The ninth episode of the Sunday Theatre drama " Mikami Sensei " (TBS, Sunday 9pm) starring Tori Matsuzaka was broadcast on March 16th. There was a scene where Mikami (Matsuzaka) confronts his mother, which became a hot topic on social media.
◇The following contains spoilers
Mikami decides to invite two students from class 3-2, Tominaga ( Aju Makita) and Jigen (Airu Kubozuka), to the facility where her mother Sonoko is staying.
When Migami calls out "Mom," Sonoko calls out to Migami using the name of her brother who committed suicide, "Kota. Did you come?" Migami tells Tominaga and Jigen, who are watching their conversation, "Would you like to join me and listen? I've been putting off my homework for ages, and I need to do something about it. I wonder if you could see it through."
Mikami moved to Sonoko's favorite spot. As Tominaga and Jigen looked on, he gently said to Sonoko, "You know, Mom. I'm Takashi. Do you understand? Takashi."
"What are you talking about? It's Kota, isn't it?" his mother asked. Mikami replied, "Kota died 22 years ago. If that was okay with you, if that was what you wanted, then I wanted to stay Kota. But, well, I knew it was a lie. Every time you called me Kota, it hurt so much I couldn't breathe, and I felt I had to face him," his voice trembling.
When Sonoko said that it was her fault that Kota died, Mikami pursed her lips and said, "It's not your fault, Mom. I think of myself as living for two people, Kota and I. It's always been that way, and it will continue to be that way."
Holding her son's hand, Sonoko asked, "Is he filial piety?" Mikami was shown holding back tears at Sonoko's "response" as she replied, "Yes, he is filial piety."
On social media, there were many comments such as, "I'm Takashi. I've never been able to say these words, and I've had to swallow them and suffer every time someone called me Kota. It's so painful," "I couldn't watch the scene where he faces his mother without crying... Matsuzaka's acting was truly amazing and I was drawn in," and "It's the homework that Mikami Sensei has been putting off for so long. He tells his mother who has dementia, 'I'm Takashi...' and the scene where he faces his brother's death, his own feelings, and his mother really moved me."
