I Finally Read Shogun - My Thoughts
ฝัง
- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 16 ก.พ. 2024
- With the upcoming adaptation of James Clavell's classic novel "Shogun" set to premier soon, I have finally gone ahead and read through this epic story. Here are my thoughts!
Check out my review of the 1980 Adaptation and my initial thoughts of the trailer for the new series!
Review of the 1980 Adaptation: • Shogun (1980) | Samura...
Thoughts on new series: • My Thoughts on the Upc...
-------------------------------------------------------------------------
Music:
"Wheel Of Karma" by Audionautix is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 license. creativecommons.org/licenses/...
Artist: audionautix.com/
Artwork:
Classical art, which in most cases can be considered public domain.
Art from Osprey Publications.
Still images from the 1980 Adaptation of Shogun and the upcoming series on FX/Hulu.
Other modern artist renditions and photos as well as photos from Wikipedia, if you see your work in this video please contact me so that I can give you proper credit!
-------------------------------------------------------------------------
Social Media:
Facebook: / theshogunateyoutube
Twitter: / shogunatethe
Support the channel on Patreon! www.patreon.com/theshogunatey...
#Shogun #Japan #FX
![[Full Episode] MasterChef Junior Thailand มาสเตอร์เชฟ จูเนียร์ ประเทศไทย Season 3 Episode 4](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/e7Oqqo90x_w/mqdefault.jpg)
![CAMPปลิ้น | EP.77[1/2] ก็ไม่ได้ชอบเอาชนะ แต่เรื่องอะไรต้องแพ้!!](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/JraaBYOd7I0/mqdefault.jpg)
Getting a number of comments on my usage of the word "adaption" instead of "adaptation". I realize now that I was using the version of the word that is not as preferred in this context and will be more mindful of it in the future.
wonder if you ever read Taiko by Eiji Yoshikawa
@@khal7702 I have not but I've heard good things!
Well in Gai-Jin (kind of sequel only set in the 1800s) we get some of the backstory related to the original book. I love how Clavell went and made a story of the start of Tokugawa Bakufu with Shogun and the end with Gai-Jin. Highly recommend that one as well.
You will be disappointed with the forthcoming series.
There will be a Captain Marvel character and she will kick the butts of the men in physical fights: a co-protagonist character that did not exist in Clavell's story.
Adaption or adaptation... From what I have experienced people usually use the different terms to gaslight themselves and others when yet another franchise is twisted, often to the point of total destruction. To simply rationalise the vandalism.
So, in short: never mind.
The original miniseries was what got me interested in Japanese culture And history
Same
That and the very first Shogun Total War, the game that kicked off the Total War series. Enjoyed watching my father play it when I was a kid, and enjoyed it more when he let play it.
Ha! Koko onaji desu!
Me too
Yup, same
I read it as a teenager when I had recently began to have a huge interest in Japan. Since then I've read tons of books about Japan so I might experience it differently now but I did really enjoy reading it and I also watched the TV series and enjoyed that too.
Me too. At 17 I went to the bank to make a deposit and actually found the book lying on the counter (someone had forgotten it there). Or maybe it was left there deliberately for me to read it, lol
I love the original mini-series to bits, but it's definitely a victim of time constraints. The book expands more in every way, flipping through different character viewpoints. (It's how you can tell a bunch of the reviews of the new adaptation never read the damn thing)
The day after “Shogun” finished airing in 1980, I bought the book and read it. I’m glad that you finally got a chance to “read” it. I found it interesting that the author, James Clavell, had been a POW of the Japanese during World War II. His life experience could have painted a negative picture for the book, but he told an interesting and absorbing tale of samurai culture and of the Japan of old.
If you've never read King Rat also by James Clavell, I would recommend picking it up, it's completely absorbing, you actually feel like you're there which is really uncomfortable at times seeing as how the source material is somewhat what grim...but he paints a fabulous picture and he offers a lot of useful information and insights to people's motivations.
It's also a heck of a lot shorter than Shogun, maybe 250 pages.
