Shogun (2024) Episode 9 Review 

Correction: Apparently we did see Lord Kiyama speak Portuguese way back in episode two as well. Either way, it was certainly fascinating to see him speak it here with Blackthorne!

"I hate this fucking city" - Yabushige

i love the inflection change in marikos voice when she's adressing the council as she gets more and more fired up, great performance!

Tragic. Most of us have had to endure this moment 2 times in their lives by now. I'm guessing we'll get another dose in 20 years. This show has been a class act from Episode One . The actor who plays Yubushige is phenomenally talented. RIP Mariko sama

I read an interpretation I really liked is that Mariko herself was the Crimson Sky (symbolically, not literally the plan), pointing out how much red she wears this episode when her usual color is white. And it also tracks with giving such a name to the episode in which she was the undisputed star of the show. Yabushige is really that villain you hate to love lol Also loved Blackthorn going Anjin Wick with his pistols From the reactions I’ve seen online and my own, this definitely stands to be everyone’s favorite episode of Shogun 2024 if Episode 10 doesn’t top it.

This episode hit all of the beats it needed to from a story standpoint. I knew exactly what was going to happen and I was still on the edge of my seat. They absolutely nailed it. They have to much to wrap up in the next episode though!

I think Toranaga miscalculated a bit with Ishido trying to capture Mariko. He sent her in to the castle to specifically get all the hostages out which would cripple much of Ishidos support. Ishido was trapped in a beautiful catch 22, can’t let Mariko go, and if he keeps her she kills herself and that will disgrace Ishido. The shinobi was a desperate attempt that is now going to completely backfire because it means that Ishido can’t maintain the security of any of the hostages. As Toranaga in the book says “Mariko was the Falcon and Ishido was her prey”.

I really hope you do another full series review after rewatching the series again in it's entirety.I feel like a second viewing will be more enlightening in many ways. Looking forward to it

Awesome review as always. I really liked the ' I am Mariko-Sama, the daughter of a Samurai , and I intend to walk out of here with or without your consent' scene. It gave me Dany Stormborn vibes.

While Yabu is a snake, I find it hard for me to blame him. He really is being used as a pawn in a game way larger than him by men who are way more powerful and couldn’t care less about him. No doubt he’s opportunistic, but he knows he’d be in way over his head tryna to pull something out. He really is just trying to survive at this point and you gotta give some points for self awareness and knowing your own limitations.

Mariko’s son appears in the book; he is at Ochiba’s birthday reception. Anjin notes his twisted hand and remembers Mariko telling him there were complications during the birth. At this point, he is already betrothed to Kiyama’s granddaughter, but Kiyama rescinds that after Mariko denies the will of the Council. The boy appears disappointed, but I don’t recall him disrespecting his mother in any way.

Ishido saying "やつ (Yatsu)" [which would transate to that person/that bastard], instead of formally addressing Toranaga-sama during the large meating scene had me rolling on the floor Laughing. It publicly betrayed his own peasant upbringing; showing to the entire assembly how his mask broke.

Been waiting for your review all day! 😂 Thank you, and great work as always!

This episode broke me. The attempted sepuku had me in near tears over just how intense it was

Aah, Sekigahara! It was just one small paragraph in the italicised epilogue in the book. Not shown in the 1980 show at all. The whole of Clavell's novel is just the setup to Sekigahara, the battle that changed Japanese (and possibly indirectly world) history.

5:43 She’s based on Lady Oeyo, the younger sister of Yodo-Dono, the wife of Hidetada and the mother of the third shogun Iemitsu.

I thoroughly enjoy your channel! So glad I came across it when I first started watching this series. Speaking of Game of Thrones, you should cover House of the Dragon, (I know it’s a different genre) season 2 and review each episode. You always offer interesting perspectives in your reviews.

It took 9 episodes but we finally got a scene where the sun was shining (at least partially)

Love your content, channel and presentation.

I'm glad that Mariko didn't turn out to be a modern girl boss that just destroyed her male opponents.

