Tom Holland

Yeah, but maybe lulling him into a false sense of security, is he?

And who is this person who's defeated him?

So we're in 12th century Japan, so medieval Japan.

The emperors have become slightly sort of… Kind of ciphers almost.

Yeah, ciphers, almost like puppet figures.

And these two clans, loosely related to the imperial family, sort of semi-detached from the imperial family…

What are they called?

The Taira and the Minamoto.

They are fighting for supremacy.

And remind me, which is the one that is strongest in the west, in the Kansai area?

Well, this is a great samurai tale, isn't it?

So the story of his youth and how he basically grows up to become himself.

And this is a story that evolved over the course of medieval Japanese history.

People told it and retold it and elaborated on it, right?

Or Merlin to his Arthur, surely.

But Yoshitsune is a genuine historical figure.

And Robin Hood and King Arthur, and indeed Luke Skywalker, are arguably not.

Arguably.

There must be some kernel of historical truth behind the stories of Yoshitsune, no?

All right, well, let's pull the camera back and let's have a look at the island of Japan and see what the state of play is.