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Usagi Yojimbo
is a comic book series created by Stan Sakai. It is set primarily at the beginning of the Edo period of Japanese history and features anthropomorphic animals replacing humans. The main character is a rabbit '' rōnin'', Miyamoto Usagi, whom Sakai based partially on the famous swordsman Miyamoto Musashi. Usagi wanders the land on a '' musha shugyō'' (warrior's pilgrimage), occasionally selling his services as a bodyguard. ''Usagi Yojimbo'' is heavily influenced by Japanese cinema; it has included references to the work of Akira Kurosawa (the title of the series is derived from Kurosawa's 1961 film '' Yojimbo''), as well as to icons of popular Japanese cinema, such as Lone Wolf and Cub, Zatoichi, and Godzilla. The series is also influenced somewhat by '' Groo the Wanderer'' by Sergio Aragonés (Sakai is the letterer for that series), but the overall tone of ''Usagi Yojimbo'' is more serious and reflective. The series follows the standard traditional Japanese naming-con ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Historical Fiction
Historical fiction is a literary genre in which a fictional plot takes place in the Setting (narrative), setting of particular real past events, historical events. Although the term is commonly used as a synonym for historical fiction literature, it can also be applied to other types of narrative, including theatre, opera, Film, cinema, and television, as well as video games and graphic novels. An essential element of historical fiction is that it is set in the past and pays attention to the manners, social conditions and other details of the depicted period. Authors also frequently choose to explore notable historical figures in these settings, allowing readers to better understand how these individuals might have responded to their environments. The historical romance usually seeks to romanticize eras of the past. Some subgenres such as alternate history and historical fantasy insert intentionally ahistorical or Speculative fiction, speculative elements into a novel. Works of ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Swordsman
Swordsmanship or sword fighting refers to the skills and techniques used in combat and training with any type of sword. The term is modern, and as such was mainly used to refer to smallsword fencing, but by extension it can also be applied to any martial art involving the use of a sword. The formation of the English word "swordsman" is parallel to the Latin word ''gladiator'', a term for the professional fighters who fought against each other and a variety of other foes for the entertainment of spectators in the Roman Empire. The word ''gladiator'' itself comes from the Latin word ''gladius'', which is a type of sword. Europe Classical history The Roman legionaries and other forces of the Roman military, until the 2nd century A.D., used the gladius as a short thrusting sword effectively with the '' scutum'', a type of shield, in battle. According to Vegetius, the Romans mainly used underhanded stabs and thrusts, because one thrust into the gut would kill an enemy faster th ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Given Name
A given name (also known as a forename or first name) is the part of a personal name quoted in that identifies a person, potentially with a middle name as well, and differentiates that person from the other members of a group (typically a family or clan) who have a common surname. The term ''given name'' refers to a name usually bestowed at or close to the time of birth, usually by the parents of the newborn. A ''Christian name'' is the first name which is given at baptism, in Christian custom. In informal situations, given names are often used in a familiar and friendly manner. In more formal situations, a person's surname is more commonly used. In Western culture, the idioms "" and "being on first-name terms" refer to the familiarity inherent in addressing someone by their given name. By contrast, a surname (also known as a family name, last name, or Gentile name, ''gentile'' name) is normally inherited and shared with other members of one's immediate family. Regnal names ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Family Name
In many societies, a surname, family name, or last name is the mostly hereditary portion of one's personal name that indicates one's family. It is typically combined with a given name to form the full name of a person, although several given names and surnames are possible in the full name. In modern times most surnames are hereditary, although in most countries a person has a right to name change, change their name. Depending on culture, the surname may be placed either at the start of a person's name, or at the end. The number of surnames given to an individual also varies: in most cases it is just one, but in Portuguese-speaking countries and many Spanish-speaking countries, two surnames (one inherited from the mother and another from the father) are used for legal purposes. Depending on culture, not all members of a family unit are required to have identical surnames. In some countries, surnames are modified depending on gender and family membership status of a person. C ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Letterer
A letterer is a member of a team of comic book creators responsible for drawing the comic book's text. The letterer's use of typefaces, calligraphy, letter size, and layout all contribute to the impact of the comic-book-reading experience. The letterer crafts the comic's "display lettering": the story's title lettering, creator credits, and any specialized captions that appear on the story's first page. They also craft the lettering that appears in the word balloons, also designing the various sound effects that appear within the comic book story. Many letterers also design logos for the comic book company's various titles. History Origins By the time comic books came of age in the 1940s, the huge volume of work demanded by publishers had encouraged an assembly-line process, dividing the creative process into distinct tasks: writer, penciller, letterer, inker, and colorist. By the late 1940s, it became possible to make a living just lettering comic strips and comic books ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Sergio Aragonés