I'm quite late this time around and don't expect that you'll see this comment, but as always, THANK YOU for another INVALUABLE review! It sounds like this episode was probably the "climax" of the show and I won't lie the flame of my hopes have been fanned once again! There is still a lot I've been disappointed by with this show and have been very vocal about my disappointments, but it truly sounds like an entertaining watch if not being compared to the source material it's inspired by (again I strongly maintain that this cannot be considered an adaptation because of the significant alterations that have been made to the story). Which is increasingly rarer in today's western film industry, and that makes me quite happy. I guess my biggest disappointments are that this wasn't a true adaptation and that the historical inaccuracies present could easily have never been present. Tbh I'm more upset than I like to admit about the Shinobi scene... of all the historical inaccuracies, this is by far the worst offender in my opinion. My displeasure is only magnified by how much effort supposedly went into ensuring the historical accuracy of the show and how much they touted the accuracy of it only to have such a massive inaccuracy with that scene. That said I am fairly impressed with how much more they got right than they got wrong, nowadays that's quite rare with the western film industry. Again though I repeat that the inaccuracies that were present never needed to be with a bit more care and attention. Again thank you so much Shogunate, these reviews are a highlight of my week and I find them truly invaluable! See you next week for the finale!

Just as you say that this is the best episode so far, I feel like this is also your best review so far. Well done. I was also in your thinking about the game of thrones formula, but I think that works better in a series that has more than one season, as the finale is sort of a set up for the next season. But here there won't be one so it makes sense for the climactic action sequence to be at episode 10.

Yes great review as always! And I also agree this should be episode 8 instead of episode 9!

Actually we hear Lord Kiyama speak Portuguese in episode 2 when he tells father Dell’Aqua that he will “deal” with Blackthorne. I’m very interested to see how Toranaga’s plan will come together. After Hiromatsu’s seppuku I was reminded of a quote from a video game “Battles may be won by the better warrior, Wars are won by those who are willing to sacrifice everything to ensure victory” - Kratos, God of War 2018

Well we knew Toranaga had other son's because when he wrote his will he talked about the grandkids. And yes, Lady Ochiba's sister is the mother of his grandkid.

I'm pleased that in this episode, they made the Anjin-san a little more useful in acting as her second which made for a touching moment, stepping forward to save his love from Hell and his use of pistols during the fight gave him a bit more presence where usually he's meandering through events like a Deer caught in headlights. As I've mentioned on some of your other videos, I would have liked to have had more focus on his adapting rather than rejecting Japanese culture as in the books and greater displays of his intelligence rather than self-interested acts of bravery. The show just about managed to bring back the romance for a few nano-seconds without it seeming too forced, but so many meaningful moments between the two have been tossed aside. I appreciate that some of this modern audience desire more of the politics in place of the romance story, however I feel we get less of either compared to the 1980s show or the book and they may have missed the point that James Clavell's the Shogun is meant to focus on the Anjin-san (Samurai William) and his journey to learn, adapt and adopt Japanese culture, not be another show/story about Tokugawa Ieyasu. The greatest issue I take with this show, is they take from the character of Blackthorne to lift other characters like Tsuji and Buntaro, to the point that you almost end up rejecting Blackthrone's rejection of Japanese culture while coming to like more the translator priest and the heart-broken Buntaro. I have said before that especially in these times, we need iconic television moments to lift an audience and create fond memories for this generation to look back on and I'm just not sure this series will be something young people think back to in the same way as the generation before cherished the 1980s version. I like realism and historical accuracy, but sometimes a little romanticism and flamboyance is required to transport the audience and take them on a fantastical journey they will remember for time to come. Without Toranaga doing the Sailor's dance with Blackthorne or his attempting Seppuku in front of Yabu, we miss some important scenes that give depth to the character of Blackthorne, demonstrating his beginning understanding of the Japanese way of life & death, the meaning behind their customs and ultimately Blackthorne becoming a Samurai in more than just name. This version shows a Man lost, consistently selfish in his desires and goals, brave but mostly useless to himself, rather than a competent, intelligent Man navigating his way through a new land,employing his wits and guile to avoid death at every turn, while gaining respect from the other characters he encounters. Consider the comparison with the Buntaro archery scene while drinking Sake - Blackthorne in the book and 1980s show inspects the three arrows fired into his post through the shoji screen (Rice-paper wall) and instructs Fuji-san to order the household that the arrows be left there forever as testament to a master archer..... this shows a totally different kind of Blackthorne - one who is adapting, paying proper respect and even Buntaro who hates or is disgusted by this 'Barbarian' can still feel moved by the respect the Anjin-san is paying him. It makes for an entirely different character to the one they've portrayed in this version. Hopefully people understand where I'm coming from, even if they don't agree.

