#akira sakai

[77ngiez]

skyler pls tell us about the fankids

EHEHEHE….

for this ask imma focus on,,, class 6 of the new hope’s peak academy!!

chiharu nanami: daughter of chiaki nanami and mikan tsumiki (chiaki is dead, mikan managed to create fake sperm with chiaki’s dna and impregnate herself, don’t judge her decision-making she was brainwashed). ultimate field medic. grew up mostly in towa city and then in future foundation custody before being returned to mikan, highly traumatized from this. very much blames junko for everything and has a conspiracy theory that junko is still alive (:0). when she’s not being off the rails about her junko theory she’s a very sweet and normal girl. she can be quiet often but if you’re close enough to her she’ll open up! also she works for future foundation. she/her bi demigirl, dpdr, adhd, ptsd.

kiki izayoi: child of sounosuke izayoi and ruruka andou. ultimate observer. likes to watch rather than participate. observational skills are similar to ult analyst skills. they’re very kind, and will often do small gestures to show their love (eg, once heard chiharu mention her favorite type of candy [konpeito] and then when she was feeling sick made some for her). works for future foundation as well. they/them pan nb, adhd, autism.

akira sakai: not a fankid. ultimate assassin. under the thumb of the holy salvation army (same cult that got maki), they’re threatening him with releasing a copy of junko’s ai into the public if he doesn’t obey. he’s pretty sure it’s a bluff but he doesn’t want to risk it. he’s pretty talkative, mostly as a front so people don’t see how depressed he secretly is. he/him transhet, ptsd, potentially osdd-1a but he’s never heard of it lol.

mamoru miki: not a fankid, but rantaro’s niece (not that he knows that). ultimate spy. very talkative, but in a ramble-y way—they hate the silence and will do anything to fill it. they come off as a bit of a ditz but they’re very dedicated to their profession. they/them sapphic transfem, adhd.

kau yamamoto: not a fankid. ultimate influencer. not in a social media way, but in a “really good at getting people to do what she wants” way. she uses this talent for good, like say rebuilding homes that were torn down by storms, or donating to public services like libraries. she’s very upbeat and cheerful. she/her lesbian, ocd.

also akira/chiharu are in love and mamoru/kiki/kau are in love.

thanks for askinggg <333

[mcphotovirtual]

A rare Ghost of Tsushima appearance 👀. I really need to get back to this game to take more shots. I maybe played it for all of 5 hours and that is criminal of me.

[lilium-dragomir]

[choueiyuusubs]

Bokura no Barom-1 - Kitadani Hiroshi, Endoh Masaaki, Kageyama Hironobu, Sakai Norio, Maeda Tatsuya, Miyauchi Takayuki, MoJo, Kushida Akira Super Hero Spirits 2023

[mina-ahavi]

[louis-pikman]

Happy 60th anniversary Mothra vs Godzilla!

Logo from here

[saint-miroir]

Backside of a Rockin' Heaven card folder, featuring an illustration by series mangaka, Mayu Sakai. Taken from an issue of Monthly MonMon Magazine.

[1day1coverart]

+ artist : kikuchi momoko (菊池桃子) + title : ocean side (1984) + design : isao Sakai, yumiko Ohta + visual concept : koichi fujita + photography : tadayasu ozawa (front), akira tateishi, katsutoshi itoh

[white-cat-of-doom]

The Japanese production celebrated its 40th anniversary today, 11 November 2023, in Nagoya!

The first photo was taken last month (judging by the cast), and the following are all from today's anniversary performance.

In addition, the CATS Musical Instagram page posted photos from the Tokyo cast back in 1983 to celebrate.

40th Anniversary Show Cast:

Seiji Hashimoto as Asparagus, Erika Orita as Bombalurina, Shun Kuwahara as Carbucketty, Maaya Tahara as Cassandra, Ryujiro Isshiki as Coricopat, Chihiro Harada as Demeter, Yujin Haga as Gilbert, Chiaki Kimura as Grizabella, Miki Okudaira as Jellylorum, Naho Sakai as Jemima, Miki Kasahara as Jennyanydots, Hikaru Kitani as Macavity, So Yokoi as Mistoffelees, Haruaki Tamai as Mungojerrie, Junpei Wakebe as Munkustrap, Yuki Takahashi as Old Deuteronomy, Jin Sakuma as Rum Tum Tugger, Ayano Hasegawa as Rumpleteazer, Tomoki Kawakami as Rumpus Cat, Haruna Sasaki as Sillabub, Hiromu Kuroda as Skimbleshanks, Rika Takeshita as Tantomile, Yuma Ishida as Tumblebrutus and Nanako Yoshimura as Victoria.