Sergio Aragonés Domenech ( , ; born 6 September 1937 in Sant Mateu, Castellón, Spain) is a Spanish-Mexican-American cartoonist and writer best known for his contributions to ''Mad (magazine), Mad'' magazine and creating the comic book ''Groo the Wanderer''. Among his peers and fans, Aragonés is widely regarded as "the world's fastest cartoonist". ''The Comics Journal'' has described Aragonés as "one of the most prolific and brilliant cartoonists of his generation". ''Mad'' editor Al Feldstein said, "He could have drawn the whole magazine if we'd let him." Aragonés has won numerous awards and accolades for his work, including Shazam Awards, a Harvey Award, an Inkpot Award, a Reuben Award, an Eisner Award, and a National Cartoonists Society Comic Book Award. In October 2024, he was inducted into the Harvey Awards Hall of Fame. Early life Born in Sant Mateu, Castellón (province), Castellón, Spain, Aragonés emigrated with his family to France, due to the Spanish Civil War, ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Groo The Wanderer
Groo the Wanderer is a fantasy/comedy comic book character created by Sergio Aragonés. His stories are written and drawn by Aragonés, dialogued and edited by Mark Evanier, lettered by Stan Sakai and colored by Tom Luth. Over the years, Groo has been published by Pacific Comics, Eclipse Comics (one special issue), Marvel Comics (under its Epic imprint), Image Comics and Dark Horse Comics. Groo was among the first widely successful creator-owned comics creations, one of the few successful humorous series in the United States (outside Archie Comics), and is one of the longest-running collaborations in comic book history. In 2011, IGN ranked Groo 100th in the "Top 100 comic books heroes". The characters Groo (the epithet "the Wanderer" is informal and rarely mentioned within the stories) first appeared as a parody of the brutal sword and sorcery heroes that were popular at the time of his creation in the 1970s, especially Conan the Barbarian as presented in Marvel Comics. Groo is a ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Godzilla
is a fictional monster, or ''kaiju'', that debuted in the eponymous 1954 film, directed and co-written by Ishirō Honda. The character has since become an international pop culture icon, appearing in various media: 33 Japanese films produced by Toho Co., Ltd., five American films, and numerous video games, novels, comic books, and television shows. Godzilla has been dubbed the King of the Monsters, an epithet first used in '' Godzilla, King of the Monsters!'' (1956), the American localization of the 1954 film. Originally and in most iterations of the creature, Godzilla is a colossal prehistoric reptilian or dinosaurian monster that is amphibious or resides partially in the ocean, awakened and empowered after many years by exposure to nuclear radiation and nuclear testing. With the nuclear bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki and the '' Lucky Dragon 5'' incident still fresh in the Japanese consciousness,Souder, William (2012); On a Farther Shore - The Life and Le ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Zatoichi
is a fictional character created by Japanese novelist Kan Shimozawa. He is an itinerant blind masseur and swordsman of Japan's late Edo period (1830s and 1840s). He first appeared in the 1948 essay ''Zatoichi Monogatari'', part of Shimozawa's ''Futokoro Techō'' series that was serialized in the magazine ''Shōsetsu to Yomimono''. This originally minor character was drastically altered and developed for the screen by Daiei Film and actor Shintaro Katsu, becoming the subject of one of Japan's longest-running film series. A total of 26 films were made between 1962 and 1989. From 1974 to 1979, a television series was produced, starring Katsu and some of the same actors that appear in the films. Produced by Katsu Productions, 100 episodes were aired before the ''Zatoichi'' television series was cancelled. The seventeenth film of the ''Zatoichi'' series was remade in the US in 1989 by TriStar Pictures as '' Blind Fury'', starring Rutger Hauer. A 2003 film was directed by Takeshi K ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Lone Wolf And Cub
is a Japanese manga series created by writer Kazuo Koike and artist Goseki Kojima. It was serialized in Futabasha's manga magazine '' Weekly Manga Action'' from September 1970 to April 1976, with its chapters collected in 28 ' volumes. The story was adapted into six films starring Tomisaburo Wakayama, four plays, and a television series starring Kinnosuke Yorozuya, and is widely recognized as an important and influential work. ''Lone Wolf and Cub'' chronicles the story of Ogami Ittō, the ''shōgun''s executioner who uses a dōtanuki battle sword. Disgraced by false accusations from the Yagyū clan, he is forced to take the path of the assassin. Along with his three-year-old son, Daigorō, they seek revenge on the Yagyū clan and are known as "Lone Wolf and Cub". ''Lone Wolf and Cub'' is considered to be among the most influential manga ever created. It has been cited as the origin for the trope of a man protecting a child on a journey across a dangerous landscape. ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Yojimbo (film)
is a 1961 Japanese samurai film directed by Akira Kurosawa, who also co-wrote the screenplay and was one of the producers. The film stars Toshiro Mifune, Tatsuya Nakadai, Yoko Tsukasa, Isuzu Yamada, Daisuke Katō, Takashi Shimura, Kamatari Fujiwara, and Atsushi Watanabe. In the film, a '' rōnin'' arrives in a small town where competing crime lords fight for supremacy. The two bosses each try to hire the newcomer as a bodyguard. Based on the success of ''Yojimbo'', Kurosawa's next film, '' Sanjuro'' (1962), was altered to incorporate the lead character of this film. In both films, the character wears a rather dilapidated dark kimono bearing the same family ''mon''. The film was released and produced by Toho on April 25, 1961. ''Yojimbo'' received highly positive reviews, and, over the years, became widely regarded as one of the best films by Kurosawa and one of the greatest films ever made. The film grossed an estimated US$2.5 million worldwide with a budget of ¥90. ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Akira Kurosawa
was a Japanese filmmaker who List of works by Akira Kurosawa, directed 30 feature films in a career spanning six decades. He is widely regarded as one of the greatest and most influential filmmakers in the History of film, history of cinema. Kurosawa displayed a Filmmaking technique of Akira Kurosawa, bold, dynamic style strongly influenced by Western cinema yet distinct from it. He was involved with all aspects of film production. Kurosawa entered the Cinema of Japan, Japanese film industry in 1936, following a brief stint as a painter. After years of working on numerous films as an assistant director and scriptwriter, he made his debut as a director during World War II with the popular action film ''Sanshiro Sugata'' (1943). After the war, the critically acclaimed ''Drunken Angel'' (1948), in which Kurosawa cast the then-little-known actor Toshiro Mifune in a starring role, cemented the director's reputation as one of the most important young filmmakers in Japan. The two m ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
