From hits like Alice in Borderland to a reality gem along the lines of Love Village, Netflix boasts a Japan slate that’s more formidable than ever these days in response to widespread demand for content from the region. Just days ago, in fact, the streamer hosted a Japan showcase teasing a slew of new series, including the manga adaptation City Hunter, while Netflix’s newest title from the country has arrived today in the form of House of Ninjas — an action-packed, eight-episode series about a clan of former ninjas that’s still active in the modern era.
The story: There’s nothing complicated here; this Netflix series’ strength lies in its execution. Basically, the show is built on the basis of ninjas having existed in secret throughout Japanese history — and some of them remain active today.
House of Ninjas is set in present-day Japan, and it tells the story of the Tamara family, the last clan of ninjas which, incidentally, abandoned its past after a mission gone wrong and is trying to live as normally as possible now. But you know how these things go. A stern man shows up with a warning and a plea that the heroes are needed again. The public is in danger, the fate of the country hangs in the balance, and these shadow warriors are called upon to rise to the occasion one more time.
“We defend this country,” one of the ninjas explains with supreme badassery. And when someone gets in the way, “you cut them down.”
Who’s who: Stars include Kento Kaku, who also serves as the show’s co-executive producer. Kaku plays Haru, the second son of the Tawara family — an elite, highly skilled ninja with unrivaled skills, albeit one whose kindness led to trauma that still haunts him. Actors portraying his family members include Yosuke Eguchi as Soichi, the father; Tae Kimura as the mother, Yoko; Kengo Kora as older brother Gaku; Aju Makita as the older sister Nagi; and, finally, Nobuko Miyamoto who plays the mysterious grandmother Taki, watching over the family from the shadows.
Why you should watch: What’s neat about this series is its exportability. That is to say, you could tweak just a few details, and you’d have, say, a Marvel story. Yes, this is a story about ninjas, but there’s a universality to it in that it’s really a story about a group of reluctant heroes who want to live a normal life, but a threat to the public calls them back into action. With great power comes — well, you know the rest. Watch House of Ninjas if you enjoyed The Brothers Sun and Warrior, along with similar shows that mix pulse-pounding martial arts with a gripping storyline.
Check out a trailer for House of Ninjas below.
