The Dark Side of the Kobushido

**"The Dark Side of the Kobushido"** is the fifty-fifth episode of *Kobushi*. It was released in July 18, 2013, on Gulli, and later in February 3, 2015, on Mangas.

## Synopsis

Disappointed at not being able to become a samurai, privilege reserved for sushi, Ikura the maki rocking on the dark side of the force.

He raises an army of villagers all similar to clones, to take power to sushi ...

Will the Sushis rebel against the dark side of Kobushido?

## Plot

The episode begins with Ebi at Néko's altar, talking to the porcelain cat about having another idea on how to capture the Kobushis for him. He explains to them about a makizushi named Ikura who have feel out of place after what happened earlier that morning. The Kobushis were all at Master Tako's class when Ikura arrived at the dojo to asked the master about the virtues of the samurai. Master Tako told him that there're seven virtues, but he have only listed three: righteousness, courage, and benevolence. Ikura interrupted the octopus sushi by saying that he have three of the seven virtues and demanded that he must be a samurai. However, Master Tako scolded him by saying there're another virtue that he must understand: respect of the elders and traditions, and tradition requires that only sushis become samurai. Since Ikura is not a sushi and he's a maki, and therefore a simple villager, he left the dojo out of anger and disappointment. After Ebi told the whole story to Néko, the latter gets a new idea on how to capture the Kobushis. He asks Ebi to find Ikura and follow to the letter to another one of Néko's brilliant plans.

At the bonsai tree, Ebi find Ikura sadly walking by after what happened earlier at the dojo. Ebi, standing on the tree branch with a candle lighted nearby and his tail covers his eyes, pretends to be the maki's "ghost of his ancestor" and alerts him, claiming that he comes to help him accomplish his destiny to become a samurai. Ikura wonders out loud that he once had a father who was eaten by Néko when he was little. This sparks Ebi to identify himself as the "spirit of Ikura's father" and tells his "son" that he must guide the entire maki community to rebel against the sushis since their laws and traditions are unfair to him to become a samurai. Ikura, believing in the trickery, obeys his "father's" advice.

Later at the dojo, Ikura, now dressed up as Darth Vader, round up the maki community about rebelling the sushis and they all agree with him, they too tired of being unable to be samurais because of the tradition. One of the makis refuses to take part in the rebellion and defeat Néko, stating the last time someone talk about the revolution it have gone wrong. Ikura, not wanting any makis to be a traitor, signals his "father" to lift up the maki for disobeying his order, leading to the community believe that Ikura is using "the Force" and that they must listen to their leader's command. As the rebels all left to suit up, Toro have overheard the community nearby and he leaves to warn the others about it.

The rebels all match past the Sushi Guard and head to Néko's altar to attack, but Toro manages to warn Tamago and Onigiri about it and they all arrive before the rebels. Néko appears and growls at the rebels as he is ready to attack, scaring the entire maki community and they all cowardly run away in fear. Ikura, not wanting to give up, remembers what his "father" said about guiding the rebels to defeat Néko. He rips apart a knitting needle to create a makeshift "lightsaber", and he and Néko both have lightsaber fight. However, Néko easily wins by knocking Ikura's "lightsaber" out of his hand and knocks the maki out. Toro and Tamago both arrive to come rescue Ikura by tying a rope around Néko to prevent the porcelain cat from eating him.

After the trio rescued Ikura, he is seen on a roof and is searching for his "father's spirit". When his father doesn't responding, Ikura believes that he have disappointed him for being unable to defeat Néko. Later that day, Ikura is at the dojo to talk to Master Tako about his actions. Master Tako berates him about his bad choice to rebel against the sushis all because of his desire to become a samurai. He said that he need to respect the code of the Kobushido and that he isn't ready to become one yet. However, Ikura dramatically misses the point of what Master Tako was saying and he believes that maybe someday he'll become a samurai too despite being a maki. After Ikura happily leave the dojo, Tamago asks Master Tako that since he's willing to teach Ikura how to be a samurai, then it would mean that everyone could become a samurai too. She even asks the master if that also mean girls can be samurais too, knowing that she too is secretly a girl the entire time. However, Master Tako reveals that he refuses to break the tradition and that he actually never want to train Ikura. As long as Ikura *believes* that he will become one, he will not start another rebellion again and Master Tako will successfully lead the "Kobushi Empire". He then laughs evilly, scaring his students completely.

## Characters

* Ikura
* Ebi
* Oni San

* Master Tako
* Toro
* Tamago
* Néko
* Sushi Guard
* Onigiri (background)
* Hokkigaï (background)
* Ikura's father (mentioned)
* Villagers

## Trivia

* The French title is "Le côté obscur du Kobushido".
* The entire episode is a parody to the *Star Wars* franchise, but more specifically to the film *The Empire Strikes Back*.
	+ The episode title is a reference to "the dark side of the Force".
	+ The sushis in the episode represent the Jedis while the makizuki rebels represent the Siths.
	+ When Ebi pretends to be Ikura's father's spirit, it serves as a parallel to the Force spirit.
	+ The scene when Ebi claims that he's Ikura's father (by pretending to be a spirit) is a reference to the famous line "No, I am your father" that was spoken by Darth Vadar to Luke Skywalker.
	+ Ikura's rebel costume is similar to that of Darth Vader's.
	+ The episode plot of the makis rebelling against the sushis is a parallel to the Rebellion era of the franchise.
	+ Ikura's line about "the maki strikes back" is a reference to *The Empire Strikes Back*.
	+ During Ikura's speech at the dojo, he mentioned the Force, Chewbacca, the Death Star, and Jabba the Hutt. And not only that but when Ebi picks up the maki who refuses to rebel against the sushis and defeat Néko, the entire maki community thought Ikura is using the Force.
	+ The rebel army's suit resembles to a clone trooper's uniform.
	+ During the scene when Toro, Tamago, and Onigiri all come to rescue Ikura, they can be serve as parallels to the main trio of the *Star Wars* franchise: Luke Skywalker, Princess Leia, and Han Solo. And not only that, but Master Tako can be serve as a parallel to Yoda since they're both teachers.
	+ When Néko is about to attack the rebels, Ikura said the famous catchphrase "May the Force be with you".
	+ The scene that shows Néko growling at the rebels depicts Néko becoming red with black marks around his body. This is a reference to Darth Maul since he has red skin with black tattoos.
	+ Ikura's line, "You ate my dad, Néko! You will pay!" is a reference to Luke Skywalker's "He told me you killed [my father]" line during his battle against Darth Vader.
	+ The weapon Néko and Ikura both use for their fight is a parody to the lightsabers. And as part of the gag, the "lightsabers" can be heard buzzing despite they're actually knitting needles. Ikura's "lightsaber" is (ironically) green to represent the Jedi side while Néko's "lightsaber" is red to represent the Sith side.
	+ The entire fight scene between Néko and Ikura is a parody to the fight scene between Darth Vader and Luke Skywalker.
	+ Near the end of the episode, Master Tako said the "Kobushi Empire", a reference to the Galactic Empire.
* This episode revealed that Ikura had a father who got eaten by Néko when he was little.
* It's revealed that it's traditional that only male sushis are allowed to be samurai and not makis (i.e. most of the villagers in the restaurant).

### Errors

* When Ebi is on the suitcase to put the salmon eggs back onto Ikura's head, the villagers should have seen him because of the lighting and Ebi is suppose to be seen via a silhouette.

## References

1. ↑ https://playtv.fr/programmes-tv/gulli/18-07-2013/
2. ↑ https://playtv.fr/programmes-tv/mangas/03-02-2015/