HANZAWA NAOKI is the main character of ongoing popular Japanese drama about a banker. Its audience rate has reached 32.9%, with the highest rate reaching 37.5% at one point in Kanto area. Recently, only few TV dramas have reached over 30% audience rate because of a declining trend of television viewing in Japan. The record shows people's strong interest towards this kind of drama. Even the drama director was surprised at this enthusiasm and interest.
Admittedly, I am one of these audience. This dram doesn't follow popular drama which contains several factors such as, few female characters, less prominence of love story, and lacking of easy tunes and impressive music. In general, this kind of drama is not one of those that can gain such a high audience rate every week. Nonetheless it continues to buck the trend and surprise the TV reviewers.
This drama is based on Jun Ikeido's series of novels. The story is about a banker who joined a Japanese major bank in the late bubble economy period in the 1990s. The main character, Naoki Hanzawa stands up to and overcome adversities. This story strikes a chord in Japanese hearts and memories of not so long time ago and a shared past.
I argue that there are several reasons in this drama that allow us to get hooked.
So, what grabs the audience's heart and attention?
Structure and story itself
It is a financial drama which brings out masculinity in the audience - the element of being in control. It is an entertaining story which contains moral, similar to what we find in samurai drama. However, not simple as samurai drama, it includes desire and struggle. It may be fictitious but anyone human can relate with it.
Technicality
It is a financial drama, therefore it shows somehow banking business or presents the financial world to the audience. Little do we know about banker's real life. By the way, the author used to work in bank, that is why the characters and story are vividly described. But since it is a drama, an element of exaggeration cannot be ruled out. Thus often, we hear some technical jargons, which make us somehow learn the work of a banker. We are drawn to his world.
Refreshing
It is piquant. There is a figure of justice and evil. Then, of course Hanzawa plays on the justice side. He has never compromised his values to achieve his goal, even against those in top management. His words exude powerful and challenging tone. It seems that there is Hanzawa in each one of us who strive to say and stand up for what we believe in even against those with power in the office. We find Hanzawa living what we ought to be in the office.
Comic-like camera work
It is like Japanese anime's framing. Especially, I feel it when camera zoomed in Hanzawa's eyes. The familiarity of an comic book framing can be one of its strong point that drives its popularity.
In the drama, Hanzawa describes the nature and work of banking. Banks can lend us umbrella when it is even sunny; then they get rid of it when it rains. I say it is true based on my experience. That's why I am sometimes infuriated at the government's policy toward the so called mega bank. At the same time, some of my relatives are working in financial sectors. I am quite interested in how they see this drama.
Admittedly, I am one of these audience. This dram doesn't follow popular drama which contains several factors such as, few female characters, less prominence of love story, and lacking of easy tunes and impressive music. In general, this kind of drama is not one of those that can gain such a high audience rate every week. Nonetheless it continues to buck the trend and surprise the TV reviewers.
This drama is based on Jun Ikeido's series of novels. The story is about a banker who joined a Japanese major bank in the late bubble economy period in the 1990s. The main character, Naoki Hanzawa stands up to and overcome adversities. This story strikes a chord in Japanese hearts and memories of not so long time ago and a shared past.
I argue that there are several reasons in this drama that allow us to get hooked.
So, what grabs the audience's heart and attention?
Structure and story itself
It is a financial drama which brings out masculinity in the audience - the element of being in control. It is an entertaining story which contains moral, similar to what we find in samurai drama. However, not simple as samurai drama, it includes desire and struggle. It may be fictitious but anyone human can relate with it.
Technicality
It is a financial drama, therefore it shows somehow banking business or presents the financial world to the audience. Little do we know about banker's real life. By the way, the author used to work in bank, that is why the characters and story are vividly described. But since it is a drama, an element of exaggeration cannot be ruled out. Thus often, we hear some technical jargons, which make us somehow learn the work of a banker. We are drawn to his world.
Refreshing
It is piquant. There is a figure of justice and evil. Then, of course Hanzawa plays on the justice side. He has never compromised his values to achieve his goal, even against those in top management. His words exude powerful and challenging tone. It seems that there is Hanzawa in each one of us who strive to say and stand up for what we believe in even against those with power in the office. We find Hanzawa living what we ought to be in the office.
Comic-like camera work
It is like Japanese anime's framing. Especially, I feel it when camera zoomed in Hanzawa's eyes. The familiarity of an comic book framing can be one of its strong point that drives its popularity.
In the drama, Hanzawa describes the nature and work of banking. Banks can lend us umbrella when it is even sunny; then they get rid of it when it rains. I say it is true based on my experience. That's why I am sometimes infuriated at the government's policy toward the so called mega bank. At the same time, some of my relatives are working in financial sectors. I am quite interested in how they see this drama.
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