Jackie Chan's Dragon Blade

Well it's finally here. The neww trailer for Jackie Chan's new film! Dragon Blade will star Jackie Chan, Adrian Brody, and John Cusack.

ComingSoon.net has a small article about the film, the trailer, and a bunch of stills from behind-the-scenes/ promo shots. It looks like this could be really epic!

If you want to just see the trailer, then look no further!

This could be interesting, since:
"Cusack has trained in kickboxing for over 20 years, under former world kickboxing champion Benny Urquidez. He began training under Urquidez in preparation for his role in Say Anything... and currently holds the rank of a level 6 black belt in Urquidez's Ukidokan Kickboxing system."
(From Wikipedia)

This means we could have the potential for some good fight sequences between him and Chan. Time will tell!

NHK WORLD SPORTS JAPAN "Battodo"

I finally got around to watching this. It aired a couple of weeks back on NHK. Some of the material that it goes over is pretty basic, but there is some good information in it and even a glimpse in to competitive Battodo! (Something I didn't even know existed until recently. You pretty much need to be in Japan for it!)

Enjoy!

Wu Style Tai Chi Spear and Saber

I have never practiced these styles, but that doesn't lessen my appreciation of these forms. They are most excellent to watch!

http://youtu.be/ySwDRO1PZOU

http://youtu.be/K5wuawsE280

For some reason YouTube isn't working for me right now, so I can't embed the videos. If you want to see the original site pages with information, go to:

http://taichivideos.org/zhou-zhong-fu-wu-style-tai-chi-spear/

http://taichivideos.org/zhou-zhong-fu-wu-style-tai-chi-saber/

Enjoy!

12th century sword found in Russia may have belonged to Ivan the Terrible | Ancient Origins

Interesting article:

12th century sword found in Russia may have belonged to Ivan the Terrible | Ancient Origins

Netflix Debuts ‘Marco Polo’ Trailer

From FanBolt.com comes this little bit of info:

Marco Polo is to premiere Friday, December 12, 2014 at 12:01am PT only on Netflix.

Check out the preview:

In Cool News...

I am going to subscribe to this YouTube Channel. It combines two of my favorite things: swords (and other weapons) and comic book geekdom.

Enjoy!

The original article where I caught this is here:
http://comicbook.com/2014/11/16/man-at-arms-creates-a-sword-for-iron-man/

...and then there's this guy ...

This is a good example of how NOT to use a sword. Of course, this guy doesn't seem all that normal.

http://www.huffingtonpost.ca/2014/10/30/sword-hair_n_6075188.html?utm_hp_ref=canada-style

3D Printing Combines Japanese Samurai Sword Craftsmanship with Modern Technology

This is cool, and not only that, inevitable.

The scary part about it is that there have been knives made of plastics for years now. To think that we could have these things all "printed out", will bring new concerns for concealed weapons.

Until then, I guess we should just enjoy the coolness of it all!

http://3dprint.com/24596/samurai-swords-sumisaya/

Olympics: Schoolgirl Fencer's Dream Begins With a Sponge Sword

 Olympics: Schoolgirl Fencer's Dream Begins With a Sponge Sword
(The above link will re-direct to the original article.)

I'm not sure why they wanted to emphasize the "sponge sword as a toddler" angle, but it is nice that a new generation is getting into the sport. I have always thought it interesting that there are those in countries like Japan, who wish to take up European-style fencing. They have their own forms with their own deep traditions.

I guess the fascination with other cultures and their ways is kind-of universal.

Enjoy the article!

The Mysterious Geometry of Swordsmanship, Gorgeously Illustrated

This is a really neat little article about the geometry of fencing, as told in Girard Thibault’s Académie de l’Espée (1628). The article is by Daniel Margocsy  of The Slate. The thing that I really like is that there are some high-resolution images that you can view, both on the page and over at Wellcome Images!

Enjoy!

Scholars confirm first discovery of Japanese sword from master bladesmith Masamune in 150 years

This is just so cool! Not many people inherit things like this.

http://en.rocketnews24.com/2014/09/09/scholars-confirm-first-discovery-of-japanese-sword-from-master-bladesmith-masamune-in-150-years/

Update 9/14/2014:

Here is another article from the Wall Street Journal Blogs:
 http://blogs.wsj.com/japanrealtime/2014/09/12/famous-sword-re-emerges-after-150-years/

There is an image referenced that comes from the museum in Kyoto. You can go to the site, but it is in Japanese.









Image: Shimazu Masamune sword, donated by Befumon Okuda. Courtesy of Kyoto National Museum.

Boy discovers 3000-year-old bronze sword in China

When I was young we had a small creek that ran though our back yard. I can't say how many hours I spent playing in and around that creek, but I can say I never found anything near as cool as what this boy found!

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/world/china/Boy-discovers-3000-year-old-bronze-sword-in-China/articleshow/41879919.cms

Fighting Spirit of Old Japan

This is a really cool video that shows some of the kata used shortly after WW II. Notice that most of the modern kendo kata are included, but the used actual swords to perform them!

