Scooby-Doo and the Samurai Sword
Encyclopedia
Scooby-Doo! and the Samurai Sword is the thirteenth of a series of direct-to-video
animated films based upon the Scooby-Doo
Saturday morning cartoon
s. It, along with The Goblin King, was produced and completed in 2008, but Goblin King was released first for the Halloween season. It was released on April 7, 2009, and it was produced by Warner Bros. Animation
, though it featured a logo for and copyright to Hanna-Barbera
at the end (this was the last time the logo was shown). It features the Mystery, Inc. gang traveling to Japan
and is the final Scooby-Doo film to have Casey Kasem
as the voice of Shaggy, as he retired a few months after the film was released. In the USA, the DVD sold 163,890 units in its first week and as of September 2011, it has sold approximately 479,000 units.http://www.the-numbers.com/movies/2009/0SDSS-DVD.php
museum of ancient history, Mr. Takagawa, the curator, and Kenji, a janitor, witness the resurrection of The Black Samurai, an ancient Japanese warrior whose armor was to be the newest exhibit at the museum. The next day, the Mystery Inc. gang arrives at Tokyo, where Daphne is to participate in a martial arts
tournament at a prestigious school. The gang meet Daphne’s friend Miyumi, who explains the difficulty of winning the tournament and entering the school as a student. The gang and Miyumi take a fully functioning robotic plane to the school, which is run by Miss Mirimoto. After Daphne defeats Miss Mirimoto’s bodyguard, Sojo, and almost defeats Miyumi, Mirimoto tells her she shows promise as a fighter. Also at the tournament is Mr. Takagawa, who explains to Mirimoto that the Black Samurai has risen and will be after the Destiny Scroll, which is at the school. That night, during a feast, the Black Samurai and his Ninja
warriors attack the school and steal the scroll. But Mirimoto explains the scroll was only a copy, and shows the gang the real one. Mr. Takagawa explains to the gang the legend of the Black Samurai.
The Black Samurai was an ancient warrior who asked the great swordsmith Masamune
to craft a powerful sword. The sword maker agreed, but told the Samurai it would take a year to make. Masamune’s evil apprentice Muramasa
offered to make another sword for the Samurai in only half the time, which the Samurai accepted. But when the Samurai took the sword, the evil of Muramasa was transferred to him, and he became the Black Samurai, wielding the Sword of Doom. When Masamune finished crafting his sword, the Sword of Fate, he presented it to The Green Dragon, who used it to defeat the Black Samurai and imprisoned him in the Sword of Doom. The Dragon then hid the sword, and put its whereabouts in a riddle on the Destiny Scroll.
Velma is able to solve the riddle, and Miss Mirimoto instructs the gang, Miyumi, and Mr. Takagawa to find the Sword of Doom before the spirit can. The gang finds the sword in a cave on an island in the Pacific Ocean
, where they are attacked by the Black Samurai. During the fight the Black Samurai is revealed to be Sojo. But once the gang brings Sojo back to Miss Mirimoto, she and Miyumi capture them. Miss Mirimoto explains that she staged the tournament to bring the Mystery Inc to Japan so that they would find the Sword of Doom for her. She also reveals she plans to release the Black Samurai so she can use him to return Japan to the way it was in feudal times. The ninja army is revealed to be robots in which Miss Mirimoto planted the various fighting techniques of her students (including Daphne's). She then locks Fred, Daphne, Velma, and Mr. Takagawa in the museum, but not before Daphne kicks the Samurai's sword from Miss Mirimoto's hand into Scooby and Shaggy's possession.
