Crimson Sky – As the ninth episode of Shogun begins, Mariko walks through the snow in the Shonai Region 14 years ago. Once she is brought back, there are discussions about Toda Mariko (Anna Sawai) attempting to escape three times. Father Martin Alvito (Tommy Bastow) believes she is too young to be this sad. He thinks God spared him and Mariko as well. Martin gives her a rosary. After the intro, John Blackthorne (Cosmo Jarvis) and Mariko talk about traveling to Osaka together. Yabu (Tadanobu Asano) comes over to let Blackthorne know he’ll be met by Ishido’s men as soon as they arrive. He is told to remain close. Yabu admits he hates this city. As they enter the city, Mariko and Blackthorne see Lord Ohno’s family.

Mariko explains that everyone in the castle is not a hostage to Ishido. Yabu tells Blackthorne he wants him to be there when they meet Ishido so they can make their proposal. Blackthorne thanks him for trusting him and promises to deliver the Catholic gold. Mariko speaks to Lady Shizu. Once she gives them a letter from Toranaga, they hope this works. Father Dell’Aqua (Paulino Nunes) learns about Blackthorne from Ferreira (Louis Ferreira). They believe Toranaga is planning something. Martin doesn’t think Blackthorne is there on Toranaga’s behalf. He is convinced Toranaga has given up. Dell’Aqua is confident that war is coming. Yabu informs Lord Kiyama that Blackthorne is there to pledge himself to Ishido. He makes it clear that Blackthorne belongs to him. Lord Kiyama introduces himself to Blackthorne.

They talk about trade and pirates in the region. Kiyama believes Blackthorne’s kind arrived there too late. When they approach Ishido, Yabu tells him he surrenders to the council. Ishido calls him a traitor, but Yabu claims he was deceived into leading Toranaga out of Osaka. He wants to give Blackthorne to Ishido as a gift. Ishido says the heir has no interest in a barbarian. They’re dismissed and Mariko is brought in. Mariko congratulates Ishido and Ochiba on their engagement. Ochiba reveals she and Mario spent many years in Azuchi together. Mariko says she will not be competing in the poetry competition. She intends to leave Osaka tomorrow with Kiri and Shizu to meet their liege lord in Edo. Ishido and Ochiba aren’t keen on that idea. Ishido thinks he should ask the Regents for a formal review since she alleges people are confined there.

Kiyama agrees. Mariko will remain there until then. Mariko says her first duty is to her liege lord and she has been ordered to leave. They argue a bit before Mariko says she is no peasant to be trodden on. She reminds them who she is and insists she is free to go. Ishido says she will wait for the meeting of the Regents. Later, Yabu scolds Mariko for her behavior. He wants to know what Yabu’s plans are. Mariko asks them to excuse her. When they’re alone, Mariko tells Blackthorne she must leave in the morning. Otherwise, it’ll prove that everyone is being held there by force. Mariko asks him not to involve himself. Another visitor tries to convince Mariko to stay. Her son is tired of being of this family because he’s ashamed of the things they say about her. Mariko insists they have nothing to be ashamed of. He urges her to stop this or he’s no longer her son.

Mariko tries to leave the following day only to be stopped by the guards. When they refuse to let her leave, Mariko’s men kill them at her request. Mariko asks Miyai to take charge. She stands in the middle while her men kill guards. Mariko asks Lord Kiyama and Lord Ohno to order the men out of her way. They can’t. Mariko says that means they’re being kept there against their will. Kiyama offers to call for a meeting. As Mariko walks toward the gate, arrows at shot around her feet. She gets a weapon and tries to fight the guards. Once she stops, she tells the others they have to go back. Mariko cannot live with not fulfilling her duties to her lord so she’s going to kill herself at sunset. She asks Lord Kiyama to be her second. Later, Kiyama tries to convince Ishido to prevent this from happening.

Ochiba believes Mariko will do as she says because it’s her vengeance. All of Osaka will be disgraced for letting her die. She tells Ishido there will be a revolt from every high family in Osaka if she is allowed to die. If he allows her to leave, the hostages will also demand to leave. Other women join Kiri and Shizu. The Anjin is summoned for an audience with the Heir. Ochiba speaks to Blackthorne about his Japanese. Mariko comes so she can translate, but she believes ruse. Ochiba tells her that the games must stop. She talks about the relationship they had and how Mariko did everything well. Ochiba alleges it was easy for Mariko who admits they grew up like sisters. Their fathers were enemies. Ochiba always had Mariko who was her happiness. Then, she was sent away. Ochiba couldn’t recognize the woman she had become.

She sees Mariko as the girl who did everything right even though anger was growing within. Ochiba believes Mariko seeks destruction. Mariko says only Ochiba can end the games she is accused of playing. Ochiba exists to protect her son. She wonders how Mariko will protect her son by killing herself. Mariko tells her that accepting death is not surrender. In private, Blackthorne tells Mariko that Toranaga is a coward for letting her do his bidding. Mariko insists this is the very reason her father kept her alive. Blackthorne asks her not to do it for him. Mariko doesn’t give him an answer. Yabu receives a message from Lord Ishido. He accepts Yabu’s offer of service instead of death, but he has a request. Martin speaks to Mariko who wants to confess. The others prepare for her death.

Mariko says she leaves a poem as her final statement. She asks Lord Kiyama to come forward to second her. Blackthorne offers to do it. Mariko asks him to wait until she has fallen. Before she can kill herself, Ishido arrives to stop her. He gives her permits so she can leave in the morning. Ishido tells the others that they’re not prisoners. Later, Blackthorne visits Mariko in private. They likely have sex. Yabu is told he can rest because they have the watch covered. Yabu kills the man. Then, intruders begin climbing the wall. Yabu goes inside and kills another. The intruders let him go before they begin killing people. Yabu warns people that there are intruders. Blackthorne and Mariko hear the chaos. They manage to kill a few. Mariko says they’re Shinobi and they’ve come for her. They try to escape while Yabu tries to leave them astray.

They get trapped with the intruders preparing to blow them up. Blackthorne tries to hold the door, but Mariko tells him to let it come. She stands in front of the explosion.

 

Shogun Review

By this point, viewers have either fallen in love with Shogun and its characters or they’ve never been able to form an authentic connection. The success of this episode will depend largely on each viewer and how much they care about the characters. Personally, I just don’t care at this point because I have never connected to any of the characters. Regardless, certain things could’ve been much better.

At the beginning of the episode, the show jumped back 14 years but the characters hadn’t changed at all. At the very least, they should’ve made Martin and Mariko look a lot younger. It also takes away from the story that Blackthorne has never even tried to learn Japanese. He’s watching many of these scenes like he knows exactly what’s going on, yet he wouldn’t without some practice and training. A comment to Ochiba about his Japanese doesn’t cover it.

The chemistry between Blackthorne and Mariko is nonexistent compared to the old series. The performances weren’t great here with some of the characters feeling robotic at times. Again, this is a watered-down version of the original without really doing anything better or even remotely close. It also tries to be incredibly complicated by interjecting characters that serve little purpose. Anyone who remembers each name all the way through should win some type of memory award.

It wasn’t the worst episode of the season though and it’s a sigh of relief that it’s almost over. The episode scores a 5 out of 10. Recaps of Shogun are available on Reel Mockery here. Find out how to support our independent site at this link. Learn more about advertising with us here. Discuss this show and others at the Reel Mockery Forum.