Over two and a half centuries, six outsiders find themselves at the heart of Japan's most turbulent history.
An Englishman survives a shipwreck to become a samurai trusted by the Shogun. A Dutch rival gambles his fortune on the same court, and loses everything. A Portuguese priest is hunted for his faith, tortured until he breaks. And an African bodyguard rises to fight beside one of Japan's most powerful warlords.
Together they bear witness to a land of precise etiquette, strict hierarchy and bloody warfare - where the samurai adapt and evolve to a changing world, and study the art and culture as much as they wield the sword. Each story is a window into a different chapter of Japan's history: its unification, its deliberate isolation from the world, and the violent birth of modern Japan from the ashes of the samurai age.
EPISODE 1
Washed ashore in Japan with his crew barely alive, William Adams has one chance to survive: by proving his worth to Tokugawa Ieyasu, the warlord destined to become Shogun. Adams’ knowledge of ships and weapons could win a war that will change Japan for centuries. And transform his own life from a stranded sailor into the first English samurai.
EPISODE 2
A shipwrecked Dutch trader talks his way into the Shogun's court, arms samurai, and becomes one of Japan's richest foreigners. But Jan Joosten’s fortune stands on a knife edge. As Japan slams its doors to the outside world, transforming the country for centuries to come, and forcing the high-flying Dutchman to flee for his life.
EPISODE 3
Leading Portuguese priest Cristovao Ferreira arrives in Japan to spread his Catholic faith. But he must rise to lead the mission, when Japan's powerful ruler - the Shogun - outlaws the faith and hunts down believers. After twenty years in hiding, Ferreira is captured and tortured. Forced to choose between his faith and his life, Ferreira's fate will have shocking consequences for the church.
EPISODE 4
An African bodyguard travelling with European priests, Yasuke becomes an object of fascination in 16th century Japan - catching the eye of ruthless warlord Oda Nobunaga. Legend claims he is granted a sword, becoming history’s first recorded foreign-born samurai. But when a trusted general turns traitor, Yasuke is thrust into a desperate last stand.
EPISODE 5
For 17 extraordinary years, Hendrik Doeff must survive on the tiny 400-foot-long Dutch trading post of Dejima - Japan's sole window to European powers. Battling isolation, hostile foreign powers and near-starvation, Doeff protects Dutch interests through war, fire and siege, leaving behind a legacy that helps open Japan to the West.
EPISODE 6
Elite French army officer Jules Brunet arrives in Japan to build a modern military for the Shogun, forging a loyal band of samurai soldiers. As civil war engulfs the country, Brunet chooses loyalty over orders, fighting on with Shogunate rebels even after France abandons the cause - a decision that could cost him, and his samurai, everything.