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nchristi
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Re: J-Drama: 篤姫 (Atsu-hime)
Thanks for the historical character update, Hiroshi. Very interesting, indeed.
It was heartbreaking to see Tenshoin grieving over Naogoro's death. It was emphasized so well when the camera pulled back and we saw Atsuhime through the barren branches of the tree in her garden.
Well, I wasn't surprised at the rebellious and violent turn of events at the end. After all those centuries of pride and power, I couldn't imagine that the clans could so easily allow themselves to be eliminated with the stroke of a pen. Nor did it surprise me that Saigo once again became a samurai warrior in trying to restore the old ways.
Saigo - I thought his character was well written and played even more believably by Ozawa Yukiyoshi. I saw Saigo as rather destined to be thrown hither and yon by various waves that came along because he was never clearly dedicated to nor focused in his mind on a particular ideal. Instead, he was driven by his love and loyalty to an individual person, Hiriakira—who was long gone. Consequently, Saigo's foundation was built on sand and could shift with various winds and his interpretation of them, just as we saw.
Seeing Saigo performing seppaku seemed a particularly fitting death for him. He was always a warrior at heart and an honorable death on the battlefield—could he have asked for more?
Watching that battlefield scene, however, brought me back to our J-Video Club watching of The Last Sword Drawn. Saigo's end was certainly different from what we saw in Atsuhime.
I was very pleased to see how this production treated the summary on Ochika, who had a life full of playing 'second fiddle' (though I suspect no husband would have treated her better than Naogoro did under the circumstances). At the end, she was shown as a rather angelic woman, bathed in light with a radiant smile. (Reminded me of Melanie in Gone With the Wind.) With all the sadness we were seeing as everything wound down to its end, it was a high point to see and think on Ochika, a faithful woman who preferred to concentrate on the good in life, trying her utmost to be the stabilizing, pleasant person keeping the household on a steady keel.
In the end when she sends Naogoro's scented wood amulet to Lady Tenshoin, I was reminded of what I had forgot. The early days when Ochika's love was the knowledge of many types of incense and how she would use them to bring calm and pleasure to the people around her.
Then there was the ending scene of the young Atsu running through the fields, gleefully escaping convention while Naogoro thoroughly enjoyed watching. The final shots of Atsu, then Naogoro, really hit me hard. I was struck at that moment by their clothing—the color of each was the same as the amulets they carried next to their hearts till the end of their lives...
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2/1/2009, 12:04 pm
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sylia74
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J-Drama: 篤姫 (Atsu-hime)
Greg, thank you so much for detailing what happened to some of the other characters. I thought it was interesting that OChika was considered to be in poor health but she lived longer than a lot of people. I think she was 7 years older than Tatewaki which would make her around 57 when she died.
I hope that the ratings for this show will prompt NHK to make another Taiga based on a woman's life. I would love to see one about Hojo Masako.
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2/1/2009, 4:00 pm
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Otsubo
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J-Drama: 篤姫 (Atsu-hime)
Hello All, I'm new to this board and have been watching the NHK Taiga dramas since Musashi in 2003 which has up until now been my favorite. I totally enjoyed Atus-hime from the beginning. I was so glad to find this board and all of the posts where one can share their thoughts and feelings. I will be traveling to Maryland in March to visit my grandchildren and have already made arrangements to visit the Freer Gallery of Art to see "A Shoguns Wedding" and Atsuhime's palanquin. I would not have know about this event had it not been for this forum. Thank you! I am looking forward to the next taiga drama Tenchijin.
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2/2/2009, 7:51 pm
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Otsubo
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J-Drama: 篤姫 (Atsu-hime)
Thank you nchristi for the warm welcome. I am really looking forward to my trip and will share my experience with everyone upon my return. I will have pictures but I'm not sure how or if I can post them here.
Best regards...
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2/3/2009, 9:29 pm
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Hiroshi66
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Re: J-Drama: 篤姫 (Atsu-hime)
Nchristi and Sylia74, you're welcome!  Yeah, I also found it really interesting to find out what happened to some of the other characters in Atsuhime. I thought Tokugawa Iesato had a fascinating story. Even though his Tokugawa family was essentially defeated, Iesato ended up rising through the ranks of the new government and became an influential politician. I read somewhere that he made a remark along the lines of "Yoshinobu destroyed the Tokugawa family, I rebuilt it."
Ochika was one of my favorite characters. I had also forgotten that her character was an expert in the art of burning incense, so how fitting that her final correspondance with Lady Tenshoin involved sending a piece of scented wood that had once belonged to her late husband, Naogoro. Even though Ochika knew of her husband's feelings for Atsu and his relationship with Okoto, she never harbored feelings of jealousy or ill will towards either of them. Instead, she kindly raised Okoto's son as her own son and thus as the heir of the Komatsu family. Satsuma sure has changed since those days! I remember reading somewhere that even today, the Shimazu family still retains quite a bit of prestige in Kagoshima.
Nchristi, I was also thinking about the different ways Saigo was portrayed in Atsuhime and in our J-video club presentation of The Last Sword was Drawn. I was curious so I thought I'd check Wikipedia, and it looks like they actually were two different people The Saigo we saw in Atsuhime was Saigo Takamori, while the man in The Last Sword was Drawn was named Saito Hajime and was a member of the Shinsengumi. I don't remember if we ever saw Saito in the taiga drama Shinsengumi though... that's another taiga I want to watch again, LOL!
Yeah, Saigo has had a very interesting life. The saddest scene was when he met with Lady Tenshoin for the last time, and told her that even after he had met with so many influential people and members of the new government, Saigo's "true master" was still Lord Nariakira. He was a real samurai, indeed.
Welcome to the board, Otsubo! Looking forward to discussing the dramas with you! This has also become my favorite taiga drama so far. So many elements of it have been outstanding. How wonderful that you'll be able to visit the Freer and see Atsu's palanquin -- it truly sounds like a wonderful experience, and I hope that you'll have a great time there.
I already miss this drama! Tenchijin starts tonight, but I still wish Atsuhime was on the air. I love re-watching that final scene that Nchristi mentioned -- Atsu running away while Naogoro looks on and waves with a big smile on his face. I didn't realize that the clothes they were wearing matched the colors of their amulets... it makes the scene even more sad yet touching. We'll miss you, Atsuhime! 
Last edited by Hiroshi66, 2/7/2009, 11:27 am
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2/7/2009, 11:26 am
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brad6
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Re: J-Drama: 篤姫 (Atsu-hime)
Greg.
Heads up for an email.
It should be one of Tokyo and Japan in the 1930 era. Lots of interesting things happening then and also post war scenes. Several Youtube clips.
Peg
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2/7/2009, 2:32 pm
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EvaLSeraphim
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J-Drama: 篤姫 (Atsu-hime)
I had a chance to see the Noh performance at the Japanese American Cultural and Community Center on Friday (http://www.jaccc.org/09noh.htm). One of the things covered in the lecture was the instruments used in Noh, including the shoulder drum. While explaining how it is played (you can vary the tone by tightening the ropes with your grip) and how the drum players engage in a call and response type thing to keep tempo, I recalled the episode where Ikushima was teaching Atsu to play the shoulder drum. It doesn't look easy at all. No wonder the princess was vexed!
I do have one question: When Iemochi died, his wife, Kazunomiya, did not become head of the Ooku, like Atsuhime did when her husband died. Was this ever explained in the series? I think the news article Peg linked to awhile back said that Lady Tensho-in refused to relinquish the role. Does anyone else have any info about this? Thanks.
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2/8/2009, 7:50 pm
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11/30/2009, 2:17 pm
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Las Vegas Vacations