What @billbixby557 said. King Rat is an essential read. (An excellent film was also made from that book.)
Sounds to me like Stockholm syndrom.
I first read Shogun in 1979 when I was 19. I’ve read it multiple times over the years and recently listened to the audible version, which I enjoyed more than I expected to. It still remains my favorite novel ever and one that had long lasting influence in my life.
I think it’s a book whose subtleties require multiple reads and I’m not sure just listening to it will give one the entirety of the experience that is Shogun. I was kinda sad you thought it was only enjoyable, when most of us who have read and loved Shogun most of our lives, feel such immense regard and passion for the characters, the culture and the political intrigue.
I personally loved the chapters discussing sex in its many forms. To me it perfectly into the backstory of Kiko, the life of courtesans, the birth of the geisha and how Japanese viewed sex, amongst so many other things, like cleanliness, compared to Europeans of the time. This is why it’s a story to be read and savored and not just once.
Couldn't agree more about this with you. I watched the first two episodes of the new version and in some ways it's not as good as the frist version and no where as good as the book. The fact that they are running away from the sex scenes in the book, especially the queer and pleasure women is kinda sad. Seeing that the 1980's version did a far better job of telling that part of the story than this new version is doing. You would think that in 2024 sex, especially queer sex wouldn't scare people as much as it's looks like it's doing. Hopefully it will get better, but I'm not counting on it
My favorite parts of the book were always the ones that featured all the scheming, debating and politicking among the Japanese...and that's all the stuff that didn't make it into the original miniseries because they made Blackthorne the sole viewpoint character. I also could never warm up to Clavell's creative renaming of all the characters, I mean "Nakamura" for Toyotomi Hideyoshi? That's like making a book about George Washington and renaming him "Smith". I often get the impression that Clavell had a phonebook of contemporary Tokyo at his dispoal and raided that for the names.
Yes, I agree. Particularly him and Nobunaga get a
reduction in stature somehow.
Looking forward to the series! Hope it can set the stage for future high-production quality samurai shows that embody the spirit of the older films while taking advantage of modern day cinematic technology.
You need to get yourself a netflix account lots of japanese history doc's on there .....
Just hope the woke mindvirus haven't infected the new version too much. Strong fighting girl bosses etc.. Fingers crossed!😅
@hothead8268 do you ever separate the things you love from politics? Biden and Trump have destroyed some people.
I’ve read the book at least 5 times. One of my Favorites!!! Love the characters, the history, the storyline. I did not read it as a textbook.
Thank you for this excellent review. Shogun is one of my favourite books and it was fascinating to hear your thoughts on the accuracy of the portrayal of samurai in the book. Very excited for the new show!
I've been contemplating for a while on reading the novel. and thank you because you just sold me!
I loved this book and the original mini series. It helped me appreciate Japan all the more when I lived there.
Props to going through it. Format doesn't matter its the story itself that matters. The audio book had a fantastic narrator too
The sentiment of “Don’t review the show unless you’ve read the book” is quite strange, honestly. I completely understand it if they’re extrapolating the flaws of a show into the source material, but otherwise? An adaptation should be able to stand on its own.
I also watched the series before i quite recently read the book. That was maybe four years ago.
I watched Shogun when it aired in Germany in the 80's, i was maybe five or six. It was this series that sparked my passion for feudal Japanese culture and the Samurai.
Shogun and Sherlock Holmes were the TV shows of my childhood.^^
And funnily enough, although i never felt i had missed out on the book or even was actively looking for it, i simply found the book.
Neighbors had put a box with old books outside on the sidewalk as a giveaway for whoever was interested. Thanks neighbors!
Thank you for another informative video. I'll say, i have Always been interested in history. But the 1st Shogun Total war on PC, 20 years ago. Brought me to a place where I wanted more information on Japanese history. The true history. This is why I truly enjoy your channel so much. Keep up the great work.
Just a minor quibble: “adaption” is something changed by its environment. “AdapTAtion” is changing or updating something to make it function better in a new setting pronounced “Adap-TEY-Tion”.
