The Reel Rejects - SHŌGUN 1x10 “A Dream of A Dream” | Finale Breakdown & Review

Episode Date: April 23, 2024

WHAT A POWERFUL FINALE!! Shōgun Episode 10 SERIES FINALE Full Episode Reaction Watch Along: https://www.patreon.com/thereelrejects At long last, we've come to the final episode of FX & Hulu's highly-acclaimed re-imagined adaptation of SHŌGUN - John & Andrew give their First Time Reaction, Commentary, Breakdown, and Full Spoiler Review of Episode 10, “A Dream of A Dream" - as the saga comes to its epic conclusion, Toranaga proves his brilliance, Blackthorn earns a new life, and fitting sendoffs come to pass for Yabushige, Fuji, Buntaro, Omi, Alvito, Muraji, Ishido & the Regents & Japan looks toward a new future. John & Andrew bring to a close the epic drama starring Hiroyuki Sanada (John Wick Chapter 4, The Wolverine, Sunshine) as Yoshii Toranaga, Cosmo Jarvis (Peaky Blinders) as John Blackthorn, Anna Sawai (Monarch: Legacy of Monsters, F9) as Toda Mariko, Tadanobu Asano (Thor, Mortal Kombat) as Kashigi Yabushige, Takehiro Hira (Monarch, Gran Turismo) as Ishido Kazunari, and MORE! How does this adaptation live up to the original book, the 1980 miniseries (starring Richard Chamberlain), and the actual history? Let us know what YOU think!! Follow Andrew Gordon on Socials:  YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@MovieSource Instagram:  https://www.instagram.com/agor711/?hl=en Twitter:  https://twitter.com/Agor711 Support The Channel By Getting Some REEL REJECTS Aparrel! https://www.rejectnationshop.com/ Music Used In Manscaped Ad:  Hat the Jazz by Twin Musicom is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 license. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ POWERED BY @GFUEL Visit https://gfuel.ly/3wD5Ygo and use code REJECTNATION for 20% off select tubs!! Head Editor: https://www.instagram.com/praperhq/?hl=en Co-Editor: Greg Alba Music In Video: Airport Lounge - Disco Ultralounge by Kevin MacLeod is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 license. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ Ask Us A QUESTION On CAMEO: https://www.cameo.com/thereelrejects Follow TheReelRejects On FACEBOOK, TWITTER, & INSTAGRAM:  FB:  https://www.facebook.com/TheReelRejects/ INSTAGRAM:  https://www.instagram.com/reelrejects/ TWITTER:  https://twitter.com/thereelrejects Follow GREG ON INSTAGRAM & TWITTER: INSTAGRAM:  https://www.instagram.com/thegregalba/ TWITTER:  https://twitter.com/thegregalba Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

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Andrew. You ready? John, I think I'm ready for the finale, but my heart is not ready. My head is ready, but my heart is not. You got the body, I got the brains. Let's do this thing. All right.

And gin. Yes, John. And Drushigay. I heard my name a couple times. Gordon Naga. Yes, yes, yes. Mr. Blackthorn yourself. Before I let you take the mic,

to leave a rating for us on the app or Spotify, wherever you happen to be listening to this. If you're listening to the podcast version, very much appreciate it. Yeah, man. It's, you know, it's one of those things. I'm not ready for this moment. Right.

And it almost doesn't feel real. but yeah, what did you think? Before I go into my rant. Also, if you could go RejectnationShop.com, help support us over there and also look cool like us. We got some cool T's over there. You want to look and sound as cool as the engine.

Get yourself a shirt over there. No, it was a great finale. Obviously great show. We'll talk about the show as a whole. Just getting into the finale. I had a slight suspicion. I mean, yeah, I mean, just thinking like we didn't get a ton of action just throughout the scope of the show. It didn't rely on that, which is fine.

