On March 3rd, it was revealed that the title of the NHK Taiga drama to be broadcast in 2027 has been decided as "Gyakuzoku no Bakushin" and that actor Tori Matsuzaka will play the lead role. Matsuzaka will play the Shogunate retainer Oguri Tadamasa. The script is written by Naoko Adachi, who has also written "Transparent Cradle" and "Okaeri Mone" (both NHK), and the synopsis has also been released.
The protagonist of "The Traitor Shogunate Retainer," Oguri Kozukenosuke Tadamasa, was said to be "Katsu Kaishu's rival." He was the first Japanese envoy to be sent to the United States, experienced the civilization of a new era, and was a genius of the Edo Shogunate who designed a new form of country. However, he was labeled a "traitor" by the new Meiji government, and the unknown exploits of this Shogunate retainer who was buried in the darkness of history are depicted in this thrilling and heartwarming entertainment.
◇Synopsis
In the year 1860, Tadamasa Oguri was given the honor of being welcomed aboard the American ship Powhatan as the core member of Japan's first mission to the United States, and setting out on the open seas. Meanwhile, Katsu Kaishu, aboard the accompanying Japanese warship Kanrin Maru, was in poor health and unable to leave his cabin, and was trembling with humiliation at having to hand over command to an American officer.
However, it is the "Kanrin Maru" that has been passed down to posterity as a great achievement, because Oguri was considered a "traitor" by the Meiji government and was buried in the darkness of history.
The first person to promote Oguri was the senior councilor, Ii Naosuke. With the arrival of the Black Ships, Japan was caught up in the whirlpool of the global economy and chaos ensued. Oguri, who was unusually good at financial accounting and numbers for a samurai, and would speak frankly to his superiors, caught his eye. As an envoy to the United States, Oguri witnessed Western civilization and resolved to expedite the creation of a modern nation that would not be swallowed up by foreign powers.
However, it was not easy. The assassination of Ii, the refusal of the Imperial Court to open the country, and a series of anti-foreign incidents such as the Namamugi Incident occurred. The financial strain was exacerbated by the payment of compensation, the marriage of Princess Kazunomiya, the Shogun's visit to Kyoto, and the Choshu Expedition. Furthermore, powerful feudal lords such as Saigo Takamori and other Satsuma-Choshu patriots and the Shimazu clan interfered in the Shogunate government, and the people, suffering from inflation and inequality, broke out in riots. In the midst of all this, the great powers began threatening the country's independence with their military might.
While Oguri held key positions in finance, diplomacy, and military affairs, he worked hard to prevent the threat of invasion and the division of the country. Eventually, as a last resort, he secured support from France and aimed to accelerate reforms, but the true intentions of Shogun Tokugawa Yoshinobu, who was supposed to be cooperating, gradually became unclear. Meanwhile, Katsu was in contact with Satsuma-Choshu and Britain and was planning his own path to modernization.
One is a strict elite, the other a self-made man who likes to please people. Oguri and Katsu are completely opposites, but they are both liberal thinkers who were disliked by the shogunate, and yet they were relied upon and used when times got tough. They are also remarkably similar in that the more they do what they have to do, the more enemies they make, and even their lives are threatened.
The two men saw talents in each other that they did not have, and respected each other despite their differences. However, their fates diverge greatly as Oguri wants to "improve" the shogunate and create a "system" to unite the people, while Katsu wants to "dismantle" the shogunate and allow capable "individuals" to flourish...
Filming is scheduled to begin in the summer of 2026.
