Taira no Kiyomori (NHK 2012 Taiga)

Since Go is ending soon, thought I'd start a thread for next year's Taiga drama. I'm pretty excited, it's got some big names and hopefully lotsa good action. I don't particularly like Matsuyama Ken'ichi, but will tolerate him for the sake of watching hotter guys like Fujiki Naohito and Tamaki Hiroshi :naughty:


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Taira no Kiyomori will be NHK's 51st Taiga drama, scheduled to be broadcast in January 2012 (Sunday, 8pm, Japanese time). It will star Matsuyama Ken'ichi in the title role of Taira no Kiyomori (1118-1181), a general of the Heian period who established the first samurai-based government in Japan. Tamaki Hiroshi plays Kiyomori's rival, Minamoto no Yoshitomo.

Synopsis: During the late Heian era, a youth who did not know his birth parents was raised by the Heike (also known as the Taira), a samurai clan of emerging influence. Taira no Kiyomori (Matsuyama Kenichi) was in truth the illegitimate son of Emperor Shirakawa. With his adoptive father, Tadamori (Nakai Kiichi), he got rid of the pirates in the Seto Insland Sea, and was trained to be a samurai. In a period where the samurai were being discriminated by the aristocrats of the upper echelons of society, Kiyomori, who was adept at winning hearts and minds, controlled the pirates. He worked to reform the aristocracy, persisted with the way of life of the samurai and built up the mighty Taira clan (Nakamura Baijaku, Kamikawa Takaya, Fujimoto Takahiro, Daito Shunsuke). Before long, he rose from a senior courtier of the third rank to become the chief minister and the ruler of Japan.

Synopsis courtesy of Jdrama Weblog


Title: •½´·
Title (romaji): Taira no Kiyomori
Format: Renzoku
Genre: Jidaigeki
Episodes: 50
Broadcast date: Jan 8, 2012
Original Screenplay: Fujimoto Yuki
Director: Shibata Takeshi (ŽÄ“cŠxŽu)
Producer: Iso Tomoaki (ˆé’q–¾)
Music: Yoshimatsu Takashi (‹g¼—²)
Official site: http://www9.nhk.or.jp/kiyomori/
Wikipedia links: http://wiki.d-addicts.com/Taira_no_Kiyomori
http://ja.wikipedia.org/wiki/•½´·_(NHK‘å‰Íƒhƒ‰ƒ})
http://zh.wikipedia.org/wiki/•½´·_(‘å‰ÍŒ€)



CAST:
Taira no Kiyomori - Matsuyama Ken'ichi
Taira no Tadamori - Nakai Kiichi

Minamoto no Yoshitomo - Tamaki Hiroshi
Minamoto no Tameyoshi - Kohinata Fumiyo

Emperor Goshirakawa - Matsuda Shota
Saigyo Hoshi / Sato Norikiyo - Fujiki Naohito

Taira clan
Taira no Iesada - Nakamura Baijaku
Taira no Morikuni - Kamikawa Takaya
Itou Tadakiyo - Fujimoto Takahiro (“¡–{—²G)
Taira no Iemori - Daito Shunsuke
Taira no Tokiko - Fukada Kyoko
Taira no Shigeko / Kenshunmon'in - Narumi Riko
Takashina no Akiko - Kato Ai
Fujiwara no Muneko - Wakui Emi
Taira no Tokitada - Morita Go
Taira no Tadamasa - Toyahara Kosuke
Taira no Masamori - Nakamura Atsuo
Kiyomori's mother - Fukiishi Kazue

Minamoto clan
Minamoto no Yoritomo - Okada Masaki
Hojo Masako - Anne
Lady Tokiwa - Takei Emi
Lady Yura - Tanaka Rena

Imperial clan
Emperor Shirakawa - Ito Shiro
Emperor Tobajo - Mikami Hiroshi
Emperor Sutokuten - ARATA
Fujiwara no Tamako / Taikenmon'in - Dan Rei
Horikawa no Tsubone - Ryo
Fujiwara no Nariko / Bifukumon'in - Matsuyuki Yasuko