It was beautiful. I will be needing this in 4k.

I don't dislike Cosmo Jarvis's interpretation, what bothers me is how they destroyed the character, completely changing him. At least they tried to salvage a bit of the relationship between John and Mariko. Those of us who watched the 80s series understood some gestures, but I imagine people who are experiencing the story for the first time seeing John telling Mariko to live for him and being like 'What the hell? They've been fighting the whole series.' As for the episode, I thought it was the best along with episode 8, but I found the scenery at the end to be too dark. I hope the last episode is extended so we can appreciate details that were skipped in previous episodes and taken for granted. I want to see how Anjin's story will end because they've changed it so much that I don't even know what to expect anymore. But at least, despite all the changes they've made and having a script tailored to the current audience, they've respected the story to some extent, and that's appreciated

The most unfortunate negative factor of both the 1980 and the 2024 adaptations of Shogun has been the same; time. One season is not enough time to flesh out the complexities of Clavell's novel.

I'm glad they chose Tadanobu Asano to play Yabushige, there's a very unique charisma to him as an actor that always made me enjoy the characters he play. I remember watching the first episode and just exclaiming "wait, I know this guy... KAKIHARA!" (in my defense, I missed the opening credits for that episode haha) I like how he spent the whole series going back and forth between sides and everytime he seems like his mind is made up, something comes up and flip him and this culminates in that episode's betrayal which cost him his life in previous versions and almost got him killed in this one. I also enjoyed 1980's version, though he was played very differently, more jovial two-faced over scheming fence sitter. Both interpretations are good and I'd be hard press to choose one over the other. That said I really enjoyed the episode, though I would've also liked a GoT style battle episode based on Sekigahara, but I guess we'll see next episode if there's a bit of it and how Toranaga will turn his situation around. I'm also curious if a certain detachment will try to take a certain Ueda castle from the Sanada family will be mentioned haha, guess we'll see!

This episode brought back primary themes that had been sidelined or delayed in this version of the story. This episode again highlights the difficulties of translating a multi layered novel into a mini series. The director and producers make changes, add and subtract things from the novel, sometimes being more or less successful, but ultimately being unable to please every viewer. However, on balance this version has succeeded more often than it failed.

It's great this comes out minutes after I watch the episode.

As usual I agree with your overall assessment. Parts were faithful to the book and those that were not it appeared to be wrap-ups to earlier issues not in the book. Absolutely correct about the “too little too late” aspect of Mariko and Blackthorn’s romance, so much of this has been left out. Same with Rodriquez, he was prevalent in the book and the 1980 treatment and here he is a ghost. I have come to a new revelation, this series has a more cinematic feel that the 1980 series, especially when you consider the music, much better in this new series. The 1980 series has all the look and feel of a tv miniseries where this one does not, more like a movie. However the new series is almost constantly dark, like almost all of it was filmed on a soundstage. I find myself giving a small nod to the 1980 series as far as accuracy to the book. Episode 9 was better than 8 for sure, not sure yet what my favorite episode is, will wait for the final one. My overall slight disappointment with the series still exists and this is mainly because of all the departures and omissions from the book; but in terms of the music, cinematography, costumes, and culture they did an excellent job.

