A Possible Antidote to Kool Aid Discovered?

[Shisendo]

Some of you are going to love this article. Even the title might be enough to make your day:

Idolizing Sakamoto Ryoma a sign of immaturity

Here's the link while it lasts:

http://www.asahi.com/english/TKY201011280124.html
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Over a Hedge

[Tatsunoshi]

Well, that certainly made my day. Even though he makes a lot of good points, kind of harsh...in an amusing sort of way. I think "...I, too, do not think badly of him. There is no need to. All I want to say is I've had enough of others using Ryoma to suit themselves" applies to a lot of hero worshiping involving historical figures from Admiral Yi to Abe Lincoln to Musashi to...well, you get the idea.

[shin no sen]

"Just the facts ma'am." He misses the whole point of populist entertainment. I do agree that sometimes fictitious embellishment can be harmful and used to create group sentiment. What is the counter? Education. Ryoma's story is entertaining though, as well as the others mentioned. Hero worship generally ignores the faults and over-emphasises the strengths. I like the report. John
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知恵は時間及びエネルギーである

[Tornadoes28]

I do like how the author criticizes the historical inaccuracies of Ryoma-den. Yes it is a drama so people should expect some stretching and twisting of the truth but I feel the Taiga goes too far in completely fabricating significant historical events and distorting Ryoma's reality. One example I like to bring up is from the previous Taiga, Tenchijin, in which the Uesugi were shown fighting in Korea when in fact the Uesugi were never ordered to Korea by Hideyoshi and never stepped foot in Korea.

I also like how the author points out how Ryoma's image has been and is today used to promote certain people or political ideas, even if it did not jive with the historical reality of Ryoma.
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[Shisendo]

Glad you enjoyed the article. My favourite line was "Ryoma is the ultimate icon of youth." I just had a photoshopped image in my mind of Ryoma fronting The Who and singing "Hope I die before I get old . . ."
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Over a Hedge

[Date Onigiri]

Shisendo, interesting article. Thanks for sharing it. I was personally quite annoyed by the inaccuracies in the Ryoma drama and all the Ryoma hero worship that goes on here in Japan.

[Tornadoes28]

[Date Onigiri]

Good!

[wicked iemon]

Well lets say we just get a quick break from the Kool Aid just for a couple of years while Gou and Taira Kiyomori peddle their wears than he is back in 2013 as the sidekick to Katsu Kaishu .

I went to a lecture give by Mr Rom a few years back and amongst the "Whoppers he told "were such porkie pies as
(1)Ieyasu and the Eastern Army had 200,000 troops
and those poor bleeder's on the Western side could only muster some 75,000 and this is why they lost .
(2)Ieyasu personally watched and enjoyed cutting test's on live prisoner's.

Sadly the audience lapped all this up .
I also noticed that the use of the name Ryoma started to drop off and was replaced by a very very enthralled use of the term "The Dragon "and loving gazes and reverential smiles broke out all around and than we were bathed in light and the whole third floor of Borders was lifted up to Heaven .
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"One mans washing machine is another mans music "

[kitsuno]

awesome.
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[onnamusha]

[wicked iemon]

You know he was going on about how awful the Tokugawa were ,so i mentioned the revered potato samurai and their little trip to Aizu was not exactly a field trip and not very far from ethnic cleansing and he just glared and mumbled "what about Aizu ????"

PS I am convinced he at the time(both 2000 and 04) he had never heard of The Shogitai .Someone pointed out to him that it is actually Mito Tengu on the cover of his Shinsengumi book not the gumi .


PPS I do like the Shinsengumi in Ryomaden ,great scene where Kondo gets his face pushed in the mud by Sasaki Tadisaburo of Mimawarigumi (ep 32).
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"One mans washing machine is another mans music "

[Owarikenshi]

Aw, heck, guess this means I'm gonna have to buy the 2nd half after all!

Owarikenshi

[wicked iemon]

yes i actually picked it up because of the Shinsengumi depiction .

That said avoid the Malay /Chinese Vol 2 for a start it only has 48 episodes so the final is missing and the subtitles are appalling ,Satsuma are called Turtle Soup Group ,because vol 1 had perfect subs (even though they vanish from time to time )i assumed vol 2 would be the same .not at all .better to get it from Kurotokagi he has a tv print .
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"One mans washing machine is another mans music "

[onnamusha]

[Tornadoes28]

[Owarikenshi]

[shikisoku]

[Tornadoes28]

[shikisoku]

That's Teradaya Jiken.
It's not Mimawarigumi but Fushimi Bugyo.
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[Tornadoes28]