Jul. 13th, 2014 10:36 pm
Ginnikan Ep 1: Drama Notes
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earth_colorsEp. 1: "Buying out a Revenge"
Episode Synopsis. A lordless samurai and his son who have left behind their home clan, were traveling when they got stopped by a young samurai. This young man is seeking revenge against the father and kills him. The 10 year old son Tsurunosuke (Tamayama Uta) almost gets killed too but a merchant intervenes. The merchant, Wasuke (Tsugawa Masahiko) an owner of an agar wholesale business, Ikawaya, offers to buy the samurai's revenge with one bag of ginnikan (Edo period's silver currency). The bargain is accepted, and Tsurunosuke, now a homeless orphan, has no choice but to go with Wasuke to become a lowly apprentice in his shop in Tenma, Osaka. The shop's head clerk, Zenjiro (Shiomi Sansei) is very strict with him and not at all pleased that the precious ginnikan was exchanged for this boy. That hard-earned money was intended for the rebuilding of Osaka's Tenmangu (shrine), which was destroyed in a fire. Of course, the boy is unhappy with his situation, too. He also dislikes the shop's main source of livelihood: agar. To top it off, he is sent to learn to make agar in a production site in Fushimi, Kyoto... Three years have passed, the boy, now 13 year old, comes back to Ikawaya. Taller and a bit more docile than before, he takes on the apprentice name, "Matsukichi". Matsukichi (Hayashi Kento) starts his new life as a humble apprentice. But inside of him, the proud Samurai spirit still lingers...
Drama Notes:
Kanten (Agar). Kanten is a gelatinous substance, obtained from red algae or gelidium (tengusa in Japanese). It was discovered in the the mid-1600s by Minoya Tarozaemon, when he noticed that some surplus seaweed soup had gelled after a wintry night; thawed and dried out during the next day. Its name "Kanten" could mean "cold seaweed" ("cold " + "ten" from tengusa). In the west, it is called "agar" or "agar-agar", after its two components: "agarose" and "agaropectin."
Agar is used widely as an ingredient for desserts, and "as a laxative, an appetite suppressant, vegetarian gelatin substitute, a thickener for soups, in fruit preserves, ice cream, and (...) as a clarifying agent in brewing, and for sizing paper and fabrics."
Kanten should not be referred to as "gelatin", because gelatin comes from by-products of animals, while kanten/agar comes from seaweed. Hence, agar is favored by vegetarians.
(info/quotes/pic: wiki)
Osaka Tenmangu (shrine). Osaka's Tenmangu is one of the many shrines in Japan dedicated to the god of learning, Tenjin (see below). This particular shrine dates back to the 10th century, and had been destroyed by fire several times. The shrine holds its annual Tenjin Festival every July 24-25.
(info: japan-guide) (pic: wiki)
Tenjin. Sugawara no Michizane (Kan Shojo, Kanke) was "a scholar, poet, and politician of the Heian Period of Japan. He is regarded as an excellent poet, particularly in Chinese poetry, and is today revered as the god of learning, Tenman-Tenjin (...) often shortened to Tenjin."
(info/pic: wiki)
Ginnikan. Gin (silver) was the main currency that circulated mostly along the areas facing the Sea of Japan, Hokuriku area and Tohoku area (because of the rich silver mine, Iwami Ginzan). It is especially prominent in Osaka where merchants used silver in their silk business trade with their Chinese counterparts (In other areas like Edo, gold is used). In terms of unit of weight, it's called "kan". A "ginnikan" or gin2kan" is equivalent to 2000 monme (during the old days, the weight of the currency is the one that matters, not the quantity of the coins) and weighs around 7.5 kg. If you calculate the monetary value, a ginnikan would be around 33 Ryo or Koban (gold oval coins), which during the Edo period was a lot of money, and is said to be comparable to today's 3 million yen. NHK says, "During that time, the quality of the money had been highly variable, so apparently a ginnikan may be as much as many times the actual value."
Ginnikan's author Takada Kaoru is said to be have been inspired by the tragic love story "Sonezaki Shinju", in which the amount of ginnikan was featured prominently in the story.
