History UsefulNotes / MiyamotoMusashi

Musashi is well known for his strategic brilliance. One of his most famous strategies (which could even be considered his trademark) was his tendency to show up rather late to scheduled duels in order to upset his opponents, resulting them in not being able to fight at their best. In his final duel with Kojiro, it is speculated by some people that Musashi won the duel before he showed up. By timing his arrival so that he was not only late (infuriating Kojiro and taking the edge off his skill) but also so that upon finishing his duel he would leave as the tide was going out, he made a swift escape from Kojiro's followers and supporters who might have chased after him to avenge Kojiro's defeat.

Contrary to popular belief, Musashi did not die in a great battle. He died peacefully of thoracic cancer at his home at the age of 65 - a good age considering the times.

Interestingly, some accounts describe him as a rather unkempt man (these claimed he didn't bathe often due to not wanting to be vulnerable) whose looks didn't age well, and the classic depiction of him with nearly [[HairColors blue hair]] might be a reference to hair dye. However, considering how hard it would be to maintain a position as a samurai[[note]]historical accounts seem to show he was never a samurai, tho he served many masters trying to be one. Some documentation refer to him as a ronin, but that would also be false since if he was never a samurai he can't be a masterless samurai, which is what a ronin was[[/note]] and never look presentable means that this is probably a myth.

Interestingly, some accounts describe him as a rather unkempt man (these claimed he didn't bathe often due to not wanting to be vulnerable) whose looks didn't age well, and the classic depiction of him with nearly [[HairColors blue hair]] might be a reference to hair dye. However, considering how hard it would be to maintain a position as a samurai and never look presentable means that this is probably a myth.

* In the ''Literature/CiaphasCain'', ''' HERO OF THE IMPERIUM!!!''' novel ''Duty Calls'', Musashi is part of a two for one reference when Cain (a famously skilled swordsman) briefly thinks of his old sword instructor, Miyamoto [[CyranoDeBergerac De Bergerac]]

* In the [[NoExportForYou Japanese-only]] {{PS2}} [[UpdatedRerelease rerelease]] of ''VideoGame/TalesOfSymphonia'', [[TheHero Lloyd]] can receive a title that grants him an outfit designed after Musashi's, while [[TheStoic Kratos]] receives one based on Musashi's real life [[TheRival Rival]], Kojiro Sasaki.

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Musashi was born Shinmen Bennosuke, the son of a low-ranking samurai. He later adopted the personal names Takezo and Musashi (both [[AlternateCharacterReading alternate renderings]] of the same [[UsefulNotes/JapaneseWritingSystem kanji]]), and the surname Miyamoto after his father's village. He fought and won his first duel at the age of 13, and by the age of 16 he left his home village to [[WalkingTheEarth wander Japan]] and develop his fighting skills. After being on the losing side of the Battle of Sekigahara, he eventually made his way to Kyoto, where he began a series of duels with that city's Yoshioka school.

Musashi was born Shinmen Bennosuke, the son of a low-ranking samurai. He later adopted the names Takezo and Musashi (both [[AlternateCharacterReading alternate renderings]] of the same [[UsefulNotes/JapaneseWritingSystem kanji]]) and the surname Miyamoto from his father's village. He fought and won his first duel at the age of 13, and by the age of 16 he left his home village to [[WalkingTheEarth wander Japan]] and develop his fighting skills. After being on the losing side of the Battle of Sekigahara, he eventually made his way to Kyoto, where he began a series of duels with that city's Yoshioka school.

Musashi was born Shinmen Takezo, the son of a low-ranking samurai. He fought and won his first duel at the age of 13, and by the age of 16 he left his home village to [[WalkingTheEarth wander Japan]] and develop his fighting skills. After being on the losing side of the Battle of Sekigahara, he eventually made his way to Kyoto, where he began a series of duels with that city's Yoshioka school.

* ''VideoGame/RyuGaGotoku'' Kenzan aka Yakuza Kenzan. [[NoExportForYou Not that the game left Japan]].

* Musashi is the hero of ''Ganryu'', a PlatformGame for the NeoGeo.

Compare YagyuJubei.

** Funnily enough you obtain it by upgrading a cheaply bought wooden sword for an enormous price. bit of a role reversal from musashi's famous duel (paddle>sword=sword>paddle).

