Shogun the Mighty is the seventeenth episode of Season 3 and the sixty-fifth overall episode of the Monster Rancher anime series. It aired in Japan on July 29, 2001.
Synopsis[]
A fearsome warrior in General Durahan's collection known as Shogun the Mighty, who is stronger than the General himself, is resurrected by accident. He's sent to get the Disc Stone from the Searchers, but winds up saving the gang from the baddies in a strange turn of events.
Full Recap[]
The episode starts with MumMew, at Durahan's lair, calling for one of the warriors in his collection to awaken and be released, imitating the phrases he uses when thawing them, with a small twist due to her obsession with being pretty ("Hear me! Awaken! Oh mighty warrior, wise and beautiful!"). She looks disappointed when not a single frozen monster descends to eye level, and tells Gobi, who's standing at the doorframe of a small room right above her, holding a wrench, that it isn't working. He hurries back inside and Poison shows up next to MumMew, telling her that they better fix it soon or she won't be able to help, because General Durahan is furious. Exasperated, MumMew tells her that she already knows that and Gobi returns to let her know that he's done.
She tries once again with the same order, and the gears controlling that mechanism begin moving for once. A frozen warrior comes down, and Poison's relaxed position as she hovers over the floor is interrupted when she notices a skull marking with red eyes on the warrior chosen. She asks MumMew what she's doing as she and Gobi look with horror, knowing that they've made a huge mistake. Poison reminds them that Durahan had warned them that there was a terrifying monster there, telling the Mew to stop it from coming back. MumMew bickers shortly with her and asks Gobi for help. Gobi, who hadn't left that control room, is seen trying to pull a lever to make the whole system stop, but right after he complains about a headache, the lever breaks, making the frozen warrior fall at an incredible speed on the floor, half a second after the girls moved away from that exact spot. It makes a hole on the floor as some smoke comes out; MumMew yells for Gobi to help, and he brings a big block to cover the warrior's crash site.
MumMew's sigh of relief doesn't last for long before Durahan's loud voice asks what's happening. The doors keeping him isolated open, prompting Gobi and MumMew to kneel before him, on top of the block. The two of them and Poison look visibly nervous, and MumMew flashes him with a smile that he considers suspicious, but she quickly notices this and switches to looking down. They all share a few seconds of awkward silence before the block below them starts shaking and releasing smoke. Durahan reprimands MumMew and she nervously, while trying to maintain her balance on the moving platform, tells him not to worry because she hadn't touched his collection at all. She quickly covers her mouth, realizing that she had basically confessed her mistake. Durahan immediately concludes that she had released "him", the one he had told them never to touch. Poison flies to Durahan's side, hugging him and playing innocent, saying that she tried unsuccessfully to stop her. He says it's too late and tells her to hide for a while, which she quickly does. Durahan tells the other two to release the monster, and they jump off the block, allowing him to come out.
Whos' that Pokémon?!
It's Shogun!
Out of the smoke cloud, a Durahan monster emerges, one with bright, yellow eyes and golden, shining horns on his head. MumMew and Gobi, now standing closer to Durahan, watch this new warrior, and so does Poison from behind a wall. The monster, shown to be Shogun, congratulates Durahan for his attempt at binding him, but reminds him that it won't work on the ultimate warrior Shogun. He takes his katana from behind his back and takes on a defensive stance, telling him to fight him. It is only when Durahan tells him that it's been a while that he notices the monster he bickered with was but a helmet on life support. Upon seeing this, Shogun is shocked, asking what happened. Durahan explains that he was defeated by the ultimate warrior, and when asked for clarification, describes them as "seven in one, the ultimate warrior who has fought a thousand battles". Shogun ponders these words, imagining seven samurais looking much like him, becoming a seven-headed dragon. Seeing that his sword won't be necessary at the moment, he leaves it back in its sheath. Durahan then tells him that the reason he released him is, obviously, to defeat that mighty warrior, wishing for Shogun to avenge him. The ex prisoner says it'll be easy for him, even if that other monster is the ultimate warrior, laughing evilly.
As Shogun goes up on an elevator with Gobi and MumMew, Poison asks Durahan if he's really that terrifying, and he confirms that he is, especially to monsters like her, but he shouldn't be much trouble for MumMew. He tells Poison that Shogun mustn't see her, and she agrees.
