Chris Woods

I still remember the Richard Chamberlain series back in the 1980s, in which Japanese culture and customs were offered as mere 'exotic' backdrops to a western-centric tale. FX's new series is quite, quite different. The outsider here is the Anjin - and we the viewer. Clumsily drawn into this complex, beautiful, deadly 16th century world one precise word and gesture at a time. It's really quite special.

Turgid silliness, full of absurdities to spin out the daft plot.