Miðgarðsorm

From left to right: - Previous game - ① Sliced-like scar - ② Like the previous game, less grotesque - ③ Claw scars (done by herself? Balrog?) - ③ * *same as the upper one, just with the eye closed.

Ryoredcyclone pointed out a 2019 admission by AKIMAN, who revealed that Chun-Li's final words in her SF2 ending 「ふつうのおんなのこになーろうっと」Futsū no onna no ko ni narō tto "I want to become an ordinary girl" were pulled straight from the final declaration of the Candies, an enormously popular idol trio in the Seventies who quit the music business abruptly at the height of their fame with the phrase 「普通の女の子に戻りたい」 Futsū no onna no ko ni modoritai "We want to return to being ordinary girls".

As @BornWinneralready linked Ryoredcyclone's Twitter post detailing that, 勝負あり Shōbu ari (far right, Honda's left shoulder): "victory" in Classical Japanese (literally, "the match is set"). The same writing was flashed in the background of Honda's SF2 stage. 日本一 Nippon ichi (or Nihon ichi; second right, Honda's back), "Best in Japan". Incidentally, it's the same catchphrase Mai Shiranui says during her winpose since Fatal Fury 2. 大一番 Ōichiban (second left, Honda's right shoulder), "The great first". The decisive match in sumō to determine the championship. 満員御礼 Man'in onrei (far left, Honda's left side), "Thanks for the full house". Banners with this writing are shown at sumō tournaments when the house is indeed full. 大入 Ōiri (Honda's shirt), "large attendance". The same writing was shown on the red lantern in the background of Honda's SF2 stage. Of course I remember, having already written about it at the time. It was Ippei Kuri's manga Kurenai Sanshirō (1968), aka Judo Boy in France, Italy and Spain and O Judoca in Brazil. It was adapted into an anime series in 1969, with many details changed. The original story was the first ever in Japan to depict a muay thai villain, who killed Sanshirō's father but lost an eye in the process (two years before Kajiwara started to use so many muay thai villains in his manga who cemented the image). So Sanshirō is searching for his dad's killer but only has the clue that the killer is one-eyed. Every episode he encountered an one-eyed villain who bothered someone somewhere, but it was never his foe. Yes, the father who took the eye of his muay thai-user killer before dying is a detail Capcom recycled for DAN. Every episode, Sanshirō ALWAYS jumped into action by grabbing his kimono and wearing it in the air, so we know that Ryu should've referenced that in SF2. You also can see Abel's tornado throw in the opening. In the original manga, the villain already used the rolling heel kick who then Kajiwara copied in his Kurenai no chōsensha five years later. Incidentally, Ippei Kuri then became TATSUNOKO's third president. He died this July at 83.

Kent Masterst canont.

That's purely coincidental because Utena herself largely took from Oscar to begin with. Even the pink hair can be traced back to Yawara!'s Belgian jūdōka/supermodel Belkens, who in turn was based upon the real Belgian champion Ingrid Berghmans, one of the most decorated women in jūdō in the Eighties. Berghmans was a sensation in Japan because she was 180 cm (5'9'') and a frequent subject in magazines' covers, so it's not so difficult to imagine why Urasawa decided to have a jūdōka who was ALSO a supermodel in his manga.

If Zangief's is NOT his Wreck-it Ralph librarian suit style I'll riot. Alone.

Alternate costume for Luke ("navy version", LOL). Well, if there was EVER any doubt about what his primary source of inspiration was... They even directly referenced Popeye ROTFL. I WANT that costume. Source.

Never, lol. Interestingly, it's Honda's report about his and Blanka's encounter with ORO. "The locals called him Oro ("gold"). They said that once, if you entered the forest, he often came to snatch your food and your wine, but his last sighting around the village we were staying in was some 15 years before, and he had not been seen since. During our fifth day in the jungle, my companion Jimmy was more lively than his usual, and at one point looked like he had found something and suddenly took a fighting stance staring at the river. That instant, the water's surface exploded and out of it emerged an enormous fish, about 3 metres long, and under it a shining golden-coloured man who held up the fish with a single arm; he fled as if the water didn't offer any physical resistance. The next day, when we talked about what we had seen the day before in another village much deeper in the forest, we understood we had met the fabled Amazonian hermit named Oro. I thought I'd like to fight him once. Jimmy, however, didn't remember anything except the fish, which, according to him, was a delicious pirarucu¹." ¹ Pirarucu, or Arapaima (Arapaima gigas) is the giant fish appearing in Blanka's stage since SF2.

