The first episode of the NHK Asadora drama series "Anpan " starring Mio Imada (General TV, Monday to Saturday at 8:00 am and others) was broadcast on March 31st, and it was revealed that the combined real-time and time-shifted viewers (according to Video Research, excluding duplicates who watched both General TV and BS) were 19,393,000 people.
The average overall viewership rating for this episode was 22.6% for households in the Kanto region (15.4% real-time viewership, 8.3% time-shifted viewership) and 13.1% for individuals (8.6% real-time viewership, 4.9% time-shifted viewership). In the Kansai region, it was 21.3% for households (13.9% real-time viewership, 8.6% time-shifted viewership) and 12.1% for individuals (7.6% real-time viewership, 5.1% time-shifted viewership). In Kochi Prefecture, where the drama is set, it was 41.6% for households (26.2% real-time viewership, 18.4% time-shifted viewership) and 25.2% for individuals (15.1% real-time viewership, 10.9% time-shifted viewership).
The number of unique browsers (UBs) viewing the program simultaneously or on catch-up (from the day of broadcast to the next 7 days) on NHK Plus was 761,000, the highest number of viewers of any drama to date, including morning Asadora and taiga dramas.
Production manager Kurasaki Ken commented, "The entire team is very pleased that so many people watched the first episode of ' Anpan' in various ways. The comments and enthusiasm we receive from you all every day give all the cast and staff a strong push forward. Whether you watch it at a time, in the afternoon or at night, or in a way that suits your lifestyle, or in a place that suits you, it would be the greatest joy if this drama could be somewhere in your daily life and help you feel even a little joy in life. The story has only just begun. We ask for your continued support for the next six months as Nobu and his friends continue to run through turbulent times in the world of ' Anpan."
"Anpan" is based on the married couple Takashi Yanase(1919-2013) and Nobu Komatsu(1918-1993), the manga artist and picture book writer who created "Anpanman." It is a "story of love and courage" that will make you feel the joy of living, depicting how these two, who were once nobody, overcame all sorts of rough seas to become "Anpanman," the embodiment of "unreversible justice."