Promotional photo cast from October 2023:

Kohei Nakahashi as Asparagus, Haruka Yamazaki as Bombalurina, Shuichi Kawazu as Carbucketty, Eiko Kataoka as Cassandra, Ryujiro Isshiki as Coricopat, Tsukushi Maruno as Demeter, Akira Goto as Gilbert, Masae Ebata as Grizabella, Ayaka Yoshida as Jellylorum, Naho Sakai as Jemima, Sayuri Ataka as Jennyanydots, Hikaru Kitani as Chorus Macavity, Akito Iwamura as Mistoffelees, Kazuki Morita as Mungojerrie, Junpei Wakebe as Munkustrap, Kazuki Kanemoto as Old Deuteronomy, Togo Kaminaga as Rum Tum Tugger, Ayu Shimizu as Rumpleteazer, Tomoki Kawakami as Rumpus Cat, Yuzumi Shibamoto as Sillabub, Yui Kobayashi as Skimbleshanks, Rika Takeshita as Tantomile, Yuma Ishida as Tumblebrutus and Nemu Kondo as Victoria.

[kirbymusicdaily]

Kirby Music of the Day: City Trial: What's in the Box? from Kirby Air Ride

[mcphotovirtual]

Something from Tsushima that I didn’t use at the time, I felt like all I was taking was attack animation and idle stance shots (nothing wrong with that I suppose 🤭) But that was a while ago, this looks more striking to me now than it did then… Sooo, here it is.

[lilium-dragomir]

[crazyasianlove]

Utsukushii Kare: Eternal (Sub. Esp)

DESCARGAR O VER ONLINE AQUÍ

Título: Utsukushii Kare: Eternal País: Japón Duración: 103 min. Género: romance, juventud, drama Fecha de estreno: 7 de abril, 2023 Dirección: Sakai Mai Guion: Tsubota Fumi

SINOPSIS

El "solitario" tranquilo y sin amigos del final de la clase se enamora a primera vista del "Rey" Kiyoi, abrumadoramente bello, despiadado y popular. Después de graduarse en la escuela secundaria y pasar por varios altibajos, Hira y Kiyoi se han convertido en pareja y viven una feliz vida de convivencia en la casa de Hira. A medida que se acerca la graduación universitaria, Hira comienza a trabajar como asistente del popular fotógrafo Noguchi y es testigo del trabajo de un profesional. Comienza a distanciarse poco a poco de Kiyoi, sin querer interponerse en la creciente carrera de Kiyoi como actor. Hira, que piensa en Kiyoi como una existencia preciosa y divina, y Kiyoi, que quiere que sean una pareja de amantes "normal" en igualdad con Hira, a pesar de pensar el uno en el otro, gradualmente comienzan los desacuerdos entre ellos.

La primavera en la que se conocieron ya pasó, y después de un verano caluroso, el otoño se hizo más profundo. El frío invierno ha sido superado y de nuevo llega la primavera. Los dos comienzan a encaminarse hacia la temporada de graduación.

CAST

Hagiwara Riku como Hira Kazunari Yagi Yusei como Kiyoi sou Takano Akira como Koyama Kazuki Ochiai Motoki como Shitara Katsumi Nimura Sawa como Anna Maeda Kentaro como Kiriya Keisuke Wada Soko como Noguchi Hiromi Ikeda Dai como Kouda Ayano Aya como Naho Iwakawa Haru como Tomoya Iida Kisuke como Yamagata Kanai Yuta como Suga Oribe Yoshinari como mánager de Kiriya Ise Kayo como Pan-neesan Endo Kenshin como Sawazaki otomo Kazuki como Horii

[cilansfanganforum]

GIVE US THE CASTS BESTIE

HI CYBER OKAY OKAY

I will give cast lists

Danganronpa: Unreasonable Doubt

Firstname, lastname

Min-seo Seong - Ultimate Behavioral Analyst (Protagonist)

