is an original Japanese television drama series directed by

Tsutsumi Yukihiko is a Japanese television and film director. He began directing commercials and music promotion videos as an employee of Nihon Television. After spending time abroad, he returned and started his own production company, ''Office Crescendo'', from w ...

(堤幸彦) with main lead played by Domoto Koichi of

KinKi Kids is a Japanese duo consisting of Koichi Domoto and Tsuyoshi Domoto under the talent agency Johnny & Associates. KinKi Kids was formed in 1993 and officially debuted on July 21, 1997. With more than 30 million physical copies sold, they are one of ...

. It aired on Friday nights for a total of 8 episodes, from July 27 - September 14, 2007.

Plot

Maizu Tsukasa was born to be the 3rd generation successor of his family's

Sushi is a Japanese cuisine, Japanese dish of prepared , usually with some sugar and salt, accompanied by a variety of , such as seafood, often raw, and vegetables. Styles of sushi and its presentation vary widely, but the one key ingredient is " ...

business. But his grandfather and father were killed during a fishing accident. Ten-year-old Tsukasa, who was also on the boat when the tragedy occurred, saw them speared by a giant

swordfish Swordfish (''Xiphias gladius''), also known as broadbills in some countries, are large, highly migratory predatory fish characterized by a long, flat, pointed bill. They are a popular sport fish of the billfish category, though elusive. Swordfis ...

. By chance, its eyes met Tsukasa's, leaving him with a

phobia A phobia is an anxiety disorder defined by a persistent and excessive fear of an object or situation. Phobias typically result in a rapid onset of fear and are usually present for more than six months. Those affected go to great lengths to avo ...

regarding fish eyes. Hence, Tsukasa was forced to give up sushi. Fifteen years later, Tsukasa, who had taken up on Jinenryū (自然流), a form of

martial arts Martial arts are codified systems and traditions of combat practiced for a number of reasons such as self-defense; military and law enforcement applications; combat sport, competition; physical, mental, and spiritual development; entertainment; a ...

modeled to mimic nature's life-forms, is once again thrown into the world of sushi when he learns that to perfect the Jirenryū is to be able to perfect sushi making (the kneading part) and vice versa. He is entrusted with a scroll on which are the directions to perfect the martial art. On the way, Tsukasa learns that his mother, who had left him when he was young and whom he had thought was dead, is still alive and being held by a sushi organization which becomes his rival.

Drama related

* A movie version of ''Sushi Ōji!'' set in

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

was released in 2008, in which Oji is horrified to find what Americans have done to sushi. * The theme song of Sushi Ōji! is 「涙、ひとひら」 (Namida, Hitohira) by

* This is the first drama in 5 years for Domoto Koichi * Locations used as background in the drama include

Okinawa is a prefecture of Japan. Okinawa Prefecture is the southernmost and westernmost prefecture of Japan, has a population of 1,457,162 (as of 2 February 2020) and a geographic area of 2,281 km2 (880 sq mi). Naha is the capital and largest city ...

Tokyo Tokyo (; ja, 東京, , ), officially the Tokyo Metropolis ( ja, 東京都, label=none, ), is the capital and largest city of Japan. Formerly known as Edo, its metropolitan area () is the most populous in the world, with an estimated 37.468 ...

, and

Sendai is the capital Cities of Japan, city of Miyagi Prefecture, the largest city in the Tōhoku region. , the city had a population of 1,091,407 in 525,828 households, and is one of Japan's 20 Cities designated by government ordinance of Japan, desig ...

Character Information

Main cast

* Domoto Koichi as Maizu Tsukasa (米寿司) :Whenever Tsukasa sees fish eyes, he points to the fish eyes and says「お前なんか、握ってやる！」(Omae nanka, nigitteyaru!) which means "I will crush you!" :Tsukasa's fish eye-phobia causes him to go berserk whenever he see them. Usually, his rage is aimed at the fish, but he also randomly attacks those around him as well. This is used as an advantage whenever Tsukasa gets into a fight that can't be won easily * Nakamaru Yuichi as Kawatarou (河原太郎) {{DEFAULTSORT:Sushi Oji! Japanese drama television series 2007 Japanese television series debuts 2007 Japanese television series endings TV Asahi television dramas