What was the most captivating scene in the 102nd episode (broadcast on August 19th) of the NHK Asadora drama "Anpan " (General TV, Monday to Saturday, 8:00 AM and other times), starring Mio Imada ? When we looked at minute-by-minute trends in "attention level," which indicates the degree to which viewers were glued to the screen, we found that the highest level of attention in the 102nd episode (surveyed by REVISIO, Kanto region, preliminary figures) was at 8:14 AM, when the proverb "There are ears on the wall and eyes on the paper screen" unfolded, with 76.2% of viewers tuning in.
" Anpan" is based on the married Takashi Yanase(1919-2013), the manga artist and picture book writer who created "Anpanman," and his wife, 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 rating was 76.2% at 8:14 AM. As Nobu and Taka were excited talking about love, the person responsible appeared!
The 102nd episode focused on the relationship between Yagi (Satoshi Tsumabuki), who founded a new company called Kyushu Cotton Center, and Ranko (Yuumi Kawai), while also incorporating Yagi's past. The graph of "attention level," which shows the percentage of people actually watching the TV screen, showed three gradually growing peaks towards the end of the episode.
The first peak occurred at 8:02 AM, shortly after the opening, at 69.0%. This is the scene where Nobu (Imada), who has been fired from his job, is encouraged by Tomiko (Nanako Matsushima), who tells her not to be so downhearted. At exactly two minutes into the film, as Tomiko's tea ceremony students enter the tea room, Nobu is asked, "Are you the wife of lyricist Takashi Yanai?" It's a memorable scene in which Tomiko happily explains, "Takashi's (Takumi Kitamura) father was passionate about literature, and it seems I inherited that blood."
The second peak was at 8:06 AM, when Ranko submitted the promotional copy for her beach sandals, which had been rejected, to Yagi, and finally received the OK, at 73.0%. At exactly six minutes in, Kasuya (Tanaka Shunsuke), who was the leader of the propaganda squad of the Kokura Regiment during the war, looked at the script and suggested, "Can I just add one thing?" and "How about emphasizing this part and adding the word 'absolutely'?" Ranko refused, saying, "I don't want to use the word 'absolutely'." Seeing Ranko's expression as she said, "That word is no good," Yagi decided to "go with it as is." It was a scene in which the word "absolutely" stuck like a needle in the mind of the viewer, lingering in the minds of viewers.
The reason why he doesn't want to use the word "absolutely" becomes clear about six minutes later, when Yagi tells Ranko that he lost his wife and child, who he had left behind in Fukuoka, in an air raid.
"When I left for the war, I promised my wife and child that I would definitely return alive. But when I finally returned, they had died in an air raid on Fukuoka. I had no idea why they had survived on the battlefield."
The word "absolutely" also appears in Yagi's story as he calmly recounts his past. Perhaps this word, and Yagi's past, resonated with her. Ranko begins by saying, "There was someone who told me that I would definitely come back alive." When Yagi asks, "Who was that person?" Ranko shakes her head and reveals, "That's why I can't use the word 'absolutely'."
The scene where Ranko confesses her feelings is in the first half of the 8:12 AM time slot. I would like to say that this is the third peak, but after the second peak, from 8:07 AM to 8:12 AM, the ratings remained roughly flat at 66-68%, with little rise or fall in popularity.
The peak of the day, the third mountain, was reached at 8:14 a.m. After Ranko's earlier confession, the climb skyrocketed, reaching 76.2%.
In fact, in this scene, Nobu approaches Taka, who is drawing a picture at home, and asks, "Ranko, are you in love?" Taka is surprised and asks, "Huh? To whom?" Nobu replies, "Who do you mean?", lowering her gaze to the picture Taka is drawing to give to Yagi. As Taka excitedly retorts, "Huh, Yagi-san?" and "I don't think so," there is a knock on the front door, and when the door is opened somewhat roughly, Ranko is standing there. She then calmly declares, "Don't worry. I'll never fall in love in my life."
Although the plot is a bit cliched, it seems the viewers were excited. The 76.2% interest rate is relatively high compared to other episodes. Ranko mutters "customer" to the distraught couple, and Kentaro (Fumiya Takahashi) takes his place and enters the entrance, bringing the curtain down on episode 102.
The data used was a proprietary index called "attention level" published by REVISIO, a company that surveys TV program and commercial viewing habits 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.