The length of a giraffe’s neck or the shape of a finch’s beak is an adaption
The movie version of a book is an adaptation
I will be more mindful of this in the future!
Imagine the 1980s before Japan made headlines as the new economic superpower (i.e. some years before the Plaza accord 1985 and the ensuing bubble economy). Imagine You being just about adult but knowing virtually nothing about Japan or Asia as a whole (and I am not American). Imagine You have never seen anything on TV that was not dubbed into Your local language (yes, Germany dubs everything). Then You see the Shogun miniseries as a window to an unknown world - where the Japanese would indeed speak their language and You see subtitles (common in many countries, still unheard of in Germany to this day), which excellently depicts the very real language gap in the story. And then You see the extremely exotic ways how Japanese write, and You see a world which (even as history fiction) is on this planet, but completely strange ... THAT was what triggered me to learn more about this side of the globe. I think the old tv series did a good job in introducing Japan to people who only had Cinema, TV, newspapers and books.
GENAU so war's bei mir. Ich war bloß jünger, denk ich. Grad noch Kindergarten.
@@danyael777 endlich mal einer ausser mir der die Serie auch mit Aufmerksamkeit und Interesse gesehen hat. Damals war ich offenbar der einzige damit, und ich hatte auch noch keinen Videorekorder, d.h. ich hatte danach 20 Jahre lang nur meine Erinnerung, denn soweit ich weiss wurde die Serie nur ein einziges Mal gezeigt und kam erst Jahrzehnte später auf DVD nochmal raus.
@@jangelbrich7056Ja, glaub auch.
Ich hab oft meinen Freunden davon erzählt, allerdings war meine Erinnerung die eines 5-6 jährigen und mir fehlte tieferes Verständnis für den Plot. Faszinierend war's trotzdem.^^
Don't forget that the book while based on real historical persons and events is fictional history and that the author's focus was the personal story of his main character and not the history of Japan.
Perfect timing! I just started reading it after you brought it up at that Shogun 2 event 😂
Thanks for the show
You nailed it sir- this miniseries (original) got me hooked into this Samurai "culture" and from then on I became fascinated with Japanese history! Read the book right away!! Great job sir!!😁
Because I was a lazy student, I took a class in high school (1992) that was…ahem….”literally” reading literature of our choice and doing a small presentation on it. This was the book I chose and throughly enjoyed it. Yes, Clavell wasn’t the most life changing author and he his own point of view. But it was entertaining and easy ”A” for the class.
Like so many others, I did see the 1980s tv series and still get a kick out of Richard Chamberlain’s over the top performance. But I felt it was a product of its time and we just didn’t have as much at our fingertips back then; including historical reference. So unless a person was a large university, I think this was a good introduction to feudal Japan for people who didn’t have access to much information. My issue is that many people based their opinion of the time and culture because of the miniseries and didn’t move past being uninformed.
Cheers
Nice! I loved the audiobook
I'm the first to like this video! I read the book about 100 times! I will read it again, now that the series is coming!
IVE READ ALL OF CLAVELLS BOOKS, CEPT A CHILDRENS BOOK. I HAD JUST COME BACK FROM 5YRS IN JAPAN '72, BRILLIANT!
Thank you for the review 👍🏻 I haven't read or listen to the book versions but I did watch the original series and I'm planning to watch the movie.
I'm half way through the book right now and first watched the series as a kid on TV. I really like how the book goes into more detail about the thoughts of different characters which is some what missed in the original series. Characters feel more complete. I'm looking forward to seeing the costumes and decent battle scenes in the new one.
It's crazy you hadn't read it this whole time given your channels focus. One of the best books I have ever read the combination of fiction and historical accuracy adding to the immersion is unparalleled.
My favorite book growing up as a teen... Nothing beats exotic culture and adventure.
Until you realize that all the descriptions of exotic culture you are reading is basically a white man’s fantasy of what he expects the culture to be, not what it actually is. Shogun is Orientalist fantasy literature.
