SHOGUN

 

Ascension of the Samurai

 

 

The Bronze Tiger has been Ronin, is Samurai and must find the sword and bow of Sakanouye-no-Tamuramaro to become shogun. The armor and weapons of the 1st Sei-i Tai is his birth right and the key to crushing the oni that has been released against the world.

 

 

 

Sakanouye is looking  over one of the last sons of Tamuramaro, the Bronze Tiger (SS:OA1).

 

 

Sakanouye-no-Tamuramaro:Sei-i Tai, Shogun of early Japan, 1st man to hold the title Shogun, which is the highest rank to which a warrior could aspire. Tamuramaro is a Japanese man of African decent. The most celebrated Black general of the Heian period (794-1185) and the originator of what was to develop into the renowned Samurai class.

 

 

 

The word shogun means savage destroyer. A shogun is a hereditary governor of Japan. A ruling warlord. They were the absolute rulers until 1867; the warrior kings. Sakanouye is the conqueror of the indigenous Ainu / Emishi and the demon crushing avatar of the Bishamon. Many temples are dedicated to him as the avatar (check Chinese and Japanese historical records and mythology). Sakanouye is a Black man that's Japanese. Japanese culture and native. what should be known is that Tamuramaro was a paragon of military virtues, loved and is celebrated all over Japan and a hero in his own right.

 

 

 

 

 

Killing demons

 

 

 

The purpose of this posting is not only a history lesson, but to also show that it's material out there to pull from and it's absolutely no reason the Bronze Tiger shouldn't be featured in the DC universe, in a title in an animated series and in any other medium at DC's disposal. Able to take on the most skilled all the way up to the most powerful.

 

"It's not Marvel and DC's place to create our stories. We should create our own stories"

Dwayne McDuffie

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Tiger of Tamura

The Black Tiger is the worlds most skilled big cat. He has rarely been seen by the eyes of man and is believed to have magical powers that can be transferred to one who can capture or kill him. The magical Black Tiger is also known to be the killer of evil spirits and protector of all that's good.

As far as fully articulated figures go, I think it comes no better than the Four Horseman. These cowboys of the plastic action frontier gave us the Bronze Tiger; arguably the best two head sculpts and action figure paint jobs to date. The new 52 is in full swing and all of our favorite superheroes have pulled out alternate uniforms. With the Tiger Cage being officially the only Bronze Tiger site on the web, I decided to do a custom figure and review for the Shogun of TaskForce X, the Bronze Tiger.

The Agent O version of an alternate uniform is based on this panel from Flash #46

Quick Trivia: BT and the Flash are both from Central City  (who knew).

The color scheme is inspired by the black tiger, BT's burnt orange uniform, Mia Cabrera's tiger mask the legend of the Tiger King and the idea of Ben being the direct descendant of  Sakanouye No Tamura Maro - Sei-i Tai, first man to hold the title SHOGUN.

The figure has all the standard articulation of DC Universe Classics. The combination of hands that bend at the wrist give BT the dynamic of martial arts stances. Now his mastery of the empty hand can be shown in his poses.

Tamura Maro was one of the greatest warriors of Japan. His sword and bow are legendary. Benjamin Turner being one of the seven sons of Tamura maro (story by OA1) I gave BT a seven ringed broad sword, a power bow and his great ancestors sword. the sword of Tamura Maro.

The medallion has the Japanese Tiger symbol in the center. The other symbol is the symbol of the Tiger King. It's engraved in the center of the belt and on top of the head of the tiger mask. The symbol is in  truth on the top of the head of male tigers, you should see it in the stripes and it means king; hence the Japanese legend of the Tiger King. Inside the quiver is a hidden compartment to store whatever dangerous compounds or secret bad guy paraphernalia that had to be taken.

To wrap it up, this is my first 6inch custom job. I tried to take this and pour in as much originality as I could and still stay true to the original Bronze Tiger character created by Dennis O'Neil and Jim Berry.

The new T.F.E. version

Omega Agent 1.