Shingen Yashida
Encyclopedia
, usually called Lord Shingen, was a fictional character
in the Marvel Comics
universe
who was once a foe of Wolverine
. The character was created by Chris Claremont
and Frank Miller
and first appeared in Wolverine (1st series) #1 (September, 1982).
ese Yakuza
crime boss who disgraced his family name by turning his clan
into a criminal empire. He was the father of Wolverine's fiancee, Mariko Yashida
. He had an illegitimate son named Keniuchio Harada who was a mutant
and came to be known as the Silver Samurai
.
To settle a personal debt occurred in his rise to power, Shingen Harada forced Mariko Yashida to marry another criminal boss who beat her nearly to death. When Wolverine found out about this he confronted Shingen. Shingen then had Wolverine poisoned, temporarily greatly weakening him so that he could beat and humiliate the superhuman mutant in a duel with bokken
in front of Mariko.
Shingen used his expert knowledge of human anatomy to secretly attack Wolverine's nerve endings in such a way so as to make the duel life-threatening. However, as Mariko did not know this when Wolverine attempted to use his claws against Shingen to save his own life, it appeared to Mariko that Wolverine was cheating in the duel. Mariko did not know that Wolverine's body had been saturated with enough lethal poison to kill several dozen ordinary men, or that Shingen was the one who was actually cheating in the duel. This had the effect of disgracing Wolverine in front of his lover
, which was the design of Shingen.
Logan was then dumped onto the Tokyo streets and found by Yukio
, Shingen's best assassin who participated in a deception with the ninja clan, The Hand
, to manipulate him into an assassination of a rival crime lord, using Mariko as unwitting bait for additional motivation. After his role was completed, Shingen ordered Logan killed by Yukio who ignored the order, which led to the Hand being sent to enforce his will. In the events resulting from that action, including the death of a personal friend by Yukio, Wolverine realized that she was the one who poisoned him at Shingen's residence and he was being played for a fool at apparently Shingen's orders.
After a philosophic epiphany about his humanity, Logan then completely destroyed the Yashida criminal empire. When Wolverine confronted Shingen a second time, Shingen did not survive, and Mariko revealed she was planning to kill her dishonorable father herself and commit seppuku
in recompense had not Logan preempted her. Afterward Mariko Yashida and Wolverine decided to marry, with the X-Men receiving an invitation from the Emperor of Japan
for the event. However, they did not marry; Mariko was at that time being controlled by the villain Mastermind
, who was conducting a revenge campaign on the X-Men. She succeeded her father in command of the clan.
Character (arts)
A character is the representation of a person in a narrative work of art . Derived from the ancient Greek word kharaktêr , the earliest use in English, in this sense, dates from the Restoration, although it became widely used after its appearance in Tom Jones in 1749. From this, the sense of...
in the Marvel Comics
Marvel Comics
Marvel Worldwide, Inc., commonly referred to as Marvel Comics and formerly Marvel Publishing, Inc. and Marvel Comics Group, is an American company that publishes comic books and related media...
universe
Marvel Universe
The Marvel Universe is the shared fictional universe where most comic book titles and other media published by Marvel Entertainment take place, including those featuring Marvel's most familiar characters, such as Spider-Man, the Hulk, the X-Men, and the Avengers.The Marvel Universe is further...
who was once a foe of Wolverine
Wolverine (comics)
Wolverine is a fictional character, a superhero that appears in comic books published by Marvel Comics. Born as James Howlett and commonly known as Logan, Wolverine is a mutant, possessing animal-keen senses, enhanced physical capabilities, three retracting bone claws on each hand and a healing...
. The character was created by Chris Claremont
Chris Claremont
Chris Claremont is an award-winning American comic book writer and novelist, known for his 17-year stint on Uncanny X-Men, far longer than any other writer, during which he is credited with developing strong female characters, and with introducing complex literary themes into superhero...
and Frank Miller
Frank Miller (comics)
Frank Miller is an American comic book artist, writer and film director best known for his dark, film noir-style comic book stories and graphic novels Ronin, Daredevil: Born Again, Batman: The Dark Knight Returns, Sin City and 300...
and first appeared in Wolverine (1st series) #1 (September, 1982).
Fictional character biography
Shingen was a JapanJapan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
ese Yakuza
Yakuza
, also known as , are members of traditional organized crime syndicates in Japan. The Japanese police, and media by request of the police, call them bōryokudan , literally "violence group", while the yakuza call themselves "ninkyō dantai" , "chivalrous organizations". The yakuza are notoriously...
crime boss who disgraced his family name by turning his clan
Clan
A clan is a group of people united by actual or perceived kinship and descent. Even if lineage details are unknown, clan members may be organized around a founding member or apical ancestor. The kinship-based bonds may be symbolical, whereby the clan shares a "stipulated" common ancestor that is a...
into a criminal empire. He was the father of Wolverine's fiancee, Mariko Yashida
Mariko Yashida
is a fictional character that appears in comic books published by Marvel Comics. Created by Chris Claremont and John Byrne, the character first appeared in Uncanny X-Men #118 .-Fictional character biography:...
. He had an illegitimate son named Keniuchio Harada who was a mutant
Mutant (Marvel Comics)
In comic books published by Marvel Comics, a mutant is an organism who possesses a genetic trait called an X-gene that allows the mutant to naturally develop superhuman powers and abilities...
and came to be known as the Silver Samurai
Silver Samurai
The Silver Samurai is a fictional character in Marvel Comics' universe, occasionally a superhero and more often a supervillain. His first appearance was in Daredevil #111...
