Akari Takaishi plays the heroine in the NHK Asadora drama "Bakebake" (Monday to Saturday, 8:00 AM and other times). In the ninth week, Governor Eto's (Sano Shiro) daughter, the beautiful and intelligent young lady Eto Rio (Kana Kita), makes her appearance. We spoke to production manager Hashizume Kuniomi about what he wanted to portray through her, who has become something of a "love rival" for Toki (Takaishi).
◇ The daughter of a real-life governor: 90% original, but "inspired by documents"
Rio, played by Kita, is fluent in English and is strongly attracted to Heaven (Tommy Bastow), who visits Matsue. When she first appeared in episode 41 (broadcast on November 24th), there was a scene where she asked Toki, "Are you my rival?"
Regarding Kita, who will play Rio, Hashizume explained the reason for casting her, saying, "I don't think I need to explain, but she has played some very good roles in various dramas, and she gave some impressive acting in NHK's 'What Will Ieyasu Do?' I think her acting is wonderful, as she brings out the karma that lies somewhere in her heart. I thought the role of Rio in this film would be perfect for her."
He revealed that when creating the character of Rio, "it's not entirely fictional, and it's not entirely based on historical fact."
"The governor of Shimane Prefecture at the time actually had a daughter, and there is a record that she gave a Japanese bush warbler to Lafcadio Hearn. There is also a record that she may have had a slight crush on Hearn. However, I don't think she made such a serious approach. There are documents that suggest that Koizumi Setsu may not have had such good feelings for him, so I used that as a hint, but the story is more than 90% original."
◇The unconscious change in Toki's heart What I wanted to portray through konnyaku noodles and bento lunches
Then, in the 45th episode (broadcast on November 28th), Heaven and Rio's "rendezvous" was depicted. Rio, who had heard from Nishikori (Ryo Yoshizawa) that "itokonyaku is Heaven-sensei's favorite food," brought a homemade lunch box with her. Meanwhile, Toki drew an illustration saying "I want a lunch box" for Heaven, who actually hates itokonyaku, but was unable to give it to her in the end. At the rendezvous, Rio invites Heaven to have lunch on a bench, but Heaven says, "I'm not hungry yet..." and remains unable to open the contents of her lunch box until the very end.
Hashizume praised Takaishi's solid acting ability, saying, "If we had shown the bento as it was, I think Rio and Heaven would have parted ways. But what I wanted to portray there was Toki's unconscious change of heart, and I wrote the scene hoping to show that change through the konnyaku noodles. I think (screenwriter) Fujiki Mitsuhiko's style is to write it in an entertaining way, but I think Takaishi was able to express those ambiguous, indescribable human feelings through his acting."
"In short, if you open the lid of the lunchbox, the delicacy of that part will be destroyed, and in the end the answer will be revealed. But the answer hasn't been revealed yet, and even Rio hasn't found the answer yet. So I think it's like a symbol of the delicacy of the human heart. Well, that sounds cool, but I think Fujiki probably wrote it purely for fun (laughs)."
