Shōgun Ending Explained: Does SPOILER Win the War?

Shōgun Episode 10 was the official finale of the miniseries, and also the end of the source novel by James Clavell. 

However, things are rarely (if ever) 1-to-1 in a literary adaptation, and Shōgun (2024) definitely takes some new liberties with how it conveys the climax and epilogue of Clavell's book. 

Shōgun Ending Explained

In Episode 10 "A Dream of a Dream" John Blackthorne (Cosmo Jarvis) is left emotionally broken from the death of his translator and secret lover Mariko (Anna Sawai) during a ninja raid on Osaka Castle. Blackthorne isn't alone in the depth of his grief: Mariko's standing as a highborn lady (disgraced or not) and a major figure in Japan's Christian faith community has key allies (from the Christian lords in the Council of Regents to the mother of the Taikō's heir, Ochiba no Kata) second-guess their alliances with Lord Ishido Kazunari (Takehiro Hira). Ishido is forced (by decorum) to delay his march to war for Mariko's funeral; he must release the key hostages (like Toranaga's consorts and newborn son) that guaranteed his advantage, and Ochiba's secret alliance with Toranaga robs Ishido of the "official" banner of legitimacy he needed to disguise his power-grab as 'protecting the Taikō's heir' from Toranaga. Moreover, it's revealed that Toranaga executed a plan to turn the Catholic lords to his side, by allowing their church in Edo, and seemingly negotiating for Blackthorne's life in exchange for the destruction of his ship. 

Ultimately, Mariko's unique form of "attack" proves to be a conquering move. However, in a final twist, we don't get to actually see Toranaga, Blackthorne, and co. wage war and take Osaka. Instead, The "truth" of who Toranaga is, and his plan to conquer Japan, are revealed in a climatic private conversation between Toranaga and his vassal Lord Kashigi Yabushige (Tadanobu Asano), as the latter is performing seppuku for aiding Ishido with the ninja attack. In that conversation, Toranaga lets Yabushige know what the imminent future holds: Ishido's allies fleeing; Toranaga's forces united, and Ishido's "war" being over before the swords were even drawn. All thanks to the vassals Tornaga moved like chess pieces – with Mariko being the Queen Sacrifice that sealed the victory. Although Toranaga won't confirm it, Yabushige discerns that the real "plan" all along was for Toranaga to become Japan's first new Shōgun in centuries, thereby reestablishing the true honor and birthright of his Minowara bloodline. 

The ending may not be what some fans expect (a big war battle), but it is everything the show had been building toward. The themes of duty, higher purpose in life (and death) through service, and the whole system of lordship, fealty, honor and duty were things Blackthorne struggled to comprehend when first coming to "The Japans," but clearly understood all too well by the time he's listening to the rocks in his zen garden, in the finale. That understanding brings him into a sort of kinship with 

How Shōgun's TV Ending Compares to the Book

The bullet points of events that play out in Shōgun (2024) are roughly the same as in the book. Mariko dies in the ninja attack; Ishido's plans unravel as a result; Yabushige is ordered to commit suicide as atonement for his betrayal; and Toranaga's plans to turn the Catholic lords works. 

However, the Shōgun novel saved its biggest twist for the ending, in which the reader is taken inside Toranaga's mind, finally getting the true measure of what has occurred in the story, from the puppet master who was pulling all the strings. Obviously, the TV show couldn't use the same format of inner monologue for that ultimate reveal, so the scene with Yabushige is what we get instead. 

Does Toranaga Become Shōgun? 

The novel version of Shōgun has an epilogue that confirms Toranaga's victory in the decisive "Battle of Sekigahara" after Ishido finds himself outnumbered and outmaneuvered by his rival. It's noted that Toranaga buries Ishido in the ground up to his neck, and leaves him to a gruesome death over three days' time. 

This ending in the book is also a dramatized version of real history, in which the real-life figures Toranaga and Ishido are based on did face-off at the Battle of Sekigahara on October 1, 1600 AD, with "Toranaga" (or "Tokugawa Ieyasu" in real life) did claim victory and thereafter installed himself as Shōgun.

Will Shōgun Get Season 2? 

As you can see above, there is still a major military campaign that could be fleshed out in Shōgun Season 2, transforming expository accounts and brief epilogues from the book into a much bigger story. The history the book is based on also offers an opportunity for the character and story arcs that began in Shōgun Season 1 to continue and develop in a second season. 

Whether or not that franchise expansion happens, or Disney/Hulu/FX simply chooses to let this direct adaptation of the book stand alone, remains to be seen. 

Shōgun is streaming on FX.