Life in Japan slows down considerably during the new year period — ōmisoka, on Dec. 31, and oshōgatsu, specifically Jan. 1, 2 and 3. So how do you fill this string of holidays? Why not stay in and watch some TV ... it’s not like we’ve had too much of that over the past two years.
What sets this weekend apart from the rest of the year, though, is that you don’t need to binge a stream of videos on YouTube or catch up on all those Netflix shows you’ve been putting off for some quality entertainment. Japanese broadcast television’s slate of new year programming features star-studded blowouts that offer the perfect drip, drip, drip of moderately entertaining content to pass the time until 2022.
The most celebrated New Year’s Eve option remains NHK’s “Kohaku Uta Gassen” (Dec. 31, 7:30 p.m.), a music extravaganza that provides a snapshot of the year in music via a string of live performances. While not the ratings powerhouse it was in the past (many a Japanese grandmother will have the show on in the background during dinner), it’s still an incredibly popular way to count down the clock to midnight.