The Reel Rejects - SHŌGUN 1x08 “The Abyss of Life” | Breakdown & Review

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Starting point is 00:01:30 This video is brought to you by a product I use weekly, Harry's. Jump into episode eight. All right. And gin, what did you think? That's me. What did you think, episode eight? Another incredible episode. Again, I just love how much tension there was without any actual violence.

Starting point is 00:01:51 Being done just through the dialogue and again, the facial emoting that was just so excellent, excellently portrayed by all the actors. And the dialogue was so well done. Also, too, a couple times just I had the feels going. I mean, not only from just the characters and what they were feeling and the emotions going on, but the actors, again, the emoting and their portrayals of these characters. I was so in the moment with them. Also, too, I just love this back and forth we got with Toranaaga. I know we always say he's a master tactician strategist, which he is.

Starting point is 00:02:25 But I love that the show always does this good job. like, is this part of the play? Wait, no, no, it's not. Yes, it is. It's like, it's always back and forth as an audience member. If you haven't watched the original show or you haven't read the book and you have no, and this is like a first time, I just, I love stuff that is unpredictable in a satisfying way, story-wise and character-wise.

Starting point is 00:02:49 Again, it's just done so damn well. Also, too, it paves the way when you do eventually re-watch it. Like, this really was like. set it up and it nuances it in ways to where you're watching like, okay, I can see little seeds here that they sprang in here that like it's subtly done, but still in a way like it's still so good and unpredictable. But I love that they always have you on the edge of your seat. Like, oh, where's this going? But it's always, you know it's going to be done in a way that is going to be again appealing, satisfying and done in a dramatically epic way. So yeah, that was good.

Starting point is 00:03:28 I don't remember again, you guys will have to let us know because it's been a while I feel like since we saw it was the Tycho's wife, Dioen, Dioin. I don't remember the last time we saw her. So that was definitely a little bit of a, whoa, we didn't expect that with the whole stroke. And then that whole scene again just, this wasn't very emotionally, not exhausting.

Starting point is 00:03:53 I won't say that because I was just again so into it. I would just say like dramatically emotional, impactful episode, as all the episodes are. Just that scene with her and Ochiba. Yeah. That was such a great scene. I love that some of that dialogue again. She said like, you know, that I figured you would be the last one I'd seen like, you know, tell her son to look for me in the other world or whatever the lines where I get. Yeah.

Starting point is 00:04:19 And also, too, I found it very fascinating when myself, Joan Buck. told when i when i this is your biography now i'm right now i'm actually in the month talking about myself no when john blackthorns i know i'm like getting too far ahead uh when john blackthorn saw yes exactly when john blackthorns saw i guess they said there's six members left of by the way let us know in the comments how many were other than the guy who got boiled in the soup cauldron how many were there uh because they according to them they said now there's only six seem like a ton when we got here. It felt like a handful and it's like a smaller handful now.

Starting point is 00:04:58 For some reason, I thought there was like 10 or 11, but again, that was episode one or two. It's been a while. But let us know in the comments because you guys are, you know, so on it. But we found out there's about six of them left. But again, that whole scene, again, emotionally just being driven into me just like, wow. Like, it was interesting to see the contrast between the two characters. Like, I don't recognize you anymore. And same thing with Blackthorn towards him.

Starting point is 00:05:22 like he doesn't recognize him it's like different purposes now he's a different man and also too like who the hell are you yeah i forgot uh the pilot uh as he calls him but it's like he's calling him that like because you forget that like those guys aren't all british like he calls him out for like you know you're the the first englishman out this way you know trying to carve your own path or like you know once our our actual captain you know did what he did you know we could have just gone home but you you had to follow your ambition or whatever and uh and yeah it's the thing it is interesting to know because you have the portuguese you have uh the english in blackthorn and then you have these those are like scandinavian characters and stuff like that and uh yeah it's it's interesting

Starting point is 00:06:04 to be reminded of that especially because yeah it's like he's been through so much during this time while they have as well i'm sure but it feels like when we get here that they have been kind of just pocketed off to the side to just just just sort of maintain and just be who they are. It feels like they haven't changed a lick since they've been off camera much since the beginning of the show. I'm sure, you know, there's maybe something in wait, but it doesn't seem like we're going to spend too much time on it.

