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Controversial Dragon Quest Composer Gets TV Drama About His Life
posted on by Lynzee Loveridge
The life of controversial composer Kōichi Sugiyama, known primarily for his work in the long-running Dragon Quest series, will be the subject of a live-action television drama. The program will star Ken Yasuda (live-action Gintama) as Sugiyama and detail the story behind the composer's involvement with Dragon Quest and the creation of the iconic "Overture: Loto's Theme" piece.
"Overture: Loto's Theme" played as the first song ushering in the athletes' Parade of Nations during the Tokyo Olympics' opening ceremony in July 2021.
Yasuda is joined by cast members Crystal Noda as Sugiyama's assistant and Yūki Hirako, Daisuke Shiba, Shō Kaga, Robin Furuya, and Kanako Momota as a members of the Dragon Quest production team. On taking on the role of Sugiyama, Yasuda said, "I am very honored to play the role of the great Sugiyama-sensei who made music that is loved across generations. I hope that I will convey to everyone what kind of person Sugiyama-sensei was."
The drama will air this weekend on NTV's 24-jikan Terebi 45 (24-hour TV 45) program. The same program will also air a performance by the Ishigaki Shiritsu Ishigaki Daini Junior High School marching band. Sugiyama donated a large number of instruments to the band during his lifetime. The band will perform a medley of Dragon Quest songs at the Ryogoku Kokugikan National Sumo Arena.
Sugiyama composed more than 500 pieces for the Dragon Quest series since 1986. His work for the Dragon Quest XII: The Flames of Fate game was his final work. He created compositions for the series before passing away in 2021 at the age of 90.
In addition, Sugiyama composed music for anime such as the second Cyborg 009 television series, Space Runaway Ideon, Dragon Quest: Dai no Daibōken (and other Dragon Quest anime) and Magic Knight Rayearth. He also scored the live-action special-effects film Godzilla vs. Biollante.
Sugiyama's legacy remains marred by controversial statements, often echoing Japanese conservative and right-wing political rhetoric. He wrote a letter opposing United States House of Representatives Resolution 121 in 2007. The resolution asked the Japanese government to apologize to "comfort women" who became sexual slaves for Japanese soldiers during World War II. In the same letter, he denied the occurrence of the Nanking Massacre perpetrated by the Imperial Japanese Army. He appeared in a 2015 program alongside politicians Mio Sugita and Kyōko Nakayama, decrying LGBTQ+ individuals as "unproductive" because they do not have children, and dismissed concerns about high suicide rates within the LGBTQ+ community.
Source: Music Natalie, Dragon Quest official website
Image via Dragon Quest official website
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