Ronin Warriors

Infobox animanga/Header
name = Ronin Warriors


caption = DVD cover of "Ronin Warriors".
ja_name = 鎧伝サムライトルーパー
ja_name_trans = Yoroiden Samurai Torūpā
genre = Sentai, Science Fiction, Action Adventure, ShonenInfobox animanga/Anime
title =
director = Masashi Ikeda (eps. 1-19)
Mamoru Hamatsu (eps. 20-39)
studio = Sunrise
Tokyu Agency
network = flagicon|Japan Nagoya Broadcasting Network
network_en = flagicon|United States Cartoon Network & Sci-Fi Channel
network_other = flagicon|Argentina Canal 7 Argentina
flagicon|Chile ETC...TV
flagicon|France NT1
flagicon|Mexico TV Azteca
flagicon|Brazil Rede Manchete
flagicon|Italy Italia 7
first = 30 April 1988
last = 4 March 1989
episodes = 39Infobox animanga/Manga
title =
author = Hajime Yatate (story)
Ryuichi Hoshino (art)
publisher = flagicon|Japan Kodansha
publisher_other =
demographic = Shōnen
magazine =
first = 1988
last = 1989
volumes = 2
OEM = Infobox animanga/OVA
title = Gaiden
director =
studio = Sunrise
episodes = 2
released = April 30th, 1989 (Vol. 1)
June 1st, 1989 (Vol. 2)Infobox animanga/OVA
title = Legend of Kikōtei
director =
studio = Sunrise
episodes = 4
released = October 8th, 1989 (Vol. 1)
November 1st, 1989 (Vol. 2)
December 1st, 1989 (Vol. 3)
January 11th, 1990 (Vol. 4)Infobox animanga/OVA
title = Message
director =
studio = Sunrise
episodes = 5
released = March 21st, 1991 (Vol. 1)
May 22nd, 1991 (Vol. 2)
June 21st, 1991 (Vol. 3)
July 25th, 1991 (Vol. 4)
August 23rd, 1991 (Vol. 5)

"Ronin Warriors" is the English version of the Japanese anime television series nihongo title|Yoroiden Samurai Troopers|鎧伝サムライトルーパー|Yoroiden Samurai Torūpā|lit. "Legendary Armor Samurai Troopers". "Yoroiden Samurai Troopers" (often abbreviated to YST) was produced by Sunrise, and aired across Japan on Nagoya Television from April 30, 1988 to March 4, 1989 and has a total of 39 episodes.

"Ronin Warriors" was produced by Graz Entertainment and it was recorded by the Ocean Group. "Ronin Warriors" first aired on American television during the summer of 1995 and subsequently appeared on the Sci-Fi Channel, Fox, and later, Cartoon Network. The series was released on DVD in 2002, including the original Japanese version with English subtitles on the reverse side of the disc.

At the time it was produced, "Ronin Warriors" was one of the most faithful English-version adaptations of an anime series intended for television broadcast. While the opening and ending sequences, as well as the eyecatches, were replaced with new ones, and the Japanese title cards were removed, there were no cuts to the bodies of the episodes. Also noteworthy is that the episodes retained most of the original music.

Three direct-to-video sequels were produced: "Gaiden", "Kikōtei Densetsu", a.k.a: "The Legend of the Inferno Armor" and "Message". There is also a YST manga as well as numerous novels and audio dramas based on the anime. While all the sequels have been released on DVD, the manga and audio dramas have not been made available in English.

Premise

Talpa, the demon lord of the Netherworld, is bent on conquering the mortal world. Standing against Talpa and his four Dark Warlords are the five Ronin Warriors, each in possession of mystical armor and weapons. They are assisted by Mia Koji, a young student-teacher, and a mysterious warrior-monk known only as The Ancient.

The Legend

English Dubbed Legend

:Torch of Spirit, sought through five,:Drinking strength from immortal fire,:Darkest prison sheds the light,:Churning beneath a swirl of salt,:Burning within a throne of rock,:Floating amongst the eyes of ages, :unmoored in the stream of the sky

Legend of Hariel

A character conceived in the dubbing of Samurai Troopers, Hariel was created to prevent viewers from being confused when Ryo called upon the powers of the five armors to create the Inferno. Hariel's origins are also considered to be a request by the toy companies that made the Ronin Warrior action figures so consumers would not be confused by two versions of Ryo dressed in the Wildfire armor and the Inferno armor.

According to the character Badamon, Hariel is said to be the 'last wearer of the armor of Inferno' and that he was both Dark Warlord and Ronin Warrior. He is considered to be a great warrior and possibly haunts the white armor with his life force, making it possible that Ryo could be possessed by Hariel while wearing the white armor and making him a dangerous threat to the Dynasty.

In the original Japanese version, there was no "Hariel". The Sun Yoroi, Kikoutei, was formed from the souls (and at first the bodies!) of all five Samurai Troopers fused into a single being. It took some time for Ryo to gain control of Keikoutei, which at first was something of a berserker. According to some accounts, the original ending of "Yoroiden-Samurai Troopers" involved the destruction of all five Troopers, with Jun ("Yulie") finally defeating Arago ("Talpa"). However, the series was popular and the creators then repeated the second-from-last episode, giving them time to reanimate the last two episodes and creating the super-fusion Kikoutei armor as a deus ex machina to save the Troopers. Explaining the origin and nature of the Kikoutei fortunately provided sufficient story fodder for the next season and the OVA series Kikoutei Densetsu.

The Heart of Ancients/Jewel of Life Legend

The English dub/original name of the stone used to bind the power of the Nether Realm. In both versions, this stone, a purple magatama rested in an ancient temple at the bottom of a lake. The reformed warlord Anubis/Shuten used the power of the Ancients/Kaos staff to reach it.

According to the character Badamon, the Jewel of Life is one of the three weapons that could destroy the Nether Realm. The Armor of Inferno, the Soul Swords of Fervor, and the Jewel of Life.

Though most of its powers are unknown and only a few have been seen in the show, the Jewel has the power to create a shield, blind enemies, destroy the spirits possessing soldier's armors, banish Netherworld priests, and for a short time, seal Talpa's power to keep him from defending himself against the final attacks of the Ronin Warriors/Samurai Troopers.

One considered use of the gem was to prevent Ryo from dying in the final attack when he was sucked into Talpa's body in the last battle (episode 39). The Jewel came to life at the same time the Ronin Warriors went to attack Talpa and saved Ryo from being killed by his friend's weapons.

The Jewel took the place of the Ronin Warriors in the second half of the TV series as a means to protect Mia and Yulie.

The Armors

When Talpa was defeated in a previous attempt to conquer the human world, his spirit was sent to the Netherworld, but his armor, which was charged with demonic power, somehow remained behind. In order to prevent Talpa from returning to the human world, The Ancient diffused it into nine separate suits of armor.

In the original Japanese version, each armor is infused with one of the Confucian, or Bushido, Virtues: Jin (Righteousness), Gi (Justice), Rei (Courtesy), Chi (Intellect), Shin (Faith), Chuu (Loyalty), Tei (Obedience), Kou (Reverence for elders), and Nin (To bear pain quietly). A couple of these were changed for the American version: Chi became Inouchi (Life), and Rei became Chi. Kou is translated as Piety, and Nin as Serenity.

The nine armors have a number of special properties and they can be put on in an instant by calling out an armor's name and associated Virtue. For example, Ryo dons his Wildfire armor by calling out "Armor of Wildfire, Dao Jin!" In the Japanese version, the command used to summon the armor is "Busso (armor name)!".

In the English version, the Ronins say the phrase "Dao" followed by their kanji when they are calling their armors. For instance, Ryo would say "Dao Jin!". Literally translated, it would mean "The way of Virtue." It, therefore, becomes an appropriate description of Ryo himself, since by calling the armor, he is following the path of virtue. "Dao" was taken from the native Chinese religion of "Daoism". Also, if Ryo were to say Busso Rekka, the literal translation would be "Arm Rekka".

The armor also enhances physical strength and endurance, for example increasing lower-body strength to allow the wearer to run at high speed and jump great distances or allowing the user to ignore harsh environmental conditions such as lack of air, or extremes of heat and pressure. Each armor also has a unique fighting technique, called a Choudandou. "Dandou" is the Japanese word for the science of ballistics, but Choudandou appears to mean something like "Ultimate Technique." In English, one might say "surekill shot" or "super-power attack".