As always, enjoy!

P.S. You got to love the commentary. It seems like it was done on the fly!

Live by the Sword, Die by the Sword | The Weekly Standard

This is a dark reminder of the history of those who have wielded the sword for gain, either for themselves, for their country, or a cause.

Live by the Sword, Die by the Sword | The Weekly Standard

Update on Casting for Katana in Arrow

ComicBook.com reports that The Wolverine's Rila Fukushima will be replacing Devon Aoki as the character Katana in CW's Arrow t.v. series.

For details, go to http://comicbook.com/blog/2014/08/28/the-wolverines-rila-fukushima-joins-arrow-as-katana/

Aikido: YASUNO Masatoshi Shihan in Heian Shrine Kyoto

This is a cool video that I caught from Aikido Journal. It features a demonstration from Yasuno Masatoshi that focuses on frontal attacks and techniques. He uses bare hands, tanto (knife), and bokken (wooden swords). Enjoy!

Just a little bit of fun!

I saw this and thought it was cool. Originally from Vimeo. A little bit melodramatic, but hey, it's still fun!

Devon Aoki Cast as Katana on The CW's Arrow! - ComingSoon.net

And then there's this. It will be interesting to say the least. I will say, the folks producing "Arrow" seem to really know what they are doing!



Devon Aoki Cast as Katana on The CW's Arrow! - ComingSoon.net

On Guard: How Sword-Fighting Is Bringing Veterans Together

This is a really cool little video/article!



On Guard: How Sword-Fighting Is Bringing Veterans Together: Armed with foils in hand, a group of veterans at the Fencers Club in Manhattan is learning the sport of fencing. Veterans On Guard provides support and opportunities for military veterans through fencing for free. When Liz Cross thought of a way to support...

Tai Chi Sword of the Yang style of Tai Chi Chuan

To master this style would take an amazing amount of concentration and ability to anticipate your opponents movements. I have heard of "sticky hands", but "sticky blades"?

Wow. Just wow.

The link to the original story on the video can be found at Best Tai Chi Videos Online.

Ulf Evenas Shihan at the SportAccord World Combat Games 2013 - Full Demo...

This is a really cool video. I really like how he goes slow enough for you to actually see the techniques! The very end has some really nice slow-motion video.

These Shibayama-style sword handguards are stunning

Here is an article from RocketNews24. It showcases some rare and very intricate tsubas (hand guards). I wouldn't want to use these on my sword. They are way too nice!

Attack Sword Master - No Defensive Moves!

I came across this video over on akihabaranews.com. It's a short documentary on a school of Jigan Ryu swordsmanship. I have seen the practices before where people attack big piles of sticks. I understand that it is a great way to build up arm strength and attack strength, and warriors from this tradition were fearsome!

Ota Sensei!

I will never meet this man, but he is an inspiration! He will be turning 100 years-old soon ... and he still practices every day!

Actor Makes Living Gettng Killed By Samurai

This is just a fun article that I came across! Enjoy!

http://on.wsj.com/S8BuNB

Aikido (Empty Handed) Weapons Techniques

Here are a few videos posted by the International Aikido Federation. They took place at the 2013 SportAccord World Combat Games in St Petersburg, Russia.

The first is the Russian team demonstrating weapons taking techniques.

Next is the Japanese team demonstrating empty handed  techniques against knife (tanto).

And finally the French team demonstrating empty handed techniques against staff (jo).

Fun stuff!

Hugh Jackman spotted sword fighting in New York park!

Hugh Jackman spotted sword fighting in New York park!: Hugh Jackman was spotted training with swords for his role as Blackbeard for the new Pan movie in a New York park.

Some Other Kata

Here is a demo of some other kata from a different school of kendo.

Tan-Kendo

Okay. I didn't know this one existed until recently. It's kind of like fighting with just your short swords, because it looks like they use moves from the last three kata from kendo. The name, however, is reminiscent of the tanto, which is basically a knife. Interesting either way! It took place in February 2014 in Japan.

Hagar The Horrible

Just for Fun!

February 3, 2014

Yasuke: The Original "Afro Samurai"

Most of us are familiar with the "Afro Samurai" animated films, but it wasn't until recently that I had come across the fact that there really was such a character. Of sorts.

While he may not have been the the hyper-cool guy from the animated features, there really was a man from Africa that earned the title of Samurai, and lived in Japan around the late 16th century. He was originally from Mozambique and arrived in Japan as a servant of an Italian Jesuit.

There is a pretty decent article over on the Wikipedia page. If you want to know the details, go check it out. Not much is known about the man so there isn't a whole lot to say. Maybe in time more records will be unearthed and translated.

Run Run Shaw Dies at the age of 106

This is a bit sad. The end of an era actually. Run Run Shaw was one of the titans of the Chinese film industry. The Shaw Brothers Studio released some 760 or so films while they were at it, creating some of the greatest movies in kung fu history.

http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/run-run-shaw-dies-at-668752