What was the most captivating scene in the 101st episode (aired February 23rd) of the NHK morning drama "Bakeke" (General TV, Monday-Saturday 8:00 AM and other times), starring actress Takaishi Akari? When we looked at minute-by-minute trends in "attention level" (surveyed by REVISIO, Kanto region, preliminary figures), which indicates the percentage of viewers glued to the screen, the peak was 72.3% at 8:14 AM.
"Bakeke" is the 113th morning drama. The heroine, Toki Matsuno, and her husband, Lefkada Heaven, are based on Setsu Koizumi, the daughter of a fallen samurai from Matsue, and Lafcadio Hearn (Koizumi Yakumo), known for his works such as "Kwaidan." The drama boldly reconstructs the characters, changing some of the names of characters and organizations to create a fictionalized portrayal.
◇ High interest continues during broadcast
In episode 101, Toki (Takaishi) is relieved to see Heaven (Tommy Bastow) begin to devote himself to his writing in Kumamoto. Meanwhile, it becomes clear that Kumamoto Fifth Junior High School, where Heaven works, may be closed. To avoid worrying her family, Heaven tells Takeru (Sugita Rairin) and Masaki (Hidaka Yukito) to keep quiet, but a few days later, Toki and the others easily find out about the possibility of the school being closed. Kuma (Natsume Towa) bursts into tears when he realizes he will be the first to be fired.
The "attention level," which indicates the percentage of viewers watching the TV intently, remained in the high 60s except for the opening moments when the theme song played. The graph resembled a sawtooth, fluctuating slightly every 1-2 minutes before peaking, and hitting over 70% twice towards the end, making this an episode that steadily captured viewer interest.
◇ "Your unhappiness will be transferred to others" - Bear's overreaction!
Near the end of the show, the viewership surpassed 70% twice: at 8:12 AM (71.8%) and at 8:14 AM (72.3%), the highest of the day. The former, at 8:12 AM, depicts Tsukasa (Takashi Okabe), hoping to increase his savings in case Heaven loses his job. He again entrusts Arakane (Atom Shukugawa) with money, asking him to "really increase it this time." Contrary to his appearance and demeanor, Arakane is surprisingly earnest, refusing the offer because he doesn't have a good deal. "I have a good eye for people," Tsukasa says, as always, but Arakane retorts, "You were wrong. You said I was suspicious." It's a rather amusing scene.
Next, at around 8:13 AM, Kuma, who is working part-time with Fumi (Ikewaki Chizuru), is in tears, worried that he might be fired, and Toki and Fumi tell him to go wash his face. Kuma stands up, and Takeru and Masaki enter the room to take his place. Kuma shouts, "That's not right," telling them not to sit where he was sitting. Kuma then says something strange, "Your unhappiness will be transferred to me." Heaven is also watching from his room. The attention rating dropped slightly to 69.9%, but it quickly picked up, perhaps because viewers were curious as to what it all meant.
The reading then peaked at 72.3% at around 8:14 AM. "If you're going to sit down, you have to tap the tatami first," Kuma instructs, giving an incomprehensible instruction. When Joe ignores him and tries to sit down, he gets angry and says, "That's not good." Joe says, "I understand," and sits somewhere else. Then, a package arrives addressed to Heaven, containing a money order for 80 yen in royalties, but perhaps what drew the most attention was Kuma's claim that "misfortune is contagious."
The data used is REVISIO's proprietary indicator "Attention Level" (Kanto region, preliminary figures) published by the 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. (Text by Sasamoto Hirozai/MANTAN)
