Four Hitokiri of the Bakumatsu
The Four Hitokiri of the Bakumatsu (幕末四大人斬り, Bakumatsu Yondai Hitokiri) was a term given to four
Meiji Emperor). These four samurai were warrior elite and widely considered undefeatable by normal people. The word hitokiri literally means "manslayer" or "man cutter,"[3]
as the kanji 人 means person, while 斬 can alternatively mean slay or cut.
In fiction
- Okada Izo and Yukio Mishima as Tanaka Shinbei.
- The manga and anime series Rurouni Kenshin is about a former hitokiri named Himura Kenshin, who is based loosely on Kawakami Gensai.[4] Kenshin is also known as Hitokiri Battousai (人斬り抜刀斎), or "Sword-drawing Manslayer".
- Gin Tama involves fictionalized versions of two of the four hitokiri (particularly Okada and Kawakami), set in an alternate version of Bakumatsu-era Japan.
- The Hitokiri is a playable character in the video game For Honor, serving as a heavy hero of the Samurai faction and fighting with a two-handed axe.
- The 2014 video game Ryū ga Gotoku Ishin!features Okada Izo as one of the main antagonists. The 2023 remake version, Like a Dragon: Ishin!, also features Kawakami Gensai, Tanaka Shinbei and Nakamura Hanjiro as minor antagonists appearing in side missions.
References
- ^ 『歴史ポケット人物新聞 回天ふたたび 坂本龍馬』p95 及川拓哉著 大空出版 2008年8月1日
- ^ 小日向えり (2010). イケメン幕末史 (in Japanese). PHP研究所.
- ISBN 9781476628004.
- ISBN 1-59116-220-3.
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