I am so glad you got to experience the original story before the new series came out. I have read Shogun every year since I was 10. I appreciate that the book is a product of its time so I will be very interested to see if they go for a more historically accurate setting & history. I recently rewatched the 80’s series after reading the book again and I realised just how much of the book is missing. I’m not surprised people came away with more questions than answers.
I never read James Cavill's book but I did see the 1980 series on television and am looking at the new adaptation on Hulu. In the new version I hope the subplot of romance between Blackthorn and Mariko is changed. An alliance between the two, growing respect and attraction/chemistry would be enough of a distraction while focusing more on feudal Japanese culture would make the experience of the story more realistic.
I had a great “Wait a minute…” moment when I visited Matsumoto Castle in Nagano, which was built around the time that Shogun takes place, and was considered innovative in design because it accounted for guns - the moat is deliberately wide to increase the inaccuracy of firearms at the time for instance. The people in power at that time were very aware of the impact of guns for at least a generation.
I also just finished the audiobook in anticipation of the upcoming FX movie. The book was soo much better than the old Richard Chamberlan mini-series, which I had seen many times. I think it was a fantastic depiction of feudal Japan. I too was disappointed that the final main battle (old mini-series AND the book) was not part of the story. The book really built up to the final battle with all the shifting of troops and intrigue. I was ready for the big clash. Then...The End.
Excellent breakdown. I've listened to the audiobook narrated by David Case (very hard to find) more than I care to admit! Imo, it's a much better immersive version than what is readily available and allows for listeners to really feel what life was like in feudal Japan
Watched the 1980 series last week as an appetizer. I'm pumped for the new one. It looks like they're going to focus more on the Japanese politics. They also made Mariko a trained samurai or warrior of some kind, which is probably different from the book. Apparently from a simple Google search, those women existed in feudal Japan, but never fought in battles. Hopefully, the new show will have the final battle between to two rival lords.
I read it back in the early 90s. It's my favourite book. Of course, I only had a cheap pocketbook copy of it.
Your luxurious hardcover copy is one of the most beautiful books I've ever seen. Wow.
Wouldn’t mind having this book. Looks great too!
One of my favorite books.
While it is easier in the book, I'm hoping that Omi gets a better deal than the 1980's version. I'm also hoping the "thinking" parts come across as soliloquies to better flesh out the story rather than have a narrator speaking them.
I haven't read the book myself. Though following the start of the new series I have certainly been tempted too.
Really enjoying your videos and very glad that you did "read" the book (I've recently finished it again myself), I think you'll agree that it adds a much greater layer when reviewing the 1980s and 2014 Mini series.
Quick Question: Which Audio version of the book did you listen to? The version I had the narrator struggled with the Japanese words which is a failure on the Producers end LOL.
I find it interesting that so many reviewers of the book and miniseries like to take pokes at James Clavell and his view of the Japanese, and whether he was actually knowledgeable of them and their culture. After four years as a prisoner of the Japanese during WW2 in Changi POW prison, Clavell was quite familiar with the casual cruelty of their warrior culture of the time. Changi was basically a death sentence in WW2 and far more men died there than ever came out alive. Clavell was one of the few. So if anyone thinks he was over the top in his depiction of a culture that admired death so much, he knew what he was talking about. One time at Changi a Japanese officer offered Clavell his sword, thinking that he would want to kill himself and end the shame of being a POW. Clavell was not interested in the offer, which the Japanese officer may have found puzzling. But it simply serves to illustrate how far apart Imperial Japan and Imperial Britain were in their values. Anyway, I just felt I had to say that seeing as so many reviewers want to lecture Clavell on what he got right and wrong about Japanese culture, which is a moving target anyways. The Japan of Shogun days was not the Japan of WW2 which is not the Japan of current times. As westerners and outsiders to the culture you will never find a perfect understanding of it all. Just enjoy the book or mini-series and learn what you can without offering up any all-knowing or superior attitudes about it. After all, it is a historical novel that is both fun and very interesting to read, not a dry university reference level text book. 🤷♂🤨🙄
Wonderful book.