Starting point is 00:06:34 But, yeah, like really watching that thing when Alvito comes back. Yes. I forget what they call him in Japanese because they have like a little moniker for him. But yeah, when he comes back and he has that confrontation about like, hey, you know, I'm not, I'm not in Ishido's pocket anymore. and you, you know, you certainly seem to have adapted to the culture. You're like, are you going to go back to your crew like that? And that little, you know, sort of laying of the seed that like, oh, yeah, like you have changed.

Starting point is 00:07:01 And even though you don't belong here necessarily, you have acclimated far beyond your peers. And in a way that is going to make, I think, life kind of interesting and odd to behold for, at least with left for Blackthorn. And this because, yeah, he, he isn't, he is very much an outsider in Japan. He's very much an outsider within these structures, these systems that hold the society up. And yet he's also far removed now from his own culture of origin and way of doing things. And even the way, like I like that it doesn't have to even be a joke. Like he does make the crack about, oh, I can smell, you know, what's his name from, you know, here. But even so, like, aside from that, it does sort of in that way kind of punctuate like, oh, yeah.

Starting point is 00:07:47 like even what a small thing like that like he's even sort of taken aback at a smell he probably wouldn't even even notice before right that's like a signifier and and you can see I love that like little body language before the guy even comes out he can just hear them causing a ruckus and he doesn't even really want to go take that walk until the guy stumbles out and is like hey is that you you know and so yeah I think his growth and his journey and and the rock in a hard place he finds himself between is interesting because yeah you have somebody like Alvito, who he's been very much at odds with. He's very not, very much not inclined to ally with the Catholics. And yet, Alvito, for as cunning as he is, well within, you know,

Starting point is 00:08:29 sort of the history of the church at this time, he does seem more pragmatic, as I think you kind of pointed out during the episode. He's, he's a bit more plugged into the reality on the ground of where we are. And he seems to have an actual eye for like what's going on politically and how he can, you know, use that to advance, you know, the church's interests. And so, yeah, watching those different moments where he has to talk to, you know, Toranaga and pitch his piece and, you know, that whole kind of. That was great. Yeah, just that, that bit, you know, where the ally, like, when he makes her translate on his behalf,

Starting point is 00:09:05 because he's like, no, you know, you've crossed the line and I don't want to lie with you anymore. Like so many, again, great little flourishes. and, again, uses of the translation as a motif rather than just as a delivery system of information. For sure, also, too, that was kind of a callback when he said I could smell them, like, because he hadn't bathed in a while, Blackthorne. And then Mariko was like, can you please bathe or something like that? So I kind of felt that it was a little bit of a callback also to Blackthorn because, you know, he's changed a lot of his ways and grown as a character. Also, it was interesting to see kind of the divide with Omi, is that you saying, right? the nephew of the nephew of Yibushige.

Starting point is 00:09:44 That was interesting to see, too. It's like, because again, Toranaga is playing this game of shoots and ladders and chess. So it's interesting to see. Yeah, yeah. But again, Hiramatsu, is that his name? Yeah, his like, I mean. His right-hand man there. Yeah, I mean, you know that this guy's been his right-hand man since they were young ones.

Starting point is 00:10:08 That hurt. Yeah, no, that did hurt. and uh but there was it means bound by honor and duty and uh to his friend and he there was a purpose for what why he did that uh as horrific and sad as that was um there was a purpose and a reason for it and i'm in respect damn to make your son do that um but uh yeah that was again a very impactful moment uh again there's so many on this show it's just it's incredible um but yeah that was incredible to the um um um with Alvito, like I said, he's very level-headed. That scene with him in Toranaga, you're like, no, we're not allies anymore. You're going to, Mariko, you're going to translate from him. I also loved some of the scenes with Buntaro and Mariko. Mariko, excuse me, I love those scenes as well because I know kind of, at least from my end,

Starting point is 00:11:00 I'm not going to speak for you. Like I had mentioned, like, he's being extremely cold towards her. And like I had to be, he has been, but I had to be corrected in the comments too. You know, I kind of watched one of the episodes back. I'm like, that's true, but she also is not very warm towards him either. Yeah, it's the acknowledgement that this may not be just only his fault for being a jerk or something. But yeah, it's a complex back and forth that they have. And again, while I do love the relationship between her and myself, and I do hope maybe we'll see something come about that more.

