During World War II, Japanese soldiers adopted a version of the samurai code of honor. Fiercely commited to this ideology, some continued to fight even after the war ended. Learn more about these "stragglers" in this podcast from HowStuffWorks.com.
AI Summary
Join Josh and Chuck as they dive into the fascinating and tragic world of Japanese holdout soldiers from World War II, focusing on kamikaze pilots and the remarkable soldiers who continued fighting long after the war ended. They explore how Japan's military twisted the ancient samurai code of Bushido to create suicide pilots, then tell the incredible stories of soldiers like Lieutenant Hiroo Onoda, who waged a one-man guerrilla war in the Philippines for 29 years until 1974. From dramatic jungle encounters to unexpected pop culture connections, this episode reveals some of the most extraordinary tales of loyalty, honor, and human endurance from the Pacific Theater.
CSI: Crime Scene Investigation
2000
★ 7.6
"I love all the crime shows, CSI, NCIS, Races Fox. CSI's Liars. — A listener mentions watching crime shows including CSI in an email about framing someone for murder."
Ghostbusters
1984
1h 47m
★ 7.5
"Was it full decade before Ghostbusters? Correct? Yeah. Unfortunately. — Josh uses Ghostbusters as a time reference point when discussing events in 1974."
— Josh
Gilligan's Island
1964
★ 7.4
"We'd be remiss if we did not mention Gilligan's Island, which occurred to me while I was reading this article. — Chuck mentions a Gilligan's Island episode featuring a Japanese holdout soldier as an example of the topic in pop culture."
— Chuck
Memoirs of a Geisha
2005
2h 26m
★ 7.6
"Memoirs of a geisha? That was different. Oh, okay. That was different. — Chuck mistakenly references this title when Josh mentions a Japanese holdout soldier wrote a memoir."
— Chuck
"I love all the crime shows, CSI, NCIS, Races Fox. — A listener mentions watching NCIS among other crime shows in an email."
"I'm like the guy from Pi. — Josh compares himself to the obsessive character from Pi when trying to find patterns in comic strip curse words."
— Josh
"John Rambo, if you will. And no, he wasn't much of a Rambo. That's true. Wait for Rambo. He's coming up. — Josh compares a Japanese holdout soldier to Rambo, setting up a later discussion about a more formidable holdout."
— Josh
Swiss Family Robinson
1960
2h 6m
★ 6.9
"they were doing pretty good living like Swiss Family Robinson style, right? — Josh describes how Japanese holdouts were surviving on an island in a self-sufficient manner."
— Josh
The Last Samurai
2003
2h 34m
★ 7.6
"Even Tom Cruise looked cool as a samurai, which is really saying that says a whole lot. — Josh discusses how cool samurai armor is, noting that even Tom Cruise looked good wearing it."
— Josh
"Not even the Simpsons? No, not anymore. Maybe during season seven. — Josh mentions he wouldn't kill himself for any ideology, not even The Simpsons, though he might have during season seven."
— Josh
The Six Million Dollar Man
1973
1h 14m
★ 6.7
"Steve Austin was held captive by a Japanese holdout in one episode of the six million dollar man. — Chuck cites another TV show that featured the Japanese holdout soldier theme."
— Chuck
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