Yabushige is such a treat to watch. He kills every one of his scenes and I’m always interested in his character. His acting is so good, I can imagine him playing any role. I can see him as serious as a Yakuza boss to the comic relief in a comedy.

With Shogun being such a character focused series, especially the book, it would be interesting if you did a video on what the famous samurai’s personalities were like when they weren’t busy killing each other. Their hobbies, how they talked to others, were they mean or funny or nice, etc. I’m not sure how much record of that stuff would actually exist, but I always wonder how we might perceive certain samurai differently if we knew what they were really like.

I love the subtle undercurrents in this series. A clear contrast is created between Ochiba and Mariko, the two childhood best friends, both destined for family tragedy, yet they turn out so differently. Ochiba is willing to sacrifice the world to save her son, yet Mariko is willing to give up everything for her loyalty to Toranaga. There is a strong contrast between the scene where Mariko's son forsakes her and the meeting with Ochiba, where she rants about the need for her to "protect" her son (via aligning with Ishido and taking all of the other families hostage).

I loved Blackthorne's semi auto flintlock

Being old enough for me to have seen the premiere of the original series, I found chapter 9 well-balanced and with no extension of the romance as in the first TV show. This was also a more realistic experience for me because I was force-fed all the wrong ninjustu crap as it all exploded in all the bad ways in Europe, so most of the beautiful culture of Japan got washed out. So, for me, this rendering is the far superior version, and I feel like a kid again, but not following a wishy-washy fake road like after the original TV show was released..

I also love Yabushige. Although I think 1980 version was better in everything but Yabushige, Buntaro and even Ishido are awesome. Cannot believe they cut out such important character like Rodriges. He was awesome when played by John Ryhs Davies

I am liking the new series a lot, and love the 1980s series and rewatched around 5 years ago and will certainly watch it again one day. Just so happy that the critiques have to get pretty niche, that is a remarkable achievement with historics, even fictionalised historics.

It was really satisfying for me to see the writers return to the source material for the events of this episode. Mariko proclaimed her power and exerted her will to meet the moment in service of the larger goals of her lord. All other action was in support of this story arc and, despite changes from the original story (Blackthorn stepping in to second her seppuku), the episode left me glad that I had invested in the series. I'm looking forward to their conclusion very much.

These cliffhangers are driving me crazy xd , love this show.

I’m very sure that Lord Kiyama spoke Portuguese to the Jesuit priest in the earlier episodes

Blackthorne drooping around, following others like a constantly sad puppy is this adaptations weakest aspect for me, only one he seems to have some chemistry is Yabushige.

I loved Ochiba! Her gaze was amazing! I had to check the scene again if she blinked.

Correction: We actually have seen Kiyama use Portuguese (English) before this episode. Prior to his failed ambush in Osaka Harbor, he was talking with the Father Visitor and said "Let this be my burden Father".

Given Disney is slowing pulling out of physical media, I hold no hope this show will ever find its way to disc. But it feels like the perfect candidate for extended episodes. There's just these minor plot points that feel like they come from nowhere, and were possibly alluded to in scenes that were cut. And I can only hope this might be something made available should Disney decide to milk some more subscriptions. EDIT: also we better get some more gd Fuji in the final episode

Part of me wonders in the absence of a second season ((big sad if true) they stretched out the few proceeding episodes, to what felt like an overly pronounced extent, to budget for a grand finale. Some minor quibbles with some of the Shinobi no mono stuff aside, it really was a masterpiece of an episode.

I was wondering what the significance of the poem was. Not knowing Japanese, I can only see the emotional effect of the poems from the reactions of other characters, but I felt a void not knowing why the poem that Mariko said affected Ochiba so much.

The writing for Mariko in this episode is KILLER! Give her an Emmy and the writers an Emmy! Holy smokes

Ishido is more cunning than I thought, the type of cunning that is ruthless as compared to Toranaga's "know thy enemy" mantra.

Well done!

