Life Without Cuteness and Sweetness

Life Without Cuteness and Sweetness (可愛らしさと甘さのない人生) is a Japanese television drama series which aired on TV Tokyo from 27 April 2009 to 30 November 2019, after Makio Inoue's death.

It was licensed by Bang Zoom! Entertainment, Funimation and Sentai Filmworks in the United States in 2011, and it aired on Adult Swim on 3 March.

Life Without Cuteness and Sweetness is the first television drama series to feature voice actors outside every anime.

Summary
This Japanese TV drama series follows the chronicles of a businessman who despises cute stuff named Hidehiko Matsuda, who goes on travel to different parts of the world with his relatives.

Most of the story takes place in modern-day Tokyo, Japan, although some episodes are partly set elsewhere (e.g. United States, India, United Kingdom, China, Taiwan).

Main characters

 * Hidehiko Matsuda
 * Portrayed by: Hiroshi Tachi; Voiced by: Lucien Dodge (English)
 * The main protagonist of the series, Hidehiko is a Japanese businessman, cameraman and hitman. He despises cute and kawaii stuff. He prefers to take action and travels to many countries. His favorite camcorder is the Canon HG10 with a tripod, allowing him to record videos. His iconic weapon is an M1911. His favorite vehicle is the 1981 Toyota Crown.


 * Hideyuki Matsuda
 * Portrayed by: Kyōhei Shibata; Voiced by: Michael McConnohie (English)
 * Partner of Hidehiko Matsuda, Hideyuki is a former New York-based mobster who was once arrested back in 2006 before moving back to Japan. Much like Hidehiko, he despises cute and kawaii stuff. His favorite weapon is a Beretta 92FS Inox. His preferred vehicle is the 1985 Audi 200 Turbo.


 * Hisamitsu Matsuda
 * Portrayed by: Hiro Shimono; Voiced by: Todd Haberkorn (English)
 * Brother of Hidehiko Matsuda, Hisamitsu often helps Hidehiko take action against villains. He is also a gunmaker.


 * Fujiko Matsuda
 * Portrayed by: Mami Koyama; Voiced by: Alison Viktorin (English)
 * Fujiko is the girlfriend of Hidehiko. Like him, she despises cute and kawaii stuff. Her favorite weapon is a Browning M1910. She is the tritagonist of the series.


 * Nobuo Hamaguchi
 * Portrayed by: Rikiya Koyama; Voiced by: David Wald (English)
 * The main anti-hero of the series, Nobuo is a Japanese assassin-for-hire who often travels to countries around the world. Much like Hidehiko and Fujiko, Nobuo despises cute and kawaii stuff. According to Nobuo himself, he is the old brother of Hidehiko Matsuda. His favorite weapon is an M16 assault rifle.


 * Resumi Hamaguchi
 * Portrayed by: Toshiko Fujita (2009-late 2018), Miyuki Sawashiro (Late 2018-2019); Voiced by: Dorothy Elias-Fahn (English)
 * Resumi is the girlfriend of Nobuo. Hence her name being in hiragana, she likes hiragana, allowing her to write something in hiragana. Like Fujiko Matsuda, her favorite weapon is a Browning M1910.

Recurring characters

 * Susumu Takashima
 * Portrayed by: Shinichi Watanabe; Voiced by: Brett Weaver (English)
 * Susumu is a Tokyo-born Japanese digital animator, who is a friend of Hisamitsu.


 * Kagami Ochiai
 * Portrayed by: Tomoko Kaneda; Voiced by: Chiara Zanni (English)
 * Kagami is the girlfriend of Susumu Takashima. She was born in Osaka, unlike her boyfriend. She is also an art director.
 * Ochiai provides comic relief of the series.


 * Felix Cox
 * Portrayed by: David Povall
 * An American CIA agent who often hires Nobuo to assassinate people. He speaks English via the Japanese subtitles.


 * Derrick Robinson
 * Portrayed by: Steve Kramer
 * An American FBI agent who often has to deal with hijackers at airports. He is a unique character because he is one of the few living people who know about Nobuo Hamaguchi. He speaks English via the Japanese subtitles.


 * Warren Hughes
 * Portrayed by: Seán Barrett
 * The Head of the British Secret Intelligence Service and like other government officials has frequently hired Nobuo Hamaguchi's skills for various missions. He speaks English via the Japanese subtitles.


