With only two episodes left of the NHK Taiga drama " UNBOUND (Berabou) " (General TV, Sunday 8:00 PM, etc.), starring Ryusei Yokohama , viewers are eagerly watching Ikuta Toma, who plays Hitotsubashi Harusame. This is his second villainous role in the Taiga drama, following his role as Minamoto no Nakaaki in " The 13 Lords of the Shogun" (2022). Three years ago, Ikuta was perfect for the role of Nakaaki, with his sarcastic and irritating face, but he has now brilliantly embodied Harusame, who has easily surpassed Nakaaki, and his presence has only grown.
◇First of all, were the actors "different"? Harumasa Hitotsubashi, who uncovered Sadanobu and his men's plot
This will be Ikuta's fourth appearance in a taiga drama, following "Gunshi Kanbei" in 2014, "Idaten: Tokyo Olympic Story" in 2019, and "The 13 Lords of the Shogun" in 2022.
In "UNBOUND," he plays Hitotsubashi Harusame, the head of the Hitotsubashi Tokugawa family, one of the "Gosankyo" (Three Great Houses) established as a successor to the eighth shogun, Yoshimune. He is Yoshimune's grandson and a cousin of the tenth shogun, Ieharu (Hidekazu Mashima). As successors to the shogun died prematurely one after another, Harusame's last remaining son, Ienari (Jo Kairi), became the eleventh shogun, and Harusame gained all the wealth and power as the "father of the shogun."
In the process, Jisei was (allegedly) involved in the deaths of many characters. Among the victims are Tanyasu Jisatsu (Irie Jinji), Tokugawa Iemoto (Tomoya Oku), Matsudaira Takemoto (Koji Ishizaka), Ken Yasuda Gennai (Yasuda Akira), Tanuma Okitomo(Hio Miyazawa Hio), Sano Masayoshi (Yamoto Yuma), Ieharu, and Shinnosuke (Inowaki Kai). In the 46th episode, "The Soga Festival Incident," which aired on November 30th, Jisei finally wiped out Osaki (Emi Kurara) with his own hands.
He also sometimes goes out into the city himself, pretending to be a beggar and causing a commotion, enjoying his evil deeds, making him the epitome of a "trickster." In this respect, Jisei is truly an "actor." Perhaps it was because he was "the wrong actor" that he was able to see through the plot of Matsudaira Sadanobu (Inoue Yuki) and the "anti-Jisei coalition" in advance during the 46th "Soga Festival Incident," the most recent one.
◇ "I want to act selfishly" - What Ikuta Toma said when his appearance was announced
How has Ikuta created such a place?
"I'm grateful that I was given so much freedom," Ikuta said, adding, "Even if I didn't do anything in particular, the staff's work made the film creepy, and the acting of the other actors emphasized my evil side. So it's not my fault."
He also said, "I often find out later that the smirk on my mouth was captured in a close-up, or that the expression on Jisei's face was like a Noh mask, so it really feels like I've been made into the bad guy without even realizing it. There are times when I think, 'Oh, they captured such a bad expression on my face!' It's funny, though."
When his appearance was announced in July last year, he said, "When I played Minamoto no Nakaaki in ' The 13 Lords of the Shogun,' I was disliked by many people for being such a villain (laughs). This time, I want to surpass the 'irritating Nakaaki,' and play Hitotsubashi Harusame, a man known as a monster. I want to selfishly portray the creepiness of this man who eliminates those who get in his way one after another with a smile on his face."
The role of Jisei is truly one of "walking the talk." Amidst all this, a surprising development awaits at the end of episode 46. Who is the "man with the same face as Jisei" who was in Sadanobu's camp after the plot failed? According to Ikuta, "It's really full of things that can't be said from start to finish," and he also "predicts" that "the ending won't disappoint." It looks like the story of "UNBOUND" will continue to stir things up even more as it reaches its final stage.