Zeta - Ultimate Swordswoman (Support)

Haya Ikeuchi - Ultimate Glassblower

Kazane Naito - Ultimate Birdwatcher

Argelia Cacciatore - Ultimate Collector

Hide Saito - Ultimate Makeup Artist

Iris Berrouet - Ultimate Winemaker

Akira Sudou - Ultimate Talent Scout

Ren Uemura - Ultimate Stage Actor

Tadaaki Etoh - Ultimate Doll Maker

Tenya Fujimori - Ultimate Oneirologist

Sakio Onishi - Ultimate Street Fashion Model

Seiichi Shimizu - Ultimate Sociologist

Keika Fumetsugawa - Ultimate Martial Artist

Lìchuàng Cheng - Ultimate Sketch Artist

Katuro Aoki - Ultimate Golfer

Soma Yukimura - Ultimate Ice Sculptor

Evangelina Velasco - Ultimate Cyclist

Danganronpa: Opening Statements

Kenji Chishiya - Ultimate Enigmatologist (Protagonist)

Chie Shozo - Ultimate Videographer (Support)

Kei Kanda - Ultimate Digital Journalist

Iota - Ultimate Medic

Ji-yeon Pae - Ultimate Mountaineer

Rumika Tachibana - Ultimate Game Master

Sara Sakai - Ultimate Farmer

Hibiki Kagamine - Ultimate Bassist

Emi Achikita - Ultimate Concept Artist

Kaoru Manaka - Ultimate Student Council President

Shohei Takenaka - Ultimate Axe Thrower

Hideki Iidabashi - Ultimate Phytologist

Yuma Morishige - Ultimate Archer

Osamu Maki - Ultimate Translator

Koki Ito - Ultimate Comedian

Akihide Maebara - Ultimate Calligrapher

Ichiju Yasuki - Ultimate Woodworker

Chihaku Ikeru - Ultimate Informant

Danganronpa: Dream On

(Since they were initially based on Pokémon here are the ones they are based on)

Inei Hisaka - Ultimate Oneirologist (Darkrai) (Protagonist)

Iliad Aguado - Ultimate Analyst (Inteleon) (Support)

Aria Sangster - Ultimate Ballerina (Melloetta)

Linette LaFlamme - Ultimate Candlemaker (Litwick)

Maren Preciado - Ultimate Illusionist (Meowscarada)

André “Dédé” Luce - Ultimate Radio Host (Dedenne)

Adelaïs Rubin - Ultimate Glaciologist (Aurorus)

Sukekiyo Kageyama - Ultimate Knight (Gardevoir)

Pualei Nae’ole - Ultimate Opera Singer (Primarina)

Addison Banville - Ultimate Baker (Appletun)

Lokelani Ikaika - Ultimate Beekeeper (Ribombee)

Dakota Manton - Ultimate Geologist (Dwebble)

Xenon Percius - Ultimate Ancient Historian (Galarian Yamask)

Mahana Ihimaera - Ultimate Fire Dancer (Alolan Marowak)

Vivienne Allaire - Ultimate Fashionista (Vivillon)

Gachiro Kageyama - Ultimate Prince

Mayu Fukami - Ultimate Actress (Mawile)

Elidio Advíncula - Ultimate Spy (Iron Moth)

OKAY FEEL FREE TO ASK FOR INFO BYEEEE

[odaclan]

News say artillery power did make a difference in Nagashino, but maybe not in the way that you might think

For quite a long time, it’s the popular story that Nobunaga decimated the Takeda in Nagashino because he readily embraced guns when other clans didn’t. Despite how it’s being severely disputed in the scholarship, this story is still repeatedly trotted around, especially in the fandom/pop culture talking spaces. 

First, a little credit to the “old stories”, as it were. The famous scene from Kurosawa Akira’s Kagemusha, of the Takeda cavalry units moving out one by one, and each getting mowed down by gunfire—that’s not entirely without basis. Its source was in fact the Shinchoukouki: 

The battle raged from sunrise of the 21st of the Fifth Month to the Hour of the Sheep [around 2 p.m.], the action bearing East by Northeast. The Takeda army attacked in relays, but its soldiers kept being shot down, and its manpower gradually drained away to nothing.

