FUJIMARU book-n-record (PART 2)

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The adventure continues…

Fujimaru had a rather large friend from above his whole life – a giant eagle. It was all part of a well-balanced mix of genuine historical weaponry and credible martial arts with superhero-like powers and outright magic. Blend it all with goofy animals for comic relief and a snappy theme song by a kids chorus, and that’s your formula for successful boy’s adventure anime in the 60’s.

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OK, that animal on the far left, the one with the same haircut as my mailman... what exactly is that? Monkey? Wombat? Proto-Ewok?

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Fujimaru's whirlwind could turn Japusai's fire right back on him in spectacular fashion! I love the character design of the old wizard...

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These terriffic action poses are right out of the credit sequence to the TV anime. The show was adapted from a popular Sanpei manga, and animated by the now legendary Hayao Miyazaki.

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Ninja Kaze no Fujimaru ran on Toei’s TV network from Jun. 7, 1964 – Aug. 29, 1965 – the same year as Johnny Quest here in the U.S. But while JQ was about the apex of boy’s adventure cartoons in the States, Fujimaru was just one in a long line of weapons-carrying, ninja-slaying, super-powered shinobi role models for Japanese kids.

We’ve got some imagery from the anime itself and the inspiring manga coming in the future.