A dancer crashes her estranged grandpa's life and accidentally fixes her whole broken family.
Season 1 • Episode 156
LatestThe 78th NHK Asadora is Hitomi. The series takes place in the old shitamachi area of Tokyo, and in these most recent episodes, 20-year old heroine Hitomi becomes the force around which her divorced mother, long estranged from her own father, is forced to reconcile and renew a sense of family camaraderie. This is not particularly easy, given the trifling issues and problems of modern day life that beset each of the characters, and the drama unfolds with a light comedic touch. Hitomi's upbringing is the issue that is constantly brought into focus. The family reconciliation is made possible, ironically through the death of Hitomi's grandmother. Hitomi seizes the opportunity to travel to her funeral from Sapporo. Once there, she sets out to realize her dream of becoming a dancer, all the while interfering with and disrupting her grandfather's life.
Acting
Nana Eikura's relentless optimism anchors every scene.
Production
Nostalgic shitamachi sets feel lived-in and authentic.
Writing
Death as family reunion catalyst—surprisingly unsentimental.
Nana Eikura
Ippongi Hitomi
Naoko Iijima
Ippongi Momoko
Toshiyuki Nishida
Ippongi Katsutaro
Gin Maeda
Ishida Yujiro
Nana Kinomi
Takagi Mari
Ken Yasuda
Ishida Yuzo
Kin Sugai
Yokoyama Ume
Hisahiro Ogura
Nakane Makoto
Masahiro Kobayashi
Nakane Hiroshi
Eisuke Sasai
Rose Mama
Misako Uno
Endo Keiko
Hajime Okayama
Morimoto Daisuke
Trivia, insights & behind the scenes
Asadora heroines traditionally embody postwar Japanese resilience—Hitomi's selfishness actually subverts the format.
The 2008 timing matters: Japan's 'lost generation' saw many young women abandoning rural obligations for urban dreams.
JP
