There is one phrase that can be used to sum up Episode 10 of Shōgun, and the entire season: War is inevitable. From the moment viewers laid eyes on John Blackthorne and his crew, and witnessed them being taken captive by Lord Toranaga, it was clear that getting out of Japan alive wasn’t going to be easy. This turned out to be a complete understatement as creators treated the epic miniseries as a giant game of chess, toying with audiences’ emotions with one (and often manipulative) surprise after another up until the final battle.
Now that the final episode has dropped, fans can finally have closure and see what happens to Blackthorne, Lord Toranaga, and the other key players. For those who haven’t seen it yet, be aware that there are spoilers ahead.
Is Lady Mariko really dead?
Episode 9 ended with probably the biggest twist no one was expecting: the apparent death of Lady Mariko. As seen, she was caught in the explosion caused by Ishido’s ninjas in the Osaka castle, sacrificing herself to save everyone else. Even though the outlook was bleak, there was still some hope that she’d be okay in the end.
Unfortunately, in the finale, it’s shown that she indeed did die from the explosion’s impact, and that Blackthorne is heartbroken over the incident. As tragic as it was, she did it as part of her duties to Toranaga, which included exposing Ishido and taking away his and Ochiba-no-kata’s leverage. So, up until the very last moment, Lady Mariko maintained her loyalty and ensured that her death (which can be assumed was always meant to happen) was purposeful.
Why is Blackthorne’s life spared, and who destroyed his ship?
Audiences learn as he’s leaving Osaka, Blackthorne’s life was spared thanks to Lady Mariko. He’s told by Father Ajiro that he was never supposed to make it out of Osaka alive, but that Lady Mariko asked for him to not be harmed by making an arrangement with the Church by exchanging the Erasmus for his life. Just a bit later, upon returning to Ajiro, the release is quickly soured once he sees that his ship has been destroyed.
Viewers are led to think that allies of the church burned Blackthorne’s vessel. But, it was actually Toranaga’s doing for a few reasons: To keep the Englishman from leaving Japan (and shape his future forever), and to test and see whether he was actually loyal towards the greater good of Japan. Toranaga let Blackthorne know of his dislike with the villagers in Ajiro, and would punish them as he thought they were the ones who sank the Erasmus.
Instead of letting that happen, Blackthorne’s nobleness shined through. He told Toranaga that he was to blame, and that he’d sacrifice himself to ensure that the Ajiro villagers stayed safe. Toranaga stopped him, explaining that he did it to protect the captain’s life and ward off Portuguese threats towards him. This may seem like one of the smaller incidents, but it’s actually such a cunning strategic move because Blackthorne doesn’t realize his future is now forever in this hands of the Lord.
Is Blackthorne forced to stay in Japan?
Early in the episode, an elderly Blackthorne can be seen on his deathbed. What seem to be his grandchildren are in the room with him, talking about his time in Japan and everything he did. It initially seems like he ended up leaving Japan and had a great life and family. It becomes clear that this is a vision when it’s shown that he’s clutching Lady Mariko’s cross in his hand, which he throws into the water later in the episode. He does this with Lady Fuji, who also pours her husband’s and son’s ashes into the water, showing they both have come to terms with death.
So, like Toranaga said, it’s safe to assume Blackthorne was never destined to leave Japan – but whether he was completely forced to or not is questionable. The Lord was never going to let him leave, as he was useful to him, and stated he would destroy the ship again to hold Blackthorne back. Also, at that point, the anjin had truly adapted to life in Japan, and the lifestyle that Toranaga provided. So, he might have preferred staying in Japan if ever given the choice to return to England anyways.
Does Lord Toranaga win the war and become Shōgun?
It was always Toranaga’s world and everyone else was just living it. Instead of showing a bloody, violent outcome of the war, Toranaga revealed his entire hand while speaking to Yabushige, right before the latter committed seppuku. His grand story included how he used everyone to ensure (and Lady Mariko’s sacrifice played a significant role here) that he had Ochiba-no-kata’s support and could win the war. Even without a battle shown, audiences learn that he was going to make sure that he came out on top at the end, even if that meant controlling everyone else’s fates to benefit him.
In the final minutes of Episode 10, Toranaga is seen staring off into the distance, looking very confident and serene. He also has a silent moment of understanding with Blackthorne as they both nod to each other, anticipating what’s next. Here, it’s not hard to see that Toranaga’s hard work and scheming will drive him to everything he’s dreamed of: To lead a new era of peace in Japan and Shōgun status. It may leave mixed feelings with audiences as he basically did this at the expense of everyone else but he now has all the possibilities to create bright futures for everyone in Japan.
