Shogun TV Show

[Bazzle]

Last night I finished binge-watching this show after hearing so much praise about it. And I must say that I feel quite underwhelmed. Am I the only one who finds the show mediocre? I mean, the visuals are great and there is an air of authenticity, but... The lack of character depth, especially of the supposed MC Blackthorne; the presentation of Japanese culture as a death cult of a sort...
I can't help but wonder if the significant decrease in the quality of everything coming from Hollywood in the last decade is what made this show stand out so much in the eyes of viewers? Is decent the new amazing? Or am I out of my mind here...

You binge watched.
Did the writers/directors build the show for it, or was it designed to have a week between episodes?
The way we are digesting our TV shows has changed and challenged the production.

 

[Euphony]

Yes. Plus, much of the praise you've seen is astroturf.

 

[Jackie.Hikaru]

Yes. Plus, much of the praise you've seen is astroturf.

Exactly this ^^

 

[AwkwardlySet]

Yes. Plus, much of the praise you've seen is astroturf.

I had to google the term. Nice

 

[AwkwardlySet]

You binge watched.
Did the writers/directors build the show for it, or was it designed to have a week between episodes?
The way we are digesting our TV shows has changed and challenged the production.

There are very few shows that would benefit from viewers thinking about the plot for a week before watching the next episode. Hell, there are few that would be worth it. This show isn't one of those, I can assure you. If anything, binge-watching keeps the plot and characters fresh and lets one enjoy it fully, assuming one can be disciplined about it.

 

[Kitty_so_frisky]

You binge watched.
Did the writers/directors build the show for it, or was it designed to have a week between episodes?
The way we are digesting our TV shows has changed and challenged the production.

It was made for FX and as many streaming services are doing these days, Hulu released the first two episodes the first week, then one episode per week after that.
I watched one per week, the Monday after they were released and can confirm it was still slow.
Also, FWIW, I had zero trouble avoiding spoilers on this particular show. Only one other person I know even mentioned watching it, no social media spoilers either. One of our Discord watch group (who have been watching a wide variety of movies and shows together for 4 years now) even dropped viewership of this show a few weeks ago. She’d watch the first show (The Brothers Suns, then when that ended, Fallout in later weeks) with us, then go to bed. Granted this is all anecdotal, but it looks to me like Shogun viewers aren’t super passionate or invested in it.

 

[Bramblethorn]

It was made for FX and as many streaming services are doing these days, Hulu released the first two episodes the first week, then one episode per week after that.
I watched one per week, the Monday after they were released and can confirm it was still slow.
Also, FWIW, I had zero trouble avoiding spoilers on this particular show. Only one other person I know even mentioned watching it, no social media spoilers either. One of our Discord watch group (who have been watching a wide variety of movies and shows together for 4 years now) even dropped viewership of this show a few weeks ago. She’d watch the first show (The Brothers Suns, then when that ended, Fallout in later weeks) with us, then go to bed. Granted this is all anecdotal, but it looks to me like Shogun viewers aren’t super passionate or invested in it.

My usual barometer for fan investment is Ao3. There are 876 stories for the Fallout TV series, 61 for Shogun, and 30657 for Our Flag Means Death...granted, some of that will just be because Shogun is new, and OFMD is probably a better fit to the Ao3 crowd, but 61 doesn't seem like a lot.

 

[AllenWoody]

Two words: Anna Sawai

 

[Plathfan]

"Flowers are only flowers because they fall." -- Mariko-sama

Like the entire season, the ending was wonderful, and two more seasons are planned. Let us know when they air, even if you don't plan to watch them yourself due to their lack of depth.

 

[AwkwardlySet]

"Flowers are only flowers because they fall." -- Mariko-sama

Like the entire season, the ending was wonderful, and two more seasons are planned. Let us know when they air, even if you don't plan to watch them yourself due to their lack of depth.

Will do. Bless your mind.

 

[Duleigh]

Loved the book; was living in Japan at the time. I've seen the commercials for the TV version, but I haven't found it on the TV--at least yet.

It's on Hulu