Shōgun episode six, Ladies of the Willow World, opens with a flashback from 22 years ago, at the Azuchi Castle.
We see two young girls running around among the bamboo forest. The young Mariko (Mana Nakamura) is introduced to another girl who look to be the same age as her. Later, we find out that this is the young Lady Ochiba, known then as Ruri.
The women of Shōgun: Lady Mariko and Lady Ochiba
Mariko witnesses a group of monks being beheaded on the orders of Kuroda, the ruler before the Taikō and Ruri's father. Mariko's father, Akechi Jinsai (Yutaka Takeuchi), tries to intervene but he's stopped by Toranaga (Hiroyuki Sanada).
We travel forward in time and we see an older Mariko (Anna Sawai) sparring with another woman using a naginata, a Japanese spear. You may remember seeing her use this in episode three when Toranaga's clan left Osaka castle with their lord in disguise.
Watching the sparring session are Mariko's father and Toranaga. Ruri is there watching, as well as Buntaro aka Lord Toda (Shinnosuke Abe).
We then see present-day Mariko staring at a tree in Blackthorne’s garden as the show properly begins.
After the devastating earthquake that claimed many lives, a lot of those belonging to Toranaga's army, he addresses his men. He's fatalistic and says that death is an affirmation of life.
He calls Anjin (Cosmo Jarvis) forward to acknowledge his bravery during the earthquake and for rescuing him. Toranaga rewards him with a fief near Kanagawa, worth 600 koku. He also proclaims him the chief admiral of the Kantō and general in charge of the cannon regiment. He also presents him with two swords.
Omi (Hiroto Kanai) complains to Yabushige (Tadanobu Asano) about being stripped of command, but his uncle reminds him that their people are in shambles and in no condition to fight off Ishido. And he’s concerned about one barbarian?
Back in Blackthorne's house, Mariko is reciting the Lord’s prayer in Latin, while he does it in Portuguese (presumably, but we hear it in English).
At the camp, Buntaro apologizes to Toranaga for his behavior at Anjin’s house. He tells Buntaro to divorce Mariko if she drives him as crazy as he claims she does. However, he refuses to because he sees the ice melting around Anjin. Toranaga offers a temporary solution: to isolate himself from her for seven days.
Blackthorne requested an audience with Toranaga where he asks why he was given the regiment. And asks him for his men and ships again. He wants to use his chief admiralship to attack the Portuguese and harm trade.
There's a back-and-forth between Mariko and Blackthorne. Remember that she promised him that there will be no other communication between other than her task as his translator.
Toranaga clocks the tension between the two and asks what’s going on between them. He receives no proper answer.
While Toranaga refuses to give Blackthorne what he wants, he gives him one thing he thought he might: a night at the brothel with the finest courtesan… and for Mariko to arrange all of this and join him as his translator “in case he talks while he pillows.”
Back in Oska, Ishido (Takehiro Hira) has taken the regents as hostages and locked them in the castle with their families. Hiromatsu (Tokuma Nishioka) leaves the castle to warn Toranaga, leaving behind Toranaga's wife as she asks.
The Portuguese priests are turned away by Ishido and they now believe the acceleration of the campaign against Toranaga is Lady Ochiba’s doing. His Eminence (Paul Moniz de Sa) doesn’t believe a woman has that kind of power, but Alvito (Tommy Bastow) reminds him of who she is: the child of a murdered bushō and the only consort to give the late Taiko an heir. Alvito prefers to ally with Toranaga since Ochiba hates the church. But his boss doesn't want to commit just yet.
There's another flashback of Lady Ochiba (Fumi Nikaido) being spirited away from Osaka after her father is murdered in Kyoto.
When we come back to the present, we are treated to a Noh, Japanese theater. Two of the regents, Sugiyama and Kiyama, speak about their situation as hostages and blames it on Ochiba.
The lady in question is also watching the play and speaks with the late Taikō’s wife, Daiyoin (Ako), who tells her that she’s choosing the wrong side.
We flash back to the past when the Taikō's wife (before she became a nun and took the name Daiyoin, she was called Lady Iyo) who gives Ochiba a mirror — a gift to the consort who gives them a son. Iyo also gives Ruri her new name: Ochiba no Kata.
Going back to the present, we see the man who played the Taikō in the play is offered Toranaga’s seat on the council: Lord Ito.
When Ochiba and Ishido speak, he asks her why she hates Toranaga so much. However, she doesn’t explain.
What is Crimson Sky?
Back in Ajiro, Hiromatsu collapses in front of Anjin’s house.
Toranaga then calls his council: Hiromatsu, Buntaro, Yabushige, Omi and Nagakado (Yuki Kura).
They discuss the events in Osaka and Hiromatsu suggests that maybe it's time for Crimson Sky. When Nagakado asks what it is, Hiromatsu explains that it's the plan for a single, violent rush on Osaka Castle. Afterwards, they can eliminate the council and form a new government with Toranaga as sole regent.
“Shōgun,” Nagakada reverently intones.
The plan also calls on Toranaga's half brother Saeki Nobutatsu's help.
Omi is reluctant to go forward with this plan and says there’s still time. However he doesn't have a suggestion to counter Crimson Sky or prevent Ishido from installing a fifth member of the council who will vote to eliminate Toranaga.
Nagakado is all for Toranaga reclaiming their Minowara legacy and become shōgun, stressing that he’s never lost a battle.
Toranaga replies that that’s because he was never the first to declare war. He doesn't want to go forward to Crimson Sky and tells his council to “Find me a plan that isn't certain death.”
