The final episode (episode 8) of the drama series "Itsuka, Hero" (ABC/TV Asahi, Sunday 10:15pm) starring actor Kenta Kiritani was broadcast on June 1st. Yukiya Kitamura delivered a spectacular performance throughout the series, leaving a strong impact on viewers even in the final episode.
The drama depicts a former orphanage employee, Akayama (Kiritani), who stands up against corrupt and powerful forces with his former students. Kitamura plays the final boss of the series, Wakaouji, chairman of the Dream Group, a major conglomerate that controls the fields of IT, finance, education, and media.
In the final episode, Akayama struggled to get back his former student, Shibuya Yuuki (Ryubi Miyase), who had been brainwashed by Wakaouji and was living as "Himura Kaito". At the end of the episode, Wakaouji, who had given up on himself, appeared in front of Yuuki with a knife and demanded that he kill him.
When Yuki, who had been freed from the brainwashing, refused, Wakaouji tried to stab Yuki, but Akayama stopped him at the last moment. When Akayama hit him with a full headbutt, Wakaouji laughed creepily, "Yuaaan, Yuyon," and fell to the ground.
On social media, viewers were quick to comment, "Kitamura's eccentric acting was amazing (shudder)," "It was so scary how he kept saying 'Yuaan Yuyon'," "I'm in awe of Kitamura Yukiya's acting...amazing," "Kitamura Yukiya's range of acting is really incredible...," "What a stark contrast to his ordinary dad in (the Asadora) Omusubi," and "This drama made me realise that Kitamura Yukiya really suits the role of a psychopath. He was good as a slightly pathetic dad in the Asadora, but it's hard to find anyone who can play a role like this convincingly."
