Segata Sanshiro

Sanshiro Segata (せがた三四郎 "Segata Sanshirō") is a fictional character created by Sega to advertise the Sega Saturn in Japan between 1997 and 1998. He is a parody of Sugata Sanshirō, [ [http://www.retrojunk.com/details_articles/342/ SEGATA SANSHIRO! Article ] ] a legendary judo fighter from an Akira Kurosawa film, Sanshiro Sugata.

Sanshiro is a "dan" holder for multiple Japanese martial arts (Karate and Iaido first "dan", Judo third "dan", Batodo fourth "dan", toudou 7th "dan" etc..). He is portrayed by actor Hiroshi Fujioka, who, until that point, was best known for playing the hero Takeshi Hongo in the influential tokusatsu superhero series "Kamen Rider".

Background

Sanshiro is a Judo master that tracks down and punishes those who do not play the Sega Saturn. His name sounds similar to phrase "Sega Saturn shiro!" meaning roughly "Do (Shiro) Sega Saturn!" (You must play Sega Saturn!) as well as "Sega Saturn White(Shiro)!", a reference to the new white color version of the Japanese Sega Saturn which followed the original gray version.

Sanshiro lives as a hermit high on a mountain, devoting his life to intensive Sega Saturn training. He trains physically every day by carrying around a giant Sega Saturn on his back and punching buttons on its giant controller, as well as mentally by breaking piles of bricks with his head. His intense training has resulted in his ability to make people explode twice by throwing them, which he does with ease. He also frequently visits the city to seek out people who are not playing the Sega Saturn, and harshly teaches them a lesson. Sanshiro is a serious man with a firm sense of duty, who believes that playing video games is one of the most treasured activities in life.

The character became very well known in Japan, and helped make the Saturn successful in that country. When the CD music single was released, it sold more than 100,000 copies.

When the Saturn was phased out and the Sega Dreamcast released, Sanshiro's end comes in the form of a commercial involving a missile directed at the Tokyo headquarters of SEGA. Sanshiro heroically jumps off the roof of the building, onto the missile, deflecting it into the atmosphere while riding it, in which he lives his last few moments chanting out "Sega Saturn Shiro!!" for one last time, and is killed in the subsequent explosion. The voiceover narrates that "Segata Sanshiro will live on in your hearts," followed by a display of the game "Segata Sanshirō Shinken Yūgi", a Sega Saturn game in which Sanshiro plays a major role.

Appearances

Segata Sanshiro was present at Dreamcast's Japan Launch.

On May 29 2008, Segata Sanshiro appeared to promote Sega's light gun game "Rambo", based on the recent movie. [ [http://www.seganerds.com/2008/05/29/segata-sanshiro-promotes-rambo-arcade-game/ Segata Sanshiro promotes Rambo arcade game ] ]

Virtual appearances

Sanshiro is referenced in the Japanese version of "Virtua Fighter 4", in which one of the AI profiles for Akira Yuki is named Segata. This same profile name appears in the US version of Virtua Fighter 4 Evolution.

Segata Sanshiro also has a cameo appearance in "Rent-a-Hero No. 1", a Japanese game released on both the Dreamcast and Xbox.

References