 * Prabhakar Singh (प्रभाकर सिंह Prabhaakar Sinh)
 * Portrayed by: Ajay Devgn; Voiced by: Kirk Thornton (English)
 * An honest Indian police officer and inspector in Mumbai. He speaks Hindi via the Japanese subtitles.


 * Mahesh Gupta (महेश गुप्ता Mahesh Gupta)
 * Portrayed by: Sudhanshu Pandey; Voiced by: David Wald (English)
 * An Indian moviegoer who likes Indian action and maputa movies. He speaks Hindi via the Japanese subtitles.


 * Zhang Jing Yi
 * Portrayed by: Xenia Wong; Voiced by: Michelle Ruff (English)
 * A Taiwanese-born Hong Kong voice actress who loves drinks. She speaks Chinese via the Japanese subtitles.


 * Jun Fujioka
 * Portrayed by: Kanichi Kurita; Voiced by: Tony Oliver (English)
 * A Japanese bar owner whom he owns a bar named Kurita's Bar.


 * Katsuro Hisakawa
 * Portrayed by: Kiyoshi Kobayashi; Voiced by: Richard Epcar (English)
 * A Japanese computer graphics director. He is a dropout of Tokyo University.


 * Hibiki Kimura
 * Portrayed by: Makio Inoue; Voiced by: Chris Carlson (English)
 * A Japanese sound effects editor and computer graphics programmer.


 * Kyle Rodriguez
 * Portrayed by: Lex Lang
 * A Mexican-American captain of the SWAT . He is the friend of Warren Hughes. He speaks English via Japanese subtitles.


 * Brandon Richardson
 * Portrayed by: Andy McAvin
 * An Argentinian-born American stand-up comedian who was born in 1955. He is the brother of Kyle Rodriguez. He speaks English via Japanese subtitles.


 * Kwak Hyun-jung (Hanja: ; Hangul: 곽현정)
 * Portrayed by: Lee Byung-hun; Voiced by: Doug Erholtz (English)
 * A South Korean hijacker, terrorist and sex offender who avoids being arrested by the police. In some episodes, he gets arrested sometimes. He speaks Korean via Japanese subtitles.


 * Felipe García
 * Portrayed by: Carlos Segundo Bravo; Voiced by: Doug Erholtz (English)
 * A Mexican hijacker and terrorist. He is one of the partners of Kwak Hyun-jung. He speaks Spanish via Japanese subtitles.


 * Jerônimo Félix
 * Portrayed by: Peterson Adriano; Voiced by: Ted Cole (English)
 * A São Paulo-born Brazilian hijacker, terrorist and sex offender. He is one of the partners of Kwak Hyun-jung. He speaks Portuguese via Japanese subtitles.


 * Denis Magalhães
 * Portrayed by: Garcia Júnior; Voiced by: Sam Vincent (English)
 * A Brazilian hijacker and sex offender. He is one of the partners of Kwak Hyun-jung. He speaks Portuguese via Japanese subtitles.


 * Adrienne Clément
 * Portrayed by: Lucie Dolène; Voiced by: Chantal Strand (English)
 * A French female hijacker and terrorist. She is the girlfriend of Kwak Hyun-jung and one of his partners. She speaks French via Japanese subtitles.


 * Jamal Al-Hashim (جمال الهاشم)
 * Portrayed by: Wael Mansour; Voiced by: Illich Guardiola (English)
 * An Egyptian burglar, criminal, thief, hijacker, terrorist and sex offender. He is the friend of Kwak Hyun-jung and one of his partners. He speaks Arabic via Japanese subtitles.


 * Patricia Cook
 * Portrayed by: Chantal Strand
 * A Canadian female news reporter of CNN, reporting about controversies and terrorism. She speaks English via Japanese subtitles.


 * Shavik Ramakrishnan (ஷாவிக் ராமகிருஷ்ணன் Ṣāvik Rāmakiruṣṇaṉ)
 * Portrayed by: Vijayakanth; Voiced by: Dwight Schultz (English)
 * Shavik is the Indian Federal Democratic Party's presidential candidate. He becomes Nobuo Hamaguchi's target of the underworld driving his campaign with a slogan, "No More Drugs". He speaks Tamil via Japanese subtitles.


