I Want To Love Shogun (A Conflicted Love Letter to 2024's Best Drama)

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So I have some thoughts about 2024's Best Drama, FX's Shogun...
This video is ultimately a love letter, a conflicted love letter born out of my conflicting thoughts on the checkered history of James Clavell's Shogun, and my love and admiration for the ways in which it's changed. Unlike my other video essays, it has relatively few spoilers and I try to give context for the relevant scenes, so you CAN watch this without having seen Shogun, though you may have it helpful to watch the show first - the Emmy's have after all, proclaimed it as the Best Drama of 2024. But it's been a long journey to get to this point, a far longer journey than you might know...
Writing, Voice, Film, Animation, Editing: Densetsu VII (Nick Dobkin)
Music created by Matthew Pablo matthewpablo.com/
Errata:
18:31 Scotland is misspelled
46:30 I say Anglo-British (which mean the same thing) instead of Anglo-Japanese - very silly but hopefully you got the idea
Chapters:
00:00 Prologue "Have You Seen This Man"
04:03 To Love Macao
08:54 To Love a Name
14:34 To Love Europe
21:40 To Love 'The Orient'
32:24 To Love Shogun (2024)
41:39 To Love The Truth
45:32 To Love The Story
52:48 To Love the Journey
55:48 Epilogue "The Man of the Hour"
All clips from NBC's Shogun (1980) and FX's Shogun (2024) are intended to further criticism, scholarship, and education, and are therefore protected under US Copyright Law 17 U.S.C. § 107 stating that "the fair use of a copyrighted work, including such use by reproduction in copies or phonorecords or by any other means specified by that section, for purposes such as criticism, comment, news reporting, teaching (including multiple copies for classroom use), scholarship, or research, is not an infringement of copyright. "
Sources:
Books:
"Shogun: The Life and Times of Tokugawa Ieyasu: Japan's Greatest Ruler"
A. L. Sadler, Tuttle Publishing, 1937, 2022
"Orientalism"
Edward Said, Vintage Publishing (Penguin Random House) 1978, 2003
"Learning From Shogun: Japanese History and Western Fantasy"
Ed. Henry Smith, Distributed by the Japan Society, 1980
"The Historical Film as Real History"
Robert A Rosenstone
Film-Historia, Vol. V, No.1 (1995)
Articles:
“How ‘Wolf Hall’ will entertain millions - and threaten to distort history in the process”
Washington Post, Gregory Wolfe, April 5, 2015
www.washingtonpost.com/news/acts-of-faith/wp/2015/04/05/how-wolf-hall-will-entertain-millions-and-threaten-to-distort-history-in-the-process/
BBC Katie Razzall 18 November 2023 Napoleon's Ridley Scott on critics and Cinema 'Bum Ache'
www.bbc.com/news/entertainment-arts-67419876
History According to Ridley Scott, Mike Duncan, Dec 4, 2023, The Nation
www.thenation.com/article/culture/ridley-scott-napoleon/
'Shogun: How A Decade of False Starts, Endless Translation Debates and One Star-Turned-Producer Made a Classic Story Relevant to a 21st Century Audience'
Daniel D'Addario, Variety, Feb 8 2024
variety.com/2024/tv/features/fx-shogun-miniseries-overcame-setbacks-1235898388/
'Shōgun Improves On a Notorious Orientalist Blockbuster'
Slate, Geoffrey Bunting Feb 27 2024
slate.com/culture/2024/02/shogun-series-fx-hulu-book-james-clavell.html
'FX 'Shogun' series takes a new approach to an old story'
Scott Detrow, All Things Considered, NPR, Mar 9 2024
www.npr.org/2024/03/09/1237218118/fx-shogun-series-takes-a-new-approach-to-an-old-story
Japan’s 35 Million Tourist Bonanza in 2024: Great for Business, Not So Much for Overtourism
Peden Doma Bhutia, Skiff, July 22 2024
skift.com/2024/07/22/japans-35-million-tourist-bonanza-in-2024-great-for-business-not-so-much-for-overtourism/
'Shogun' breaks Emmys record with 18 wins as 'Hacks' upsets 'The Bear'
Andrew Dalton, AP Sept 15 2024
apnews.com/article/2024-emmy-awards-show-8588922c128c775092509b70a599a6d0
History of Gambling in Macau
Hong Kong Gamblers Recovery Centre
www.hkgamblers-recovery.org/eng/gamble_macao.php
Other:
George RR Martin on Historical Influence, Brown University Oct 30, 2014
ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-BkNZjRoI15s.html

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17 сен 2024

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Комментарии : 11

@patrickgh3 17 дней назад

Fascinating. Great and subtle points about these cultures. And how really, people do look to media to learn about how the world works. I really agree that we see is reality to us. I hadn't thought about the stuff at the end, that films are like bard stories. Poetic stuff, including your story to visit the grave. And learning about the world how we can. Very well put together. Thank you for making this audiovisual essay that I can experience in this post-literary world.

@densetsumedia 17 дней назад

Thank you so much for watching it all the way through! Story is such an omnipresent part of how we view history and therefore the world, but I think many who haven't been exposed to media criticism aren't really aware of that. Hopefully I was able to convey that I don't think viewing the world through stories is bad, in many ways it's inevitable. But it's also the most human way in which to understand the world, and in a way, that's what I love about Shogun, even as I can see how this story could be further refined down the line. So glad that the story I composed here was an enriching one for you~

@OMFGeoff 17 дней назад

You are an excellent writer and your delivery is wonderful. I haven't watched Shogun, but now I plan to.

