Dorama

Japanese dramas, or "terebi dorama" (often referred to simply as "dorama"), are a staple of Japanese television and are broadcast daily. Though called dramas, they cover a wide range of tones and genres. A dorama can be a romantic soap opera, a comedic look at Salaryman life, a detective story, or even a horror tale... and that's hardly the limit.

The majority of dorama air in what could be considered "prime time"-- starting around 9 pm and ending at midnight, and airing weekly. There are also daytime and afternoon dorama, usually aired daily.

Due to the "four season" nature of Japanese television and the general concept of a series having a planned run of episodes, dorama tend to have limited runs, much as Anime do-- a typical evening dorama runs for nine to twelve episodes, with one or two episode runs for doramas commemorating a certain event or theme. Major successes may get an epilogue episode.

Interestingly, each episode of a dorama is usually shot only a few (two to three) weeks before it is actually aired. Many fans have been able to visit their idols shooting scenes even as the show is still airing.

There is also a Korean equivalent.

Examples are listed on Japanese Series.