(The Chronicle of Lord Nobunaga, page 226)

There’s actually a longer description in the text, detailing a narrative that’s very similar to the movie. One unit moves out, gets gunned down, and had to withdraw. The next unit moves out, gets gunned down too, and had to back off too. This kept going until about 5 units marched out, and eventually Katsuyori gave up and the Takeda army all withdrew. 

So what was wrong in the “pop culture” story? For one, the Shinchoukouki text described this terrible move as being the Takeda’s last ditch attempt after they’re already surrounded. Meaning that there’s other strategy and battle manoeuvres that’s already taken place before this showdown finally happened. The Oda victory is not entirely thanks to the guns, although it does help. It would be a tougher win if the soldiers had to actually run out there and have a melee fight.

For another, it’s not like the Takeda or the other clans didn’t have guns. You’d have to ask why and how there were people making so many guns in the first place if it wasn’t a popular weapon that everyone’s actively using.

Lastly, just because the text says that the soldiers were “shot down”, it doesn’t automatically mean a rotating volley technique had been used. 

Here’s the breaking news: This article from Yahoo News reports that what the Oda had that made the difference was likely having more bullets (possibly of a much higher quality as well). 

The news report describes that research into bullet remains has identified particular kinds of bullets unique only to the Sengoku and very unlikely to have come from later periods in time, and these were found in Nagashino. From the studies conducted, the theory was that the Oda had a massive supply of high quality lead bullets that the Takeda didn’t.

In that time, lead was not only used for bullets, but also other smithing needs. As such, supply of domestic lead, it says, did not quite meet the necessary numbers, so they had to imports bulk loads from overseas. This is something that the Oda had advantage of, thanks to their Nanban connections and having monopoly of Sakai.

The Takeda, on the other hand, was not able to supply enough lead bullets that they were forced to melt down copper money to make the bullets with. Talk about literally burning down cash. The news reports that a letter artefact of Katsuyori ordering this had been found previously, and analysis of the copper bullets found in Nagashino has found that they have the same chemical composition as the Ming copper money that’s in circulation at the time. These copper bullets were judged by some to be inferior than the lead bullets.

And even after doing all that, there’s still not enough of bullets in supply on the Takeda side. The news then reported that after this defeat, Katsuyori learned from that mistake and circulated a new order decreeing that the army must supply at least 200 bullets for each gun that they have. 

In conclusion, this new theory says that even though both sides had guns, the Takeda side ran out of bullets too early on and their artillery was then rendered useless. The Oda army, who still had plenty of bullets to go around, was able to keep on shooting the enemy to the ground. 

I think this is a part of the conversation that didn’t really occur to a lot of people in the Sengoku gun conversations, especially in casual/non-academic or fandom spaces. Without the bullets and the gunpowder to light it up, you can have a million guns and they'd be no better than a very heavy stick. 

There’s new books about the updated research of Sengoku gun usage, and based on the reviews and summaries, it’s basically "Never mind the guns. The drama is in the trade war surrounding the gunpowder (and the bullets too)". Among many other things, the tactics also include actually sending letters to the missionaries asking them to help tell the European traders to not sell gunpowder to a very specific entity.

[le--fruitcake]

Salutations, sire! I was so taken by the milk of the word that I simply had to ask for more wisdom. I was curious to hear more of your opinions on Japanese characters being played by people who aren't Japanese, as I'm not very sure the extent of that issue.

Ah, my vassal returns! Delighted to hear thou wast taken in by mine ramblings. Welcome back, and pray rest thyself. To thy right, thou shalt find the finest refreshments and chilled drinks. Pray enjoy.

Allow me to preface this by saying: I am a white man. I am not an expert on Japanese culture, but I do know a decent amount about the samurai and a little bit about how Edo period Japan worked up until the 1800s or so, when the Black Ships arrived from the West.

I really don’t like the way Hollywood tends to cast any Asian person for roles that are specific to certain ethnicities. It gives me the impression they think Asian people are interchangeable, that Asia has one single culture, and not many individual cultures, each with their own histories and peoples and legends.

I am not the first person to talk about this, and Asian people have spoken on the subject as well. I really liked this article, which says many of the same things I think, and this one, which mentions the term “Asian-washing,” which is an interesting way to put it. I think they’re worth a read— after you finish reading this (or not. I’m not your dad).