Each of the five Ronin armors (Wildfire, Torrent, Hardrock, Strata, and Halo) have elemental affinities: Fire, Water, Earth, Air, and Light. Each armor can draw power from its respective element to give the wearer a power boost.

The four Warlord armors each have an affinity for one of the seasons: Cruelty with Spring, Illusion with Summer, Venom with Autumn, and Corruption with Winter. The Warlord armors also represent a different animal: Cruelty is an Ogre, Illusion is a Spider, Venom is a Snake, and Corruption is a Jackal.

Characters

Main characters

Episodes that were probably not shown in the summer of 1995 but are for sale on DVD are "Ronin Warriors OVA: New Adventures" and "Ronin Warriors OVA: Message".

English cast

*Matt Hill.... Ryo Of Wildfire
*Ward Perry.... Rowen Of Strata/Badamon/Sekhmet
*Jason Gray-Stanford.... Kento of Hardrock/Gash
*Michael Donovan.... Cye Of Torrent/Sage Of Halo
*Lalainia Lindbjerg.... Mia Koji
*Christopher Turner.... Yuli
*David Kaye.... Narrator/Yulie's father/Sun Devil/The Ancient
*Sarah Anne Dafoe.... Yuli's Mother
*Mina Mina.... Talpa (Also known as: Mina E. Mina)
*Paul Dobson.... Anubis/Dara/Lord Sabre-Stryke/Sand-Strikers
*Richard Newman.... Cale/Dr. Koji/Sarenbou
*Matt Smith.... Dais/Dynasty Soldier (as Matthew Smith) /Sage Of Halo (in "Gaiden", "Legend of the Inferno Armor" and "Message")
*Jane Perry.... Kayura
*Peter Wilds.... Dais #2, Cale #2
*Teryl Rothery.... Mia Koji #2

OVA English cast

*Don Brown.... Shikaisen (Gaiden)
*Trevor Devall.... Chin (Gaiden)
*Jillian Michaels.... Runa (Gaiden)
*Michael Adamthwaite.... Mukala (Legend of the Inferno Armor)
*Venus Terzo.... Naria (Legend of the Inferno Armor)
*Ellen Kennedy.... Suzunagi (Message)
*Andrew Francis.... Kento of Hardrock (Gaiden - Legend Of The Inferno Armor - Message)
*Danny McKinnon.... Yuli (Gaiden - Legend of the Inferno Armor)
*Maggie Blue O'Hara.... Mia Koji (Gaiden - Legend of the Inferno Armor - Message)
*Matt Smith.... Sage of the Halo (Gaiden - Legend of the Inferno Armor - Message)
*Michael Donovan.... Cye of the Torrent
*Matt Hill.... Ryo of the Wildfire
*Ward Perry.... Rowen of Strata

Japanese cast

*Issei Futamata.... Naaza
*Daisuke Gōri.... Saranbo
*Masako Katsuki.... Kayura
*Jūrōta Kosugi.... Rajura
*Kaori Kusakabe.... Nasuti Yagyu
*Takeshi Kusao.... Sanada Ryo
*Yasunori Matsumoto.... Anubis
*Nozomu Sasaki.... Mori Shin
*Shigezō Sasaoka.... Arago
*Hiroshi Takemura.... Hashiba Tōma
*Norio Wakamoto.... Kaos
*Kumiko Watanabe.... Yamano Jun
*Kiyoyuki Yanada.... Shuten Douji
*Daiki Nakamura.... Date Seiji
*Tomohiro Nishimura.... Shu Rei Fuan

ee also

*Four Masho (Dark Warlords)
*Luna (Samurai Troopers)
*Samurai Troopers (Ronin Warriors) CD Dramas

External links

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* [http://roninwarriors.wikia.com/wiki/Samurai_Heart Samurai Heart] A collaborative wiki about the Ronin Warriors/Samurai Troopers series.
* [http://members3.boardhost.com/nina_yst/index.html Nina's YST FAQ's] Translations, and a ton of info.
* [http://nether-realm.net/ Nether Realm] The largest RW/YST fansite on the web.
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