A Star Studded Cast Gears Up for the 2012 Taiga Taira no Kiyomori

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• what does taiga mean?

  • This link gives a good description and a list of all previous taigas.

    http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Taiga_drama

    • This is the first time I've heard of a Taiga (but then I'm more of a kdrama fan) and it sound EPIC. Just looked at the list of actors from previous years and it had like some of legendary ones.

  • a yearly period piece put on by the television station, NHK. The Taiga drama works like this: NHK, every year since 1963 runs a new show about some aspect of Japanese history (usually fuedal era). What's more, they are top quality material, some of the best jidaigeki you will ever see. Great acting, large budget, historical accuracy. if you like samurai movies, I suggest attempting to get your hands on a Taiga drama. (Komyou ga tsuji even has Yukie Nakama in it).

    I ALSO DID NOT KNOW WHAT IT MEANT SO I HOPE THIS DESCRIPTION WILL HELP AND THIS IS THE SITE I OBTAINED IT FROM.

    http://freezepopmorality.hubpages.com/hub/Best-Japanese-Drama-series

• This looks definitely worth a watch (especially for my Fujiki Naohito, lol). It'll be my first time watching a taiga; I'm a bit of a sageuk lover but I haven't tried the Japanese equivalent yet. This cast looks so tempting! Usually the Koreans win in the 'pretty' competition, but these are solid acting chops here.

• I've never been able to make it through a taiga before but with all these pretty guys and Takei Emi, I'm going to have put some time aside to watch this when it airs.

• What an interesting concept! One episode a week for almost an entire year? Does that mean they film all year at the pace of one episode a week, or do they film it all at once in, say, four or five (or six or seven, I don't know how complicated the shoots would be) months and then everyone goes off and does their own thing? Unfortunately, the Wikipedia article I found doesn't have any explanations about the shooting at all.

  • They shoot for pretty much the entire year, but without the rush of the K-drama live shoot since its only one episode a week at 45 mins a pop. But this also allows for script revisions based on ratings. The lead actor in a Taiga is commited for an entire year, no if buts or exceptions. Clearly he/she won't die until the last ep, or if at all, so no chance of an early out.

    Which is why there are no singer-actors cast in as the leads in Taigas, because you can't juggle a dual career that year. Also most singer-actors aren't considered thespians by the Japanese audience, and Taigas require the highest caliber actors.

    To get tapped for a Taiga lead is like winning an Oscar already. Ryomaden completely reinvigorated Masa's career. It's actually a great Taiga, one of the few not set in the Edo, Sengoku, or Heian period. I think Ryomaden might be the Taiga set in the most modern period to date, which is not saying much since it was set in the Bakumutsu period leading into Commodore Perry and the Black Ships. Shinsengumi! was also set in that period but a little before.

    • fukuyama masaharu IS a singer-actor, so is katori shingo, who was one of the leads of shinsengumi!. the bakumatsu are the final years of the edo period, so Ryomaden is also set in edo. and yoritomo is the son of yoshitomo, not his younger brother.

    • And Yoshitsune starred Takizawa Hideaki, who is also a singer-actor of Tackey & Tsubasa fame! If you're a Tackey fan and haven't seen it yet, I recommend it! Takey + samurai battle gear = total hotness.

• Woo - I have seen a Taiga before (gosh I feel really old or I just have a lot of time or something). I believe the only Taiga that I have watch all the way through was the one that had Takizawa Hideaki (Tackey) - which I can't even remember the name of. But it was quite good - the acting and all. I haven't seen one lately though. I guess too much time investment. It is a really great honor (in j-ent) to be selected for one of these and even more so as the lead.

  And wow - what an amazing cast!! :) I honestly think Jdrama correlation charts are so complicated to understand. I think I will have to check this one out. Thanks Ms Koala for the info.

  • yes, i did watched Tackey's taiga in its entirety (minus some due to broken links), a few yrs ago when i was on a Tackey's spree cos i totally heart him. Cant recall d title even d ending was a bit hazy.
    Growing up, our local channel did show a few taigas here n there, that was pre-cable or broadband. Feel so ancient now..

• This was on my radar because of the incredible male cast but I wasn't playing to watch it. Now with the new-found affection for Daito Shunsuke and your illumination on his presence in the cast of this taiga, it has become a must watch. Wow, my first taiga.

• The pretties! Shouta and Masada... yummmm. I get lost during Chinese and Korean historials, so if this was subbed at all (maybe hopefully) need lots of historial notes.

• There is sooooo much pretty in this cast it's unfair. Japanese ladies watch your Taiga next year!

• I've never watched a Taiga. It's just too freaking long! But when I read about this drama a few months ago I KNEW I HAD TO SEE IT! I mean when and where are you going to get almost every male actor you love, like or want to see in one drama, eh?
  I'm extremely excited. Men running around doing what they do best is going to be entirely too fun to watch ;)

• I have been excited for this ever since I first heard about this, all they had to do was have Kenichi Matsuyama and Tamaki Hiroshi(MINE) next to each other in the same pic and I was in...I had no idea till now that Matsuda Shota (aka the man that has chemistry with any living/non-living thing) would also be in this...I guess that means a reunion for one of my fav duos from Love Shuffle!! YAYYYY Panda!!!!