I want preface my opinion by letting you know, im not ascholar of the arts, or big reader. I just like samurai stuff. Most of my experience with it comes from video games like Total War: Shogun, Samurai Warriors, Sengoku Basara, the Kurosawa movies and LEgend of the Five Rings roleplaying game. So, there is my standpoint. After 9 Episodes, i have no idea what i feel about this show. E9 had no emotional impact on me. And currently, i'm only intrested in what happens to Yabushige xD I find Ishido to be weird mix of desperate, overconfident AND lacking confidence at the same time. Mariko i didn't give 2 huffs about. She's been cold and closed off the eniter show. Yeah, she had a tragic life.... okay. Blackthorne E1 wants to go home, E9 wants to go home. His relationship with Mariko, form an outside perpective seemed to be wholy based on she being pretty and speaking his langauge. Toranaga, The Master Schemer.... has done nothing, outsmarted no one, and accomplished nothing (Yet). Ochiba, i have no idea what she wants, or how she is thinking. Buntaro, should have divorced Mariko when offered. He is just Sad all the way. And that is all the characters we have followed.... The positive tho, two episodes in a row without the constant rain. woohoo.

I want a big battle but have a feeling that we’ll get 10mins of some battle footage, but it’ll probably play a small part of the episode…

I can't wait to binge watch this

Shogun raises hairs, Devastating excellence, Shudders in my soul.

I only just watched this episode before I read your review, I agree this episode was one of the best if not the best so far, glad the whole son's situation has been established, will they show up in episode 10, Mariko dying at the end I saw coming well most of it, Yabu, in the end, betraying Toranaga/Ieyasu is interesting and I look forward to episode 10 a lot like other reviews I agree 1 season is too short 2 would have been better but that won't happen. Episode 10 will see the ramifications of Ishido's actions which I look forward to seeing, Will Yabu try and kill Blackthorn or Toranaga himself who knows. Episode 10 is shaping up to be a great finale. I also loved Blackthorn going all Anjin Wick on the Shinobi.

The strongest Toronaga has been in this show and he wasn't even in it

In the podcast for this show they mentioned that they touch on the battle of Sekigahara and one small albeit weird curiosity I've wondered about is throughout this show why do they not move peoples hair out of the way before chopping off there heads or is hair not problematic... just in other series where axes are used they tend to move hair or put it in a cap.

Maybe due to my lack of knowledge of the book, so at first I was.... not sot satisfied with the episode, although I love the actions that it has provide and agree that this is one of the better episodes. Another part where I agree, that something is a little bit too late, if they put this entire episode in ep.8, I will definitely be more hyped for the next week episode, but knowing that next episode prolly will ended up as what I had in mind. My hope only lies that they could end it in a bang and not rushed it heavily

While Anna Sawai has done a great job portraying what she was supposed to portray, I wish they had given her the opportunity to convey something other than sadness and melancholy. Nine episodes of that wears you out in the end. Anna seems to have a fun personality, so I think she would have pulled off Mariko’s more lighthearted moments.

This was fucking insane ! I’m still confused as to what Yabu is going to do. He doesn’t know either

I’m nervous about this finale as I find it impossible to resolve some of these plot points in just one episode in a satisfying way

How could a reviewer who calls himself, the Shogunate, miss the entire interaction when Toranaga meets with the Council of The Regents and they discuss whether he is holding the mother of the heir hostage and he says she is at his castle for the birth of her sister’s first child. He says something to the effect that she is no more hostage than he is in Ichido’s castle. Hard to believe you missed this key scene.

