Why NHK’s morning drama “Boogie Woogie” had an “incomplete” final episode.

The NHK morning drama “Boogie Woogie” came to a grand finale with Suzuko (Shuri) Fukugai’s “Farewell Concert,” bringing the six-month-long “singing and dancing” morning drama to its finale.

The heroine of this morning drama was modeled on Shizuko Kasagi, who was known as the “Queen of Boogie,” a major star of the postwar era. In the final episode, she sang “Tokyo Boogie Woogie” live. The performance was a highlight of the show and received rave reviews.

On the other hand, however, there were some who questioned Suzuko’s retirement.

In episode 125, which aired on March 28, Suzuko said, “I wanted to be the best doll for the composer Hatori Zenichi (Kusanagi Tsuyoshi). I can’t perform at my best,’ she confessed the reason for her retirement. However, since there have been very few scenes depicting her physical limitations, a number of viewers have been bothered by the fact that she has never been depicted in a scene.

During the war, Suzuko overcame many hardships believing in the power of entertainment. However, when the war ended, Suzuko faced the biggest crisis of her life.

She gives birth to a beloved daughter, but soon after, her husband Aisuke (Tsuneji Mizukami) passes away without being able to take care of her.

I want to die too,” she mutters.

But Suzuko revives like a phoenix with the release of her hit song “Tokyo Boogie Woogie. This miraculous V-shaped recovery is the greatest highlight of this film, and it is more than cathartic enough.

However, looking at the unremarkable stagnation that followed, perhaps the curtain should have been brought down on this work with the big hit “Tokyo Boogie Woogie”. I am sure I am not the only one who had this thought.

However, “Boogie Woogie” awakened in the last two weeks. Ayumi Mizuki (Sakira Yoshiyanagi), the forgotten daughter of Reiko Yamato (Yu Aoi), whom Suzuko respected during her days in the “Umemaru Girls’ Revue,” appears like a comet and stands in Suzuko’s way.

Ayumi is a rival who appears to awaken Suzuko, who has almost lost her luster as a singer. This development may be an old metaphor, but it reminded me of the hit manga “Ashita no Joe,” which has been made into an anime and a live-action movie, and I was numb to it.

The shock of losing his eternal rival Toru Rikiishi to death has left him unable to strike his face, and he has dropped down to being a boxer on the sidelines. It seems as if he is no more, but then Carlos Rivera, the “Uncrowned King,” appears, and Joe is revived as they fight to the death. Ayumi Mizuki is the Carlos Rivera who revives Suzuko. I had such a sense of anticipation,” said a director of a production company.

The mass media is agitating for a showdown between the old and the new before the popular New Year’s Eve program “All-Star Men’s/Women’s Singing Contest. In the midst of all this, Ayumi Mizuki comes forward to sing Suzuko’s “Rappa to Musume” (Trumpet and Daughter). The two of them begin their battle, and we are thrilled to think that this will be the final climax of the competition. However, my hopes were dashed.

An-san’s song gave me so much energy that I was able to sing like that at the end.

I was ready to quit my life as a singer after seeing you.

I’ve passed the baton to you. I’ve passed the baton to you.

Suzuko easily decides to “retire as a singer” without putting up a fight. This sense of powerlessness was hard to shake off.

The anticipation that had been heightened by Ayumi Mizuki’s appearance turns to disappointment, and Suzuko Fukurai finally comes to the end of her career as a singer without burning out. Is this really the right answer? ……

The screenplay for this film was written by Shin Adachi, who also wrote the screenplay for the film “Hyakuen no Koi” (’14), starring Sakura Ando. 32 years old, Kazuko (Ando) was living a self-indulgent life, staying at home with her parents. One day, she is kicked out of her parents’ house and starts working at a hundred-yen store while living alone. There she encounters boxing, and just in time to get her boxing license, she steps into the ring.

Ichiko fights against an opponent known as “The Black Panther,” no matter how many times she is knocked down. The scene is a famous one that conveys the determination of the fighter as she struggles to escape from her self-defeating life. The refreshing feeling of this scene cannot be described in words such as “cathartic. Ando won the Japan Academy Award for Best Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role for the first time for this film. Adachi also won for best screenplay.

In her fourth attempt at a morning drama, Shuri won the heroine’s role at the age of 32, which is the maximum age required to be cast. Aside from her overwhelming performance, I wanted her to show us how she struggled and stood up once again.