Kyoshiro Senryo

Kyoshiro Senryo (千両 狂死郎, Senryō Kyōshirō) is a character introduced in Samurai Shodown; he continues to appear in later titles of the series. His name derives from Japanese words with theatrical undercurrents: Senryō (千両, Senryō) literally means "1000 ryō", but it can also refer to star actors (i.e., the full phrase senryō yakusha (千両役者, senryō yakusha) refers to actors with a rather high salary); Kyōshi (狂死, Kyōshi) means "dying insane"; the rō (郎, rō) is a merely common suffix for male names. He most likely takes inspiration from film character, Nemuri Kyoshiro, a sleepy-eyed samurai who travels around Japan.

Story
He is a master of the ancient art of kabuki, utilizing its artful interpretations and majestic actions to construct a "beautiful fighting art". In Samurai Shodown V, convinced people are sad because of the current state in Japan, Kyoshiro decides to cheer people up with his acts. He decides to go on the road, in the hopes of perhaps finding a new Kabuki style and using his adventure as the story for his Kabuki act. He achieves this in his ending and fights someone who resembles Sho Hayate to determine who has the more aesthetic and effective fighting style. He continues his travels across the land, determined to spread the wonder of his art throughout the series. Unexpectedly, his companion becomes possessed by a demon. Determined to prove his strength, he slays him/her and sets out on a vendetta against others. After Mizuki is sealed a second time in the Makai, he speaks to the now-free priestess Bizuki and restores her faith by making her his new assistant.

He gets his chance to perform internationally in Sen. While he was thrilled with the idea of spreading his art, he was worried about the history of his sponser Golba, a supposedly American soldier. His planned country of performance worried him as well, as he was expecting to dance in America not Europe. Curious, he sets out to investigate.

Personality
Kyoshiro is a historic example of the artistic rebel of his time era. He has a bold charisma that attracts a lot of fans to his plays. Although he practices theatre, he is bored of the rigid structure and is always on the hunt for a new, exciting dance. He also welcomes change, accepting Western ideals much earlier than the people of his time.

True to his profession, he speaks in a theatrical dialect as though he were in a play, letting his audience and opponent know how or what he is doing. For instance, when he is defeated, he cries "I feel regretful!" or when he jumps, he cries, "And here (I am)!".

Powers

 * Frog Summon: Kyoshiro can summon a giant frog to devour his opponents.
 * Fire Breathing: Kyoshiro can blow out fire from his mouth.
 * Fire Projectile: Kyoshiro can throw a fiery fan at his opponents.
 * Water Projectile: Kyoshiro can wave his hair releasing small wave of water along the ground.

Fighting Style
He fights with a naginata and fans. He fights opponents from a distance and excelling at mid-range, luring unprepared opponents to be caught in one of his closer ranged special moves and spear pokes. In Sen, his attacks incorporate more kabuki poses.

Music

 * Magatama - Samurai Shodown
 * Magatama - Part 2 - Samurai Shodown II
 * Banquet Song - Samurai Shodown III
 * Zagashira - Samurai Shodown (2019)
 * Compugramed Edo Castle - Samurai Remix VA

Voice Actors

 * Kazuhiro Inage - Samurai Shodown
 * Atsushi Maezuka - Samurai Shodown II~Sen, Samurai Shodown (2019)
 * Tarō Masuoka - Samurai Shodown VI
 * Yūji Mitsuya - Samurai Shodown: The Motion Picture
 * Aaron Krohn - Samurai Shodown: The Motion Picture (English voice)
 * Hiroshi Isobe - Samurai Shodown Dengeki drama CD series

Game Appearances

 * Samurai Shodown
 * Samurai Shodown II
 * Samurai Shodown III
 * Shinsetsu Samurai Spirits: Bushidou Retsuden
 * Samurai Shodown IV
 * Samurai Shodown V
 * Samurai Shodown V Special
 * Samurai Shodown V Perfect
 * Samurai Shodown VI
 * Samurai Shodown Sen
 * Samurai Spirits ~Kengou Hachi-ban Shoubu~
 * Quiz King of Fighters
 * Samurai Shodown (2019)

Mobile Appearances

 * Kingdom Story
 * Samurai Shodown Tenkadaiichi Kenkakuden
 * Samurai Shodown: Oborozuki Densetsu

Cameo Appearances

 * Days of Memories (third title) - in-text cameo
 * Maid by Iroha
 * Samurai Spirits (pachinko)
 * Samurai Spirits Gaiden: Cham Cham
 * Samurai Spirits Oni
 * Capcom vs. SNK 2 - in Aomori stage
 * Soulcalibur VI - mentioned by Haohmaru while taunting Seong Mi-na, Kilik, or Hildegard von Krone

Anime Appearances

 * Samurai Shodown: The Motion Picture

Etymology

 * The name Kyoshiro means "mad death" (狂死) (kyoshi) and "son" (郎) (ro).
 * Part of the name Kyoshi can also mean "madness, lunatic, insane, crazy, confuse" (狂) (kyo) and "death, decease" (死) (shi) separately.
 * Kyoshiro's surname Senryo means "thousand" (千) (sen) and "old Japanese coin" (両) (ryo).

Trivia

 * When asked "The path of the sword is?", Kyoshiro's response is "A method of acting that really is 'life or death.'"
 * His favourite type of mate is "Western women with measurements Japanese couldn't begin to fathom."