Which happens with Shibui too and often the case is because the theater is so comfortable or the temperature is too high. Matsumaru did admit to falling asleep more often when he watches a Western film with subtitles and wouldn't think that would be the case as subs makes me concentrate more. Ended off the last recap talking about a call Kaori had received from Mizoguchi who is a director at Tochiku, they own the Mirai CineMine and many others. We had no clue what the call was about but Kaori was so preoccupied with what the man had to say, did it have anything to do with the cineplex closing down?

 Yes it did and sadly it appears the Mirai CineMine may only be open for another month or so. However Kaori does have a supporter in Mizoguchi and he was one of the persons who interviewed her when she applied to Tochiku. Eventually Kaori worked at the main HQ but during the interview she had mentioned her dream was to produce films, Mizoguchi was impressed with that dream and never forgot her. He's now the main director of the Production Department, with the CineMine on life support would Kaori want to fulfill her wish and come work for him? 'What to do?' is now Kaori's dilemma, she's grown so attached to the Mirai cinema and wants to see it saved but on the other hand she does want to work on films. She won't have long to decide as Mizoguchi needs an answer in a week, the episode ended before the week was up so will her answer be in the next show? Above is also a new director at Tochiku named Yoshida who we've seen briefly before. He once worked with the CineMine manager Mizusawa and really hates him, Yoshida would love to see his old colleague fail at his job. He even asked Kaori to spy for him which she rebuffed.

 It was back to the cineplex for Kaori who was very curious about how the cinema was actually doing. She dug out the financial books from the previous year and was comparing them to how the cinema was doing in 2022, that's Mizusawa silently observing her above. He had heard rumors of someone from the Tochiku HQ spying on the cinema, he let the other staff know that too. So when Mizusawa saw Kaori gong through the books his first thought she was the spy, he wasn't far off!!!! Going through the ledgers Kaori did notice how bad business was, she and the staff have worked so hard to make the cinema a success but perhaps as she says above the place has no chance. It took a while but finally Kaori was able to convince Mizusawa she was no informer for Yoshida and did tell her boss she had been approached by Yoshida to truly be a spy! 

 We didn't hear the whole story but Mizusawa did explain a few details of when he worked under Yoshida at the Shinjuku CineMine. Yoshida had a few personal incidents at the cinema which were frowned upon by the Tochiku company, surprised then that he became a manager. Don't know if it's so but perhaps Yoshida is thinking Mizusawa is the employee who squealed on him at the Shinjuku cinema and since then has been out for blood?! So now all is well between Kaori and Mizusawa but the main problem persists, do they have any chance from preventing the Mirai CineMine from closing down? So while there was no spy two of the staff appeared to have caught one. That's the 'team' of Shibui and Matsumaru, perhaps they deserve their own comedy show?! A customer had come into the cinema and hadn't purchased a ticket but was very curious about so many things at the cinema, to the pair this older man has to be the spy sent by Tochiku! The man is below in a few screenshots and like many other things it turned out to be a case of your imagination running wild like Mizusawa did to Kaori.

 So thinking this older man was a spy he soon was overly pampered by Shibui and Matsumaru. They gave him some of the cinema's deluxe food and even said they would allow him to see a film on the house! The pair thought by pampering him this man would return to HQ saying the cineplex deserves another chance but naturally this man didn't turn out to be a spy. The man turned out to none other than.... Mizusawa's estranged father!!!! His name is Shigeru and had owned his own cinema in Mirai, no clue if it's still open. But when Mizusawa returned back to his hometown two years ago Shigeru presumed his son would take over the business which didn't happen. Since then Mizusawa has had very little contact with his family, didn't take a screenshot of it but Mizusawa eventually made it to the room his father was in, that ended the show and will the pair be reunited?

 Semi cliffhanger going into the final episode. In the eleventh show the cinema had held a special event called CineMarriage where they tried to get a boyfriend to ask his girl to marry him. That was just a so-so success story as the proposal didn't happen for another two months and not at the cinema. However the now married couple would haven't gotten hitched if it weren't for Mizusawa and his staff. The husband Matsumoto has a very popular blog and on it he did a post where he sang the praises of the CineMine which so many viewers read. Including one the of the Tochiku directors and as you can see above for now the cinema's closure has been out on hold.... but for how long? Mizusawa heard that news just after he told Kaori perhaps she should take up that film production offer, now what will her decision be? That concludes this recap and the next post is for the final episode which I haven't viewed yet to keep the suspense up! But sure the main story will be about the cinema's future and have a feeling it'll be a happy ending!

