NHK General's "The Century of Images: The Butterfly Effect" (Mondays at 10 PM) will air "Emperor Showa, Part 1" on March 30th. This is the first part of a two-part series depicting the life of Emperor Showa. As the military rose to power, the ideal of a constitutional monarch that the Emperor aimed for was swept away, and he was deified as a living god in order to wage war.
Emperor Showa ascended to the throne at the age of 27. The young monarch aspired to the British model of a constitutional monarch. He modeled himself after the principle of "reigning but not ruling," and gained popular support with his commoner-like style. However, as the economy stagnated due to the Great Depression, the military rose to power. The Emperor's authority was exploited by the military, and the Emperor was deified. The people, under the banner of "loyalty to the Emperor and patriotism," leaned towards waging war. After the outbreak of war, the Emperor suddenly found himself on the front lines of war leadership as the Supreme Commander. Narrated by announcer Yoji Itoi.