The show was great without it. The times that they did insert action was amazing. And I was actually, it was a good subversion of expectations the way everything was done. That I didn't even need it. Would it have been cool? Sure. But I didn't need it. And I just, again, the way everything, like, just naturally happened and seeing Tornaga's plan and all that, like, finally unfolding.

And that whole interaction he had with Yibushige was just so interesting. It's also one of those shows. I can't wait to revisit as well, just seeing like the layers being picked apart even more. It was really fascinating to watch. just an incredible finale. I really thought the, there's so much an incredible acting and character development,

Fuji, for instance. I also thought Blackthorn, just an incredible thing. We talked about a little bit during the reaction, but just again, seeing again how he embraced the ideology of just,

and the culture in Japan here at this time and then also too, just with his faith as well now because of how against Catholicism he was. and now, you know, with how invested and how much Mariko meant to him. And now, you know, it was just, it was fascinating to watch him grow as a character. I really love the journey with him.

And just all the other characters we went on as well, just an incredible finale in general. And then also to the whole thing with Mariko being the actual Crimson Sky, I thought that was fascinating. Because, again, the subversion of expectation were like, Crimson Sky, we got this crazy battle. that's going to come and brewing. It just, like, this was the proper way to do subversion of expectations and, like, how it was done and, like, she is the crimson sky and, like, yeah. There is that element, like, there is an element of bloodshed and there is an element of, like, clashing physical forces. But, yeah, you realize that, oh, no, it might not be, like, storming the castle and burning it all to the ground and leaving a pile of rubble there. Yeah, it's more just like a specific, well-chosen politicalist.

attack almost. Yeah. And also too, like, which again, speaks to the theme and the qualities that, you know, Toranaga certainly represents. Yeah. And we know that obviously Mariko, she, you know, wanted to go out many different times, which we saw. And with this whole plan and that she was going to unite everyone and, you know, that was going to be her sacrifice and her legacy and how she embraced her family lineage and name. Just, it's so poetic. It's so beautiful. The way it was done Damn, what a freaking amazing show. Yeah, and it makes you really want to go back and watch it and re-watch it and dissect it and really catch all of the little nuances

because, again, you know, there's been so much to pull out of just these first-time watch experiences and then you guys are great about, you know, kind of popping in and being like, hey, you might have missed this or overlooked this detail or whatever. But yeah, like the amount of just overlapping context that they are able to pull off with such kind of compelling conviction is great. And this episode, it's like, yeah, throughout the show, thankfully, I have only seen a handful of comments of people popping in and being like,

ah, this is overrated, like nothing happens. There's no action. Once or twice. It's like genuinely an outlier sentiment as far as I have seen in the comments. But I have seen it once or twice, and I feel like I could imagine a viewer out there. Again, I feel like if you're locked into what the show is doing, you're probably not hoping for expecting this necessarily.

But I can imagine a type of viewer who would want to see like a big ass battle in the last episode. I think it's smart, probably budget-wise, because A, I'm not sure they could do that. And it is those moments where I could feel the most CG assistance, certainly, when you have certain of the really big broad landscapes and like the big broad armies and stuff like that. Like those are the few moments where I could feel like, okay, maybe the budget was a little stretched in how you would pull that together. So like that, the functionality of that aside, I feel like, yeah, they managed to, again, create such wonderful tension and release out of just the journey of learning the real context for what just happened that was so striking in the moment last

week, you know, this huge kind of crescendo and a heartbreaking one at that. And then to watch the ripples, like we've talked so much about how Tora Naga is this presence that looms. regardless of whether he's in the episode or not and there are a handful of episodes where he's just pretty much not in them at all and this episode, Mariko, you know, you see maybe once or twice in flashback and like quite sparingly

I feel like you probably saw her more of the recap speaking and whatnot that you do in the actual episode but her presence looms. But her presence looms large and just the idea too that you know you watch the kind of master play like I think they did nicely to subvert the possibility of a final battle

because it does also feel like they're could be some final battle in this episode. So then to, when it gets laid enough in, you're like, I don't think there's enough time. Yeah, totally. And also, but I like that they actually showed what could have been, too, with that whole, like, narration from Torunaga and then, like, seeing, like, what's going to happen where, like, how now he's got Lady Yoshibah's, he's got her, I guess, she said that. He's got her loyalty back, you know, she pledges the airs forces.

