“...audiences engage with media programs to experience enjoyment and relaxation, temporarily diverting from the issues one need to deal with in reality.” The IAFOR Research Archive
: In the 1990s and early 2000s, J-dramas enjoyed immense popularity across East Asia due to a shared sense of "Asian modernity". Fans in regions like Taiwan and Hong Kong identified with the "ganbaru" message (striving and struggling hard) depicted by urban heroes.
The following quotes from IAFOR and ResearchGate illustrate how viewers personally connect with Japanese media: