What Is the Story About?
The limited Historical drama television series based on the 1975 novel of the same name by James Clavell, centers around two ambitious men who belong to two different parts of the world and a female samurai, their inter-personal relationships, ambitions, power struggles, deception and a lot more in the 17th century Japan.
The show follows the allegiance between John Blackthorne, an English Sailor who lands in Feudal Japan, loosely based on the eponymous English navigator William Adams who became a powerful samurai under the strongest daimyo and later first shogunate of Japan – Tokugawa leyasu upon whom the character Yoshii Toranaga is based in the show. How the duo’s mutual partnership maintains balance in the already anarchic Japan, where every Council Lord vyes to be the ultimate Shogun by killing the young heir to the throne, forms the political core of the show. A fierce lady samurai Lady Mariko – an outcast who is tasked with the responsibility of a translator to John Blackthorne and her history changes the course of Japanese history.
Performances?
The scene stealer of the show is undeniably the effervescent Hiroyuki Sanada and his super-talented co-stars. The actor has managed to be the best part of every Hollywood outing he’s been a part of, & Shogun is no less.
The honorable, the voice of sanity and equally flawed warrior Lord Yoshii Toranaga fits him like a glow. His face exudes grace and his eyes echoes wisdom. The way he asserts himself with minimal dialogues and commands the scene is butterly delicious to watch.
Cosmo Jarvis as Pilot Major John Blackthorne – or the barbarian as Toranaga calls him, is effective in his determined yet selfish part as an external settler who loathes Catholicism and purely means business. With only two episodes down so far, the actor has embodied the spirit of a major pilot who would settle for no less like a cool cookie. One can’t really wait to see his chemistry and scenes with Lord Toranaga.
Despite the show being completely centered around two men and the battle of times that would bring the duo together to change the course of Japan, it’s Anna Sawai‘s Mariko that piqued my interest in the show. A woman with skills, power and mystery to her bridging two political masterminds is quite an arc to witness.
Analysis
One of the year’s most anticipated shows FX’s ‘Shogun’, a retelling of the 1980 TV miniseries and based on the 1975 Novel that goes by the same name by James Clavell is a cinematic pinnacle with regard to celebrating the Japanese culture and retelling a triumphant chapter in the Japanese History. Loosely based on the tale of allegiance of English Navigator William Adams and Tokugawa leyasu – the first shogunate of Japan.
Shogun (2024) opens to a group of English ship crew-men and their captain ‘John Buckthorne’ being stranded on a ship in search of the Japans – as they call it. The English men set out with the sole mission of discoveringJapan that was hidden by the Portuguese from the rest of the world and open business. However, after losing all of the ships and crew-men they hit the Japan coast at a time when the country is amidst its worst power-crisis.
The scene cuts back to Lord Yoshii Toranaga, who has to battle out the political turbulence and life-threats to the young heir from his counterpart lords to obtain the position of the supreme leader after the demise of the last supremo. With John Buckthorne’s arrival, capture and chaos he ensues, Toranaga takes special interest in him. Both the lord and English captain entangle themselves in culture-shocks and language barriers to forge an allegiance to strengthen each other’s course.
Shogun also flashes back in time to the beginning of the chaos, deception and power struggles between the lords and the situation Lord Toranaga was caught in as Foreign Affairs Minister back then. With Lady Mariko (who could translate Portugese to Japanese and vice-versa) – also a Samurai entering the triad, how Toranaga plans to use John Buckthorne to prevent his impeachment and how the rest of the vicious lords also take a peculiar interest in him forms the rest the show.
Shogun (2024) boasts of a spectacular star-cast and an equally engrossing writing from Rachel Kondo and Justin Marks. Right from the first frame, the audience is transported to 17th Century Japan and it’s political fabric. While the writing takes its own sweet time to establish the conflict, its characters and why they are how they are, the show effectively transcends the TV boundary by blending culture and history.
The characters are written with depth, mystery and a tint of grey hinting at how every character is a bit of grey in history whenever there was a struggle for power. The lighting, camera and production design deserve special appreciation for sealing frames reminiscent of some popular South Korean Sageuks and Takashi Miike’s 13 Assassins.
To be precise, Shogun is a stellar samurai epic with engrossing drama and politics headlined by a pitch-perfect cast. With rock solid technical departments, rich production values and consistent intricate (pilot episodes) detailing, it is yet to be seen how the 1000+ pages mammoth novel will be translated onscreen in hardly 10 episodes. Fans of shows like Game of Thrones & Kingdom, should definitely dive into Shogun without a second-thought. But we suggest to wait for a binge-watch to avoid the impatience.
Music and Other Departments?
The music and score team of Atticus Ross, Leopold Ross, and Nick Chuba has rightfully weaved the richness of Japanese musical instruments into the show’s music while carefully retaining the element of conspiracy and mystery in both the episodes. The cinematography department has done a stand-out job and is sure shot to win laurels for its lighting, choice of colours, symmetry and frames.
Highlights?
Story
Cast
Lighting
Cinematography
Music
Production Design
Dialogues
Editing
Drawbacks?
Takes a while to settle its premise
Too many characters
Did I Enjoy It?
Yes.
Will You Recommend It?
Yes. Certainly. Fans of shows like Game of Thrones & Netflix’s Kingdom can definitely dive into this.
Shōgun Series Review Review by Binged Bureau
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