Critical Ninja Theory
Rob TuckExploring Japanese history, literature, and pop culture, mostly through ninjas.
| Platform |  | Pricing | Only free issues | Publishes | Twice weekly |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Issues | 193 | Founded | 2 years ago | Last Issue | 20 days ago |
| Active | |||||
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criticalninjatheory.substack.comLatest Issues
Critical Ninja Theory: Year 3
Merch seen at Legoland California, Carlsbad, CA, July 2026. 2026, it seems, is Lego Ninjago’s 15th anniversary.
The end of July marks two full years of running this Substack newsletter, so perhaps this is a good moment to look back on wha...
Japanese Shuriken in Soccer Hooligan 'Kung Fu Stars' SHAME
Image generated with Chat GPT.
In the previous post I offered some thoughts as to how star-shaped shuriken, believed by many to be the defining weapon of the Japanese ‘ninja,’ came to be known as “kung fu stars” in English-speaking media....
How Shuriken Became 'Kung Fu Stars'
A hail of shuriken misses the protagonist and hits a wall in Jimmy Wang Yu, dir., The Chinese Boxer (Chinese title Long hu dou, US title: The Hammer of God). Shaw Brothers, 1970.
We return with a quick update: after my rant a week or two...
The Great Shuriken Scandal
Advertisement for weapons available from Asian World of Martial Arts, Philadelphia, PA, carried in Kick Illustrated vol. 2 no. 8 (August 1981), p. 3. Source
[A happy 4th of July to my US readers.
A quick note: I’m going to take next week...
Bringing a Shuriken to a Gunfight
Illustration of throwing technique for shuriken in Fujita Seiko, Ninjutsu hiroku (Tokyo: Chiyoda Shoin, 1936), p. 194.
The thread of our discussion over the last few posts has been centered on the argument that the ninja-shuriken connecti...
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The writers behind this newsletter.
I'm an academic specializing in Japanese literature and history from the 19th to the 21st centuries.
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