I really liked Sword-Father. It’s rarely that I see a character that can live up to Uncle Iroh’s legacy of the old and wise surrogate father figure. They’re both teaching valuable lessons a damaged and angry young warrior who isn’t quite ready to listen to these lessons. And we the audience end up learning a lot by default. Love them both!
I think you're right. He definitely intentionally almost stepped of that cliff to prove a point. I love words of wisdom, and how he teaches them with questions and actions. My favorite quote from him is "...an impurity in the right place is a quality." It really sums up the core of Mizu's character.
I'm curious, how alone sword father must feel himself. He's an amazing sword maker who didn't just master his craft but knows so much about life and people. He's not unaware of his own shortcomings either. So when Mizu misses the mark and doesn't understand what she's doing, there's nothing sword father can do other than let her go and make her own choices. As with all mentors, we can't force someone to understand. Painful in a way.
Tbh I don't think the character would feel very lonely. He is portrayed as an extreme introvert who found his passion and purpose. And it doesnt revolve around other people. He interacts with people only to make better swords. He said it himself what matter to him: He made his best swords when he had an apprentice. AND it was annoying for him to have someone around. The dude is the embodiment of introvertism. I doubt lonelyness is an issue for him.
@@firestorm165 ofc they do, but not as easily as an extroverted personality gets lonely. Obviously a real human being wouldnt be fulfilled only doing one thing like smithing swords their whole life. But there are plenty of dudes who are most happy when they do the thing they love and arent bothered by anything else. Including human interaction.
Remember, in Shinto everything is considered to have a soul. A hunk of metal has a soul, a fire has a soul, even tea has a soul. A smith talking about what metal wants isn't unlike a priest in that specific context.
@@VillagerCometh I am magic I guess. No, smart phones and computers read out everything on your screen. So that is how I can read your lovely inquiry and type or speak out my reply.
I've always thought that Sword Father is like a more serious version of Uncle Iroh from ATLA. He has a very similar relationship with Mizu that Iroh had with Zuko when he was trying to get him to stop trying to please his father and live for himself for a change 😊 loves and accepts you as you are and tries to make you see the better part of who you can be.
As real as Iroh was, the real pain he carries, he lives as a hearty jovial person (perhaps more heroic because sadness is more natural for a man who lost everything) and seeking to help his nephew rather than turning inward and fleeing society to live alone. There definitely is a parallel, but Sword father is the quiet master, Iroh was the happy friend for most of the story.
You’re absolutely right Georgia. I understood it that Sword Father did that little fall on purpose to remind Mizu that her knee-jerk reaction *is* to care, and therefore she is more than the monster she has been convinced that she is- both by society, and herself, as a defense mechanism. And she must be more, or else her art will suffer.
I also think it was on purpose. Not just to point out we all make mistakes, but also to remind her that at her core is kindness, not a monster. She calls herself a demon and he forces her to reconsider because her instant reaction is to save an old blind man. 😭💖
When my wife and I became parents we began to use the line from in flight safety "put on your own oxygen mask first." and swordfather's "mind our own soul" is very similar. You cannot help anyone if you aren't in a safe place yourself, and you may cause more harm than good.
Fun fact: the voice actor for the swordsmith is none other than Cary Hiroyuki-Tagawa! It's Shang Tsung himself! When I heard his voice I assumed he would be a sinister, snake-in-the-grass kind of character, especially when he tries to kick Mizu out on the first day, but no, he pulled it off perfectly!
“…then the demon takes two chairs.” That line hit me like a brick in so many ways. That episode, Nothing Unbroken, is the pinnacle of the show. Mizu’s process of bringing her whole self to make the sword is the most moving bit of storytelling I’ve witnessed in many years.
Swordfather has my favorite scenes in the entire show but he's also just so well written and acted. His calm wisdom and understanding. Everyone else judges Mizu by her appearance calling her a demon or a half breed but Swordfather doesn't. Even when Mizu tells him why everyone hates her. He turns her insecurities into a lesson on why what she and everyone else sees as a flaw, is really a strength and he's right. Because she's had to live her entire life with others treating her a certain way she's stronger because it. Her flaw has created strength. It's really cleaver writing that isn't super in your face 100% time holding your hand and explaining all the "subtle" messages to you like your a child. This show brings up the idea and let's you notice all the tiny details for yourself.
I do love that quote: An artist gives all they have to the art, the whole. Your strengths and deficiencies. Your loves and shames. If you do not invite the whole, the demon takes 2 chairs and your art will suffer."
