Samurai 7/Characters

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Characters from Samurai 7 include:

Shimada Kanbei

Voiced by Masaki Terasoma (JP), Robert Bruce Elliott (EN)

Kanbei is a older samurai who fought in the Great War, though he feels no pride from this. Many of his friends have died in the war. He lives in the shadow of his painful and violent past, rejecting Kirara plea for help after stating that his heart is dried up. He leads the group during their battles and usually plans strategy. In the end, after understanding Katsushiro has become a successful samurai, he passes his sword onto him as he leaves Kanna village ahead of him and Shichirouji. He is the first samurai. To avoid confusion it should be noted that in the English dub he is called "Kambei" instead of "Kanbei".

Tropes exhibited by this character include:

Okamoto Katsushiro

Voiced by Romi Paku (JP), Sean Michael Teague (EN)

Katsushiro is the youngest and most inexperienced of the samurai. He joins both to help the village and because he wishes to be Kanbei's student, calling him sensei almost from their first meeting. He idolizes the principles of bushido. He vows to protect Kirara no matter what, and seems to be attracted to her. He grows stronger and more skillful throughout the series, eventually becoming a worthy student of Kanbei; and he also comes to terms with killing enemies, after reacting in shock the first time. He becomes strong enough to deflect the capital's main cannon, and defeated numerous bandits all by himself. He gains emotional strength as well, and understands what his true reason for becoming a samurai is. After turning down Kirara in the end, he explains to her that he intends to continue his life on the battlefield. After hearing this, Kanbei gives him his sword as recognition for being his student. Unlike in the original movie, he shows more focus on becoming a samurai and improving his skills greatly in the anime (where in the original he was preoccupied with a love affair). He is the fifth samurai.

Tropes exhibited by this character include:

Katayama Gorobei

Voiced by Tetsu Inada (JP), Bob Carter (EN)

Gorobei is a skilled samurai who has made his living since the wars' end by entertaining people on the city streets. He is also a veteran of the Great War, so he knows Kanbei by reputation. He is very skilled at dodging blows and can pluck arrows and darts from the air. This ability was presumably based of the fact that in the original movie, Gorobei was able to sense (from a few feet outside the door) Katsushiro's waiting to hit him inside the hut. He often makes light of rather serious or dangerous situations. He is also quite smart, in his own unique way. To him, all the world was a stage and the people, merely players. He is the second samurai.

Tropes exhibited by this character include:

Shichiroji

Voiced by Tohru Kusano (JP), Duncan Brannan (EN)

Shichiroji initially fought side by side in the Great War with Kanbei, and is often referred to as "Kanbei's old wife." ("Mate" in the English series) He temporarily leaves behind his successful post-war business at the Firefly Inn, and with it, his beautiful girlfriend/fiance, to join Kanbei in battle once again. He has a prosthetic left hand which has a grappling hook capability with his index finger. In combat he uses a type of spear; the only samurai not using a sword. This is probably a reference to his using a spear mainly during the final battle in the original movie (though normally he carried a sword). His girlfriend, Yukino, has nicknamed him Momotaro, from the traditional Japanese tale, because she found him, badly injured after a battle, floating down a river inside a capsule reminiscent of a peach. He is the fourth samurai.

Tropes exhibited by this character include:
  • Artificial Limbs : Has an armor plated arm that shoots grappling hooks from the fingers.
  • Blade on a Stick: His Weapon of Choice
  • Dance Battler
  • Embarrassing Nickname/ My Name Is Not Durwood: Although he presumably doesn't mind his girlfriend calling him "Momotaro", he's less pleased when Kikuchiyo and Komachi start teasing him with it.
  • Grappling Hook Pistol: His cybernetic arm/hand is one.
  • Retirony : He joins up with the group for one last battle with his old fried and even waves good bye to his girlfriend/fiance. Kirara even has the nerve to tell his fiance that "Momotaro"[1] always comes back with loads of treasure. Subverted though, as he is one of the surviving samurai

Kikuchiyo

Voiced by Kong Kuwata (JP), Christopher Sabat (EN)

Kikuchiyo is a cyborg with a mechanized exoskeleton. He is originally a peasant until becoming a samurai to help others. He is often looked upon as a clown or a bother, as he gets angry easily and often causes trouble with his loud noise and clumsy ways. He is accepted as the seventh samurai after revealing he was also a farmer, like the peasants of Kanna. He carries the largest of the swords, which also acts as a chainsaw. He is fiercely loyal to Kanbei, and, when given recognition, he returns favors fourfold. He is well liked by the villagers, especially by little Komachi, who asks him to become her husband when she grows up, a request that he accepts in return for her keeping his fake family tree.