Scooby and Shaggy manage to escape Miss Mirimoto with the samurai sword, but are chased by the ninja warriors. They are saved by Matsuhiro, a sushi shop owner and Samurai, who trains them as Samurai and whom also is aware of the legend. Matsuhiro instructs Scooby and Shaggy to pass through the gates of earth, air, fire, and water in order to find the Green Dragon and the Sword of Fate. When they do so, the Green Dragon enters the sword and takes them back to the museum to combat the Black Samurai. Kenji frees Fred, Daphne, Velma, and Mr. Takagawa, and they, plus Miyumi, who decides to fight with them, attempt to stop Sojo and Miss Mirimoto from resurrecting the Black Samurai, but failed. After reviving the Samurai, Miss Mirimoto tries to make him her servant, but she is quickly entrapped and rendered unconscious. Scooby and Shaggy arrive riding the Green Dragon and, along with a little encouragement from Matsuhiro, defeat the Black Samurai by using the Sword of Fate to destroy the Sword of Doom, breaking the curse on the Samurai, who finally passes on to the afterlife. Later, the gang attends the newly renovated museum, where a statue of Scooby is erected in his honor.
, the 14th Scooby-Doo direct-to-video animated movie, was released in the US on February 16, 2010.
Direct-to-video
Direct-to-video is a term used to describe a film that has been released to the public on home video formats without being released in film theaters or broadcast on television...
animated films based upon the Scooby-Doo
Scooby-Doo
Scooby-Doo is an American media franchise based around several animated television series and related works produced from 1969 to the present day. The original series, Scooby-Doo, Where Are You!, was created for Hanna-Barbera Productions by writers Joe Ruby and Ken Spears in 1969...
Saturday morning cartoon
Saturday morning cartoon
A Saturday morning cartoon is the colloquial term for the animated television programming that has typically been scheduled on Saturday mornings on the major American television networks from the 1960s to the present; the genre's peak in popularity mostly ended in the 1990s while the popularity of...
s. It, along with The Goblin King, was produced and completed in 2008, but Goblin King was released first for the Halloween season. It was released on April 7, 2009, and it was produced by Warner Bros. Animation
Warner Bros. Animation
Warner Bros. Animation is the animation division of Warner Bros., a subsidiary of Time Warner. The studio is closely associated with the Looney Tunes and Merrie Melodies characters, among others. The studio is the successor to Warner Bros...
, though it featured a logo for and copyright to Hanna-Barbera
Hanna-Barbera
Hanna-Barbera Productions, Inc. was an American animation studio that dominated North American television animation during the second half of the 20th century...
at the end (this was the last time the logo was shown). It features the Mystery, Inc. gang traveling to Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
and is the final Scooby-Doo film to have Casey Kasem
Casey Kasem
Kemal Amin "Casey" Kasem is an American radio personality and voice actor who is best known for being the host of the nationally syndicated Top 40 countdown show American Top 40, and for voicing Shaggy in the popular Saturday morning cartoon franchise Scooby-Doo.Kasem, along with Don Bustany and...
as the voice of Shaggy, as he retired a few months after the film was released. In the USA, the DVD sold 163,890 units in its first week and as of September 2011, it has sold approximately 479,000 units.http://www.the-numbers.com/movies/2009/0SDSS-DVD.php
Plot
At a TokyoTokyo
, ; officially , is one of the 47 prefectures of Japan. Tokyo is the capital of Japan, the center of the Greater Tokyo Area, and the largest metropolitan area of Japan. It is the seat of the Japanese government and the Imperial Palace, and the home of the Japanese Imperial Family...
museum of ancient history, Mr. Takagawa, the curator, and Kenji, a janitor, witness the resurrection of The Black Samurai, an ancient Japanese warrior whose armor was to be the newest exhibit at the museum. The next day, the Mystery Inc. gang arrives at Tokyo, where Daphne is to participate in a martial arts
Martial arts
Martial arts are extensive systems of codified practices and traditions of combat, practiced for a variety of reasons, including self-defense, competition, physical health and fitness, as well as mental and spiritual development....