Great video, and I love Eiji as a character, and all the interactions he has with Mizu! @2:59 I think Master Eiji says he "knows [Mizu] is ugly" because Eiji scrutinizes all the customers who come to buy his swords and must have noticed some of their reactions to Mizu, even without seeing Mizu's face himself. I think he knows how OTHER people see/treat Mizu. Also, "What is ugly to me?" is SUCH a good diffusion of that stressful/traumatic idea. Creating a place of acceptance without denying the existence of the hurt. "...all evil dreams and angry words...may they all be drained of power"
"Am impurity in the right place is a quality" As someone with autism I was always seen as weird. I was also severely bullied from first grade until late in highscool. Now I work as a web developer, have a college degree, know 2 languages, own my own house and have no debt. Never let people tell you you're "ugly" and broken. "soft steel in the center, hard steel for the edge" People told me I'm cold and have no feelings. I just don't trust people and like being alone.
"There may be a demon in you, but there is more. If you do not invite the whole, the demon takes two chairs..." - my favorite quote by Sword-father. Reminds me "Strange case of Dr.Jekyll and Mr.Hyde". P.S. wrote BEFORE watching to the 12:56😅
AH this video is SO GOOD. I usually miss a ton of things, like quotes and lessons even, when I watch a series which is why im so grateful for these analysis videos. "Is it funny?" "Samurai needs hands." "Do they? As a swordmaker needs eyes?" and "I only know how to make swords. Each morning, I start a fire and begin again" Almost everything he says is great but man these got me
I thought Mizu’s “secret” was going to relate to her gender, but it didn’t. Master Aeji believes she is a male through the whole story, IIRC. BTW, From a writer’s perspective, one aspect of Mizu’s character design that is brilliant is she is a super-clever way of getting around the “she was beautiful all along” trope. To the audience’s eyes, she is a very attractive character, but the writers get to have their cake and eat it too by making her socially “ugly” due to conventions around ethnicity and eye color. So they get a character the audience will think is hot, while being able to use those same looks to make her a social outcast also. They get another two-for-one by having her disguise herself as a man - the character is attractive for all sort of different reasons to people that are straight or queer, or even trans- or cisgender.
I think Swordfather knows. Why else would he have put emphasis on "man" when Mizu was about to confess? Paraphrasing, he said, "You came to me as a boy. You are leaving me as a **man**." I read that with the delivery he gave it as him telling Mizu, indirectly, "I know sword-making isn't a craft for women. I know what your voice sounds like, and I can guess what your body looks like. But you've stayed with me as a boy and a man. You're a man." (A stubborn and foolish one, as he said.)
Well that's just the thing, she is pretty but only according to out western standards. The world that she's in wouldn't consider her particularly attractive even if she weren't of mixed heritage.
"A samurai needs hands... Do they? As a swordmaker needs eyes" I got a tear on that one, i'm a journalist and publicist with an speech impediment, it used to be my worst enemy but after years of mocks and laughs i wear it as an armor now and it's been years since i overcomed it. But that line on the serie, gave me literal goosebumps
I love where he talks about blending steel. “We fold the steel to blend it. We beat the blend to remove the impurities. The purer the steel, the harder it is. But too pure and it becomes brittle.” I’ve found that in life to be so true. Without balance, when we pursue something 100% it makes us brittle too.
Leaving an impurity is important, I believe that something can never be perfect because something perfect is lacking an imperfection and by lacking something it is imperfect, so something perfect is made with imperfection!
Dang! First, it was Mako that went from Aku to Uncle Iroh and now it's Cary-Hiroyuki Tagawa that went from Shang Tsung to Sword-Father! I love that actors that once portrayed villains can also portray wise mentors that teach not only the characters lessons, but also the audience!
Amazing analysis as always. One thing I noticed about Master Eiji, and I think it's a part of what he teaches Mizu through his action is his dedication to small things. Across media, one of the key things I've noticed is masters, not matter of what, aren't masters because they're able to do things quickly or at a large scale. What makes them masters is their attention to details and their fine control. When we look at Master Eiji, we see a blind sword maker, but everything we see him shows his attention to details. He does everything around him with precision. When we first see him lighting a fire in the morning, he doesn't just scoop coals into his hearth - he weighs each brick before putting it in. Down to the wood he uses to make his blades, you'll notice he taps them carefully and select every one based on the sound it makes. He has a meticulous nature characteristic of someone with a sole focus. This is probably best illustrated when he's working with a swordsman before he makes his sword: before he even attempts to make a blade, he'll find out exactly how it's going to be used so he knows precisely what he needs to do in order to make a blade. And it shows: Every master of every type of every school of every place comes to Master Eiji for one of his swords - even assassins of ill intention. And everyone recognizes his work because of it. He shows that the nature of something is more important than it's form.
