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 recorded an average viewership rating (according to Video Research, Kanto region) of 10.4% for households and 6.1% for individuals.
"BROTHERS IN ARMS （Toyotomi Brothers!）" is the 65th Taiga drama. With Toyotomi Hidenaga (Koichiro) as the protagonist, it depicts the miraculous feat of unifying Japan together with his older brother Hideyoshi (Tokichiro) through their strong bond, a success story of dreams and hopes.
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.
The scene depicting Nagamasa's final moments, with Ichi acting as his second in the ritual suicide, elicited a variety of reactions from viewers.