Aristocrats
Fujiwara no Tadazane - Kunimura Jun
Fujiwara no Yorinaga - Yamamoto Koji
Fujiwara no Michinori / Shinzei - Abe Sadao

Misc:
Usagimaru - Kato Koji
Gion no Nyougo - Matsuda Seiko



Tamaki Hiroshi (left) as Minamoto no Yoshitomo and Matsuyama Ken'ichi as Kiyomori
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Thanks for starting this thread! :woot:

I see Kyoko Fukada :bleh:

Hopefully she'll be more than offset by Emi Wakui, Riko Narumi and Ryo. :woot:

Hmm... true that Kyoko Fukada is pretty bad. Her current darma with Naohito is unbearable. I stopped watching after first ep. I may check this drama out for Tamaki. He may look cool in it. (I'm more interested in 2013 Ayase Taiga though.)

I'm worried about Fukada Kyoko as well, although surprisingly for me, Sengyou Shufu Tantei is quite engaging. Her voice still annoys me though. But more than that, I'm nervy about Matsuyama Ken'ichi. I wish they'd gotten someone else since I haven't been impressed by his acting in Norwegian Wood. I just don't think he can carry off a taiga lead role... but who knows, maybe he'll prove me wrong.


Anyway, here's the updated character chart:
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junny wrote: I'm nervy about Matsuyama Ken'ichi. I wish they'd gotten someone else since I haven't been impressed by his acting in Norwegian Wood. I just don't think he can carry off a taiga lead role... but who knows, maybe he'll prove me wrong.

I thought he was pretty good in Zeni Geba, although the real star of that drama was Shiina Kippei as his abusive father.

I LOVED Matsuyama in Sexy Voice and Robo!! :woot:
Unfortunately I don't think there were very many otakus in the 12th century.

^ Shiina Kippei is a class act :woot: As for Matsuyama... ehhh, I have not been impressed with the pictures that have come out so far. Doubt Kiyomori looked or behaved like an otaku but meh, the pictures have been uninspiring.


~


Ueno Juri passes the eTaigaf baton to Matsuyama Kenichi
by soysauce414 on November 7, 2011 at 8:28 pm

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The NHK Taiga drama lead role baton passing ceremony was held in Shibuya, Tokyo on November 6th. With November 27th scheduled for the broadcast of the final episode of eGoue, Ueno Juri was present to pass the baton to Matsuyama Kenichi, who will serve the lead role in eTaira no Kiyomorie starting January 8th, 2012.

Ueno, who has already finished shooting, gave a bit of advice to Matsuyama by commenting, gTeamwork between the actors is very important. I brought home made snacks from home to create a good environment,h adding humorously, gNHK doesnft provide snacks in the waiting roomg. A representative from NHK immediately stepped in to banter back, gWith the minimal subscription fees, itfs hard to pay for snacks.h

As an annual tradition, the lead roles will exchange gifts that originate from the regions the Taiga dramas take place at. Ueno brought Echizen crab from Fukui prefecture for Matsuyama, while Matsuyama gave Kumano brushes from Hiroshima to Ueno.

Click here for more pictures.

Article courtesy of tokyohive.

junny wrote:Ueno Juri passes the eTaigaf baton to Matsuyama Kenichi
by soysauce414 on November 7, 2011 at 8:28 pm

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Gee, the guy could've cleaned himself up first.... :beaten:

:rofl:

More pictures coming out now. Really not liking Matsuyama's look :doh:


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Row 1 L-R: Daito Shunsuke as Taira no Iemori, Fukada Kyoko as Taira no Tokiko
Row 2: Tamaki Hiroshi as Minamoto no Yoshi.tomo
Row 3 L-R: Nakamura Atsuo as Taira no Masamori, Nakai Kiichi as Taira no Tadamori
Row 4 L-R: Fujimoto Takahiro as Itou Tadakiyo, Kato Ai as Takashina no Akiko, Kato Koji as Usagimaru
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Kato Koji as Usagimaru (shades of Jack Sparrow!)
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With the hero
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Taira folk: Toyohara Kosuke as Tadamasa, Wakui Emi as Muneko, Kiyomori, Nakai Kiichi as Tadamori, Nakamura Baijaku as Iesada
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Kiyomori with dad Tadamori
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Fukada Kyoko as Taira no Tokiko
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Fukada, Matsuyama, Abe Sadao as Shinzei
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Fujiki Naohito as Sato Norikiyo (first guy on horseback)
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junny wrote:More pictures coming out now. Really not liking Matsuyama's look :doh:

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Hehe. :hehe:

He looks like he should be in The Last of the Mohicans instead of a Taiga. ;)

This cast leaves me rather unexcited. Takei Emi is a horrible actress to begin with, and also ILve never been impressed by Okada Masaki nor Daito Shunsuke. Compared to them, I would still count Matsuyama Kenichi as okay actor, not outstanding but he isnLt a boring sleeping pill like these named ones for me. :shakehead:

Yeah, the younger cast (below 30) are rather uninspiring, ehhhh. There's a short clip on the NHK website that doesn't seem too bad... although half the time I keep wishing that Tamaki Hiroshi would be Kiyomori. Oh well.

Click here for clip

Here are more pictures:

Row 1 L-R: Kamikawa Takaya as Taira no Morikuni, Fukiishi Kazue as Kiyomori's mother
Row 2 L-R: Abe Sadao as Fujiwara no Michinori, Fujiki Naohito as Sato Norikiyo
Row 3: Nakamura Baijaku as Taira no Iesada
Row 4 L-R: Tanaka Rena as Lady Yura, Toyohara Kosuke as Taira no Tadamasa, Kunimura Jun as Fujiwara no Tadazane
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Kiyomori
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Tadamori
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Tokiko
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Minamoto no Yoshitomo
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Pics courtesy of the official NHK website.

junny wrote:[image]

Is that the size they call "athletic fit?" :rofl:

^ That is frankly an awful outfit. It probably has some significance that completely escapes me.


Anyway here's the drama's poster, and more pictures:
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Pictures courtesy of the official NHK site.

junny wrote:^ That is frankly an awful outfit. It probably has some significance that completely escapes me.

If he jumped out of a plane, he could just glide down to land. :mrgreen:

Matsuyama Kenichi attends the pre-screening for the first episode of gTaira no Kiyomorih
by peachsoda on December 14, 2011 at 12:35 pm

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A private screening of the first completed part of NHKfs new taiga drama gTaira no Kiyomorih was held on December 12th. Stars Matsuyama Kenichi, Nakai Kiichi, and Matsuda Seiko were in attendance.

Matsuda is starring in the role of a court lady from Gion who served as Emperor Shirakawafs beloved concubine for many years, as well as helping to raise Kiyomori. She said of her character, gShe was a smart and charming person who was skilled in song and dance. She was also a woman who possessed a warm, motherly air.h

Matsuyama also praised her performance, adding, gShe was the person who was closest to Kiyomori, and was like a second mother to him. [Matsuda] has perfectly expressed her motherliness and loving atmosphere.h Matsuda was also entranced, saying gI was also overwhelmed and moved by Matsuyamafs Kiyomori. At any rate, itfs wonderful.h

Matsuyama stated, gAlthough I only appear for about a minute in the first episode, from the second on Ifll appear quite a bit. Once again, I want to do my best to move the hearts of the viewers.h

On the other hand, Nakai noted, looking back on the taiga drama he previously starred in, Takeda Shingen (back in 1988), gI was warmly surrounded by many senior actors at that time. From now on I have to be the one to help out, and my role is to bring Matsuyama-kun through this drama in the best shape. I hope to be able to have him feel like he was glad to have been in this taiga drama a year from now.h

The 74-minute first episode of Taira no Kiyomori, gFutari no Chichih will air on January 8th, 2012.