Yeah, exactly. So now when he, like, it says that he's going to. And her flag, that whole thing about, like, who's flag. flag will you be under? Yeah. So when he orders an attack, they're not going to obey him or anything. So, but again, just seeing the scope of what could have been, that was such an awesome shot. And I like how they narrated it with Toranaaga, saying it to Yibushige, that was, but still epic looking shot of what could have been and what is going to happen. Yeah. And the, and the true, the one

time is people spend so much time theorizing about what's going on in Toranauga's mind. And like, it is this intimate moment where you do for a minute get to glimpse into his vision and his foresight, you know, and yeah, the fact that he's like, this all came together. I took all these disparate elements and kind of created a maneuver that would set into motion, yeah, a way in which to topple all of this over the way a battle could, but without actually having to do a battle. Right. And I mean, I don't think it'll fix everything in the most, like, well, everyone's just happy now. But at the same time, like, it is a masterful play that I think, like, the series up until now has had. enough shocking and thrilling moments of fighting. And certainly there have been gore gags and

carnage here and there. But yeah. The show doesn't rely on its action. It relies on its story and its characters and development and all that. So I didn't need it. No, exactly. And it still feels like a lot of action went down and like a lot of big, hefty, you know, emotional and physical toll has been taken. And yet, yeah, we avoided this. And the whole point, and the whole point was Tornaga was trying to avoid all of that. That's the whole point. And he got to have his cake and eat it too in a sense. Like, yeah.

I mean, that's like that literally defeats the whole. I mean, again, as awesome and bombastic and cool as it would have been to see a battle, it defeats the whole purpose and point of the strategist that is Tornaga. So it makes sense not to have it. Yeah. And plus, you're probably all going to kill so much of the country now. Yeah. Yeah.

Right. But, yeah, the paying off of so many things simultaneously is. is really expert writing to me. And I love that it comes back around to, I love the motif of the ship. And it's like he loses her in the moment. And her death is symbolic and it means a lot of different things

to a lot of different, to everybody. You know, she is the figure who can, you know, be this sort of pin at the center of the grenade of all of this. Right, right. But, but yeah, finding that like, even in her final gesture, A, there are aspects of it

that you know are absolutely her and that she kind of lives. You can feel the person there almost. There's something about, I think, when you learn in hindsight what someone actually maybe did on your behalf, like it makes them feel alive

in that moment because it's like there's a new development or something. And so this idea that like, oh my God, she negotiated with the church to spare my life. But then, you know,

you know that, yeah, Ishido out there who's probably going to, yeah, find like posture like that to save face, but then have you killed. But then, oh, wait, you know, we were able to strike an actual deal for your ship. And the ship is like an excellent test because, yeah, like, it is the thing that ties him to the past phase of his life that he's been trying to get back to. And I think the flash forwards are interesting because now it's like, it's not that he could never go back to the place that he came from, but I feel like there is a certain aspect of not going back.

to the old way, but toward a new way. And so, like, yeah, that revelation and the way that it slowly unfolds and you get the initial sort of wallop of like, oh my God, she used one of her final, you know, plays to spare me and look, hey, maybe I can go over here and help Toronaga. But then you find out that Toronaga was also probably heavily involved with this. And that solidifies the fact that, like, of all the characters who have had, you know, like a loyal bond, the two of them, you know, for as much as you see them in separate scenarios, even though, yes, like, she is one of his vassals and quite an important one at that, like,