 * Viji Lakshmi (விஜி லட்சுமி Viji Laṭcumi)
 * Portrayed by: Rajinikanth; Voiced by: Carlos Ferro (English)
 * Viji is Shavik Ramakrishnan's candidate for the vice president of India. He speaks Tamil via Japanese subtitles.


 * Predaj Amidane (بريداج أميدان)
 * Portrayed by: Hiam Abbass; Voiced by: Denise Poirier (English)
 * Predaj is a high-ranking member of the commando squadron of the Palestinian Liberation Front. She speaks Arabic via Japanese subtitles.


 * Susumu Hori
 * Portrayed by: Sonny Chiba; Voiced by: Mark X Laskowski (English)
 * Susumu is a Japanese video game programmer and music artist. He is also a CGI designer.


 * Wataru Hoshi
 * Portrayed by: Jiro Yabuki; Voiced by: Mark X Laskowski (English)
 * Wataru is a Japanese screenwriter and a friend of Susumu Hori.


 * Kameko Sakiyama
 * Portrayed by: Ayaka Saito; Voiced by: Alison Viktorin (English)
 * A Japanese voice actress and world-traveler who helps Hidehiko Matsuda.


 * Michiko Okino
 * Portrayed by: Aya Hirano; Voiced by: Colleen Clinkenbeard (English)
 * One of Kameko Sakiyama's best friends. Like Kameko, she's a voice actress and a world-traveler.


 * Manami Oyama
 * Portrayed by: Nozomi Sasaki; Voiced by: Colleen Clinkenbeard (English)
 * One of Kameko Sakiyama's best friends. Unlike Kameko and Michiko, she's a computer-graphics executive producer.


 * Chi Zhang
 * Portrayed by: Sammo Hung; Voiced by: Andy McAvin (English)
 * A Beijing-born Hong Kong martial artist, whose favorite weapon is a shuriken. He speaks Cantonese or Chinese via Japanese subtitles.


 * Hongyang Hui
 * Portrayed by: Yuen Biao; Voiced by: Deke Anderson (English)
 * A Singapore-born Chinese martial artist and a friend of Chi Zhang, whose favorite weapon is a guandao. He speaks Chinese via Japanese subtitles.


 * Zeng Xusheng
 * Portrayed by: Jackie Chan; Voiced by: Doug Erholtz (English)
 * A Shanghai-born Chinese film director and a friend of Chi Zhang and Hongyang Hui. He is of Shanghai dialect. He speaks Chinese via Japanese subtitles.


 * Kim Nan-joon (Hanja: ; Hangul: 김남준)
 * Portrayed by: Jung Woo-sung; Voiced by: Kaiji Tang (English)
 * The Head of the National Intelligence Service and inspector in Seoul. He was born in Pyongyang. He speaks Korean via Japanese subtitles.


 * Kim Seok-jin (김석진)
 * Portrayed by: Lee Jung-jae; Voiced by: Lex Lang (English)
 * A Los Angeles-born South Korean company executive, art director and CGI programmer. When in the United States, he goes by the name of Randall Henderson . He speaks Korean via Japanese subtitles.


 * Iwao Katabuchi
 * Portrayed by: Masato Hagiwara; Voiced by: Kirk Thornton (English)
 * A Japanese naive man who has developed into a clever and thoughtful gambler. His favorite food is a yakitori.


 * Tokie Fukumoto
 * Portrayed by: Mami Sakamoto; Voiced by: Michelle Ruff (English)
 * A retired Japanese news reporter who is the girlfriend of Iwao Katabuchi. Her two favorite foods are sushi and onigiri.


 * Roy Mitchell
 * Portrayed by: Harrison Ford
 * An American film actor and stuntman. He is the American friend of Iwao Katabuchi and his girlfriend, Tokie Fukumoto. His two favorite foods are pizza and hamburger. He speaks English via Japanese subtitles.


 * Min Yoon-gi (Hanja: ; Hangul: 민윤기)
 * Portrayed by: Lee Jung-jae; Voiced by: Richard Epcar (English)
 * A South Korean key animator and Chairman of the National Intelligence Service. He speaks Korean via Japanese subtitles.


 * Konata Izumi
 * Portrayed by: Kasumi Arimura; Voiced by: Wendee Lee (English)
 * A Japanese in-between animator and anime fan. She is often confused with the protagonist of the same name from Lucky Star.