tournament at a prestigious school. The gang meet Daphne’s friend Miyumi, who explains the difficulty of winning the tournament and entering the school as a student. The gang and Miyumi take a fully functioning robotic plane to the school, which is run by Miss Mirimoto. After Daphne defeats Miss Mirimoto’s bodyguard, Sojo, and almost defeats Miyumi, Mirimoto tells her she shows promise as a fighter. Also at the tournament is Mr. Takagawa, who explains to Mirimoto that the Black Samurai has risen and will be after the Destiny Scroll, which is at the school. That night, during a feast, the Black Samurai and his Ninja
Ninja
A or was a covert agent or mercenary of feudal Japan specializing in unorthodox arts of war. The functions of the ninja included espionage, sabotage, infiltration, and assassination, as well as open combat in certain situations...
warriors attack the school and steal the scroll. But Mirimoto explains the scroll was only a copy, and shows the gang the real one. Mr. Takagawa explains to the gang the legend of the Black Samurai.
The Black Samurai was an ancient warrior who asked the great swordsmith Masamune
Masamune
, also known as , is widely recognized as Japan's greatest swordsmith. As no exact dates are known for Masamune's life, he has reached an almost legendary status. It is generally agreed that he made most of his swords in the late 13th and early 14th centuries, 1288–1328. He created swords, known as...
to craft a powerful sword. The sword maker agreed, but told the Samurai it would take a year to make. Masamune’s evil apprentice Muramasa
Muramasa
Muramasa Sengo was a famous swordsmith who founded the Muramasa school and lived during the Muromachi period in Japan...
offered to make another sword for the Samurai in only half the time, which the Samurai accepted. But when the Samurai took the sword, the evil of Muramasa was transferred to him, and he became the Black Samurai, wielding the Sword of Doom. When Masamune finished crafting his sword, the Sword of Fate, he presented it to The Green Dragon, who used it to defeat the Black Samurai and imprisoned him in the Sword of Doom. The Dragon then hid the sword, and put its whereabouts in a riddle on the Destiny Scroll.
Velma is able to solve the riddle, and Miss Mirimoto instructs the gang, Miyumi, and Mr. Takagawa to find the Sword of Doom before the spirit can. The gang finds the sword in a cave on an island in the Pacific Ocean
Pacific Ocean
The Pacific Ocean is the largest of the Earth's oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic in the north to the Southern Ocean in the south, bounded by Asia and Australia in the west, and the Americas in the east.At 165.2 million square kilometres in area, this largest division of the World...
, where they are attacked by the Black Samurai. During the fight the Black Samurai is revealed to be Sojo. But once the gang brings Sojo back to Miss Mirimoto, she and Miyumi capture them. Miss Mirimoto explains that she staged the tournament to bring the Mystery Inc to Japan so that they would find the Sword of Doom for her. She also reveals she plans to release the Black Samurai so she can use him to return Japan to the way it was in feudal times. The ninja army is revealed to be robots in which Miss Mirimoto planted the various fighting techniques of her students (including Daphne's). She then locks Fred, Daphne, Velma, and Mr. Takagawa in the museum, but not before Daphne kicks the Samurai's sword from Miss Mirimoto's hand into Scooby and Shaggy's possession.
Scooby and Shaggy manage to escape Miss Mirimoto with the samurai sword, but are chased by the ninja warriors. They are saved by Matsuhiro, a sushi shop owner and Samurai, who trains them as Samurai and whom also is aware of the legend. Matsuhiro instructs Scooby and Shaggy to pass through the gates of earth, air, fire, and water in order to find the Green Dragon and the Sword of Fate. When they do so, the Green Dragon enters the sword and takes them back to the museum to combat the Black Samurai. Kenji frees Fred, Daphne, Velma, and Mr. Takagawa, and they, plus Miyumi, who decides to fight with them, attempt to stop Sojo and Miss Mirimoto from resurrecting the Black Samurai, but failed. After reviving the Samurai, Miss Mirimoto tries to make him her servant, but she is quickly entrapped and rendered unconscious. Scooby and Shaggy arrive riding the Green Dragon and, along with a little encouragement from Matsuhiro, defeat the Black Samurai by using the Sword of Fate to destroy the Sword of Doom, breaking the curse on the Samurai, who finally passes on to the afterlife. Later, the gang attends the newly renovated museum, where a statue of Scooby is erected in his honor.
