The NHK Taiga drama " UNBOUND (Berabou) " (General TV, Sunday 8pm and others), starring actor Ryusei Yokohama , is the first Taiga drama to be set in the mid-Edo period and depicts the life of Tsutaya Juzaburo(or "Tsutajyu" for short), who is said to have laid the foundations for Japan's media industry and pop culture. Only the final episode remains to be broadcast. Many comedians have been cast in this series, but how do they feel about it? We asked Chief Producer Fujinami Hideki, who honestly admitted, "Maybe we went a little overboard (laughs)."
In addition to Harada Taizo, who already had a lot of experience as an actor, playing Miura Shoji, comedians not often seen in TV dramas or movies, such as Tekken as Isoda Koryusai, Hyoroku as Matsumae Hirotoshi, and Kukki! as Katsukawa Shunro (later known as Katsushika Hokusai), were cast one after another, and although some roles were only for a very short time, they added color to the drama.
"I think there is a question of who can be called a comedian," Fujinami said, explaining that the reason for hiring him was "because we trusted him to be able to make his presence felt even in short scenes."
"I've always thought that comedians are very good at capturing and expressing characters in a short amount of time. In this drama, there were quite a few characters who left after saying a few words, and scenes with a large number of people, so when I thought about the kind of person who could leave a lasting impression in those scenes, I thought that someone who makes a living from comedy would be a good fit."
He has played roles such as "going to various places around the city and talking about gossip" like Akabane Kenichi and Kodama Tomohiro of the comedy duo "Sarugorilla", and also played the role of a monk who shows around Hitotsubashi Harusame (Ikuta Toma) like Nadal of "Korokoro Chiki Chiki Peppers".
"Nadal was only written as a 'guide monk' in the script, but it seems that a person with a role like that of a front monk would often receive bribes within Edo Castle, so I felt that if he could express greed and evil spirits even for just a moment, it would be interesting to connect it to historical fact, and that's why I asked Nadal to play him."
Other comedians who were often featured in the show were Majime Ono and Senchan from "Cool Poko" who pounded and kneaded rice cakes, Kaoru Fukuda and Takuro Mashiko from "Uji Koji" who played wealthy merchants from Tochigi, and Koume Tayu who played the owner of the teahouse Nanbaya without makeup, all of whom were frequently the subject of much discussion. When asked what made Fujinami feel the satisfaction he felt from the show...
"This was something I never expected, but I think it was because people knew that ' UNBOUND' was going to use that kind of casting, and they had high expectations for it. It was a long drama that ran for a year, so I think it was great that everyone was able to enjoy it in their own way."
