‘Shōgun’ review round-up: FX limited series is a ‘genuine masterpiece’
On February 27, 2024, FX and Hulu premiered “Shōgun,” a historical limited series based on the novel by James Clavell. When a mysterious European ship is found marooned in a nearby fishing village, Lord Yoshii Toranaga (Hiroyuki Sanada) discovers secrets that could tip the scales of power and devastate his enemies. Created by Rachel Kondo and Justin Marks, the series taking place in 1600s Japan features original music from composers Atticus and Leopold Ross.
Early screenings for critics have led to a 100% freshness rating on Rotten Tomatoes, making this one of the most anticipated television series of 2024. The ensemble cast includes Cosmo Jarvis, Anna Sawai, Tadanobu Asano, Hiroto Kanai and Takehiro Hira. The first two episodes directed by Jonathan van Tulleken premiere February 27 with new episodes airing weekly. Read our full review round-up below.
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Mae Abdulbaki of Screen Rant praises the drama, stating, “’Shōgun’ should be a priority watch, as it dazzles us with political intrigue, culture, and an intensity that brings everything together nicely.” Concluding, “It’s been a while since a historical drama has been able to capture my attention the way ‘Shōgun’ has. The latest FX series (also set to premiere on Hulu) is ripe with political tension and treachery, a chessboard of moving pieces that change up the game and create obstacles within relationships and alliances that will leave you waiting to see what happens next. If there’s any series that has come close to being what ‘Game of Thrones’ once was, it’s this one.”
Judy Berman of TIME Magazine says, “At a time when so many of TV’s biggest swings, from Amazon’s ‘The Rings of Power’ and ‘Citadel’ to Netflix’s ‘Stranger Things’ and ‘The Crown,’ have yielded at least partial misses, FX’s ‘Shōgun’ stands apart as a genuine masterpiece.” Adding, “The new ‘Shōgun,’ whose two-episode premiere comes to FX and Hulu on Feb. 27, is not a remake so much as a radical reimagining. Adapted directly from Clavell’s novel, this sprawling, 10-part historical drama takes a far broader view than its predecessor, moving beyond the Western outsider’s perspective to survey a fracturing society that is just as baffled by this interloper’s ways as he is by theirs. It’s an epic of war, love, faith, honor, culture clash, and political intrigue.”
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Alex Maidy of JoBlo’s Movie Network writes, “’Shogun’ is instantly a masterpiece and supplants the 1980 version of the story. This series is beautiful, powerful, stirring, and engrossing and gives the great Hiroyuki Sanada a long-awaited lead role for a global audience.” Adding, “’Shogun’ is brutal, especially in the early episodes, as much as it is beautiful in giving this era a balanced perspective that will appeal to audiences on both sides of the Pacific. That being said, this is a heavily dialogue-driven series, so paying attention from the outset is a requirement, but that focus is rewarded.”
Meghan O’Keefe of Decider notes, “For me, the word that best encapsulates the world of ‘Shōgun’ — both the new FX show and original James Clavell novel — is ‘metal.’ ‘Shōgun‘s’ story goes hard at every turn, gleefully serving up gore alongside eloquent sequences of poetry contests. There are explosions, beheadings, men boiled alive, and omnipresent depictions of seppuku, Japan’s ritual suicide practice. But ‘Shōgun’ isn’t just a violent spectacle. It’s a poignant meditation on the natures of loyalty and freedom, side-by-side. It’s a lavish historic soap opera, full of depth and spectacle.
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