you know, you experience the both of those characters largely through other characters. And then that moment, you're like, oh, wow, without even seeing it, we can feel how both of them affected this moment in a way that, like, allows for some sort of, I don't know, catharsis in that, like, oh, you know, this is probably a sign of, of what. I must have meant, what our, you know, brief time together must have meant in that she spared me, but also, yeah, to ultimately find out that Toranauga was the one who's basically like, hey, and not that he explicitly finds out it was him directly, because, you know, it's like Mariko brokered it, you know, in the moment. So, you know, at face value, it's, it's, you know, the terms that she brought to them, but also you know that that's in conference with Torinaga. And then that completes the whole test thing later, you know, and yeah, it's like the push and. and pull and the back and forth and the constant like pounding and folding and the tempering of the loyalties

you know and to watch as like Blackthorn and Yibushige have you know drifted together and apart in certain ways and have a lied and have you know followed selfish pursuits in certain ways and then to watch where they both wind up and to watch as like Yibushi Gay is freaking

out and he is like kind of going a little insane by the end of it and he's just so kind of he's been so kind of cooked by being a double agent now that he's lost kind of a sense of self and he's like written so many wills and so he's like spiraling down and then you have blackthorn who you know has constantly been kind of at odds with and shedding you know his his way and accepting this new way and then you know for him to ultimately prove his honorable nature by being like listen you know I know what

this looks like but I also have learned enough about the politics of being here to know that it wasn't my enemies who torched the ship you know like i i understand the political undertone of what this must be and hey you know what you know if we want to lay it all on the table and i want to prove my true true and honest loyalty to you you know i will lay down my life you know if you won't accept my offer and like god just and the moment with buntaro showing him respect and like that was powerful and well earned too um yeah yeah uh yeah i yeah i yeah Before we get into that, too, I will say, too, like, do you think that it was going to take Toranaga, did you think it was going to take him nine times to get the head off of Yipushige? Yes, I definitely thought he would go for 10.

Yeah, I will say this too, like, yeah, maybe you could make the argument that showing, um, geez, me, Blackthorn, showing him in the flash in the flash forward there might take a little bit of 10. If you don't know if you're like novices like us who have never seen read the book or seen the old series, it might take a little tension off knowing that he's safe in the show. But I argue it wouldn't because they do a good job of making you feel, you know, in the moment with certain scenes. Like when he's about to commit Sepico there, I wasn't even thinking about the flash forward anymore. We had seen it a couple times already. So I thought it was done too dramatic and it was a satisfactory effect to the point of again, If you can do it like that, I'm cool with it.

Like, that's where I thought it was done to well, to a good effect. You know what I mean? Yeah, absolutely. And that's an element I'm going to continue chewing on. But it is one where, and I understand that at least the book and whatnot are rooted in actual history and Blackthorn is based on an actual guy. So maybe that's partly true to his life. Like maybe he did return eventually to England and whatnot and was just sort of, it gives. to me the idea that he was obviously, since we're focusing on this and this chapter of his life,

this seems like one of the most significant to the character. And it's haunting for what we're experiencing in the moment. And I have to imagine that, yeah, if he makes it, you know, to be that age and he is, you know, living out his, you know, final years in England, that yeah, like, there's going to be at least some element of all of this that would be swirling around. Like, it is kind of a mournful it is kind of like a somber foreshadowing

of what's to come for his end but I think it also kind of creates this interesting it creates this interesting moment because you know

it's yeah it's like the love is going to stay with him forever but then we actually end the episode off on the sort of opportunity of the here

and now you know of his you know this sort of prime that he is in or at least you know this particularly

significant moment so yeah like it ends with a hope and a sense of endeavor for him and a new sense of purpose. And I guess when you see him in the end, it almost feels like now all of a sudden it's odd to look at him in the place that he might have come from. And two, like it's like that thing that Toranaga said, like I love again the poetry of the show and the and the structural balancing of the show because yeah, like they harken back to that conversation from early on about, you know, like what is your conflict, what is it, that whole thing about like your conflict doesn't mean anything, let it go,

