The Mute Samurai or the Blind Masseur

[BlackLamaFaction]

Brothers Tomisaburo Wakayama and Shintaro Katsu both starred in outstanding (perhaps the most outstanding) TV shows depicting the adventures of wandering Samurai. Having watched both shows, I wondered if fans of the Samurai genre prefer one or the other. I understand there are so many differences between the two respective shows and no real way to fairly compare them, not to mention Zatoichi being a legacy involving films as well that spanned two decades. I would still love to hear your opinions. The Mute Samurai travels from show to show working as a bounty hunter for money, but is on a mission of vengeance, seeking the Spaniard who killed his father and cut his throat forever taking his voice. Zatoichi on the other hand seems to go wherever fate leads him getting into adventures along the way. Kiichi Hogan while awesome in his intensity is more one dimensional, Zatoichi I love because he plays happy go lucky until he's angered and transforms into a demon right before our eyes. Both shows are fantastic and every villain is an immediate underdog against their remarkable swords. Katsu on top of producing Mute Samurai (which is based on a story by Hideo Gosha) also has a recurring role in the series. Katsu's roles involve characters that are all diverse, while Tomisaburo plays a mute in this series and a man who hardly speaks in Lone Wolf and Cub in very much the same way, and yet I still prefer these characters to anything Katsu has done, it is with his intensity alone that he draws you in. I highly recommend both of these series, they both deserve more analysis than i am giving them but I wanted to hear if anyone else had any thoughts.

[daisho2004]

BLF: I have the entire "Mute Samurai" series and I think Tomisaburo Wakayama is far more superior in his Swordsmanship skills than his brother Shintaro Katsu. But I think that Zatoichi is one of the best characters ever created on screen. If the Mute Samurai would've made some full length movies that lasted at least a decade then I think you would have a better debate as to which films are better. Now don't get me wrong I love the "Mute Samurai" series. I just wasn't really happy how it ended! I wanted more!

[BlackLamaFaction]

I agree, some Mute Samurai films that correlated with the series would have been great. I can't figure out why it never happened. I only wish that Wakayama had starred in as many films as Katsu. As far as the ending to the series, I'm only on Ep. 13 where Kiichi is trying to go to Spain. I really hope he doesn't get to go because I don't understand how they would do that, I wouldn't think he'd last 5 minutes walking around like that in Spain.(lol).

[daisho2004]

BLF: I will not tell you how it ends, I'll wait for you to finish it then we'll discuss it, so let me know when your done with this series.

[kungfusamurai]

I'll have to sit down and watch the mute samurai episodes. I only saw the first two, and while I love Wakayama's swordplay, the stories were not that engaging. They weren't bad at all, they just didn't draw me in like the Zatoichi TV series.

I've watched many of the TV series episodes for Zatoichi and I think it's a shame Tokyo Shock stopped at Season 1, because the acting, the stories AND the fighting are consistently good in every episode. It's rare to come across a series that maintains that quality throughout. Kage No Gundan is probably the only TV series I've seen that matches Ichi in consistency in good quality stories and writing, but the cast kept changing whereas Zatoichi was always played by the same guy.

KFS

[daisho2004]

I watched the entire 25 TV episodes of Zatoichi that was released and a few of the shows were cut down to 45 minutes from the movies. Still a great series, but the final episode I was so disappointed with, I couldn't believe how they ended the franchise of a great series. The Mute Samurai was just different that is what I liked about it. Not always a lot of action but the stories were always good.

[chanbara]

Overall I'd probably have to go with Zatoichi as being my favorite of these 2 classic series, but "The Mute Samurai" is a truly great concept and series in its own right. What impressed me the most (aside from Wakayama-san's peerless sword fighting) is how much depth the stories have and how much of an emotional connection they managed to give viewers to a character who never speaks. Hearing Kiichi Hogan's inner thoughts and the use of flashbacks more than made up for him being mute and gives viewers a rare insight into his psyche. It's a really unique series in many ways. Also, without spoiling it for anyone who hasn't seen it yet, the ending of the series was very surprising because it was very a-typical of Japanese style storytelling and another element that really makes it stand out. The series has a very Spaghetti Western feel to it, which is not surprising since it was based on the film "The Silence" which was a huge hit in Japan when it was released in the late 1960s. "The Mute Samurai" is just an awesome TV series and along with the "Lone Wolf and Cub" movie series, ranks among the great Wakayama-san's best work.

[daisho2004]

Another TV series that really stands out to me is "The Bounty Hunter" with Tomisaburo Wakayama, this has a lot of that Spaghetti Western feel to it. Good storyline and action at the end. It almost feels like the "Mute Samurai" in same ways but a great series never the less.

[BlackLamaFaction]

I'll have to sit down and watch the mute samurai episodes. I only saw the first two, and while I love Wakayama's swordplay, the stories were not that engaging. They weren't bad at all, they just didn't draw me in like the Zatoichi TV series.

You should really keep watching, now that I remember the first few episodes weren't the most engaging, I could see why you might have stopped there. It gets a whole lot better I'd say after about 6 episodes your hooked.