PLOT HOLES AND ERRORS

When I recreated this website after shifting from one host to another, I discovered that lots of glitches had put in an appearance throughout the text, caused by the weird way in which the data was downloaded from the first host. So I had to go through all the book and film reviews (and everything else on the site) in an effort to iron them out. I doubt that I’ve caught them all.

But as I was reading through the reviews, I found that a) I found them jolly interesting, as I’d forgotten a lot of the books/films… or even if I remembered them, I’d forgotten what I thought of them; and b) every now and then especially in the book reviews, I’d say something like ‘Apart from one major plot hole’ or ‘I spotted a couple of minor plot holes’… and of course, irritatingly, I’ve forgotten what they were.

So I decided that henceforth I would list any plot holes on this page. Not in the actual review, as that would act as a spoiler. And I’m sorry, but my insurance doesn’t cover shattered illusions.

You won’t find any typos listed on this page, incidentally. They’re over on my professional proofreading and editing site, on the page cunningly called Errata. By ‘errors’ I mean things like continuity errors in films, that sort of thing. Well, you can see for yourself in the list below.

Shogun series 1

In the penultimate episode Mariko is about to commit seppuku. So she ties her legs together (which is what women used to do, to maintain their dignity after they have died), draws her sharp knife and is about to draw it across her belly when… well, she’s interrupted. But back in the day, and I think I remember this being explained in the book Shogun, women didn’t commit seppuku by slitting their bellies, as the men did. They slit their throats (or possibly stabbed themselves in the neck). So this is a minor if gruesome error.