SENGOKU BASARA SAMURAI KINGS (SEASON ONE COLLECTION)
January 23rd 2012 02:44
Based on the Sengoku Basara game series produced by CAPCOM
Director: Itsuro Kawasaki
Producers: Hiroyuki Kobayashi (CAPCOM Co Ltd) & Makoto Yamamoto (CAPCOM Co Ltd)
Starring: Johnny Yong Bosch (Yukimura Sanada), Robert McCollum (Date Masamune), Travis Wallingham (Kojuro Katakura), Chris Ayres (Shingen Takeda), Greg Ayres (Kenshin Uesugi), Stephanie Sheh (Kasuga), Michael Sinterniklaas (Sasuke Sarutobi), Eric Vale (Keiji Maeda), John Swasey (Oda Nobunaga), Vic Mignonga (Akechi Mitsuhide), Barry Yandell (Imagawa Yoshimoto), Chuck Huber (Maeda Toshiie), Jamie Marchi (Matsu Maeda), Stephanie Young (Nohime) Patrick Seitz (Chosokabe Motochika), Liam O’Brien (Tokugawa Ieyasu), Sam Riegel (Mori Motonori), Maxey Whitehead (Mori Ranmaru), Laura Bailey (Oichi), Kent Williams (Hisahide Matsunaga) & Chris Bevins (Azai Nagamasa)
Produced by: Production IG & Team BASARA
English Version by: FUNimation Entertainment
Released by: Madman Entertainment
Running Time: 325 minutes Rating: M
Samurai, ninja, full scale battles between armies, landscape altering single combat it’s all here in Sengoku Basara Samurai Kings (SBSK) combined with a little bit of steampunk style tech and you have an interesting mix of elements for a full speed roller coaster ride of an anime. Based loosely on the Sengoku era of Japanese history as well as the series of computer games created by CAPCOM this anime is a real treat to watch, I’d seen an episode online and thought to myself now that’s one show I want to get my hands on. When I discovered that it was available down under a month ago it was on my to get and to watch list…managed to get my hands on a copy prior to Christmas and let me tell you watching it over the holiday period was a treat.
Obviously from the looks of things CAPCOM saw the kind of success the Devil May Cry anime series which was also based on computer game franchise of theirs and decided to give another of their franchises the anime treatment, namely the Sengoku Basara games. Sometimes this translation of games into anime kind of thing works, sometimes as with the case of Dead Space: Aftermath it can just go horribly wrong. Fortunately though for CAPCOM they’ve pulled off another winner, just like with Devil May Cry SBSK is a real hit that’s bound to be popular with not only anime fans but fans of the various games as well. The show just oozes energy and frankly every time I sit down and watch I feel a veritable tingle go down my spine and my batteries are recharged, it’s just got that kind of vibe.
No doubt the question on your minds is well Green Lantern do I need to know anything about the games or Japanese history to be able to enjoy this series and my answer to that is no. All you need is the time, the disc and then just sit back and watch or as Date Masamune, one of the series two primary protagonists would say “Let’s get this party started!” So just what exactly is all the hype then? What is going on with this series? Well hype and over the top action is the name of the game with this show, its part of its appeal and charm, this isn’t some period piece drama but an action series albeit one with a reasonable story line and its attendant troughs and peaks of mood suitably scattered throughout.
The place is Japan, the time the Sengoku era, a turbulent period roughly stretching from the 15th to the 17th Century in which various factions, warlords and nobles engaged in conflict in order to attempt to impose all manner of lofty ideals, ambitions and agendas often via the use of force when diplomacy and reason failed. It was in essence a very chaotic troubling time especially if you just some ordinary Joe trying to eke out an existence on the family farm… In this turbulent time emerge two warriors, one a leader of his country the other the vassal of one of the major leaders in the continuing struggle. These two warriors are Date Masamune, Big Boss of Oshu aka the One Eyed Dragon and Yukimura Sanada, vassal of the Tiger of Kai.
Initially at odds with each other, Masamune seeking to put himself in the top position whilst Yukimura is seeking that honour for his lord Shigen Takeda, the two warriors eventually form a bond of mutual respect and to some degree trust. The reason for this bond is the emergence of the key antagonist in this particular series, the melodramatically titled Devil King of the Sixth Heaven; Oda Nobunaga. Oda Nobunaga is to this series what Darth Vader and Darth Sidious are to Star Wars, though it has to be said that Oda has a lot more flair and theatrics to his character than the other two do. But in the defence of the two Sith Lords Star Wars was never as over the top as this show is, although frankly as I mentioned earlier that is part of the charm.
Oda Nobunaga thus is the foe which the various other characters find themselves pitted against, he has used his home of Owari as the base from which to stage successful, often very bloody, campaigns against his countless foes and sometime allies. He is a man with a vision, a somewhat dark and bloody vision but a vision nonetheless and it is one he follows with ruthless, cunning intent. The Devil King is agenda is to forge a world under warrior rule which if you look at his attire and that of his minions is kind of like a fusion between a military dictatorship and hardcore death metal fandom…
So can this death metal colossus be stopped? Can his rampaging across the war torn fields and forests of Japan be halted before he achieves that crucial bridgehead necessary to his agenda? After all Oda doesn’t just want Japan he wants the world, conquest of Japan is but a step towards that goal. And he looks like achieving it, but for a crucial flaw…several of his foes have put aside their differences and seeing him as the greatest threat attempt to bring the Devil King of the Sixth Heaven and his agenda crashing back to earth. Said crashing being delivered with all the suitable special effects and full on fight scenes you are ever likely to see.
