Mandate of Heaven
Mandate of Heaven (天命 Temmei) is a popular alternate history television series aired on Fudji Television.
It started as a TV movie, airing in 1999, on the 50th anniversary of the end of the Great Oriental War. The movie was based on a what-if wherein China won the war. Japan, now referred to as Nippon Òcocu (Kingdom of Japan) is a vassal of China, with her emperor reckoned a mere King.
The Chinese Empire's control extends in the south (through vassal states) all the way to the Indonesian archipelago and Filipinas, with Australasia retaining a precarious independence. In the north, it controls much of Siberia. To the west, it incorporates Tibet and Uyguristan as parts of China, and controls Turkestan as a set of vassals. In the east, Japan's pre-Civil War territories (Micronesian Confederation, Kanawiki, Alyaska, Ralik-Ratak) had been stripped away from Japan and established as Chinese vassals.
The original movie centered on the actions of the Asian Liberty Movement, a loose alliance of various pro-sovereignty movements in the vassal states of China.
The movie was so popular, that executives decided to turn it into a television series, which began airing in 2000, and is still running.
Both the movie and the television series attracted controversy over the depiction of King Akihito's fawning obedience to China. In addition, many in the Chinese states have complained about the depiction of China in the movie.
Series 4 (2003-2004) began, at last, the story of the crumbling of the Chinese Empire, as the various vassal states, lead by Japan, rebel against China.
Characters
- King Aquihito - King of Japan, overthrown in series 4
- King Bexihito - King of Japan after series 4, fictitious son of Emperor Go-Meidji. Proclaims himself Emperor.
- The Emperor of China
- Minatoya Yoxihiro - Leader of the Free Japan Movement, supports Bexihito's coup
Emperors of China
From the point of divergence
- 1908-1972 Xuantong
- 1972-
