Tag - samurai

 
 

SAMURAI

Japan's Kaito Kozono celebrates after hitting a three-run home run against the United States in the eighth inning at Tokyo Dome on Thursday.
BASEBALL
Nov 21, 2024
Kaito Kozono hits two homers to power Samurai Japan to win over U.S. at Premier12
Japan extended its winning streak in international games to 25.
A 19th-century warrior gets struck by lightning and wakes to find himself in 21st-century Kyoto in Junichi Yasuda’s surprise hit “A Samurai in Time.”
CULTURE / Film
Nov 21, 2024
The slow-burn success of ‘A Samurai in Time’
Junichi Yasuda’s film about a time-traveling warrior is a loving tribute to the “jidaigeki” (period drama) genre and its practitioners.
Japan's Wataru Endo (center) in action with China's Wenneng Xie and Shangyuan Wang during a 2026 World Cup qualification clash in Xiamen, China, on Tuesday
SOCCER
Nov 20, 2024
Ruthless Japan beats China to move to brink of World Cup qualification
The game was briefly stopped in the first half when a fan invaded the pitch.
China's Lin Liangming (left) and Zhang Yuning (second from left) vie for the ball against Indonesia's Jay Idzes in Qingdao, China, on Oct. 15.
SOCCER
Nov 18, 2024
China preparing to host Japan in World Cup qualifier
The strength of China's recovery will be challenged when Japan coach Hajime Moriyasu leads the runaway Group C leader into Xiamen.
Japan's Koki Ogawa (left) fights for the ball with Indonesia's Rizky Ridho Ramadhan during the 2026 World Cup Asian qualification soccer match at the Bung Karno Stadium in Jakarta on Friday.
SOCCER / World cup
Nov 16, 2024
Japan hammer Indonesia to edge closer to World Cup spot
Japan defeated a hapless Indonesia side 4-0 on Friday, extending their lead at the top of qualifying for the 2026 World Cup.
Japan coach Hajime Moriyasu (left) and captain Wataru Endo speak during a news conference before the team's World Cup qualifier against Indonesia in Jakarta on Friday.
SOCCER
Nov 15, 2024
Liverpool's Wataru Endo praises Japan manager Hajime Moriyasu's flexibility
Endo dismissed concerns that his lack of playing time for Liverpool will have a negative impact on his influence for Japan.
Japan coach Hajime Moriyasu called up Celtic's Kyogo Furuhashi for the first time in a year ahead of the team's upcoming World Cup qualifiers.
SOCCER
Nov 14, 2024
Japan looking to move closer to berth in 2026 World Cup
With the third Asian qualifying round nearing the halfway point, Japan is five points clear at the top of Group C.
An idealistic samurai (Taiga Nakano) leads a motley gang of felons on a suicide mission to defend a fortress during the 1868-69 Boshin War.
CULTURE / Film
Oct 31, 2024
‘11 Rebels’: Underdog antiheroes deliver a crowd pleaser
A knotty period in Japanese history gets a modern treatment in Kazuya Shiraishi’s spectacle-driven samurai period drama.
Japan coach Hajime Moriyasu prior to a World Cup qualifying match against Australia on Tuesday in Saitama.
SOCCER
Oct 16, 2024
Hajime Moriyasu frustrated after Australia end Japan's winning run
Japan had won all nine of their preliminaries for the 2026 tournament without conceding a goal until Shogo Taniguchi sliced the ball into his own net on Tuesday.
Japan's Ayase Ueda (left) and Australia's Patrick Yazbek compete for the ball during World Cup qualifying action on Tuesday in Saitama.
SOCCER
Oct 16, 2024
Japan fights back to secure draw with Australia in World Cup qualifying
Australia had never beaten Japan on Japanese soil but a Shogo Taniguchi own goal gave the home side a shock before Samurai Blue earned a draw.
Australia's Kye Rowles (right) vies for the ball against Argentina's Lionel Messi during a friendly in Beijing on June 15, 2023.
SOCCER
Oct 14, 2024
Australia looking to 'flip the script' with first win in Japan
