viewer rating: 12.6%, high viewer rating for the 18th broadcast

Studio Ghibli’s animated feature film “Laputa: Castle in the Sky” (directed by Hayao Miyazaki, 1986) was broadcast on NTV’s “Friday Road Show” at 9 p.m. on August 12, and recorded an average household rating of 12.6% (Video Research, Kanto region). Although this was the 18th time the film was broadcast on TV, it recorded high double-digit viewer ratings.

　When “Laputa” is broadcast, it has become a tradition to hold a “Barus Festival,” where viewers simultaneously post “Barus,” the word for doom, on social networking services and other sites. The 18th broadcast also saw related words such as “Laputa,” “Baruth” and “Goliath” trending on Twitter.

　In “Laputa: Castle in the Sky,” Pazoo, a boy with a strong yearning for the legendary island of Laputa in the sky, meets Sita, a girl with a blue stone pendant, and embarks on an adventurous journey in search of Laputa. Mayumi Tanaka and Keiko Yokozawa play Pazoo and Sita, respectively.

No matter how many times you see it, the timeless masterpiece never seems to fade away.