FX’s Shogun has been a huge hit with critics – already establishing itself as one of the year’s best-reviewed TV shows – yet the series’ success is actually grounded in thematic connections with an earlier, ostensibly unrelated Jet Li movie. Set in feudal Japan in the early 17th century, Shogun is deliberate in its evocation of historical context and real events. While such attention to period detail makes it unique, the show’s broader themes of power, politics, and the establishment of a dynasty are more universal than other aspects of the story.

On one level, Shogun is the story of an English mariner’s immersion into an alien environment, with the show exploring the consequences of almost unimaginable culture shock. However, while this is certainly an intriguing aspect of the story, Shogun‘s primary narrative concerns a political battle for the soul of Japan. Lord Toronaga struggles against personal and political enemies, ultimately with the aim of establishing his own legacy. It is this ambition, and the lasting impact of Toronaga’s vision for Japan, that makes Shogun a fascinating companion piece for an acclaimed Jet Li project.

Jet Li’s Hero Is A Great Accompaniment To Shogun

Released in 2002, Jet Li’s Hero is a surprising but incredibly apt accompaniment for FX’s Shogun series. While Shogun uses feudal Japan as a backdrop, Hero is set in China’s historical past – over 1500 years before the TV show. Starring Jet Li as the mysterious “Nameless“, Hero follows a complex assassination plot between several co-conspirators, all of whom set out to murder the king. However, despite their intention, it increasingly becomes clear that the unity of China as a nation is at stake if they carry out their mission.

Made on a budget of $31 million, Hero broke several major records on release. Not only was the film nominated for an Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film at the 75th Oscars, but it also became the first Chinese-language movie to top the American box office. However, while these achievements are impressive, the difference in culture, format, and time period would seem to mark Hero and Shogun out as completely antithetical projects. And yet, by looking at the pair’s broader themes rather than specific story elements, it’s clear that they share some surprising similarities.

Hero And Shogun Have Clear Thematic Connections

The most obvious connection between Hero and Shogun is in the political context of their stories. Like Shogun, Hero is also based on a true story – set during the so-called “Warring States” period between 227-221 BC, where the Qin state attempted to subdue and unify six other competing states under one ruler. This background has clear parallels with Toranaga’s own plan to end the conflict at the heart of Japan – especially given the lengths that antagonists like Ishido are prepared to go to stop him.

What makes Shogun and Hero such interesting companion pieces is the opposing views they provide of union. In Shogun‘s dramatic ending, it is revealed that Toronaga is just as nakedly ambitious as every other character in the series – determined to cement his own status, with Japan’s unification a happy by-product. Hero, by contrast, flips the narrative, with the nation’s unification under the Qin becoming enough of a motivation that the assassins are moved to abandon their mission. Two such different perspectives highlight the conflict in both stories between ambition and the peace provided by unity.

The two projects also offer connected but differing perspectives on politics. In Hero, the emphasis is placed on individual stories, with Nameless and the other assassins given increased autonomy and an ability to directly shape history. By contrast, most characters in Shogun are revealed to be pawns in a bigger political game, providing a contradictory message about the power of the individual to shape events. In showcasing different approaches to the same theme, Hero and Shogun become much more connected than may seem initially apparent.

Shogun And Hero Are Both Inspired By Real History

A further detail that binds Shogun and Hero together is that they both constitute fictionalized retellings of real history. Although Shogun‘s characters are original creations, each of them is inspired by a real person. John Blackthorne, for instance, is based on the English sailor William Adams, who really was shipwrecked in Japan, while Lord Toronaga is inspired by Tokugawa Ieyasu, who became the first ruler of the Tokugawa shogunate. This gives the show a historical validity, despite its many fictitious elements.

Likewise, Hero creates several imaginary characters and places them within a real historical setting. The Warring States period really was defined by multiple assassination attempts, before the Qin dynasty was successfully established – although the highly-stylized sequences seen in Hero are a far cry from reality. Nevertheless, the mythologization of important periods in both Japanese and Chinese history seen in Shogun and Hero highlights how fiction can be used to successfully reveal deeper truths about a particular story.

Hero And Shogun Have Different Approaches To Their Stories

While the two projects’ connections make for an interesting comparison, it is arguably the ways in which Shogun and Hero differ from each other that they become even more interesting companion pieces. While Shogun is a fictionalized version of history, it nonetheless strives for realism. The way that the series reconstructs 1600s Japan gives the show a grounded, almost documentary quality – with particular attention paid to the customs and culture of the period. Although the history itself is altered, it feels no less real as a result.

Hero, by contrast, is an exercise in myth-making. The stories of master, almost mystical swordsmen and women make it feel closer to a Homeric epic than the carefully crafted authenticity of Shogun. However, although it’s much more fantastical, Hero still highlights how a story can simultaneously be both factually inaccurate and emotionally truthful. Ultimately, it’s the conflict between emotional insight and historical insight that makes Hero and Shogun such an interesting contrast. The success of both projects aside, the pair also shine a light on one of the key debates at the heart of all storytelling.