A wandering samurai squares off against a corrupt postmaster in Hideo Gosha’s uncharacteristically aventgarde chambara.
Dec 21, 2022 • Subscribe
More like this
Samurai Wolf 2: Hell Cut (牙狼之介 地獄斬り, Hideo Gosha, 1967)
Kiba is again confronted with the duplicities of late Meiji society after being pulled into intrigue at a disused mine in Hideo Gosha’s striking chanbara.
The Geisha (陽暉楼, Hideo Gosha, 1983)
The coming of the railroad spells doom for one of the most prestigious geisha houses in Japan in Hideo Gosha’s adaptation of the Tomiko Miyao novel.
Violent Streets (暴力街, Hideo Gosha, 1974)
A former yakuza’s attempts to leave the underworld behind are frustrated by gang intrigue and changing times in Hideo Gosha’s intense gangland drama.
Wolf Pack (狼群, Michael Chiang, 2022)
A disillusioned doctor quickly finds himself in over his head when he’s kidnapped by Chinese mercenaries in Michael Chiang’s oddly positioned action thriller
Horror of the Wolf (狼の紋章, Masashi Matsumoto, 1973)
A traumatised werewolf is drawn into teen gang intrigue after returning to Japan in Masashi Matsumoto’s visually striking exploitation movie.
Daimajin (1966) review
“A wonderful and refreshing blend between the jidai-geki/chanbara and the kaiju genre.”
Irezumi (1966) review
“Masamura delivers a phenomenal narrative, a true post-war classic.”
RISE AGAINST THE SWORD (1966): When Toshiro Mifune No Longer Needed the Seven Samurai
On what would have been Toshiro Mifune’s 102nd birthday (I covered his centennial in three blog posts in 2020), I look at a lesser-known historical drama starring Mifune,…
The Wolves (狼, Kaneto Shindo, 1955)
Post-war desperation drives a collection of otherwise honest men and women towards a criminal act that for all its politeness they are ill-equipped to live with in Kaneto’s…
Kentaro Miura (1966-2021)
“When you’re a cartoonist and working at home you sit at your desk pretty much all day,” Kentaro Miura once said in an interview. “You get most of…
Black Tight Killers (1966)
A stylish and visually dazzling romp with lots of action and sensuality
Ringu (リング, Hideo Nakata, 1998)
A reporter finds herself the victim of a dark and mysterious curse while investigating the strange death of her niece in Hideo Nakata’s landmark J-horror.
Episode 35: 005: Hideo Kojima's 002
In this episode of Boku No Stop! we discuss episodes 21-25 of Cyborg 009: The Cyborg Soldier: 021: The Fossil of Evil 022: Invasion of the Gods 023: Towering Myth 024: Artemis 025:…
Kentaro Miura (1966-2021): A Tribute
In which I talk about the recent passing of a manga legend.
Taiso Samurai – 03 [Dueling Samurai]
Here’s a more conventional sports anime episode for you. Leo still refuses to take off his ninja headgear and Big Bird is still squawking up a storm in…
Taiso Samurai – 04 [Samurai Daughter]
Is Leo the stealth main character of Taiso Samurai? This episode certainly pointed in that direction, taking a prime opportunity for father-daughter bonding and making it a ninja-daughter…
Taiso Samurai – 05 [Battling Samurai]
Here’s another Taiso Samurai outing where the script sidelines Jotaro, who seems to be the main character in name only. Last week it was all about Leo and…
Taiso Samurai – 7-8 [Training Camp Samurai/Intensive Samurai Training]
This is the end of the road for my full Taiso Samurai writeups. Cobbling together this post was like trying to build a bird house with a hammer…
Taiso Samurai – 02 [Rock-Bottom Samurai]
I may have jumped the gun on this one, y’all. Taiso Samurai’s first episode was so strange that I couldn’t help but root for it, but the second…
There Wolf
detective fiction, 推理小説、games, mystery, murder, locked room, Japanese, translations,
Wolf Children
おおかみこどもの雨と雪 Mamoru Hosoda, 2012 Reel Anime 2/4 Mamoru Hosoda is the most exciting director currently working in…
Wolf Guy
Stemming from a long-running mystery novel series, our next review is a 1995 manga adaptation of Hirai Kazumasa’s Wolf Guy ウルフガイ, as illustrated by Kadota Hiroshi. Filled with…
Guard Wolf
Robot mode Wolf mode Robot mode Wolf mode General Information Unit type: robotHeight: 3.9 meters (Robot mode)Weight: 1.6 metric tonsMaximum speed: 460.0 km/hJumping power: 75.0 metersMaximum output: 11,000…
The Threat (脅迫, Kinji Fukasaku, 1966)
An ambitious executive is confronted with the emasculating nature of the salaryman dream when escaped convicts invade his home in an early thriller from Kinji Fukasaku.
Loli-con Complex: Azuma Hideo and Aoyama Yuki
Tokyo Scum Brigade.