I remember when it came out. My wife and I were living in Colorado and we went to a mall bookstore to get a copy. My wife started reading it first and well into the book she found a massive printing error where an entire section of the book was missing. We went to the bookstore and they had boxes piled upon boxes of defective books and were simply exchanging them with no questions asked. We both really enjoyed it and I think it did kind of spark my interest in Japanese culture, which had been previously heavily influenced by reading a lot of WWII history, and especially by reading "Give Us This Day" in 6th grade. Obviously that did not leave a positive impression. I still have that original paperback copy.
Say, what do you think of Kuroawa’s take on it? He didn’t sign on for this one because he felt it strayed too much from history.
I can understand his feelings. I think the real history is a bit more interesting too but that's a personal preference
Hard to imagine Kurosawa directing a US-based miniseries anyway. Oh I see, by "didn't sign on" you don't mean he was offered the job, you refer to the fact that he publicly criticized the series for its inaccuracy.
No way. I also listen to you while painting miniatures. Hell yea man
Im a fan pls heart ty. God bless your channel so informative as always
I wish this video was longer and more in-depth pertaining to Japan at the time vs the novel. Thou it's great to listen to your thoughts about the novel.
Read it while stationed on Okinawa in 76 and still have the boxed DVD
I read the book over Christmas break, it was always on my books-to-read list. What inspired me was the upcoming FX mini-series. I am glad I did. It is ok book.
i found this book in my house when i was like 14y/o and i started reading it without even knowing to be a well known and loved novel, that had already had a movie made based on it. i used to get stoned and read about Blackthornes experiences in Japan. it was a long book tho and i either lost it or someone took it to read for themselves. i only made it to just past halfway tho. i need to get the book again and finish it. i highly recommend this book ; )
It’s interesting to see so many hopeful for the new series. Sadly that ship has sailed a bunch of times for me. Hollywood has currently dropped the ball on a lot of projects. But I look forward to your review of it.
I'm glad you finally had a chance to read/listen to this book. I have read it many times and also listened to the audio version on several occasions. I hope the new series is able to include more of the below-the-surface depth of Mariko, Omi, Fujiko and even Yabu. That is one thing the 80's adaptation (note, I think you use this word without the middle syllable) didn't really do justice. Although I enjoy watching that, I look at it as a Coles Notes version of the book. If you've seen the 2-hr abbridged version, it's even worse in this regard. I would liken that to reading the synopsis on the inside cover of the jacket.
I loved Toshiro Mifune as Toranaga so it will be interesting to see how he comes accross in the new series.
From what I've seen in previews the are going to be closer to the book and show the other character's point of view. Really hoping for a good adaptation of the book. One of my favorites.
Ok, so it’s about as accurate as Mobile Fighter G Gundam, got it. 😂
It's not really about the historical truths the book got wrong, such as Bushido coming after the fact, and guns being integral to warfare at the time. When first experiencing the book with further knowledge of actual Japanese history, these things are more in the forefront. Rather, for the book to bring a largely unknown culture to mainstream in the 1980 miniseries, and to put Japanese dialogue on prime time TV without subtitles, created this great interest in the culture as a whole. It's here where the book really succeeded, in firing the imaginations of such a culture, inspiring a whole generation to pursue more study about Japan.
So yeah, it would be interesting for me to experience it now for the first time. I'd have the same reaction as you. However, it actually remains in this glorious nostalgic, unreachable position of being this wondrous fantasy about a real life culture from history that I desperately wanted to know more about, and thankfully, do. I love the 1980 miniseries for that. I'm beside myself excited for the remake, because they seem to have put so much emphasis on historical accuracy that I think it'll deviate from the books in some of these details, which is exciting. It could wind up being the most historically accurate and realized production of the period, maybe outside of some of the Taiga shows, while also being a hell of a tale. I can't wait!
Shogun is one of the very first novels that I ever read and it really changed me for good. It makes me happy to see a lot more people reading it now, so many years later. Coincidentally, some months ago I was talking to my girlfriend about how they should make a new Shogun show, as the old one was too old... Days later I found out they ARE making a new show.