.
To settle a personal debt occurred in his rise to power, Shingen Harada forced Mariko Yashida to marry another criminal boss who beat her nearly to death. When Wolverine found out about this he confronted Shingen. Shingen then had Wolverine poisoned, temporarily greatly weakening him so that he could beat and humiliate the superhuman mutant in a duel with bokken
Bokken
A bokken , "wood", and ken, "sword") , is a Japanese wooden sword used for training. It is usually the size and shape of a katana, but is sometimes shaped like other swords, such as the wakizashi and tantō...
in front of Mariko.
Shingen used his expert knowledge of human anatomy to secretly attack Wolverine's nerve endings in such a way so as to make the duel life-threatening. However, as Mariko did not know this when Wolverine attempted to use his claws against Shingen to save his own life, it appeared to Mariko that Wolverine was cheating in the duel. Mariko did not know that Wolverine's body had been saturated with enough lethal poison to kill several dozen ordinary men, or that Shingen was the one who was actually cheating in the duel. This had the effect of disgracing Wolverine in front of his lover
Intimate relationship
An intimate relationship is a particularly close interpersonal relationship that involves physical or emotional intimacy. Physical intimacy is characterized by romantic or passionate love and attachment, or sexual activity. The term is also sometimes used euphemistically for a sexual...
, which was the design of Shingen.
Logan was then dumped onto the Tokyo streets and found by Yukio
Yukio (comics)
Yukio is a fictional character in the Marvel Universe. She is a female ninja of Japanese origin and is a supporting character of the X-Men. She first appeared in Wolverine #2 and was created by Chris Claremont and Frank Miller...
, Shingen's best assassin who participated in a deception with the ninja clan, The Hand
Hand (comics)
The Hand is a fictional supervillainous organization in the Marvel Comics universe.The Hand is an order of evil mystical ninja who are heavily involved in organized crime and mercenary activities such as assassination plots. The Hand covets power above all other objectives. They are primarily based...
, to manipulate him into an assassination of a rival crime lord, using Mariko as unwitting bait for additional motivation. After his role was completed, Shingen ordered Logan killed by Yukio who ignored the order, which led to the Hand being sent to enforce his will. In the events resulting from that action, including the death of a personal friend by Yukio, Wolverine realized that she was the one who poisoned him at Shingen's residence and he was being played for a fool at apparently Shingen's orders.
After a philosophic epiphany about his humanity, Logan then completely destroyed the Yashida criminal empire. When Wolverine confronted Shingen a second time, Shingen did not survive, and Mariko revealed she was planning to kill her dishonorable father herself and commit seppuku
Seppuku
is a form of Japanese ritual suicide by disembowelment. Seppuku was originally reserved only for samurai. Part of the samurai bushido honor code, seppuku was either used voluntarily by samurai to die with honor rather than fall into the hands of their enemies , or as a form of capital punishment...
in recompense had not Logan preempted her. Afterward Mariko Yashida and Wolverine decided to marry, with the X-Men receiving an invitation from the Emperor of Japan
Emperor of Japan
The Emperor of Japan is, according to the 1947 Constitution of Japan, "the symbol of the state and of the unity of the people." He is a ceremonial figurehead under a form of constitutional monarchy and is head of the Japanese Imperial Family with functions as head of state. He is also the highest...
for the event. However, they did not marry; Mariko was at that time being controlled by the villain Mastermind
Mastermind (Jason Wyngarde)
Mastermind is a Marvel Comics supervillain, an adversary of the X-Men. Created by writer Stan Lee and artist/co-writer Jack Kirby, he first appeared in X-Men #4 . He was given his "real name", Jason Wyngarde, by Chris Claremont and John Byrne.The original Mastermind was a mutant with the power to...
, who was conducting a revenge campaign on the X-Men. She succeeded her father in command of the clan.
Powers and abilities
Shingen Yashida had no superhuman abilities but was in peak physical condition despite his age and was one of the finest swordsmen and martial artists in all of Japan. Highly intelligent, Shingen had extensive knowledge of human anatomy, pressure points, and also great knowledge of poisons and assassination techniques. He was highly skilled in the management of criminal organizations and very well connected in the international criminal underworld, particularly in areas of drug traffic.Television
- Shingen Yashida appears in Marvel Anime: WolverineMarvel AnimeMarvel Anime is a four-part anime project with collaborations from both Marvel Entertainment and Madhouse. The project took famous Marvel characters and reintroduced them for a Japanese audience in a 12-part series. The announcement was confirmed at the 2009 San Diego Comic-Con...
voiced by Hidekatsu ShibataHidekatsu Shibatais a Japanese voice actor from Asakusa, Tokyo who is affiliated with Aoni Production. He was a classmate of Yasuo Fukuda at Azabu High School. He is married to voice actress Akiko Sekine....
in the Japanese version and by Fred TatascioreFred TatascioreFrederick "Fred" Tatasciore is an American voice actor who portrays secondary characters as well as monstrous-looking types...
in the English dub. In the series, Shingen is leader of the Kuzuryū syndicate. In the final battle, Shingen takes on Wolverine while wearing a special armor. Despite wounding Yukio, Shingen is killed by Wolverine and Yukio.
External links
- Shingen Yashida at Marvel Appendix