Japan is the leading team in Asia at 16th in the FIFA rankings and tops qualifying Group C with a perfect three victories, scoring 14 goals and conceding none.
Former Japan player Tadanari Lee believes Samurai Blue's victory over Australia in the 2011 Asian Cup final represented a major shift in the rivalry between the two nations.
SOCCER
Oct 13, 2024
Japan and Australia set to write latest chapter of fast-growing rivalry
This will be the fifth consecutive time the teams have been grouped together in the decisive round of qualifiers for the quadrennial showpiece.
Japan's Daichi Kamada (right) vies for the ball against Saudi Arabia midfielder Abdulelah Al-Malki during their World Cup qualifying match in Jeddah on Thursday.
SOCCER
Oct 11, 2024
Japan looks to Australia and beyond after beating Saudi Arabia in World Cup qualifier
Samurai Blue are five points clear at the top of Group C, with the top two teams securing direct passage to the 2026 World Cup.
The conduct and business of love in Japan’s Edo Period  (1603-1867) was rough, and nowhere was it rougher than in the pleasure quarters of the capital city.
JAPAN / History / The Living Past
Sep 29, 2024
Good or bad, both or neither: Edo Japan and the moral conscience
The era's warrior class and its martial virtues were redundant but lived on — overshadowed by the pursuit of pleasure.
The first season of 'Shogun' wraps up just prior to the 1600 Battle of Sekigahara, where Tokugawa Ieyasu (Yoshii Toranaga in the TV show) faced off against Ishida Mitsunari (Ishido Kazunari) to determine the new ruler of Japan.
LIFE / Travel
Sep 17, 2024
The real-world inspirations behind 'Shogun' are a shinkansen away
“Shogun” has cleaned up at the Emmys, so why not pack a bag and see the real history behind the award-winning show?
Japan's Koki Ogawa shoots at the Bahrain goal during a World Cup qualifying match in Riffa, Bahrain, on Tuesday.
SOCCER / World cup
Sep 11, 2024
Japan coach slams Bahrain fans after World Cup qualifying rout
Japan won 5-0 in Manama to continue their impressive start to the Asian qualifying third round, following last week's 7-0 home thrashing of China.
Samurai Blue players celebrate after Wataru Endo's opening goal of the team's World Cup qualifying win over China on Thursday in Saitama.
SOCCER / World cup
Sep 6, 2024
Japan hammers China as next round of World Cup qualifying begins
Japan was in blistering form as Samurai Blue handed out an embarrassing defeat to an out-classed China.
Japan head coach Hajime Moriyasu announces his squad for upcoming World Cup qualifying matches, on Aug. 29 in the city of Chiba.
SOCCER / World cup
Sep 4, 2024
Japan favored in next World Cup qualifying stage, but history gives pause
At this stage, the Samurai Blue lost 1-0 at home to Oman three years ago and also went down 2-1 to the UAE in front of their own fans ahead of the 2018 tournament.
NPB Commissioner Sadayuki Sakakibara (left) Samurai Japan manager Hirokazu Ibata (second from left) and WBSC President Riccardo Fraccari pose for photos during a news conference on Friday.
BASEBALL
Sep 1, 2024
Hirokazu Ibata looking to keep Japan on top of baseball world by winning Premier12
Japan will enter the Premier12 as the defending champion.
A cardboard cutout of the Monkey King character, or Sun Wukong, from the Chinese action role-playing game Black Myth: Wukong is displayed on the day of its launch in Beijing on Aug. 20.
COMMENTARY / Japan
Aug 27, 2024
Black myth, Black samurai and gaming nationalism
While China has to date enjoyed success in mobile and PC gaming, those lucrative sectors carry relatively little prestige. That makes Wukong’s breakout a landmark event.

Longform

Construction takes place on the Takanawa Gateway Convention Center in Tokyo, slated to open in 2025.
A boom for business tourism in Japan?