April 7 (1986-04-07) – October 4, 1986 (1986-10-04)
Hanekonma (はね駒) is a 1986 Japanese television serial, the 36th NHKasadora drama. Written by Koharu Terauchi, it was inspired by the life of Haruko Isomura (1877-1918), a pioneer female newspaper reporter of the Meiji and Taishō eras.
Like its predecessor, Oshin, an English-subtitled version of the serial, described as a "high-class soapie", was broadcast in Australia on SBS, under the title Rin, in 1988.[1]
Plot
Tachibana Rin, nicknamed "Hanekonma" (filly), grows up in Sōma, Fukushima. Together she and her mother scrape up enough money for her to attend a Christian girls' school in Sendai, Miyagi. Though disowned by her father, she studies English and, after some early struggles, becomes a teacher. Later she marries and moves to Tokyo. After her husband's business fails, and while juggling raising a family, she succeeds in becoming Japan's first female newspaper reporter.
Development
Like a previous asadora early morning drama Oshin (1983), and a subsequent taiga evening drama Inochi (1988), Hanekonma reflected women’s history and was developed by NHK to appeal to female audiences.[2]
^Clark, Lucy (1987-12-27). "What's on the Menu for 1988 – A Big Bang, A Whimper then a Roar into Ratings". Sun Herald. Sydney. p. 99.
^Harvey, Paul A. S. (1995). "Interpreting Oshin – war, history and women in modern Japan". In Skove, Lise; Moeran, Brian (eds.). Women and Media Consumption in Japan. Routledge. p. 89.
