“It could be a disaster”: Hiroyuki Sanada’s Shōgun Returning for Season 2 is Making a Similar Game of Thrones Mistake That’s Bad News for the Show
Only the author and the world-builder of a story can perfectly understand the nuances of each character enough to widen the horizons and pen more chapters. While filmmakers and showrunners can understand the essence and emulate it for the big screen, it’s difficult for them to build on that story further.
We all saw what happened with Game of Thrones when the showrunners took on the responsibility of continuing the story that George R.R. Martin intricately crafted. Now, with the renewal of Shōgun for a second season, fans feel a déjà vu of doom.
Shōgun Set to Return for Season 2
Created by Rachel Kondo and Justin Marks, Shōgun was originally positioned as a miniseries on FX. The story takes viewers through the ages of Japan where wars were frequent and power dynamics kept shifting, as seen in the show when the Council of Regents plot against Toranaga. It’s based on James Clavell’s Shōgun released back in 1975. The book is a part of the six-volume narrative woven by Clavell.
Hiroyuki Sanada is headlining the series as the main character whose journey is at the heart of the story. He is also the producer of the story and is returning for the second season of the show, as reported by Deadline. Given how successful Shōgun has been and appreciated by fans worldwide, it came as no surprise that the platform and makers renewed the series to capitalize on its success and fame. According to Deadline, it garnered over 9 million views from across the globe, making it an attractive investment by FX.
This will also affect how the show is considered for the upcoming Emmy nominations. If the show pivots from a limited series to a drama, it could impact the show’s submission for the awards as well. However, this could eventually work in Shōgun’s favor since the drama series is not perceived as competitive as the limited series field in the upcoming Emmy awards. Further details of the plot and other crew returning have not been revealed so far.
Fans Doubtful Over Shōgun Season 2 Storyline
Since there is no concrete source material to mold Shōgun season 2 around, fans have flocked to social media to express their doubts and hesitancy over the renewal decision. Comparing it to the disappointing finale of the HBO show Game of Thrones, fans feel the greed for a second season could ruin the stellar performance and reputation of the show’s first season.
I am torn about this. On the one hand, I would love more Shōgun. On ther other, continuing the story past the source material could be a disaster pic.twitter.com/5YM4pX1uwe
— Mike Carolla (@SJTimes13) May 10, 2024
Should just leave it as a limited series, continuing will take away the compliment on how good it really was, the first season of every show is always peak, the downfall always begins from the second season
— Vikas (@thunderxstorm07) May 10, 2024
Gonna be really interesting what a Season 2 looks like, given that there is only the one book that they adapted for this first season. The show would be going into uncharted territory, so I hope they have a good story planned!
— RJ (@ResonantJustice) May 10, 2024
Somebody let @PaulTassi know… 😉 pic.twitter.com/nbpeqQ7ZY3
— John Rocha (@TheRochaSays) May 10, 2024
Some users pointed out that it was made clear that no more seasons of the FX show would be made since it’s better to leave the story at an opportune moment rather than stretching it beyond its limits. Capitalizing on the show’s immense success is understandable but not at the expense of ruining the legacy it has already created.
Season 1 of Shōgun is streaming on Hulu, Disney+.