you know, but it does if I win. And like the breaking of that when he ultimately comes back around and he lets go and he's like, yeah, my war is a small, yeah, he says that. My war is a small war and it's perhaps based on something much less meaningful in a way. Like, you know, obviously we get a glimpse into the complexity of how life works here and the thin lines. The line that the like thin scaffold that directs so much of everything

where it's like we have tradition and we have protocol but then we have brief moments where human nature transcends all that stuff and like

there are so many moving parts and pieces to come back to that idea that like you know what there's so many times I tried to kill this guy and he makes me laugh you know

and like there are aspects the way he cusses yeah things like that and it's like it's a human thing and it reminded me of the earthquake then and the superstition of like, you know, so many times it's, it might just be a little thing that defies all of the politics and logic we mostly operate on. And yeah, like, you do get

the sense that there is mutual respect there. But Toranaga is obviously like not probably viewing himself in certain ways on the exact same like level plane of like, like he's above everybody in a lot of ways looking down because, you know, like that's I think who you would have to in some way be to, you know, author such an endeavor. Like, you know, at least from the show's perspective, he does seem like, you know, a wise and calculated and just and compassionate leader. But again, you know, he also, I have to imagine anybody capable of like leading a nation has to have a little bit of that, you know, insanity of some kind. But yeah, just like the balancing of of the hefty nature of things

with the thin, you know, little fleeting ephemera that make so much of life is fascinating. Going back a couple episodes, I thought it was fascinating how they foreshadowed when Toranaga and Mariko were talking about how were they going to get Oceba

back on his side. That too. Literally, but Toranauga asked Mariko, he asked her the question and she was the answer. I just thought that was fascinating foreshadowing. And it gives her the full wraparound because it's like she gets

the release she's been begging for and she also gets to be the answer. You know, of all these spiritual kind of duties and things, you know, these you know, I'm blanking on what the exact right word for it is, but just yeah, these

these, you know, spiritual duties that she has to her various allegiances and whatnot. Oh God, my train of thought, yeah yeah it's those things are she's done after all of this

carrying that stuff around and kind of living in this prolonging of her life that is clearly painful to some degree kind of perpetually and being strong

feeling like maybe she's being strung along by you know being told she has some kind of bigger purpose there you go or meaning in all of this when it comes right down to it

yeah she is able to strike like the most meaningful yeah culmination of all of that and really make good on that but also achieve the release that she has wanted and I feel like as much as you want her to end up with Blackthorn

like no like this is the piece for her character and it's beautiful that yeah that piece speaks to her old friend cuts through all the other chaff of who our fathers are and what they did and just looks at the present moment and the little gesture of the poem and I feel like even in the last episode they kind of cast off the poem is like you know like

what is this you know the brief leaf with with no branch no leaves or whatever you know and then this one said to her son was the one that right yeah they call back to it here but in a compassionate way and they finish it together you know he offers up a line and she refines it and then that's part of the message that they deliver and it's just yeah it's it's wrapped up in so much poetry as well as so much sharp writing and observant you know storytelling and and ways of showing us character like again i feel like a different show would have had like at least like a i hate you but damn it i respect you kind of moment with puntaro there at the end but instead it's just like he comes to help they both acknowledge their mutual grief he hands him the water perfect and that's all you need

to be like hey bud respect i'm glad that we're united in this and and we all kind of yeah have have left some of our personal selfish gains and seen like what the true vision is and what, you know, a better way forward for kind of everyone involved with this could be. Citizens of the Reject Nation, or should I say, royal rejects, because that is who we call those who check out our RR Apparel at RejectNation Shop.com. We come out with new designs every month or every two months. It is personally my favorite way you can support the channel, Reason being is because we are involved with every one of the exclusive are our designs that are up at the shop.

