The Nobunaga of Seishi Kimata

After the contribution of Kiyoshi Kimata, here's another look at the beautiful illustrations from another children book dedicated to Nobunaga; this time, it's the 24th volume of the Jidou Denki Series (児童伝記シリーズ) released by Kaiseisha. This book was published in 1978, the 15th reprint of the original book first released in 1970.

The illustrator is Seishi Kimata and the author of the biography is Daiji Kawasaki.
I would love to share some illustrations from the book with you guys.

A peek to the "Toyotomi Museum" in Nakamura, dedicated to the taiga drama "Brothers in Arms"∼

It's common for pop-up exhibitions related to Sengoku warlords to appear in the areas promoted by the currently aired taiga drama, and Brothers in Arms is no exception.
The Toyotomi Museum set up in the Nakamura Park of Nagoya city is one of those. The museum opened on January 24 and is scheduled to close on January 11 2027. The ticket costs 800 yen, but it's important to note that out of the three areas of the exhibition, only the one dedicated to the taiga drama requires the entrance fee.

First appearance of Nobunaga in "Brothers in Arms" taiga drama!

I got to see the first subbed episodes of the currently airing Brothers in Arms (豊臣兄弟!, Toyotomi Kyōdai!) taiga drama∼ I gotta say that I find it quite enjoyable, but I'm just the old man type that enjoys historical drama whatsoever 😅

Kubi (2023)

I was really looking forward to check on Kubi (首, "Head") (and its Nobunaga) and I finally had the chance to!
This gloomy, hyper-violent and parodic approach to the Sengoku era may bother the most refined of you guys, but I have to admit that, despite the grottesque vibe, it's probaby the most faithful portrait of an historical period where violence and free utilitarism actually ruled the land. The movie is a screen adaptation of the 2009's homonymous novel by Takeshi Kitano, that here acts as producer, scriptwriter, director and, as if this wasn't enough, grants himself the role of the hilarious Hideyoshi, the "peasant" who's going to win the war of wits of his most illustrious competitors.

Baban Baban Ban Vampire (2025)

So, while looking for Brothers in Arms I managed to find this movie I looked forward last year! So what about a review? This fun romantic comedy with bits of BL talks about the vampire Mori Ranmaru, portrayed by Ryo Yoshizawa, who survived his first love, Nobunaga, just to find a new motivation in perpetuating his eternal life anew: drinking the pure blood of his virgin saviour, the naive Rihito!
I'm not going to talk you about the movie in detail, as usual I'll just focus on the portrayal of its Nobunaga, here rendered by Shinichi Tsutsumi.

Shun Oguri is back as Nobunaga in "Brothers in Arms" Taiga Drama!

Ugh, sorry I'm late to the party about it, but here we go once again with Sengoku times, specifically the times of Japan Unification, for a taiga drama∼ The title is Brothers in Arms (豊臣兄弟！, Toyotomi Kyoudai!, lit.: "Toyotomi Brothers!") and it started airing on NHK on January 4!

Nobunaga's reference in "Shabake" anime!

Enjoying my anime fix I couldn't help but to notice this subtle reference to Nobunaga, involving one of the main characters of Shabake anime: --No doubt that whatever fire and a samurai doing harakiri in the middle of it, is Nobunaga at Honnouji! No extra infos are required 😆

This guy Sasuke, actually an inugami in human form, is portrayed like an energetic and kinda rough dude, but also a dedicated servant... I wonder if during this flashback he was Ranmaru, or just one of his fellow kosho... In a sense, I really like the idea of Nobunaga being protected by ayakashi∼!

Review of the Nobunaga "Samurai Version" by COOMODEL!

So, let's keep updating a bit this blog, this time with one of my usual figure reviews! I received this figure early Autumn past year (I think?), sorry I'm talking about it only now--!

First appearance of Nobunaga in "Baban Baban Ban Vampire" anime!

Yesterday the anime Baban Baban Ban Vampire aired its first episode on the Japanese TV (or Netflix, for the international audience) and we got to see Nobunaga during the Honnoji incident, as Ranmaru remembers of his "love stories"...

Baban Baban-- Nobunaga!

Ah, how long since I updated this place∼ Looks like I have a chance because next year we're going to get a new Nobunaga in the features of Shin'ichi Tsutsumi!

The project is the live-action version of the manga Baban Baban Ban Vampire (ババンババンバンバンパイア) by Hiromasa Okujima, a BL-ish comedy where Ranmaru is a vampire working in a bath-house, aiming at Rihito's virgin blood. Nobunaga's role is going to be marginal, as he just appears in a flashback, but it's meaningful indeed, as it explains the rivalry between Ranmaru and his brother Nagayoshi in this work.
The movie is scheduled for February 14, so I'll keep you updated about further visuals of our hero.

The heart of historical drama enthusiast skipped a bit because Tsutsumi acted as a young Yoshinobu in Takeda Shingen taiga drama in 1988, so it's going to be meaningful seeing him in another major historical role, if just for a few scenes.

織田信長は堤真一さん‼️
信長役は堤真一さんですと聞いた時震え上がりました。🥶それで一本映画撮れるでしょうに‼️映画館で観るのが楽しみで仕方ありません‼️ #ババンババンバンバンパイア pic.twitter.com/z0iJpNyiWm

— 奥嶋ひろまさ (@HiromasaOkujima) November 26, 2024

This said, Baban Baban Ban Vampire is going to get an anime adaptation earlier on January 11, so we may enjoy an animated version of Okujima's Nobunaga, too.