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Hiroshi66
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Re: J-Drama: 天地人 (Tenchijin)
Episode 38 - The Two Sekigahara
This was a sad episode. I've never really liked 'battle' scenes in taiga dramas, but we haven't really seen too many of them in Atsuhime or Tenchijin. This episode looked at the epic battle of Sekigahara, where Ishida Mitsunari and his allies fought Tokugawa Ieyasu at Sekigahara. It was one of the largest battles in Japanese history, where Ieyasu's Eastern Army of 75,000 fought Mitsunari's Western army of 100,000. At the same time, we saw the Uesugi confront Ieyasu's northern allies, the Date and the Mogami. The leader of the Mogami clan was none another than Date Masamune's uncle. Ieyasu had both promised them lots of land in return for allying with him.
The battle started off looking well for Mitsunari. He had the Uesugi fighting for him in the north, as well as powerful generals like Mori Terumoto, Ukita Hideie, and Kobayakawa Hidetoshi fighting on his side. Ieyasu only had Fukushima Masanori and a few other generals fighting for him, along with that sneaky man that used to serve the Uesugi years before. Now, he's fighting on Ieyasu's side, who seems to refer to him as an 'expert on the Uesugi clan.'
Sanada Yukimura (Hatsune's brother) and his father, fighting for Mitsunari, ended up containing and eventually defeating Tokugawa Ieyasu's son and heir, Hidetada, before he could meet his father at Sekigahara. Hidetada survived, but he and his army were not able to help Ieyasu at the battle.
Though faced with an early success, things started to look very grave for Mitsunari's Western Army. Mori Terumoto, the Lead General who was in Osaka Castle with Yodo and Hideyori, was not at the battle, which ended up causing the Mori army to retreat without a fight. Kobayakawa Hidetoshi eventually switched sides and started fighting for Ieyasu. Though Mitsunari had offered Hidetoshi the title of Imperial Regent if they won the battle, Hidetoshi had always been suspicious of Mitsunari and ended up taking Ieyasu's side, who had promised him 2 large provinces after the battle.
This switching of sides caused for Ieyasu and his allies to crush Mitsunari's forces. Mitsunari managed to escape and found shelter with Hatsune's help in a cave. She asked him to try and re-enter Osaka Castle to mobilize his forces. But after she had left to find some food, Mitsunari turned his head and saw soldiers standing at the front of the cave. I got the feeling that they might be enemy forces.
As for Kanetsugu and Kagekatsu, they are now prepared to retreat back to Aizu after the Mogami and Date clans invaded. They must have heard of Mitsunari's defeat in Sekigahara and wanted to finish off his Uesugi allies. Kagekatsu decided to retreat and see what would happen. However, I think the Mogami and Date forces were much closer than Kagekatsu imagined. We'll see what happens...
We're now in September of 1600, and the Battle of Sekigahara ended with a victory for the Tokugawa. Episode 39 airs next Saturday, November 7th!
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11/1/2009, 10:34 am
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brad6
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Re: J-Drama: 天地人 (Tenchijin)
I am relying solely on your post Greg san. I cannot watch this drama at the moment. I am curious about this great battle of Sekigahara. Is this the one that Musashi was in and he finally escaped with his friend after the battle, and they became ronins? I can't remember which side he fought on. Do you remember?
Sorry I am lazy not looking this up but my eyes are a bit tired at the moment.
Peg
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11/1/2009, 10:49 am
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nchristi
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Re: J-Drama: 天地人 (Tenchijin)
Wow, what an episode! (All I can say is Mitsunari sure is into hair!) Kidding aside, I am constantly fascinated in trying to integrate all the different perspectives. We've seen this famous battle any number of times in various Taigas, each from the viewpoint of a different historical figure.
A little programming note before I forget. I missed the first half last night at 9p and will not be able to tape today's 5p encore, so I was bummed. Then I couldn't sleep. Then I turned on the TV at 1:30a and found Tenchijin airing! Then the daylight saving time change occurred at 2a and it became 1a again and they repeated the entire episode! So, I quickly hit the record button and got a great copy (no interference).
Question - I notice in looking ahead at the TV listing for next week that Tenchijin shows three times—Sat @ 9p; Sun @ 2:30a; Sun @ 5p. Has this always been the schedule?
Meanwhile, back at the drama, my fav highlights from #38 (in no particular order)... class ul class li Kobayakawa Hidetoshi sure was a wimp, wasn't he? I thought the actor did a great job in portraying the completely frazzled Kobayakawa when faced with a decision. There seemed two conflicting factors. First, his emotional trauma in remembering the official slaughter of women and children Mitsunari presided over. Were those the wives and children of the Imperial Regent of that time? I thought maybe Kobayakawa was both hating Mitsunari and in great fear that the same thing might happen to him if he accepted the Imperial Regent position.
