A samurai lists every step that makes his katana legendary. The knight has one line.

A meme comic sets up a katana's elaborate metallurgy speech against a knight standing behind him.

Translated by Klore · Published

Source & context
Trending on a Korean communityView original post ↗
● Some K-contextMemeCulture shockHow much Korea-context this story assumes. English translations and context by Klore.
Korean community post, image 1: The samurai brags his blade is folded steel from mythical tamahagane, forged and hardened for max durability.
English translation
The samurai brags his blade is folded steel from mythical tamahagane, forged and hardened for max durability. The knight just shrugs: 'We use good steel.'

좋은 강철. 우리 검은 영광스러운 타마하가네로 만들어졌고, 1,000번 접었으며, 세 가지 다른 등급의 강철로 단조되었고, 내구성과 강도를 극대화하기 위해 차별적으로 경화되었어! 우리는 좋은 강철을 사용해.

💡 Why is the knight's one-liner the punchline?
This mocks the online obsession with katana mythology (tamahagane, folding steel 1,000 times) as if it's uniquely superior, when European swordsmiths used comparably engineered multi-grade steel without the marketing speech.vs. Reddit: r/swords regulars use this exact bit to roast 'katana are inherently better' takes.Klore note
💡 Why do both characters have blank NPC faces?
The flat, expressionless 'NPC wojak' style is a meme template for characters mouthing a scripted, unoriginal talking point rather than a real opinion.vs. 4chan/Twitter: the same NPC face is used worldwide to caricature people repeating memorized arguments.Klore note

What Koreans said

12 top comments on the original thread, translated
  1. 71 upvotes on the original thread
    Anon· on the original thread

    Japan's steel back then wasn't unusable, but they had to do so much complicated work just to match everyone else's level lol

    당시 일본의 철이 못써먹을건 아닌데.. 남들과 비슷한 수준을 내기 위해 해야하는 일이 너무 복잡하고 일관성도 떨어져서 ㅋㅋ

  2. 63 upvotes on the original thread
    Anon· on the original thread

    If you apply the katana-making method to good quality steel? That's literally called Damascus steel

    질좋은 강철로 일본도공법을 적용하면? 그걸 다마스커스 강이라고 한단다

  3. 56 upvotes on the original thread
    Anon· on the original thread

    They only refined it like that to save bad steel, honestly Europe just had OP steel from the start

    안좋은철 살릴려고 저렇게 연마한거긴해 솔직히 유럽이 사기라

Read all 12 translated repliesShow fewer replies
  1. 42 upvotes on the original thread
    Anon· on the original thread

    It's not absurd because the sword is good, it's absurd because they forced a tin can to become hard

    칼이 좋아서 황당한게 아닌 깡통을 억지로 딴딴하게 만든 물건이라 황당한

  2. 39 upvotes on the original thread
    Anon· on the original thread

    The good katanas actually used imported steel, apparently Gaya-made iron ingots were super popular

    일본도 좋은 일본도는 수입철 썼지 가야 철괴가 인기가 많았대

  3. 34 upvotes on the original thread
    Anon· on the original thread

    Shockingly it's all true though

    놀랍게도 전부 팩트임

  4. 31 upvotes on the original thread
    Anon· on the original thread

    Usually people say that steel is basically unusable

    보통 그걸 못 써먹는다고 함

  5. 21 upvotes on the original thread
    Anon· on the original thread

    If they had good iron ore it's not like katanas would disappear, they'd just have way sturdier katanas lmaooo

    우수한 철광석이 많이 나오면 일본도가 없어지는게 아니고 걍 튼튼한 일본도가 많아지지 ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ

  6. 17 upvotes on the original thread
    Anon· on the original thread

    If you're talking about that Lupin III meme, that katana was made from meteorite iron. 'The steel is good'

    루팡 3세 짤 말하는거면 그 일본도도 운석 철로 만든거임 "철이 좋음"

  7. 16 upvotes on the original thread
    Anon· on the original thread

    Yeah it's iron sand so it really was unusable... they just squeezed everything they could out of that garbage to make it work

    사철이라사 못써먹을거 맞음... 그 사철을 쥐어짜서 그나마 쓸만하게 만든거지

  8. 13 upvotes on the original thread
    Anon· on the original thread

    Looking at just that, it's not really primitive... it's the opposite actually, they pushed their tech to the limit trying to match good steel swords using bad materials

    저것만 보면 미개하다고 할 일은 아니긴해.. 오히려 안 좋은 재료로 최대한 좋은 철로 만든 칼이랑 비슷하게 만들기 위해 기술을 끌어올린 결과니까 오히려 미개하다랑은 정반대지?

  9. 8 upvotes on the original thread
    Anon· on the original thread

    This method wasn't unique to katanas, every civilization using iron did the same thing. Making swords from truly good steel was impossible until the era of guys like Carnegie

    애초에 저 방식이 일본도만 한 게 아니고 철기 쓰는 문명은 다 저렇게 했음 우리가 생각하는 좋은 철로 그냥 만들음 -> 철강왕이라고 하던 카네기 등의 시대가 오기 전까지는 불가능함 이 때 칼이 전투용으로 의미가 없는 건 당연하고 일본도가 접쇠로 유명한 건 급격한 산업화 때문에 전통공법이 사멸할 시간적 여유가 없어서 그대로 남아서 공예화되어 이어졌기 때문임 산업화가 완만했던 곳은 일단 한번 죽었다 살아나는데 여기는 죽기 전에 다른 살 길이 열린 거

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