You all sold me and I'm caught up on Shogun. I was put off by the Eurocentric aspects of the story the same way I was with The Last Samurai (I skipped it because of this and also I hate Tom Cruise) even though I know that it's based in historical fact. I guess that cuts both ways; more Western audience appeal but it still reads as a problem for some people. Despite all this, Blackthorne is just one character and they've done a great job fleshing nearly everyone else out. At episode 8, I feel like Ochiba No Kata is a little underdeveloped and seems like they have just put her in Lady Macbeth/Throne of Blood mode and let the audience fill in the rest. For eg. I wasn't entirely sure what her relationship to the old woman at the beginning of episode 8 was, although it seemed important. Still there's 2 to go and plenty of time to flesh her out. This wound up sounding more negative than I meant it to because I am really into it.