Ryōmaden (龍馬伝) is the 49th NHK Taiga drama. It was shown on NHK from January 3 to November 28, 2010, spanning 48 episodes.[1][2] The story centers on the life of 19th-century Japanese historical figures Iwasaki Yatarō and Sakamoto Ryōma. It has been announced that the series will be aired in several other countries, for example Hong Kong, South Korea, Taiwan and Thailand.

Ryōmaden
Written byYasushi Fukuda
Directed byKeishi Ōtomo
Starring
Narrated byTeruyuki Kagawa
Theme music composerJunichi Hirokami
Opening themeLisa Gerrard and NHK Symphony Orchestra
ComposerNaoki Satō
Country of originJapan
Original languageJapanese
No. of episodes48[1]
Production
Executive producers
  • Kei Suzuki
  • Kanako Iwatani
Running time46 x 45 minutes
2 x 75 minutes
Original release
NetworkNHK
ReleaseJanuary 3 (2010-01-03) –
November 28, 2010 (2010-11-28)

Production

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Production Credits

  • Original – Yasushi Fukuda
  • Music – Naoki Satō
  • Titling – Shishū
  • Narrator – Teruyuki Kagawa
  • Historical research – Manabu Ōishi, Tatsuya Yamamura
  • Architectural research – Sei Hirai
  • Clothing research – Kiyoko Koizumi
  • Beauty and costume direction – Isao Tsuge
  • Sword fight arranger - Kunishirō Hayashi
  • Production coordinator – Kei Suzuki, Kanako Iwatani
  • Casting – Keishi Ōtomo

Cast

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Sakamoto family

Iwasaki family

Tosa clan

Chōshū clan

Satsuma clan

Chiba Dojo

  • Shihori Kanjiya as Chiba Sana (千葉佐那) – daughter of Chiba Sadakichi
  • Kōtarō Satomi as Chiba Sadakichi (千葉定吉) – management of sword school Chiba Dōjō
  • Ikkei Watanabe as Chiba Jūtarō (千葉重太郎) – older brother of Chiba Sanako
Tokugawa Bakufu

Shinsengumi

Kyoto Mimawarigumi

Kaientai

People in Nagasaki

Foreigners

Season overview

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The box set is available in a general DVD version, and a Blu-ray Disc version.

Season Episode DVD release dates Discs
Season 1 1-13 September 22, 2010 4
Season 2 13-28 November 26, 2010 4
Season 3 29-38 January 28, 2011 3
Season 4 39-48 March 25, 2011 3
Highlight 1-48 April 22, 2011 3

The 1st episode and last episodes are 75 minutes long. The others are 45 minutes long, excepting commercials.

