The Magnificent Seven Samurai: Difference between revisions
→Video Games
m (cleanup categories) |
Jade Shauni (talk | contribs) |
||
| (11 intermediate revisions by 5 users not shown) | |||
Line 1:
{{trope}}
[[File:
{{quote|'''Chris''': There's a job for six men, watching over a village, south of the border.
▲{{quote|'''Chris''': There's a job for six men, watching over a village, south of the border.<br />
▲'''O'Reilly''': How big's the opposition?<br />
▲'''Chris''': Thirty guns.<br />
'''O'Reilly''': I admire your notion of fair odds, mister.|''[[The Magnificent Seven]]''}}
So you're one of a group of farmers whose village is [[Rape, Pillage and Burn|under attack]] by a gang of remorseless bandits. None of you know how to fight, so you leave to hire a group of warriors who are willing to defend you for the pittance you can pay, plus meals. So you come back with seven guys and... hey, Wait a minute, haven't we seen this somewhere before?
No, you haven't been reading
Because ''[[The Seven Samurai]]'' contains many plot elements which are not exclusive to Japanese culture, it's easy to shift the basic narrative around and still get a workable movie angle. In fact, it's such a classically popular example of a narrative that many filmmakers don't even bother being subtle in the process of [[Homage]]- there's a lot more movies out there [[Cast Calculus|with exactly seven heroes]] doing this kind of plot than you'd expect.
Line 16 ⟶ 15:
The trope title and [[Trope Namer|namers]] are ''[[Seven Samurai]]'' (''Shichinin no samurai'') and ''[[The Magnificent Seven]]'', the latter of which is famous for both transferring the Kurosawa classic to the Old West (with Kurosawa's blessing) and being a classic in its own right. (A trivial note: ''[[Seven Samurai]]'' was originally released in the USA as ''The Magnificent Seven''; the English title was changed to a direct translation of the Japanese title later to avoid confusion with the remake.)
[[File:
The plot is [[Strictly Formula|pretty predictable]], but [[Tropes Are Not Bad|always fun]].
:* [[Plucky Comic Relief|The Funny Guy]]
:** At least one will die [[Heroic Sacrifice|Heroically]]
See also [[Training the Peaceful Villagers]].
{{examples}}
== Anime and Manga ==
Line 54 ⟶ 53:
* Inverted in ''[[GaoGaiGar]]'', in the second half of the series the seven most powerful villains show up to challenge the heroes. The fan translation of the series even refers to them as the "Magnificent 7 Machine World Primevals".
* ''[[Kinnikuman]]'', the Planet Rakka mini-arc. The child-like Choujin Beansman comes to Earth to recruit Choujin to help save his people from the Space Samurai, and teams up with Terryman, Ramenman, Brocken Jr., Puyo Puyo, and Crystalman, with Kin forcing himself into the group. Together, they are the Magnificent Choujin 6!
{{quote|
* In ''[[Naruto]]'' the first major arc, the Land of Waves, quickly turns into this plot. Team 7 is hired to act as bodyguards for a cantakerous old man named Tazuna but instead of protecting him from ordinary bandits on the journey home, they discover he has been marked for death by Gatou, a [[Corrupt Corporate Executive|shipping magnate and crime lord]], who has taken over his impoverished country and wants to stop Tazuna from building a bridge to the mainland and thus break his economic tyranny, and has hired dangerous ninja assassin [[Dragon-in-Chief|Momochi Zabuza]] and his gang of missing-nin to take him out. It ends with the people of Tazuna's village being inspired to make a stand against Gatou's army of hoodlums.
Line 70 ⟶ 69:
== Film ==
* The [[Trope Namer
* ''[[Battle Beyond the Stars]]'' is ''[[The Magnificent Seven]]'' [[In Space]]. In fact Robert Vaughn played essentially the same character that he did in ''[[The Magnificent Seven]]''
* ''The Seven Magnificent Gladiators''
* ''Seven Swords''
Line 85 ⟶ 84:
* ''[[The 13th Warrior]]'', but with Vikings...
