The End of Summer

Patriarch of a small sake brewery outside Kyoto, Manbei embodies tradition and stubborn pride. He cares deeply for his family but is driven by a sense of duty that leads him to secret liaisons and difficult choices. His heart attacks test his authority and the family’s cohesion.

Daughter-in-law who helps at an art gallery and raises her son Minoru with Manbei’s son Hisao. She is cautious about arranged matches for her future, balancing personal desires with family expectations.

Youngest daughter who remains unmarried, working in an office. She loves Teramoto but does not openly express her feelings, torn between romance and the pull of family duties.

Manbei’s other daughter who lives at the house with her husband Hisao and their young son Masao. She confronts Manbei about Tsune and grapples with the tensions between family loyalty and personal truth.

Fumiko’s husband who helps at the brewery. He embodies steady, practical judgment and provides a grounded counterpoint to the family’s emotional volatility.

Noriko’s love interest who is moving to Sapporo to take a position as an assistant professor. His departure creates the tension between personal longing and career moves.

Manbei’s secretive former mistress, whose presence haunts the family and raises questions about paternity and loyalty. Her connections add a murky layer to the family’s past.

Tsune’s Westernized daughter, whose relationship to Manbei is uncertain, complicating the family dynamics and the question of lineage.

A widower who shows enthusiasm for a match with Akiko, representing traditional matchmaking diplomacy in a modern setting.

Manbei’s brother-in-law who arranges matches for his nieces and daughters, driving much of the plot’s romantic machinations.

Akiko’s young son, raised within the Kohayagawa household and part of the family’s ongoing generational dynamic.

Fumiko and Hisao’s young son, who embodies the continuity of the family line amid changing times.