Tokyo, Japan – The week of August 25-31, 2025, saw Studio Ghibli’s classic film Princess Mononoke command a significant viewership, airing on NTV and securing an 11.0% rating. While a live-action morning drama continued its dominance, several long-running anime series and a new animated film also charted among the most-watched animated programs in Japan’s Kanto region.
Animated Features and Specials Take Center Stage
The top-performing animated content for the week was a special broadcast of a Studio Ghibli masterpiece. Hayao Miyazaki’s Princess Mononoke aired on NTV on Friday, August 29, at 9:00 p.m., achieving an impressive 11.0% rating. This strong showing highlights the enduring popularity of Ghibli films with Japanese audiences, even in repeat airings.
Other animated films broadcast during the week included:
- Sing a Bit of Harmony, which aired on NHK-E on Saturday, August 30, at 8:45 p.m., garnering a 0.5% rating.
- Eiga Oshiri Tantei Saraba Itoshiki Aibō yo (Oshiri) film, broadcast on NHK-E on Sunday, August 31, at 3:45 p.m., earning a 0.3% rating.
Consistent Performance from Beloved Anime Series
Several weekly anime staples continued to draw consistent viewership, demonstrating their foundational role in Japanese television.
- Sazae-san: The iconic family anime on Fuji TV, airing on Sunday, August 31, at 6:30 p.m., recorded a 5.5% rating.
- Detective Conan: NTV’s long-running mystery series, broadcast on Saturday, August 30, at 5:30 p.m., secured a 5.3% rating.
- Chibi Maruko-chan: Another Fuji TV Sunday evening favorite, airing at 6:00 p.m. on August 31, achieved a 4.1% rating.
- Tougen Anki: This series, which premiered on NTV on Friday, August 29, at 11:55 p.m., registered a 3.1% rating.
- Doraemon: The classic children’s anime on TV Asahi, shown on Saturday, August 30, at 5:00 p.m., earned a 2.6% rating.
While “You and Idol Precure♪” is a regular anime on TV Asahi, its specific rating for this week was not explicitly detailed among the top animation entries, though it has charted in previous weeks.
Broader TV Landscape: Live-Action Dominance
It is worth noting that while this ranking focuses on animation, the overall highest-rated program during this period was a live-action series. “Anpan,” the latest entry in NHK’s long-running Renzoku Terebi Shōsetsu (Serialized TV Novel) franchise, achieved exceptionally high ratings throughout the week. Episodes on Wednesday, August 27, and Friday, August 29, at 8:00 a.m. earned 17.1% and 17.2% respectively, with another showing on Saturday, August 30, at 12:45 p.m. getting a 9.9% rating. This live-action morning drama, inspired by the life of Anpanman manga creator Takashi Yanase, consistently outperforms most animated programming in raw viewership numbers. Another live-action film, Karada Sagashi, also aired on TV Tokyo on Saturday, August 30, at 2:45 a.m., securing a 0.3% rating.
The television ratings provided are estimates based on data from a survey of households in Japan’s Kanto region and do not include recordings that viewers watch later.
