Majo Saiban
Original Japan Broadcast: April 25th, 2009 - July 11th, 2009
Theme Song: Keshin by Fukuyama Masuharu

I have a feeling fangirls will flock to this show because of the appearance of one Mr. Ikuta Toma,  who I do admit is a total cutie. However, he does quite a good job at the helm of Majo Saiban playing the kind of character he always does best -- a regular guy with a bit of style who is a lot smarter than he might betray at first. In the beginning of the show, we are introduced to his character, Yoshitoka Toru, as he scrambles to get to court for his first day as a lay judge.

Of course, he isn't alone on that job. in comes the ensemble cast,  and for a change I actually wasn't familiar with any of them. You'd think that'd be like the breaking of a golden J-drama rule or something since you see so many of the same actors all the time, but I was happy to see some new faces shine. As you can even tell from the picture below, the lay judges are from all walks of life, from a super OCD salaryman to an OL (office lady). It's interesting to note this drama was the first to tackle the new lay judge system in Japan, which started about a month after Majo Saiban aired.

The eight judges are told about the  "witch trial", which is an ugly name for the trial concerning a woman by the name of Kashiwagi Kyoko (played by Ishida Yuriko) who is believed to have murdered her husband to collect his life insurance money. As it stands in the beginning, each lay judge should inspect the evidence presented and make a decision based upon it. Seems simple ... were it not from interference from a mysterious outside party.

He's SO serious! Don't f*ck with him!

And here's our mystery man. This is where the show gets funny. Apparently his job is to sit in a dark warehouse with several employees and track the lay judges' every move. His plan seems to be to convince them to vote not guilty by threatening their lives and loved ones in a variety of ways, which he is clearly enjoying with great relish. In every drama, there's something that requires you to suspend your sense of disbelief, and this guy is it. I don't want to make it seem like I'm talking him down, because he actually does a stellar job. I just picked on him the entire show because he was so INTO IT that I couldn't help but giggle.

Yeah - THIS happens.

As you can imagine, as the story goes on, things get more intense. Toru tries his best to help one juror who he seems to be destined to protect, Watabe Izumi (played beautifully by  Kato Ai). She's a married woman with a husband who never seems to be around and a little girl who she's very protective of. Of course, that little girl is the first thing Mr. Sunglasses At Night goes for when he wants to scare her, and Toru sees what's going on and tries to intervene. Unfortunately, his girlfriend, Motomiya Kaori, totally gets the wrong idea about why Toru is helping Izumi out.

Majo Saiban is a strong, well-made drama, but I feel its appeal may be limited based on the type of show that fans seem to like most. For instance, it may catch the interest of Ikuta Toma fans, but it certainly has no romance whatsoever, focusing on suspense as its main draw. For me, this is a breath of fresh air from what I usually watch, but for fangirls looking for thrills of first kisses and longing looks, they aren't coming here. If you're looking for a gripping crime drama, however, Majo Saiban can deliver the thrills.