Bamboo Blade (Anime). AIC A.S.T.A., 2007-2008. Licensed by Funimation Entertainment.
What’s it about?
Toraji Ishida (aka Kojirou) is a part-time high school teacher and kendo* instructor at Muroe High, and struggling to make ends meet. When his former senpai, Kenzaburo, who is also a high school kendo instructor, challenges Kojirou’s team, offering him a year’s supply of sushi from his father’s restaurant if his girl’s team can win--now all Kojirou has to do is recruit a team!
*For readers unfamiliar with the term, kendo is a form of Japanese fencing, performed with a long bamboo blade, hence the title of the series
Find out more:
A part-time high school teacher and kendo coach, Kojirou, is struggling to scrape enough money together to have a decent meal. He jumps at the chance to win a whole year’s worth of meals at his friend’s father’s sushi restaurant. All he has to do is have his girl’s kendo team and beat his senpai’s team. Simple, right? Well, first Kojirou has to assemble a team. This proves to be difficult---in fact, at his first practice match against Kenzaburo’s team, he only has four girls, and tries to pass his best fencer, Tamaki, off as two different people. Kojirou eventually fields a full team of five with some formidable (and quirky!) fencers.
The character interactions are fun to watch, and quite funny. Dan, a short, plain-looking guy has a gorgeous girlfriend, Miyako (also known as Miya-Miya), so devoted to him that she rides around on a bike with a sidecar. In one episode, Miyako’s foot was injured, but she still rode the bike with Dan in the car despite extreme pain. Dan offered to help, but she knows his feet won’t reach the pedals. The fact that he offered to help, though, acted like the best painkiller in the world, and suddenly she power-pedaled her way back home. This character is rather two-sided, seeming extremely sweet and innocent at first (and always extremely devoted to Dan), but can be cruel and enjoys hitting people. When she is angry, she is depicted as being surrounded by a creepy black and purple aura. This is a character-driven comedy, and quite hilarious, although no new ground is broken. The animation and backdrops are extremely well done, and the voice acting is also very good, especially in Japanese. Recommend this anime to fans of slice of life comedies and sports-themed anime. It appeals to both male and female audience, even though its target audience is male.
Genre: Sports comedy, Slice of Life
Interest level: Grades 6 & up
Rating: TV-PG
Subjects: Kendo, High School, Sports, Teachers
Dub or Sub?
I’ve seen the first four episodes in English and thought the dub was decent, but I prefer the sub—the voice actors for Dan and Kojirou are hilarious!
Is it also a manga?
Yes, there are 10 volumes published in English, with the 11th on its way in mid-December.
Similar anime & manga titles:
K-On!
School Rumble
The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya
Ouran High School Host Club
Series information: The complete series is 26 episodes
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