Frankly I have to say I’ve never enjoyed an anime so much as enjoyed watching Sengoku Basara Samurai Kings (SBSK), it just has a vibe that sucks you in and when the dust settles you realise hell yeah that was cool. Like I say the whole thing is way over the top coupled with some rocking tracks by Abingdon Boys School, who did the opening to Darker than Black, and Dustz who does the closing track. Couple this with some atmospheric classical music for Oda Nobunaga and his minions and you have yourself the icing on the cake as it were. If you enjoy a good action anime then SBSK Season One Collection is one you should get your hands on…as the One Eyed Dragon of Oshu is fond of saying “Let’s get this party started!”
Director: Itsuro Kawasaki
Producers: Hiroyuki Kobayashi (CAPCOM Co Ltd) & Makoto Yamamoto (CAPCOM Co Ltd)
Starring: Johnny Yong Bosch (Yukimura Sanada), Robert McCollum (Date Masamune), Travis Wallingham (Kojuro Katakura), Chris Ayres (Shingen Takeda), Greg Ayres (Kenshin Uesugi), Stephanie Sheh (Kasuga), Michael Sinterniklaas (Sasuke Sarutobi), Eric Vale (Keiji Maeda), John Swasey (Oda Nobunaga), Vic Mignonga (Akechi Mitsuhide), Barry Yandell (Imagawa Yoshimoto), Chuck Huber (Maeda Toshiie), Jamie Marchi (Matsu Maeda), Stephanie Young (Nohime) Patrick Seitz (Chosokabe Motochika), Liam O’Brien (Tokugawa Ieyasu), Sam Riegel (Mori Motonori), Maxey Whitehead (Mori Ranmaru), Laura Bailey (Oichi), Kent Williams (Hisahide Matsunaga) & Chris Bevins (Azai Nagamasa)
English Version by: FUNimation Entertainment
Released by: Madman Entertainment
Running Time: 325 minutes Rating: M
Samurai, ninja, full scale battles between armies, landscape altering single combat it’s all here in Sengoku Basara Samurai Kings (SBSK) combined with a little bit of steampunk style tech and you have an interesting mix of elements for a full speed roller coaster ride of an anime. Based loosely on the Sengoku era of Japanese history as well as the series of computer games created by CAPCOM this anime is a real treat to watch, I’d seen an episode online and thought to myself now that’s one show I want to get my hands on. When I discovered that it was available down under a month ago it was on my to get and to watch list…managed to get my hands on a copy prior to Christmas and let me tell you watching it over the holiday period was a treat.
No doubt the question on your minds is well Green Lantern do I need to know anything about the games or Japanese history to be able to enjoy this series and my answer to that is no. All you need is the time, the disc and then just sit back and watch or as Date Masamune, one of the series two primary protagonists would say “Let’s get this party started!” So just what exactly is all the hype then? What is going on with this series? Well hype and over the top action is the name of the game with this show, its part of its appeal and charm, this isn’t some period piece drama but an action series albeit one with a reasonable story line and its attendant troughs and peaks of mood suitably scattered throughout.
The place is Japan, the time the Sengoku era, a turbulent period roughly stretching from the 15th to the 17th Century in which various factions, warlords and nobles engaged in conflict in order to attempt to impose all manner of lofty ideals, ambitions and agendas often via the use of force when diplomacy and reason failed. It was in essence a very chaotic troubling time especially if you just some ordinary Joe trying to eke out an existence on the family farm… In this turbulent time emerge two warriors, one a leader of his country the other the vassal of one of the major leaders in the continuing struggle. These two warriors are Date Masamune, Big Boss of Oshu aka the One Eyed Dragon and Yukimura Sanada, vassal of the Tiger of Kai.
Initially at odds with each other, Masamune seeking to put himself in the top position whilst Yukimura is seeking that honour for his lord Shigen Takeda, the two warriors eventually form a bond of mutual respect and to some degree trust. The reason for this bond is the emergence of the key antagonist in this particular series, the melodramatically titled Devil King of the Sixth Heaven; Oda Nobunaga. Oda Nobunaga is to this series what Darth Vader and Darth Sidious are to Star Wars, though it has to be said that Oda has a lot more flair and theatrics to his character than the other two do. But in the defence of the two Sith Lords Star Wars was never as over the top as this show is, although frankly as I mentioned earlier that is part of the charm.
Oda Nobunaga thus is the foe which the various other characters find themselves pitted against, he has used his home of Owari as the base from which to stage successful, often very bloody, campaigns against his countless foes and sometime allies. He is a man with a vision, a somewhat dark and bloody vision but a vision nonetheless and it is one he follows with ruthless, cunning intent. The Devil King is agenda is to forge a world under warrior rule which if you look at his attire and that of his minions is kind of like a fusion between a military dictatorship and hardcore death metal fandom…
So can this death metal colossus be stopped? Can his rampaging across the war torn fields and forests of Japan be halted before he achieves that crucial bridgehead necessary to his agenda? After all Oda doesn’t just want Japan he wants the world, conquest of Japan is but a step towards that goal. And he looks like achieving it, but for a crucial flaw…several of his foes have put aside their differences and seeing him as the greatest threat attempt to bring the Devil King of the Sixth Heaven and his agenda crashing back to earth. Said crashing being delivered with all the suitable special effects and full on fight scenes you are ever likely to see.
Frankly I have to say I’ve never enjoyed an anime so much as enjoyed watching Sengoku Basara Samurai Kings (SBSK), it just has a vibe that sucks you in and when the dust settles you realise hell yeah that was cool. Like I say the whole thing is way over the top coupled with some rocking tracks by Abingdon Boys School, who did the opening to Darker than Black, and Dustz who does the closing track. Couple this with some atmospheric classical music for Oda Nobunaga and his minions and you have yourself the icing on the cake as it were. If you enjoy a good action anime then SBSK Season One Collection is one you should get your hands on…as the One Eyed Dragon of Oshu is fond of saying “Let’s get this party started!”
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