Now at a forest, near a river, Gobi, Shogun and MumMew are accompanied by Zuum troops, the two latter riding one each. She calls Shogun's name, but he corrects her, telling her to call him "Mightiest Warrior Shogun". She ignores this and asks, with suspicion, why he was frozen in the first place, since he's so strong, he should've taken care of Durahan before he got him. His eyes narrow as he recalls the time he defeated General Durahan.
Just add a scarf and you're good to go into a blizzard.
It was in a snowy place during a blizzard; he had just struck Durahan with his sword, sending him flying backwards. Lilim, who wore a red scarf, had rushed to his side as he lay unable to fight. Shogun laughed and proclaimed that this was the power of the mightiest warrior, and that he wouldn't lose to the evil soul (of Moo), as he readied his sword for his next attack. His focus was lost when he noticed the Pixie next to his opponent and Durahan immediately told her to run away. When she turned to look at Shogun, she saw him running towards him, blushing, with a perverted look on his face and calling her cute. Horrified, she started running, with him chasing after her, telling her to come back and that from that day on, she'd be his.
Respect women, don't be like Shogun.
She kept running until she got to a part where the only thing in front of her was frozen water. He stopped a few steps behind Lilim and she turned around to warn him that were he to get any closer, he'd regret it. Shogun, walking slowly towards her and holding his hands up to grope her, ignored what she said, telling her that she was even cuter when she was mad. She was creeped out by this, telling him to stop approaching her like that, and he took it the wrong way, saying that he'd be a man, then, switching to running at her instead. Lilim flew away just in time to escape, leaving Shogun balancing on the edge of the rock just to end up falling into the water. He shakes his arms struggling to get out of there, asking for help because he can't swim, before inevitably freezing.
MumMew's charms don't work on him.
Hearing this, MumMew concludes that he's just a dirty old man, but he tries to justify himself saying that a beautiful young girl is the source of a warrior's strength. MumMew gasps, blushing as she comes to the conclusion that that's why Durhan had sent her with him this time. She feels flattered as Zuums and Shogun look at her in disbelief. She gets closer to Shogun, with sparkles in her eyes, as she tells him that from that day on, she'd be the source of his strength, winking. He sweats, reminding her that he had said "beautiful young girl", implying she's too old. She gets mad at him, defying him to admit that he thinks she's old. MumMew gets so angry that he's forced to walk backwards away from her as he tries to find something to say that wouldn't make things worse, but he ends up stepping on a spot of the edge that wasn't too firm and falls into the river behind him, being carried away by the strong current. Gobi and MumMew call his name, worried, but there's nothing they can do.
The Searchers, casually walking through a bridge above a river, express their content about the current weather, the breeze, the sun. Golem and Mocchi shout towards the river, but Suezo tells them that this isn't a mountain so they won't hear an echo. They do hear something coming from the river, though it's a cry for help. Then they notice a monster rapidly approaching them in the water, almost drowning. Holly asks Genki to help him, and so he does, kneeling and extending a hand for him to grab, but as Shogun gets closer to them, he notices Holly and reaches for her hand instead. Holly, who was just sitting with her hands on the bridge without having the intention of rescuing him, is surprised by this, but still replies when he thanks her. Suezo, seeing this, extends his tongue to separate them and slap him, asking in annoyance why he had reached for her. Shogun gets fed up with him and grabs his tongue to get him into the water as well, but since he lost his earlier hold on ground, he ends up being carried by the current again.
A while later, with everyone sitting around a small fire, Shogun reveals his identity to them. Suezo, with a towel on his head, looks angrily at Shogun, whose armour is being scrubbed by Mocchi. Genki recalls his name, with Hare saying he had never heard of him, although he claims to be "the one and only". Suezo yells that he can't believe this guy being a powerful warrior. Tiger wonders if he's the one from the legend about an attack that can kill 100 men at once. When everyone turns to look at him, Tiger says it's a secret technique used by the Mightiest Warrior Shogun, feared as The Black Lightning Bolt of the East. Holly echoes this, saying she had heard about that as well, adding that "no matter how skilled the warrior, when they see just a flash, they're rendered useless", all while Shogun looks proudly at them, with flashy eyes. Genki, Mocchi, Suezo and Golem are amazed to discover this. Shogun acts humbly, saying that it isn't much before laughing shortly, then he tells Mocchi to do a better job wiping him, and so he does with the utmost respect. Holly offers Shogun a bowl of stew to help him warm up, but uses that as an excuse to fondle Holly's hands on either side of the bowl, blushing and saying they're warm. When he doesn't stop, Suezo has to intervene, using his tongue to get his hands away from hers, angering the Durahan.
