The 20th episode of the NHK Asadora"Bakebake " (Monday to Saturday, 8:00 AM and other times), starring Akari Takaishi as the heroine, was broadcast on October 24th, and drew the attention of viewers as it depicted the separation between Toki (Takaishi) and her husband Ginjiro ( Kanichiro).
In episode 20, Toki enjoys his first Western-style breakfast with Ginjiro and Nishikori (played by Ryo Yoshizawa). As they drink milk and laugh, making "white whiskers" around their mouths, Toki reminisces about the time he spent with his family at the Matsuno household. Holding back tears, Toki says, "I'm going back to Matsue. I'm sorry, Ginjiro."
Afterwards, the two left the room and faced each other. Toki spoke of his feelings, saying, "To be honest, I want to live in Tokyo with Ginjiro. I want to start over as a couple. But... I can't leave them behind. I love Ginjiro, though." Ginjiro, too, thought of Toki until the very end, and tearfully apologized, saying, "I'm sorry we couldn't go home together."
Toki and Ginjiro chose to break up despite their deep feelings for each other. On social media, people were saying things like, "I cried so much," "My tear ducts were broken," "I knew how it would end but it's still sad...," "It's heartbreaking even though they were in love with each other. They were a wonderful couple," "More than sad, it was heartbreaking, frustrating but also endearing, that's the kind of ending it was," "They chose to break up out of respect for each other's happiness, it was sad but I thought there was a lot of love," and "I was wondering how these two would break up but it ended in a satisfying way."
