WARNING: The following contains spoilers for Yasuke, now streaming on Netflix.
In just six episodes, Netflix's Yasuke weaves a sprawling subversion of the history behind the legendary Black samurai. Going by the name of Yassan, the hero hides away in a rural Japanese village until his life takes a dark turn -- thrusting him back into war to protect a young girl with godlike powers, called Saki.
The sixth and final episode, "Balance," finds him garnering backup against the supernatural Daimyo that wants her soul. While it costs some valuable lives, Yasuke -- surprisingly -- carves a path to redemption in the end.
Team Yasuke Loses Big
Yasuke has a vendetta against this particular Daimyo as she used her troops to take out the Oda clan, which resulted in Yasuke killing his feudal lord, Nobunaga, in a harakiri session decades before. He's been haunted by it ever since but is finding honor again by bringing Saki to a former mystical colleague, Morisuke, to train. Morisuke has an army of his own, including magical warriors, but they're outnumbered and losing badly as the Daimyo's forces attack.
Even after killing the Daimyo's "Dark General," Mitsuhide, many of Yasuke's colleagues fall. The were-bear, Nikita, gets murdered, as well as the sickle-wielding Ishikawa and her robot friend, Haruto, who self-destructs in rage to even the numbers against the villains. It results in Yasuke taking Saki to go after the Daimyo and try to stop the source of the assault.
The Daimyo's Big Showdown
The Daimyo warps Yasuke's mind in her castle and gets him to turn on Saki. He thinks the Daimyo is Nobunaga and that Saki is the Daimyo, so he tries to kill the girl in his entranced state. Luckily, Saki's able to snap him out of it but this doesn't stop the witch from brutally beating them down. It all comes to a head when the Daimyo, in her spider-form, impales Yasuke and tries to stab Saki as well.
Luckily, Saki forms a cocoon around herself and finally understanding how to harness the power of life. She's able to blast the Daimyo away and uses her blue energy to burn the witch out, leaving her clinging for dear life. Sadly, when Saki approaches Yasuke to celebrate, he's dead. However, as she cries, her powers revive the samurai, paving the way for a time of rebirth.
Rebuilding the Future
Yasuke and Saki are stunned by his resurrection. The Daimyo warns that she will soon crave lives to fuel her but Saki brushes the comment off. Eventually, the Daimyo begs Yasuke to kill her but they leave as he reveals the villagers will deal with her as they see fit. They then bid goodbye to Morisuke's army -- Yasuke believes Saki deserves a family right now, rather than to be turned into a weapon.
Yasuke returns Saki to their village where her best friend Ichiro, and his family, adopt her. She lost her mom when Yasuke tried to take them to Morisuke initially, so he's glad she has a home again. The village finally accepts her as a savior, not an outcast due to her powers. In fact, she becomes quite the celebrity. As for Yasuke, he contemplates leaving but decides instead to train Ichiro and look after Saki. She gives him her mom's necklace, and finally, he feels as if he also has a home again.
Created by LeSean Thomas, Yasuke stars LaKeith Stanfield as Yasuke, Takehiro Hira as Nobunaga, Maya Tanida as Saki, Ming-Na Wen as Natsumaru, Paul Nakauchi as Morisuke, Darren Criss as Haruto, Julie Marcus as Nikita and William Christopher Stephens as Achoja. The series is out now on Netflix.