SEASON 1 RYOMA THE DREAMER
Episode Title Directed by Travelogue Original airdate Rating
1 "Jōshi to kashi" (上士と下士, Samurai Social Hierarchy) Keishi Ōtomo Kōchi, Kōchi about Sakamoto Ryōma January 3, 2010 (2010-01-03) 23.2%
2 "Taikibansei?" (大器晩成?, Late Bloomer?) January 10, 2010 (2010-01-10) 21.0%
3 "Nisetegata no tabi" (偽手形の旅, The Travel of Fake Bill) Hitoshi Manabe Aki, Kōchi about Iwasaki Yataro January 17, 2010 (2010-01-17) 22.6%
4 "Edo no onikomachi" (江戸の鬼小町, A Demon Girl in Edo) Keishi Ōtomo Chiyoda, Tokyo about Sakamoto Ryōma January 24, 2010 (2010-01-24) 23.4%
5 "Kurofune to ken" (黒船と剣, Black Ship and Sword) Hitoshi Manabe Shinagawa, Tokyo about Sakamoto Ryōma January 31, 2010 (2010-01-31) 24.4%
6 "Shōin wa dokoda?" (松陰はどこだ?, Where is Shōin?) Shimoda, Shizuoka about Yoshida Shōin February 7, 2010 (2010-02-07) 21.2%
7 "Haruka naru nūyōka" (遥かなるヌーヨーカ, Distant Newyork) Kazuki Watanabe Kōchi, Kōchi about Kawada Shōryō February 14, 2010 (2010-02-14) 20.2%
8 "Yatarō no namida" (弥太郎の涙, Tears of Yatarō) Aki, Kōchi about Iwasaki Yataro February 21, 2010 (2010-02-21) 22.3%
9 "Inochi no nedan" (命の値段, A Price of Human Life) Keishi Ōtomo Chiyoda, Tokyo about Yamamoto Takuma February 28, 2010 (2010-02-28) 21.0%
10 "Hikisakareta ai" (引きさかれた愛, The Broken Love) Hitoshi Manabe Kōchi, Kōchi about Hirai Kaho March 7, 2010 (2010-03-07) 20.4%
11 "Tosa futtō" (土佐沸騰, The Passion in Tosa) Kazuki Watanabe Kōchi, Kōchi about Yoshida Tōyō March 14, 2010 (2010-03-14) 21.4%
12 "Ansatsu shirei" (暗殺指令, Mission To Kill) Hagi, Yamaguchi about Kusaka Gensui March 21, 2010 (2010-03-21) 17.7%
13 "Saraba Tosa yo" (さらば土佐よ, Farewell, Tosa) Keishi Ōtomo Kōchi, Kōchi about Sakamoto Ryōma March 28, 2010 (2010-03-28) 18.8%
SEASON 2 RYOMA THE ADVENTURER
Episode Title Directed by Travelogue Original airdate Rating
14 "Otazunemono Ryōma" (お尋ね者龍馬, The Outlaw) Kazuki Watanabe Kōchi, Kōchi about Takechi Hanpeita April 4, 2010 (2010-04-04) 18.5%
15 "Futari no kyō" (ふたりの京, Kyōto for Only Two People) Keishi Ōtomo Kyoto about Takechi Hanpeita April 11, 2010 (2010-04-11) 18.4%
16 "Katsu Rintarō" (勝麟太郎, Katsu Rintarō) Sumida, Tokyo about Katsu Rintarō April 18, 2010 (2010-04-18) 21.9%
17 "Kaibutsu, Yōdō" (怪物、容堂, The Monster, Yōdō) Tōjō Kajiwara Tosashimizu, Kōchi about John Manjirō April 25, 2010 (2010-04-25) 21.8%
18 "Kaigun o tsukurō" (海軍を作ろう!, Let's establish Our Navy) Kazuki Watanabe Osaka about Sakamoto Ryōma May 2, 2010 (2010-05-02) 18.4%
19 "Jōi kekkō" (攘夷決行, Going on, Jōi) Tōjō Kajiwara Shimonoseki, Yamaguchi about Battles for Shimonoseki May 9, 2010 (2010-05-09) 19.0%
20 "Shūjirō, Munen" (収二郎、無念, The Last Moment of Shūjirō) Keishi Ōtomo Fukui, Fukui about Matsudaira Shungaku May 16, 2010 (2010-05-16) 20.4%
21 "Kokyō no tomoyo" (故郷の友よ, The Brethren of Old Home) Kazuki Watanabe Kōchi, Kōchi about Yamanouchi Yōdō May 23, 2010 (2010-05-23) 20.0%
22 "Ryō toiu onna" (龍という女, A Woman called Ryō) Keishi Ōtomo Kyoto about Oryō May 30, 2010 (2010-05-30) 19.5%
23 "Ikedaya ni hashire" (池田屋に走れ, Hurry up to the Ikedaya) Hitoshi Manabe Kobe about Katsu Kaishū June 6, 2010 (2010-06-06) 19.2%
24 "Ai no hotaru" (愛の蛍, The Sentimental Fireflies) Tōjō Kajiwara Kyoto about Shinsengumi June 13, 2010 (2010-06-13) 20.1%
25 "Teradaya no haha" (寺田屋の母, The Mother at Teradaya) Kazuki Watanabe Kyoto around the Kinmon Incident June 20, 2010 (2010-06-20) 20.3%
