Is Admiral: Roaring Currents Based On A True Story?

Man, the first time I saw Borsalino in 'One Piece' I laughed at his slow, almost bored way of speaking—then watched him vaporize entire squads and realized this guy isn’t just chill, he’s deadly efficient. From my perspective, the simplest reason he became an admiral is that he’s the kind of raw, uncontestable strength the Marines need at the top. The Pika Pika no Mi doesn’t just give him flashy beams; it gives unmatched mobility and firepower. In a world where sea kings, pirates, and logia users run wild, having someone who can move and strike at the speed of light is a strategic asset you can’t ignore. But there’s more than power. I also think his personality fits the World Government’s needs: cool, detached, and not driven by ideology the way some admirals are. He doesn’t grandstand about justice or mercy—he performs orders with a kind of amused professionalism. That makes him reliable in a political sense, which matters as much as strength when promotions to admiral are on the line. So for me it’s a mix: unbeatable ability, tactical usefulness, and political reliability. Watching him in big set pieces always feels like seeing a blunt instrument that the Navy learned how to wield perfectly, and I kind of love that.

I got hooked on the massive sea battles in 'The Admiral: Roaring Currents' and wanted English subs from the start, so here’s what I usually do. First, check the big digital stores: Amazon Prime Video (rent/buy), Apple iTunes/Apple TV, Google Play Movies (or YouTube Movies) and Vudu often carry South Korean blockbusters with English subtitle tracks. Product pages usually list available languages — look for “subtitles: English” before you rent. If you prefer physical media, the import Blu‑ray (search for 'Myeong‑ryang' or 'The Admiral: Roaring Currents') commonly includes English subtitles; I bought one online and had to check the region code, so pay attention to region locking. If you want a quick way to see current availability in your country, use a service like JustWatch or Reelgood and search both 'Admiral: Roaring Currents' and 'Myeong‑ryang'. Libraries and services like Kanopy occasionally carry it too. Avoid sketchy streams — official rentals or discs give far better subtitle accuracy, which matters during naval tactics scenes. Enjoy the soundtrack and the chaos of those waves!

I’ve hunted down physical copies of niche films enough times to have a little playbook, and if you want a Blu-ray or DVD of 'The Admiral: Roaring Currents' (Korean title: '명량'), start with the big import shops. I usually check Amazon and eBay first for new or used discs — Amazon sometimes carries international editions and eBay is great for out-of-print copies. For direct-import sellers, YesAsia and Ktown4u often stock Korean film Blu-rays and list subtitle info clearly. If you want a collector’s edition, look at Korean retailer listings (search for the distributor CJ ENM or the Korean product code) and compare with local shops that specialize in Asian cinema. Don’t forget specialty secondhand shops, Discogs, and even regional Facebook collector groups where people trade DVDs. A heads-up: verify region codes and subtitle availability before buying (DVDs often have region codes; Blu-rays are commonly region-free but always check). Also compare shipping costs and seller ratings so you don’t get surprised by customs or a scratched disc. I got mine through an import site last year and it arrived with English subs and the poster insert — small thrill that made the wait worth it.

I get excited thinking about 'Admiral: Roaring Currents' because it made such a huge splash at home, but when people ask me about international awards I always give a careful reply. The film was a giant commercial triumph in South Korea and picked up a clutch of domestic honors — which sometimes overshadows the fact that its international awards footprint is actually pretty light. From what I’ve followed, 'Admiral: Roaring Currents' didn’t sweep major international film awards circuits the way some festival darlings do. Instead it earned recognition through international festival screenings and the attention of critics and cinephiles abroad. The story I tell friends is that its biggest “international” wins were more about audience admiration and box-office headlines (it briefly became one of the highest-grossing non-English films worldwide in certain markets) than about trophies from Cannes, Venice, or Berlin. If you want a trophy list, look to its strong domestic awards; if you want global impact, look at how it put Korean historical epics on the map.

