On sale at FUJI ARTS
Don’t own an antique Japanese print of a ninja (or ninja-like) wizard doing TOAD MAGIC? Well, end the shame and embarrassment of it right now over at Japanese art acutioneers Fuji Arts! I’d love to a be a heavy hitter … Continued
NINJA BUGEICHO
So-called “Motion Comics” released on DVD and partially-animated graphic novels adapted for tablet devices are familiar now, but go back a few decades and experiments in using still art in moving media are less frequent, and with mixed results at … Continued
ARASHI 7″ vinyl
I love the somewhat goofy Henshin Ninja Arashi and I love this cheap 7″ semi-articulated vinyl figure too. Bandai produced this in 2005, and it sold for $10-14. I dig this size and price range of collectible – one only … Continued
JAPAN EARTHQUAKE RELIEF FUND
A consortium of Japanese Cinema bloggers and writers, including Chris McGee, Jon Jung, Jasper Sharp, Tom Mes, Kimberly Lindbergs, Jason Gray, Aaron Gerow, Patrick Macias, Todd Brown, Emi Ueyama, and others, have banded together to help raise money for Tohoku … Continued
Quicklinks to the the ‘Ninja-To’ article series
If you’ve missed the evolution of the ninja sword discussions day-by-day, here’s an easier way to read them all in order: Part 1.) Origins of the 80s Ninja-To – in which we looked at the earliest American magazine ads we … Continued
So in conclusion…
Look at that poor, little, unassuming sword down there. Why is that cute little fella the center of such controversy? Why do so many try to use the straight blade as a fulcrum to separate the ‘men from the boys’ … Continued
The ones that lasted, the ones we’ve made, and the one that got away
At the apex of the 80’s ninja boom, I was in my early teens, had disposable income from odd jobs and a dad willing to put his name as an adult on a mail-in order to a martial arts supply … Continued
‘Ninja-To’ visual shorthand in American vs. Japanese films
One thing you hear over and over from the anti-‘Ninja-To’-sword-haters-club is the blade is “pure Hollywood.” Before this recent spat of research and over-scrutinizing swords in old movies, I used to argue against that notion; the Japanese studios got ninja … Continued
‘Ninja-To’ visual shorthand in manga
Depending on what school of thought you believe, the stereotypical ‘Ninja-To’ is either pure myth propagated by popular media or martial tradition traced back centuries in Japan. Well, if EITHER of those is true, then you’d think the short, straight … Continued
E-debate rages on notorious ‘Ninja-To’
Martial arts are a lot like religion – you can’t have a discussion, it’s an argument. You can’t have an opinion, you take sides. And just like religions draw lines in the sand over buildings, relics and figures, so too has the ninjutsu community … Continued