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We'd love to see it when people do end up buying the shirts. Thank you, Royal Rejects. See you guys soon. you know yeah yeah um i don't have too many more thoughts i'm gonna look up if you're okay with it some trivia stuff but i will before i do i will say again amazing show uh acting across the board the music too by atticus ross and the other ross guy and the other guy i can't remember his name uh music uh just really set the tone with the the mood and atmosphere and just uh all that uh writing story uh character development there's just so many different uh things about the show that i

loved. Yeah. I'm just fascinating all across the board. Let me just see if, if there are any trivia effects for the show, let's, let's see. Look some stuff up. I'm just real, real quick over this. Um, me really appreciated his performance and the send-up. Yeah, because he was almost, I wouldn't say a throwaway character, but I didn't appreciate

his character. He grew on, he definitely grew up a while, but yeah, he grew on me for sure. It's one of the more gradual arcs, and I think they, again, did a nice job of having a lot of different arcs either in various stages. of acceleration. Some of them are slower burns. Some of them are more, you know, immediate. And you had Muraji, you know, the spy, samurai. I really loved what they did there. And the translation scene back and forth with him, I thought was great. Alvito was a really strong supporting character. Who grew on me a lot despite the dubious nature. And you even remember with Alvito,

like I even said, you know, during the couple conversations, like, they don't listen to him. Like, yeah, he's, yeah. He's sharp. Like, you know, he's, he's sharp. Like, you know, he, he's, he's, does have his own biases and interests in light of those. But yeah, like, he is sharp. And a character like Yibushige, again, like, I love that he, because I've heard a lot of people say, like, oh, he's little, he's basically a little, little finger from Game of Thrones, which in a lot of ways he is, because he's playing wildly between both sides and is really like a rat in a lot of ways, despite being so likable and so kind of brash. But, you know, the send-off between him and Toronaga, I thought had a really appropriate amount of, like,

You get how these guys are friends, and then you get the line where the duty comes back in. But even in the non-prolonging of that moment and how cold that turn kind of feels in the instant, when they share that look and he just goes for it, it's like he does get the honorable death in a way, even though he's like freaking out before that. And, you know, he just accepts it in the moment. I was wondering, and I thought they timed that incredibly. And I think that's credit to the direction as well as the actors very much. I'm sure they had to feel, it's their job to feel that moment and to sell that moment. Yeah, this did not affect my enjoyment of the show. It was perfection for the most part, but I really would have loved to have seen Rodriguez one more time.

Yeah, yeah, but still that again, did not affect storyline or anything else. And real quick, Fuji as well. I really loved Fuji. Yeah, becoming a nun. Yeah, and just the last exchange she has with Blackthorn. And I really liked, again, it's, it's, it's. It's a really nice testament to the tension and the, you know, beautiful use, again, of context, culture, character, all those different things working together that moment where she's like, hey, Torunaga has basically, like, allowed me. And she also was kind of, you know, begging to be freed of all of this.

And now she is found. At the beginning, yeah. Yeah. Her Hiramatsu, like, said, no, you are here for a bigger purpose. Now you're going to serve something bigger. And now she's going to serve something even bigger, kind of, than all of that. And to see her turn in that sense and that brief moment and they're shooting them from these profiled angles with not a lot of negative space, you know, it's, it's kind of, you wonder what the turn is going to take when he's like, I order you to stay. You're my consort. And she's like, I'm sorry. It's just, that's just not what's happening anymore. And then the way I thought even that showed the growth, it's like, you know, he cares enough about, I mean, A, you know, she relies on her to some degree, but also it seems like they do have a bond of some kind from all of this. So the fact that he at least protests and then immediately is like, you're going to be the best none.

