#miles ahead of hotd even with these discrepancies

[lemonhemlock]

i've had a few days to marinate on shogun and, since i haven't seen any of this discussed in the video essays i've managed to see, i would like to very respectfully critique toranaga's hero framing. i thought the last conversation with yabushige was supposed to temper that a bit but imo it was not enough. the torturing of the village to dissimulate for his own sinking of the ship followed by the luke-skywalker-staring-at-the-horizon choice of imagery felt inappropriate to me. the man is sociopath! he essentially sacrificed so many people so that he can become shogun and accumulate even more power than he already has. i don't think we should be praising that or shrouding it in such reverence. i don't expect much from male youtube commentators bc ofc they're not going to be sensitive to that strain of commentary and can't wait for a new badass male warrior to stan, but i'm starting to wonder whether i'm misinterpreting this series as i'm sure there are many cultural aspects i still don't understand

other decisions of toranaga's that did not sit well with me and struck me as red flags were letting hiromatsu commit seppuku for nothing and sending mariko to sacrifice herself. i understand these events were changed from the book? and honestly the book versions make more sense and make him less of an unfeeling lunatic (disclaimer that i haven't read it so i might be wrong ofc). but, i heard that in the novel, he tells his generals of his plan of feigning defeat so no one feels compelled into such a dramatic gesture as seppuku. if so, this is one show change that left me scratching my head

at the same time, mariko sama is a character i really liked, but i don't think her actions in episode 9 paint her in a very positive light; more than that, i feel like her death is kind of justified as narrative punishment? again, i understand that, in the book, she & ochiba no kata were not childhood friends, so it would make sense why mariko had no qualms to act against her. but, by helping toranaga to essentially & eventually become shogun, is mariko not endangering her girlhood friend and her son? my understanding of this period in japan's history is very limited, but lady ochiba's real-life counterpart, yodo-dono, and her son ended up committing suicide because of toranaga's historical counterpart. as such, i didn't really understand why ochiba no kata would lend a hand to toranaga's campaign. he was suspected at large of wanting to restore the shogunate so why wouldn't lady ochiba correlate that with her son's safety?

in this context, toranaga's statement that mariko's karma was to die for her lord while his is to become shogun ultimately feels so condescending and i'm surprised i'm not seeing more critique on it? mariko's sacrifice is being interpreted everywhere as this great act of strength and principle and i'm really just left asking myself what exactly am i missing. similarly, toranaga's professing of being ready to lay down his life for the heir and his promises to the dying taiko ring very hollow, to be honest. he even has an introductory scene when he is making nice with this child and it's just... ?? weird that there is no commentary attached to that