Source: Eiga.com

Article courtesy of tokyohive

There's a clip out on the official website that introduces various characters and scenes from the taiga. Have a watch here: 15-min clip



I don't know if this is good news or not...

AAAfs Nishijima Takahiro to appear in NHK Taiga drama, gTaira no Kiyomorih
by halicolipocky on December 30, 2011 at 9:22 am

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AAAfs Nishijima Takahiro (25) has been cast for the upcoming NHK Taiga drama, gTaira no Kiyomorih!

Nishijima will play Taira no Yorimori, the younger brother of Taira no Kiyomori (played by Matsuyama Kenichi). He often confronts his older brother with his candid opinions, even amidst the friendly atmosphere of the Taira household.

NHK offered this role to Nishijima after observing his acting skills in the 2009 film, gAi no Mukidashi (Love Exposure)h, with which he won a Sponichi Grand Prix Newcomer Award.

Nishijima began filming in November and described that he was extremely nervous when he entered the scene. However, his nervousness broke when gMatsuyama-san announced to the staff, eItfs the mukidashi kid! Ai no Mukidashi kid has come to the scene!f and created a warm welcome for me.h

gTaira no Kiyomorih will be NHKfs 51st Taiga drama, and it recounts the story of general Taira no Kiyomori, who established the first samurai-based government in Japan.

Source & Image: Sponichi
Article courtesy of tokyohive




And here are more pictures:

Top half: Yamamoto Koji as Fujiwara no Yorinaga, Dan Rei as Fujiwara no Tamako, Anne as Hojo Masako, Okada Masaki as Minamoto no Yoritomo
Bottom half: Ryo as Horikawa no Tsubone, Matsuda Seiko as Gion no Nyougo, Kohinata Fumiyo as Minamoto no Tameyoshi, Wakui Emi as Fujiwara no Muneko
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L-R: ARATA as Emperor Sutokuten, Ito Shiro as Emperor Shirakawa, Takei Emi as Lady Tokiwa, Mikami Hiroshi as Emperor Tobajo, Matsuyuki Yasuko as Fujiwara no Nariko, Matsuda Shota as Emperor Goshirakawa, Narumi Riko as Taira no Shigeko
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Dan Rei as Fujiwara no Tamako
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Anne as Hojo Masako
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Kato Koji as Usagimaru
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Abe Sadao as Fujiwara no Michinori
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^ Not sure if I'm going to watch this... I'm burnt out from watching Go. :sweat:

On the bright side, it can't get any worse! (or can it? :puppydog: )

NHK taiga drama gTaira no Kiyomorih gets 3rd worst ratings start in history

January 10, 2012

NHKfs 2012 taiga drama gTaira no Kiyomorih began airing on January 8th. Viewership ratings for the first episode were 17.3% in the Kanto region, and 18.8% in the Kansai region. In the Kanto region, this is the first time since gKomyo ga Tsujih in 2006 that a taiga drama has premiered with lower than 20% ratings.

gTaira no Kiyomorih is tied with gShin Heike Monogatarih (1972) for the 3rd worst start in history for an NHK taiga drama. The only ones that have had worse starts are the 1989 series gKasuga no Tsuboneh (14.3%) and the 1977 series gKashinh (16.5%).

The drama features a star-studded cast led by Matsuyama Kenichi, portraying the life of the 12th century general Taira no Kiyomori. The series is planned to run for 50 episodes, ending in December 2012.

Sources:
Sponichi Annex
Sankei Sports

gaijinmark wrote:On the bright side, it can't get any worse! (or can it? :puppydog: )

NHK taiga drama gTaira no Kiyomorih gets 3rd worst ratings start in history

Maybe because Go didn't do that well, it turned off a lot of viewers... :sweat:

bmwracer wrote:
Maybe because Go didn't do that well, it turned off a lot of viewers...

Probably. Komyo ga Tsuji came after Yoshitsune, my all-time worst taiga ever. The difference is Komyo ga Tsuji had Yukie Nakama to bail them out. Matsuyama doesn't have near the star power.