Hare comments that they're lucky to find such a mighty warrior and Genki agrees, quickly asking Shogun if he'll be their trainer. Mocchi tells him that they're aiming for the Legend Cup, but he laughs at it, saying it's a game of pretend fight, and that real fighting is a matter of life and death, so it can't be compared to tournaments. Suezo completely dislikes this, getting mad at his cockiness, but Shogun remains a firm believer of what he said. Genki asks him to reconsider because it's very important to them all, seconded by Mocchi, Hare, Golem and Tiger. He still refuses, saying that he, as the most powerful warrior, can't waste time playing with them, but when Holly so much as calls his name to beg for help, he blushes, tenses up and immediately changes his mind, saying that a bit of training/playing won't hurt. Holly seems happy to hear this, but still creeped out by his approach and his perverted giggling. Behind some bushes, the Zuum troops, Gobi and MumMew observe everything. She complains about his slobbering and wonders why he hasn't finished them off yet. One of the Zuums tells her that this might be part of his plan, because trying to take on all seven of them at once would be foolish, so he'll pretend to befriend them just so he can betray them at the right moment. MumMew accepts this idea and Gobi compliments his intelligence.
For their first training lesson, Shogun comments that they must strengthen their mind to gain power. The Searchers all sit in front of him in a sort of meditating pose with their eyes closed. Shogun walks from side to side with his katana over his shoulder, telling them not to move and to remain calm no matter what. When he notices that they're all too focused to notice, he kneels in front of Holly and puts a hand over hers, making her open her eyes and gasp. He loses all seriousness as he creepily comments on the softness of her hands, but Suezo angrily stops him with his tongue again. When Shogun reminds him that he had told him not to move, Suezo steps forward with the intention of fighting him, and the Durahan pretends to be offended, looking away and saying that, in that case, he won't teach them his secret attack. The whole group yells at Suezo, but he refuses to apologize, even when Golem tells him to do it as he almost squishes him with his hand.
How is this even a challenge for Suezo though...
Perfect excuse for her to fall into his arms, literally.
Shogun continues training them, now saying that they must keep perfect balance to dodge enemy attacks. The Searchers are now walking on a thin log resting between two trees many meters above the ground, trying not to fall off. Golem, who couldn't join them, is balancing himself on one leg on the grass. Shogun instructs them to maintain perfect balance in any situation, before shouting loudly at them to make them lose their concentration. They inevitably fall, all of them hitting the ground (except for Tiger, who managed to fall on his feet), and Holly ends up being held by Shogun's arms. She feels awkward in his embrace but thanks him anyway. Suezo rushes to complain about the old man's training, since all he seems to do is touch Holly. Shogun looks away, acting offended again and asking how he dares to speak to him that way. When he tells the rest to do something about Suezo's behaviour towards him, his glare isn't met with any agreement, because Suezo was right. Then, he leaves Holly back on the ground and laughs nervously before clearing his throat to talk about their next training exercise. MumMew, still spying on him, realizes that Zuum's innocent defense of his actions was wrong, recognizing him as a dirty old man.
Next up, the Searchers practice welding sticks as if they were swords. Shogun walks up to Holly from behind, and when he gets close enough, tries to tell her to use her hips a bit for this, but Suezo stops him before he can even touch her, and starts waving his stick around to hit him. This gets interrupted when a Zuum wearing a red bandana on his neck passes running through them and steals Hare's bag. The Searchers drop their sticks and chase after the thief, and Shogun stays behind, telling Holly to stay there with him. When he tries to go after her, Gobi's huge hand holds his right arm, stopping him in place. He turns around to see Gobi and MumMew looking at him with disappointment and he learns, off-screen, that the warriors he was supposed to get revenge on were them. Sitting on a rock, he can't believe it, but the baddies have already explained everything to him. He then imagines a crude image of all seven of them, with creepy red eyes and sharp fangs, laughing evilly before fusing into the same dragon he had thought of when General Durahan told him about the seven warriors that become one, but with the faces of each of them instead of generic dragon ones. He understands now, crossing his arms and saying they're very sly for getting him to train them, but that they couldn't fool him for a second, since he could see right through them. MumMew starts jumping with exasperation, saying he couldn't. Shogun stands back up and holds his katana high, asking how they dared presume to be mighty warriors, and proclaiming that he'll teach them a lesson.
