The number of viewers for the first episode, " UNBOUND (Berabou) " (General TV, Sunday 8:00 pm and others), starring actor Ryusei Yokohama , which was broadcast with an extended 15 minutes on January 5th, was announced. It was revealed that the number of viewers on NHK Plus was approximately 728,000 UB (unique browsers), the highest number of viewers of any drama that has been streamed so far.
The number of viewers (according to Video Research, an estimate of the number of people who watched the program for at least one minute in 32 regions nationwide) was approximately 4,065,000 on NHK BS, broadcast from 6:00 p.m., and approximately 18,699,000 on NHK General, broadcast from 8:00 p.m., for a total of approximately 21,254,000 (figures excluding overlaps between BS and General).
" UNBOUND (Berabou)" is the 64th taiga drama, depicting the life of Tsutaya Juzaburo(or "Tsutajyu" for short), who is said to have built the foundations of Japan's media industry and pop culture. The script was written by Yoshiko Morishita, known for "Drama 10 'Ooku'" which was broadcast on NHK two years ago and became a big hit.
In the first episode, a year and a half after the Great Fire of Meiwa, Tsutaju, also known as Tsutaya Juzaburo(Yokohama), was working at a teahouse and running a book rental business.
One day, when he visits Matsubaya, his childhood friend and courtesan, Hananoi (Fuka Koshiba), entrusts him with a delivery for Asagao (Reika Aiki). However, when Tsutaju visits Futagoya on Jonengashi Riverbank, he finds Asagao looking extremely emaciated.
Tsutaju is troubled by the terrible conditions faced by the prostitutes at the Kashimise, a suburb of Yoshiwara. Meanwhile, an arson attack occurs in Yoshiwara, causing chaos... and so the story unfolds.
