Anpan:Attention rate trends for episode 111: Hatako vs. Tomiko. Which word captured the hearts of viewers? The highest was 74.9% at 8:12 AM.

What was the scene that most captivated viewers in the 111th episode (broadcast on September 1st) of the NHK Asadora drama "Anpan " (General TV, Monday to Saturday 8:00 AM and others), starring Mio Imada ? The episode depicted a fierce "battle" between her stepmother, Hatako ( Noriko Eguchi), and her biological mother, Tomiko (Nanako Matsushima). We looked into which scene drew the most attention from viewers by looking at minute-by-minute trends in "attention level" (surveyed by REVISIO, Kanto region, preliminary figures), which indicates the degree to which viewers were glued to the screen.

"Anpan" is based on the married couple Yanase (1919-2013), the manga artist and picture book writer who created "Anpanman," and Nobu (1918-1993). It is a "story of love and courage" that will fill you with the joy of living, depicting how these two, who were once nobodys, overcame all sorts of troubles to become "Anpanman," the embodiment of "unreversible justice."

◇The highest reading was 74.9% at 8:12 a.m. Hatako's angry words exploded.

Episode 111 follows the story after the broadcast of the radio drama "The Gentle Lion." Takumi Kitamura (played by Takumi Kitamura) is worried about what his mother, Tomiko, thinks of him, and looks gloomy. Hatako, who heard about this from Nobu (played by Imada), brings Tomiko home a few days later.

As Hatako enjoys tea with Tomiko in Taka's tea room, she starts talking about "The Kind Lion," and Nobu also tells Taka how he feels about Tomiko. From around 8:06 AM until almost the end, a "battle" between Tomiko, the biological mother, and Hatako, the stepmother, unfolds in the tea room. It's a long scene on the same set, but the passionate performances of Eguchi and Matsushima keep the viewers entertained.

The "attention level" for that day, which indicates the percentage of people actually watching the screen among those in front of the TV screen, began to rise slowly after the opening scene in which the theme song played, and then peaked at the end of the drama, showing what could be described as a "second-half type" graph.

The first peak was at 8:11 a.m., hitting 74.3%, and the highest was at 8:12 a.m., hitting 74.9%.

At 8:11 AM, Hatako raised her voice without thinking, "How dare you!". Just before that, Hatako had raised her voice and said, "You've never spoken kindly to my son since childhood. As his mother, shouldn't you be the first to apologize, bow your head and ask for forgiveness?" Tomiko responded by firmly denying it, saying, "I haven't done anything that I need to apologize for," which made Hatako raise her voice even more, saying, "How dare you!"

"You've trampled on Taka's feelings for your own convenience," Hatako says, literally getting on her knees to press further against Tomiko, but she refuses to give in.

"Taka-san wrote such a beautiful story for you, but you keep saying things that ruin it. You're not just feeling 'furious,' you're feeling 'irritated.'" Around 8:12 a.m., when Hatako uttered this powerful line, it was the peak of attention that day. It was a refreshingly heartwarming comment, and viewers must have wanted to exclaim, "Well done!"

"You've got some nerve," Tomiko says, and the two of them look at each other. What will happen next? At this point, viewers are starting to worry, and Nobu steps in, saying, "That's enough." The two then burst out laughing, and a truce is reached.

As Tomiko prepares to leave, Nobu proposes to live with him at the house, and the segment's popularity drops slightly around 8:13 a.m., but it rises again around 8:14 a.m., recording 74.0%. The second peak, around 14 minutes, follows Tomiko's response to Nobu's proposal.

"Do you think I could live in such a small apartment with such a low ceiling?" "I might consider it if Taka became as famous as Teshima Osamu and built me ​​a mansion with a garden, but that's not going to happen." Tomiko is no doubt happy inside, but she doesn't express it honestly. Her hateful words continue.

"You should just quit being a manga artist," Tomiko said, then said, "Well, goodbye," and left the room.

"No way, that person is not that easy to deal with." Hatako's words to Nobu were filled with sincerity. The viewers were likely to agree. The "battle" between the mother-in-law and her own mother intensified in the second half, and it seemed to keep the viewers' attention glued to the screen at every point.

Incidentally, before the opening, at around 8:01 AM, the wandering baker Sokichi Yamura(Sadao Abe), also known as "Yam-on-chan," reappeared on the show for the first time in seven weeks. Apparently, Kusakichi was listening to the radio drama "The Kind Lion" during his break at work. "He's become a radio drama writer instead of an artist," he muttered. He told two of his colleagues, "He's grown up eating my Anpan since he was a kid," but they couldn't believe him. It was a fun scene, typical of "Yam-on-chan," and while the anticipation rate was a respectable 66.0%, it didn't jump up much. However, whenever "Yam-on-chan" appears, attention tends to rise. Anticipation is building for more scenes featuring him.

The data used is a unique indicator called "attention level" published by REVISIO, a company that surveys the viewing habits of programs and commercials in 2,000 households in the Kanto region and 600 households in the Kansai region. A dedicated device equipped with a human body recognition sensor constantly measures whether people are looking at the TV screen, and calculates the percentage of people in front of the TV who are paying close attention to the program. (Text by Sasamoto Hirozai/MANTAN)