Shogun - new series coming, not sure what I think about that

[masraum]

I remember the Shogun miniseries from 1980 with Toshiro Mifune and Richard Chamberlain. It was an excellent "movie". I've got it on disk and have watched all 9 hours (not in one sitting) and it's still excellent. I've read the book a couple of times and could barely put it down. From what I remember the mini series pretty faithfully followed the book.



I saw a trailer for a new Shogun series. It looks like it's beautifully done, but I am dubious about it. I'll watch it, but I'm not expecting much.

I'm cautiously hopeful. I'm afraid that they've tried to add too much modern drama and flash, and lost site of the story which is fantastic.

[masraum]

On the most tenuously related note, I did REALLY enjoy "The Last Samurai." Tom Cruise is Tom Cruise. He's a hell of an actor and excels at being "intense". And I really like Watanabe, the guy that played opposite TC in the movie.

[john70t]

(TLS was like Damon's 'the great wall' for me. A little too much fantasy. My own opinion)

The original series was re-watchable because of the small plot insinuations and all the characters were balanced to their roles. There was always something more to see the second time around. And it was mostly historically correct to my understanding which should prompt learning about the times.

That trailer looks good. Sanada Hiroyuki was excellent in others.

[masraum]

I get emails from Smithsonian (the magazine) with articles.

This article was in one of my emails.

https://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/the-real-history-behind-fxs-shogun-180983848/

Just an excerpt of the article (just the bit about the new 2 episode show)

The new adaptation of “Shogun” has been in the works since 2018, undergoing shifts in focus at various stages of production. Compared with the 1980 series, which placed Blackthorne at center stage, the new show splits its screen time more equitably between the Englishman (portrayed by Cosmo Jarvis), Toranaga (Hiroyuki Sanada) and Mariko (Anna Sawai). While the earlier adaptation left Japanese-language conversations untranslated to mirror Blackthorne’s isolation in an unfamiliar country, this version features English subtitles, enabling the showrunners to explore the lives of a rich cast of Japanese-speaking characters.

Discussing the 1980 series with the New York Times, Sanada, who also serves as a producer of the FX show, says, “As a Japanese [person], I wanted to see something more real at the time, to be honest.” This time around, the team took steps to ensure greater historical fidelity and cultural sensitivity, working with consultants to confirm everything, including period-accurate “kimono color schemes and how to carry katana swords,” the Times notes. Though the producers made certain compromises (for example, not requiring actresses to paint their teeth black or shave their eyebrows as their historical counterparts did), their overall goal was to achieve a sense of “spiritual authenticity,” showrunner Justin Marks tells the Times.

[flatbutt]

I wonder if they kept the scene of the initially arrogant Blackthorne getting pizzed on by the samurai on the beach. That was a great statement on being a gracious visitor and how arrogance can turn on you.

[pmax]

[masraum]

Originally Posted by flatbutt

I wonder if they kept the scene of the initially arrogant Blackthorne getting pizzed on by the samurai on the beach. That was a great statement on being a gracious visitor and how arrogance can turn on you.

Yes, it was a great scene. I suspect they did not keep it, but I could definitely imagine it happening.

Originally Posted by pmax

Bummer

[masraum]

Originally Posted by flatbutt

I wonder if they kept the scene of the initially arrogant Blackthorne getting pizzed on by the samurai on the beach. That was a great statement on being a gracious visitor and how arrogance can turn on you.

They did, but the way they did it had less impact to me than the original. I'm most of the way through the first episode. THey've changed some details of the story here and there which is unfortunate, but not surprising. I don't think this is going to go down as being as well done as the first Shogun mini-series, but I'll probably watch it.

[john70t]

Hah. Quant search results returned only Daimo named restaurants.
Then Daima DragonballZ. (WTF. How is that AI accuracy going?)
And finally. Daimo.

The local feudal lords who were constantly fighting each other.
There was constant early infighting. Hope the series covers that.

The complete islands of now 'Japan' were still not considered up to WW2.
The Ryuku in the South. The farmer Ninja.
The Ainu in the North. Hirsute. Looked like Europeans with beards.

All separate before.
Religion vs warlords. Only the failed Mongol invasions brought them together.
Even the old capitol of Kyoto after Nara had problems with rebel monks in the mountains https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Siege_of_Mount_Hiei

There were three shoguns which consolidated the nation:
-Oda Nobunaga, as ruthless as Chin Shi Huang Ti
-Toyotomi Hideyoshi
-Tokugawa Ieyasu. ~1600. A lasting peace which lasted up until European Cmd Perry forced open the country and gave them Dutch guns to kill each other.. And then back to religion and the Emperor. and modernization.