The 17th episode of the NHK Taiga drama "BROTHERS IN ARMS （Toyotomi Brothers!）" (NHK General, Sundays at 8pm, etc.), starring actor Taiga Nakano, titled "The Fall of Odani Castle," aired on May 3rd and depicted the final moments of Nagamasa Asai, played by Ayumu Nakajima.
In the 17th episode, Takeda Shingen (Masahiro Takashima) raises an army against Oda and invades Tōtōmi, but Ieyasu (Kohei Matsushita) who meets him at Mikatagahara suffers a crushing defeat.
Yoshiaki (played by Onoe Ukon) also raised an army in Kyoto, and Nobunaga (played by Shun Oguri) seemed to be in dire straits, but for some reason the Takeda army suddenly retreated. Having lost his backer, Yoshiaki was driven out of Kyoto. Having escaped the crisis, Nobunaga resumed his attack on the Asai and Asakura clans. With no options left, Nagamasa holed up in Odani Castle. Koichiro (played by Nakano) and Fujikichiro (played by Ikematsu Sosuke) tried to do something to rescue Oichi (Aoi Miyazaki) and the others, but...and so the story unfolded.
Nagamasa has no intention of being persuaded by Koichiro and the others. He asks Ichi to take her daughter and leave the castle, and, proud of having fought Nobunaga and pushed him to the brink of defeat, he chooses to end his own life there. Then, as a substitute for his "brother-in-law" Nobunaga, Nagamasa wrestles with Koichiro and Fujikichiro, defeating them both by force, and mutters, "I won. Take that, Nobunaga." Although Ichi had parted ways with Nagamasa, she changed her mind and went to where he was about to commit seppuku. She brought down the sword she held in her hand.
Despite the surprising turn of events where Ichi acts as the second in the execution, many comments were posted on social media such as, "Wow... Nagamasa-sama was the best man ever," "This Nagamasa was a good Nagamasa," "Of all the Nagamasas I've seen in historical dramas, he's the one I least wanted to die," "Asai Nagamasa was a fascinating character this time," "I'm sad that I won't be able to hear this Nagamasa's handsome voice anymore," "Nagamasa's way of life... magnificent," "I can't help but feel Nagamasa withdrawal," and "I'm experiencing Nagamasa withdrawal."