Looks like Capcom finally gave a proper name to Retsu's jumping kick. 破戒蹴り Hakaigeri, "Precept breaking kick". That's both a wordplay (usually hakai, when written as 破壊 hakai, means "destruction") and a good reference to Retsu's nature as a "depraved" monk¹ . In Japanese Buddhist doctrine, 破戒 hakai means to consciously break one or more of the precepts. It's a word reserved for the clergy, in this case a Buddhist monk, but it also can be applied to other religions, and in a more broad sense can also mean the breaking of any vow. Tōson Shimazaki's 1906 novel The Broken Commandment's original title was indeed 破戒 Hakai, and here the protagonist breaks the promise made to his late father. Anyway, we don't know what precept(s?) did Retsu violate: his CRI profile just said he was excommunicated for being "turbulent and frequently engaging in private fights", but the list of vows for a Buddhist monk is LONG. If we simply go for the Five Precepts, we know that he likes to drink, as indeed in his Side Story Miharu chastises him because he's drinking sake in the afternoon on a sacred ground where it's already prohibited (lol)... ¹ Capcom repeatedly called Retsu 破戒僧 hakaisō, "depraved monk" (literally, "a monk who breaks the precepts"), even in his recent Side Story, とある破戒僧の旅 To aru hakaisō no tabi, "The journey of a certain depraved monk".

Hello, @biachunli! Yes, they ARE actually saved in archive.org, just a bit harder to find than usual... Here you go. There are Side Stories about the newcomers of SFIV. C. Viper "Her Names"; Abel "Before father's grave"; Rufus "Looking for the blonde"; El Fuerte "The super dynamic cook!"; Lauren (Viper's daughter) "Her Family"; Rufus & Candy "Rufus's treat". I don't have the time to translate these atm, but I know you can do so yourself.

Of course it hasn't, it's BASED ON A WORDPLAY. 武神 Takegami (god of martial arts) can also be read as Bushin. Bushin ryū. They basically used 隆 Ryū (his name) instead of 流 ryū "style"... It wouldn't. Gobalsky wasn't a link to HnK's Gōda; rather, it was to Sakigake! Otokojuku's シベリアのゴバルスキー Shiberia no Gobaruskī, "Gobalsky from Siberia". He fought with his wolves and was a cowardly villain who then reformed after his defeat and became a comic relief when he enrolled in the Otokojuku. Gobalsky himself was a parody of the boss/father of the Kiba clan in HnK, who could turn his body into steel. Gōda could have influenced Zangief, but definitely not with his name. Well, it's more complicated than that. Cerdo in Spanish means "dirty", "slob", "pig". Its feminine form cerda also means... yeah, "slut". Imagine a good Vulcano Rosso la Troia. Doesn't sound so good anymore, doesn't it? 🤣

It's defensive because you're attacking him, which... somehow should in itself prove you're right? Please explain that reasoning, since I don't follow it at all.

Capcom and the attention to details. Remember when on his character profile Capcom stated that Carlos is no longer using his "Wheel throw" (orig. 車輪投げ Sharin nage, "wheel throw", aka the classic Tomoe Nage from Jūdō) because doing it gave him backaches? Well, he's still doing it, just more on his right side... So the scabbard with the katana inside on his back doesn't hurt him anymore. 😆

It was probably a deliberate choice to avoid a lengthy explanation. I can understand the reasoning: "the Westerners generally don't know what a kasa hat is, but it has an umbrella shape anyway, so..."

Not... exactly. Kasa has at least five different meanings, all written with different kanjis. The one they used in the original Japanese interview wasn't "umbrella" (傘 kasa) but the 笠 kasa for "HAT". Granted, it's the traditional Japanese hat which resembles an umbrella, but it's not the same thing.

