issue 04 // volume 42

Animesque: The samurai live again

» ‘Sword of the Stranger’ review

Adam Tatelman
Staff Writer

OOOO

Ihe modern, romanticized

view of the samurai has given :

us many anime about them.
Arguably, these noble warriors
are just as recognizable in the
West now as in their Japanese
homeland. Sadly, few of these

modern samurai shows have been !

much to talk about. Most have
been heavy on the mystic legend,
while emphasizing over-the-top
supernatural villains and bland
overpowered heroes knocking
down buildings. Sword of the
Stranger scoffs at that rubbish
and says, “No, this is how you do
a samurai movie.”

In Sengoku-era Japan, a
child and his dog flee for their
lives, pursued by Chinese
mercenaries. The mad Emperor
of the Ming dynasty believes that
sacrificing this child will grant

him immortality. Lord Byakuran, :
his agent, brokers a tense alliance :

with the treacherous Akaike
Shogunate, even as he plots to
take the child for himself.

The child, Kotaro, meets a
nameless vagabond who is good

in a fight but refuses to ever draw :
: Champloo, no nauseating 3-D
: robot battles like in Samurai 7—

his sword. Kotaro convinces
the ronin to protect him until

: he reaches safety. The Chinese

: give chase, led by a leering, six-
: foot, blue-eyed Western warrior
named Luo-Lang, who seeks only :
: scenes so slick and intense they
: feel like live duels.

worthy opponents to kill.
The film is stylized, and

: the bad guys believe in the

: supernatural, but for the most
: part it is set in the real world.
: There’s no off-putting hip-

hop nonsense like in Samurai

just wood-block percussion and
: lilting flute themes, reprisedin — :
; triumphant brass for traditionally :

animated, man-to-man fight

Fortunately, the action

: doesn’t detract from the

: character focus. Most of the film
: shows Kotaro’s bond with the

: nameless man growing as they

: travel together, snarking at each
: other all the way. The nameless

 

man’s got a shady past, of course,
: but like in Cowboy Bebop, we

never learn the whole truth,

: although we do learn enough to
: contrast him with the fearsome

: Luo-Lang. Perhaps this is best—
: if we weren't left wanting to

: know more of the mystery, the

: ambiguity of his fate would fall

: flat.

The attention given to the

supporting cast helps the film
: come to life. Everyone has an arc

arts // no. 9

: of their own, a stake in the plot

: to catch Kotaro. Master Itadori,

: Lord Akaike’s top warrior, nearly
: becomes a second protagonist

: despite having only a few scenes
: to explore his Macbeth-like

: ambition to rule. Akaike’s disdain
: for the Chinese becomes his

: undoing, even as he strong-arms
: the Buddhists who promised

: to protect Kotaro. There is a lot

: going on, and everybody’s in on

: something.

Luo-Lang is excellent as

: adark reflection of the man

> } with no name. When he speaks

: Mandarin with his monotonal

: Japanese accent, it sounds like

: the Black Speech of Mordor. Even
: his allies think he’s creepy—

: they’d ditch him in a second if

: they didn’t need his help. He feels
: alot like the Darth Vader of the

: film, and is genuinely terrifying.

Nameless ronin, duplicitous

: courtiers, and sinister foreign

: warriors can be seen in many

: films and anime alike. But Sword
: of the Stranger is more than the

: sum of its parts. In arranging

: those elements just so, the film

: becomes a fresh and vital love

: letter to everything that makes

: Akira Kurosawa and Masahiro

: Shinoda’s classic samurai films so
entertaining.

Thank you, Studio Bones, for

: making samurai great again.

 

Chairman of the Board: Assemble your hand!

» ‘Legendary: A Marvel Deck Building Game’ review

Ed Appleby
illustrator
Miillustrator
@theotherpress.ca

 

ho wouldn’t want to play

in the Marvel Universe,
where heroes use their special
abilities to save the world time
and again?

Legendary is a cooperative
deck building game for 1-5
players designed by Devin Low
and published by Upper Deck
Entertainment in 2012. Based
in the Marvel Universe, players
use cards of various powers
and prices to battle villains
rampaging throughout the city,
all while attempting to defeat a
mastermind who is controlling
it all. Ifthe players fail to stop
enough villains, then the game
is lost. The game is won by
defeating the mastermind and
being the player who scored the

I mentioned last week
how licenced games can be
difficult to put together and
often feel rushed out. By

: limiting itself to cards and not
: trying to incorporate pieces on
: a board, Legendary keeps the

: action firmly embedded in the
: imagination of the player.

The gameplay is quick and

: fast-paced, but not so much

: as to overwhelm. Strategy and

: teamwork play a big part in the

: game, as players have to work

: together in order to take down

: tougher foes. The downside

: of this is that once you have

: multiple players, the game

: becomes almost too easy. At that
: point, egos can reign supreme

: and players can attempt to out-

: score each other with less risk of
: losing the game.

I would recommend

Legendary to any Marvel fan—

: which, with the cinematic

: universe’s success, is almost

: everyone. The gameplay and

: strategy is enough to keep most
: casual to advanced players

: occupied. There are also several
most points by defeating villains. : expansions to add new heroes
: and villains to the game, so if

: youre a Guardians of the Galaxy
: fan, you are in luck!

 

 

Image credit Ed Appleby