Edge on edge parrying is always a bad idea when using a cutting sword, but the choreography is often taken from fencing. Fencing is mainly derived from rapier and small sword fighting, and both of those types of blades generally were narrow, rigid, and either square or hexagonal in cross section with no cutting edge, as offense was based around the thrust. Since those blades had no edge to damage, clashing blades was a perfectly viable tactic.Which makes most anime funny, because they tend to use more western style parries in anime because it looks cooler. But that would be a pretty dumb idea with the swords they're using. Of course, I suppose it's subverted when it's the Super Magical Happy Monkey Sword Which Can Cut Through Ghosts.
In European longsword fighting, most parries are slashes aimed to strike perpendicular to the path of your opponent's strike and deflect it away. In such a case, you'd be hitting their sword side-on, rather than edge-on.
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