Tropes exhibited by this character include:

Hayashida Heihachi

Voiced by Junji Inukai (JP), Greg Ayres (EN)

Heihachi is a genial samurai who wishes to avoid fighting as much as possible and prefers to eat rice instead. During the Great War, he took a position as a combat engineer, which kept him off the front lines but also used his mechanical skills. He is discovered chopping wood in exchange for food or devices that interest him. He is most helpful within the group as their mechanic, and orchestrates the construction of medieval-type weapons. However, he harbors a deep hatred for traitors as he was one himself, which resulted in his whole unit being killed. Within the series, he talks about the old tradition of the "seven rice kami" inside every grain of rice. He is the third samurai.

Tropes exhibited by this character include:

Kyuzo

Voiced by Shinichiro Miki (JP), Sonny Strait (EN)

Kyuzo is originally a nearly silent, mysterious bodyguard for Ayamaro. In that role, he fights with Kanbei, and he later joins the group with the stated intent of saving Kanbei's life so that he can later fight Kanbei to the death. Kyuzo is an incredibly skilled fighter, wielding double blades that fit into one sheath on his back. He is the sixth samurai.

Tropes exhibited by this character include:

Kirara Mikumari

Voiced by Fumiko Orikasa (JP), Colleen Clinkenbeard (EN)

Kirara is a Mikumari (water maiden, a village priestess) of Kanna. She decides to go find the samurais to be brought back to her village, while admitting that she also wanted to see the outside world. She possesses a dowsing crystal on a necklace which allows her to detect the flow of groundwater and to read others' hearts. She rejects Katsushiro's love, and later is shown to have fallen for Kanbei instead, who rejected her for his own reasons.

Tropes exhibited by this character include:
  • First Guy Wins : Averted
  • Miko : Of the water priestess variety.
  • Neutral Female : Says as much herself after having Katsushiro mill a bandit for her. She is also told as much by Kanbei though he is speaking more of the farmers in general.

Komachi Mikumari

|Voiced by Chiwa Saito (JP), Luci Christian (EN)

Komachi is Kirara's little sister, who follows along with her and Rikichi to see the city as well as help locate the samurai. She likes the boisterous Kikuchiyo and asks him to marry her when she grows up. Komachi is seen with her sister's dowsing necklace hinting that she inherited her position as the Mikumari of her village.

Tropes exhibited by this character include:

Rikichi

Voiced by Tadahisa Saizen (JP), J Michael Tatum (EN)

Rikichi is a peasant of Kanna, who travels with Kirara to locate the samurai. He can be often rash because of his hatred for the bandits. He blames himself for the loss of his wife, Sanae, who has given herself up to the bandits to save the village. Kanbei promises to rescue Sanae, and Rikichi is eventually reunited with her.

Tropes exhibited by this character include:
  • Took a Level in Badass : Starts out as a sniveling farmer unable even to protect his rice from a street theif by the end he is a skilled fighter though not as good as the samurai of course.

Masamune

Voiced by Tomomichi Nishimura (JP), Brice Armstrong (EN)

Masamune is Kikuchiyo's mechanic and veteran of the Great War. As the series progresses, he befriends Kambei and the other samurai while they stayed in Kogakyo. He was the one who helped them escape Kogakyo in episode 6 of the show. (Although he was tied up by Kambei and "roughened up" by Kikuchiyo as a ploy to trick the attendants into believing that Masamune was taken hostage rather than willingly aiding the samurai)

Ukyo

Voiced by Takehito Koyasu (JP), Anthony Bowling (EN)

Ukyo is the adopted heir to Ayamaro. His shielded and pampered lifestyle leaves him with a self-centered yet playful attitude on life, which is really a cover for a rather calculating, manipulative and cruel personality. He is later revealed to be the 49th clone of the Emperor and after surviving a three-day ordeal of constant questioning, Ukyo is proclaimed heir to the throne. He then murders the emperor to succeed him and launches a plan to pit the villagers, samurai and bandits against one another to consolidate his control.

Tropes exhibited by this character include:

Tessai

Voiced by Michihiro Ikemizu (JP), Robert McCollum (EN)

Tessai is a samurai employed by Ukyo as a body guard. Throughout most of the series, he plays the role of the frustrated sycophant to Ukyo; enduring near constant verbal abuse. However, he is eventually revealed to be a competent warrior, who's martial skills may even be greater than the heroes. His subservience to Ukyo comes from a sense of personal honor in loyalty to his retainer, however undeserving that retainer might be.

Tropes exhibited by this character include:

Ayamaro

Voiced by Seiji Sasaki (JP), Barry Yandell (EN)

Ayamaro is the Magistrate to Kogakyo and adopted father of Ukyo. He raised Ukyo and taught him in the ways of commerce. But, when his samurai hunt for the murderer of the Imperial Envoy turn up unsuccessful, he is stripped of his title which is given to Ukyo. Ayamaro was seen in the last episode, living among the Shikimoribito (Guardians).


Back to Samurai 7
  1. ↑ the hero from a tradional Japanese fairly tale and the nickname Shichiroji's fiance gave him
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