Jidaigeki
Types. Many "jidaigeki" take place in Edo, the military capital. Others show the adventures of people wandering from place to place. The long-running television series "Zenigata Heiji" and "Abarenbō Shōgun" typify the Edo "jidaigeki". "Mito Kōmon", the fictitious story of the travels of the historical "daimyō" Tokugawa Mitsukuni, and the "Zatoichi" movies and television series, exemplify the traveling style. Another way to categorize "jidaigeki" is according to the social status of the principal characters. The title character of "Abarenbō Shōgun" is Tokugawa Yoshimune, the eighth Tokugawa "shōgun". The head of the samurai class, Yoshimune assumes the disguise of  a low-ranking hatamoto, a samurai in the service of the shogun. Similarly, Mito Kōmon is the retired vice-shogun, masquerading as a merchant. In contrast, the coin-throwing Heiji of "Zenigata Heiji" is a commoner, working for the police, while Ichi (the title character of "Zatoichi"), a blind masseur, is an outcast, as were many disabled people in that era. In fact, masseurs, who typically were at the bottom of the professional food chain, was one of the few vocational positions available to the blind in that era. "Gokenin Zankurō" is a samurai but, due to his low rank  and income, he has to work extra jobs that higher-ranking samurai were unaccustomed to doing. Whether the lead role is samurai or commoner, "jidaigeki" usually reach a climax in an immense sword fight just before the end. The title character of a series always wins, whether using a sword or a "jutte" (the device police used to trap, and sometimes to bend or break, an opponent's sword). Sengoku-jidai. Sengoku-jidai (Warring States era setting) is a Japanese genre that has been used as the setting for novels, films, video games, anime and manga. It bears some parallels  with the Western; Akira Kurosawa's "Seven Samurai", for example, was remade in a Western setting as "The Magnificent Seven". Roles. Among the characters in "jidaigeki" are a parade of people with occupations unfamiliar to modern Japanese, and especially to foreigners. Here are a few. Warriors. The warrior class included samurai, hereditary members in the military service of a "daimyō" or the "shōgun" (themselves samurai). "Rōnin", samurai without masters, were also warriors, and like samurai, wore two swords; they were, however, without inherited employment or status. "Bugeisha" were men, or in some stories women, who aimed to perfect their martial  arts, often by traveling throughout the country. "Ninja" were the secret service, specializing in stealth, the use of disguises, explosives, and concealed weapons. Craftsmen. Craftsmen in "jidaigeki" included metalworkers (often abducted to mint counterfeit coins), bucket-makers, carpenters and plasterers, and makers of woodblock prints for art or newspapers. Merchants. In addition to the owners of businesses large and small, the "jidaigeki" often portray the employees. The "bantō" was a high-ranking employee of a merchant, the "tedai", a lower helper. Many merchants employed children, or "kozō". Itinerant merchants included the organized medicine-sellers, vegetable-growers from outside the city , and peddlers at fairs outside temples and shrines. In contrast, the great brokers in rice, lumber and other commodities operated sprawling shops in the city. Governments. In the highest ranks of the shogunate were the "rojū". Below them were the "wakadoshiyori", then the various "bugyō" or administrators, including the "jisha bugyō" (who administered temples and shrines), the "kanjō bugyō" (in charge of finances) and the two "Edo machi bugyō". These last alternated by month as chief administrator of the city. Their role encompassed mayor, chief of police, and judge, and jury in criminal and civil matters. The machi bugyō oversaw  the police and fire departments. The police, or , included the high-ranking and the below them; both were samurai. In they often have full-time patrolmen, and , who were commoners. (Historically, these people were irregulars, called to service only when necessary.) Zenigata Heiji is an . The police lived in barracks at Hatchōbori in Edo. They manned "ban'ya", the watch-houses, throughout the metropolis. The was the symbol of the police, from to . A separate police force handled matters involving samurai. The "ōmetsuke" were high-ranking officials in the shogunate; the "metsuke" and "kachi-metsuke", lower-ranking police who could detain  samurai. Yet another police force investigated arson-robberies, while Shinto shrines and Buddhist temples fell under the control of another authority. The feudal nature of Japan made these matters delicate, and jurisdictional disputes are common in "jidaigeki." Edo had three fire departments. The "daimyō-bikeshi" were in the service of designated "daimyōs"; the "jōbikeshi" reported to the shogunate; while the "machi-bikeshi", beginning under Yoshimune, were commoners under the administration of the "machi-bugyō". Thus, even the fire companies have turf wars in the "jidaigeki". Each "daimyō" maintained a residence in Edo, where he lived during "sankin-kōtai". His wife  and children remained there even while he was away from Edo, and the ladies-in-waiting often feature prominently in "jidaigeki". A high-ranking samurai, the "Edo-garō", oversaw the affairs in the "daimyō"s absence. In addition to a staff of samurai, the household included "ashigaru" (lightly armed warrior-servants) and "chūgen" and "yakko" (servants often portrayed as flamboyant and crooked). Many "daimyōs" employed doctors, "goten'i"; their counterpart in the shogun's household was the "okuishi". Count on them to provide the poisons that kill and the potions that heal. Other. The cast of a wandering "jidaigeki" encountered a similar  setting in each "han." There, the "karō" were the "kuni-garō" and the "jōdai-garō". Tensions between them have provided plots for many stories. Conventions. There are several dramatic conventions of "jidaigeki": Proverbs and catchphrases. Authors of "jidaigeki" work pithy sayings into the dialog. Here are a few: In addition, the authors of series invent their own catchphrases called that the protagonist says at the same point in nearly every episode. In "Mito Kōmon", in which the eponymous character disguises himself as a commoner, in the final sword fight, a sidekick invariably holds up an accessory bearing the shogunal crest  and shouts, : "Back! Can you not see this emblem?", revealing the identity of the hitherto unsuspected old man with a goatee beard. The villains then instantly surrender and beg forgiveness. Likewise, Tōyama no Kin-san bares his tattooed shoulder and snarls, : "I won't let you say you forgot this cherry-blossom blizzard!" After sentencing the criminals, he proclaims, : "Case closed." Famous "jidaigeki". Video games. The following are Japanese video games in the "jidaigeki" genre. Although jidaigeki is essentially a Japanese genre, there are also Western games that use the setting to match the same standards. Examples are "Ghost of  Tsushima", "" series or Japanese campaigns of "Age of Empires III". Prominent jidaigeki directors. Names are in Western order, with the surname after the given name. Influence. "Star Wars" creator George Lucas has admitted to being inspired significantly by the period works of Akira Kurosawa, and many thematic elements found in "Star Wars" bear the influence of Chanbara filmmaking. In an interview, Lucas has specifically cited the fact that he became acquainted with the term "jidaigeki" while in Japan, and it is widely assumed that he took inspiration for the term Jedi from this.