(info: nhk, soso) (pic: ja.wiki)
Personnel in a merchant house during the Edo Period. First, to give a background on this, here's an explanation from Handbook of Research on Family Business, p. 529: "Employees in a merchant house consisted of detchi (apprentice), tedai (shop assistant), and banto (a clerical manager). A detchi, recruited at age 12 to 13, would in time be elevated to tedai at a specified salary and a senior position at age 17 or 18, but promotion to the next rank was based on an evaluation of performance, and did not occur automatically. A tedai became eligible for the position of banto at the age of about 30 and was then granted the right to establish his own business, a bekke (independent house), remaining loyal to his former house." (More info on this in future drama notes)
(info: ja.wiki)
"Sitting on a stone for three years..." Ishi no ue nimo sannen. A proverb about how perseverance prevails. Meaning: "One who endures wins in the end (since) perseverance is a virtue. If you sit on your cold rock for 3 years it eventually (warms) up and you are more secure in your position."
In this episode, Wasuke mentioned this when he decided to send Tsurunosuke to Fushimi. However, he sort of took this proverb's context literally since the boy had indeed spent 3 years apprenticing in the agar factory.
(info: kotowijis) (pic: bokete)
Ginnikan's episode index: (link)
Episode Synopsis. A lordless samurai and his son who have left behind their home clan, were traveling when they got stopped by a young samurai. This young man is seeking revenge against the father and kills him. The 10 year old son Tsurunosuke (Tamayama Uta) almost gets killed too but a merchant intervenes. The merchant, Wasuke (Tsugawa Masahiko) an owner of an agar wholesale business, Ikawaya, offers to buy the samurai's revenge with one bag of ginnikan (Edo period's silver currency). The bargain is accepted, and Tsurunosuke, now a homeless orphan, has no choice but to go with Wasuke to become a lowly apprentice in his shop in Tenma, Osaka. The shop's head clerk, Zenjiro (Shiomi Sansei) is very strict with him and not at all pleased that the precious ginnikan was exchanged for this boy. That hard-earned money was intended for the rebuilding of Osaka's Tenmangu (shrine), which was destroyed in a fire. Of course, the boy is unhappy with his situation, too. He also dislikes the shop's main source of livelihood: agar. To top it off, he is sent to learn to make agar in a production site in Fushimi, Kyoto... Three years have passed, the boy, now 13 year old, comes back to Ikawaya. Taller and a bit more docile than before, he takes on the apprentice name, "Matsukichi". Matsukichi (Hayashi Kento) starts his new life as a humble apprentice. But inside of him, the proud Samurai spirit still lingers...
Drama Notes:
Kanten (Agar). Kanten is a gelatinous substance, obtained from red algae or gelidium (tengusa in Japanese). It was discovered in the the mid-1600s by Minoya Tarozaemon, when he noticed that some surplus seaweed soup had gelled after a wintry night; thawed and dried out during the next day. Its name "Kanten" could mean "cold seaweed" ("cold " + "ten" from tengusa). In the west, it is called "agar" or "agar-agar", after its two components: "agarose" and "agaropectin."
Agar is used widely as an ingredient for desserts, and "as a laxative, an appetite suppressant, vegetarian gelatin substitute, a thickener for soups, in fruit preserves, ice cream, and (...) as a clarifying agent in brewing, and for sizing paper and fabrics."
Kanten should not be referred to as "gelatin", because gelatin comes from by-products of animals, while kanten/agar comes from seaweed. Hence, agar is favored by vegetarians.
(info/quotes/pic: wiki)
Osaka Tenmangu (shrine). Osaka's Tenmangu is one of the many shrines in Japan dedicated to the god of learning, Tenjin (see below). This particular shrine dates back to the 10th century, and had been destroyed by fire several times. The shrine holds its annual Tenjin Festival every July 24-25.
(info: japan-guide) (pic: wiki)
Tenjin. Sugawara no Michizane (Kan Shojo, Kanke) was "a scholar, poet, and politician of the Heian Period of Japan. He is regarded as an excellent poet, particularly in Chinese poetry, and is today revered as the god of learning, Tenman-Tenjin (...) often shortened to Tenjin."
