Toyzinger
Yoroiden Samurai Troopers, is an anime released in Japan at the end of the 80’s, this anime was distributed in different countries under different names: known in English as Ronin Warriors, in Latin America as Samurai Warriors and in Spain as Los cinco samuráis.
The series was created by Hajime Yatate and produced by Sunrise, its release in 1988 followed the huge success of Sain Seiya, the plot has many similarities, such as the main characters, 5 teenagers with armor of different colors who fight against evil. But in this case the proposal merged elements of Japanese mythology instead of Greek mythology.
The television series consists of 39 episodes and aired in Japan from 1988 to 1989. In addition to the anime, the franchise expanded with manga, OVAs (Original Video Animations) and movies, further deepening the story and characters.
The plot follows five young samurai warriors chosen to protect the world from the forces of evil. Each of them is linked to a powerful and mystical samurai armor, known as the Sacred Samurai Armors. These armors possess unique abilities and are linked to five elements: Fire, Light, Water, Earth and Air.
The forces of evil are led by Arago the Demon Lord who, with the help of his henchmen, the four dark lords try to conquer the world and plunge it into darkness.
Just as the series was renamed depending on the country of broadcast, the name of most of the characters was also changed, so we can find the same character with many different names depending on the dubbing we are watching.
In my opinion, these multiple name changes in both the name of the series and/or the characters do not help the franchise to consolidate. Possibly in the 80’s that factor was not very important, since everything was very focused on a much more local market, but with the advent of the internet and the possibility of talking and trading with people from other countries that can make understanding difficult. Here is a list of the different names we can find for the same character.
| Japan | Spain | Italy | France | USA |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ryo | Hector | Rio | Ryo | Ryo |
| Seiji | Cesar | Sami | Sarky | Sage |
| Toma | Tomy | Kimo | Toma | Rowen |
| Shin | Jorge | Simo | Yann | Cye |
| Shu | Tristan | Shido | Rock | Kento |
| Kikoutei Rekka | Hariel | Hariel | Ryo | Hariel |
| Shuten | Demon | Demon | Zebuth | Anubis |
| Rajura | Diavolo | Rasta | Merlor | Dais |
| Naaza | Fantom | Krana | Cyanor | Sekhmet |
| Anubis | Cronos | Kratos | Obscuror | Cale |
| Arago | Escorpio | Aragon | Arkatakor | Talpa |
Just as the series was “inspired” by the success of the anime of Saint Seiya, also wanted to do the same with action figures and together with the release of the anime, a line of toys produced by TAKARA was released with a total of 13 pieces. Many of these pieces were also launched in the Spanish and Italian markets.
Years later, in 1995 and along with the arrival of the anime in the United States, PLAYMATES relaunched the line under the name Ronin Warriors, made some minor modifications to the figures and changed the packaging, this second collection was also released in Europe and Latin America by BANDAI.
Today, new lines of figures continue to be released, much more “premium” for nostalgic collectors of one of their childhood series. These figures are much more detailed, articulated and of superior scale. There are two lines created by TAMASHII NATION and SENTINEL TOYS respectively.
Although several decades have passed since the series’ release, Yoroiden Samurai Troopers remains an important part of many anime fans’ childhood. The unique blend of Japanese mythology, thrilling action and endearing characters ensures that the legend of these samurai warriors will live on in the memories of many children of the 80’s and 90’s.
Although it is evident that it was an anime released in what we could call “American style”, made to sell figures, the series itself had a more than acceptable quality for its time and many of us keep very good memories of it and its figures.
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