* ''[[Star Trek: Insurrection]]''
* George Clooney and the Weinstien company are remaking the film yet again, but with mercenaries in present day Thailand.
* ''[[World Gone Wild]]'', starring Bruce Dern, Michael Pare, and Adam Ant, is ''[[Seven Samurai]]'' but without the fantastic script, amazing direction, or brilliant acting, set in a post-apocalyptic wasteland where water is the most precious commodity on earth.
Line 100 ⟶ 99:
== Live Action TV ==
* ''[[Blake's
* ''[[The Seven Swordsmen]]'' TV series
* The ''[[Battlestar Galactica]]'' episode "The Magnificent Warriors"
Line 110 ⟶ 109:
* Obviously, ''[[The Magnificent Seven (TV series)|The Magnificent Seven]]''.
* ''[[Kung Fu]]: The Legend Continues'' had an episode called "Dragonswing", where Caine and Peter assemble a team of Shao Lin alumni to help a friend rescue his girlfriend from the thugs who've taken over his Northwestern town. Robert Vaughn guest-starred as Rykker, a mercenary [[Actor Allusion|very similar]] to his ''Magnificent Seven'' character.
* The ''[[Merlin (TV series)|Merlin]]'' episode "The Moment of Truth".
* The ''[[Robin of Sherwood]]'' episode "The Swords of Wayland" - at least at first. The plot soon took the outlaws away from the village and in search of the stolen [[McGuffin]].
Line 118 ⟶ 117:
* An old 1991 article from ''Roleplayer'', the long-defunct [[GURPS]] newsletter, [http://www.sjgames.com/gurps/Roleplayer/Roleplayer23/SevenHeros.html covered this trope] and its applications to the [[Tabletop RPG]].
* "A Fistful of Dwarfs", an article in the short-lived gaming magazine ''Visions'' detailing a "spaghetti Western" area of the [[Discworld]], included this scenario. This being Discworld, of course, the villagers have a cast-iron contract for the warriors to sign, which specifies that warriors who die don't get paid and exempts the villagers themselves from the nastier bits of the movie.
* The Fifth Edition ''[[Warhammer Fantasy Battle]]'' rulebook included suggestions for a 'Seven Knights' scenario, in which one player took seven [[Hero Unit
** In that edition of the game this amounted to a ''ridiculously'' easy win for the heroes unless the other player got lucky with the artillery.
** The Scenario was revived in Sixth Edition in a much harder version TWICE. Once for the [[The War to End All Wars|Storm of Chaos]] called Seven Sigmarites which is so unbalanced against the seven (due in great part to the relative weakness of the Empire army book's heroes at the time since the Empire was mainly a gunline army) your goal isnt to win, [[Do Not Go Gentle|just to kill enough of the oncoming horde]]. The second scenario features a group of [[Aguirre, the Wrath of God|European knights lost deep in the jungle raiding native tombs who are systematically attacked and slain by native defenders]] for the Lustria setting. It's slightly easier do to the plethora of random stuff available to the heroes (they have been grave robbing) and due to the Rules for Lustria making single characters in a jungle much harder to find and kill.
Line 133 ⟶ 132:
*** Also, Knights of the Old Republic 2 wasn't made by Bioware.
** Correction: Three (or four in ''[[Dragon Age]]'') save the galaxy/world, the rest patiently slack in the base.
*** There are some all-out NPC battles in Dragon Age, and the NPC character types still (partially) fit. Alistair is, arguably, [[The Hero]] who makes the [[Heroic Sacrifice]] {{spoiler|either by giving his life to kill the archedemon, or giving up his freedom to become king}}, The Lancer is [[Token Evil Teammate]] Morrigan, Sten is [[The Stoic]] and thus, also, [[The Quiet One]] who is also a [[Jerk with a Heart of Gold]], Zevran is the (semi) [[Reluctant Warrior]] and [[Lovable Traitor]] who joins you after you defeat his band of assasin [[Tricksters]], Wynne is [[The Obi-Wan]], Leliana is [[Naive Newcomer]] {{spoiler|so she says}} who likes to [[Pet the Dog]], and Oghren is the [[Boisterous Bruiser]] [[Comic Relief]]. Shale shares the [[Deadpan Snarker]] with Morrigan, [[The Big Guy]] with Sten, and proves to be a very sardonic [[Comic Relief]] alternative to Oghren.