The second conflicting factor was that Ieyasu secretly offered him two additional fiefs to come over to his side and abandon Mitsunari. Kobayakawa seems mostly to be moved by his emotions of the moment, so he chooses the safer, less involved path of simply not joining Mitsunari in the attack against Ieyasu's forces. This was wonderfully portrayed when Kobayakawa emotionally issues his command that they will now "sally forth!" As he begins to march off to the battle, one of his generals shouts at Kobayakawa's back, "Who are we fighting?!" class li Best scenes of the Battle of Sekigahara I've ever seen. The 'birdseye' CGI (Computer Generated Imagery) enabled us to see the true scope of this battle. Though many tens of thousands of troops were involved, and it was a decisive battle of National Japan itself, it gave me the feeling that Sekigahara was really a rather small, local 'game board,' a massive battle of big fish in a little pond—from a global perspective. Very well done with the aid of CGI. class li Mitsunari in the cave - Hatsune tends his wound (arrow in the thigh) as the opposition is hot on their trail to capture and slay Mitsunari. She leaves to get some food. He hears a drop of water fall into a pool and drags himself to it. As he eagerly scoops up a handful of the precious water, bright light engulfs him. He looks heavenward. A blinding sun, wisps of clouds rushing across it. He prays that Heaven will protect him. He looks to his left. Another ominously echoing drop of water resonates. At the mouth of the cave, he sees the form of two warriors. They have found him.
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11/1/2009, 1:01 pm
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mugwump4
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Re: J-Drama: 天地人 (Tenchijin)
Yes, hair seems to be very important to Mitsunari. What a Fright Wig. On a side note, his hair sure grows fast. There didn't seem to be much time had passed between when we saw him with his hair shaved short, and when it was back to its usual length.
More seriously, you will not want to miss Episode 39.
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11/1/2009, 2:10 pm
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Hiroshi66
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Re: J-Drama: 天地人 (Tenchijin)
Nchristi, I'm glad you were able to watch UTB's 1a repeat of the entire episode! Those encore airings they have are such a great idea. Even if viewers are not able to watch or record a certain airing, there's always the option of watching a certain drama during other time slots. Yep, I think UTB has always had that schedule for airing Tenchijin. The Sat @ 9p and Sun @ 5p are always aired at those times, but sometimes the encore broadcasts on Sunday mornings air at slightly different times. Sometimes the episode will re-air at 1a, other times at 2a, and sometimes even at 2:30a. It's the same for UTB's other dramas as well. Depending on their other late night programming, they'll air the episodes at slightly different times, but usually it is between 1a - 3a.
The CGI was really great! We've seen many Battle of Sekigahara scenes throughout our taiga dramas, but this one had the best imagery. It really helped me realize the central location of Sekigahara to the rest of Japan and how major this battle was during that particular time period. I think both Tenchijin and the previous taiga Atsuhime have relied a lot on CGI. It really makes for a very unique viewing experience.
I, too, thought the Kobayakawa Hidetoshi actor did a great job. Very believable performance, indeed. Yep, Hidetoshi remembered the previous Imperial Regent, who accepted the job and was eventually forced to commit suicide by Hideyoshi and Mitsunari. Hideyoshi's young son Hideyori had just been born, so Hideyoshi did not want any 'competition.' The previous Regent's wives and young children were all executed. Since that moment, Hidetoshi always thought he was going to be next, and didn't want to risk his life. So, he took Ieyasu's side in the end. But Hidetoshi's frazzled and almost childish behavior was portrayed very well by this actor. I think he did an excellent job.
Very good taiga drama. I'm thoroughly enjoying this one.
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11/1/2009, 2:59 pm
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Hiroshi66
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Re: J-Drama: 天地人 (Tenchijin)
Episode 39 - Mitsunari's Will
This was another sad episode, especially since we're slowly winding down towards the end of Tenchijin. Last night's story dealt with the aftermath of the Battle of Sekigahara, which ended in a victory for Tokugawa Ieyasu and his allies. Ishida Mitsunari, who had attempted to escape and regroup his forces, was captured by Ieyasu's soldiers shortly after the battle ended. Mitsunari was put on 'public display' before he met with Ieyasu for the final time. Ieyasu continued to rant about how he was the true Toyotomi loyalist, and that Mitsunari was a villain for 'using' Young Lord Hideyori and taking him hostage. However, this never happened -- Mitsunari had never taken Hideyori hostage. Ieyasu used this fabrication to get the Toyotomi family loyalists (like Fukushima Masanori and Kobayakawa) on his side. Ultimately, Ieyasu 'passed judgment' and decided that Mitsunari would be executed. Mitsunari's final plea was for Ieyasu to take mercy on the other generals that assisted him (like Mori Terumoto and the Uesugi) and to let Mitsunari shoulder the entire blame for the battle. Ieyasu said that he would "pass judgment later" and bid farewell to Mitsunari.
