Where Are the Black People in Shogun?

Any Time We Saw Europeans, There Would Likely Have Been Black People In Their Midst

By Utagawa Sadahide — National Diet Library Digital Collections: Persistent ID 9369963, Public Domain, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=98512767

The 2024 version of “Shogun” begins in 1600, as did the 1980 version, both based on the novel by James Clavell. I watched the 1980 version when it came out, hailed by many as a cinematic wonder providing great insight into feudal Japan. It came out three years…