Starting point is 00:11:35 We shall see. Um, it was nice and sweet to see Buntaro, uh, try and, you know, be sweet towards and make the tea, but then, and that whole sentiment about, hey, we're kind of already doomed here. Uh, let's go into the afterlife as husband and wife. You know what I mean? That was an interesting sentiment. Yeah. Like, like, achieve this peaceful release together. Yeah. This blissful union that we could never somehow, you know, click together here on the moral plane. Like, yeah, it was really, really striking, really touching, really. And her response was interesting. Oh, sure. I mean, yeah, I mean, you remember because part of you in those moments does kind of feel for Buntaro and you see him more in this episode than any other up until now, you know, in a much more vulnerable, soft and human light.

Starting point is 00:12:23 And you can feel, even though everyone is still quite restrained, just how you can feel like the almost, not like a little boy, but there's just something like much, much, less, you know, outwardly prickly than he often puts forth, you know, there's something that clearly wants this warmth and this closeness and this release. And, and yeah, like, I felt for him because you could tell in these little moments like, oh, man, this guy's got it bad. And it's, and there's just nothing you can do. And that whole thing she said, especially after everything she's been through and being at times felt feeling like she's been forced to live when she would much rather have some kind of honorable

Starting point is 00:13:07 death. Right. You know, yeah, then to counter that basically with like, I would rather live forever than die here this way with you. Yeah, absolutely. Totally agree. Thrilled to be partnering with a brand I've been using for nearly two years now,

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Starting point is 00:15:13 and embrace the extraordinary with harries till next time reject nation till next time i found it also fascinating uh there at the end how uh turanaga paid respects to his son which obviously we saw at a distance in that epically scoped scope shot uh that he did where we could see the fire pyro going off um Um, funeral pyre, thank you. Uh, and then also to, uh, we saw that him and Hiramatsu basically gave him more time with the 49 days with his son. And then I don't know how many more days are granted, uh, with Hiramatsu. Uh, but again, he's saying, you know, basically what you said. This will not be in vain.

Starting point is 00:15:51 Also of note, I kind of mentioned it during the reaction. Uh, we didn't really, I don't believe at all. We saw the brother, half brother. Yeah. So it's, I'm interested when he comes back. with the interactions are going to be with him and Torana again

Starting point is 00:16:05 he did not you know he was not the one that ended the life of Tonagasan Nagakato no thank you so he was just there

Starting point is 00:16:16 but yeah I'm very curious their interactions or where he was in this episode exactly so I think that's a fascinating thing because part of me didn't I was never missing him

Starting point is 00:16:26 like I was never I was never sitting here going like where is he like I was just curious no no no I think it's a good thing to point out because I think it is an interesting thing to do. And I think it's something that builds that curiosity about what the truth really is. And as you pointed out, and a lot of people in the comments have echoed, like, there is this sort of lingering question about because clearly, as

Starting point is 00:16:49 evidence by this episode, we need to go so very far to convince everybody, you know, and to test how dedicated everybody is. You know, it does beg the question, is this all part of a bigger, more elaborate ruse, and is this, you know, an attempt to weed out further, you know, the people in our own home camp who might be plotting against us and then take the fight to Ozaka, then enact Crimson Sky, et cetera, et cetera. And I think, you know, on the one hand, I could certainly see how we might reconnect with him. And maybe they'll draw out a moment of tension with that. You know, yeah, this could be some kind of greater, yeah, luring out of, you know, the wolves and sheep's clothing or whoever else and and yeah i imagine that it could be a nice little subversion on top