Elsewhere on the island, negotiations are ongoing between Lady Mariko and Lady Gin (Yuko Miyamoto) — the proprietress of a tea house. They started at 500 and agree to 300. Lady Fuji (Moeka Hoshi) is also present.
Mariko accompanies Blackthorne to the tea house. She tells him that an exception was made for her to join him, a unique freedom for her.
Blackthorne is reluctant about this gift, but Lady Kiku (Yuka Kouri) tries to explain the traditions. Her words and voice seem to lull Mariko to a certain kind of peace as she remembers her past.
The morning comes and they return to the village. Toranaga asks Mariko about her childhood and her friendship with Lady Ochiba. He also wonders about her enmity against them, calling her war against them without honor.
Mariko points out that the war he speaks of is that of men, for many reasons such as conquest, pride, power; women on the other hand are just at war.
Toranaga smiles at her assessment and said that her father had great plans for her and wished that she were a son.
To that, Mariko replies, “Then he should have married me better.”
This stops Toranaga and he tells her, “You didn’t know? It was all his plan. Marrying you off. To put you as far away from his fight as possible. So that you might survive and one day return to finish it.”
Mariko looks stricken as she realizes this and says that she has failed her father. To which Toranaga responds, “Your war isn't over yet.”
Ishido schemes
Back in Osaka, Ishido is presenting Ito to the council as the newest candidate for regent. Everyone on the council votes yes except for one.
Sugiyama (Toshi Toda) refuses, and points out there’s no evidence of a threat to the heir and that the regents should be released from being held hostage. With that, he walks out.
Lady Ochiba speaks with Ishido. She’s impatient as there's still no action taken against Toranaga. She tells him why she's hated him so much. Ochiba says that while Akechi Jinsai killed her father, it was Toranaga who planned it all.
Ishido urges her to say this in public. But she refuses and asks, “What’s the point?” when none of them can stop him.
Sugiyama and his family try to flee the castle, but are stopped by Ishido.
Sugiyama knows that he's going to die, but that knowledge doesn't stop him from taking one last dig at Ishido by saying, “It was wrong to side with a simple bureaucrat. That’s all you will ever be.”
The next thing we see are Sugiyama and his family dead.
Toranaga announces to his men that Sugiyama was killed by bandits. And declares that they're going forward with Crimson Sky.
I've always appreciated how nuanced the female characters are in Shōgun. In this episode, they take center stage.
I love that the episode's title, Ladies of the Willow World, is so layered. The Japanese believe that the willow symbolizes obedience, which stems from how the leaves sway in the wind.
However, the Willow World also refers to the world of the geisha. While no one has referred that to Lady Kiku, that seems to be her role here. The Japanese prize obedience to be one of the best virtues when it comes to their women.
The three women in this episode, Mariko, Ochiba and Kiku, may appear gentle and obedient, but they're more than that. Lady Ochiba, in particular, is quite a study in contrast.
According to FX, Lady Ochiba is based on the actual historical figure Yodo-no-kata. Her father was the warlord Azai Nagamasa and she was the niece of Oda Nobunaga — the basis for Ochiba's father Kuroda. When Oda was defeated, she became one of Toyotomi Hideyoshi's (the late Taikō in Shōgun) concubines and the only consort to bear him sons.
Lady Ochiba closely mirrors Yodo's story as she became the Heir's (Toyotomi Hideyori in history) guardian. Spoiler alert: She also becomes actively involved in leading the anti-Tokugawa resistance after the Council of Five (Council of Regents in Shōgun) fell during the siege of Osaka (presumably Crimson Sky).
Since the show is telling this story mainly from the point of view of the Japanese, there are many storylines that aren't present in both the book and the 1980 miniseries.
Lady Ochiba, for one, doesn't figure quite this prominently in the book and the previous adaptations. However, I actually like this change in the story. I especially love how the actress who plays her effectively uses the softness of her voice to appear meek and docile and yet threatening and menacing at the same time.
And since Lady Ochiba's story isn't actually present in the book, neither does her friendship with Mariko and her almost life-long enmity with Toranaga. This is all new for the show and will definitely keep watching for more since I don't have any idea where it will go.
There's a reason why I mentioned Sugiyama's parting shot at Ishido about his being “just” a bureaucrat. Sugiyama comes from an ancient and wealthy samurai family. Ishido, however, did not. He rose to power during the Sengoku or Warring States period, where even peasants like Ishido and the late Taikō had a chance to prove themselves and earn positions in society.
This also explains his hostility towards Toranaga who hails from the powerful Minowara clan. Remember when Ishido complained about how Toranaga must see them now, as bureaucrats? That's exactly what Ishido was even when the Taikō was still alive. He took the task of administering from the castle while the rest of the lords ruled in their provinces. However, the historical figure on which Ishido is modeled on is the samurai Ishida Mitsunari.
There are four episodes left on the show and with Lady Ochiba's full entrance and Lord Toranaga's rallying cry of Crimson Sky, the rest of it will most likely deal with both the battle of Sekigahara and the subsequent siege of Osaka.
I hope the show has enough time to let both Ochiba and Mariko meet. There's a lot of history there since they grew up together and the unresolved issues of Mariko's father killing Ochiba's. I'm also looking forward to Ochiba and Toranaga's meeting. I think there's something more to her enmity towards him than her belief that he instigated her father's murder.
Shōgun is currently streaming Hulu, FX and Disney+.
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