When TV Asahi’s latest hero – down and out salaryman Bunta – is recruited as a ‘slight esper’, he enters a sci-fi world where even small powers can make a big difference. 

“Although the ‘espers’ possess only small, inconvenient powers, they struggle desperately to save the world, and that earnestness moves the audience,” says Sari Kijima, the producer of "Just a Bit Espers".

The new supernatural romance/fantasy drama series, "Just a Bit Espers", blends light comedy with what producer Sari Kijima ("Ossan’s Love") calls a grand-scale sci-fi drama with a love story that deepens with every episode.

Power has surged off-screen for TV Asahi: "Just a Bit Espers" premiered globally on Netflix in October, held a seven-week run in Netflix Japan’s weekly top 10, topped the daily charts after each episode drop, and also ranked among the top 10 shows in Korea and Taiwan.

“Themes of love, friendship and finding hope amid powerlessness transcend cultural boundaries,” Kijima says. “The series is also a love story and a hero story about friendship and sacrifice, capturing the universal human desire to “love and be loved,” she adds. 

TV Asahi, now launching global sales, says the script prompted it to accelerate international distribution – including the format – after recognising the story’s strong potential.

"Just a Bit Espers" stars Yo Oizumi as Bunta who loses his family, job and savings before being recruited by mysterious company Nonamare as a “slight esper” (a person with extrasensory perception, or ESP). He moves into company housing with a woman he has never met and must obey one rule: never fall in love.

The series also stars Aoi Miyazaki ("Nana", "Virgin Snow") who is loved so deeply by two men it could destroy the world; Dean Fujioka ("Fullmetal Alchemist", "The Victim’s Game 2", the singer of the theme song for "Yuri!!! On Ice") revealing a comedic wild side; and Takumi Kitamura ("Rebel Moon") and Masaki Okada ("Drive My Car", "The Killer’s Shopping List 2") adding international appeal. 

"Just a Bit” in the title refers to characters with small, seemingly trivial supernatural abilities, such as making flowers bloom or causing a runny nose. “Even when they try to complete a mission, nothing is magically solved; they have to run around, sweat, and struggle through sheer effort,” Kijima says.

She talks about the show’s own superpowers in telling the story of the world’s weakest yet kindest hero. 

“The uniqueness of reversing the Marvel concept, having psychic powers that are ‘just a little’, not a lot, and the deep humanity at the heart of the story resonate widely,” she says. 

Kijima adds that Bunta’s ordinariness is central to the series’ emotional power. “Bunta has absolutely no superhuman power. He is fragile, stingy, weak and not noble at all, and that is exactly what makes him relatable and heroic”. 

The low-power concept shaped the production style. With Japanese drama budgets typically tight, the team relied on creative problem-solving over spectacle. “We use some CG, but we rely on clever ideas and the actors’ emotional truth,” Kijima says. She cites the LED ceiling collapse in the finale, constructed from the underside of a lunchbox lid, as an example of the show’s inventive, low-cost ingenuity.

Screenwriter Akiko Nogi ("Unnatural", "Last Mile", "MIU404") injected emotional complexity into the story. Nogi, Kijima says, has  created characters who “are all lovable and full of meaning for those of us living today”. 

"Just a Bit Espers" – TV Asahi’s Japanese drama series (9×60 mins). For enquiries: [email protected]

Brought to you by TV Asahi Japan

▶ Published in ContentAsia's 8 December 2025 eNewsletter