The Emperor's Cook

The Emperor's Cook
Also known asTennō no Ryōriban
GenreDrama
Created byHisahide Sugimori
Based onTennō No Ryōriban
Written byYoshiko Morishita
Directed byYuichiro Hirakawa, Shingo Okamoto
StarringTakeru Satoh
Haru Kuroki
Kenta Kiritani
Tasuku Emoto
Ryohei Suzuki
Hideaki Itō
Hiromi Go
Kaoru Kobayashi
Ending theme"Yume Miru Hito" by Masashi Sada
Country of originJapan
Original languageJapanese
No. of episodes12
Production
ProducerAkihiko Ishimaru
Production locationsFukushima, Ibaraki, Kobe, Okayama, Paris[1]
Running time54 min (Japan)
Production companyTBS
Original release
NetworkTBS
ReleaseApril 26 (2015-04-26) –
July 12, 2015 (2015-07-12)

The Emperor's Cook (Japanese: 天皇の料理番, Hepburn: Tennō no Ryōriban) is a 2015 Japanese television drama based on the novel Tennō no Ryōriban by Hisahide Sugimori, depicting the life of imperial cook Tokuzō Akiyama.[2][3] It premiered on TBS on 26 April 2015, starring Takeru Satoh in the lead role.[4] The 1st episode is 108 minutes, 2nd, 3rd, and 6th episodes are 64 minutes long. The series was well received by the public, earning the highest viewership rating in its time slot during its run time.[5]

Plot

Tokuzō Akiyama is a good-for-nothing young man living in the countryside, who gets easily absorbed in activities he finds interesting, but quickly loses interest and moves on, creating trouble for his family. He is married off to a merchant household to teach him discipline, and his wife gradually grows to love his personality. Tokuzō, however, falls in love again: this time with cooking. As he delivers goods to the army kitchen, the army chef introduces him to cutlet, which prompts Tokuzō to learn the craft. On a whim, he decides to leave his wife to study cooking in Tokyo. Amid hardship and humiliation, the young man who never felt compelled to stick to a job, keeps his dream to become the emperor's cook at only 25 years of age.

Cast

Episodes

No. Title Directed by Original air date Ratings
(%)
1"〜時代を超える人間の愛と命の感動物語〜 どうしようもない男が百年前に見た料理への果てなき夢…"Yuichiro HirakawaApril 26, 2015 (2015-04-26)15.9%
2"料理はまごころ"Yuichiro HirakawaMay 3, 2015 (2015-05-03)11.4%
3"あいしてるの決断"Shingo OkamotoMay 10, 2015 (2015-05-10)12.0%
4"愛し君よサラバ"Yuichiro HirakawaMay 17, 2015 (2015-05-17)12.7%
5"おさな夫婦の結末"Yuichiro HirakawaMay 24, 2015 (2015-05-24)14.5%
6"愛と命の果てパリ"Yuichiro HirakawaMay 31, 2015 (2015-05-31)14.1%
7"パリと差別と結婚"Yūji NakamaeJune 7, 2015 (2015-06-07)14.9%
8"パリでの卒業式"Yūji NakamaeJune 14, 2015 (2015-06-14)15.3%
9"皇居編〜ザリガニと御即位の御大礼"Yuichiro HirakawaJune 21, 2015 (2015-06-21)16.7%
10"皇居編〜関東大震災と家族の決意"Daisuke YamamuroJune 28, 2015 (2015-06-28)16.1%
11"皇居編〜最愛の人と最後の晩餐"Yuichiro HirakawaJuly 5, 2015 (2015-07-05)16.8%
12"完結〜料理番の人生敗戦の料理番がGHQに起こした愛の奇跡"Yuichiro HirakawaJuly 12, 2015 (2015-07-12)17.7%

Production

The drama was filmed in various locations in Japan (including Fukushima, Ibaraki, Kobe, Okayama) and in France. Takeru Satoh took cooking classes to portray the character and did the cooking scenes without a stand-in.[1]

Accolades

Awards
Award Date of ceremony Category Nominees Result
85th Television Drama Academy Awards [9] August 12, 2015 Best Drama The Emperor's Cook Won
Best Actor Takeru Satoh Won
Best Supporting Actress Haru Kuroki Won
Best Supporting Actor Ryohei Suzuki Won
Best Script Yoshiko Morishita Won
Best Directing Yuichiro Hirakawa, Shingo Okamoto, Yuji Nakamae, Daisuke Yamamuro Won
8th International Drama Festival in Tokyo[5] October 21, 2015 The Grand Prix The Emperor's Cook Won
Best Actor Takeru Satoh Won
Best Actress Haru Kuroki Won
Best Supporting Actor Ryohei Suzuki Won
24th Hashida Awards[10] May 10, 2016 Best Actor Takeru Satoh Won
Best Supporting Actor Ryohei Suzuki Won
Best Drama The Emperor's Cook Won

References

  1. ^ a b "佐藤 健" (in Japanese). TBS. Retrieved 2016-09-16. trans
  2. ^ 【TBS】佐藤健主演『天皇の料理番』初回は15.1% (in Japanese). oricon ME inc. Retrieved 2015-05-13.
  3. ^ 26日スタート「天皇の料理番」。原作の主人公はかなりの「やんちゃ」佐藤健はどう挑むのか (in Japanese). Excite Japan Co., Ltd. Retrieved 2015-05-13.
  4. ^ 佐藤健さん「天皇の料理番」 (in Japanese). The Yomiuri Shimbun. Retrieved 2015-05-13.
  5. ^ a b "THE EMPEROR'S COOK Wins 4 Awards at the 2015 Tokyo Drama Awards!". TBS. 2015-10-26. Retrieved 2016-09-16.
  6. ^ a b c TBS official website (in Japanese)
  7. ^ From the telop of Emperor's Cook episode 10
  8. ^ SIS Company Inc. official profile page of Zen Kajihara (in Japanese)
  9. ^ 第85回ザテレビジョンドラマアカデミー賞 (in Japanese).
  10. ^ "吉田羊、熱愛報道後初公の場 関係者が制止で言及せず" (in Japanese). Oricon. 2016-05-10. Retrieved 2016-09-16.
Preceded by
Ryūsei Wagon
(18 January 2015 - 22 March 2015)
TBS Sunday Dramas
Sundays 21:00 - 21:54 (JST)
Succeeded by
Napoleon no Mura
(19 July 2015 - 20 September 2015)