Yoru no Hana / Night Flower by Mizuno Hideo
A friend of mine turned me onto a series of lectures about manga and so I am currently listening “Shojo Manga: The Power and Influence of Girls’ Comics,”…
Spice & Wolf: merchant meets the wise wolf
Spice & Wolf: merchant meets the wise wolf is currently streaming on Crunchyroll....
Wolves of the Night (夜の狼, Yoichi Ushihara, 1958)
A heartless yakuza becomes conflicted on being confronted with the consequences of his actions in Yoichi Ushihara’s slice of Nikkatsu Noir.
Samurai Champloo
Marvyn and Anthony are back to squeeze a podcast into Brian’s lunch break as we look at episodes 7 to 12 of Samurai Champloo.
Samurai Ben
Food Wars 315.4 - 4:07Spy x Family 15.2 - 7:01EDENS ZERO 68 - 9:22Mission: Yozakura Family 11 - 25:32Samurai 8 25 - 31:14We Never Learn 134 - 39:50Dr.…
EDENS ZERO, One Piece, The Promised Neverland, The Seven Deadly Sins, Black Clover
Seven Samurai
This was the first episode of our Akira Kurosawa series with Chris (@antoniuspius) on it, so I...
Seven Samurai
This was the first episode of our Akira Kurosawa series with Chris (@antoniuspius) on it, so I...
Samurai Reincarnation
The late Kinji Fukasaku is most fondly remembered for his hold-no-bars yakuza flicks, characterised by their hard-as-nails anti-heroes and brutal action. However, in the late 1970s, the director…
Taiso Samurai – 06 [Samurai Father and Daughter]
I’ve been opening these posts with some variation of, “I can’t believe Jotaro wasn’t the focus of this episode!” for three weeks now, so it’s about time I…
Spice and Wolf: Merchant Meets the Wise Wolf
Spice and Wolf along with Eureka Seven and Inuyasha helped me through some difficult times in my mid-20s, so they retain a place in my best anime lists.…
Spice & Wolf: merchant meets wise wolf episode 1
Note: Because I find this title obnoxiously long, I will hereafter be titling these Spice & Wolf (2024). Rating: B+ The base concept here seems simple enough: a…
The GLORIO Chat Episode 116: Endorsed by Hideo Kojima
We talk about both anime endorsed by Hideo Kojima this season, then hit the backlog because there’s not much else to watch.
Love Nonetheless (愛なのに, Hideo Jojo, 2022)
A lovelorn bookseller is drawn into a world of romantic confusion by a high school girl with a hopeless crush and and his own requited love in Jojo’s…
A Water Mill (물레방아, Lee Man-hee, 1966)
A wandering soul stumbles on a death rite that may in some senses be his own in Lee Man-hee’s haunting feudal drama.
Wolf Guy v2
When Orphan released Wolf Guy back in 2016, I noted , "The laserdiscs came from two sources. The first three volumes are from Erik's collec...
Spice and Wolf
It’s “Stonks: The Anime!” No, but really. A mature, slow burn romance in a fantasy setting with several entertaining economic thrillers along the way. A change of pace…
PODCAST: Wolf Children
Subscribe: Apple Podcasts | Spotify | Google Podcasts | RSS We discuss Mamoru Hosoda’s third original film and final Madhouse production, 2012’s “Wolf Children.” When Doc fi…
Reclaim (一家之主, CJ Wang, 2022)
A disillusioned middle-aged woman begins to reclaim her sense of self while trying to repair her fracturing family in CJ Wang’s touching family drama.
Swallow 喰之女 Director: Mai Nakanishi (2021)
You are what you eat in “Swallow 喰之女”, the latest short from horror auteur Mai Nakanishi. This Taiwan-set story shows how coveting beauty and youth can warp alter…
Masayuki Kunihiro【國弘昌之】Sakuga MAD
Song: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FcBIPurP5yo With Kimetsu no Yaiba/Demon Slayer blowing minds recently, I wanted to showcase one of Ufotable's ace animators that makes such sakuga spectacles possible.
Taiso Samurai – 10
「決戦ザムライ」 (Kessen Zamurai) "Samurai's Decisive Battle" Now I'm really starting to worry about Leo.
Taiso Samurai – 01
「引退ザムライ」 (Intai Zamurai) "Retiring Samurai" I'm not a fan of samurais. Fortunately, despite the name, no actual samurais feature in the production of this series.
Taiso Samurai – 04
「ザムライ娘。」 (Zamurai Musume.) "Samurai Daughter." Being the daughter of someone in the public limelight doesn't seem easy. Especially when said person has been the focus of negative press.
Cat Samurai Rules
EDENS ZERO 51 - 4:35Beast Children 6 - 15:47Samurai 8 8 - 18:02The Last Saiyuki 17 - 33:30We Never Learn 117 - 42:12Dr. Stone 111 - 56:39The Seven…
The Seven Deadly Sins, World Trigger, Black Clover, EDENS ZERO, One Piece