Sword father's "Pure and impure, you may be something shameful, you may also be strong" line is juxtaposed in the series against Fowler's "Oh my dear! That's your white half showing."
That's exactly the way my father reacted whenever I went to him with a question, responded with a question of his own till I figured it out myself. Was frustrating as hell at the time but now I really admire that approach
Tamahagane玉鋼 ( Japanese cast iron sand) is a very brittle and full of impurities which will leave to gaps and cracks. So it has to be folded to remove the impurities. But even solid sword of just tamahagane can be so brittle, makes a good way to say how strong mizus mind for revenge yet her body is so brittle do to so many injuries she takes to do so
8:07 - Sword-Father's words are probably more useful for Ringo, but I wish that someone in the show looked at some of the things that Ringo's been able to accomplish with an appropriate amount of awe. Like, Ringo, you can perform complex and delicate tasks ranging from cooking to suturing wounds without hands. That is INCREDIBLE! My guy, you don't "need" to be great... you *ARE* great!!
"all metal wants to be a sword" Can also have different implications either from a spiritual perspective specific to his religion or it can be metaphorical aka all things want to be loved and useful and more 💗
LOVE it when you interrupt, Georgia! That's the BEST part! There is a teaching that AL:L things were created spiritually before they were created physically. That is why in many Native American cultures, ALL things are considered to have a spirit. There are places I have been where the place ITSELF was happy that I was there. And NOT just in nature. I have a relationship with my guitar and my katana. BOTH do not like being neglected. Neither does the maple tree in my backyard. Thus, 'things" also like to be appreciated and to have purpose. Which in turn, can help to instill awareness, gratitude and consideration in us. The quote about two chairs is similar the quote about about which wolf inside you do you want to feed? Where is your focus...because that is who you will become.
As somebody who makes a living with art, does martial arts, practices swords, and is starting blacksmithing, i fing loooove sword father. Incredible character. His wisdom on art has helped me heal certain things. I love it.
Master states, that no man can tame this metal. Later on Mizu actually does that... And a wonderful thing for me is, that nothing changes there, in his view of who his apprentice is and how he treats "him". We have seen many in the show, who following their ego and narrow-mindness hurt those around them, most notably in Mizu's case. The greatest example is the time, when she let herself be vulnerable in her husband's presence, showed him who she is... And he betrayed her trust (not even mentioning that he reinforced the idea of her being a monster in spite of previously saying clearly, that he does not think that and wants her to be open with him) BECAUSE he couldn't accept the thought of a human, a woman so skillful and better than him. Mizu really needed the swordsman... ❣️ Btw, I am soooo thankful for your excellent videos... Love them Many of the comments refer to ATLA and I would also suggest you to take a closer look at it, because I would love to hear your thoughts on my favourite and most nostalgic cartoon
My favorite is right there at the beginning of this video. Abot how a little impurity makes a sword stronger. My second favorite is It would be nice if someone made tea. He knew full well she was still there and indirectly is welcoming her to stay.
I am sorry but i just have to ask, do you plan on having a closer look on the character Abijah Fowler as well? I think he is one of the most interesting villains i have seen recently.
I think Swordfather knows exactly who she is because he says he lost his sight "in a fire" and later we learn Mizu almost died in a fire as a baby so I wonder if they have more shared history than he lets on and that's part of the reason he cares for her so. Or fire is just a recurring symbol and I'm reading too much into it...
Sword father honestly reminds me of my own grandfather both in wisdom and demeanor, although my grandfather is a little bit a man child especially around his younger grandchildren he is also extremely wise and he has lived a both interesting but good life by doing what he had to do and living via using his intelligence and learning from past wrongs. He has no debt, he has a great relationship with his three daughters( one a which being my mother) and he still loves his wife deeply. And sword father has done much the same yet he’s more rough and calloused and is very blunt. Both have seen shit from hell and back and even if it has worn them down they never fail to still be great people and to make the best of what they have.
