Ninja

Ninja (??) or shinobi (??) (literally, "one who endures") were agents of espionage in feudal Japan. Some modern practitioners of budo ninjutsu argue that ninja were used primarily as spies, not assassins. It is popularly believed that the ancient ninja were peasants, forbidden under law from studying the samurai swordplay techniques because of feudal Japan's caste structure. Others contend that many ninja were also samurai, operating as spies in the service of their daimyo. The latter is more likely as there aren't any records of peasant ninja, while there are many samurai families who are recorded as being ninja. Contrary to popular belief, bushido didn't in fact stop samurai from being ninja.

Ninja in fiction

Ninja appear in both Japanese and Western fiction. Depictions range from realistic to the fantastically exaggerated.

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Ninja have long been a popular subject in tokusatsu, anime and manga, such as the manga series Naruto. The Japanese novelist, Ryotaro Shiba wrote a novel and a collection of short stories, based on ninja, Fukuro no Shiro and Saigo no Igamono. Fukuro no Shiro was made into a hit movie, as was Shinobi no Mono.

Related Topics:
Tokusatsu - Anime - Manga - Naruto - Ryotaro Shiba - Fukuro no Shiro - Saigo no Igamono - Shinobi no Mono

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Ninja-based films and books became a popular culture craze in Japan during the 1950s and early 1960s and as a result a TV series called The Samurai was created in 1962 to cash in on the fad. Although only seen in Japan and a few other countries, the series was notably screened in Australia in 1964-65. It was the first Japanese TV show ever broadcast there, and The Samurai rapidly became one of most popular programs ever screened on Australian TV, gaining a huge audience among pre-teen children; its success even led to star Ose Koichi and a troupe of performers touring there in a speciailly-produced show in 1966. The series introduced the ninja concept to Australian audiences and the ninja soon became a cult favourite, with children dressing up as ninjas and making their own toy ninja weapons, notably the shuriken or "star knife".

Related Topics:
Popular culture - The Samurai - Ose Koichi - Shuriken

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Western popular culture generally depicts the ninja as supremely well-trained martial artists, clad in a head-to-toe black suit, using many kinds of exotic equipment and skills to accomplish their missions. The idea of a Westerner being granted entry to the secret ranks of the ninja has long been a subject of fascination for Western writers. The Ninja (1980) series of thriller books by Eric Van Lustbader features a half-Japanese, half-Caucasian character who received ninjutsu training in his youth. In the movie Batman Begins (2005), Bruce Wayne also receives ninja training.

Related Topics:
Martial artists - The Ninja - Thriller - Eric Van Lustbader - Ninjutsu - Movie - Batman Begins - Bruce Wayne

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When G.I. Joe, a traditional American series of military action figures, was relaunched in the 1980s, the collection included a few ninja characters such as Snake Eyes, a Vietnam war veteran who studied the ninja arts after the death of his family. The massive popularity of the ninja characters completely overtook the more conventional army characters, and creator Larry Hama was pressured by Hasbro to create more ninja for the series.

Related Topics:
G.I. Joe - Snake Eyes - Vietnam war - Larry Hama - Hasbro

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In fighting games, ninja are typically quick to strike but lacking in power or defense. One of the most succesful games ever on the Commodore 64 computer was The Last Ninja. In the Nintendo Entertainment System and Xbox games titled Ninja Gaiden, the player takes the role of Ryu Hayabusa, a ninja whose clan has been savagely murdered. The Tenchu series of games on the PlayStation, PS2, and Xbox also feature ninjas. The games' developer, Activision, used Sho Koshugi and his son, Kane Koshugi, as ninjutsuka references, claiming that Tenchu was the most realistic ninja series. Mortal Kombat, another one of the most popular fighting games ever created, included several ninja-esque characters with supernatural powers.

Related Topics:
Fighting game - Commodore 64 - The Last Ninja - Ninja Gaiden - Tenchu - PlayStation - PS2 - Xbox - Activision - Mortal Kombat

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The ninja appeared in the first Final Fantasy as an upgrade from the Thief character class, adept at using an array of weapons and armor and casting black magic. The character's speciality was the ability to use two weapons simultaneously and throw weapons at the enemy, inflicting great damage at the cost of extremely low defense.

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The Wizardry series also included ninja. The ninja class had the abilities of a Thief as well as the ability to use Fighter and some Samurai weapons, but ninja characters also had the ability to snap enemy necks and dodge physical attacks outright, abilities that were hampered by equipping any weapons or armor, respectively. Therefore, most ninja characters were better off if they had nothing at all equipped.

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The word 'Ninja' is also used colloquially in MMORPG's to describe a player who unfairly takes items from the corpses of dead enemies without allowing other player characters a chance at the equipment. So-called "ninja looters" loot items swiftly and with minimal attention being drawn (hence the name) and are generally shunned by other characters for their deeds.

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There have been many spoofs of the fictional ninja, such as Beverly Hills Ninja, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, and Ninja Burger and Real Ultimate Power, a website (and subsequent book).

Related Topics:
Spoof - Beverly Hills Ninja - Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles - Ninja Burger - Real Ultimate Power - Website

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