Read shogun years ago and read again just before the TV series started so far I've enjoyed the episodes and hopefully the writers won't ruin it
I read it and all the other books he wrote years ago and they all transport you into ancient japanese culture
Now I want to buy this book because I have it on my tbr anyway and that cover is fire. I also have the latest book in the series in Dutch, in hardcover. It has a very pretty slipcase but I only ever read books in their native language if I'm able too.
I remember reading this as a teen, it was a great read but man the ending felt... unsatisfying? And even though back then I had no idea who the historical people were, it's difficult to remember specific parts now that I do know the history since all the names were changed. I actually don't mind the portrayal of Bushido, ninja, and the aversion to guns that much, since that was very much a product of its time. Like even today there's a LOT of information on samurai and sengoku history that's not available in English, or is very difficult to access(like the Chronicle of Oda Nobunaga is in English but is stuck behind an excessive price tag or only available in a very limited amount of university libraries.)
The "samurai were against guns" thing even made it into Japanese TV series in the '90s. Or at least the English translation thereof (Gokenin Zankuro, Series 1, Episode 2--love that show).
It seems to be a pervasive myth in the Anglo sphere, probably to help us separate the rifle wielding imperial soldiers of the other side in WWII and the old romantic katana wielding samurai. Its hard to have a new ally in the Cold War if you focus too much on how much you shot each other
a little bit, but its not accurate at all. Nobunaga, hideyoshi, etc were so successful because they used more guns against their foes.
I was a kid when the TV show came out. It shocked me and got me interested in Japanese history ever since.
Based on the trailer for the new series, and the first sentence of the premise at Wikipedia, I'm concerned that we're going to get an inclusion of an "action girl" just for the sake of having an action girl.
First! Finally! Can you do a movie review on the 13 Assassins?
All in good time!
@@TheShogunate OMG you replied! Been a huge fan of yours since 8K subscribers.
Thank you for this review.
The only changes, from the book, that I would like to see in the upcoming mini-series would be in the interest of being more historically accurate. I'm not talking about changing the plot of the book to reflect true history, but more along the lines of getting rid of some of the outdated thinking from the book, if it can be done while staying true to the overall story arc.
I especially liked the scenes between Toranaga and Blackthorne. The dancing lesson and the diving lesson.
I've been trying to find literature, both non-fiction and fiction, on the samurai and Japan's ancient and pre-modern era's history. Your youtube channel has helped a lot! If you have any recommendations, I'd be happy to receive them!
I recommend you "Taiko" a Japanese historical novel by Eiji Yoshikawa. It was dubbed as Japanese answer to James Clavells Historical Fiction Shogun.
When I watched the first television series version I remember being embarrassed about poor western hygiene, lol. The exasperating acrimony between catholic & protestant amid the backdrop of Japan's civil wars was irritating to me as a kid watching it because I just wanted to watch the Japanese cultural aspects. Back then, every show had to be a stupid love story because women were the major consumers of television mini-series, and Chamberlain who played Anjin-san, in spite of being a gay man, was a major heart throb for female fans back then, although I found him somewhat awkward, tbh. I'm very much looking forward to the re-boot, hoping it will be the historical epic it was meant to be, i.e., closer to the book as well. The Actors chosen for this version seem a much better fit, although for some fans there can only ever be one Mariko, lol.
I always wanted to attempt to read this when I was a teen, but was kind of put off that it was mostly about Politics and court intrigues with a few action in there
Welcome to Japanese culture.
; )
@@richardletaw4068 someone said "You know you watching a Japanese Samurai drama, because everyone is sitting on the floor while looking stern and serious"
@@hanchiman THAT’S FUNNY!
@@hanchiman usually that, and then the big Sekigahara battle scene, lol
@@ciello___8307 where the battle scene was brief with alot of yelling and horse riding while the Commander Yell "Tatakae!!!"
I too will read it while I paint for Test of Honour. What did you paint? Follow up video?
I'm looking forward to them portraying Omi like he was in the book. Because he was like you said is a better character in the book than in the 80's mini.
