7.054 minSeason 1 • Episode 11
LatestJiro Kanzaki is an F3000 test driver blessed with acute sensitivity and breathtaking driving techniques. He's a daredevil who feels no fear driving at speeds that even top racers dare not attempt. But unexpected trouble forces this world-famous racer to leave his team and return to Japan for the first time in years. Until he finds a new job as a racer, Jiro decides to stay with his parents. What awaits Jiro there is his hardheaded father, his nagging sister, the 12 children of the foster home his father runs, a snobbish male nurse, and a stubborn female nurse who likes to daydream about her life.
Acting
Kimura's micro-expressions hiding a shattered ego
Writing
Kids who feel real, not precocious props
Score
That theme song still lives rent-free in my head
Takuya Kimura
Jiro Kanzaki
Koyuki
Tomomi Mizukoshi
Masato Sakai
Torii Motoichiro
Yuki Matsushita
Chihiro Kanzaki
Yoshio Harada
Takeshi Kanzaki
Reiko Takashima
Eiko Ushikubo
Shigeru Izumiya
Chinsaku Ichinose
Aya Okamoto
Tamaki Suenaga
Takuzo Kadono
Haruyama Mario
Shinsuke Aoki
Sugawara Hiroto
Yuma Ishigaki
Ibuki Tetsuya
Sayuri Kokusho
Harumi's mother
Kyūsaku Shimada
Daisuke's father
Mayumi Asaka
Daisuke's mother
Juri Ueno
Misae Hoshino
Trivia, insights & behind the scenes
Kimura trained with actual F3000 drivers and did most of his own cockpit scenes, allegedly vomiting after his first high-speed session.
This aired during Fuji TV's 'Getsu 9' golden slot that launched countless Kimura-led phenomena—Engine underperformed ratings-wise but became a quiet cult favorite for its uncharacteristic restraint.
JP
