Murderous Encounter

Murderous Encounter (Japanese: 恋は闇; Romaji: Koi wa Yami) is a Japanese television drama series that aired on NTV from April 16 to June 18, 2025. The series consists of 10 episodes and was broadcast in the network's Wednesday 22:00 time slot.

Plot

The story follows Hiroki Shitara, a freelance writer for a weekly tabloid magazine who is determined to secure a major scoop. He becomes involved in investigating a series of murders in Tokyo targeting female office workers. During his investigation, he crosses paths with Makoto Tsutsui, the director of a television infotainment program. Despite their conflicting professional approaches—with Shitara prioritizing the story and Tsutsui maintaining a focus on empathy for the victims—the two eventually collaborate to uncover the truth behind the crimes.

Cast

The series features a large ensemble cast, including:

Jun Shison as Hiroki Shitara
Yukino Kishii as Makoto Tsutsui
Jin Shirasu as Masakiyo Komine
Kenta Hamano as Kei Matsuoka
Tsubaki Nekoze as Kayo Owada
Toranosuke Kobayashi as Harumichi Kinoshita
Sento Takemori as Arata Shindo
Kazuya Kojima as Kazuya Kojima
Hajime Okayama as Keiji Usui
Naomi Nishida as Saki Kuramae
Tetsushi Tanaka as Shotaro Noda
Mirai Yamamoto as Taeko Odaka
Misato Morita as Aoi Utsumi
Ayumu Mochizuki as Itsuki Natsuyagi
Shin Namura as Takumi Mihashi
Masato Hagiwara as a mysterious man

Jun Shison, who portrays Hiroki Shitara.

Yukino Kishii, who portrays Makoto Tsutsui.

Production

The series was directed by Naoko Komuro and Yuma Suzuki, with a screenplay written by Mako Watanabe. It occupied the NTV Wednesday 22:00 time slot, succeeding the drama Ensemble and preceding Chihayafuru: Meguri, which began airing on July 9, 2025.