* ''TabletopGame/YuGiOh'': Ninashi, a member of the Six Samurai, might be a reference to Miyamoto Musashi; a master swordsman well known for his Niten Style (2 sword combat style). Both the name and two swords are reminiscent of Musashi, and his appearance in Six Style - Dual Wield reinforces this reference.

* ''The Last Blade'' features a zombified version of Musashi as a sub-boss.

* In ''VideoGame/LiveALive'''s Bakamatsu chapter, Demon King Odio summons Musashi's ghost (This being the Bakamatsu era, several centuries after Musashi's death) to fight [[{{Ninja}} Oboro]], calling him the greatest swordsman of all time. [[SkippableBoss If you fight him instead of avoiding him]], he's not only extremely powerful, but he also turns out to be the least evil boss in the chapter. He just wants to fight you to see how strong a ninja you are.

Contrary to popular belief, Musashi did not die in a great battle. He died peacefully of thoracic cancer at his home at the age of 65.

** Though given the name of the other Getter-3 pilot, Benkei Kurama, it's likely that his name was intended as a reference to the warrior-monk ''Benkei Musashibou''.

** The most striking character change would be that this Sasaki Kojirou is deaf, mute, and has a generally childish attitude... not to mention has had his "adoptive mother" kick multiple girls out of his bed. (Despite this, when she breaks up the first Musashi vs. Kojirou encounter -- over Kojirou trying to bisect Musashi's ''snowman'' with a tree branch -- due to ''dinner time'', he's happy to give her a piggyback ride back into the house.)
** As for events? When Musashi tries to put the feud with the Yoshioka behind him after [[spoiler:killing both the dojo head Seijurou and his younger brother Denshichiro, the new head is not the young Genjirou (in the novel Musashi charged through the Yoshioka ranks in a surprise attack to take out this last head) but rather the "third brother" Ueda Ryohei who plans to have all seventy Yoshioka men jump Musashi at Ichijouji. When Musashi finds out he at first does the smart thing and leaves the capital... only to run back down the mountain, charge into their midst, and he slaughters them ''all'']].

* ''Film/SevenSamurai'' -- Kikuchiyo (also played by ToshiroMifune) resembles Musashi in his youth, while Kyuuzo resembles Musashi near the end of his dueling career. The SingleStrokeBattle between Kyuuzo and an unnamed opponent early in the film was in fact inspired by one of Musashi's duels.

* ''Series/{{Heroes}}'' -- The character name Takezo Kensei is a ShoutOut to Musashi. (Takezou is an alternate pronunciation of the ''kanji'' for Musashi. In the Yoshikawa novel, Shinmen Takezou becomes "Musashi of Miyamoto village," hence the name.)

* ''VideoGame/SamuraiShodown'' -- Haohmaru is a direct ShoutOut to Musashi, just like Ukyou Tachibana is one to Koujiro.

* ''ComicBook/UsagiYojimbo'' -- Usagi's family name is Miyamoto.

Musashi is well known for his strategic brilliance. One of his most famous strategies (which could even be considered his trademark) was his tendency to show up rather late to scheduled duels in order to upset his opponents, resulting them in not being able to fight at their best. In his final duel with Kojiro, it is speculated by some people that Musashi exhibited almost Xanatos-level planning, timing his arrival so that he was not only late (infuriating Kojiro and taking the edge off his skill) but also so that upon finishing his duel he would be leaving as the tide was going out, thus enabling him to make a swift escape from Kojiro's followers and supporters who might have chased after him to avenge Kojiro's defeat.

[[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Miyamoto_Musashi Miyamoto Musashi]] (1584?-1645) was probably the [[FolkHero most famous Japanese swordsman in history]], particularly outside Japan.