Trivia
- This is Casey Kasem's last time voicing Shaggy for a Scooby-Doo direct-to-DVD film since his retirement in 2009 from radio and voice acting. However, on European releases, Shaggy Rogers was voiced by Scott InnesScott InnesScott Innes is an American author, songwriter, voice actor, and radio personality.He became known as the new voice of Scooby-Doo in the Scooby-Doo direct-to-video movies made between 1998 and 2001. From 1999 to 2001, he also voiced Scooby's best friend and owner Norville "Shaggy" Rogers...
, who also provides the voice of Shaggy on Scooby-Doo and the Witch's GhostScooby-Doo and the Witch's GhostScooby-Doo! and the Witch's Ghost is the second in a series of direct-to-video animated films based upon Hanna-Barbera's Scooby-Doo Saturday morning cartoons. It was released on October 5, 1999, and it was produced by Warner Bros. Animation starting in 1998. The Mystery, Inc...
, Scooby-Doo and the Alien InvadersScooby-Doo and the Alien InvadersScooby-Doo and the Alien Invaders is the third of a series of direct-to-video animated films based upon the Scooby-Doo Saturday morning cartoons. It was released on October 3, 2000, and it was produced, starting in 1999, by Warner Bros. Animation...
and Scooby-Doo and the Cyber ChaseScooby-Doo and the Cyber ChaseScooby-Doo and the Cyber Chase is the fourth of a series of direct-to-video animated films based on Hanna-Barbera's Scooby-Doo Saturday morning cartoons. It was released on October 9, 2001. It features the Mystery, Inc. gang, which includes Scooby-Doo, Shaggy, Freddy, Daphne and Velma...
. - This is the final Scooby-Doo production animated in the same style as What's New, Scooby-Doo?
- Daphne's Martial Art skills are finally displayed (similar to the first two live-action Movies), many critics said, "Scooby-Doo, and a mixture of NarutoNarutois an ongoing Japanese manga series written and illustrated by Masashi Kishimoto. The plot tells the story of Naruto Uzumaki, an adolescent ninja who constantly searches for recognition and aspires to become the Hokage, the ninja in his village who is acknowledged as the leader and the strongest of...
." - This is probably the first time in which Shaggy and Scooby dare to use a REAL weapon to fight off a villain.
- Miss Mirimoto's swords are based on Renji Abarai's sword, Zabimaru from the Bleach anime & manga.
- The japanese swordsmiths Gorō Nyūdō MasamuneMasamune, also known as , is widely recognized as Japan's greatest swordsmith. As no exact dates are known for Masamune's life, he has reached an almost legendary status. It is generally agreed that he made most of his swords in the late 13th and early 14th centuries, 1288–1328. He created swords, known as...
& Muramasa SengoMuramasaMuramasa Sengo was a famous swordsmith who founded the Muramasa school and lived during the Muromachi period in Japan...
are referenced in the legend of the black Samurai. - In the shots of Tokyo, a billboard of Utada HikaruUtada Hikaru, known by her stage name Utada in America and Europe, is a Japanese-American singer, song writer, arranger, and producer. Since the release of her Japanese debut album First Love, which went on to become the best-selling album in Oricon history, Utada has had three of her Japanese studio albums...
's album Ultra BlueUltra BlueUltra Blue is the award-winning fourth Japanese studio album by Hikaru Utada, released in 2006. It debuted at #1 on the Oricon daily, weekly and monthly charts and sold 500,317 copies in its first six days of sales...
is shown.
Cast
- Frank WelkerFrank WelkerFranklin Wendell "Frank" Welker is an American actor who specializes in voice acting and has contributed character voices and other vocal effects to American television and motion pictures.-Acting career:...
as Scooby-DooScooby-Doo (character)Scoobert "Scooby" Doo is the eponymous character and the protagonist in the Scooby-Doo animated television series created by the popular American animation company Hanna-Barbera...
