Beyond the magnificent wooden gate, the main hall of Shibamata Taishakuten could be seen

After crossing the Nakagawa River from Kameari, the destination was Shibamata Taishakuten Temple. The temple has appeared in many literary works, such as Natsume Soseki's 'Higan Sugi Made,' and has long been considered a famous sightseeing spot, but it was not until the movie series 'Otoko wa Tsuraiyo' was produced that the temple became famous as a standard sightseeing spot in Tokyo. In the movie series, the town in front of Shibamata Taishakuten was set as the birthplace of the main character, Torajiro Kuruma. As a result of the production of the series for more than 50 years, including the TV dramas that preceded the film adaptation, Shibamata Taishakuten and 'Otoko wa Tsuraiyo' have become inseparable. Shibamata is associated with Tora-san, and Tora-san is associated with Shibamata. In front of Shibamata Station, the nearest station, there is a statue of Kuruma Tora Jiro and his sister Sakura, who sees him off.

The long-running and popular series of "Tora-san" is no longer being produced after the death of Kiyoshi Atsumi, who played the main character in the series. It is no wonder, since unlike James Bond or Superman, only Kiyoshi Atsumi has played the main character, Torajiro Kuruma, in Otoko wa Tsuraiyo. Even if another actor played the role, the image of Kiyoshi Atsumi would be too strong to become Torajiro Kuruma. Torajiro Kuruma died together with the actor Kiyoshi Atsumi. Considering the strong ties between Kiyoshi Atsumi and Torajiro Kuruma, one wonders what the future holds for the Shibamata Taishakuten approach, where Tora-san was promoted as the town's main attraction. No matter how popular the movie series may be, there is a strong possibility that it will be forgotten over time. As a result, Shibamata Teishakuten may revert from being a staple of Tokyo sightseeing to a mere landmark, and fall back into its original sheath.