logiquement

?????
I could get behind the younger one falling for the older one but the other way around ??? Not only did it come out of nowhere but he raised him and loved him like a baby brother.
Idc that they are not blood related, it's weird.

The only explanation for the time traveling is that every changes she makes creates an alternative reality, which mean that she doesn't go back to her own reality when she comes back in the "present". And every jump she makes has her changing realities over and over again.
When she goes back in the "present", past IS doesn't remember anything that her futur self did with her life. Except if she takes over her past self's body for 15 years all the way to the day that SJ died, I don't see how they can get together without her forgetting about it.
The only that would make sense is if whatever has her going in the past decides that she gets to stay in the past once she did what she had to do.

I hope you're wrong, we already had a "plot twist" of that sort a few months ago on a kdrama with a similar plot, that'll piss me off.
Also, he is dead in the present, would that mean that HIS present is the past of IS ? Like a few days/weeks/months before his death?
I already said that a few days ago but the time traveling here makes no sense, either every change they make creates an alternative reality (in which case your theory couldn't work at all because we would have an infinite alternative realities based on every single one of their choices), or it's the same reality, but then the present should not be altered one thing at a time. It seems thought that when she comes back in the present only the things she did in the past from her POV are impactful, which would not work if it's the same reality. The past is the past, when she comes back, every changes from her future implication should have already been made.

I wanted to watch something light and sweet you know, "coming of age", "friendship", like hello, I didn't sign up for this??
That movie was beautiful, obviously their friendship is fucked up and Jin woo was done dirty, but as it's a work of fiction and I love strong female friendship, I still loved it. It wrecked me but I'm so glad I gave it a shot.
The fact that there never was any love triangle and it was just the both them loving each other so much that caused all that pain... and they still found they way back to each other.

My questions and assertions simply come from the fact that I'm not an expert in anything related to Japan at that time, given that I'm not japanse nor a japanese enthusiast. I'm clearly missing some infos on background architectures and societal status since I don't watch Japanese historical drama and it's not my culture, that's it :)
I usually learn more about other cultures through media consumption, I'm not an expert on korean past periods but it did took me some period kdramas to understand basic things about how things work in a palace.
I'm yet into my Japanese phase, still on Turkiye right now.

I understand your point though.

I'd rather be confused and not be spoiled ahead of watching some scenes. I don't mind talking about it once I have seen the episode.

Can't Ishido kill them all and pretend they fled in the night ? Or were taken by the ninjas and still act like he doesn't what happend ? Now that she is dead, couldn't it be seen as a threat to anyone who opposes him and therefore still have the other regents shaking if they try to oppose him. Sure he is a peasant but he is a peasant with power, and army and who has people in fear. Maybe Mariko's speech reminded people of his origins but are they brave enough ?
Honestly when it comes to plot there are so may ways of having it to after something happend, it'll be whatever the writers decide (or the book decided if they follow the book)

They might be use as a witnesses to tell the other noble families that she died of her own volition but I wonder if it would matter, either way she is dead because of him and the nobles won't let that pass. If he understands that and get petty like he did with is kidnapping orders, he can just kill them all regardless of their testimonies. I don't think she thought that much ahead, as said by DanaL, she might have just decided to die on her own just because she is a samurai and refused to be taken alive ?

So I assume the other hostages could escape then ? only she died right ?
because except to indeed die without being taken alive as a samurai, her death didn't save them so far.

Go troll somewhere else and stop liking your own comments, it's embarassing.

Not sure she thought that far when it comes to having them as witnesses but that could be one way to use her death to protect them. I can get behind her chosing to die here as oppose to being taken but it would have been nice of her to say it because saying "I oppose this" was very confusing on my end. But would Ishido care that she killed herself? I wonder, since he was already planning to kill them. Maybe he'll get a moment of lucidity in is pettiness and actually think. Even then, wouldn't it be more beneficial for Toranaga that she was killed ? Couldn't the witnesses lie in order to have Mariko be a martyr and put Ishido in a tighter spot with the noble families ? I assume it wouldn't matter, her dying, no matter how, is enough to fuck Ishido. I see that now.
I did like the fact that she did not bother to call herself with her husband's name in the end.
BTW, I forgot to answer your previous comment last week to tell you that I couldn't read it, I don't want book spoilers ahead of what I have already watched 😞

Well that's unlucky lol, the context was the same ? They came for her at night and she tried to hide and they blew her off accidenttaly ?

Honestly the shift from "I want to die to protest my father's death and join him" to "I'll live since my father married me off to protect me and valued my life" to "I'll die, but for my lord this time, out of futy" in just a couple of nights really gave me a headache. All she want's to do is die, tf is wrong with you ?

How accidental was her death ?

I got that part, it's the dying in front of the door that I found stupid. They came for her anyway, it's not like she sacrificed herself.

It's still an important point of semantics, from a religious POV, she did not sin, no matter that it's actually bullshit.

they really said no plot armour but in a dumb kind of way, I'm losing my mind lmaoo.

Mariko was always about killing herself. The girl doesn't even care that her father did what he did to protect her life, she still wants to throw it away, but now for her lord, out of duty, whatever.
Lucky us, she didn't have to die.
Except no, I was already given permission to die, so I'll die, except I'll do it in a dumb way ??
I wouldn't have minded her dying to further the plot or Toranaga's plan (like the initial seppuku), the gamble was excellent, she want's to die, he needs a reason to put Ishido in a tight spot, win-win.
But wtf was that ? She didn't protect shit, if the little house doesn't get burned down, they could have just all move to the back. Now what ? How does that save them ?

edit: made it more clear.

That's why I never watch kdramas until they are done, you see à 8.9 for weeks and then à 7 out of nowhere loool

I mean, what's with ratings before the end of a show anyway ?
Same here, not fan of the love triangle or miscommunication trope.

Not fan of the time traveling law of this one. You either have an alternative reality or it's the same but in this case things in the presents don't change one thing at a time.

FL going from one time to another is going to create a lot of communication problems, and I HATE that trope. I also hate love triangles and guess what we have ? ......
I feel like this is going to be a very cliché kdrama and I didn't sign up for that, had I known I wouldn't have started it.
I assume since the time on the watch change, she can go back but not as many time as she wants ?
Disappointing episode for me, I really enjoyed the first two episodes so I looked forward to it and now I'm only excited for Shogun tomorrow.

Did he recognize her when they met on the bridge in the present ?

What I meant by fight is "fight back", sorry it wasn't clear, by any mean possible. Maybe he can actually fight with his army at Oasaka or at least have Ishido surrender if he can get his brother on his side (and have more men than Ishido) but that seems unlikely. Some people assumed his brother and him were actually working together and I thought it could be a possibility, but seeing him in that last episode, I don't think he's that advanced in his plan.I think he can get the heir's mother on his side because now that the wife of the previous chef (forgot his title) is dead, it seems like she's at Ishido's mercy for some reason? Like, bowing to him after the wife died ? Him proposing to her was more a threat than anything, I don't think she liked bowing to him at the end of the episode. She'll need to reconsider Toranaga's death to protect her son and herself, she doesn't trust Ishido and Toranaga is the only one who can protect her son.