The original post: /r/television by /u/Successful_Craft3076 on 2024-04-24 19:09:24.
When I started watching the first episode, I wouldn’t have guessed how I am gonna end up by the end of the series: With two “very” red and wet eyes.
I dunno which was more surprising, the amount of times this series made me cry, or how wrong I was about where it was heading. By the end I was like the anjin. Humbled but finally with the vision to what it was all about.
Shogun is not about war, it is not another Hollywood epic about honor and bravery. It is far more important. It is about the life and the death itself. And the meaning behind them.
It is a huge, epic character study unlike any other. Like the game of thrones shogun is filled with memorable characters. But here unlike the GOT they don’t prove their worth by being smart of strong. But by understanding their place in the bigger picture.
Here the death is not when you lose the game. But a natural and largely accepted part of the game itself. It is a ritual, even a weapon. Here people are defined by how they died almost as much as how they lived.
The strongest people in shogun are the people who understand and accept their fate. The most powerful weapons are simple human interactions. A poem, a mere glance or a gesture can be more dangerous than a thousand swords.
The words like sublime or low key can’t do this series justice. Now I am fully aware that my judgement might be clouded by recency bias. But I just wish more series would dive into people’s mind as deep as shogun or were as focused on little details and nuances in our interactions