What I Learned from TV Dramas | Hiroyuki Ishida, Dean, Graduate School of Health Management
2024.02.20
It has long been pointed out that the younger generation is turning away from television, resulting in a decrease in terrestrial broadcast viewing hours. However, for my generation, who spent their formative years in the Showa era, television and radio were valuable sources of information from which I feel we learned a great deal. At the time, commercial broadcasters were characterized by the saying, "TBS for dramas, Fuji for variety." The Fuji TV network created unconventional yet hilarious variety shows like "Oretachi Hyokin-zoku" and "Minasan no Okage desu," which served as a "cultivation ground" for future big-name talents who were then in their nascent stages, such as Beat Takeshi, Sanma Akashiya, Tunnels, Rie Miyazawa, and Nanako Matsushima. Meanwhile, TBS dramas, famous for the "Red Series" in the 1970s, continued to tackle themes that were previously considered taboo as the dark underbelly of society, such as adultery, teacher-student love, rape, and abuse, in shows like "To the Wives on Friday" and "High School Teacher." To put it favorably, these were avant-garde themes for the time, and they sparked widespread public debate. I also believe it was from this period that the music inserted into dramas began to be meticulously crafted. It wasn't just about selecting a theme song; techniques like deliberately inserting dispassionate music into dark and cruel scenes were fresh and reminiscent of European films of the time. Incidentally, the music for the aforementioned "High School Teacher" was composed by Akira Senju, who is a Keio University alumni. In those days, the freedom of broadcasting compliance was (probably) greater. Regardless of whether it was good or bad, it was an era when society was tolerant and at times accepted these things with interest. I believe there was great significance in how these shows provided diverse stimuli without offering simple solutions, shaking the sensibilities and values of the viewers. As time went on, "A Lost Paradise" became a sensation. When it was dramatized on the NTV network, it aired an incredible number of risqué scenes featuring the lead actors, despite being in the evening primetime slot. Many people must have been deeply moved by the man and woman heading toward their lost paradise with one foot on the brake and the other on the accelerator, but it will probably never be allowed to be rebroadcast. The original novel (by Junichi Watanabe) was previously serialized in the Nikkei newspaper, and commuters headed to work while being shaken by both the train and the novel.
Last year, on November 29, I received sad news. Screenwriter Taichi Yamada, one of the pillars of "TBS for dramas," passed away at the age of 89. All the works for which Mr. Yamada wrote the scripts are wonderful, and he is one of the writers (screenwriters) who influenced me the most. I also read through many of his scenario books (books composed mainly of dialogue from the dramas). That is how much each and every "word" scattered throughout Mr. Yamada's works struck a chord with me. Many people cite "Album on the Shore" or "The Unbalanced Apples" as his masterpieces, but I would like to name "Making Memories." It is a coming-of-age ensemble drama about three working women who, in an era without the internet or smartphones and when women's advancement in society was still in its preparatory stages, reach a marriageable age and struggle with the idea of creating some "memories" beforehand. In a complex situation where a passive life determined by a marriage partner was foreseen, their search for self, combined with the unique casting of Yuko Kotechawa, Masako Mori, and Yuko Tanaka, achieved high viewership ratings. At that time, Japan was in its pre-bubble period. It was an era of vague dissatisfaction with social disparities, with few means to climb out of them. I imagine that by deliberately focusing on ordinary people, his work resonated with many. What can be said in common about Mr. Yamada's works is that people were depicted with great care, and conversations and the pauses (`ma`) between them were highly valued. These stories—about an uncertain future, things not going as one wishes, waiting patiently for something—are told at a different tempo from the sense of speed in our current age of digital transformation, and I truly hope that today's younger generation will watch them.
Now, although I mentioned at the beginning that people are turning away from television, recent TBS dramas have been vibrant. For example, there is "VIVANT," which many of you know well. It is a work by director Katsuo Fukuzawa, who is also a Keio University alumni. Its vast desert scenes, reminiscent of "Lawrence of Arabia" (1962, directed by David Lean), and its calculated scenario where multi-layered anecdotes converge into one at the end, felt like watching a film by Alejandro González Iñárritu, far exceeding the scale of a typical drama. Another recent favorite of mine is "Extremely Inappropriate!" (currently airing). The story is like "Back to the Future," with the protagonists traveling between 2024 and 1986 in a time machine. While the modern person who trips back to the Showa era is bewildered by the parade of in-car smoking and sexual, power, and moral harassment, the Showa person who wanders into the Reiwa era feels suffocated by the parade of compliance rules. However, he sticks to his Showa principles, and the way his honest remarks and behavior gradually gain sympathy is quite cathartic for a Showa-era old man like myself.
Comparing the two eras again like this, the gap over these 38 years is immense. My father, who was a militaristic boy admiring the "seven buttons with a cherry blossom and anchor" of the naval uniform, drilled into me the "Mon-Mon-Tue-Wed-Thu-Fri-Fri" work ethic. But starting this April, a new work style reform system is finally being introduced for doctors as well. Of course, this is something to be encouraged. On the other hand, it is also a fact that in every workplace, and even in the world of sports, pre-generational Showa people are still active and mixed in, and not a few people are struggling with the double-standard morality that sometimes causes conflict. My generation, which experienced the old morals, will soon decline naturally, so time will likely solve the problem. However, I think it is important to take the stance of not negating everything, but rather preserving what should be preserved and changing what should be changed. I feel that the path forged by the Juku High School baseball team, led by Manager Mori, is a role model for this. I also strongly hope that the current younger generation will watch "Extremely Inappropriate!," which deals with ordinary people. (It is available on Netflix.) From the conversations and behaviors that would undoubtedly be deemed unacceptable if judged by the standards of time efficiency or morality, there is surely something to be perceived.