This is not anything against the actors who play these roles, simply an observance of the tendencies of the agencies by which they were cast.

Read that last paragraph again, O Ye who Piss on the Poor.

Alright, now to the meat and potatoes, as it were.

Many times, whether in movies, books, games, or TV shows, there are characters that are either Japanese or that world’s equivalent, if it is a fantasy world like the one Robert Jordan’s Wheel of Time takes place in. Some of these fantasy characters hail from the east, carry gracefully curving blades, wear their glossy, straight black hair in a topknot, and have a strong sense of duty and honor— some of the more common stereotypes for a 士 (samurai). Perhaps the character is a spy and assassin, trained in every kind of combat known to mankind, poisons, stealth, et cetera— your average 忍 (Shinobi, ninja. Technically, “ninja” would be 忍者, with 忍 being “endurance”, lit. a blade and a heart, and 者 being person) stereotype. Many times, in the medias I consume, I notice that these types of characters are often portrayed (in live action) or voiced by (in animation) other Asian people, and rarely actual Japanese people.

For example, in the aforementioned Wheel of Time, Lan Mandragoran hails from Shienar in the Borderlands, an area heavily inspired by Japan and Japanese culture, including lacquer armor, hot springs, and a focus on honor, loyalty, and combat— the tenets of 武士道 (bushidō, lit. “the path of the warrior”). Lan was, if you ask me, inspired in part by Toshirō Mifune, a very famous actor who was in many of Akira Kurosawa’s samurai movies from the 1960s, including Yōjimbō, Seven Samurai, Sanjuro, and many others. In the live-action show that came out in 2021, Lan is portrayed by Daniel Henney, who is Korean.

Another example, also from Wheel of Time, is the character Amaresu, wielding her Sword of the Sun. Japanese mythology fans and people who played Ōkami alike can easily draw the connection between her and 天照 (Amaterasu, lit. “Heavenly Illumination”], the Japanese goddess of the sun. However, despite the blatant reference to an actual Japanese mythological figure, the woman who depicts her in the show is Vietnamese (as best as I can tell— PLEASE correct me if I am wrong.)— Hélène Tran. She plays a very minor role overall, but it’s still dishonest to the character and disrespectful the Goddess Herself to depict Her as an ethnicity She is not.

Gennosuke Murakami, the rhinoceros bounty hunter from Samurai Rabbit: The Usagi Chronicles, is voiced by Aleks Le, who is Vietnamese-American. I don’t blame Stan Sakai for this, and to be fair, very few of the English Samurai Rabbit cast is actually Japanese. Kitsune is voiced by Shelby Rabara, a Filipino woman; Auntie is voiced by Sumalee Montano, a Filipino-Thai woman; and Lord Kogane is voiced by ProZD/SungWon Cho, who is, as you likely know, a Korean-American.

In The Old Guard, which you should watch if you haven’t seen it already, the character Quýnh is the only one of the titular Old Guard who is not in the comics. The reason for this is the actress Veronica Ngô, a Vietnamese woman, was cast for the role of Noriko— the actual character from the comics, who is Japanese, as the name implies. However, to her credit, she protested, and said she was Vietnamese, not Japanese. The director of The Old Guard reached out to see if they could accommodate that. They changed the character to Quýnh instead, and we went along our merry way.

In the 2008 movie Speed Racer, both the side character Taejo Togokhan and his sister Horuko Togokhan seem to be intended to be vaguely Japanese, but neither are played by Japanese actors, and look nothing like people who came from the same country, and much less the same woman. Taejo is played by Rain, a Korean man, and Horuko is played by Yu Nan, a Chinese woman. No matter what the intended ethnicity was here, the fact that two people from different countries were cast as siblings is baffling to me.