The Searchers return from their pursuit, saying that they must be careful even in that place. Tiger proudly states that the thief will think twice before trying to steal again; although Holly wonders if they exaggerated with him, Hare says that he deserved it and Golem reinforces the fact that stealing is bad. The poor Zuum can be seen lying down, severely beat up, with a leg twitching, as he calls MumMew's name. When they go back to their previous spot, the Searchers are surprised to discover that Shogun is gone, and they wonder if he left. Suezo complains that he should have at least said goodbye and Genki laments how much they didn't get to learn from him. Holly agrees, though she's secretly relieved to see that he's gone; Tiger's nose tells him that he's still around, shocking everyone.
At that moment, Shogun jumps out from behind the bushes and recognizes them as "veterans of many battles", and "seven warriors who become one". This greatly confuses all of them, but Hare disregards that, saying that they should resume their training. Shogun laughs, boasting to know their true identity and challenging them to a battle. The Searchers can't understand his sudden desire to fight, and he calls them cowards for trying to steal his secret. He then asks them to transform and fight honourably. When they still don't get what he's saying, he asks in frustration how much longer they're meaning to keep this deception up. He states that he'll just attack them first and takes his sword out, taking an aggressive stance. Genki tries to get him to explain himself but Tiger says that it's no use, since a blue energy aura is now surrounding Shogun. He tells them that he'll use his Lightning Sword and the rest try to get him to stop.
Like water from a fountain.
Oops...
A bright teal lightning is summoned from the sky and lands directly on his katana as it would a lightning rod. Shogun then waves his sword at them to attack, scaring them all until they notice that the lightning never got to them. Instead, it's falling off his sword and into the ground like water, shocking everyone, including himself and the baddies spying on them. The Durahan compliments them for having stopped his lightning sword so effortlessly, calling them mighty warriors. Genki asks what he means by that, angering Shogun, thinking that he was pretending to be dumb, prompting him to try a different attack: Sure-Kill Giant Wheel, in which he rolls rapidly at his opponents while holding his katana out. Sadly, they get out of the way and when his sword hits a big rock on the ground, it breaks, leaving it much shorter. He curses at this, guessing that this is the effect of being frozen for so long. That doesn't stop him though, because soon enough he starts chasing after the Searchers and desperately waving his sword, trying unsuccessfully to damage them as they tell him to stop. He ends up only tiring himself, amazed at how easily they dodged his sword. Hare comments on its short length as the most important factor in their evasion and Genki tries to ask Shogun why he's acting so strangely. The Durahan, still angry, tries to strike Genki and Tiger fires a Lightning at him, sending him flying against a tree. Genki scolds him, but Tiger reminds him that trying to reason with him was impossible. Shogun stands up slowly, laughing, as he says that they're finally revealing their true selves, calling them "seven warriors who become one" again. Claiming that their battle is just beginning as he sweats, he tries one last attack: Sure-Kill Whirlwind, spinning rapidly while holding his katana, but after a few seconds, he loses balance and falls on his back.
Give me victory or give me death.
The group rushes to meet him, now lying on the ground and he struggles to even sit up, feeling frustrated. MumMew looks disappointed and annoyed at him being actually useless. The Searchers try to console him, but he waves his sword at them, forcing them to get away from him, before sitting up and admitting defeat, but claiming that they'll never destroy his pride. He then asks them to finish him off, saying that he won't resist. Genki and Suezo are the most shocked by his words, and MumMew calls him a fraud from behind the bushes before sending the Zuum troops to fight them. Seeing them emerge from the plants around them, the Searchers recognize them as baddies and prepare to fight back. Genki tells Golem to stay back and take care of Shogun and Holly. Even after defeating several Zuums, the Searchers find themselves outnumbered and decide to retreat, all of them, including Golem, who carries Holly in one hand and Shogun on the other, against his will. MumMew tells the Zuums not to let them get away and they chase after them until losing sight of them.
