Season 7 • Episode 8
LatestThe reign of the eighth shogun Tokugawa Yoshimune in the Edo period, was notable for the “Ooka Sabaki” which supported the Kyoho Reforms that Yoshimune advanced. Yoshimune goes beyond status and the position he has been thrust in, to join with Edo magistrate Ooka Tadasuke and the Western medicine doctor Sakakibara Iori in order to promote the creation of a world for the common people of Edo. These three men deepen exchanges with the magistrate’s office and the townsfolk, uphold justice and struggle to keep order in Edo…
Acting
Higashiyama's restrained warmth makes Ooka impossibly watchable.
Production
Meticulous Edo-period sets that aged beautifully over eight seasons.
Writing
Balances historical procedural with genuine emotional stakes.
Trivia, insights & behind the scenes
The real Ooka Tadasuke was so beloved that 'Ooka's Ruling' became Japanese idiom for surprising but fair judgments.
The Kyoho Reforms depicted were actual economic austerity measures—imagine making a cozy show about 18th-century budget cuts.
JP