26 "Saigō Kichinosuke" (西郷吉之助, Saigō Kichinosuke) Kōchi, Kōchi about Okada Izō June 27, 2010 (2010-06-27) 17.9%
27 "Ryōma no ōshibai" (龍馬の大芝居, The Acting of Ryōma) Keishi Ōtomo Tama, Tokyo about Tanaka Mitsuaki July 4, 2010 (2010-07-04) 17.3%
28 "Takechi no yume" (武市の夢, The Dream of Takechi) Kōchi, Kōchi about Takechi Hanpeita July 11, 2010 (2010-07-11) 17.0%
SEASON 3 RYOMA THE NAVIGATOR
Episode Title Directed by Travelogue Original airdate Rating
29 "Shintenchi, Nagasaki" (新天地、長崎, Our New World, Nagasaki) Keishi Ōtomo Nagasaki about Omoto July 18, 2010 (2010-07-18) 15.8%
30 "Ryōma no hisaku" (龍馬の秘策, The Secret Plan of Ryōma) Kazuki Watanabe Nagasaki about Glover July 25, 2010 (2010-07-25) 17.9%
31 "Saigō wa madaka" (西郷はまだか, Waiting for Saigō) Toshitake Fukuoka Nagasaki about Kameyama Shachū August 1, 2010 (2010-08-01) 16.0%
32 "Nerawareta Ryōma" (狙われた龍馬, Chased Ryōma) Tōjō Kajiwara Muroto, Kōchi about Nagaoka Shintarō August 8, 2010 (2010-08-08) 16.7%
33 "Kameyama Shachū no ōshigoto" (亀山社中の大仕事, The Big Job of Kameyama Shachū) Keishi Ōtomo Ureshino, Saga about Ōura Kei August 15, 2010 (2010-08-15) 13.7%
34 "Samurai, Chōjirō" (侍、長次郎, Samurai, Chōjirō) Hitoshi Manabe Nagasaki about Kondō Chōjirō August 22, 2010 (2010-08-22) 16.3%
35 "Satchō dōmei zeyo" (薩長同盟ぜよ, Satchō Alliance) Kazuki Watanabe Kyoto about Satchō Alliance August 29, 2010 (2010-08-29) 15.4%
36 "Teradaya sōdō" (寺田屋騒動, The Incident at Teradaya) Keishi Ōtomo Kyoto about Teradaya sōdō September 5, 2010 (2010-09-05) 16.8%
37 "Ryōma no tsuma" (龍馬の妻, The Wife of Ryōma) Tōjō Kajiwara Hagi, Yamaguchi about Takasugi Shinsaku September 12, 2010 (2010-09-12) 17.6%
38 "Kirishima no chikai" (霧島の誓い, The Promise in Kirishima) Kazuki Watanabe Kagoshima about Sakamoto Ryōma and Oryō September 19, 2010 (2010-09-19) 15.8%
FINAL SEASON RYOMA THE HOPE
Episode Title Directed by Travelogue Original airdate Rating
39 "Bakan no kiseki" (馬関の奇跡, The Miracle in Bakan) Keishi Ōtomo Kitakyūshū about Kiheitai September 26, 2010 (2010-09-26) 13.7%
40 "Seifūtei no taiketsu" (清風亭の対決, The Confrontation in Seifūtei) Kazuki Watanabe Nagasaki about Sakamoto Ryōma October 2, 2010 (2010-10-02) 14.3%
41 "Saraba, Takasugi Shinsaku" (さらば高杉晋作, Farewell, Takasugi Shinsaku) Keishi Ōtomo Shimonoseki, Yamaguchi about Takasugi Shinsaku October 10, 2010 (2010-10-10) 16.3%
42 "Iroha maru jiken" (いろは丸事件, The Incident of Iroha Maru) Tōjō Kajiwara Fukuyama, Hiroshima about Kaientai October 17, 2010 (2010-10-17) 16.1%
43 "Senchū hassaku" (船中八策, The Eight Plans in Ship) Kazuki Watanabe Kyoto about Sakamoto Ryōma October 24, 2010 (2010-10-24) 18.0%
44 "Ame no tōbōsha" (雨の逃亡者, The Fugitive in Rain) Toshitake Fukuoka Nagasaki about Kakure Kirishitan October 31, 2010 (2010-10-31) 16.2%
45 "Ryōma no kyūjitsu" (龍馬の休日, The Holiday of Ryōma) Takegorō Nishimura Yokosuka, Kanagawa about Oryō November 7, 2010 (2010-11-07) 15.3%
46 "Tosa no ōshōbu" (土佐の大勝負, The Big Game of Tosa) Tōjō Kajiwara Kōchi, Kōchi about Sakamoto Ryōma November 14, 2010 (2010-11-14) 15.7%
47 "Taisei hōkan" (大政奉還, Taisei Hōkan) Kazuki Watanabe Kyoto about Taisei hōkan November 21, 2010 (2010-11-21) 17.6%
48 "Ryū no tamashii" (龍の魂, The Spirit of the Dragon) Keishi Ōtomo Kyoto about Sakamoto Ryōma November 28, 2010 (2010-11-28) 21.3%
Average rating 18.72% – Rating is based on Japanese Video Research (Kantō region).