MumMew complains at the Zuums for not being able to find the Searchers after so long, as Hare watches from behind a tree. When met by a crawling Genki and Mocchi, he learns that they're completely surrounded, so they mustn't make any sudden moves and wait for Tiger. A few steps away from that spot, Shogun is sitting facing away from Holly, which is odd, as Golem and Suezo stand close to them. Genki asks how it's going and Holly shakes her head. Suezo calls Shogun a little kid, because of his stubbornness right before he crosses his arms and demands to be finished off, again. Genki kneels in front of him, telling him not to be so rash and that losing isn't the end of the world. Shogun calls that statement ridiculous, because a fight between true warriors is a matter of life and death, so the loser has no choice but to die. Genki says he's wrong, that he can always go back to training and try again. Shogun asks how could someone like himself, once known as the Black Lightning, do something so undignified. Seeing that there's no way Genki can convince him, Holly decides to speak up, telling him what she believes, and getting him to look up: that it's far more important to keep trying than to always win. He turns around to face her, surprised by her words. Shogun stares at her for a few seconds before looking away, his arms still crossed, saying that a woman can't understand how it feels to be the ultimate, mightiest warrior. She looks down, and apologizes, seeing that he won't change his mind whatsoever.
Tiger arrives running, with good news: he's found a rocky stretch up elsewhere and, if they can get past it, they'll be safe. The Searchers then decide to go that route and when Holly tries to get Shogun to come along, he rejects her offer, telling them all to leave him alone. She tries to protest, but Suezo and Hare choose to grant his wish, saying that he'll be fine. Holly is the last to leave him behind. Alone, bright sunlight illuminates Shogun as Holly's words echo in his head. He starts reminiscing about his past, thinking of a time he was young and practising with a bamboo stick, trying to reach 10 thousand strikes at the air and almost passing out when he did. After lying on the ground, exhausted, for a few seconds, he stood back up and resumed his training from where he left off. Looking up at the sky, now in the present, he ponders the qualities of a warrior's soul.
The Searchers run through the rocky area Tiger had found, but the Zuum troops follow them closely. They end up in a dead end with nowhere to escape, and MumMew mocks them for being trapped and outnumbered. She says that they should've come themselves instead of relying on Shogun. When Genki asks what she means by that, and she explains that, as she heard he was the mightiest warrior, she thought they could use him to destroy them, but since he's a weakling, he was nothing but a disappointment. Genki looks angry at her for putting him against them and she only laughs it off, saying that it's rare to find a monster that gullible. Tiger and Mocchi detest this dirty trick she used but she doesn't care and demands for the Disc Stone. Holly holds tightly on to her satchel as the baddies approach them slowly.
MumMew finds delight in getting her hands on the disc containing the Evil Soul and in getting the greatest power for baddies to rule the world again. Shogun interrupts her maniacal laugh when he claims to understand what they're up to, still relying on the evil soul. He then proclaims that the greatest power is achieved through rigid training and that he'll prove it to them, as he holds a long stick he got back at the forest. The Searchers are happy to see him again, but MumMew mocks his weapon, asking what he could possibly do with it. The Searchers look with concern at their friend, who's surrounded by Zuums. Despite being at a numeric disadvantage, he seems confident and a blue aura surrounds him once more. MumMew gets exasperated and orders an attack on him. Genki calls Shogun's name as the Zuums run towards him, but he charges at them at an incredible speed, using his improvised sword on all of them. After getting to the other side of the crowd of Zuums, he stands dramatically for a few seconds, while everyone else watches in anxious anticipation, before all his opponents drop to the ground, defeated. He sheathes his new sword and Tiger acknowledges this as the legendary Lightning flash attack, impressing everyone around him. MumMew quivers with fear before running away and telling the other baddies to retreat as well. The Searchers run up to Shogun to congratulate him, and he laughs softly with his eyes closed.