, Fred Jones, Kerry Kilpatrick and Mad Dog Masimoto - Casey KasemCasey KasemKemal Amin "Casey" Kasem is an American radio personality and voice actor who is best known for being the host of the nationally syndicated Top 40 countdown show American Top 40, and for voicing Shaggy in the popular Saturday morning cartoon franchise Scooby-Doo.Kasem, along with Don Bustany and...
as Shaggy RogersShaggy RogersNorville "Shaggy" Rogers is a fictional character from the American animated television series Scooby-Doo, about the adventures of four crime-solving teenagers and Shaggy's pet great dane, Scooby-Doo. Shaggy is a cowardly slacker more interested in eating than solving mysteries. He is the only... - Mindy CohnMindy CohnMindy Heather Cohn is an American actress, comedian known for her role as Natalie Green, the smart, overweight student of Edna Garrett , on the TV show The Facts of Life, and also being the current voice for Velma Dinkley in the Scooby-Doo franchise, which she has held since 2002.She currently...
as Velma DinkleyVelma DinkleyVelma Dace Dinkley is a fictional character in the American television animated series Scooby-Doo. She is prone to losing her glasses. She is usually seen wearing a baggy orange sweater, short pleated skirt , knee socks, and Mary Janes... - Grey DeLisleGrey DeLisleGrey DeLisle is an American voice actress, singer-songwriter, and comedienne. To date, she has released four solo albums and has featured on the tribute album Anchored in Love: A Tribute to June Carter Cash and film soundtrack of Loggerheads...
as Daphne BlakeDaphne BlakeDaphne Anne Blake is a fictional character in the long-running American animated series Scooby-Doo. Daphne, depicted as coming from a wealthy family, is noted for her red hair, her fashion sense, and her knack for getting into danger... - Kelly HuKelly HuKelly Ann Hu is an American actress and former fashion model. She was Miss Teen USA 1985 and Miss Hawaii USA 1993.-Early life:Hu was born in Honolulu, Hawaii, the daughter of Juanita, an engineering drafter for Honolulu, and Herbert Hu, a salesman and exotic bird breeder; the two divorced during...
as Miyumi/Miss Mirimoto - Sab ShimonoSab ShimonoSab Shimono is an American actor who has appeared in dozens of movies and television shows in character roles.-Career:An accomplished stage actor, he has appeared on Broadway and in regional theaters including San Francisco's American Conservatory Theatre and Berkeley Repertory Theatre...
as Mr. Takagawa - Keone YoungKeone YoungKeone J. Young is an American character actor. His father is Chinese and his mother is Japanese.He has been prolific in his character work and has made numerous guest appearances on such varied television series as Diff'rent Strokes, The Golden Girls, Murphy Brown, Mad About You, Family Matters,...
as Matsuhiro - Kevin Michael RichardsonKevin Michael RichardsonKevin Michael Richardson is an American actor and voice actor who currently stars as Cleveland Brown, Jr. in The Cleveland Show...
as Sojo/The Black Samurai - Gedde WatanabeGedde WatanabeGedde Watanabe is an American theatre, film, and television actor.He was in several dramatic productions in high school, both acting and singing...
as Kenji - George TakeiGeorge TakeiGeorge Hosato Takei Altman is an American actor, author, social activist and former civil politician. He is best known for his role in the television series Star Trek and its film spinoffs, in which he played Hikaru Sulu, helmsman of the...
as Old Man Samurai - Brian Cox as The Green Dragon
Sequel
Scooby-Doo! Abracadabra-DooScooby-Doo! Abracadabra-Doo
Scooby-Doo! Abracadabra-Doo is the fourteenth of a series of direct-to-video animated films based upon the Scooby-Doo Saturday morning cartoons. It was produced in 2009 by Warner Bros. Animation and it was released on February 16, 2010. It made its television debut on July 10, 2010 on Cartoon...
, the 14th Scooby-Doo direct-to-video animated movie, was released in the US on February 16, 2010.