"Cinecon e Ikou!" drama: Episode thirteen(final) recap

 

 Air Dates: July 4th until September 26th on BS Matsutake Tokyo TV, Mondays at 10:30 pm

Also known as 'Let's go the Cinema Complex', subs are being done by GEO0975 at DA

Main Cast: Is there a location a drama hasn't been set in?! This one takes place at a Cinema Complex in the fictional city of Mirai. Looks to be a small complex but there are twelve theaters with the largest holding 510 movie fans. The cinema is part of the Tochiku Corporation which own many theaters in Japan. However the fans haven't flocking to this cinema which has some less than stellar employees, will some new blood shake up things? Will update the bios as we go along and an episode is 25 minutes in length.

Kii(e) Kitano as Kaori Nakatsuka... The 'new blood' at this cinema which is located in a remote region. Kaori has been transferred from the home office in Tokyo and though she knows so much about the business end of theaters she doesn't know what it takes to operate one. She's a very strict young woman who was sent to bring in more customers and straighten out this bunch of daffy employees.

Dai Watanabe as Kenta Mizusawa.... The manger of the cinema complex and he may be the only employee I wouldn't call daffy. Mizusawa has been the manager for some years and is a huge film buff but he's not running a tight enough ship at the complex and was shocked when Kaori was sent to help him.

Tateto Serizawa as Kanji Shibui.... The assistant manager and also the oldest by far at the cinema. His main duty is to run the projections for the films and have things changed over the years! Shibui is quite scared of woman and can't even look Kaori in the eyes.

Nana Akuzawa as Tomomi Marukawa.... Runs the ticket and info booth, like every other part time employee she's a bit lazy and really has no interest in movies.

Shingo Nakayama as Kohei Matsumaru.... Male employee who is the usher but helps out doing many other assorted jobs.... when he has time from not talking to the other employees!

Risako Miki as Shiina Takemura.... Head of the concession stand but like everyone else doesn't have to work hard due to the lack of customers.

Sara Saito as Akane Umemoto.... Ex-cleaner at the cinema who was a horrible worker, she spends most of her day on the phone!

Asumi Kuon as Yume Hongo.... New woman introduced in the fifth episode who is a PT cleaner, replacing the above one? It appears so as Akane hasn't been seen since.

Previous recaps

Episode one .... Episode two .... Episode three .... Episode four

Episode five .... Episode six  .... Episode seven .... Episode eight

Episode nine .... Episode ten

Mini preview of this final episode: Video

 

 We've hit the conclusion of this drama and always feel a bit sad when a series ends. Thanks if you've been reading these recaps which have been one of the more popular dramas I've done posts for with you viewers.. Also thanks to GEO9875 for doing the subs, they also did Kie's previous series "Nanji no Na". It's been a nice comeback year for her as she's been in three dramas with the lead or co-lead in all of them. Kie has also made a few guest spots in a few other shows and to me still looks so terrific!

 This series did start out a bit slowly, after six episodes would have given it a rating of 7.8/10. As time went on this drama did improve and for the final seven shows would give it a grade of 8.3/10. So when you combine the two my final grade will be an 8.1/10 which you could say is a B-, any show above an eight is usually worth a view and have a feeling watching it again would improve the rating. My only minor gripe would be wish we learned more about how a cineplex is run, I did discover some things but not nearly as much as I was expecting. Not sure what regular drama will be up next, am currently recapping the latest 'Kamen Rider' series and there is one beginning in October but unsure if that drama is one I'll enjoy but there's always a few shows each season which grab my attention.

 The main ongoing story had been whether the Mirai CineMine would remain open, the place draws so few customers. But the cinema has gotten a reprieve from their head company Tochiku, that took place at the end of the last show and presume you've read that recap. So there was very little mention of that potential disaster except for what Kaori told the staff in the top screenshot, she and Mizusawa knew the cinema would be remaining open but not the rest of the staff. That last episode did end off with the staff thinking Tochiku had sent someone from HQ to spy on the cinema. It wasn't to be though a pair of staff thought they caught a 'spy' at the end of that last show who is the man in the second screenshot above. As you can see his name is Shigeru and he's no ordinary man, he's the father of the cinema's manager Mizusawa!

