themohawkninja commented at 2013-08-10 21:54:14 » #1377732

While this is from an anime (or so I assume by a tag with the words "series" in parenthesis), is it historically accurate that this nuruhaci (or any sort of Japanese katana wielder) is a women? I have always been under the assumption that feudal Japan was just as sexist, if not more than the rest of the world when it comes to arming the people?

5 Points Flag

VincentD commented at 2013-08-11 15:50:27 » #1378146

First off, Nuruhachi is the artist who drew the image. Second, this is Saber, probably one of the most recognizable characters in anime (though, given the presence of the black ribbon, I'd wager a guess it's actually supposed to be Saber Lily); she's from the Fate franchise, which started with Fate/Stay Night, a visual novel later adapted into an anime and a manga, and followed by Fate/Zero, a light novel adapted into an anime.

Lastly, feudal Japan may have indeed been sexist, but the majority of its women were also proficient in the use of the naginata and were expected to defend the home while their husbands were at war, which can't be said of most other medieval cultures. I'd suggest learning a thing or two before making such uninformed statements.

3 Points Flag

themohawkninja commented at 2013-08-11 20:40:11 » #1378262

@VincentD

First off, it wasn't a statement, it was a question. Thank you for answering it, however I was in no means trying to spew out ignorance as if it was truth, I was simply looking for the answer to my question. No offense was intended.

3 Points Flag

Anonymous commented at 2014-05-24 23:10:40 » #1540204

While we are on the subject of uninformed statements, I feel the need to point out that this isn't actually Saber, or at least not the Saber to whom VincentD was referring. This is Sakura Saber, who was created by the same artist who designed Saber as a gag for the Type Moon magazine.

For a brief history lesson behind the joke:

Saber refers to one of, if not the most popular heroine of Type Moon, a company that originally made visual novels but has since branched out into other media as well. She's the flagship heroine of their "Fate" franchise, which refers to a series of games, anime, manga and novels typically revolving around a secret war where the participants can summon the spirits of legendary heroes and villains. The Saber VincentD referred to is a version of King Arthur, who was actually female but hid her real gender (according to the storyline anyway).

The thing is, the artist is known for not having a whole lot of range in his facial designs, and there are multiple versions of Saber, including entirely different and unrelated characters who just so happen to look like her. To date we have Saber, Saber Alter (which is a corrupted, evil version of Saber), Saber Lily (which is a special alternate costume that debuted in a PS2 game), Saber Extra (who is a female version of an infamous Roman Emperor), Ruler (who is their version of Jeanne D'Arc), and Saber of Red (who is actually Mordred; though at least the resemblence in this case is justified as this version of Mordred was made as a clone of Saber). Some fans of the franchise occasionally rag on this (in the West we jokingly call it Takeuchi-sameface).

During an April Fool's issue, Takeuchi (the artist) wrote that he would unveil a "new" character, and then made a gag of it by intentionally designing another Saber look-a-like to troll the fans who complain about all the Saber clones (they even had a brief gag storyline with a disguised Saber joining up with a group of side characters to try and wipe out all the Saber clones). The joke aside, Sakura Saber is actually a completely different character. More specifically, she is a genderswapped version of Okita Souji of the Shinsengumi.

5 Points Flag