An aspect about Swordfather that i dont think gets a lot of attention is his visual storytelling. Hes a very wise man, but in some other time he may have been more or less? Like he says he lost his vision in a fire and yet there are no burn marks on his face, and both of his arms are streaked with scars not unlike those gained from swordplay. Theres a lot to his character that he (in some ways literally) wears on his sleeves but never draws attention to.
About Sword master who wanted to fall off a cliff. I understood it differently. Mizu called herself a demon but she had just saved an old man from certain death. She showed that she is not one at all.
Master Eiji definitely, purposefully nearly fell off the cliff. But I think it was a response to Mizu's "people look ar me and they see a hateful monster" by essentially forcing Mizu to save his life he proved to her that she is capable of love, not just hate, All with a simple action. The important part being he knew that she would instinctively do it, she didn't need to justify or deliberate. The action of saving Eiji came naturally to her.
I also suspected the cliff thing to be on purpose, though ny reasoning for swordfathers actions were not as in depth. Right before he stumbles Mizu calls herself a monster again but would a monster care about other people and reflexively protect them from harm? So in my untrained eye he's done it to subtly combat those self depricating thoughts. It helps drive home the point that she's more than just a demon.
I think Sword Father was the best character in Blue Eye Samurai, he was always supportive, was always straight to the point, and cared more for Mizu wholeheartedly.... Despite the fact that she annoyed him, but hey what good family doesn't annoy eachother at times.
Sword father my favorite character thus far. I think that if sword father knew where the edge on the ocean cliff was he has to have known Mizu is a girl! And I agree with you, I think he purposely took that extra step knowing Mizu would grab him- I didn't notice it before but now it makes sense for the scene that he would do that to prove his point. But I think ultimately Sword father he wants Mizu to embrace herself all parts without shame. I don't think for a moment he ever judged her. I think he saw the artist in her, and truly came to love her like his family. Theres real love between them and in the show it provides a nice reprieve .
his my favourite character. i completely agree he pretended to almost fall, so misu can catch him. i think he was trying to prove to her she isn't a monster - a real monster would have let him full.
The ugly line is really refreshing bc I'm sick and tired of blind characters being put on pedestals. I am glad he had better character development while being blind. And! Extra 100 brownie points because he never uses a sword. Bc blind fighters is a popular trope I wish could die off
loved the show, thank you for your great analysis as always! since you mentioned Lord of the Rings, that might be a super interesting and probably very popular topic for the future! The friendship of Frodo and Sam, the devious addictive nature of the ring, the duality of Gollum and Smeagol. Aragorn, Gandalf, maybe also Eowyn as individual characters
I really *really* wish you could talk more about Mizu's relationship with gender, both in the way of being percieved as a woman is a sign of vulnerability, or just the fact that male pronouns don't seem to bother Mizu's identity. I find it fascinating because the experience Mizu has with gender is so unique, forced to be a man, but still embracing it and not adhering to what would be expected of a woman, and taking huge offence at being called such. I feel like it's played a lot also in the way Mizu is constantly telling people about "a huge secret", almost as if to come out as being born a woman, but the writers always pull the rug from under us and shift the conversation. Idk, I feel like it's such an important part of Mizu's character and it's worth exploring in a video of its own
If youre able to could you do a character analysis to other characters like taigen or akemi :D? (No pressure tho what so ever i just love your videos and keep rewatching them!)
yeah, i things that it hes going far more, in any cases, doing it for teaching her a leson or storyboard ways, it was on purpose for one of them or both, so it was on purpose
The sword master is wrong the strongest swords are made of steal pure steel spring steel although the edge is not as hard. Mixing the metal together surves to spread out the weaknesses so that it has no one failure point. The Japanese technique is a kind of compensation for imperfect steal and yet it has gained respect all over the world. We will be flawed but if we do not avoid to many flaws in one area we can avoid catastrophic failure.
I think he was playing, going over the edge. She is talking about being a "demon". Perhaps he was trying to remind her of her humanity and the good she is capable of.
Swordfather was a pretty great character, but not even he is able to completely accept Mizu for who she is. When she wanted to tell him she was a woman he shut her down, angry, right after she said she wanted to pursue revenge and he disagreed but didn't react that strongly. I think this, along with what happened with her mom and her husband, cemented in her that nobody would be able to fully accept her.
Working out your childhood trauma through the committing of mass slaughter isn't a great example of a path towards mental health. Actually, it parallels the mass shootings carried out by children who also feel abused by bigots and bullies. This show is a tragedy, not a heroic journey, one whose sole lesson is that evil begets evil unto the destruction of everything around you.