 Mizusawa did grow up in Mirai but left for college and then was working at a Tochiku cinema in Shinjuku. He returned to his hometown two years ago to run the Mirai CineMine and because of that he's been a bit estranged from his family. His father owns a small cinema which mainly shows films Shigeru enjoys, never the big current hits and usually older films that Shigeru doesn't want to see become forgotten. The cinema does well and Shigeru figured his son would take the business over which didn't happen and is the big reason Mizusawa is a bit estranged from his family. So Shigeru was no spy from HQ and had confessed he was very curious how a cineplex is run, that was true but to us viewers he really wanted to see his son. So as you can see in the bottom screenshot the staff as usual has jumped to some assumptions, that happens a few times in every show! Mizusawa seemed to be getting along so well with his father and could that mean their manager will be leaving to run his family's cinema?

 You may recall that in the last recap Kaori had been offered a job at Tochiku's movie production unit, her dream is to produce films. It was a sincere offer and one that she had no idea on whether to accept or not, she didn't want to abandon the sinking cinema! But once a lifeboat was thrown to the Mirai CineMine she called the production director and said she would be remaining at the cineplex. That's what the above two middle screenshots are about, first of Kaori refusing the offer and Mizusawa asking her did she make the right decision? Though she didn't say it like the rest of the staff Kaori is under the assumption Mizusawa will be leaving to run his father's cinema, if that happens perhaps she can become the manager of the CineMine. Also with that idea is Shibui above and he's actually next in line to be the main manager. Through thirteen episodes he's never once been able to look Kaori in the eyes and though he's never admitted it think he such an intense crush on her!

Shibui confessing his love to Kaori may have made for the best episode! This being Shigeru's first time in a cineplex Kaori suggested he see a film with his son which she set up for the next day. That screenshot is the second from the bottom above, you can see how empty the theater was. The CineMine opens at 10:00 am and how many people go see a film at that time? Not many as you can tell and perhaps business would have been better had they opened in the afternoon. While the son and father were viewing a movie in another theater a small ruckus broke out. That was started by the man below who had taken out his phone during the movie which is a no-no. So because Mizusawa was with his father Shibui took over the role of being the cinema's manager, to him it was just a matter of time until it became official so why not start now! To everyone's surprise, including Mizusawa later on, Shibui was able to diffuse this situation and this man was so eager for a fight! Shibui is a bit of a quirky man but all in all he could be a solid manager and he's also such a lover of films. The staff also wanted to prove to Mizusawa they could run the cinema efficiently after he left.

 Final segment for this series, Mizusawa and his father did have quite an enjoyable time viewing a film together. While that was taking place it gave the staff some time to prepare.... Mizusawa's going away party!!!! They sprang that on him when he returned to the office with his father after they viewed whatever film, needless to say Mizusawa was stunned and couldn't say a word. That's because he didn't know what to say for he had no plans to leave and run his family's cinema! The staff learned that news from Shigeru who above asked 'my son is coming to run the cinema?'. To that he laughed and said the pair never discussed it which was true, Shigeru seems like the kind of man who will run his cinema until the day he dies! However he didn't tell the entire truth for as he was leaving the cineplex he called his wife who also helps him run the cinema. Listening to Shigeru we discovered he had all the intentions in the world of asking Mizusawa to run his cinema. But when Shigeru saw how much the employees cared about his son he abandoned that idea for his son to take over.... for now.

 So that brings us down to about one minute to go in this drama. As mentioned often the stories became so blown out of proportion because of the staff assuming things such as what took place in this episode. So Mizusawa will be staying on as the manager of the Mirai CineMine to the glee of the entire staff. Well, perhaps not everyone as Shibui did look a bit down and he enjoyed his one hour of being the cinema's manager! That ends this series and as mentioned in the intro it was a drama that got better as time went on. Have no clue whether it could happen but to me the ending was a bit open ended and wonder if a second season is possible?