Highlight

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Season Original airdate Original airtime Rating
Season 1 December 29, 2010 21:00–21:59 5.2%
Season 2 22:00–22:59 4.3%
Season 3 December 30, 2010 21:00–21:59 6.1%
Season 4 22:00–22:59 5.8%

International

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Country Translation Network(s) Notes
  Taiwan Subtitled Videoland Television Network November 15, 2010 –
  South Korea Subtitled Channel J January 17, 2011 –
  Thailand Subtitled Thai PBS March 17, 2011 – September 1, 2011
  Hong Kong Dubbed/Subtitled i-CABLE Entertainment Channel May 9, 2011 –
  United States None TV Japan 2010
  Canada
  Puerto Rico
  Brazil None NHK 2010

Soundtrack and books

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Soundtrack

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  • NHK Taiga Drama Ryōmaden Original Soundtrack Vol.1 (January 27, 2010)
  • NHK Taiga Drama Ryōmaden Original Soundtrack Vol.2 (May 26, 2010)
  • NHK Taiga Drama Ryōmaden Original Soundtrack Vol.3 (September 8, 2010)

Books

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Official guide

  • NHK Taiga Drama Story Ryōmaden First Part ISBN 978-4-14-923353-6 (December 8, 2009)
  • NHK Taiga Drama Story Ryōmaden Latter Part ISBN 978-4-14-923354-3 (June 30, 2010)
  • NHK Taiga Drama Story Ryōmaden Last Part ISBN 978-4-14-923355-0 (October 22, 2010)
  • NHK Taiga Drama, Historical Handbook, Ryōmaden ISBN 978-4-14-910730-1 (November 19, 2009)

Novel

Photo album

Comics and other

Reception

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Impact

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Ryōmaden made a huge impact in Japan. Kōchi, Sakamoto Ryoma's birthplace reported an increase in tourism when the drama started airing. The Bank of Japan (Koichi Branch) initially estimated the economic benefit to be around 23.4 billion yen. However, they have revised the estimation to 40.9 billion yen in April 2010, due to an increase in tourism because of 'Ryoma Fever.' The final estimation is around 52.5 billion yen, 2.3 times the value from the initial estimation. The Nagasaki Branch also estimated around 21 billion yen of economic benefit to Nagasaki, the place where Ryoma was in the Kaientai business.[3] Copies of the necklace Ryoma wore are selling well, and it is the number one selling item in the NHK gift shop.[4]

Accolades

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  • 2010 Teamwork of the Year Award[5]
  • Hashida Sugako Awards ja:橋田賞[6] - Fukuyama Masaharu in Ryomaden
  • Japan Tourism Agency Commissioner Award[7][8] for Domestic Tourism- Fukuyama Masaharu
  • TV Navi Awards for Best Principal Male Actor 2010[9] – Fukuyama Masaharu
  • 4th Int'l Drama Festival, Tokyo Drama Award: Best Drama (Series Drama)[10]
  • 4th Int'l Drama Festival, Tokyo Drama Award: Best Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role – Kagawa Teruyuki
  • 4th Int'l Drama Festival, Tokyo Drama Award: Special Award – Filming staff of "Ryomaden"
  • 2011 Elan d'Or Awards: Best Series (TV Guide Award)[11]
  • 2011 Elan d'Or Awards: Best Producer (TV) – Suzuki Kei
  • 2011 Elan d'Or Awards: Newcomers of the Year – Kiritani Kenta & Sato Takeru
  • 2011 Elan d'Or Awards: Special Prize – Terajima Shinobu
  • 2011 Galaxy Awards: Special Award for Contribution to Art (Television category) Individual Award – Fukuyama Masaharu

References

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  1. ^ a b 福山雅治が紅白出場!16年ぶり2度目 (in Japanese). The Hochi Shimbun. Archived from the original on 20 November 2009. Retrieved 7 May 2015.
  2. ^ The name Ryōmaden translates to "The Legend of Ryōma". It is an unusual Taiga Drama as the final episode will be broadcast as early as November, due to second phase of Saka no Ue no Kumo, a series of NHK Special Drama, being broadcast beginning in December.
  3. ^ 福山雅治もビックリ!龍馬伝経済効果 試算の約2・3倍に. Sponichi. Retrieved 13 May 2011.
  4. ^ [業界プロジェクトX]NHKエンタープライズ キャラクター事業・兵藤香さん (in Japanese). The Hochi Shimbun. Archived from the original on 18 September 2010. Retrieved 7 May 2015.
  5. ^ ロジカルチームワーク委員会 (in Japanese). Logical Teamwork Committee. Archived from the original on 18 August 2011. Retrieved 7 May 2015.
  6. ^ 草なぎ剛、仲間由紀恵とのW主演作『橋田賞』受賞に男泣き. Oricon. Retrieved 12 May 2011. Hashida Sugako Award recognised TV Shows that have touched people of Japan or the Japanese Culture
  7. ^ 龍馬伝の福山雅治、イ・ビョンホンら観光長官表彰 (in Japanese). Sports Nippon Newspapers. Archived from the original on 3 October 2010. Retrieved 7 May 2015.
  8. ^ "Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism". mlit.go.jp/common/000125061.pdf. Retrieved 12 May 2011. The award was given to those who made the biggest impact to tourism in Japan. Koichi and Nagasaki has reported an increase in tourism due to Ryomaden effect.
  9. ^ "TV Navi Awards". tvnaviweb.jp/TVnavi_contents/doYear/2010index.html. Retrieved 12 May 2011.
  10. ^ "International Drama Festival Award". International Drama Festival in Tokyo. Archived from the original on 4 February 2012. Retrieved 7 May 2015.
  11. ^ "Elan d'Or Awards". producer.or.jp/elandor/elandor.html. {{cite web}}: Missing or empty |url= (help)
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