Awaiting Kirin


Awaiting Kirin 3= is a 2020 Japanese historical drama television series starring Hiroki Hasegawa as Akechi Mitsuhide, a samurai and general during the Sengoku period. The series is the 59th NHK taiga drama, premiering on January 19, 2020. It is the first regular taiga drama to be fully shot in 4K resolution, as well as the first taiga drama to be composed by a non-Japanese.

Plot

The story is based on the life of Akechi Mitsuhide, a general under Oda Nobunaga.

Cast

[Akechi clan]

;The vassals
Production Credits
On April 19, 2018, NHK announced Awaiting Kirin as its 59th taiga drama, starring Hiroki Hasegawa as Akechi Mitsuhide, a samurai and general during the Sengoku period, with Shunsaku Ikehata as writer. Ikehata previously wrote the 29th taiga drama, Taiheiki. The drama aims to shed light on the first half of Akechi's life, of which little is known about due to lacking historical records. On March 8, 2019, NHK announced that John R. Graham will be Awaiting Kirins composer, having previously been a composer for Kingsglaive: Final Fantasy XV; he is the first American hired to compose the score and the main theme of a taiga drama. Meanwhile, Junichi Hirokami acts as conductor of the NHK Symphony Orchestra. Historical researcher Tetsuo Owada, a professor emeritus at Shizuoka University who specializes in the Sengoku period of Japanese history, previously advised taiga dramas such as Hideyoshi, Tenchijin, and Gunshi Kanbei.

Casting

After Hasegawa, the rest of the main cast was announced on March 8, 2019, which included Mugi Kadowaki, Takashi Okamura, Sayuri Ishikawa, Masahiko Nishimura, Katsunori Takahashi, Erika Sawajiri, and Masahiro Motoki among others. The second cast announcement on June 17, 2019, included Fumino Kimura as Hiroko, as well as Kaho Minami, Takehiro Murata, Satoshi Tokushige, Kataoka Ainosuke VI, Rei Dan, and Kuranosuke Sasaki. The third cast announcement on August 7, 2019, included Machiko Ono, Osamu Mukai, Shunsuke Kazama, and Goro Ibuki. Ono previously had the main roles in Ashio Kara Kita Onna and Natsume Soseki no Tsuma, two NHK drama series written by Shunsaku Ikehata. The fourth cast announcement on February 19, 2020, included Yūsuke Santamaria, Shotaro Mamiya, Kanata Hongō, Masanobu Ando, Kyōko Maya, and Bengal.

Filming

The usual taiga drama production would first have one-third of the expected number of scripts finished before shooting begins. Afterwards, audience reception is taken into account as the rest of the series is written.
Shooting for the series began on June 3, 2019. Awaiting Kirin is the first regular taiga drama to be fully shot in 4K resolution. Chief producer Masaru Ochiai stated that the colorful costumes to be worn are made with adherence to feng shui.
On November 16, 2019, Erika Sawajiri, playing Oda Nobunaga's wife Kichō, was arrested over MDMA possession. She was replaced by Haruna Kawaguchi five days after being taken into custody. The series' start date was delayed by a fortnight as all of Sawajiri's scenes in the first 10 episodes – along with advertising and promotional footage – had to be reshot.
On April 1, 2020, NHK announced that filming schedules for both Awaiting Kirin and Yell were cancelled until April 12 to consider the safety of performers and staff during the COVID-19 pandemic. By April 7, NHK extended the cancellation of shooting for both series after Prime Minister Shinzo Abe proclaimed a one-month state of emergency for Tokyo and other prefectures. The series resumed on August 30, 2020.

Reception

According to Kaori Shoji of The Japan Times, observers during the reshoots of the first 10 episodes criticized Haruna Kawaguchi's performance as being "too flimsy".
Ryusei Iwata's performance as Takechiyo, the child Ieyasu, has received praise from viewers online.

TV schedule

Omnibus

Soundtrack

  • Kirin ga Kuru NHK Taiga Drama Original Soundtrack Vol. 1
  • Kirin ga Kuru NHK Taiga Drama Original Soundtrack Vol. 2
  • ''Kirin ga Kuru NHK Taiga Drama Original Soundtrack Vol. 3''

    Accolades