(info/pic: wiki)
Ginnikan. Gin (silver) was the main currency that circulated mostly along the areas facing the Sea of Japan, Hokuriku area and Tohoku area (because of the rich silver mine, Iwami Ginzan). It is especially prominent in Osaka where merchants used silver in their silk business trade with their Chinese counterparts (In other areas like Edo, gold is used). In terms of unit of weight, it's called "kan". A "ginnikan" or gin2kan" is equivalent to 2000 monme (during the old days, the weight of the currency is the one that matters, not the quantity of the coins) and weighs around 7.5 kg. If you calculate the monetary value, a ginnikan would be around 33 Ryo or Koban (gold oval coins), which during the Edo period was a lot of money, and is said to be comparable to today's 3 million yen. NHK says, "During that time, the quality of the money had been highly variable, so apparently a ginnikan may be as much as many times the actual value."
Ginnikan's author Takada Kaoru is said to be have been inspired by the tragic love story "Sonezaki Shinju", in which the amount of ginnikan was featured prominently in the story.
(info: nhk, soso) (pic: ja.wiki)
Personnel in a merchant house during the Edo Period. First, to give a background on this, here's an explanation from Handbook of Research on Family Business, p. 529: "Employees in a merchant house consisted of detchi (apprentice), tedai (shop assistant), and banto (a clerical manager). A detchi, recruited at age 12 to 13, would in time be elevated to tedai at a specified salary and a senior position at age 17 or 18, but promotion to the next rank was based on an evaluation of performance, and did not occur automatically. A tedai became eligible for the position of banto at the age of about 30 and was then granted the right to establish his own business, a bekke (independent house), remaining loyal to his former house." (More info on this in future drama notes)
(pic: ginjo)
An employee's name. In merchant shops in Kansai region during the Edo period, employees are seldom called by their real names. In most cases, they will take one of the characters in the person's real name and attach a new name at the end, to denote his position in the shop. For the apprentice/detchi, it's "-kichi"; for the shop assistant/tedai, it's "-shichi"; and for the banto (head clerk/accountant/shop manager), it's "-suke". Therefore, if a person's name is Tsurunosuke, he will start out as "Tsurukichi" the Apprentice. If he gets promoted to "shop assistant", he will be known as "Tsurushichi". And if he is further promoted to head clerk, his name will become "Tsurusuke."
In the drama, Ikawaya has their own unique custom in changing their employees' whole names to: "Matsu" (pine), "Take" (bamboo), and "Ume" (plum) [btw, I'll just explain more on this in future drama notes] plus attaching it with the above mentioned names. Tsurunosuke's apprentice name is "Matsukichi", inheriting the name from the former apprentice, now promoted as shop clerk, "Matsushichi" (the bug-eyed clerk in the drama). I'm not sure why head clerk, Zenjiro's name is not changed but I'm guessing this custom only started after he came to Ikawaya.An employee's name. In merchant shops in Kansai region during the Edo period, employees are seldom called by their real names. In most cases, they will take one of the characters in the person's real name and attach a new name at the end, to denote his position in the shop. For the apprentice/detchi, it's "-kichi"; for the shop assistant/tedai, it's "-shichi"; and for the banto (head clerk/accountant/shop manager), it's "-suke". Therefore, if a person's name is Tsurunosuke, he will start out as "Tsurukichi" the Apprentice. If he gets promoted to "shop assistant", he will be known as "Tsurushichi". And if he is further promoted to head clerk, his name will become "Tsurusuke."
(info: ja.wiki)
"Sitting on a stone for three years..." Ishi no ue nimo sannen. A proverb about how perseverance prevails. Meaning: "One who endures wins in the end (since) perseverance is a virtue. If you sit on your cold rock for 3 years it eventually (warms) up and you are more secure in your position."
In this episode, Wasuke mentioned this when he decided to send Tsurunosuke to Fushimi. However, he sort of took this proverb's context literally since the boy had indeed spent 3 years apprenticing in the agar factory.
(info: kotowijis) (pic: bokete)
Ginnikan's episode index: (link)
