Four-Year Comeback Fails to Boost Ratings, Concerns Arise with Return of 27-Hour Television

Last summer, Fuji Television’s large-scale special program FNS 27-Hour Television made a comeback after four years. The announcement for this year’s event was made on the variety show New Key aired on February 24th, with Chocolate Planet, Shimofuri Myojo, and Hanako chosen as the overall MCs.

 

Upon receiving their first major roles, Matsuo Shun (41) from Chocolate Planet expressed, “I want to achieve a 40% viewer rating in this era,” while Seya (31) from Shimofuri Myojo said, “This program has been hosted by big names like Beat Takeshi, Sanma Akashiya, and Tamori. It’s amazing! We’ll do our best to liven it up!”

“This year, as with last year, it’s scheduled for live broadcast at the end of July. Last year, the trio of Chidori, Diane, and Kamaitachi served as overall MCs, and the program featured a variety of segments, including the popular corner ‘Sanma Akashiya’s Love Mate 10.’ However, despite being a revival that carried the station’s honor, the average household viewership rating was only 6.5% (according to Video Research, Kanto region). Although it surpassed the record low of 5.8% in 2019, the results fell short of expectations given the high anticipation.” (Fuji Television employee)

Despite some positive evaluations of the program content, there are also expectations for this year’s broadcast. However, there is also a fair amount of negativity within the company itself. Here’s the insider perspective shared by a production company representative:

“Due to the drastic decrease in advertising revenue since the onset of the pandemic, a 30% reduction in production costs was implemented for all programs in last fall’s lineup. Furthermore, year-end bonuses were halved compared to the previous year. With such tight financial constraints, the sentiment on the ground is that we hope for some leniency. However, ’27-Hour Television’ is a pet project of President Koichi Miura (71) and isn’t something that can be easily abandoned. As President Miura comes from a background in variety shows, he firmly believes that Fuji TV’s identity lies in emphasizing variety content. We can only hope that the disconnect between upper management and the production team won’t adversely affect the program’s execution.”

In addition to the “27-Hour TV” event, there is another event that the station staff are anxious to hold: the “Odaiba Adventure King” event to be held from late July to late August at Fuji Television’s office building, as in the previous year’s event. An entertainment industry insider spoke of the uncertainty of holding the event.

“Fuji Television has been hosting events at Odaiba during the summer vacation period. Last year, in celebration of its 65th anniversary, Fuji TV revived the event ‘Odaiba Adventure King 2023 SUMMER SPLASH!’ for the first time in 15 years since 2008. Popular female announcers added color to the 37-day long event. Last year, announcers like Aimi Miyaji (32), Reimi Tsutsumi (30), and Seika Inoue (28) formed the dance team ‘SPLASH!’ and performed dances on the event stage.

However, starting from last summer, there has been a series of female announcers falling ill. Along with Miyaji and Inoue, Nagisa Watanabe (26), Eriko Komuro (24), and Manna Mikami (34) were among the five announcers who repeatedly missed programs or were hospitalized over a six-month period. While the cause-and-effect relationship with the event is not clear, there were criticisms suggesting that the simultaneous preparation for regular programs alongside the event and on-site management might have imposed excessive burdens, leading to these health issues.”

Furthermore, there are additional concerns regarding the same event.

“Despite mobilizing several popular announcers, the event failed to attract as many visitors as expected, resulting in disappointing outcomes. While there were negative opinions from within the company regarding the event, President Miura himself is more enthusiastic than anyone else about hosting ‘Odaiba Adventure King,’ just like with ’27-Hour Television.’ We can only hope that it won’t repeat last year’s scenario.” (same source)

It would be ideal if the event could proceed as desired by all parties involved.