Heroes and Villains is shown on BBC2 on Saturday evenings and is the story of various military leaders’ victories, their success in battle and their sometimes morally questionable decisions. Lesley Jackson is hooked by the story of the first Japanese Shogun, Ieyasu, and his fight for ultimate power in seventeenth century Japan.
As with most things that are reviewed, it is when you stumble upon the unexpected that you are provided with the most excitement and this is definitely the case with this BBC historic docu-drama series called ‘Heroes and Villains.’ Over the past few weeks, it has been telling the story of various military leaders who have won decisive battles with questionable moral ethics yet have nonetheless, changed the course of world history. This particular episode entitled ‘Shogun’ gives us a Japanese martial arts twist as we are told the story of the first Japanese Shogun, Tokugawa Ieyasu, and his rise to power to become the first Shogun and master of Japan.
The story starts in 1598 with the death of the old Japanese Emperor and the succession of his son, Hideyori. However, as Hideyori was only 5 years old the real power lay with his regents and this is where the battle to rule Japan began. We learn of the rivalry of the loyal minister Ishida Mitsunari and his failed plot to dispose of warlord Ieyasu by assassination with a brutal but gripping fight scene involving some serious samurai and Ninja sword action. This catapults a series of events that leads to the battle of Sekigahara in October of 1600 and Ieyasu’s victory through some questionable but brilliant battle management. We see the tension reach its zenith with the young but indecisive Hideaki, the supposed guardian of the child Emperor Hideyori. As he teeters on top of Mount Matsuo, deciding which side to join in battle and which loyalties he must fulfil, his decision is made for him as Ieyasu fires his cannon thus snapping the young man into a decision. Fortunately for Ieyasu, it was a favourable one as the Hideaki samurai storm down the hill to attack Mitsunari’s army and finally defeating them.
This is an excellent piece of historic storytelling as we are made a part of Ieyasu’s story with a constant internal dialogue giving us an insight into this warrior’s reasoning, psychology and his past as an explanation for his actions which to us, may seem at best morally grey. At the beginning, we learn of Ieyasu’s thinking and his adherence to “the way of the warrior.” He states that, “the way of the warrior says that I have no principles; I make adaptability my principle” and in this case this involves the need to, “seize the opportunity and the power.” We also see the varied relationship with his sons from the tragic honour suicide of this first son Nobuyasu , which clearly affects his reasoning through his life, to the feckless Hidetada and battle thirsty Tadayoshi.
The Historical Foundations of Bushido
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The real star of the show, apart from the natural drama this story creates, is the setting, visual effects and feeling of authenticity presented to us. The Japanese traditional costumes are beautiful and the attention to detail stunning with the samurai battle scenes being both brutal and exciting. This isn’t namby-pamby gangsters waving guns and popping their corks at each other but full on sword and blood battle violence and man it rocks! I thoroughly recommend downloading this episode and watching the rest of this series as it is quite simply; very, very good.
To view ‘Heroes and Villains: TheShogan” go to http://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/ to download or if you miss this, buy the DVD of the series available from all major outlets.
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Heroes and Villains is shown on BBC2 on Saturday evenings and is the story of various military leaders’ victories, their success in battle and their sometimes morally questionable decisions. Lesley Jackson is hooked by the story of the first 
‘Shogun’ gives us a Japanese martial arts twist as we are told the story of the first Japanese Shogun, Tokugawa Ieyasu, and his rise to power to become the first Shogun and master of Japan.
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