Akiyama described his struggles such as space sickness, need for cigarettes, his brain was "floating around in my head" and "I wish I had brought along some natto,". Meanwhile Akiyama worried that his 2 children spent too much time watching TV. During a radio broadcast he said "Please tell Ken-ken and Naoko to study,". His wife Kyoko answered "The children are doing fine," "Please try to relax." Initially the TBS TV viewership was high, but by midweek it declined to a bit above normal.