One of us, one of us. :D I read it a teenager roughly twenty years ago and have almost the same feelings towards it as you have now. Although my knowledge of Japanese history is far inferior to yours. Glad you enjoyed it, despite it's shortcomings I like the book.
One of the things I really liked about the book is that it goes much deeper into the politics of what's going on in the story than the show does. I loved the 1980 series, but I felt like its portrayal of the political struggles going on was a lot more... I don't want to say superficial, but maybe kind of glossed over to some extent. It was there, but the book explained the goings-on much better than the show did. When I first watched the show as a teenager, I didn't really understand why, for example, Rodriguez found Blackthorne so dangerous. But when I read the book, then I understood. It was probably helped also by the fact that I had learned more about world history in the years between when I had seen the show and later read the book, but the book really just was a lot clearer too.
James Clavell was great British fiction writer about history another great book King Rat 🐀 about his experience s as British POW of Japanese
I'm reading Shogun for the third time 😅. I'm also finishing Taiko, by Eiji Yoshikawa. They very much complement each other.
I’ve read it twice. Might read it again too. Cheers.😀
I read this book twice, loved it !
What is most impressive about the book is that the author was so unbiased in his depiction of the Japanese people. He pointed out the differences but I never really felt like he was judging them. Given that James Clavell was British POW of the Japanese at the brutal Changi prison camp in Singapore that is an amazing thing.
People should read his book King Ray. It is his shortest and is best described as a fictional autobiography of his time there. How true the tale told is may be up to interpretation but the experiences of those there were spot on point.
Finding anyone who was occupied by or imprisoned by the Japanese in WWII that also doesn’t want them wiped from the face of the earth wasn’t easy when they were still around. That Clavell wrote such a book as Shogun is very impressive.
I am happy you enjoyed this.
As I am sure you know it's the first of 5 books in JCs Asian saga. I personally loved them all following Shogun is Tai-Pan and then Gai-Jin set in 1862 and really covers the xenophobic sentiment of the time that I personally feel ultimately lead to Japan attacking America during WW2. And while JC makes interesting creative decisions to cater for his western audience these books were my first insight into real Japanese and Asian culture. I encourage you read or listen to all of them as, for me they are an enjoyable way to discover what happens when western culture meets eastern. Along with these books I cannot recommend enough Ghost of Tsushima, have you played this? If not I would be interested in your thoughts.
I think there is also a TV show planned for the game. And that would be great.
I see you did review ghost of tsushima nice one!
Toshiro Mifuni was the star of the show to me in the first series. Just brilliant as Toranaga! The book is a great read but as you said not historically correct! But hey it’s a novel. Read it if you get chance. Arigato 🏴🇬🇧
ya touch on eras,of writing of book,of making of
miniseries(1980),latest series.this,sir,is the key
to analysis of entertainment. G
I really enjoyed this book (Might be kind of obvious from my username lol). I read through it fully for the first time last year - I'd read half of it before but stuff got in the way and by the time I came back to it I'd forgotten the plot, so I restarted it. All in all it was a good read. I really liked the characters, they've got quite a bit of depth to them and they play off of eachother quite well. Toranaga is awesome and it feels like everyone else is just a pawn in his game. I would've liked to have seen a bit more of Ishido since he's one of the main antagonists, but he was still pretty memorable in the few scenes that he had. I wasn't that bothered by the fact that Sekigahara itself was largely absent - for me the book is more about the schemes and intrigue that were involved in setting up Sekigahara than it is the battle itself.
Anyway, I could go on about Shogun for a fair while more, but I'll stop. Really enjoyed the video, and I'm glad you were able to stick with the book all the way through and get some enjoyment out of it like I did. I know from experience that reading this thing is quite a time commitment!
i do hope it is good and can go to S2 with some good writers and i like how thay have Marico using a nangata in 1 sean and not a katana as in the book
A very enjoyable read....have read it several times
Loved the book. Got it at half price books randomly during the winter of my freshman year of college. I was just getting into japanese culture at the time and only bought it because it had a katana on it lol. Excellent book though, im gonna re read it before the show drops.
