Up-to-the-minute trends and subjects are often incorporated into the story lines of television drama series. Unfortunately, topicality is usually given more consideration than relevance, and the dramas themselves rarely explore the reality of problems such as AIDS or teenage depression.
The producers of "Puresoul" (Nihon TV, Mondays at 10 p.m.) treat their subject matter with much more care. In fact, the show has been cited with a letter of appreciation from the Senior Mental Health Association of Japan for its treatment of so-called youthful senility, a complex of symptoms and afflictions that includes Alzheimer's disease and that affects people in their 20s, 30s and 40s. According to the Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare, there are between 25,000-37,000 people suffering from youthful senility in Japan right now.
The letter of appreciation was awarded to the show not only because of its script, but because the producers have set up a Web site ( excite.co.jp/puresoul ) where clothing that has been specially designed for the series is auctioned off, with the proceeds going to the association. So far the site has raised about 1 million yen. The auction will end June 25, just before the series' last episode.