Sanada Maru (TV series)


Sanada Maru is a 2016 Japanese historical drama television series and the 55th NHK taiga drama. The series is named after the Sanada Maru, a fortification defended by Sanada during the Siege of Osaka in 1615. Written by Kōki Mitani, it stars Masato Sakai as the samurai Sanada Nobushige. It premiered on January 10, 2016 and concluded on December 18, 2016.
Due to declining viewership for taiga dramas in recent years, NHK strengthened its marketing push for Sanada Maru as compared with its previous taiga dramas.

Plot

The drama focuses on the history of the Sanada clan during the Sengoku period in Japan, and in particular on Sanada Nobushige, who would go on to become one of the legendary commanders of the period.

Cast

[Sanada clan]

Pro-Tokugawa daimyōs
;"The Seven Generals of Hideyori"
Production Credits
chose to cast Masato Sakai for the lead role of Sanada Nobushige, a samurai of the Sengoku period. Minoru Kubota of the Yomiuri Shimbun assumes that this is in part to increase viewership for the historical series after years of declining audience numbers for taiga dramas, as Sakai was a popular actor in the dramas he previously starred in.

Marketing

Due to the decline in viewers of NHK's taiga dramas, which is especially seen in the historically low ratings of preceding taiga drama Hana Moyu in 2015, the public broadcaster strengthened its effort to market Sanada Maru in order for viewership to increase. Locations that were to be depicted in the taiga drama were featured in travel-themed programs such as Tsurube's Salute to Families and Bura Tamori, which also featured actors from Sanada Maru as guests. History-themed documentaries and discussion programs covered the historical background of the drama. Lead actor Sakai was sent out by NHK to major media outlets for interviews, though he was found to be uncooperative in many of them, as questions would focus on his personal life instead of his new role in the drama.

TV schedule

Soundtracks