Imperial Combat Revue: First Generation

Sakura Wars

New Sakura Wars

Sakura Revolution

Imperial Combat Revue 帝国華撃団
Imperial Assault Force Emblem
Information
Nationality	Tokyo, Japan
Headquarters	Grand Imperial Theatre, Ginza
Affiliation	Imperial Navy
Owner	Ikki Yoneda (1922-1927) Ichiro Ogami (1927-1930)
Captain(s)	Ichiro Ogami (1923-1927) Maria Tachibana (1922-1923/1927-1930)
Spiritual Arms	Kobu (1922-1923) Kobu Kai (1925-1926) Kobu Nishiki (1926-1927)
Status	Unknown (Sealed Within Shadow Tokyo)
Appearances
First Appearance (Game)	Sakura Wars (1996) Episode 1: The Capital's Floral Assault Troop!
Last Appearance (Game)	Dramatic Dungeon: Sakura Wars
First Appearance (Anime)	Sakura Wars: The Gorgeous Blooming Cherry Blossoms
Last Appearance (Anime)	Sakura Taisen: Sumire

The Imperial Combat Revue (first generation) (帝国華撃団, Teikoku Kagekidan) was a Japanese military unit dedicated to defending Tokyo against demonic forces using powerful Spiricle Armor while maintaining a cover as a theater troupe under the homonym the Imperial Revue (帝国歌劇団, Teikoku Kagekidan) from 1922-1930. Being the founding Combat Revue, it had a number of divisions dedicated to both fighting and performing, most notably the Flower Division and the Wind Division. The events of Operation Twin Capitals resulted in the dissolution of the Imperial Combat Revue until Sumire Kanzaki's revived revue in 1939.

List of Divisions

Flower Division

See also: Flower Division

The main combat arm of the Revue, they are also the main headlining performers of the Imperial Revue's theatrical productions.

Wind Division

See also: Wind Division

The support team for the Flower Division, in charge of piloting transport vehicles such as the Skywhale and Mikasa, as well as maintaining communications with those in the field. They also double as the clerical staff for the Grand Imperial Theater, running the secretarial office and the gift shop.

Moon Division

See also: Moon Division

The reconnaissance arm of the Imperial Combat Revue, they perform espionage and are in charge of gathering intel. Their public-facing duties at the Grand Imperial Theater are unknown at present.

Dream Division

See also: Dream Division

The spiritual defense force of the Revue. Comprised primarily of spirit mediums and priestesses, they perform rituals and ceremonies to aid the Revue. Their public-facing duties at the Grand Imperial Theater are unknown at present.

Snow Division

See also: Snow Division

The spec-ops corps within the Revue, specializing in combat in extreme environmental conditions. Having only been mentioned in passing, not much is known about their personnel, their activities, or their public-facing duties at the Grand Imperial Theater.

Hanayashiki Branch

See also: Hanayashiki Branch

The Imperial Combat Revue's research and development arm, responsible for the creation of much of their equipment and weaponry. Publicly operates as the Hanayashiki amusement park.

Rose Division

See also: Rose Division

The self-proclaimed "Secret Unit of Love and Beauty," their true purpose is to safeguard the Pandemonium Regalia within the confines of the Grand Imperial Theater's underground storage area. They have no formal public-facing duties at the Grand Imperial Theater, but assist in various facets of production, such as set construction.

Maiden Division

See also: Maiden Division

A division made up of Flower Division candidates in training, they reside at the Maidens' Academy and act as a backup unit should the Flower Division be unavailable or otherwise indisposed. Though they do not collectively work for the Imperial Revue, individual members may be temporarily employed at the Grand Imperial Theater should the need arise.

Kanade Division

See also: Kanade Division

The secondary combat corps within the Revue. Whereas the Flower Division take care of large-scale demonic threats in their spiricle armors, the Kanadegumi handle the smaller-scale disturbances on foot. They double as the Imperial Revue's orchestra, with their captain serving as the conductor. This division only appears in Sakura Wars: Kanadegumi and, save the captain, is the only division entirely composed of men.

History

The Anti-Demon Corps and the Demon War

Established in 1912, the Anti-Demon Corps was the direct predecessor to the Imperial Combat Revue. It was a secret military unit made up of only four elite soldiers: Ikki Yoneda, Kazuma Shinguji, Ayame Fujieda and Shinnosuke Yamazaki. Each of them were the inheritors of sacred swords imbued with spiritual power: Yoneda held the Divine Blade Mekkyaku, Shinguji the Spirit Sword Arataka, Ayame the Divine Sword Shirahatori, and Yamazaki the Luminous Blade Mukei. By combining the power of these weapons, they could perform the Rite of Four Swords, a powerful technique capable of sealing away evil.

On April 4, 1915, a large demon had emerged from the depths below Nihonbashi, marking the beginning of the Demon War. During this conflict, Yamazaki would draft up designs for what would become the Kobu, Goraigo and Skywhale, though none of these would enter production during the course of the war. Finally, on January 8, 1918, the Anti-Demon Corps entered the Nihonbashi underground to seal away the demons once and for all. However, despite their best efforts, the Rite of Four Swords failed. As a last resort, Kazuma Shinguji, using the combined power of the Shinguji clan's Bloodline of Purification and the Pandemonium Regalia, sealed away the demons at the cost of his own life, putting an end to the war and restoring peace to the capital. Though Ikki Yoneda and Ayame Fujieda survived the battle, Shinnosuke Yamazaki had gone missing in action and would not be seen again for several years.

Sakura Wars 3: Is Paris Burning?

Though the Imperial Combat Revue were largely uninvolved with the conflict in Paris, some of their members assisted in a few of the Paris Combat Revue's operations. During a visit to see Ichiro Ogami in Paris, Sakura Shinguji, Sumire Kanzaki and Iris helped defend the Eiffel Tower against the Phantoms Ciseaux and Python. Not long after, Maria Tachibana, Kanna Kirishima and Kohran Li were invited to help train the Paris Combat Revue, as well as help with the development of the Koubu F2. Finally, Orihime Soletta and Reni Milchstraße were later tapped to help spy on the Phantoms and uncover their plans.

Sakura Wars 4: Fall in Love, Maidens

Following the final battle against Okubo Nagayasu, Ikki Yoneda met with Ogami in private, where he revealed he would be retiring from his position as commander of the Imperial Combat Revue and promoting Ogami to assume the role.

Dramatic Dungeon Sakura Wars: Because You Are There

When Joan of Arc was resurrected in 1929, warping the fabric of reality around the world, the Imperial Combat Revue joined forces with the Paris Combat Revue and the New York Combat Revue to help put a stop to her ambitions.

Sakura Wars (2019)

Following Operation Twin Capitals in 1930, the first-generation Imperial Combat Revue was forcibly disbanded. The Revue would eventually be revived through the efforts of Sumire Kanzaki as the second-generation Imperial Combat Revue by 1940.

Trivia

• Sakura Wars: So Long, My Love localized the Imperial Combat Revue as the Imperial Assault Force, before Sakura Wars (2019) changed the name to the Imperial Combat Revue to match the other revues in the series.