From Ningin: What’s cooler than using an umbrella that has unicorns and rainbows as the design? Using an umbrella that resembles a Japanese sword. More »

From Ningin: These adorable USB flash drives features many of Japan’s popular historical figures including Hanzou Hattori, Hideyoshi Toyotomi, Kenshin Uesugi, Masamune Date, Nobunaga Oda, Shingen Takeda and Yukimura Sanada. More »

From Ningin: So enough of this filler junk that the anime is dealing out in Bleach. Today’s post is going to regress back to the actual storyline. The latest chapter of the Bleach manga is Chapter 391: The Blazing Glaciers. More »

Akira Kurosawa takes us on a journey through a gloriously reconstructed feudal Japan for an introspection on the reality of power and identity in his 1980 return to the samurai genre, Kagemusha.

As an aging ruler named Shingen passes on, his dying wish is for his death to be concealed for three more years until the army can overtake a strategic city. The estate’s principal retainers bring in a ragged petty thief to pose as a double for the late ruler, with only those closest to him aware of the hoax. The kagemusha (double), after being rescued from a death sentence, is reluctant to lose his identity for a warlord. After a change of heart, and learning that he really has no other options, the kagemusha is taught the finest details of the late ruler’s mannerisms, speech, and relationships. He must fool everyone, even a long-time doctor and Shingen’s mistresses and grandson, or the enemies will learn the truth and take down the estate. Through the kagemusha’s experiences of pretending to be powerful, being treated as a king and master of war, he learns what it is like to be the ruler but yet it is all false, and all the decisions are being made by the generals. It must have been a rather bizarre feeling for the kagemusha, but he knew he had a role to fulfill and everything was depending on him to be convincing enough. More »

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Vivid and wild, Sukiyaki Western Django will dazzle your eyes, make you laugh, and might even make you cry. Takeshi Miike’s 2007 stunning spaghetti western features an all-star cast of Hideaki Ito, Koichi Sato, Kaori Momoi, and even Quentin Tarantino. This portrayal of western and samurai traditions come together in a fast-paced “wild east” action tale to wow your senses. More »

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Tak Sakaguchi has long been a martial arts force to reckon with on the big screen. Now he has taken a seat behind the camera for his first directorial piece, Sakigake!! Otokojuku (Be A Man! Samurai School). As an actor, Sakaguchi is perhaps best known for his roles in the cult classics “Versus” and “Death Trance,” both of which are non-stop action buffets. As a director, he has kept the may elements of over-the-top martial arts movies but coupled it nicely with a healthy dose of comedy and social commentary in his directorial debut. Based on an Akira Miyashita manga serialized in Weekly Shonen Jump from 1985-1991, BAM!SS stars veteran actors Akaji Maro and Shun Sugata. If you like action, humor, blood, and lots of shouting, then “Be A Man! Samurai School” is definitely for you! More »

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Anime You Should See Before You Die returns today with an Akira Kurosawa inspired anime recommendation. Released in 2004, Gonzo’s Samurai 7 is a loose retelling of Kurosawa’s classic Seven Samurai, complete with swords, lords, and…mecha? Yes, this isn’t your dad’s 1954 Seven Samurai. Taking a more steampunk direction, Samurai 7 features everything from flying castles/airships, to steam-powered doodads, to the afore mentioned giant mecha. But the big question of course is, is the series any good? More »

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Before Akira Kurosawa came to be known for his largely popular Seven Samurai and Rashomon, there was The Men Who Tread on the Tiger’s Tail. One of the first films to be directed by Kurosawa, Tiger’s Tail, released in 1945, tells the story of a famed general on the run after his brother puts out an order to have him killed. Along with five trusty samurai (one of which is a young Takashi Shimura, a Kurosawa-regular) as well as a cunning bodyguard, the seven go on the run, disguised as wandering priests. More »

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From Ningin: Aha, so that was why Square Enix (known for Final Fantasy) was busy promoting Call of Duty Modern Warfare 2 on launch day in Japan! Square Enix teamed up with Infinity Ward to localize the most famous FPS game on the planet. FYI, first person shooters are a scarce in Japan. More »

From Wirebot:

Welcome back to another exciting installment of Games You’ve Probably Never Heard Of. This week (in honor of the release of Ninja Assassin) we take a look at some horrible ninja, assassin, and samurai games, from the world of Microsoft, Sony, and Nintendo. More »