And then they go out together and share that, you know, sending off that final letting go where, yeah, they scatter the ashes and he convinces her. He brings a part of his world in the burial at sea, you know, and combines it kind of with hers in a way that is, you know, that they can truly meet in the middle on and is based in a, in a, you know, something spiritual that plays into that whole idea of just like, nobody in particular is God, just God, just the spirit, just the gesture, just the emotional intent and the fact that, yeah, she, he helps her let go of them, who was such a big kind of moment at the beginning of the show, all that transpired with her husband and their baby and, you know, up till now, and then her, you know, helping him to let go of Monaco's Cross, let your hand be the last to hold it like yeah so many great sendoffs and and for again a character who is for all intents

and purposes probably not in the show for a ton of like pound for pound screen time left such a huge impact and and had such a lovely presence absolutely clearly we cannot say enough i cannot i love i loved Fuji absolutely terrific um okay i'll read a couple because they're very long and then i'll read the the longest one you can We need to make this video three hours. We might be here a while if I read the longest one. So this one says the samurai would shave the middle part of his head called a chanmaj. Chanmage?

Chanmage. That's my guess. Thank you so much. I'm not the authority. That sounds right to me. Chanmage, where the remaining hair was oiled and waxed before being tied into a small tail folded onto the top of the head in the characteristic top. not so that his helmet, Cabuto, fit tightly onto the head when donning his armor for battle with less hair the samurai would also not suffer from the build up of heat on the head when wearing the helmet.

I guess, yeah, you prevent skid and, I mean, you're sweating maybe, so I don't know. I don't know if it's your hair and your scalp working together. But that's, yeah, I mean, I'm always curious as to like how much of that is symbolic versus functional versus what overlap there is between both. The wife of a samurai would receive a small tantal called a kaikin, a small dagger as a wedding gift. Okay. That's cool. Interesting. Okay.

I wonder if that's a sinister wedding gift or a... Ah, here's what you spoke about. William Adams, the historical figure, which the character John Blackthor was based on, spoke a number of languages, including Portuguese. Yes. Yeah, that makes sense. And that is one thing, you know, it's... There's less made of speaking Portuguese specifically. But I feel like, yeah, like we hear English for all the non-Japanese languages.

And I believe that much of the time, unless you're with Blackthorn specifically with his crew or whatever is, yeah, Portuguese. Hiro yuki Sonata performed his own stunts. No surprise there. Sure. I believe that. I see that. And man, like, what a presence. And from, I don't know the ins and outs of the behind the scenes, but, you know, it seems like he was at least involved in the, you know, structural formation of this show too

Elizabeth the first was queen of England and Ireland during this time period. I wonder too, I think somewhere I saw this brought up like Scorsese's Silence is a movie I've always thought was very cool and underrated. I don't think it's not a badass movie,

but you get what I mean. It's a really thoughtful movie that I think takes place around this time and place and it's about monks in Japan So, I don't know. Yeah, this was giving me similar vibes in terms of the contemplative and the spiritual nature of things. So Hiro Yuki Sanada and Nestor Carbonell, I believe that's her Rodriguez, appeared in the series Lost but didn't share any scenes together.

Okay. Anna Sawai and Takiro Hirah were both in the Apple TV series Monarch, Legacy of Monsters. Yes, they were. Hiro played the father of Sawai's character. Yep. Yep. Okay. It's a big plot thread, man. Showrunner, Justin Marks, and director Jonathan von Tolkien cast Cosmo Jelvis as John Blackthorn after seeing his performance in Come with Horses. Interesting. We'll have to check that out.

Yeah. See what got him the role. This reunites Hiroyuki Sonata and Tadanubu Asano after Mortal Kombat 2021. Oh, sure. Let us know in the comments. Let us know in the comments. comments if you ever, let us know in the comments if you ever want us to interview Cosmo Jarvis and have me be part of that. And I will do the voice if you know what I mean. I don't know. Was he, uh, was he, uh, was he, uh, was he, didn't even react to. Raiden?