Some interesting notes about A.K.I.' s moves, with few lost in translations details. Sources: English Japanese Serpent Lash is 蛇頭鞭 Jatōben "Snake head lash". But Snakehead (Simplified Chinese 蛇头 shétóu) is also the name of a Chinese criminal organisation involved with human smuggling. Nice sn(e)aky reference to the criminal underworld where F.A.N.G came from and in which still is wallowing. Toxic Blossom is 毒破裂 Dokuharetsu "poison explosion". Nightshade Pulse is 紫煙砲 Shienhō "purple smoke cannon". 紫煙 Shien can also mean "tobacco smoke" or, in Chinese only, "mountain haze" or "auspicious cloud". It certainly is NOT the latter, though... Nightshade Chaser is 紫煙追 Shientsui "purple smoke chase". Orchid Spring is 紫泡泉 Shihōsen "purple foam spring". Cruel Fate is 凶襲突 Kyōshūtotsu "evil assault stab". Snake Step is 蛇軽功 Jakeikō "snake qīnggōng". Qīnggōng (Simplified Chinese 轻功, Traditional 輕功, both different from the Japanese standard but it's the same character) "lightness skill" is the method to train for jumping off vertical surfaces taught in Chinese MA and theater. Basically the double jump and wall running training, and the relative skill. Sinister Slide is 悪鬼蛇行 Akkidakō "evil demon crawling", where "crawling" (蛇行 dakō) is literally "snake walking". Venomous Fang is 猛毒牙 Mōdokuga "deadly poison fang". Heel Strike is 蛇連咬 Jarenkō "snake repeated bites". Entrapment is 雁字搦 Ganjigarame "bound hand and foot", where 雁 gan is the wild goose, 字 ji "character" and 搦 garame is "entwine" (腕搦み udegarami "arm entwining" is the generic name of the bent armlock submission in Jūdō and Jūjutsu which in catch wrestling is known as double wristlock and in MMA and BJJ is known as "Kimura"... because Masahiko Kimura beat Hélio Gracie with an udegarami in 1951). The etymological explanation is that if you bound a person with a rope in the form of a skein of geese, which resembles an alphabet letter (usually they form a V-shape in the sky), that person cannot move anymore. L1 Super Deadly Implication is 死屍累々 Shishiruirui "heaps of corpses everywhere", an expression also used figuratively when something goes very wrong and there are serious consequences for numerous people involved. Here... no, it's used literally lol. L2 Super Tainted Talons is 紫煙裂爪 Shienressō, "purple smoke tearing talons" L3 Claws of Ya Zi is 睚眦 Gaishi, Chinese Yázì. Yázì is the second of the nine sons of the dragon. Except the first one (囚牛 Qiúniú, a full dragon), they're all hybrids of a dragon with another animal and are often used as decorations on various objects, according to their respective inclinations. Yázì has a dhole's head and is the more violent of all the nine sons of the dragon, as he likes to kill and slaughter. Being directly linked to fighting, Yázì is often featured on the crossguards of Chinese swords. Also, because the single characters of his name mean respectively 睚 "glare" and 眦 "corner of the eye", gaishi is also used to mean "death glare", because if he's angry with you you're screwed the moment he glares at you.

Capcom released a rejected Maki concept, SO similar to Linn Kurosawa that I and Ryoredcyclone wondered if Capcom couldn't bring Maki back with some of Linn's moves, like her 双勁破 Sōkeiha "twin power wave" and her 隼落投 Shunrakutō "falcon drop throw". Since they apparently can't freely use Linn anymore, it could be a fantastic way to kill two birds with one stone: you further differentiate Maki from the "standard Bushinryū" - now that Kimberly has "inherited" the style - AND show her evolution as a character, while hinting she could be killing aliens in another universe... kinda like they made Zeku the Striders' founder.

True. But SFIV was still the last game where we saw her playable. Granted, if I want to play a good-looking Elena I have to revert back to SFIII. But then again, she can't kick Honda, Juri or Adon (random examples) there. Let's just hope we'll see her back in SF6 with good animations and a CA which gives her back all of her lifebar in 0.5 seconds just to troll even more, I mean, and a more thoughtful approach to her character. I even thought about a super secret CA, not listed in the moveset, just for that. Imagine a 720 P grab where Elena hugs you like she did with Akuma in her SFIV ending, and which gives her AND HER OPPONENT back all their lifebars. Complete reset. And if nothing changes (no one does anything until the timeout), the match is awarded to her opponent anyway. Because making friends is more important, who cares about fighting. I'd call it Hakuna Matata.

