I AM AN ARMCHAIR SAMURAI <武士>

Just finished a history documentary on samurais. It was a pretty interesting clip though, and I always seem to like history a lot, especially when it digs up little nuggets of information that stirs up the imagination of enthusiastic viewers like me.

The Samurai were reputed to be one of the fiercest and most lethal class of warriors ever known. It's because they fight with scant respect for the word fear. The only fear they know, is in the eyes of their enemies when their blade is about to cut them down. They do not fear death, and they live by honour and dignity befitting their status. The documentary explores the lives and history of these men through the ages of time, and their changing social status to reflect the advancement of society.

What struck me most was the revelation that kamikaze pilots in world war 2 are known as the samurai warriors in war-time Japan - somewhat a distortion of the samurai spirit originally intended to serve the good of others. Well, if you think of it from their point of view... it is, actually.

Such is the popularity of the samurai in Japanese culture that it has spawned movies depicting the way of the samurai exactly as was known by their famed characteristics. I'm a sucker for samurais and ninjas and shinobis as you would not have known yet. From way back in primary school, I was hooked on the SEGA game THE SUPER SHINOBI, and NINJA GAIDEN on NES. I doodled plenty of ninja pictures on my chinese and math textbooks, and just about any piece of paper I can lay my hands on. Hahaha... Now, I'm all grownup and watching animes like "Samurai Seven" and "Naruto" and occasional similar themed movies like "The Last Samurai"...

Speaking of which, I also happened to chance upon this movie titled : " SHINOBI-Heart Under Blade "showing soon. By the looks of the trailer, it looks quite cool and not the mention that the female lead is sibeh chio =D~~~ Hahaha... The only thing is, I don't know whether it will show in local cinemas though...