Meanwhile, the Uesugi managed to return to Aizu. Though Kanetsugu was injured (both mentally and physically) he was able to return to serve his lord Kagekatsu and decide on what steps the Uesugi would take next, especially since they had supported Mitsunari and were defeated. Kanetsugu was surprised to see Hatsune (who had escaped) arrive to Aizu and relay to him that Mitsunari had been executed. Hatsune was there to witness the execution. When Mitsunari saw her standing there among the crowd of people, he tried to give her a message that she could relay to Kanetsugu -- but he was executed before he could finish his sentence. Hatsune sadly left Aizu after notifying Kanetsugu of Mitsunari's death -- but only after Kanetsugu told her to continue living, since she was bound to see good things happen again in her life. I'm glad Kanetsugu gave those encouraging words to Hatsune at a time when she needed it.
It was nice to see Kanetsugu's children again. They sure have grown up since we last saw them, haven't they? With Osen still in Kyoto, the children must be lonely since both their parents are usually away from Aizu. Kayo (Osen's former attendant) is raising them in Aizu along with the help of Kanetsugu's father, but I'm sure the kids want to see their parents, too. Kanetsugu's two daughters (Omatsu and Oume) have grown up quite a bit, as well as his son, Takematsu. Takematsu drew a picture of a dragonfly for Kanetsugu and gave it to him, telling his father that he knows how much he loves dragonflies.
Meanwhile, after Mitsunari's execution, Ieyasu is getting ready to deal with the punishment of the other Toyotomi vassals that helped Mitsunari in the battle against Ieyasu. He moved into Osaka Castle and immediately ordered for Mori Terumoto's stipend to be stripped to only a quarter of what he was originally receiving. Terumoto was furious! Sanada Yukimura and his father had their land taken away from them and were put under house-arrest, forced to await 'further punishment.' Ieyasu was bold enough to even strip Toyotomi Hideyori and Lady Yodo's stipend by half, arguing that Hideyori was still young and needed Ieyasu's help in 'managing' his affairs.
As for the Uesugi, Kagekatsu receives a notice from Ieyasu asking him to come to Kyoto. In what seemed like a conciliatory measure, Ieyasu allowed Princess Kiku and Osen (who had been living in a Buddhist temple after Ieyasu moved into Osaka Castle) to safely return to the Uesugi residence in Kyoto. Kagekatsu decided to meet with Ieyasu, but decided to have Kanetsugu and his brother Sanyeori go to Kyoto first to see what was going on there.
From three different sources, Kanetsugu learned more about Mitsunari's final days. Osen told her husband about how Mitsunari had visited her once and mentioned how he wanted to try dancing the Echigo folk dances of Northern Japan with Kanetsugu. Fukushima Masanori, who realized that he had made a mistake in supporting Ieyasu, spoke of his final drink with Mitsunari under the full moon. Mitsunari asked Fukushima to continue supporting the Toyotomi family and Young Lord Hideyori, not Ieyasu. Kobayakawa, who was the last one to see Mitsunari before his execution, told Kanetsugu about how Mitsunari had asked for help in escaping. When Kobayakawa timidly refused, Mitsunari asked him to tell Kanetsugu to stay alive and teach future generations about their justice. Mitsunari was executed shortly after.
Kanetsugu is having difficulty meeting with Ieyasu. He wrote a letter to Honda Masanobu (Ieyasu's right-hand man) and asked him for assistance in arranging an audience with Ieyasu. Hopefully Kanetsugu will get to meet with him before Kagekatsu arrives.
We're now in late 1601. Episode 40 (seven more episodes to go) will air next Saturday, November 14th.
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11/8/2009, 8:34 am
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diane18
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…
hiroshi66
did you notice that the young takematsu is played by the same boy who played yuroku when kanetsugu was a little boy?
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11/8/2009, 4:42 pm
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mugwump4
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Re: J-Drama: 天地人 (Tenchijin)
I found this episode very touching, even without subs.
Keep the Kleenex box handy...
class reveal  class spoiler Ep 41 - major death
Ep 42 - major death
Ep 43 - major change in someone's status
Ep 44 - very sad death
Just like the Korean dramas...
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11/8/2009, 5:10 pm
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12/1/2009, 6:18 am
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Yes, this Battle of Sekigahara was the same major battle that Musashi participated in. He was still very young at that time (in his late teens) so it was his first major battle. If I remember correctly, Musashi was fighting with Ishida Mitsunari and his allies against the Tokugawa. After Mitsunari's Western army lost the battle, Musashi fled and continued his training. However, there doesn't seem to be much information in the historical records about what happened to Musashi immediately after the Sekigahara battle.
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