Hey! There's nothing wrong with loving the LAST game where Dudley, Makoto and Elena were playable... 🥲🥲🥲

Just to add: remember the mafia boss BORIS RODČENKO in the Russian stage in SFV? The one who smuggles weapons and works of art? The "real" name of Nicky Petrovich in the movie is Viktor Korolenko, and he makes the character played by Freeman steal two Fabergé eggs from a museum, then manipulates the protagonist (Banderas, an undercover cop) to make him deliver the eggs by kidnapping his girlfriend... who's actually Petrovich/Korolenko's DAUGHTER, so she was in cahoot with the mafia the whole time. Banderas is compromised and can't return to his cop life anymore, so he decides to become a thief (but at least his girlfriend DID actually love him, despite the ruse to frame him). So many elements they reused from this film for JP and Rodčenko...

Ok guys, I've found out one of the VERY likely inspirations for JP. In the 2009 movie Thick as Thieves, there's a Russian mafia boss played by Croatian actor Rade Šerbedžija. He has roughly the same attire and general aspect JP has, complete with beard, fedora and cane. Also, he's named Nicky PETROVICH... But the protagonist (Antonio Banderas) finds out it's a false name. I saw the movie by chance on TV today and was like Oh, and there's ALSO Morgan Freeman in the movie (he plays a thief linked to Petrovich). So the link for Albert Jackson came from here as well... The movie was dubbed and released in Japan in 2010.

And also IS Alexander the Grater's Tornado Toss (eng) / Tornado Slam (jap). Down to Azam's final pose when you land, just with the cool wind effect added. Here at 3'17'': Which, in turn, was based upon a throw from the live action version of Ikki Kajiwara's Jūdō Icchokusen, as we all remember from an old Youtube video that showcased some of the moves. Here at 2'50'': I'm investigating if its name was ハリケーン投げ Harikēn nage, "Hurricane Throw", as it seems the most likely candidate (I own the manga, but the throw was a live-adaptation original), but the only way to confirm my theory would be to circumvent the regional restrictions of the Japanese Amazon Prime via a VPN to actually watch the show. Too busy to do so atm.

It was Zangief's "projectiles analysis" in the SF2 Animated Movie fanbook, although its general tone was not very serious and it showed the characterisation of its time. 18: Zangief's 1: great projectiles analysis 2: Watch the secrets of the projectiles I examined! 3: New move that vanishes projectiles! 4: Vanishing Flat!! 5: Ryu's Hadōken 6: A lump of natural energy. No worries about public damage. 7: About the same of the standard body temperature. 8: Its damage doesn't vanish immediately after hit, but it lasts in your body for a while. 9: Air Slasher 10: A whirlwind which cuts everything. 11: If it hits, you hear music. I swear. 12: Being a wind, the same of atmospheric temperature. 13: Ken's Hadōken I don't know if it's because he trained less than Ryu, but it's smaller than his. 14: Not much power, but it hurts like hell. 15: Neither hot nor cold. 16: The great stupid analysis of professor Zangief! ¹ 17: Can we really trust him?! 19: Kikōken 20: An improved version of the qìgōng² energy used to heal. 21: It did hurt, but it healed my stiff shoulders. 22: About the same temperature of a warm bath. 23: Ryu's Fire Hadōken 24: He adds his own energy to the natural one. 25: If it hits, it feels like boiling water. 26: Not enough to burn your clothes, but hot enough to hurt. 27: Sonic Boom 28: A wave attack produced by both arms going over the speed of sound! 29: Colder than Russian winter. 30: Feels like an impact with a wall. 31: Yoga Fire 32: I don't understand Yoga's secrets. Someone explain them to me! 33: If it hits, it feels like you eat spicy curry. 34: Seems the same temperature of boiling curry. 35: Tiger Shot 36: A materialisation of Sagat's evil heart. 37: If it hits, it leaves like a fierce beast's bite. It's freezing cold, like Sagat's heart.³ Yes, there was more in the same page about the game chronology and Ryu and Ken's friendship, but I didn't have the time and desire to translate it, too long. Anyway, at least there is a source for that claim. How much still reliable is all that regarding the present characterisation is up to debate, though... ¹ Although it was one of the first instances of Zangief being presented as a learned character, it wasn't treated seriously like nowadays. ² Remember that 気功 kikō is just the Japanese reading of the Chinese qìgōng, the same characters. ³ Of course Sagat is not like that anymore. Characterisation marches on!

Kinu Nishimura's drawing for the Capcom/Tezuka collab in Takarazuka. LOL, I'd never thought about Princess Knight's Friebe for this, even though she was one of my favourite characters from Tezuka's works, her minor character status notwithstanding. Obviously she has in common with Mika just the hearts on her breast(plate)s, but still a nice pairing (pun shamelessly intended).