In the 2005 movie Memoirs of a Geisha (芸者, female entertainer, lit. “technique/art/craft person”. A common misconception with geisha is that they are prostitutes; this is not true. They are dancers, performers, that kind of thing, though Iwasaki-san says there were some women who did sleep with their clients, though she says this “happens in any field”), three Chinese women were cast for the three leading roles. It is important to understand that, during the 1920s-1940s, the era in which the film takes place, Japan kidnapped thousands of Chinese and Korean women and forced them into sexual slavery for the Japanese soldiers. Now, everyone disliked this. China and Japan both gave the movie negative reviews, and the movie ended up being banned in China due to multiple reasons, including the fact that they saw it as wrong that Chinese women played Japanese geisha. Japan didn’t like it because it did not accurately represent geisha, and, for many, the fact that Chinese women were cast to play characters in a role that is uniquely Japanese.

In addition, the actual geisha who interviewed with the author, Mineko Iwasaki, and to whose life several of the experiences of the main character directly parallel, didn’t like the movie or the book, saying that it inaccurately portrayed the geisha lifestyle. She also says the author, Arthur Golden, said he would keep her involvement confidential, but he went on to credit her in the book’s acknowledgment and in interviews.

There is a whole rabbit hole about this movie and book in particular, but I’ll leave you with this article for further reading, if you are interested.

Splinter, specifically the Splinter in TMNT: Mutant Mayhem, is voiced by Jackie Chan. There are several things wrong with this— for starters, Jackie Chan is Chinese, and for seconds, there is no connection between Mutant Mayhem Splinter and Hamato Yoshi (the man that either owned Splinter when he was a rat or becomes Splinter himself), with this version of the rat master having grown up fully in the streets of New York. If anything, he should have a heavy New York accent, but instead, Seth Rogen decided Jackie Chan should voice him. This, I blame squarely on Seth Rogen and/or whoever he hired to pick the cast. The 1987 and 2003 shows had white men voicing him, and the 1990s movies had a Black man voice him, who are obviously not Japanese, but this essay is more so about Asian people who are not Japanese playing Japanese characters. The 2012 series has a Korean man (Hoon Lee) voice him, though he has decent Japanese pronunciation. In Rise, he is played by Eric Bauza, who is Filipino. None of these men are Japanese! However, there is one Splinter who was voiced by a Japanese man...

...Which leads me to the next part of this essay. Characters who are Japanese, and actually played by Japanese people! Hooray!

In the 2007 TMNT movie, Splinter is voiced by Mako— yes, that Mako, the same one who voiced Uncle Iroh. Mako was Japanese-American. In the 1990 TMNT movie, Shredder was played by an actual Japanese man, James Saito, but was replaced for the sequel by François Chau, a man of Chinese and Vietnamese descent. Both Shredders were voiced by David McCharen, a Japanese-American man (if Turtlepedia is to be believed. Seriously, it has the only information I can find on his ethnicity, though his IMDB page says he was born in Japan).

Also in Samurai Rabbit, Yūichi is voiced by Darren Barnet, whose mother was a Swede of Japanese descent. Chizu was voiced by Mallory Low, who is Japanese-, Chinese-, Filipino-, and Hawaiian-American. Miyamoto Usagi was voiced by Yuki Matsuzaki, who did an amazing job, and actually voiced Usagi in the 2012 TMNT crossover several years prior! He also voices Usagi in the TMNT beat-’em-up game, TMNT: Shredder’s Revenge, in which Usagi is a DLC character, and the best $8 I ever spent.

In Pacific Rim, the character Mako Mori was played by Rinko Kikuchi, a Japanese woman. I haven’t seen this movie, but I want to.

I am not the first person to talk about this issue, and I hope I am not the last. I am going to reiterate, for Ye who Piss on the Poor, that this essay is in no way intended to do anything except point out some the specific characters who were played by people who do not match the ethnicity of the character they are playing, and the fact that this tends to happen a lot to Asian characters. I mention Japanese characters specifically because A) that is what Mr. Tehmhachi asked me about and B) that is what I notice, given that I tend to consume Japanese/Japan-inspired medias because I am 歴男.

I am in absolutely no way saying any of these actresses or actors shouldn’t have played the roles. I am only lamenting the fact that so many times, casting agencies or Hollywood or whoever see Asian people as a conglomerate, instead of a variety of richly cultured peoples that deserve accurate representation. I believe any and all characters should be played by people who match the intended ethnicity.

...And that’s all I have to say. Sorry this took so long, I wanted to make sure all my information was as correct as I could get it. For further reading on the topic of casting the wrong ethnicity for the Asian character, there are some articles you can read here and here.