is a

manga Manga (Japanese: 漫画 ) are comics or graphic novels originating from Japan. Most manga conform to a style developed in Japan in the late 19th century, and the form has a long prehistory in earlier Japanese art. The term ''manga'' is u ...

series created by Shinobu Inokuma, the author of ''

Salad Days "Salad days" is a Shakespearean idiom referring to a period of carefree innocence, idealism, and pleasure associated with youth. The modern use, chiefly in the United States, describes a heyday, when a person is/was at the peak of their abilitie ...

''. It is based on a novel by Hikaru Murozumi, and is set in a fictional trade-school—that focuses on the

mizu shōbai , literally the water trade, is the euphemism for jobs that do not provide a contractually fixed salary, but instead rely on the popularity of the performer among their fans or clientele. Broadly, it includes the television, theater and movie ind ...

—located in the

Kabukichō Kabukichō ( ja, 歌舞伎町, , ) is an entertainment district in Shinjuku, Tokyo, Japan. Kabuki-chō is the location of many host and hostess clubs, love hotels, shops, restaurants, and nightclubs, and is often called the "Sleepless Town" (, , ...

district of

Shinjuku is a special ward in Tokyo, Japan. It is a major commercial and administrative centre, housing the northern half of the busiest railway station in the world (Shinjuku Station) and the Tokyo Metropolitan Government Building, the administration ...

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 ...

. The school's focus is to give students their last chance in the school system. Classes are divided into occupations such as hostesses, hosts, "managers" (from waiters to actual managers), "geibaa" ("gay bar" but is a more comedic view of males dressing and acting like females) and, finally, " soapgirls". The series has a sequel, ''Toritsu Mizusho! 2'', with one volume published as of March 2012. Oda Mari, now a teacher at the high school, replaces Keisuke Tanabe as the focus character.

Characters

The volume number denotes the character's first appearance. The actor/actress is the person that was cast for the character in the TV special. *: Sociology teacher (vol. 1) *: Fuzoku Course Director (vol. 1) *: Headmaster (vol. 1) *: Host Course Director (vol. 1) *: Gay Bar Course Director (vol. 1) *: Manager Course Director (vol. 1) *: Music teacher (vol. 6) * (Mari Koyama in TV version): Fuzoku Course student (vol. 1) *: Manager Course student (vol. 1) *: Athletics Director (vol. 1) *: Fuzoku Course student (vol. 1) *: Chairman of the Tokyo Metropolitan School Board (vol. 1) *: Gay Bar Course student (vol. 1) *: Fuzoku Course student (vol. 3) *: Hostess Course student (vol. 4) *: Manager Course student (vol. 5) *: Hostess Course student (vol. 6) *Reira Yamaguchi (played by: Risa Kudo): Hostess Course student (vol. 8) *: Hostess Course student (vol. 9) *: Hostess Course student (vol. 9) *: Hostess Course student (vol. 11) *Etsuko Yamaguchi (TV only; played by:

Mariko Tsutsui is a Japanese actress. Personal life Tsutsui graduated from Kōfu Daiichi High School in Yamanashi Prefecture. She dropped out of Aoyama Gakuin University. She later graduated from the Waseda University School of Social Sciences. As well as a ...

) *Moe Akiba (TV only; played by:

Aki Hoshino is a Japanese bikini idol. She has appeared in various men's magazines, such as '' Sabra'' and television shows. In 2010, she was named one of the "7 most irresistibly cute Japanese idols" by the Thailand version of the men's magazine FHM. Bio ...

) *Kyoto (TV only; played by:

Kenji Anan is a Japanese stage and film actor. He began work with the Tokyo Sunshine Boys in 1983, and since then has performed in a variety of roles mostly in television dramas. Filmography Film *''The Uchōten Hotel'' (2006) *'' The Magic Hour'' (2008) ...

)

References

External links

Official site
at Young Sunday ''(Japanese)''

at NTV ''(Japanese)'' * Seinen manga Japanese drama television series {{manga-stub