"Nihonshi Suspense Gekijo" (Japanese History Suspense Theater; Nihon TV, Wed., 7:58 p.m.) offers something to both lovers of historical dramas and fans of those two-hour mysteries used to fill holes in network schedules. Basically, the producers take a real incident from Japanese history and turn it into a thriller.
This week's program relates the infamous tale of Okuma Shirakoyo, "the wicked woman who scandalized Edo." Okuma was born to the largest seller of lumber in old Edo. She was a beautiful and much desired woman, but when her family fell on hard times because of their spendthrift ways, she was forced to marry Matsushiro, a man she didn't love but who had property and money. Since her family had no eldest son, they adopted Matsushiro for his money.
However, Okuma quickly tired of her dull husband and wanted out of the marriage without a divorce, which would have meant the loss of his property. So she plots his murder with her lover.
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