I've been geeking out over this series for years, so yes — there has been official movement beyond 'Admiral: Roaring Currents'. The director laid out a multi-film project that continued the Yi Sun‑sin saga, and the follow-up film 'Hansan: Rising Dragon' was released after much buildup. It's often described as a companion/prequel that explores another famous naval victory, so it isn't a straight sequel in the usual sense but it is part of the same cinematic cycle. Beyond that, the filmmaker has talked about a final chapter focusing on the Battle of Noryang to round out the trilogy. That third installment has been discussed publicly and is meant to complete the trilogy, though production timelines and release plans have shifted around due to industry delays and the pandemic. If you loved the scale and historical sweep of 'Admiral: Roaring Currents', following this trilogy is worth it — I still get chills thinking about those big ship sequences and hope the last film lands soon.

I’m pretty sure you might be mixing up a title there, but if you mean the Kolchak character from the original live-action run, the person who created him was Jeff Rice. He wrote the original teleplay that became the 1972 TV movie 'The Night Stalker', and it was Rice’s investigative reporter Carl Kolchak who jumped from that TV movie into the short-lived but hugely influential series 'Kolchak: The Night Stalker'. I’ll also toss in the production side because people often ask who ‘made’ the show: Dan Curtis produced the TV movie and helped shepherd the later series, and Darren McGavin famously inhabited the role on-screen. So in plain terms, Jeff Rice created the character, Dan Curtis helped bring the TV production to life, and Darren McGavin gave Kolchak his voice and mannerisms. If by ‘Admiral’ you actually meant some other universe or a different show’s rank (like an admiral in a sci-fi series), tell me which series and I’ll dig into that, because there isn’t an Admiral Kolchak in the original Kolchak material and that title likely belongs to another franchise. If you’ve got a screenshot or a snippet where you saw ‘Admiral Kolchak’, send it and I’ll help pin down whether it’s a crossover, a fanfic, or just a misremembered name.

I got a little hooked researching this, because 'Admiral Kolchak' isn’t a name that rings a loud bell in mainstream comics or novel lists I usually skim through. There’s a fair chance the name is either niche (from a small-press comic, RPG supplement, or web serial) or a misremembering of something more famous. If you meant the classic reporter Carl Kolchak, that’s a different trail — he first showed up on-screen in the 1972 TV movie 'The Night Stalker' and then in the 1974 series 'Kolchak: The Night Stalker'. But that’s not an admiral, so I wanted to flag that in case the name twisted in your head while hunting for it. If we’re strictly hunting for an “Admiral Kolchak” in print, I couldn’t find a solid first-publication citation in the mainstream databases I checked. My usual checklist for this kind of detective work is: Comic Vine and the Grand Comics Database for comic-firsts, WorldCat and Google Books for old pulp or novels, and publisher backlists (Dark Horse, IDW, Marvel, DC) in case it’s tied to a licensed universe. Smaller press or fan zines often don’t get indexed well, so a websearch with quotes around the full name plus terms like "first appearance", "issue", "chapter", or a publisher name can unearth forum threads or scans. If you can drop a screenshot, the exact spelling, or the universe it’s from (sci-fi, military fiction, Star Wars-adjacent fanfic?), I’ll happily dig deeper. I love this kind of hunt — feels like combing through a dusty comic shop for a hidden gem.

Whenever I dig into weirdly specific lore names like 'Kolchak Admiral', my brain starts riffing on what would make a commander like that stand out on the battlefield. I haven't pinned down a single canonical source for the name, so I'm treating it like a creative prompt and listing the kind of signature weapons that would fit an admiral with that vibe: a mix of ceremonial tradition and brutal tactical utility. Think of a long-range flagship weapon — a braided-rail broadside or grav-lance — that can punch through enemy formations, paired with a precision boarding system for taking prizes. The aesthetic side would include a ceremonial blade or dirk used for rites and close-quarters duels, something like a naval sabre but etched with fleet honors. On the tech side, 'Kolchak' screams hybrid warfare to me: heavy macro-cannons for ship-to-ship brawls, a string of smart torpedoes or guided boarding drones for disabling targets, and a signature electronic warfare suite (imagine a cloak or 'whisper' array) that lets the admiral control the tempo of engagements. For flavor, throw in a personal sidearm — an ornate plasma-pistol or cut-down flintlock for when they storm a captured bridge — and a command beacon that boosts allied performance. If you're building a character or designing a model, lean into contrast: ceremonial, symbolic weapons for presence and brutal, engineered systems for the fight. I like that blend because it tells a story with each piece of gear and gives players or readers lots to riff on.