Starting point is 00:17:37 of subversion because we meet him he's very jolly he seems like ah you know i'm your goofy half brother who's just out here chilling and then we think oh maybe he's got this turn where he really wants some kind of mantle that he feels like he's owed or some greater place in history or maybe you know further further further down the line he's going to try and secure that place in history by backing his brother and by, you know, yeah, I feel like we are peering into a time where you would probably have to carry out some kind of public ruse, you know, in a situation like this, this way, just, yeah, what the portrait of allegiances is. Yeah, it's going to be interesting to say, see, rather. And the last thing I want to say, the whole Ishido and Oceba thing,

Starting point is 00:18:20 with him wanting to marry her and then kind of fading to black before all that act. Interesting to see where that's going. If they did get married. married? What's going to happen with that? And if they're going to be able to sway her in any way? I thought that was a super comparing argument too. Is there any way I can make her my ally? Tornaga was asking Mariko. I loved all that again, just the emotional drive in this episode.

Starting point is 00:18:42 And also, too, I love that shot where we got to see Jin and Kiku and all of them looking at where their tea. Yeah, I don't really know what it'll be called. But yeah, where their protected space will be their tea houses. veto's like oh um we're all going to be next to each other yes prime real estate right next story you all again seeing it all done before all the real estate goes in i thought that was like again the the scope of everything looked that pretty cool before everything gets built yeah absolutely great great up again this is why i love this show so much like there's when there's no violence

Starting point is 00:19:17 like it's still so damn epic and there's so much emotional drive and depth in the show and the dialogue is so good the acting is so good and again we know there's an epic battle coming up. I'm so like, oh, I'm so ready. Yeah, but I built it up. I appreciate, yeah. We know it's coming. We know that shit's going to pop off to put it bluntly. But I like that even this deep into the season, even during an episode like this, we can pivot. We can do something that is still just as tense, but it's all the debate. It's all the like real like whittling down. It's like you feel the burning down of that stick of time. As there like that last moment, that that last big. scene together where they're challenging Toranaga and you know it's coming right down to it everyone's like you either are going to sign this pact with me and we're all going to march to Ozaka

Starting point is 00:20:07 and surrender together or you know and to have yeah that showdown between him and you're better than me than this in Hiramatsu like was so gripping and touching and harsh and heavy and like the expressions being traded

Starting point is 00:20:22 back and forth the focus on their eyes the things being said versus the things being felt or expressed physically and the like I love I guess to sum this whole thing up because we're on a bit of a time crunch today I love that this episode really does like you still have that feeling deep deep deep down where you're like Torananga's working something he's gonna fit he's got something he's gonna figure this out with and and they go very far to convince you like maybe not and in these moments I'm like I still feel like the deepest part of me that this is all kind of part of a plan.

Starting point is 00:20:57 Yeah. But I do appreciate that it also feels like this could be all part of a big debate. Yeah. That is constantly changing and constantly kind of living out phases. Yeah. And yeah, just like the bookends of this with him watching from afar and letting all the chips fall and then finally paying respect to Nagakato in silence alone. It's beautiful.

Starting point is 00:21:17 Like just so many excellent flourishes and bits of drama and craftsmanship and performance across this episode, the show, et cetera. sure no Fuji either today I was about you ruined it I was about to say perfect episode except no I was because I saw I was about to say perfect episode except for no Fuji next week it'll be a bottle episode only Fuji next week yes the whole episode well all right gang yeah let us know your thoughts about episode eight and what you're looking most forward to the last two episodes and do you want to hear the only blackthorn voice in episode 10 just kidding I'm not gonna I'm not gonna do it You'll get too sick of it.

Starting point is 00:21:54 We'll talk extra long next time. You'll get too sick of it. You'll have it rooted into your brain. It's only done well when it's sparingly done. Nah, no. The rule of comedy is more is better. The bigger is better. All right, John, I'll have to remember that.

Starting point is 00:22:09 Thank you, my friend. In fact, just live your life as John Blackthorn. Thank you guys for tuning in. Really appreciate you. Loving this journey. Cannot wait for the final two episodes. I am starting to paying that because I'm like, I can't believe we're already here.

Starting point is 00:22:21 I know. it went by quick like the show it's so well-paced yeah absolutely is thank you for making this such a lovely rich experience and yeah we'll catch you next week be well people

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The Reel Rejects - SHŌGUN 1x08 “The Abyss of Life” | Breakdown & Review

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