Musashi was reportedly victorious in at least 60 duels during his lifetime, and by some accounts went undefeated. In one duel, Musashi is said to have been ambushed by most of the Yoshioka school's students at once, and defeated them all. Another duel prompted him to develop a DualWielding sword style, known as ''Niten Ichi-ryu'' ("Two Heavens As One" style). However, his most famous duel was with UsefulNotes/SasakiKojiro, whom Musashi killed with a single blow with [[WoodenKatanasAreEvenBetter a bokken (wooden sword)]] that he carved from an oar on the boat ride to the island where the duel took place (the day of which he overslept and arrived over an hour late).[[note]] There is considerable debate about the details of this duel. Some scholars even dispute that it ever occurred at all, and think that Musashi simply murdered Kojiro for political reasons. [[/note]]

* In ''VideoGame/LiveALive'''s Bakamatsu chapter, the evil Lord Ode Iou summons Musashi's ghost (This being the Bakamatsu era, several centuries after Musashi's death) to fight [[{{Ninja}} Oboro]], calling him the greatest swordsman of all time. [[SkippableBoss If you fight him instead of avoiding him]], he's not only extremely powerful, but he also turns out to be the least evil boss in the chapter. He just wants to fight you to see how strong a ninja you are.

* "Sun And Steel" -- A song by popular British Music/{{heavy metal}} band Iron Maiden about Musashi's life.

* ''Manga/SailorMoon'', Episode 139: the villain fakes being a great sword fighter, of the “Miyamoto ''Tarezo''” style. When he’s informed that the name is really Miyamoto Musashi, he complains that there should have been furigana, giving the correct reading of the kanji name.

* ''Manga/{{Vagabond}}'', a manga adaptation of the Yoshikawa novel by Takehiko Inoue (also author and artist of ''SlamDunk''), albeit with notable differences in characters' backgrounds, events and personalities.

* ''Franchise/Onimusha BladeWarriors''

* ''GetterRobo'' -- One of the heroes is named Musashi Tomoe and he's a talented martial artist.

* ''CowboyBebop'' -- Referenced in one episode.
* ''SamuraiChamploo'' -- An old man claims to be Musashi in one episode, well over 200 years after Musashi died. He was fairly obviously jesting, however. Also worth noting is Jin's design, which slightly resembles Musashi's.

* ''Yaiba'' -- A ''really'' old, ''really'' short Musashi is Yaiba's mentor.
* ''UruseiYatsura'' -- One entire episode is devoted to sending up the Musashi story.

* Then, of course, there's the infamous ''MusashiGundoh''... where a young Musashi fights demons using two pistols.
* ''MusashiDreamOfTheLastSamurai''
* ''{{Eyeshield 21}}'': The Devilbat's kicker is nicknamed Musashi and his rival is a man named Sasaki.
* ''{{Vagabond}}'', a manga adaptation of the Yoshikawa novel by Takehiko Inoue (also author and artist of ''SlamDunk''), albeit with notable differences in characters' backgrounds, events and personalities.

* In ''SamuraiGirlRealBoutHighSchool'', Ryoko is challenged to a duel by Azumi, who then shows up late, leading one of the spectators to comment that Azumi is playing the same trick as Musashi.
* In ''{{Yaiba}}'', Musashi Miyamoto is a 410 years old TricksterMentor, still capable of kicking asses.
* SailorMoon, episode 139: the villain fakes being a great sword fighter, of the “Miyamoto ''Tarezo''” style. When he’s informed that the name is really Miyamoto Musashi, he complains that there should have been furigana, giving the correct reading of the kanji name.

* TabletopGame/YuGiOh: Ninashi, a member of the Six Samurai, might be a reference to Miyamoto Musashi; a master swordsman well known for his Niten Style (2 sword combat style). Both the name and two swords are reminiscent of Musashi, and his appearance in Six Style - Dual Wield reinforces this reference.

* ''UsagiYojimbo'' -- Usagi's family name is Miyamoto.
* According to one limited series, {{Wolverine}} learned to be a {{Ninja}} from a master who once confronted Musashi -- and ''both'' of them backed down, realizing neither could win.

* ''{{Musashi}}'' by Eiji Yoshikawa. This has been adapted for other media several times, as seen below.
* In the CiaphasCain, ''' HERO OF THE IMPERIUM!!!''' novel ''Duty Calls'', Musashi is part of a two for one reference when Cain (a famously skilled swordsman) briefly thinks of his old sword instructor, Miyamoto [[CyranoDeBergerac De Bergerac]]
* He appears as an immortal human in ''The Necromancer'', the fourth book in ''TheSecretsOfTheImmortalNicholasFlamel''.

* ''SevenSamurai'' -- Kikuchiyo (also played by ToshiroMifune) resembles Musashi in his youth, while Kyuuzo resembles Musashi near the end of his dueling career. The SingleStrokeBattle between Kyuuzo and an unnamed opponent early in the film was in fact inspired by one of Musashi's duels.

