Boy, is this ever Shōgun’s Mariko-sama episode. We begin with a flashback to her 14 years before the action of our story, wandering in the snow, heavy with child, and hellbent on self-destruction. Once she has been led into a tent to warm up, we learn that these attempts to escape her husband and end her life have formed a pattern for her. Here, she meets Father Martín for the first time. He christens her “Maria” and plops a rosary into her hand (“something to hold onto when she can’t talk”).... Read this story
