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あまちゃん is a Japanese television drama series. It debuted on April 1, 2013, and was broadcast until September 28, 2013. It was scripted by Kankurō Kudō and starred Rena Nōnen as Aki Amano, a high-school girl from Tokyo who moves to the Sanriku Coast in the Tohoku region to become a female diver. She becomes a local Japanese idol, then returns to Tokyo to try to become a real idol, and finally returns to Tohoku to help revitalize the area after the Great East Japan earthquake. It is the 88th NHK Asadora. Amachan was not only a ratings success, but brought economic benefits to the Tohoku region and was considered a social phenomenon. It also won the Galaxy Award for best television program of 2013.
Sodegahama depends on the ama, the women who dive for sea urchins and shellfish, as a tourist attraction. With all the ama over 50, Daikichi was hoping to convince Haruko to start diving. Haruko refuses, but Aki, who was a shy and gloomy girl in Tokyo, suddenly brightens and declares she wants to be an ama. Despite her father's pleas, she decides not to return to Tokyo and instead enroll at the local high school, where she makes friends with Yui, who wants to become an Japanese idol. Success as an ama does not come easily: Aki cannot catch a sea urchin on her own until the 24th episode. Yui wins a contest to become the publicity character of the Kitasanriku Railroad. When Yui's older brother Hiroshi takes a job at the local tourism bureau and uploads videos of his sister on the town website, train otaku begin flooding the town.
Hiroshi has a secret liking for Aki, and his videos of her, especially after she catches her first sea urchin, make her as big a sensation as Yui. At school, Aki falls in love with Kōichi Taneichi, a third-year student in the underwater engineering course, and decides to enroll as well. She and Haruko experience a shock when Chūbei, Haruko's father who they thought was dead, suddenly appears in town. Natsu had apparently thought it too much trouble to correct their impression he was dead. Aki's father Masamune also comes to town hoping to get back together with his wife, but Haruko insists on a divorce.
Around that time Aki and Yui learn that Haruko had left Sodegahama originally to become an idol and had failed. This puts pressure on the two girls, on whose shoulders rest the hopes for the Kitasanriku Railroad's survival. But their relationship becomes strained when Aki finds out that Koichi is going out with Yui. They get back together, however, to perform on a special train in support of the railroad. The event is a great success and Yui begins to appear on local television. Haruko makes Aki promise that was her last performance as an idol. Yui then finds out that Mizuguchi, a man from Tokyo seemingly residing in town to mine amber, is really a talent scout. She tries to leave town with him but is stopped by Daikichi and the others. Yui holes up in her room and only emerges when Aki arranged for them to perform again at the Ama Cafe she and the other divers started. Haruko slaps her when she finds out she broke her promise, but Aki then declares she wants to become an idol, too. She only lets her daughter go to Tokyo after hearing how much she admired her mother's singing.
Aki only comes back after Mizuguchi and her Tokyo friends encourage her to continue. Yui too, who's given up on being an idol, prompts her to go. But on the train back, Aki finds a letter from her mother revealing that Aramaki had used Haruko when she had tried to become an idol, making her secretly serve as Harumi Suzuka's singing voice—because Suzuka could not sing—and effectively blocking her career. When Aramaki cancels GMT's debut single, Aki confronts him, asking if it is because she is Haruko's daughter. He says yes, and in front of only her and Mizuguchi, declares he will not let her succeed as an idol in his agency. Fired, Aki phones Haruko pleading to go home, but Haruko, like her mother before her, refuses her request. Instead, Haruko goes to Tokyo. Haruko, Aramaki and Suzuka meet by chance at the sushi restaurant, but it is Suzuka's threat to quit acting if Aki is not re-hired that saves her job. GMT finally get to record their debut single, but when Aramaki heavily manipulates their voices electronically, Haruko gets mad that Aki, like her, will not be able to sing in her own voice. Aki is again fired and Haruko decides to start her own talent agency, "3J". Mizuguchi also quits and becomes Aki's manager. GMT's single becomes a hit when Aramaki puts all his resources behind it, while Aki sees little success at first. But things look up when she finally lands a starring role in a children's program, which leads to a contract with a juku to appear in their ads. The contract stipulates, however, that Aki cannot have a boyfriend for a year — just when Aki and Koichi agree to begin going out. Meanwhile, Aki's fame prompts Yui's mother to seek out Haruko, who arranges for her to return to Sodegahama, even though Yui has a hard time accepting her. Natsu also visits Tokyo, revealing a past in which she herself was kind of an "idol".
To sell his idols, Aramaki decides to produce a remake of Memory of the Rising Tide (Shiosai no Memorī), the film that helped launch Suzuka's career. The eponymous song—really sung by Haruko—was also Suzuka's first hit. Suzuka is to appear in the remake, but it is on her insistence that the lead is to be decided by audition, enabling Aki to apply. With Suzuka's help, Aki passes through one stage of the audition after another. But at one point, Natsu collapses in Sodegahama and Haruko leaves to tend her. Mizuguchi also finds Koichi in Aki's apartment and urges the couple to cool down. In the end, Aramaki, in part feeling guilt over what he did to Haruko, opts for the better actress over his own idol and selects Aki for the starring role. Filming does not always go smoothly, but with Suzuka's help, Aki is able fulfill her role. During recording of the theme song, however, Suzuka finally learns for sure that Haruko had served as her voice in her songs. Haruko, who had returned to Tokyo, Aramaki, and Suzuka are finally able to settle old scores. Suzuka even switches to 3J.
The series was said to bring ¥32.8 billion yen in economic benefits to the stricken Tohoku region. Riding the success of the series, the soundtrack for Amachan reached number 5 on the Oricon Albums Chart, and the album collecting songs from the show hit number 1. Kyōko Koizumi's version of the song Shiosai no Memorī reached number 2 on the Oricon Singles Chart. Banking on the success of the series, NHK devoted some 30 minutes of its 4-hour 25 minute Kohaku Uta Gassen broadcast on 31 December 2013 to songs and skits from the drama, a first for an Asadora.
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