* '' Series/{{Heroes}}'' -- The character name Takezo Kensei is a ShoutOut to Musashi. (Takezou is an alternate pronunciation of the ''kanji'' for Musashi. In the Yoshikawa novel, Shinmen Takezou becomes "Musashi of Miyamoto village," hence the name.)
* The NHK ''taiga'' (an annual, weekly historical period drama) for 2003 was ''{{MUSASHI}}'', a generally faithful adaptation of the Yoshikawa novel.

* ''Sun And Steel'' -- A song by popular British Music/{{heavy metal}} band Iron Maiden about Musashi's life.

* ''BraveFencerMusashi'' and its sequel ''MusashiSamuraiLegend'' - the both of them take his story very- ''very'' loosely. With the former going for charming and light- FunSize, the latter goes for attitude and good dose of TetsuyaNomura style.
* ''SamuraiWarriors 2'' and ''Warriors Orochi'' (a crossover with the ''Dynasty Warriors'' franchise)- Appropriately, here he was specifically chosen to be ''THE'' premiere swordsman of the games he appeared in and true to form, he is universally considered the best in the game for that weapon. His moveset homages the notes he writes about form and technique in his book with little flash and very direct motions save for a leaping strike and his jump attack.

* ''SamuraiShodown'' -- Haohmaru is a direct ShoutOut to Musashi, just like Ukyou Tachibana is one to Koujiro.
* ''OnimushaBladeWarriors''
* In ''LiveALive'''s Bakamatsu chapter, the evil Lord Ode Iou summons Musashi's ghost (This being the Bakamatsu era, several centuries after Musashi's death) to fight [[{{Ninja}} Oboro]], calling him the greatest swordsman of all time. [[SkippableBoss If you fight him instead of avoiding him]], he's not only extremely powerful, but he also turns out to be the least evil boss in the chapter. He just wants to fight you to see how strong a ninja you are.

* Heishiro Mitsurugi of the ''SoulSeries'' is based almost entirely on Musashi.
* Nightmare's joke weapon in ''SoulCalibur 2'' is a wooden oar with the description "Perhaps it was modified by someone who heard the legend of the Japanese swordsman who won a duel with an oar and decided to try it himself."
* Ryu Hayabusa, in the Xbox remake of ''NinjaGaiden'', can obtain a large wooden oar (complete with glowing kanji runes) named Unlabored Flawlessness as his nigh-impossible-to-get Ultimate Weapon.

* In the [[NoExportForYou Japanese-only]] {{PS2}} [[UpdatedRerelease rerelease]] of ''VideoGame/{{Tales Of Symphonia}}'', [[TheHero Lloyd]] can receive a title that grants him an outfit designed after Musashi's, while [[TheStoic Kratos]] receives one based on Musashi's real life [[TheRival Rival]], Kojiro Sasaki.
* Cloud in ''FinalFantasyVII'''s signature huge, oar-shaped sword is a ShoutOut to Musashi.
* Musashi the samurai is a playable character in ''ShiningForce''.

* ''HarkAVagrant'' gives us a [[http://harkavagrant.com/index.php?id=40 slightly different take]] on his battle with Kojiro. Fairly accurate, actually, apart from omitting the whole "sharpening the boat oar into a boken" thing. Essentially, he beat Kojiro in the head with a heavy piece of wood with a wedged end - kind of like the equivalent of whacking him with a baseball bat.

* ''SamuraiJack''.

Musashi was reportedly victorious in at least 60 duels during his lifetime, and by some accounts went undefeated. In one duel, Musashi is said to have been ambushed by most of the Yoshioka school's students at once, and defeated them all. Another duel prompted him to develop a DualWielding sword style, known as ''Niten Ichi-ryu'' ("Two Heavens As One" style). However, his most famous duel was with SasakiKojiro, whom Musashi killed with a single blow with [[WoodenKatanasAreEvenBetter a bokken (wooden sword)]] that he carved from an oar on the boat ride to the island where the duel took place (the day of which he overslept and arrived over an hour late).[[note]] There is considerable debate about the details of this duel. Some scholars even dispute that it ever occurred at all, and think that Musashi simply murdered Kojiro for political reasons. [[/note]]