@densetsumedia 17 дней назад

Thanks so much for the kind words! Please feel free to return with your thoughts, and see whether you feel the essay was able to deepen your engagement with the series~ Hope you enjoy!

@OnixFilms 20 дней назад

Superb essay, going from strength to strength. I sure hope that you didn't go to Japan purely for this essay. If that's the case then that is tremendous commitment to your message. Side note: 1980's Shogun reminds me so much of OG Star Trek Blackthorne looks like a klingon with no makeup.

@densetsumedia 20 дней назад

Thank you kindly! Hah, that would've been pretty extreme even for me - it was a long-awaited trip with some high school friends, it just happened to be a good opportunity for some soul-searching, as it were. Other youtubers, I'm sure, have done much deeper dives into the 80s series, I don't wanna get into it too much, but I will say, the star-studded cast just always makes me raise an eyebrow, and perhaps the only thing I can say in its favor over the 2024 version is that John Rhys-Davies puts in a fantastic performance, for whatever that's worth. Thank you again for your kind words!

@SusanWilson-q1z 14 дней назад

Kudos to former lit/writing student N.D.! Love your very pleasant narrator voice, fascinating research and presentation. I'm very impressed with your attention to details of language. I just started watching the new Shogun, so your analysis of the series' orientalism is most interesting. (I wondered about the accuracy of the barbaric human boiling scene when I watched last week.) Also appreciated your humorous take on turning the tables should U.S. history alter names of historical figures. Smordge Joshington -- LOL! Will be checking out your other videos and may even read Said's tome, Orientalism! My only complaint would be that it was difficult at times to follow your narration and try at the same time to read the textual references you provide. I also always want my historical-fiction films to be as "accurate" as possible. When some say, "It's just entertainment", I hate gross inaccuracies and stereotypes propagated to audiences. Congratulations on your Densetsu Media creations! P.S. I'm traveling to Japan for the first time this Fall and am inspired by your video to read more Japanese history.

@densetsumedia 14 дней назад

Well thank you so much for checking it out! I'm so glad you found this engaging - as mentioned in a short note on-screen, death-by-boiling was a rare, though not unheard of punishment in this time, however, there is no historical record of it happening to people who were stranded there as is depicted in the show. The fact that most of us have to reflect on whether or not it would be realistic is, in my opinion, all the more reason to have this discussion about depictions of Japan and the world in general through the lens of historical fiction, especially fiction which skirts the line of historicity. I have heard some people note that it was troublesome to follow the narration and read the text. While I put it in so as to allow people who wanted the full picture to be able to read everything without slowing down the pace (you can of course always pause after all), I recognize that this isn't always pleasant or practical to do, and on researching other similar youtube essays, I note how common practice seems to be either to reduce the original text to a footnote, or to always read whatever is shown on screen in entirety; I'll be attempting to use these methods in the future in responding to feedback like this. I think my takeaway from my research is that 'historical accuracy' is not a reasonable goal for film or books, and indeed, the "Truth" is something we may never entirely know. I therefore do not advocate for 100% historical accuracy, but rather that shows which aren't trying for that make clear their more fantastical elements rather than feeding people half-truths, and shows which do try for historical accuracy make the inevitable inaccuracies clear for anyone trying to discern truth and fiction (I think this latter element is often lacking). I think it's important to note the difference, as I still feel that Shogun 2024 does well in its efforts. I just think it isn't the be-all-end-all as some pundits seem to believe, and it just one more step in the ongoing journey toward understanding of cultures and history. How exciting that you're going to Japan! I'm sure you're flush with ideas and plans but please feel free to message if you're in need of any recommendations or advice - I'm sure you'll find it a wonderful trip!

@SusanWilson-q1z 14 дней назад

Thanks for your reply! We have definitely made progress from the days of Caucasian actors being ridiculously made up to portray indigenous, Asian, Indian and even Black characters. I love reading the Japanese subtitles in Shogun and just hearing the language. I appreciated your comment that a culture's "character" is not static, if one can even generalize about a people's traits. Thinking of the stereotypes of bloodthirsty Huns during WWI, WWII Germany, a country that (except for the far right) now condemns Nazism in any form as a matter of policy (unlike the US!). I have Chinese and Korean friends who still subscribe to old enmities stemming from Japanese atrocities and militarism finally ending with Hiroshima and Nagasaki. What a contrast with the (stereotype?) of an extremely respectful culture today. All this reminds me of the ways we discount deaths of so many innocents in cultures we in the West see as somehow less human (Gaza, Sudan, Yemen, etc, etc). Thanks again for getting us all thinking!

@QuixoticAri 20 дней назад

Just gotta say, don’t take that train ride & then walk up that hill in Anjinzuka in late Spring 😅 とても暑い🫠 I giggled when you mentioned the unbearable humidity. I was lucky, I was with a friend, a local, and didn’t get lost. But that hike… Aside from that I was pleased with the modern retelling. I was pleased to see Japanese voices telling this version of the story.

@densetsumedia 20 дней назад

Yes I agree that the walk is probably more pleasant in the fall or Spring. I was actually there in late August during the typhoon, certainly wouldn't recommend doing that if you can avoid it! But overall, I'm glad I went, humidity and all. Ultimately, I hope you can see that I agree, and am very happy with the new Shogun - I think there's always going to be a next step forward, and that's why I'm very excited for the new seasons! Thank you so much for watching and leaving your thoughts~