58 minSeason 2 • Episode 10
LatestWith the second and final entrance exam approaching, the situation is looking increasingly bleak to Kenji. He discovers the vice-principal and others he thought were his allies are in fact working to sell the school. But Kumiko, the director, begs him to pull off a miracle “for the students’ sake.” Meanwhile, the prep class students pore over old exam questions right up until the last minute. Kenji still has one last trick up his sleeve. Can he stage a dramatic comeback and save the school?
A struggling lawyer, Kenji Sakuragi, takes a position at private school Tatsuyama Gakuen to pay off his debts. Kenji decides to try to turn this hopeless school into one of the elite institutions in Japan to help rejuvenate his career. His barometer of success will be to get five of his students admitted to the prestigious Tokyo University the following year. But rather than cramming them with lots of general information, his down-to-earth class concentrates on unknown techniques for passing the entrance examination and how to live a good life in these turbulent times. His refreshing outlook and strategy may just be what is needed to turn around the future prospects of himself and his students and teach the rest of us a thing or two as well!
Acting
Hiroshi Abe's exhausted charisma carries every scene.
Writing
Exam tricks that actually teach life lessons.
Production
Grungy classrooms vs. Todai glamour shots.
Trivia, insights & behind the scenes
The Todai obsession reflects Japan's post-bubble 'employment ice age,' where elite university credentials became survival tools for a lost generation.
The 2021 sequel reunited the original cast sixteen years later, with Kenji now coaching adults—a meta-commentary on Japan's aging 'lost generation' still chasing delayed dreams.
JP
