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Our Japanese writers dress up as Winter Shogun

Master Blaster Dec 17, 2024
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What better way to wait out the cold than with some interpretive cosplay?

After yet another record-breakingly hot summer the chilly grip of winter has finally taken hold of Japan, where it is often given the nickname Winter Shogun (Fuyu Shogun). This is a reference to “General Winter” the term used to describe the harsh Russian winters that played a role in the losses of both Napoleon’s and Hitler’s invading forces, but in Japan is more plainly used as a poetic reference to the season, not unlike “Jack Frost” of “Old Man Winter.”

But like these personifications of winter, there isn’t a clear consensus as to what Winter Shogun looks like. So, we got 10 of our writers to put on their thinking caps, then take them right off so they could dress up as their personal depictions of Winter Shogun, starting with…

▼ 1
Mr. Sato: Armored Winter Shogun

Mr. Sato: “When I hear ‘Winter Shogun,’ the first thing that pops into my head is armor, so I made my own suit of armor from cardboard. I’m really pleased with how well the arm and shin guards turned out. You too should try making this at home with your children during the winter break.”

Our star reporter took the “shogun” label quite literally and kept things old school with a suit crafted out of cardboard from Amazon of Japan. Mr. Sato is experienced in making things out of cardboard but just in case people didn’t get what he was going for, he wrote “Winter” and “Shogun” in magic marker, which also gives the outfit a shogi-chic feel.

▼ 2
Takashi Harada: Winter Shogun Inspired by a Fear of Snow and Cold

Takashi: “When I thought about the Winter Shogun, icy cold and snow came to mind. First, I covered myself in white to be like snow and threw in a little Japanese taste in the face based on the ‘Shogun’ part of the name. I also tried to add a touch of fear to express the harsh cold of winter.
Finally, I completed the outfit with a sword, as is the style of a shogun. Looking at it a certain way I might just look like a pervert, but I think this style somehow conveys the harshness of the season…”

It lacks the stoic dignity of a shogun, but to his credit, it does have an eerie sort of spine-chilling terror and that’s what the season is all about.

▼ 3
P.K. Sanjun: The Naked Shogun

P.K.: “It’s easy to understand if you think about it. The Winter Shogun doesn’t feel cold. If he did there would be no need to make the world any colder. Clearly, the guy is too hot and wants to bring the temperature down.
So, that’s why Winter Shogun would be practically naked, or lightly dressed at best. For this project, I wore a T-shirt and pants for legal reasons but I should really be naked for this to work.
Though come to think of it, living in such a prudish world, his expression would naturally become hard and unflinching. I saw a Winter Shogun with hot packs all over him out there. I wish people would take this more seriously.”

His logic holds up. Everyone was scrambling for the coldest things they could find this summer, so it would make sense that Winter Shogun is just looking for some relief himself.

▼ 4
Yuichiro Wasai: Psychopath Shogun

Yuichiro: “I figured whoever would bring cold like this must be a psychopath… so I tried to make myself look as insane as possible. I think I pulled off a look of someone whom you can’t tell what they’ll do next. Still, it’s hard to get people to understand unless I preface by saying that the Winter Shogun is a total psycho.”

That’s one way to go with it. He certainly seems prepared for some sleet or blood with that raincoat and those Shiba Inu briefs really bring out his eyes.

▼ 5
Takamichi Furusawa: Kylo Ren Equipped with Kairo

Takamichi: “Even the dark shogun of Star Wars, Kylo Ren, can’t beat the cold. When fighting Jedi on snowy planets it is imperative to be equipped with kairo chemical hand-warming packs. It may be lame, but I was going for Kylo Ren because he’s unrelenting like winter.”

We apologize, the “Kylo-kairo” pun plays a lot better in Japanese.

▼ 6
Seiji Nakazawa: Lightly Dressed Winter Shogun

Seiji: “The Winter Shogun wouldn’t need layers, even in the middle of winter, because he’s not cold. He’s a warlord who always goes full-throttle and doesn’t understand the feelings of people who shiver in the cold. He’s like a gym teacher from the ’80s who just tells you to rub your skin when you get cold and gets really mad when you don’t show enough grit. That’s why his face is red.
That’s why my kimono is taken off my upper body. I’m a sad demon who is so angry even his kimono turns red… That’s what the Winter Shogun is to me.”

That’s a pretty in-depth character analysis of who the Winter Shogun might be. Much like P.K.’s depiction, he’s someone who doesn’t feel the cold and is a general jerk.

▼ 7
Go Hatori: Japanese Frozen Winter Shogun

Go: “There’s no better representation of the Winter Shogun than Elsa from Frozen*, but I tried to make a Japanese version of her. It makes sense since she can control snow, northern winds, and cold fronts at will.”*

Go brings up a good point that many people might be guilty of gender bias in assuming the Winter Shogun is a man when there’s no indication that they necessarily are. Takashi should have said that too and his costume would have seemed smarter.

▼ 8
Masanuki Sunakoma: The Cold North Wind

Masanuki: “Everyone mistakes the Winter Shogun for a human, but his true identity is the cold northern wind. So, I dressed in black like the puppeteers and stagehands of yore and became the wind. Quite frankly, I amazed myself at how well I did.”

Masanuki brings up a good point that many of us are guilty of species bias in assuming the Winter Shogun is human when there’s no indication that it necessarily is. But considering the whole concept of “Winter Shogun” is a humanized form of winter, this might be missing the point.

▼ 9
Ahiruneko: Winter Hiroyuki Sanada

Ahiruneko: “I think when any of us hear “Shogun” these days, we can’t help but think of Hiroyuki Sanada. So for this project, I tried to transform into Hiroyuki Sanada when he won the Emmy Award for Best Actor. Because this is a winter thing, I made him bundle up too.”

Someone had to do this and Ahiruneko is probably the best writer here to pull off a Hiroyuki Sanada impersonation. This just leaves us with one more Winter Shogun…

▼ 10
Yoshio: Winter Shogun is Synonymous with Toshihiko Takamizawa

Yoshio: “When I think of Winter Shogun, I think of The Alfee’s song by the same name. And when I think of The Alfee, I think of Toshihiko Takamizawa. I love that guy.”

▼ Yoshio showing the cover for the “Winter Shogun” single by The Alfee

Well, Yoshio certainly seems to win for the highest-quality costume, and word around the office is that it took about two hours to perm his wig. In fact, this whole thing was his idea and I’m starting to wonder if this was all just an elaborate excuse for him to dress up as Takamizawa.

But that doesn’t mean Yoshio’s costume was the best representation of the Winter Shogun. In fact, we’re asking you to vote for your favorite. Just head over to the Japanese language version of this article and click on the poll at the very end. Even if you can’t read the Japanese, everyone is listed in the same order they appeared in the article, so it’s easy to do. Let your voice be heard and brighten one of our writers’ day.

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[ Read in Japanese ]