Yae is born into the Aizu clan. Being the daughter of a samurai family she comes in contact with guns during her childhood and passionately hones her gunnery skills against everyone’s opposition (not fit for a woman). Later she actively participates in the Boshin War. The political events during that time are depicted in depth.
Both dramas deal with the same time period,."Yae no Sakura" is somewhat a precursor to "Tsuda Umeko...", the drama's plot starts earlier in history and catches up to the period in the movie and goes beyond. Both female leads are working for the cause of women's education and are influenced by western culture. One of the companions that studied abroad with Tsuda Umeko is a side character in the drama: Yamakawa Sakiko / Oyama Sutematsu has a pretty interesting story arc, the viewer feels compassionate with her alienation towards her homeland and the reaction of her Japanese countrymen, her engagement/the relationship with Oyama Iwao gets shown in more detail and thus seems reasonable and pleasing.