** Bioware likes this trope so much that they built the party members of ''[[
*** If you see Tali and Liara as both being Smart Guys in different fields, then Garrus could be the Young Guy. Shepard becomes his mentor, after all, and his character development reflects what he picks up from your own behavior as a Paragon or Renegade.
*** The bulk of ''[[Mass Effect 2]]'' is basically assembling an entire 10-person team (12 with the [[Downloadable Content|DLC]]) ''Magnificent Seven''-style, with the added wrinkle of getting said team loyal to you and upgrading your ship and weapons before the main mission of going through the Omega-4 Relay. Though it ''is'' possible for people to die during the Suicide Mission, your primary goal is to take out the Collector base and bring everyone back alive.
* ''[[Halo
*** Carter - [[The Hero]]
*** Noble Six - [[The Lancer]]/[[The Sixth Ranger]]
Line 145 ⟶ 144:
*** Jun - [[Friendly Sniper]]
*** Auntie Dot - [[Smart Guy]]
* ''[[Metal Gear
* [[The Western]] chapter in ''[[Live a Live]]'' has a few elements of this.
* ''[[Throne of Darkness]]'' was inspired by the concept.
* The Greil Mercenaries of the ''[[Fire Emblem Tellius]]'' duology; it numbered seven members at least initially.
▲== Webcomics ==
* During the "That Which Redeems" [[Story Arc]] from ''[[Sluggy Freelance]]'', Torg tries to set one of these up after the Dimension of Lame summons/kidnaps him into protecting them from [[Demonic Invaders]]. Unfortunately, all the people he recruits ''come from'' the Dimension of Lame and ... well, [[Exactly What It Says on the Tin|it's called that for a reason]].
* ''[[No Need for Bushido]]'' does this and specifically points out that they have seven samurai (if you count [[Those Two Guys]])
== Western Animation ==
* ''[[
▲* ''[[Re Boot]]'' uses this in the post-[[Time Skip]] episode "Icons". Matrix and Andraia find themselves in a rundown computer system and have to [[Training the Peaceful Villagers|teach the inhabitants to win games]] to ensure the system's survival. When Matrix finds that the [[Tagalong Kid]] has brought their makeshift team to seven, he utters a sarcastic "[[Lampshade Hanging|magnificent]]".
* ''[[Wakfu]]'s'' fifth episode does exactly this, down to the title ("''The Magnificent Five''"). Though, to be honest, it actually is more of a parody of this trope, subverting most plot points common to other examples (the ending, for one).
* ''[[Star Wars: The Clone Wars]]'' has the episode "Bounty Hunters". It even mentions Kurosawa in the opening.
* ''[[Justice League: Crisis
* ''[[Adventures of the Galaxy Rangers]]'' had a very deliberate [[Shout-Out]] to this in the form of "The Magnificent Kiwi." When you're dealing with a [[Space Western]], this plot's going to show up.
** Also, according to [[Word of God|series creator Robert Mandell]], this trope was also the inspiration for the series' entire premise, in the form of Waldo and Zozo contacting Earth to help them defeat [[God Save Us From the Queen|the Queen of the Crown]] and her [[Evil Empire]].
* ''[[Kappa Mikey]]'' has an episode where the five crew members are called by a little boy to save their playground from a garbage man intent on turning it into a landfill. The boy is under the impression that they are heroes instead of actors, and the LilyMu crew is under the impression that it's all a publicity gig!
* ''[[A Bug's
{{reflist}}
Line 173 ⟶ 169:
[[Category:Older Than Feudalism]]
[[Category:Plots]]
[[Category:The Magnificent Seven Samurai]]▼
[[Category:Whole-Plot Reference]]
[[Category:{{PAGENAME}}]]
| |||