This is discussion archived from a time before the current discussion method was installed.
Looney Toons: <sings> H-A-Single R-I, S-E-N spells "harisen!" </sings> Sorry, couldn't resist.
Zeke: That's a reference to something, right?
Scud East: Google "spells harrigan".
Red Shoe: I've read that a reinforced paper fan (or an iron truncheon that just looked like a paper fan) was often carried by samurai for use as a backup weapon when circumstances forbade them from carrying more traditional weapons. Seems likely this had some influence on the ultimate origin of the trope. Can anyone confirm or deny?
Gus: See "Tessen" on this page http://www.e-budokai.com/articles/weapons.htm
Looney Toons: I removed the bit about Asuna's fan dispelling magic from the Negima entry because it's not her fan doing the dispelling. It's something inherent in her, as seen in manga flashbacks and also in scenes before she makes the pactio with Negi. Whether or not the fan is responsible for dispelling summoned critters is still up in the air, so I left that in.
fleb: What show is the [1]
◊ image from?
Kalle: It looks like Ojamajo Doremi, but I can't be sure.
I removed Temari from the list, since her weapon is an oversized tessen; made of iron, not paper.
Removed:
Since this one wasn't there before, there's also evidence of it in the first episode of the '80s Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles cartoon. Specifically in the first episode, "Turtle Tracks" — where a robot foot soldier uses it.
It's an iron fan and it's not used jokingly. Not this trope.
