Series synopsis
Reach Beyond the Blue Sky, also known as 青天を衝け is a Japanese drama television series that premiered on NHK BS Premium on February 14, 2021. It ended on December 26, 2021. It stars Emi Wakui, Ryo Yoshizawa, Eri Murakawa and Kaoru Kobayashi.
Shibusawa Eiichi was born in 1840 to a farmer’s family. He grew up helping his family with work, which was to manufacture and sell indigo production and also silk farming. He left his hometown at the age of 23 and began working for the government. He later traveled to Paris and learned about banking. Upon his return to Japan, he helped build up the first modern bank in Japan. He eventually became a founder or supporter to about 500 companies and was involved with about 600 public services, inclu ...
Premise
Shibusawa Eiichi was born in 1840 to a farmer’s family. He grew up helping his family with work, which was to manufacture and sell indigo production and also silk farming. He left his hometown at the age of 23 and began working for the government. He later traveled to Paris and learned about banking. Upon his return to Japan, he helped build up the first modern bank in Japan. He eventually became a founder or supporter to about 500 companies and was involved with about 600 public services, including education for women.
Cast and characters
Leading cast
- Emi Wakui as Shibusawa Ei [Eiichi's mother]
- Ryo Yoshizawa as Shibusawa Eiichi
- Eri Murakawa as Shibusawa Naka [Eiichi's older sister]
- Kaoru Kobayashi as Shibusawa Ichiroemon [Eiichi's father]
- Ryoko Fujino as Shibusawa Tei [Eiichi's younger sister]
- Kengo Kora as Shibusawa Kisaku [Eiichi's cousin]
- Jeffrey Rowe as Charles de Montblanc（シャルル・ド・モンブラン）
- Rihito Itagaki as Tokugawa Akitake [Yoshiatsu and Yoshinobu's half-brother]
Supporting cast
- Tsuyoshi Kusanagi
- Toshihito Kokubo as Sakubee [Farmer on Chiaraijima]
- Show Kasamatsu as Shibusawa Keizo [Eiichi's nephew]
- Derrick Dover as Union Leader
Episodes
This series spans 1 season with 41 episodes.
| Season | Episodes | First aired | Last aired |
|---|---|---|---|
| Season 1 | 41 | February 14, 2021 | December 26, 2021 |
| Episode | Title | Air date |
|---|---|---|
| 1 |
Eiichi Awakens The 60th historical drama depicts the life of Shibusawa Eiichi, known as the Father of Capitalism in Japan. He lived from the mid-19th to early 20th century, contributing to around 600 public projects, and led around 500 enterprises to success. He also committed to international relations and was nominated to Nobel Peace Prize twice. He kept on challenging with high aspirations throughout the life and his well-calculated planning and sincere work opened up the way to the future of modern Japan. |
February 14, 2021 |
| 2 |
Eiichi Dances Eiichi learns the indigo trade from his father Ichiroemon and reading from his cousin Shingoro. However, his greatest pleasure is to perform the lion dance at the village festival. However, due to adult circumstances, the festival was canceled. Eiichi is disappointed, but he comes up with a plan. On the other hand, Shichiro Maro, who was adopted by the Hitotsubashi family, changed his name to Yoshinobu and was loved by the Shogun Ieyoshi as if he were his own son. Nariaki, now in retirement, attempts to return to politics with his son as his only hope. Then, Perry is coming to Japan... |
February 21, 2021 |
| 3 |
Eiichi Begins Work Eiichi goes to Edo for the first time with Ichiroemon, and is amazed at the glamour of the city, and learns about the difficulties of business from his father. Eiichi wants to go out and buy indigo leaves himself to help his father, who is in dire straits due to a poor crop that year... In the meantime, Edo was in an uproar when the Black Ships arrived. When Ieyoshi dies, Yoshinobu's name is mentioned as a candidate for the next shogun, but Yoshinobu rebels against the idea. A man is chosen to be Yoshinobu's trusted servant. |
February 28, 2021 |
Production
Release
| Original network/platform | NHK BS Premium |
|---|---|
| First aired | February 14, 2021 |
| Last aired | December 26, 2021 |
| Runtime | 45 minutes |
| Status | ended |
| Schedule | Sunday at 20:00:00 |