 * Cheng Zhiming
 * Portrayed by: Evergreen Mak Cheung-ching; Voiced by: Johnny Yong Bosch (English)
 * A Chinese film and television editor working for the film and television production company called Angela Film and Television Production Co. . He speaks Chinese via Japanese subtitles.


 * Ma Yuyan (/)
 * Portrayed by: Tang Wei; Voiced by: Wendee Lee (English)
 * A Chinese former female assassin who went on to become a news reporter and TV broadcaster, whom she works for Angela Film and Television Production Co.. She speaks Chinese via Japanese subtitles.


 * Xue Xiaomei
 * Portrayed by: Zhang Ziyi; Voiced by: Barbara Goodson (English)
 * A Chinese former female burglar and hacker who went on to become a television producer working for Angela Film and Television Production Co.. She speaks Chinese via Japanese subtitles.


 * Sun Zhengping
 * Portrayed by: Hans Zhang; Voiced by: Dave Wittenberg (English)
 * Zhengping is the politican of the Communist Party of China . He speaks Chinese via Japanese subtitles.

Production
The opening sequence was made into CG by Jet Studio Inc.. The CG director was Satoshi Mochizuki.

Adaptations
The movie adaptation, titled "Life Without Cuteness and Sweetness: The Movie", was distributed by Toei Company and it was released in Japanese theaters on March 22, 2012. It was also released in North America and Europe on June 30, 2012.

A manga adaptation of the same name was written and illustrated by Hajime Isayama and published in Kodansha's Bessatsu Shōnen Magazine in Japan on July 27, 2013 and North America and Europe on August 19, 2013.

An anime adaptation based on the movie and the original series, using character designs from the manga counterpart was produced by Studio Akira, released in Japan on December 2, 2013, North America (available on Crunchyroll) on December 16, 2013 and Europe on March 22, 2023.

A video game adaptation, titled "Life Without Cuteness and Sweetness: The Video Game", was released in Japan by Bandai Namco Entertainment for Windows, MacOS, Linux, Xbox One, PlayStation 3, Wii U, TSUG, Nintendo 3DS, PlayStation Vita, PlayStation 4 on April 1, 2014 and in North America and Europe on April 30, 2014.

A visual novel adaptation, titled "Life Without Cuteness and Sweetness: The Visual Novel" was released in Japan by Seiko Games for Windows, MacOS, Linux, Xbox One, PlayStation Vita, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 2, PlayStation 3, Wii U, Nintendo 3DS and TSUG on August 3, 2014 in Japan and in North America and Europe on December 3, 2014.

Afghanistan

 * Tolo TV

Australia

 * SBS

Bhutan

 * Bhutan Broadcasting Service

Canada

 * Canadian Broadcasting Corporation

China

 * China Central Television

El Kadsre

 * El TV Kadsre 1
 * El TV Kadsre Japanese

Floweria

 * EPIK TV

Hong Kong

 * Asia Television (until April 2017)
 * Television Broadcasts Limited
 * RTHK
 * Hong Kong Television Network (until March 2018)
 * Hong Kong Open TV (by Fantastic TV)

Israel

 * yes

Japan

 * Chubu-Nippon Broadcasting
 * Tokyo Broadcasting System
 * Tokyo MX
 * TV Tokyo

Littleplanetia

 * Scoobis (Original Japanese version)
 * mulhernTV (Chinese, Spanish and English versions)

Mahri

 * Treet TV1

Malaysia

 * TV3

Nepal

 * Nepal Television

New Zealand

 * TVNZ 1

North El Kadsre

 * EYE TV1

Ostland

 * OST1

Pakistan

 * Pakistan Television Corporation

Philippines

 * ABS-CBN

Qatar

 * Al Jazeera

Screencold and Line

 * SCL 4

Sentan

 * STN 1

Shinkitajima

 * BSJ

Singapore

 * Channel U

South Korea

 * KBS2

Southeast Asia

 * GEM TV Asia

Taiwan

 * FTV
 * Taiwan Television

Thailand

 * Channel 3

United Arab Emirates

 * Abu Dhabi TV

United El Kadsreian Nations

 * GEM TV

United Kingdom

 * BBC Two

United States

 * Adult Swim

Vicnora

 * VTVEN

Vietnam

 * Vietnam Television

Worldwide

 * Netflix

YinYangia

 * New Kasukabe Television