Something that came out the 80s and lived on into the 90’s was the bare-armed body-building look for ninja, a mutation driven by the painted covers of Ninja Magazine and video game package art. These roided-up shinobi sacrificed protection for … Continued
Many thanks to VN regular RG for sending me this link: Ninjerktsu! The Dreamworks storyboard artist who refers to himself only as ‘Michael’ really captures something here. Who didn’t hurt themselves with these things back in the day?
With the 80s craze came a lot of repurposed merchandise – stuff that for the previous decade’s boom had been sold as kung-fu gear now emblazoned with ninja logos. The above looks to have been a Chinese-esque design probably inspired … Continued
These beautiful character design illos are from the 2003 video game artbook Shinobi THE WIDE. This sleeve-slinging swordgirl is ‘Ageha.’ I’m digging the flapper sensibilities of her hair and make-up. You can see the rest of this long-out-of-print book here. … Continued
After a well-received debut at this year’s Tribecca, Eddie Mort’s Dead Ringo will see the light of day for what is currently planned as 13 three-minute webisodes TV interstitials. Details on who, where and when to follow, but in the meantime … Continued
It was the 1980s, and there wasn’t a cheesy enough piece of Japanese graphics or ninja-related bad illustration we wouldn’t wear on a black t-shirt. And let’s just take a look at the logic of this: It’s a tough read … Continued
Dear Cute Ninja Girl in the Honda Civic ad, Your adorable little action-oriented commercial has been around for what, SIX WEEKS or more now? I’ve been glued to my TV, watching for your Akakage-inspired red mask, contemporary urban take on … Continued
A reader sent me some anime movie poster scans, for which I was grateful, but one of them just struck a nerve – a wrong nerve – and I have to vent. Some day job background first – I pay … Continued
This amazingness is on eBay right now: Ghana, West Africa – 1980s. Quasi-legal ‘mobile cinemas’ showed exploitation films on VHS around third-world villages, promoted by off-model movie posters painted by local artists. Luckily for the rest of the world, these … Continued
In the days before scanners, throwing “clip art” into a print advertisement took some work. You had to find a cool image to start with, then “threshold” it via a stat camera and toxic chemical-laden rapid processor. And what you were … Continued