The second episode, "The Bell of Wishes," of the 2026 NHK Taiga drama "Toyotomi Brothers!" (General TV, Sundays at 8 p.m. and other times), starring actor Nakano Taiga, aired on January 11th, and saw Aoi Miyazaki make her debut as Ichi, a "Warring States heroine who leads a turbulent life."
"Toyotomi Brothers!" is the 65th taiga drama. It is a success story of hope and dreams, depicting the miracle of the Toyotomi brothers, Hidenaga (Koichiro) and his older brother Hideyoshi (Tokichiro), who achieve the great feat of unifying the country with their strong bond.
The script is written by Hiroyuki Yatsu, known for "Naoki Hanzawa" (TBS) and the Asadora"Ochoyan." The music is by Hideaki Kimura, and the narrator is Sakura Ando, an actor.
In the second episode, Koichirou (Nakano) returns to his hometown of Nakamura and learns that Nao (Shiraishi Sei) has arranged to marry him.
Nao looks sad as Koichiro rejoices, suppressing his feelings. Meanwhile, in Kiyosu, Nobunaga (Shun Oguri Shun), who aims to unify Owari, launches an attack on Iwakura Castle. Tōkichirō (Ikematsu Sosuke), who has been ordered to remain in Kiyosu, receives a summons from Nobunaga's sister, Ichi.
In front of Tokichiro, Ichi poured out her heart, saying, "The truth is, I'm suffering." Regarding her brother Nobunaga, she said, "Siblings are strange things. Even if you don't want to understand each other, sometimes you end up understanding each other. I don't know why this happens, but I think the reason I'm suffering now is because my brother is suffering."
Miyazaki, who plays the city, will be appearing in a taiga drama for the first time in 18 years since her lead role in "Atsuhime" (2008).
On social media, viewers responded with comments such as, "Oichi's first appearance!", "Oichi is so cute this time," "Oichi-sama is so cute," and "This Oichi is probably close to being the best she's ever been." Furthermore, as Oguri, who plays her brother Nobunaga, is starring in the taiga drama "The 13 Lords of the Shogun" (2022), comments such as, "Siblings as actors who have starred in taiga dramas in the past...," "The taiga drama leading duo is so cool," and "I can't stand it when Shun Oguri's sister is this cute" were also raised.
Furthermore, it attracted attention with comments such as, "Oh, I see, this is how the Toyotomi brothers and the Oda siblings are shown as a pair," and "I'm sure the Oda siblings will be key players in the future, along with the Toyotomi brothers."