It's been a while since I have read the book, but I don't remember any mention of Sekigahra whatsoever, and always had the impression that the story predates the battle but isn't portraying it.
Clavell’s respectful treatment of Mariko-san - and of women generally - is reminiscent of Larry McMurty’s, who won the Pulitzer Prize for LONESOME DOVE (written 10 years later). McMurtry likewise had brilliant insight in bringing different female characters’ depth and complexity to life. And both authors take the eye of God approach to get into the minds of all the key characters, which is a huge advantage over both mini-series, excellent though they were and still are. Thank you for your reviews!
When reading the book many years ago, all of a sudden it dawned on me why the Japanese are so excessively polite. It's because the consequences of insulting someone, even if accidental, could be so severe. It's great writing when you can imply such a concept without ever explicitly saying it.
Amazing book. Clavell was prisoner of the Japanese during WWII. It gives you insights, when people have power over you, and he definitely has profound insight into the culture. And respect for it.
I watched the miniseries before the new Shogun releases on Hulu
This might sound weird but I'm digging 2024 monakos almost cersei vibes. Also, battles and fights with 2024 tech?
An adaptation should stand on it's own feet, it should be enjoyable whether you've read the source or not. That said I'm glad the new series motivated you to experience this novel, that's what adaptations are for in my opinion.
Honestly my favorite Clavel books are King Rat and Tai-Pan. You might want to check those out.
I have a copy of that same black hard cover. The love element really took over in the miniseries probably because Chamberlain was a major heart throb in the 70s and 80s.
Read it like 3 times now, one of my favourites
I didn’t know you painted miniatures? What miniatures are you painting and do you Wargame?
I think it's a book that appeals to Western readers as it's bias is toward that concept of Japan and narrative tropes and story flow. I can't say I like those much, even when I was first into Japanese history (or rather able to grasp it as I liked it as a kid). It's historical fiction, though I think I've read better period pieces that stuck to facts better or rather, told a contained enough story that it didn't mess with things.
It's about as accurate as anythinng That is historical fiction. unlike virtually everything else in this position, this is Based on a real person, with a highly chaotic, exciting and dramatic life, "William Adams", who was 1 of only 2 Western Samurai ever, who was instrumental in the history of the time and had a massive impact japanese culture in the future, through providing the contrast of the Catholic West with the more recent emergence of the Prootestant West e.g. predominantly Britain and the Netherlands, who were challenging Spain and Portugal for world power, as it would be in the following centuriess
@@Rowlph8888 Despite me saying I'm familiar with Japanese history and viewer of this channel, I'm surprised you are reciting William Adam's history to me. For however much was embellished in fiction. And not at all, some historical fiction is worse than others, this one being pretty out there compared to more grounded ones I've read. Some can simply tell the story of a navy admiral in the 1800s and be around or about an even during that time. This was very much a book written in the 70s that could translate into scifi setting with the same beats and character. "Stranded astronaut crashes on alien planet and meets the strange dynasty there and learns of it's culture and differences. There is a love interest, action, but the protag isn't as much a Gary Stue as some write them.
Brutal bro this book is what got me into Japanese culture
I read the book as a college student when I set a goal of 100 pages of a novel after doing my homework. It averaged closer to 125 pages of novel a day and up to 175 pages.
I believe the newest version of Shogun, portrays a more accurate account of Japanese historic events. Shogun the 1980's novel in my view is a romanticized version of historic events, but some accounts in the novel are over emphasized, and it gives the impression of a love story. A Japanese young girl falling in love with an Englishman, ("A dirty barbarian" by More accurate account). The new Shogun has a deeper understanding of historic accounts of Japan (Government structure, social structure). Also the scenery is superior to the original version. The only truble I have with the newer and older version is how the Katana was worn and the shape of it. Also how The two different swords had different shapes and the deployment technique. The older version katana were more curved 1100AD till 1600AD? The newer version katana (as of today) is worn upside down. I learned this from your previous presentation. Or perhaps you could please clear this out for me? Thank You for your excellent presentation.👍👌💯👏