t’s hard to believe it’s been almost 2 years since the “Shōgun” series reboot first hit Hulu, but 25 Emmy nominations and 18 Emmy’s later, a very improbable seasons 2 and 3 are steamrolling their way towards us. Wired recently did an exclusive interview with the shows Creators, EP Justin Marks and Head Writer Rachel Kondo where they teased a high octane season 2. Some fans wonder if the story was better off following the source material and ending the show with season 1. The lack of IP beyond season 1 reminds diehard and literary fans of what HBO did with “Game of Thrones” as the series sailed past George R.R. Martin’s writing progress and into uncharted territory to create debatably one of the worst endings for a series ever…besides “Lost”. The situation with Martin is definitely a unique one and the cultural impact that “Shōgun” has had on a divided country also makes the 2 situations hard to properly compare.
Obviously a blatant cash grab after such a promising first season would be a profound disappointment, but the Creators of the show have given us no signs that they plan on dropping the ball. The author of the original novel, James Clavell, is a writer worth defending as his real life experiences of being a prisoner of war at a Japanese camp in World War II helped spark his fascination with the culture and clearly influenced his great work. It is worth noting that Clavell is most well known for writing the “Asian Saga”, a set of 6 novels that focus on Europeans in Asia and take place in different time periods, with “Shōgun” taking place the earliest in the timeline and his 1986 book “Whrilwind” taking place the latest, occurring in 1979.
The lack of IP beyond season 1 reminds diehard and literary fans of what HBO did with Game of Thrones as the series sailed past George R.R. Martin’s writing progress and into uncharted territory to create debatably one of the worst endings for a series ever…besides Lost.”
With the next possible entry in the saga being set over 200 years after “Shōgun”, it’s unlikely we will see anything from those books adapted in this series. If there isn’t any story left to milk after season 3 of “Shōgun” it’s in the realm of possibility that one or more of the other books in the “Asian Saga” will be adapted for the small screen similar to what the “Yellowstone” universe has attempted with varying degrees of success over the last 3 years.
While talking about the upcoming season with Wired, Marks reminisces about the challenges of creating a series with 70 percent Japanese dialogue and a cast of relative unknowns. Kondo leaned on her experience as a Japanese-American and thrived to reach a level of authenticity that even the most shrewdest Japanese audience members would readily accept. One of the boldest decisions made by the creative duo was to jump 10 years ahead after a massively scheduled season 1. Marks said “We thought that a longer period of time would allow us to focus more attention on the grieving characters.
In other words, the idea was not to have the beginning of season 2 serve as an extension of season 1 – like ‘episode 11’ – but to created a break a create the first chapter of ‘part 2’.” Setting and shooting the season this way also gives the second season it’s own distinct feel and separation from the beloved source material. This move seems calculated and smart on behalf of the Creators. Marks and Kondo understand they are portraying a very important battle in Japanese history (Battle of Sekigahara) and that they can’t surprise all of their audience in a conventional way, but they believe treating their historical story landmarks as part of structure rather than material to be manipulated is the key to giving each audience member something different that’s rewarding.
The Creators would both go on to talk about their recent experiences witnessing how the public consumes shorter and shorter forms of media and how this will obviously be a part of their strategy to focus on telling fictional stories wrapped up inside very well known real stories. Both Marks and Kondo see the need for their type of storytelling, even if they have to find a way to sneak it past the defenses of viewers with the most limited of attention spans that don’t love subtitles.
Production on the series is set to start in Vancouver this month with main cast Hiroyuki Sanada and Cosmo Jarvis confirmed to return. Sanada will also serve as EP for season 2. Fan favorite character Ochiba no Kata (Fumi Nikiado) will have a central role in season 2, according to Kondo. Ochiba will potentially gain status that a woman of that time couldn’t achieve, but will still feel plausible within the story.
What do you think? Will the Creators of “Shōgun” be able to honor the source material and complement it? Or is this just a premature ‘GoT’ finale situation? Will the lack of source material free the creators? Or will the handcuffs of history tie them too closely to past events? Let us know your thoughts down in the comments below!
