In this past week's issue of Variety, there's an interesting article talking about a new type of drama cropping up in Japan: The Showa-era drama. While our drama lovers normally talk about shows set in the modern day, the samurai-era dramas are also a big attraction in Japan. Often appealing to the older generations, they're everything you could hope for in weekly samurai and tea-sipping action.

Well, in the "Business is good in Japan" article from Variety, they highlight several shows coming out of the Land of the Rising Sun that are aimed at the immediate post-war era, at a time when Japan was rebuilding. "There was a lot of energy back then -- people were trying hard, with a clear goal in mind," said Akira Maki the producer of Summer of the Bureaucrats. Other shows are focusing on people like Ryujo Sejima (The Waste Land) and Jiro Shirasu, who had influential roles in Japan's post-war growth.

It's a risky venture for the networks to produce these dramas -- the costs are at least double that of the samurai-era ones, because new sets, costumes and props need to be acquired for each of these films. It's a heavy investment that they're hoping will pay off.

Summer of the Bureaucrats started airing back in July, and it sounds like something that falls under the category of "my jam." I love me some post-war Japan, and this will be a great piece to see how the country tries and imagine itself from back then. Who knows, I might actually write a Dramataku!