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I have no idea what this game was (some sort of sliding-type deal from a kids’ magazine, with punch-out tokens) but man is the character art laced throughout the board amazing or what?
Tags: Kagemaru, Mitsuteru Yokoyama
From eBay to dirt malls, swap meets and yard sales coast to coast, you see these 5-8″ ceramic vessels sold as both “Tiki mugs” (from joints like Benihana) and “bamboo planters” quite a bit.
Not sure which description is accurate? The holes on the fronts sure do seem straw-friendly. But the gaping holes in back seem too low to hold an appreciable amount of liquor. Yeah, the hole is big enough to pour crushed ice into, but I mean, you couldn’t tip it at all without spilling rum on your hipster bowling shirt. Certainly suitable for some stalks of bamboo though…
Truth of it is, they definitely started life as novelty mugs for gimmicky steakhouse chains and Asian-themed bars. Benihana had an official line that bore their logo, and plenty of similar knock-offs were available elsewhere.
BUT… I’ve scored as many of these that have dirt-stained interiors as I have ones that still smell vaguely of fruity drinks, so somebody was multi-purposing the damn things.
I’ve seen probably 4-6 different ninja in both white and green, likely 80′s, but plenty of other designs came before and after, from kendo students to geisha to buddhas. Read all about the dizzying array of “tiki mugs” at this superb blog!
**AND THIS JUST IN!** Scored the below on eBay just now while looking for supplemental images for this post!
This is an official Benihana model. Missing the small ceramic sword that went in the otherwise straw hole, alas.
Why do I collect all these ceramic ninja while living in quakey California?
Thanks to Roy Ware of the awesome Black Sun blog for sending me this:
Yes, shinobi cheezy-poofs! Getting my ass down to Little Tokyo grocers right f’n now!
Meanwhile, check out Roy’s great feature on Gekko Kamen up right now, complete with a theme song to die for.
And hey, WOW! According to my count – this is VN’s 200th post!!! In less than a year, too. You’d think I was obsessed with ninja or something…
My pal Lili Chin is the bomb! She bought these for me on a recent vacation to Japan.
Obviously “inspired by” Sonny Chiba’s Hattori Hanzo in Kage no Gundan. I was shocked when these actually fit my gaijin yeti feet.
Now to master some monkey-style foot-flinging shuriken skils!
Thanks Lili! You’ve earned a completely gratuitous plug for Doggie Drawings – an effort to not only immortalize your pets but to help rescue Boston Terriers in need.
OK, now get back to work on Dead Ringo!
The much-missed masters of cheap toy lines Remco released a He-Man-sized line of martial arts action figures from 1984-86 called Secret of the Ninja. Three sets were done in ’86 that included VHS tapes to ‘play along to’ – and man are these tapes some historical oddities!
Yeah… Kaiketsu Lion Maru… the pilot episode… on domestic VHS… DUBBED IN ENGLISH! What the hell? Did the soon-to-be-defunct toy company bring in a cast of voice-over actors to do this up? Was there a dubbed pilot floating around public domain after a long-forgotten failed pitch to film or TV markets? Is this the only surviving remnant of a whole season of the tokusatsu classic re-purposed for the American market that never saw the light of day?
Now the dubbed version of Kamui I can understand a bit more – the series ran for years in Latin American markets, was dubbed for Italian TV, and more. An English version was probably done in hopes of similar syndication, but the nature of the knife-wielding youngster killing ninja in the trees may have been a bit much for American corporate sensibilities.
Regardless of the origins of the programs on these tapes, the box art was certainly new and a product of Remco. They’re signed “S. Paracio” or “Sparacio.”
Someday I’ll get around to photographing my modest collection of these figures. It’s a weird line with all-over-the-place designs, and head sculpts that look a lot like 70′s high-school math teachers.
Shinobi salt and pepper shakers via Patina:
VN’s attracted a lot of fans worldwide, and I get all sorts of compliments on the site from very happy readers. Despite all that love, none of you seem especially concerned that I do NOT own an antique armored Japanese hood!
Well, here’s three chances to correct this obvious oversight peeps. I know a couple of you are billionaires with nothing better to do with five grand than spend it on a frivolous gift for a nerdy publisher, so make with the PayPal:
eBay store “japan-premium-seller-trading-assistant” (awesome) has this basic little black number in hand-linked chain mail for a demure $1700. I’m really sure it’s an authentic battle field piece, too.
I was raised in central New England, a culture that still resonates a comparitively puritan slant on style, so this fancy-pants hood (that make any sense?) might be a bit much for me… although its a bargain at $4800, and again, it’s gotta be an authentic antique, right from the soil of Sekigahara I’m sure.
However I absolutely LOOOOVE this combination plate and mail hood, dated pre-1800s. All kidding aside, this reasonably priced $2600 relic is the most awesome design ever – the perfect combination of protection and maneuverability, often attributed to battlefield shinobi in manga and movies. Love it! I don’t even care they don’t offer any sort of historical authentication…
Could also save around $600 and buy new, too:
This awesomeness is from the nifty Rakuten website, which while it claims to be “The Iga-Ryu Ninja Shop” is – I believe – in reality the “Iga-Ryu Ninja GIFT Shop” as the clothing and gadgets are right from the tourist exploiting ninja themeparks (and some recent ‘historical’ ninja books as well). Dig through this site, you’ll see every decade of ninja movie represented, from basic black Raizo-wear to more 80′s Chiba-fare, up to Naruto headbands and Azumi ensembles for the ladies. Yay history!
But you have to embrace this sort of stuff if you’re going to be a ninja fan, and realize the exploitation and fishtales have been going on for so many centuries, the lore and fandom IS history in itself…
And no, I won’t stop putting out if you don’t shower me with gifts. But hey, some of you web folk and bloggers could throw VN a plug, that’s what we really need.
Have owned this “sugoroku” illustrated game board for years but am finally discovering the actual nature of it.
Click the image for a new page, then click that image for a huge-ass scan of this. Details below as well.
Essentially a Japanese version of Chutes and Ladders, these thin paper game boards have been produced for centuries in one form or another (read here about an older version of the game based on backgammon and made illegal twice in Japanese history).
I’ve seen several based on chambara, tokusatsu and boys adventure anime, but this one is a melting pot of various ninja properties – or is at least meant to EVOKE those properties. Yeah, I’m thinking characters owned by multiple studios or TV networks appearing on one product means unlicensed…
Man, some of this art is just precious. Without being able to read the captions, I’m seeing illos that are certainly meant to be Masked Ninja Akakage and Kagemaru of Iga there, and a villain that could be a skull shocker from Lion Maru or a shinobi-fied Golden Bat.
Translations anyone?
Scored a few more menko cards, these feature some surprisingly ON-model art and photo collage work.
Illustrations of HENSHIN NINJA ARASHI, among the better third-party artwork I've seen on these cards.
KAIKETSU LION MARU and FUUN LION MARU use actual photos of these creepy heroes.
Tags: Arashi, Lion Maru, menko cards