I’m sure a whole lot of y’all Crimson Cried. Welcome to the Crimson Herring. Despite my criticism in previous episodes about how Mariko the wife continued to handle her domestic affairs, especially after how the truth of as to why she was kept alive has laready been revealed; I do have all the respect in the world for Mariko, the Retainer. She fulfilled her duty and managed to say out loud what every Lord in Osaka was feeling but were too afraid to say. And she was committed to everything to the end. (Minor Tangent: I am happy the gate scene was not a "girl-power mopping the floor with all those men" moment) Now all of Osaka's Lords are soured against Ishido; and Ochiba might have to put the engagement on hold in order to Mourn Mariko. Her mission is a success. Speaking of which, it’s so heartwarming and heart breaking that “Leave us” scene between Mariko and Ochiba. I'm Happy Ruri-hime did not just outright hate Mariko for being her father's daughter; but their exchange was so heartbreaking as they both knew each other so well and what the other was doing and them pleading with each other to make the step to end the hostilities, and saying their goodbyes like that... it was made clear: Ochoba was willing to do anything to continue on living, while Mariko was samurai through and through and was trying to convince her that the duty is what is most important. The fact that Ochiba-Sam’s had to turn away to hide her tears and she can’t maintain her mask )9 fold fence) was just Gold. i think I'm sweating through my eyes. And Blackthorne finally doing the right thing and deciding to Second Mariko, instead of just dismissing all of Japan's customs and cultures as BS , that was the best gift he could have ever given her. So much so that despite my misgivings about Mariko the wife; their last night of intimacy was completely EARNED; despite all your valid concerns which I mostly agree with.🥹🥹🥹 And thankfully, Ishido stepped in, because Blackthorne was already shown as not capable of properly wielding that sword. Yabushige's betrayal was to Kidnap Mariko AND not lay a hand on any of the VIPs (it was shown on screen that Shizu and Kiri was not killed when the shinobi identified them in their sleep). They need to make it look like some bandits or assassins got to her while she was sneaking off in the evening despite getting her permits: that was why the shinobi did not kill her right away, but rather were trying to take her away. Mariko became aware of this right away and chose where to meet her end: she did not go to the gate where she would get captured as Yabushige intended. Having grown up there with Ochiba, she knew what would happen when she chose to hole up in the store house.

Yabu gotta survive 😅😅😅..love that dude. Also, super ninjas killing well trained samurai easily yet had problems with blackthorne?? I know clavell wrote this but..

I loved the shinobi scene and i think making it a stereotypical “hollywood ninja” was the right choice, for people who aren’t familiar with a historically accurate shinobi, they might not understand it. I was heartbroken about Mariko though :(

Shogun has been the best series we have seen in many years, I look forward to it's release on DVD.

I was left wondering, why is the episode named "Crimson Sky"?

Lord kiyama already spoke Portuguese, episode two 53:36 “let this be my burden father” before the female assassin shows up for blackthorne

good to see you've chilled the f*ck out with your reviews of this show - much less nitpicky😛

Regarding the Ninja vs Shinobi thing. I was told that Shinobi are more like saboteurs and spy's who are acting without fighting, while Ninjas are more like Seals. So I would argue the Where Ninjas. Also the Villiges where the Ninjas life aren't that far from Osaka.

The other great clans detest Ishido, especially after the slaughter of Lord Sugiyama and his family; Ishido's trump card is the hostages, if he loses that then the other great clans will side with Toranaga. I really take exception to Blackthorne making an offer to Ishido- he was loyal to Mariko; no way he would have done this.

Why? 11:14 Can someone explain the reason behind this address?

And now, with both my favorite characters dead, I wait with bated breath the season finale. I hope they stick the landing.

Me: yay no ninjas Ninja shows up 🥷 Me: 🤦‍♀️😂

I felt the shinobi scene was fine I'm not sure it was overblown Stephen turnbulls book on ninja really investigated the factual origin's as opposed to the later hyped myth

Enjoyed the episode mostly, but I wish Yabu, like in the book was the one to be Mariko's second. It added something to his character arch in my opinion, but I see why they did it in the show.

If Ishido didn’t want to kill Mariko, why did he send the shinobis with a bomb to capture her?

I can't judge whether or not I like Shogun's 10-episode formula until I see the finale.