At sunset, Genki thanks Shogun for his help, but he corrects him, saying that he's the one who's grateful because they helped him remember something important: the value of continuing to face challenges like in his youth. Holly looks pleased by this, and he announces that he'll go back to training. Shogun wishes them good luck at the Legend Cup, expressing as well his desire to have another duel with them someday. On that day, he wants to see them transform into one and show him their true strength, leaving them even more confused when he says farewell, calling them, one last time, "veterans of many battles" and "seven warriors who become one". After he leaves, Hare guesses that he's right, surprising the others. Tiger then repeats Shogun's last line and they all seem to agree, wishing their new friend to take care of himself as he walks into the horizon.
Featured Characters[]
- Mum Mew
- Gobi
- Poison
- General Durahan
- Shogun
- Zuum Troops
- Lilim (flashback)
- The Searchers
- Uroboros (presumably)
Featured Monsters[]
- Mum Mew
- Gobi
- Poison
- Durahan
- Shogun
- Zuum
- Lilim (flashback)
- Suezo
- Mocchi
- Golem
- Hare
- Tiger
- Uroboros (presumably)
Trivia[]
In the English and Latin American Spanish versions:
- The short sequence of Poison floating behind MumMew after Gobi fails to fix the mechanism controlling Durahan's frozen monsters for the first time was shortened. Probably due to her crotch being lightly visible when the Mew's head didn't cover her.
- The scene where Durahan tells Poison that Shogun mustn't see her was deleted.
- Some parts of Shogun's memory of the day he got frozen were removed:
- The bit where Lilim is running towards the camera and Shogun proclaims that she'd be his from then on
- When Shogun corners her and she tells him that he'd regret getting any closer, followed by him approaching her slowly and creepily.
- Shogun trying unsuccessfully to get out of the water, almost drowning before becoming encased in ice.
- The dialogue between Shogun and MumMew before he falls into the river was slightly altered to remove any references to him preferring "young" beauties. Instead of her feeling offended at him calling her old, she feels that he doesn't think she's beautiful altogether.
- Shogun being carried away by the current after falling into the river was removed.
- The change in Shogun's face when he notices Holly standing on the bridge (before reaching for her hand) was removed.
- Shogun being carried by the current after forcing Suezo into the water with him was omitted.
- Everything between Holly offering Shogun some stew and Hare saying that they're lucky to have found him (i.e. Shogun fondling her hands, blushing, Suezo separating them and Shogun challenging him to fight) was removed.
- Shogun's mentions of real battles being a matter of life or death were replaced with more kid-friendly expressions.
- Holly's awkward smile when Shogun agrees to training them after she asks for it was removed.
- Shogun's first training session with the Searchers meditating was entirely removed, leaving the balance test as their first training in the dubbed versions.
- Probably as a consequence of this, when Suezo confronts Shogun after he catches Holly in his arms and he asks the others to do something about these claims was shortened to omit this dialogue (since they didn't collectively scold him one first time during the previous training, there was no reason they'd agree to doing it a second time).
- On the next lesson, the scene was cut after Shogun is seen standing a few steps away from Holly, immediately changing to the Zuum that ran towards them and stole Hare's bag. Shogun telling her to use her hips and Suezo chasing him with his stick was censored.
- Every instance in which Shogun asks to be finished off due to his defeat was replaced by a milder expression.
- Shogun's dialogue where he dismisses Holly's opinion due to her being a woman was censored, instead, he emphazises more his status as a mighty warrior.
Errors[]
- When Poison tells MumMew to stop Shogun from being released, her gloves only go from her forearms to her wrists, leaving her hands exposed.
- The same error persists on the scene where Gobi and MumMew kneel nervously before General Durahan.
- Shogun's hands are much larger when he's holding Holly after she falls from the log on the second training; just one of them is the size of her thigh on that scene, after being just slightly bigger than her hands (as seen when she handed him a bowl of stew).
- When the Zuum troops leave their hiding spot and confront the Searchers, there's a short sequence of Hare punching a few Zuums with incorrectly coloured lower jaws (green instead of yellow).
- When the Searchers retreat from fighting Zuum troops and MumMew tells the baddies to go after them, her bracelet is on her right arm instead of her left.
- On that scene, her paw pads are yellow instead of their usual pink.
- When Tiger and Mocchi complain about MumMew using Shogun against them and she dismisses them, her arms are way too long and more humanlike than usual.
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