Riko is an up-and-coming Japanese actress and model who was born on December 4, 2002. She began working as a fashion model in 2014, while still in elementary school, and started acting in 2018, when she appeared in the drama series “Tokenai, Summer.” In 2020, she starred in the hit drama “Distortion Girl,” following up with the series “Black Cinderella” in 2021.

Riko

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Futaba Yoshioka (Natsuki Deguchi) loved her warm-hearted classmate Kou Tanaka (Kaito Sakurai) during their middle school days, but they were abruptly separated when Kou moved to Nagasaki. Just as high school is about to end, Kou returns to Futaba’s life, but he’s not the same boy she fell in love with: he’s adopted a cold demeanor and a new surname. As they slowly reconnect, complications arise when Futaba discovers that a classmate, who also hails from Nagasaki, shares a painful history with Kou. As the final days of school unfold, tension builds and a potential love triangle emerges, threatening to overshadow their rekindled romance. Will Futaba and Kou's reunion blossom into a love that conquers the past, or will old wounds and new challenges lead them to heartbreak once more? This 2024 Japanese drama, based on the hit manga series of the same name by Io Sakisaka and directed by Kimura Mahito, follows 2023’s “AO HARU RIDE.”

AO HARU RIDE 2

The Blue Spring Ride Team

In middle school, Futaba Yoshioka (Natsuki Deguchi) fell for her tender-spirited classmate Kou Tanaka (Kaito Sakurai). Their brief but joyful romance was shattered when Kou suddenly disappeared. Three years later, as Futaba nears her high school graduation, Kou reappears – now using the surname Mabuchi and possessing a cold demeanor. As Futaba uncovers the reasons behind his transformation, she wonders if they can rekindle their lost love or if she will face more heartache. This 2023 Japanese drama was based on the hit manga series of the same name by Io Sakisaka and was directed by Kimura Mahito.

AO HARU RIDE

Murai (Ryubi Miyase) is a high schooler who has long dark hair. He is incredibly clever and regularly gets top grades in his class. He is also madly in love with his famously cold and aloof homeroom teacher Tanaka (Hikaru Takahashi). One day, Murai asks the students to fill in a form explaining what they want to do when they leave school. Murai writes “Marry Teacher Tanaka” on his form. Tanaka scolds him and tears the paper into shreds – telling him that she dislikes men with long, dark hair.

But Tanaka hides a secret that she shares with nobody. She is madly in love with a video game character named Hitotose, from an “otome” (female-targetted) video game named “Feudal Era Love Scroll.” The day after she rejects Murai, however, Tanaka gets a shock – Murai turns up at school looking every inch like Hitotose, replete with the very same bleached blonde hair as her video game crush. Will she be able to resist his charms now?

This drama was based on a hit 2018-2022 manga series of the same name by Junta Shima.

“MURAI in LOVE” is a 2022 Japanese drama series that was directed by Yamamoto Daisuke and Matsuki Aya.

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