Uh, yes, he was raiden. Yeah. And then, uh, uh, Hirooky. Yeah, I didn't even the scorpion. I didn't even think about that. Yeah. Uh, uh, uh, uh, uh, who's this, Lordy Shido who was Taka Hirohira. and Anasawai Mariko

appear in Monarch Legacy of Monsters as Father and DaWere We already talked about that one It's a repeat fact that truth You lose it your edge man You're the trivia guy They put it here again

So here All right so the last two Which got lots of likes Oh sure All right these are spoilers But I can imagine If you made it to this part You know

Whilst this is a remake of Shogun The 1980 miniseries Both these miniseries Are based on the real life Exploits of William Adams A ship's pilot who was shipwrecked on the shores of Japan in 1600 and became the first Englishman to make contact with Japan.

William and his second mate were eventually made Western Samurai and became advisors to the Shogun of the time. See, that's another thing too is like, you know, there's definitely a trope of like, oh, Western guy goes to Japan and immediately just like fully comes back with like, you know, the entire culture, you know, wrapped around him. Whereas the growth of Blackthorn accepting, A, hygiene, and B, just their dress and they're just, I don't know, the physicality of the place and culture that he is steeped in, like, at the end of the show, it did just look natural to see him in Eastern dress and in those spaces.

And you're like, yeah, this is by this show and the experience of this story, this feels like someone who has just kind of shifted and adapted to this place that he basically now lives for the foreseeable future. And we talked about, too, the last episode where... And he's like learning the language. The last episode, too, when he was going to second Mariko, when she was going to perform Sepico, was for two reasons. Not only like, because like if this was originally earlier in the show where he had not developed and, you know, gotten this ideology, he would have just ran up and got her and they would have got out of there, which was, again, a good subversion of expectations. But it was also for two reasons. One, because he loved her and respected her. And two, I believe it's because if you commit sepico or...

Sepuku. Sorry, I always say it wrong. But if you perform that too, I feel like especially on the western side of the world, we start to throw all kinds of vowels around. I believe, too, the whole thing is like from what I was reading, if you perform, if you take your own life, you go to a bad place, right? And so. In Christian religion, yeah, it is a mortal sin.

It's a mortal sin. So he was like, that was a respectful, like, thing on his end, too. Well, it's that thing, yeah, it's that arising of like, you know what, because I'm going to, I'm going to honor your decision and I'm going to help it be as painless as possible. For sure, exactly. That, that too, yes. And that's an act of love in a different way. All right. Let's wrap it up with this final one.

Angin is Japanese for pilot, which was the nickname given to pilot major John Blackthorn. John Blackthorn himself was molded on English navigator, William Adams, who would be the second foreigner and first European to become a samurai. His Japanese name was Mura Anjin, as in the pilot of Mira, pronounced Miora, Mira, Mira. City 50 miles south of Tokyo. Pilot is also the name of the first episode of the series. Hey, hey, hey, we brought it full circle. Andrew and Jin and Drew Shige. John Nizio.

Yes, Janizio. How are you, my friend? We're right back at the beginning of the video. Any way, guys. Thank you so much for joining us. Thank you for helping make this. It was a fun ride. Yeah, a really memorable, rich experience.

And, hey, hopefully we get to cover something together in this format again sometime soon when a proper opportunity arises. But yeah, this has been just such a tour to forest of filmmaking, you know, from themes and and, yeah, writing, directing, acting, production designs, locations, all that stuff. Even if they were in Canada, Andrew. Yes. But I only knew that because I watched that. Everybody shoots in Canada. Yeah, yeah, that too. But also, we watched an incredible interview with Anasawai with, I believe it was Stephen Colbert.

And that's the only reason I knew it was in Canada. I was convinced this was 1600 Japan. Yeah, they found a really great location. Yeah, absolutely. That's movie magic, boy. For sure. But, yeah, a wonderful show. I'm so glad I got to do it with you.

And thank you guys so much for just keeping us informed in the comments section. Love you guys. Awesome. Appreciate you. Be well. Thank you.