Episode 121: Mariko Yashida (feat. Justin Park) — Part Two: Honor, Duty, and Whatnot

CEREBRO

In Episode 121 of CEREBRO, Connor and returning guest Justin Park consult the ancestors with Mariko Yashida, the stoic Scarlet Samurai! Created by Chris Claremont and John Byrne, inspired by the character Mariko Toda from James Clavell's 1975 historical novel Shōgun, Mariko is the daughter of an ancient Japanese noble house who becomes the great love of Logan, aka Wolverine. Over the course of Claremont's time with the character, she becomes the formidable leader of the politically powerful Clan Yashida.

After her tragic death in a 1992 story by Larry Hama, Mariko's memory haunted Wolverine for decades until her resurrection in a 2018 arc of Old Man Logan written by Ed Brisson. In the interim, a popular alternate universe version of Mariko — her world's version of Sunfire — was a regular cast member in Judd Winick's Exiles in the early aughts, making a sizable impact as one of Marvel's first prominent lesbian superheroes. Recently, another alternate version of Mariko — this one created by Japanese writer-artist Peach Momoko — was the protagonist of the celebrated series Demon Days and its sequel Demon Wars.

The CEREBRO character file on Mariko Yashida begins at 1:23:36.

This is Part Two of Two. Go back to Part One if you haven't heard it yet! Patreon subscribers now have exclusive access to the combined 8.5-hour Extended Study in Scarlet Mix.

(Content Advisory: Mariko's story includes domestic violence. This episode features general discussion of racism. There's a lot to unpack.)

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