I really enjoyed this episode in fact this is one of the best episodes of this series, my favourite moment is Mariko fighting against the guards Anna Sawai really did shine in this episode. I also think Cosmo Jarvis was good in this episode especially the body language when he was scared for Mariko's life like when he see Mariko's fighting against the guards you could tell the fear and sadness when watching. I understand that why this version of Toranaga may not work for everyone which i respect everyone has a different opinion. Personality while this Toranaga maybe not accurate to both his historically and literally counterpart. I think the performance from Hiroyuki Sanada is solid enough I accepted this version is different enough that it is it's own version. As far as why we don't see Toranaga's other sons my guess is that some maybe are taken as hostages in different clans, some are hiding from plain sight, and some are simply young in the same age as the Taiko's son. Based on how he was presented in the series I assumed that Nagakado is the firstborn son hence why he been around with his father allot. Based on the promo from the Next episode I'm very happy that we are going to get the Battle of Sekigahara in the show afterall.

Jesus, I didn't realize I searched for this video early 😂

Mariko - "They're Shinobi..." Me - "HELL YEAH THEY ARE!" Lol

12:55 I feel that

I was disappointed in her death. I was hoping for something more, not a exact re-creation of her original series death. I also thought the show would at least start a battle under an episode called "Crimson Sky"

Maybe its my fault for not knowing the source material. But I'm disappointed that we didn't get at least one proper battle.

I like the show, but they sure don't explain much. I need to see Toranaga explaining his plan to somebody.

Definitely the best episode so far. Anna Sawai has been outstanding throughout and in some episodes has come across as the main character (no bad thing as her story is compelling). In some ways I like that she and Blackthorne have both been irritated with each other and also in love. That's how real relationships work. Mariko's devotion to the mission trumped the relationship in her eyes and Blackthorne had his own selfish interests as well aa seeking to stay alive. Moments like him deciding to be her 2nd so she doesn't die thinking she's going to be damned are what sells the relationship. I will say that her frequent moments of irritation with him, also demonstrates there is something going on because it shows her confliction. If she barely gave Blackthorne a second thought, she wouldn't be pissed off with him, something Toranaga picked up on.

I am not sure it will happen but in the last episode I want to see at least some shot from Battle of Sekigahara....

I liked the episode overall, but the problem to me remains Blackthorne, who remains to be annoying and I hate how they realized their version of the character. Zero chemistry between him an Mariko and totally unfounded why they would get romantically involved. I must admit I really liked the performance of the actress playing Mariko, it was a great arc and though I don't mind she's out of the story, this episode I really liked her, even the scenes with the priest. I did expect more between her and Lady Ochiba to happen, but it's acceptable this way. Yaboo is indeed a great character and very well performed by the actor. Don't see why Yaboo's help was required to get the Shinobi in? What's up with that, they don't know how to get in without Yaboo opening the door? That's ridiculous.

Love the battle scene specially the samurai who accompanied mariko

I wish we could see Sekighara play out.... this show has been awesome

looks like Mariko... had a blast

Does anyone known who has nickname Inoshishi in Sengoku Jidai era? Or armor looking like a boar @the Shogunate

Since when does Blackthorne become Anjin Sama?

I haven't read the book nor watched the previous Mini Series but I hope FUJI DOESN'T DIE OR I'M GOING TO RIOT. (PLEASE DO NOT SPOIL ME AAAAAAA)

How Do they expect to complete this series with just 1 hour & 3 minutes left? There is still an impending battle coming, and also some other areas we need to cover prior to ending the season. I never could understand why they will make the last episode just 1 hour. I hope they don’t repeat the same error season 8 of GOT did with rushing everything at the last minute.

Anyone can explain the Ninjas invasion ?

I started with the series and then read the books. I have to say, as I read the books, the less I liked the series. Now, I have to say that if you have not read the books, the show is great but once you have read the original story, the story seems to lose a lot. For example, Mariko and Blackthorne's love story was developed and had meaning; the show dedicated a few minutes at best. Also, the kidnap attempt and the sacrifice at the end, without Blackthorne's involvement and aid, it is not the same.

I want to see the definitive version of shogun. Seems like they are really changing it to be female centric.