NHK Morning Drama “The Scent of the Wind”: Why Is It Struggling Despite Being Based on Historical Facts? “It’s Because of the Bland ‘Love Stories'”—An Expert’s In-Depth Analysis

“There’s even an actor who calls himself ‘one of the culprits’”

The NHK morning drama series *The Scent of the Wind* continues to struggle—

According to NHK’s official website, the drama is described as follows:

“The protagonists are two women, each struggling with their own hardships. They dive into the world of nursing—still largely unknown at the time—and work tirelessly to protect the wounded, sometimes even standing up to those in power. Set against the backdrop of the turbulent Meiji era, this is the adventure story of two slightly unconventional nurses living their lives in search of happiness.”

it states.

The heroines are modeled after Chika Ozeki and Masa Suzuki, who became Japan’s first “trained nurses” (formally trained nursing professionals).

Ai Miga (25) plays Rin Ichinose, modeled after Ozeki, while Juri Uesaka (21) plays Naomi Ooya, modeled after Suzuki.As a classic morning drama—a “coming-of-age story about women who survived a turbulent era”—viewers’ expectations soared when the production was announced.

However, the premiere’s viewership rating was 14.9%, 1.1% lower than that of the previous series, *Bakebake*, resulting in a shaky start. Since then, there has been no significant rise in ratings; on the contrary, the decline has continued unabated, with some episodes even falling below 10%, and the series continues to struggle. What on earth is going on here?

Looking back at the story from the very beginning, in Episode 4, Rin’s father died of cholera, and in Episode 7, she got married and gave birth. However, her husband turned out to be a good-for-nothing man who was an alcoholic and a domestic abuser. Rin ran away from home with her child, and by Episode 8, she was already facing the threat of divorce…Viewers couldn’t hide their surprise at the breakneck pace—marriage, childbirth, and fleeing—all packed into just two episodes. Social media was flooded with comments like, “The fastest-paced plot in Morning Drama history!” and “It’s a parade of ‘misfortune,’ and at a breakneck pace—I’m stunned.” While some speculated that viewers couldn’t keep up with the rapid pace—which was initially seen as a cause of the drama’s struggles—the series actually entered a lull around the midpoint, with an increasing number of scenes that made viewers want to fast-forward through their recorded episodes.

We asked film journalist Harumi Nakayama—who is also a drama enthusiast—to analyze the reasons behind the poor performance of *The Scent of the Wind*, and she explained:

“It’s simply because of the bland, dry ‘love stories.’Watching the two heroines’ endless romantic entanglements, I can’t help but think, ‘Put more emphasis on the nursing aspect!’ Of course, in depicting a woman’s life from a bygone era, a marriage partner was an even more crucial factor in shaping one’s life than it is today, but it’s fatal for the original theme to be diluted because of that. Furthermore, every single one of those partners lacks charm,”

Her critique is quite harsh. Furthermore, she had this criticism for one particular actor:

“I won’t name names, but there’s clearly one actor who is ‘one of the culprits.’ Once that actor was told, ‘This is your character’s backstory,’ he just kept acting in a way that matched his own preconceived image.Ideally, the chemistry with co-stars should bring out emotions and reactions that go beyond what’s written in the script, but this actor has little acting experience and is so focused on just getting through their own lines that they don’t have the mental bandwidth for that. I believe it’s the director’s advice and the production team’s role to create an environment that supports this, but I don’t think that’s working here.

“Akari Takaishi (23) in *Bakebake* (late ’25) consistently delivers reactions to her co-stars’ performances—her ‘receiving’ acting—that exceed the viewers’ expectations every single time. It may have been directed that way, but it was genuinely entertaining, and that alone made me want to watch the morning drama. As a result, the heroine she plays became incredibly charming.”

Although the actors’ skills are undoubtedly top-notch, it seems they aren’t fully bringing their characters to life in today’s dramas.

“The planning was lacking from the very beginning.”

“I also think there were problems with the direction, which failed to make the most of the material. Take Mikako Tabe (37), for example, who played Sute-matsu, the wife of Iwao Oyama. I thought she would be the heart of this drama, but her role ended up being underutilized.Yuki Inoue (30), who played the newspaper reporter, is an actor with a distinctive style, but his role—in which he persistently pressured Rin to marry him only to be rejected—was truly boring.”

So, what about the casting and direction of the two heroines?

“It’s the same with the two heroines. Naomi remained strong-willed and Rin remained easygoing throughout—there was little change or surprise, and they lacked the appeal needed to carry a long-running morning drama.Above all, I believe the theme was meant to address the importance of the nursing field amid the COVID-19 crisis and issues facing the elderly, but I couldn’t sense any determination in this drama to change societal awareness. The same goes for the decision to cast two heroines—I can’t help but feel that the planning was half-baked from the very beginning.

While NHK bears some responsibility for this, the image of morning dramas as a launching pad for new actors has long since crumbled. In recent years, the series have featured established actors such as Yuriko Yoshitaka (38) in *Hanako to Anne* (first half of ’14),Shuri (35) in *Boogie-Woogie* (second half of ’23), and Sairi Ito (32) in *Wings of the Tiger* (first half of ’24)—the casting of actors with established track records has made viewers’ tastes considerably more discerning.“That generous spirit—where viewers would watch the heroine’s growth while projecting the growth of the actress herself onto the character—is no longer there.”

While “#ReflectionSession” has been trending on social media, the overwhelming majority of comments are critical of the “romance” and the “love interests.” Posts such as “I don’t care at all about Naomi’s marriage or how Rin’s romance turns out.I couldn’t care less.” What was supposed to be a coming-of-age story about a nurse who survived a turbulent era as a “pioneer of nursing” has instead turned into a cheesy love story, creating a major disconnect with viewers’ expectations.

So, what do NHK officials think? While they say they’re surprised the ratings aren’t rising, one official had this to say:

“There were voices from the start questioning the decision to have two heroines. It would be different if the dual heroines were sisters, like in *Dandan* (late 2008), but trying to depict the backgrounds of two characters—who were born and raised in different circumstances—equally requires twice as much time. We were worried that the content would become shallow as a result, and that’s exactly what happened.”

With fewer than 30 episodes remaining until the finale, will a miracle happen as the series heads toward its conclusion?